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(c) New Internationalist
For women seeking refuge in Spain, a trail of peril awaits
The stories of women migrants making the desperate Mediterranean crossing to Europe are different from those of the men, marked by a higher level of exploitation and abuse. Lucia Benavides reports from Spain.
On the last leg of her long and perilous journey to Europe, Joy Good was eight months pregnant. Fortunately, she was rescued from a rubber dinghy bobbing off the coast of Spain last August.
The 20-year-old had started her trip to Spain from a small Nigerian village two years earlier. She says life there was tough for a young woman like her, especially after her first pregnancy – a result of a rape when she was just 15 years old.
'I left because I don't have help,' said Good. 'I don't have anyone.'
Both of her parents died when she was young. So, as soon as she gave birth to the child – a girl – Good handed her over to neighbours in the village. Then she headed north, hoping to find better opportunities in Europe.
But the journey proved more difficult than she had anticipated.
'The police [at the Morocco-Algeria border] would see us and they said they wanted to make love to us,' said Good, referring to the other women travelling alongside her. 'They beat everybody. They always beat. They also beat me.'
Good has a difficult time talking about her journey. She often stops to rub her face with her hands, take a deep breath and look at me as if asking when the questions will stop. When she brings up the father of the unborn child – a boy, whom she planned to keep – she says he stayed behind in Morocco.
Good is just one of many women who crossed into Spain last summer, eventually making it to Malaga and applying for asylum. She has qualified for a six-month governmental programme that provides shelter, Spanish classes and other immersion activities.
As Italy closed its ports to NGO vessels carrying migrants, and human rights violations in Libyan detention centers intensified, Spain became the main entry point for migrants crossing into Europe. As of the end of 2018, some 58,525 migrants had crossed into Spain by land and sea – more arrivals than in the last three years combined. The number of arrivals in Spain was almost double that seen in Italy and Greece.
Women make up 10 per cent of those migrants, according to the International Organization for Migration. And their experience differs widely from that of their male counterparts: immigration lawyers say many face sexual abuse and exploitation on the way. Their journeys are often long – it can take months, or even years, to reach European soil – running up costs totalling thousands of euros. As a result, many women resort to sex work en route – one of the few options to make some money quickly.
'Women face all kinds of patriarchal violence during their journey. But we have to keep in mind each woman's agency, the act of deciding what the best strategy for surviving the journey is for her,' says immigration lawyer Ana María Rosado Caro, who works with the Association for Human Rights of Andalusia, a nonprofit organization made up of volunteers and lawyers. 'Each woman finds the strategy of survival that works for her, be it by getting a so-called "journey boyfriend", or something else.'
The term 'journey boyfriend' refers to a man who protects a woman along her migration route in exchange for having sexual access to her whenever he wants. Rosado Caro says it's likely that the father of Good's child played this role at some point in her journey. Like many other women who crossed into Spain last summer, Good was travelling alone, and this was one way of protecting herself.
'There's always the stereotype that almost all sub-Saharan women that arrive are victims of sex trafficking,' says Rosado Caro, but that's not always the case. She adds that the process of identifying victims and sex traffickers is much more complex.
While every female migrant has her own individual story, Rosado Caro says she generally sees two types of profiles. There are those who cross under the thumb of mafias, who facilitate the journey from start to finish in exchange for a debt of tens of thousands of euros; and those who cross of their own will, but pay traffickers along the way to reach their destinations.
Yet the assumption that all female migrants are sex-trafficking victims has resulted in cases where sub-Saharan women were separated from their children at the border.
'They consider you a sex-trafficking victim from the start, without asking you, without observing you, without knowing you,' says Rosado Caro. 'If you have children, they could separate you for some time.'
The latest case was in 2017, when one woman from Côte d'Ivoire was separated from her four-year-old son for five months, as Spanish authorities ran various DNA tests to confirm their blood relation. Spanish authorities, who thought she was a victim of sex trafficking, argued that this placed her child in a situation of neglect. There was no legal basis for the separation – and mother and son were eventually reunited. But only after a long and arduous bureaucratic process, during which the child was left in the care of a refugee centre for minors.
A new life, alone
Lola López, immigration commissioner at Barcelona's City Hall, says things don't necessarily get easier once migrants reach Europe.
Her department works with the Red Cross and other NGOs to provide housing for the thousands of migrants that arrive in the Catalan capital every year. Between July and October 2018, she says, the city received 3,500 migrants transferred from refugee centres in the south of Spain – where they had arrived by boat.
'With women, what we try to do is detect sex-trafficking victims. If we detect them, there's a municipal programme that takes care of them and puts them up in safe places,' López says.
She says it's much harder for women to build new lives in a new country. Once in Spain, they don't have the support of family and friends, which they had back home.
'There are more opportunities for men within the underground economy. It's easier to build networks and form communities that will help you do things like find housing,' says López. 'But women are much more alone. Their communities are much smaller.'
Photo: Carlos Gill/Sopa Images/Getty
Work opportunities for undocumented migrants are scarce – and more so for women. Many end up getting jobs in domestic work or setting up stands alongside the so-called manteros, sub-Saharan African men selling souvenirs and off-brand merchandise on blankets. The women, in turn, sell jewellery or offer to braid people's hair; they are by far outnumbered by male sellers.
A large percentage of women, however, choose to make their money through sex work. Much like during their journey north, female migrants living in Europe often find that it is the fastest and easiest way to make up the debt they accumulated during their crossing.
'If you need to survive, you'll survive however you can,' says López. 'If there are no possible legal migrating processes, they'll find other ways.'
Rosado Caro says Europe is in need of more safe and legal migration channels for African migrants fleeing poverty and violence. In most cases, a national from an African country needs a visa to set foot on European soil – and often those visas are not granted in the first place. This leads people to take drastic measures, says Rosado Caro, like risking their lives in the Mediterranean Sea crossings.
'There's a structural and symbolic violence that comes about because of immigration laws. The law that we have in Spain, for example, makes it virtually impossible to enter in a legal way,' says Rosado Caro. 'The European Union has an immigration policy that's based on racism and xenophobia. If they take away men's humanity, for women it's even more so.'
The moment Good set foot in Malaga, she was taken straight to a hospital. It's protocol for all female migrants who arrive in Spain pregnant; other women and children are taken to apartments run by the Red Cross or refugee centres where NGOs provide humanitarian aid.
Good was taken to a centre run by the nonprofit Spanish Commission for Refugees. When I spoke to her – two weeks after her arrival – she told me she didn't know anyone in Spain and hadn't yet made any friends. While she waits to find out whether the Spanish government will grant her asylum, she's taking Spanish classes and finding ways to make money. She can braid hair for the time being, she says, until there's a better opportunity.
She says she's happy to be in Spain, and that she plans to make it work in the Mediterranean country – as opposed to continuing her journey north to France or Germany, like a lot of other migrants.
'I feel good,' Good told me. 'It was a very long journey; it was not easy. But, at last, God made everything possible. So everything was successful.'
This article is from the March-April 2019 issue of New Internationalist.
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Marchers set out from Liberty State Park in Jersey City this morning, with Ellis Island in the background, on a walk intended to highlight the need for immigration reform.About 60 marchers gathered at Liberty State Park in Jersey City this morning -- in front of the foot bridge to Ellis Island -- before setting out on a 10-mile walk intended to highlight the need for immigration reform.
The day-long event, called "Ellis Island Is Closed," began with a news conference and interfaith prayer service before most participants -- immigrant rights activists and family members who have been affected by immigration policy and detention practices -- began the walk to the Elizabeth Detention Center.
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According to a news release, the organizers are hoping for new oversight and an overhaul of the U.S. immigration policy and particularly wants to see community-based alternatives to detention as well as judicial discretion in the deportation of people with family ties in America.
Leroy Montel, a client of the American Friends Service Committee Immigrant Rights program, said in French that much of his extended family, including his brother and several cousins, were deported to back to their native Haiti and face very difficult conditions, as do the wives and children that were left here in the United States.
Liz Estes, a resident of Highland Park, said she didn't mind braving the cold for a few hours to march the stretch from Jersey City to Elizabeth.
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Living with PTSD: A Letter to an Old…
Living with PTSD: A Letter to an Old Nemesis
Don't Miss the Boat in Chicago
Cruising on a green river winding through architecture in Chicago is something not to be ignored when visiting this friendly Midwest city.
Chicago, on the southwestern shore of Lake Michigan, was incorporated as a city in 1837, it is 176 meters above sea level and covers an area of 60,000 hectares. The city is traversed by the Chicago and Calumet rivers. Chicago's extensive parklands, including 3,000 hectares of city parks attract an estimated 86 million visitors annually. Today, thousands of budding architects, and lovers of architecture, also travel to the birthplace of the skyscraper. Chicago, Illinois.
Every day is a good day to travel Chicago city.
Fall, winter, spring or summer there are things to see and do.
Fall is eathical's Tess Bacchus's favourite season, the golds and reds of autumn, the crisp air cleansing away the heat of the last summer, the fall shopping on Michigan avenue, and the arrival of the autumn dishes on the restaurants' menus. I, on the other hand adore summer in Chi-town.
Here at eathical, our team members are filled with adventure.
At any given moment one of us is somewhere else rather than at home, even if it means rediscovering our own city. eathical.ca writers focus on travel, food, and human-interest stories. We love exploring global locations "just like a local". We are forever thankful for these opportunities to explore the world around us.
Tess Bacchus, is a Chicagoan and she will often rediscover her city in mini-staycations. On this trip, Tess invited me to join her on the 90 minutes' river cruise to experience the architectural highlights of Chicago.
The morning started with us enjoying a cup of dark chocolate mocha in the early morning sun, right in the heart of downtown Chicago.
The river, a pale turquoise colour and calm, added a gentleness to the surrounding environment of artsy steel, glass and sandstone buildings.
Architecture, River, Bridges and more.
First of all, The Chicago Architecture Foundation Centre's CAC-certified volunteer tour guides—called docents—interpret more than 50 buildings along the Chicago River. You'll find out how Chicago grew from a small settlement into one of the world's largest cities in less than 100 years. In 90 minutes, you will get the real story on Chicago's architecture and its history.
The boats sail smoothly under the many bridges of Chicago. Each bridge is a major street, like the iconic Clark Street Bridge that spans the Chicago River in downtown Chicago. This bridge, which connects the Near North Side with The Loop, is a type of bridge with a pivoting section that is raised and lowered using counterweights.
I loved this building, so massive and imposing in its sheer magnitude, as we sailed by, almost inconsequentially, at its feet.
The boat sailed steady and slow down the centre of the river, allowing an uninterrupted flow of interesting architecture to slowly glide by.
Did you know the Chicago River is a reversed river?
To reverse the flow of the Chicago River, a 28-mile canal was built from the south branch of the river, through the low summit and down to Lockport. It was completed in 1900. The sheer vision, chutzpah, and work it took to reverse the natural flow of a river is mind boggling.
Tess Bacchus liked this.
The Marina City complex was designed in 1959 by architect Bertrand Goldberg and constructed between 1961 and 1968. Marina City was the first urban post-war high-rise residential complex in the United States and is widely credited with beginning the residential renaissance of American inner cities.
Marina City Tower
The sight of vibrant green vines crawling up the exterior of red brick buildings will always remind me of Chicago.
The 110-story, $840 million office tower, formerly called the Sears Tower, is a landmark in Chicago and one of the tallest buildings in the world. It was renamed The Willis Tower in 2009 after the insurance broker Willis Group Holdings leased the naming rights. To this day, Chicagoans refuse to refer to the tower as anything but the Sears Tower.
Lake Point Tower. The unique clover shape of this residential building was designed to let strong lake winds more easily slip around its edges, reducing their direct effects on the structure. The design was based on a never produced, 18-story design by renowned architect Ludwig Mies van der Rohe. I Loved the way the bronzes, brasses and golds of this building shone in the morning sun.
Lake Point Tower
Navy Pier. Built originally as a port facility for commercial shipping and Great Lakes excursion boats, Navy Pier sits on a 25-acre peninsula. In 1995, the pier re-opened to the public after a 150-million-dollar rehabilitation. If you are in Chicago you must visit the pier for an evening of fun and one of the summer nights' fireworks.
What can I say about Chicago…
One of the first and lasting impressions you will get with Chicagoans is that they are nice, that is not a myth, they are just nice. they will strike up a conversation with you without hesitating. Strangers will happily give you directions if you are lost and by the time the conversation is over you will have a list of places to visit, places to eat, and what not to miss, plus where to avoid. Chicagoans love their city and they take it as a personal compliment when you visit. I have been a frequent traveler to Chicago since the early 1990s.
To this day, I stand by my first impression…Chicago is the prettiest city to visit, filled with the friendliest people I have ever met.
By the way, here's another piece of Chicagoans stubbornness, the refusal to call The Bean anything but The Bean. Cloud Gate (The bean) is a public sculpture by Indian-born British artist Sir Anish Kapoor, that is the centerpiece of AT&T Plaza at Millennium Park in the Loop community area of Chicago, Illinois. Constructed between 2004 and 2006, the sculpture is nicknamed The Bean (by Chicagoans) because of its shape.
Chicago Architecture Foundation Center River Cruise Aboard Chicago's First Lady
By Samantha McLeod
All Images by Tess Bacchus
Springtime in Vancouver
Amazing Central Asia
A Simple Apple Chutney
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(thing) by Garibald Tue Sep 10 2002 at 16:41:33
Originally the Federal Water Pollution Control Act of 1972, the admended act was renamed The Clean Water Act (CWA) of 1977. The Act establishes controls on the discharged emission of pollutants into the water systems of the United States. The Act also called for the EPA to establish control programs, such as wastewater standards for industries. The creation of sewage treatment plants throughout the country were given funding through the Act under the construction grants program.
After 1977, the CWA was revised in 1981 to streamline the municipal construction grants process, improving the capabilities of treatment plants built under the program. Changes in 1987 phased out the construction grants program, replacing it with the State Water Pollution Control Revolving Fund, also known as the Clean Water State Revolving Fund. This new funding strategy addressed water quality needs by building on EPA-State partnerships.
The Act is broken into six titles or subchapters that deal with various specifics of the regulation of water pollution
Title   I - Research and Related Programs
Title  II - Grants for Construction of Treatment Works
Title III - Standards and Enforcement
Title  IV - Permits and Licenses
Title   V - General Provisions
Title  VI - State Water Pollution Control Revolving Funds
Clean Air Act Water pollution National Environmental Policy Act Gulf of Mexico dead zone
For the love of Gaia pollution Jolt Cola Sierra Club political canvasser's shpiel
The Occupational Safety and Health Act To Minnie air pollution pollutant
Hi-C permit environmental Cuyahoga River
state lawyer research standard
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Experts > Juliette Aristides
Juliette Aristides's Top Book Recommendations
Want to know what books Juliette Aristides recommends on their reading list? We've researched interviews, social media posts, podcasts, and articles to build a comprehensive list of Juliette Aristides's favorite book recommendations of all time.
Art and Fear
Observations on the Perils (and Rewards) of Artmaking
David Bayles, Ted Orland | 4.21
"This is a book about making art. Ordinary art. Ordinary art means something like: all art not made by Mozart. After all, art is rarely made by Mozart-like people; essentially-statistically speaking-there aren't any people like that. Geniuses get made once-a-century or so, yet good art gets made all the time, so to equate the making of art with the workings of genius removes this intimately human activity to a strangely unreachable and unknowable place. For all practical purposes making art can be examined in great detail without ever getting entangled in the very remote problems of... more
"This is a book about making art. Ordinary art. Ordinary art means something like: all art not made by Mozart. After all, art is rarely made by Mozart-like people; essentially-statistically speaking-there aren't any people like that. Geniuses get made once-a-century or so, yet good art gets made all the time, so to equate the making of art with the workings of genius removes this intimately human activity to a strangely unreachable and unknowable place. For all practical purposes making art can be examined in great detail without ever getting entangled in the very remote problems of genius."
--from the Introduction less
Recommended by Juliette Aristides, and 1 others.
Juliette AristidesThe authors believe that art can be taught, and moreover learned, and the traps that waylay our efforts can be avoided or managed with some cheerful guidance. (Source)
On Painting
Leon Battista Alberti, Martin Kemp | 4.16
Artist, architect, poet and philosopher, Leon Battista Alberti revolutionized the history of art with his theories of perspective in On Painting (1435). Inspired by the order and beauty inherent in nature, his groundbreaking work sets out the principles of distance, dimension and proportion; instructs the painter on how to use the rules of composition, representation, light and colour to create work that is graceful and pleasing to the eye; and stipulates the moral and artistic pre-requisites of the successful painter. On Painting had an immediate and profound influence on Italian Renaissance... more
Artist, architect, poet and philosopher, Leon Battista Alberti revolutionized the history of art with his theories of perspective in On Painting (1435). Inspired by the order and beauty inherent in nature, his groundbreaking work sets out the principles of distance, dimension and proportion; instructs the painter on how to use the rules of composition, representation, light and colour to create work that is graceful and pleasing to the eye; and stipulates the moral and artistic pre-requisites of the successful painter. On Painting had an immediate and profound influence on Italian Renaissance artists including Ghiberti, Fra Angelico and Veneziano and on later figures such as Leonardo da Vinci, and remains a compelling theory of art. less
Juliette AristidesAlberti's alternation between poetic passages in the text with technical advice is so memorable that you only need to read it once. (Source)
The Journal of Eugene Delacroix (Phaidon Arts and Letters)
Hubert Wellington | 4.36
Delacroix's Journal is one of the great documents in art history, a magnificent work of literature as well as vital documentary source for scholars and students. In it the artist discusses his own paintings, his life, his sorrow and hopes; the paintings and sculptures of Rubens, Michelangelo, Constable, Bonington and others: old and new literature and the music of Mozart, Rossini and Chopin, the events of his time.
This revival of a famous Phaidon series brings together in an elegant format some of the best-known writings of renowned artists, critics and interpreters of our... more
This revival of a famous Phaidon series brings together in an elegant format some of the best-known writings of renowned artists, critics and interpreters of our cultural tradition. Each book, an acknowledged classic, provides insights not only into the worlds of the arts and cultural history, but also into the creative and intellectual preoccupations of its author and his time. These Phaidon editions have an introduction and notes by a distinguished editor and a wide range of illustrations specially chosen to complement the text. less
Juliette AristidesThanks to his journals, you might say that he's as much a literary figure as he is a painterly figure. His journals are extensive and seemingly all-encompassing. I can see how one can draw a terrific amount of inspiration and practical know-how about drawing and painting from what's in this book.The romanticism of his paintings may appear overblown to a contemporary audience, but everyone can... (Source)
The Practice and Science of Drawing
Harold Speed | 4.04
Much of the learning to practice as well as to appreciate art is concerned with understanding the basic principles. One of these principles is what Harold Speed calls "dither," the freedom that allows realism and the artistic vision to play against each other. Very important to any artist or work of art, this quality separates the scientifically accurate from the artistically accurate. Speed's approach to this problem is now considered a classic, one of the few books from the early years of this century that has continued to be read and recommended by those in the graphic arts.
In this... more
In this work, Harold Speed approaches this dynamic aspect of drawing and painting from many different points of view. He plays the historical against the scientific, theory against precise artistic definition. He begins with a study of line drawing and mass drawing, the two basic approaches the artist needs to learn. Further sections carry the artistic vision through unity and variety of line and mass, balance, proportion, portrait drawing, the visual memory, materials, and procedures. Throughout, Speed combines historical backgrounds, dynamic aspects which each technique brings to a work of art, and specific exercises through which the young draughtsman may begin his training. Although not a technique book in the strict sense of the terms, The Practice and Science of Drawing brings to the beginner a clear statement of the principles that he will have to develop and their importance in creating a work of art. Ninety-three plates and diagrams, masterfully selected, reinforce Speed's always clear presentation.
Harold Speed, master of the art of drawing and brilliant teacher, has long been cited for this important work. For the beginner, Speed will develop a sense for the many different aspects which go into an artistic education. For the person who enjoys looking at drawings and paintings, Speed will aid developing the ability to see a work of art as the artist meant it to be seen. less
Juliette AristidesThe past is a source of inspiration and fellowship, allowing our solitary lives and artistic body of work to be seen in a larger context, and we are propelled forward in its current.The book is a hundred years old, yet is as true and useful now as when it was first released. An underlying theme through all the books we're discussing is that art is a skill that can be taught and mastery achieved... (Source)
What the Internet Is Doing to Our Brains
Nicholas Carr | 4.14
"Is Google making us stupid?" When Nicholas Carr posed that question, in a celebrated Atlantic Monthly cover story, he tapped into a well of anxiety about how the Internet is changing us. He also crystallized one of the most important debates of our time: As we enjoy the Net's bounties, are we sacrificing our ability to read and think deeply?
Now, Carr expands his argument into the most compelling exploration of the Internet's intellectual and cultural consequences yet published. As he describes how human thought has been shaped through the centuries by "tools of the... more
Now, Carr expands his argument into the most compelling exploration of the Internet's intellectual and cultural consequences yet published. As he describes how human thought has been shaped through the centuries by "tools of the mind"—from the alphabet to maps, to the printing press, the clock, and the computer—Carr interweaves a fascinating account of recent discoveries in neuroscience by such pioneers as Michael Merzenich and Eric Kandel. Our brains, the historical and scientific evidence reveals, change in response to our experiences. The technologies we use to find, store, and share information can literally reroute our neural pathways.
Building on the insights of thinkers from Plato to McLuhan, Carr makes a convincing case that every information technology carries an intellectual ethic—a set of assumptions about the nature of knowledge and intelligence. He explains how the printed book served to focus our attention, promoting deep and creative thought. In stark contrast, the Internet encourages the rapid, distracted sampling of small bits of information from many sources. Its ethic is that of the industrialist, an ethic of speed and efficiency, of optimized production and consumption—and now the Net is remaking us in its own image. We are becoming ever more adept at scanning and skimming, but what we are losing is our capacity for concentration, contemplation, and reflection.
Part intellectual history, part popular science, and part cultural criticism, The Shallows sparkles with memorable vignettes—Friedrich Nietzsche wrestling with a typewriter, Sigmund Freud dissecting the brains of sea creatures, Nathaniel Hawthorne contemplating the thunderous approach of a steam locomotive—even as it plumbs profound questions about the state of our modern psyche. This is a book that will forever alter the way we think about media and our minds. less
Recommended by Juliette Aristides, Andra Zaharia, and 2 others.
Juliette AristidesNicholas Carr talks at length about what is gained and lost by technological progress. Reading and writing enlarged people's sympathetic response and enriched their lives even when the book was put aside. One could say the same thing about drawing. (Source)
Andra ZahariaWhile I was thinking of the best books to add to this short list, I realized that not even half of them are directly related to digital marketing. This is because I believe that the best marketers are people who understand human nature deeply and aim to bring out the best in it. Call me naive, but that's how I see it. If I were to want to pursue a career in marketing, I'd read [...] The Shallows. (Source)
Don't have time to read Juliette Aristides's favorite books? Read Shortform summaries.


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How can we move forward while the economic gender gap keeps moving backward?
9 Jan 2020 World Economic Forum
Four actions business leaders can take now to embrace long-term value creation
22 Jan 2020 World Economic Forum
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25 Apr 2018 London, GB
More than US$11b in fines fails to deter global corruption, EY survey finds
The scale of bribery and corruption has shown no improvement globally since 2012, despite the unprecedented level of enforcement activity and introduction of new corporate criminal liability laws in that time.
Jessica Thomas
EY Global Media Relations and Social Media Associate Director – Service Line and Corporate programs
Media relations and social media leader. Avid reader of anything and everything. Loves to travel.
Direct: +44 20 7951 4653
Related topics Banking and capital markets Assurance Tax accounting
38% of executives across 55 countries say corruption occurs widely in business
Levels of bribery and corruption in emerging markets still twice that of developed markets
20% of respondents under the age of 35 would justify cash payments to win or retain business
The scale of bribery and corruption has shown no improvement globally since 2012, despite the unprecedented level of enforcement activity and introduction of new corporate criminal liability laws in that time. This is according to the 15th EY Global Fraud Survey, which surveyed 2,550 executives across 55 countries.
This year's survey found that despite regulators and law enforcement agencies around the world imposing more than US$11b of financial penalties since 2012, 38% of global executives still believe bribery and corrupt practices remain prevalent in business.
Andrew Gordon, EY Global Fraud Investigation & Dispute Services Leader, says:
"The lack of improvement in global levels of corruption over the last six years shows that unethical behavior in business remains a daunting challenge, despite intensified global enforcement.
While corruption remains so prevalent, businesses remain vulnerable to significant financial and reputational harm. Management teams must identify and address the root causes of unethical conduct in their organization. Compliance programs need to keep pace with the impact of rapid technological advancements and the increasingly complex risk environment on business operations. More robust risk management should be considered a strategic means of improving business performance."
Emerging markets still exhibit higher levels of corruption
The difference in levels of corruption between countries remains significant, with 20% of respondents in developed markets indicating that bribery and corruption occurs widely in business, compared with more than half (52%) of those in emerging markets.
Regions in which corruption risks were higher than the global average included Central and Eastern Europe (47%), the Middle East (62%) and Latin America (74%), despite improved anti-corruption legislation and more active enforcement in some countries.
Overall, the findings show that there is often a lag between the introduction of stronger anti-bribery laws and reduced corruption, with Brazil, the Netherlands and the UK showing this trend. Brazil, for example, has seen the introduction of legislation and increased enforcement over the last four years. Yet, 96% of Brazilian respondents indicate that corrupt practices occur widely in business – an increase from 80% in 2014 when the new laws were introduced. In the US, however, where enforcement of the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA) intensified in the mid-2000s, perceived levels of corruption fell this year to 18%, an improvement from 22% in 2014.
Mismatch remains between intention and performance
Integrity sits high on the board agenda, the survey finds, with 97% recognizing the importance of their organization being seen to operate with integrity. Although improved customer perception, staff retention and business performance were all seen as benefits of demonstrating integrity, there remains a mismatch between intentions and actual behavior. Thirteen percent of respondents say they would justify making cash payments to win or retain business. Interestingly, this rises to 20% among those that are under the age of 35 years old.
The report suggests that organizations need to make it clear that acting with integrity is everyone's responsibility, and while that includes the importance of management setting the right tone from the top, it also involves individual employees. The findings show that 22% of respondents feel that individuals should take primary responsibility for their organization behaving with integrity, while 41% say it is management's primary responsibility. And the report indicates that there may be some level of disillusionment among companies with regards to their ability to "walk the walk" when it comes to managing misconduct. Seventy-eight percent of respondents believe their organizations have the clear intent of penalizing misconduct, but only 57% are aware of people having actually been penalized.
Ensuring that ethical conduct is managed effectively is not only an issue that needs to be dealt with internally, but also with third parties and those acting on behalf of the organization, according to the report. Yet third-party due diligence also seems to be a low priority, with only 59% of respondents indicating they have a tailored risk-based approach to due diligence on third parties.
Gordon says: "The pressing challenge for management and the board, therefore, is to build a robust culture of integrity and compliance in which employees do the right thing because it's the right thing to do, and not just because a company code of conduct says they should.
The encouraging news is that with today's advances in forensic data analytics, companies can leverage new technologies to increase the effectiveness and efficiency of their efforts as they seek to improve investigation and compliance outcomes."
- Ends -
EY is a global leader in assurance, tax, transaction and advisory services. The insights and quality services we deliver help build trust and confidence in the capital markets and in economies the world over. We develop outstanding leaders who team to deliver on our promises to all of our stakeholders. In doing so, we play a critical role in building a better working world for our people, for our clients and for our communities.
Between October 2017 and January 2018, our researchers — the global market research agency Ipsos MORI —conducted 2,550 interviews in the local language with senior decision-makers in a sample of the largest companies in 55 countries and territories. The polling sample was designed to elicit the views of executives with responsibility for tackling fraud, mainly CFOs, CCOs, general counsel and heads of internal audit.
Perceptions of respondents of bribery/corrupt practices happening widely in business in their country/region
The table below shows the percentage of survey respondents who perceive that bribery/corrupt practices occur widely in business in their own country/region. Results are based on a sample size of 50 for each country/region except where stated.
EY is a global leader in assurance, consulting, strategy and transactions, and tax services. The insights and quality services we deliver help build trust and confidence in the capital markets and in economies the world over. We develop outstanding leaders who team to deliver on our promises to all of our stakeholders. In so doing, we play a critical role in building a better working world for our people, for our clients and for our communities.


NRVC will convene in the fall of 2013 two workshops for both major superiors and their vocation directors for the purpose of studying contemporary research pertinent to religious vocations for men and the opportunities and challenges they present for vocation promotion. An application process for these workshops will begin in the spring. Emphasis will be given to what men religious need to do together in order to ensure the vitality and viability of religious priesthood and brotherhood in the future. These workshops will be similar to those currently underway for women religious, thanks to funding from the GHR Foundation.


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CBI begins search operations in 14 states in connection with child sexual abuse case
The central agency registered 23 separate cases on 14 Nov against 83 people allegedly involved in online child sexual abuse and exploitation
Press Trust of India November 16, 2021 15:59:25 IST
New Delhi: The CBI on Tuesday started a coordinated search operation at 76 locations in 14 states against 83 people allegedly involved in sexual abuse of children and posting and circulating abuse material on the web space, officials said.
The central agency registered 23 separate cases on November 14 against 83 people allegedly involved in online child sexual abuse and exploitation, they said.
Searches are being conducted in Andhra Pradesh, Delhi, Uttar Pradesh, Punjab, Bihar, Odisha, Tamil Nadu, Rajasthan, Maharashtra, Gujarat, Haryana, Chhattisgarh, Madhya Pradesh and Himachal Pradesh, CBI spokesperson RC Joshi said.
Updated Date: November 16, 2021 15:59:25 IST
Central Agency
Newstracker
'Until justice is served': Sushant Singh Rajput's sister Priyanka says no biopic on the actor should be made
Priyanka Singh, the sister of late actor Sushant Singh Rajput, demanded justice for her brother and stated that no movie about SSR should be made.
Supreme Court adjourns hearing on West Bengal's suit against CBI probe in post-poll violence cases
The suit said that as the general consent given to the central agency by the Trinamool Congress government has been withdrawn, the FIRs lodged cannot be proceeded with
CBI charges Gupta brothers, who founded Ashoka University, in Rs 1,626 crore bank fraud; all you need to know
They have been accused of cheating the Central Bank of India along with 11 other banks to the tune of Rs 1,626.74 crore
Gail director arrested by CBI in bribery case, along with five others
It has been alleged that E S Ranganathan was collecting bribes from prospective beneficiaries of discounts to private companies buying petrochemical products marketed by the Maharatna PSU
Nevermind! Spencer Elden's lawsuit of child pornography against Nirvana dismissed: All you need to know about the case
"Spencer Elden has spent three decades profiting from his celebrity as the self-anointed 'Nirvana Baby,'" the judge gave until 27 January to file an amended complaint that addresses the issues raised in the defendants' motion.


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Spring 2015 Anti-Austerity Movement in Quebec: A Critical Retrospective of the Organizing
Rushdia Mehreen and David Gray-Donald Education, Social Movements October 21, 2015
Photo by David Gray-Donald
This piece was requested by activists/alternative media outside Quebec seeking to understand the Spring (Printemps) 2015 mobilisation and the way it ended; it was written during the summer months and the conclusion has been updated to reflect recent developments.
A wet snow fell in Montreal, Quebec, on March 21, 2015. Thousands of people walked in a demonstration through the streets that afternoon and 38 000 students went on strike two days later, March 23rd, launching a much-anticipated movement, Printemps 2015 (Spring 2015). Spring 2015 was to be a mass mobilization in Quebec against austerity and fossil fuels.
Quebec was at times heated in the weeks that followed as students blocked classes to enforce the strike, demonstrations took to the streets in Montreal nightly for a couple weeks, police clashed with protesters, and debates about austerity and the legitimacy of the Spring 2015 tactics dominated media space. An anti-austerity demonstration of 75,000 was organized by ASSÉ, a provincial umbrella organization of radical student associations, on April 2.
May 1st, International Workers Day, or May Day, was a great success and saw 35 labour unions and over 200 community groups on strike. Along with students on strike and others there were effective disruptions of business as usual around the province that day, including blocking office buildings, highways, a construction site, and marching through Montreal. These actions resulted from collaborations of historic proportions across sectors of society, joining students, unions and union base members, unaffiliated individuals, and community organizations like housing groups and women's shelters in new ways.
But the warm, sunny May Day signified a symbolic end to the spring mobilization, a culmination of fall and winter organizing, not a launching point for the movement into a next, heightened phase. Not yet, at least.
Precious little, if anything, was actually won in the spring. The Quebec Liberal government, faced with these protests, showed no signs of slowing down or of changing course from their stated austerity agenda. So, knowing that the movement against austerity isn't nearly over, what gains from the spring can be consolidated and used moving forward? And what can other social movements forming, organizing, and mobilizing to win today learn from Quebec's Spring 2015?
Three years ago, the 2012 mass mobilization against tuition increases in Quebec had, after all, demonstrated one way to win against neoliberal politics, the pervasive ideology of eroding what is collective in exchange for a world wherein only those with money have access to services and control of resources. The spring and summer of 2012 brought hundreds of thousands into the streets and transformed a student strike into a popular struggle. As a result of the strength of that movement, the Liberal government in power at the time hastily called an election that backfired as voters removed the Liberals from power.
By spring 2015 the question in the movement was bigger than tuition and concerned the whole economic-political system, just as organizers three years earlier suspected it would. Since 2012, attacks on public services like education had continued, first under the nationalistic left-seeming Parti Quebecois and then again by the Liberals who were handed a majority government in an early election in April 2014. The Liberals quickly turned their sights to public-sector pensions and to healthcare, both highly controversial areas. Through those years an analysis critiquing austerity politics had been developing in Quebec, spurred on by think tanks, by well-networked organizations fighting neoliberalism, by student associations, and through media reporting on austerity at the local level and in Europe.
Keeping in mind the context of Quebec, Canada, North America and the world in 2015, one might ask: what would it take to organize and build a movement able to stand up to the powers that be? What would people be fighting for and what would the demands be? Would it be a class struggle within white circles, ignoring society's systemic racism and colonialism, led by white men seeing gender struggles as secondary, or would it be intersectional, centring and amplifying marginalized voices?
Building Power Relationship Against Austerity
For this we must turn to how the Spring 2015 mobilization was organized. Our particular focus is behind the scenes in the student sphere.
At its tail end, the 2012 student movement was close to attaining its ultimate vision of reaching beyond students and becoming a common front of resistance throughout Quebec society. This felt especially near when popular revolt flared up and out into the streets against the unconstitutional Law 78 limiting freedom of assembly. And though the dream wasn't quite achieved in 2012, it was certainly not forgotten. Part of the allure of Spring 2015 organizing was the promise of rekindling that spirit.
When schools resumed session in September 2014, a motion to create a Printemps 2015 (Spring 2015), P15 for short, mobilization committee was voted at the general assembly (GA) of AFESH, the Faculty of Social Sciences Student Association at UQAM (Université du Québec à Montréal). The idea was to go beyond the traditional ASSÉ context of coordinating among student unions or associations and create spaces open to anyone building cross-sector solidarity and collaboration between labour unions, community groups, workers in precarious jobs, the unemployed, parents, etc. AFESH encouraged other student associations to take similar mandates so that a power relationship, un rapport de force, could be built against austerity.
Various other ASSÉ member associations voted in their GAs to create P15 committees, thus a mandate to support P15 committees was adopted at the fall 2014 ASSÉ Congress. While there were groups active at times outside Montreal, the meetings that AFESH had called initially continued to be the Comité Large P15, the large or broad P15 committee with various functional sub-committees. Though the large P15 committee included individuals from many different P15 local committees, this Montreal and UQAM centrism would have noticeable effects, discussed later.
The concept of mobilization committees was not new in the Quebec context. The idea was to build common mobilisation materials, plans and strategies, which would then be discussed in the GAs and other democratic instances. Thus the role of P15 was to help coordinate a broader movement. The unique idea was that "it was meant to be a mobilising space where different people could be involved, a structure where those who didn't have an association - a union, etc. - could take part," explains Jaouad Laroussi, a student organizer involved in P15. While the vision was commendable, mobilising and organizing students in this context posed a challenge and created divisions as detailed next.
"P15 was formed in response to the many criticisms of ASSE in recent years" says another participant of P15. This action was partly as a result of the dearth of activity and planning on the part of ASSÉ (its executives and members) after the Liberals announced their austerity plans leading up to their elections in April 2014. Although P15 became an ASSÉ mandate, a part of the membership and a great majority of ASSÉ executives were not in favor of the idea. But in principle it shouldn't really matter if the executives agreed or not, particularly in the direct democracy context, as they had a mandate to support it.
Throughout the 2012 tuition mobilization, mobilisation for which began in 2010, students had moved forward through a defined process of direct democracy. This involved discussing, debating, and voting on positions and actions at individual student associations' GAs. Simultaneously there was communication between member associations and individuals through ASSÉ structures like the listserv and training camps. Grassroots decisions would be brought to ASSÉ's congresses, and, if supported through member delegate votes, would become ASSÉ mandates, building a rapport de force at the provincial level. This was also the case in the expanded version of ASSÉ created for the 2012 strike, CLASSE. This system of direct democracy, flavoured with combative syndicalism provided accountable structure both at the level of associations as well as ASSÉ overall. Though slow at times, this process ensured wide buy-in among students at the grassroots for actions, particularly a strike.
P15 was different. Though it had been created by student associations and was financed by them, "it wasn't meant to be a democratic structure in the student milieu," says Jaouad Laroussi. It was created as an autonomous space, to complement existing ASSÉ structures, and was not meant to be a decisional space. All decisions were to be made by general assemblies and other democratic instances.
Given that ASSÉ had a P15 mandate, at the least it was expected to provide support on the communications and logistics front, in addition to mobilisation. In late fall 2014, many, including elected ASSÉ committee members, noted the lack of collaboration on the part of ASSÉ. ASSÉ, as an organization, was not following in step with P15's mobilization pace. ASSÉ focused on mobilising for and organizing a massive demonstration and strike in Montreal on April 2nd, their annual demonstration when ASSÉ members traditionally vote for a strike of a day to a few days. Its website and mobilization materials were noticeably disconnected from P15, whereas ASSÉ could have as well mobilised for the strike that began March 23rd.
Adding to this dynamic, communication between the two groups was sparse. "There was in general a division between people who were working in ASSÉ committees and those working in committees of P15," says Laroussi. "People weren't going to each others meetings." Aspects of pride, difference of opinion over tactics and politics, and interpersonal conflict further frayed the relationships.
Presented with this situation, the masterminds of P15 took it upon themselves to move things forward. However, in the heat of organizing, from fall to winter P15 transformed from being an inter-sectoral mobilisation committee to a sort of a group unto itself. It became a group that had a media line, spokespersons and a presence as an organisation - all of it with neither proper processes nor an accountability structure. Pointing to the phenomenon referred to as a "phantom exec" of P15, an organizer active in a local committee of P15 said that "[t]here were organizers of P15 meeting outside of the P15 large committee and bringing the results of their work session there to be "approved" [at the P15 meetings] so it could go fastest. The result was no real discussion, but mostly rubber-stamping. Although, many local P15 committee worked very well on local campuses or workplaces, to mobilise, to bring people together."
It is a regular practice in the student movement that a small group, mobilisation committee or not, mastermind the strategies and write motions, which are then brought to democratic instances for debate, discussion and votes. P15 was being the mastermind, but the problem was that it also became a representative body, with no real representation and without any accountability. Further, it mostly became a space for self-selected group of people in Montreal who had connections, who were in certain networks, or for those who felt comfortable enough to attend. This, predictably, became a space dominated by white francophones, and by their analysis of the situation. In general it was not a welcoming nor available space for those not in the "in-crowd", people of colour or marginalised communities.
At the height of the spring mobilisation, P15's processes had become more centralised, bordering on being top-down, rather than largely bottom-up as one would expect in a direct democracy. "The tyranny of structurelessness", a concept immortalized by Jo Freeman in the 1970s, was commonly referenced when speaking of P15.
"P15 had no legitimacy to speak for the base, and the spokespersons had no accountability" says Benjamin Gingras, another student organizer and a then member of ASSÉ mobilisation committee. "It had no coordination - people didn't know what was going on and who to talk to. Collective decisions weren't really there, and it was very UQAM-centric. It's these few people that decided the media line, and decided upon events." This was in stark contrast to the direct democracy to which the 2012 student movement owed much of its success.
Divisions between student organizers about P15 and the mobilization for spring grew through the cold winter months. It is important to note that a great number of people and groups participating actively in P15 were also members of ASSÉ, which is the reason why P15 was also a mandate of ASSÉ, though it was largely ignored. A prominent contingent active in the P15 committees were anarchists (some called them post-structuralists, but in terms of praxis they were more spontaneist/autonomist/insurrectionist), seeing the group as not bound by processes, cumbersome regulations and bureaucracy. This group pushed for swift action in the face of the Liberal's deep austerity cuts and called for a strike at very short notice. Many in the ASSÉ membership including a majority of ASSÉ executives, who could be termed as syndicalist/unionist/anarcho-communist (some P15 proponents refer to them as socialists, social democrats, Trotskyites and so on), instead favoured a cautious approach, suggesting to wait for unions to take first steps. People with this tendency favoured a strategized escalation, pointing to the necessity of taking time to mobilize if the movement was to be strong and impactful.
Compared to 2012 general unlimited strike (GGI, grève générale illimité), which was two years in the making/escalating, six months for spring 2015 (October 2014 to March 2015) indeed seems too short of a period to call for a general strike. Still, it was referred to as unlimited (GGI) or renewable (GGR) strike.
In this organizing context, the question of "was there a suitable escalation of pressure tactics?" must be asked. People, students in this case, need to be politicized – need to understand the issue, and be convinced that all other means of pressure tactics (eg. symbolic actions, local actions, sit-ins, small and large demos etc) were tried before asking them to go on strike - to miss classes and sacrifice their studies, and maybe a semester (see figure). A student strike, on previous occasions, like 2012 and 2005 and regularly before that dating back to the 1960s, had been the ultimate step in a process of increasing pressure tactics. A combination of steady escalation of pressure tactics and direct democracy in the past (like in 2012) insured little opposition from students when voting and implementing a strike. It also serves to mobilise the base (see figure). Benjamin Gingras, a member of the ASSÉ mobilisation committee adds that "a GGI is the ultimate tool we've got, it's our last resort. We should use it carefully, and with full preparation, mobilisation, and escalation of pressure tactics."
Escalation of pressure tactics (An illustration, inspired by numerous drawings on the blackboards by various organizers).
The student body in 2015 included many who were involved in the strike of 2012, and a few from the 2005 strike, who were impatient to get to the next stages of collaborating with labour unions and the community sectors. However, campuses in 2015 mostly had a new cohort of students who had seen 2012 from afar but had not organized it nor been on the ground through it. The work of mobilization needed to be done almost from scratch for this group. The hasty preparation for spring 2015 risked rushing through this process. "Some student associations weren't ready, and yes its partly true [that we didn't have a proper escalation of means of pressure]" says Laroussi. The strategic reasons for the expedited mobilisation are discussed later.
"Many CEGEPs [junior colleges] outside of Montreal had a 3-4 day strike," says student organizer Benjamin Gingras, "which was a huge accomplishment for them. But people from P15 were disappointed that it wasn't long enough. Similarly, local sovereignty was undermined at different times throughout P15. That is not solidarity!" The examples of CEGEPs Drummondville F-X Garneau in Quebec City, and St-Jérôme are pertinent here. P15 organisers mobilized for a renewable strike (GGR) on these campuses, which were not mobilised enough and were not ready for a long strike (GGI/GGR). This was done without consulting with local student association executives, who were mobilising for a one-day strike (assisted by the ASSÉ executives – internal and mobilization committee). Reflecting these actions, Gingras, who was part of ASSÉ mobilisation committee, explains, "P15's mobilization for a GGI on campuses that couldn't possibly vote for an extended strike undermined the mobilization that was being done by the local activists. […] Students were often confused and angered by what they saw as dishonesty on behalf of their executive. Saint-Jérôme and Garneau didn't go on a one-day strike, they lost their vote. Drummondville however did succeed in voting a one-day strike for April 2nd (their first since 2012)." Gingras concluded, "they [P15] did more harm than good to any potential strike movement."
As early as November 2014 there had been troubling signs in the way mobilization was being done. A few actions had been organized, seemingly only through Facebook events, with the expectation that people were mobilized enough and would come en masse to actions, sometimes risking confrontation with police forces. Myriam Tardiff, active in the 2012 student movement, and in a local strike committee at university level, Solidarity Concordia, wrote a widely circulated critique following these instances, "A Monumental Flop". Tardiff noted that Quebec was not in the heated summer of 2012, and that the actions need to be organized with care and inclusiveness. She later adds, "I like the concept of combative care," and that political organizing requires the hard work of creating intersectional solidarity networks and relationships between people based on social justice and accountability. It was a much needed reminder in the context of frantic P15 organizing.
A Strategic Move? What Really Happened?
In order to understand the quick escalation to a strike, which was called in January, only after a few months of mobilisation, to be launched in March, one needs to parse out why events unfolded as they did.
P15 early mobilization materials called for a two-week strike to begin in the spring. This would lead up to and extend beyond April 1st, 2015. April 1st was significant as it marked the ending of the contracts between the Quebec government and the province's major public sector unions, representing hundreds of thousands of workers. As the P15 material said of March 21st: "that date seems to be the most symbolic and strategic for the most mobilized campuses to initiate the coming strike. In launching a strike a few days before April 1st, students send a clear message to unions and the entire population of Quebec: we are ready to make the government back down, and to struggle together with workers."
The stated objective of the strike, a sound one if it had happened, was to free up time to carry out actions of solidarity and make space for the unions to act, ideally going on strike, and creating a broad, united front against the government. But due to Quebec labour law, public sector unions, particularly those working in essential services, are prohibited from striking during the first few weeks after their collective agreements expire. Adding to the improbability of a widespread labour strike in early spring, contract negotiations were distinctly absent from the campaign of the public sector unions, Refusons l'austérité (Let's Refuse Austerity!).
The student strike was a show of solidarity with union membership, but it was wishful thinking that unions would be mobilized enough to jump into a strike the day their contracts expired. In any case, anticipation for the spring grew, largely a product of P15's mobilization, and as actions were carried out in late winter, expectations for a wide-ranging strike rivaling the scope of 2012's Maple Spring took hold in some spaces.
While competing visions for the spring surfaced early that season, they became starker as the strike progressed. Before the first two weeks of the student strike were over and the University semesters were coming to an end, the ASSÉ executive sent out a reflection note/proposal to its members. In it the executives suggested a "strategic withdrawal" in the spring, shifting focus to a fall mobilization. P15, at this point led by the mysterious "phantom exec", quickly released a statement, "The ASSÉ won't bring the Spring", blasting ASSÉ for suggesting a momentary de-escalation. P15 instead called for full-steam-ahead mobilization through the spring. This was discussed during protests in the streets and among student organizers. Ultimately, after a few days the ASSÉ executives were fired during their congress by the votes of delegates of member associations, who had mandates from their general assemblies.
The suggestion of the ASSÉ executives was obviously not well received. In their stated system of direct democracy, the executives should not be directing students, but taking mandates and direction from the base, the membership. So it was not acceptable that the executives and committee members of ASSÉ actively and publicly spoke against the strike. That should have been a grassroots decision in association's general assemblies, which are meant for discussions and deliberations and, ultimately, to take informed decisions. ASSÉ's public opposition to the strike was quickly picked up by the media to broadcast an anti-strike discourse to the public sphere.
The mobilization noticeably contracted at that point and, as of April 2nd, strike numbers dwindled, reducing to near zero outside Montreal. UQAM was one of the few schools with associations still on strike, and partly due to a lacking rapport de force, the administration had obtained a court injunction to stop classes from being blocked, thus to stop students enforcing the strike.
An occupation of a prominent UQAM building was sparked because the administration had called police on students picketing a class on strike, but the occupation was quickly brought to a close when the university administration allowed riot police into their premises to drive people out. This was perhaps the height of force used against protesters in the spring, but was not an isolated incident, and repression on the part of the UQAM administration, including expelling students and having cops arrest students, added to an atmosphere where dissent was criminalized and stamped out by the powers that be. Professors, on the day UQAM called the police to campus, made a line of defense between riot cops and students, and supported students in various ways at other times.
Interestingly, a student at UQAM whose arrest became the most public, featuring photos on first page of newspapers, was a person of colour (POC). Even more interesting is the fact that not many POC are activists or "militants" at UQAM, unlike say at an Anglo university like Concordia. Visible minorities comprise roughly 25% of population in Montreal proper, but French-speaking activist groups are disproportionately white and faculties such as Social Sciences at UQAM are even more white. While this arrest was considered political profiling by the defense lawyer, one wonders if there was a hint of racial profiling too, as seen in many other facets of life in Montreal.
These incidents at UQAM had the effect of shifting the focus of P15 towards that campus and the repression and expulsion of students there.
Overall, P15 was trying to incite a mass movement on a population (including the students at UQAM) which was not mobilized at the level they wished. Many people didn't know about the dangers of austerity, or simply its definition and what it means. It is difficult to successfully skip the slow, laborious steps of popular education and base-building in a mass mobilization process.
Movement Gains
Due to considerable efforts on behalf of P15 organisers, student activists and many other groups, International Workers Day on May 1st was a strong showing for the movement.
The base membership of several unions, notably CEGEP (junior college) teachers, successfully pushed to go on strike that day, overriding the leadership of the big union federations. Leading up to and through the spring there was a mobilizing of union membership that in turn radicalised the central union organizations. For example, CCMM, the Montreal grouping of major union CSN, joined the May 1st anti-capitalist demonstrations instead of participating in what are usually polite flagship union rallies.
In addition to constant coordination with the union executives as well as the base by P15 organizers, students and community groups holding joint or solidarity actions at union locations and hospitals helped mobilize this union base.
"The biggest victory of the movement," Laroussi says, "was the creation of convergences, new alliances; some were created, and it's these connections that I think need to be successfully preserved."
Looking forward, a video by a member of P15 states that the "spring mobilisation served as a base to escalate for the fall". And that was the gamble of calling a strike in the spring, one which proved short-lived. If it worked, the student strike of spring 2015 will be seen as a spark that prompted unions to use their collective power to oppose austerity measures throughout all sectors of Quebec society. If the gamble failed, it will have diminished the gravity of a strike action, contributed to burnout among organizers, and diminished the credibility of students organizing to take oppositional stances with the government.
Racial Justice and Decolonizing in the Movement
The anti-racist, anti-colonial mandates voted by ASSÉ/CLASSE at the peak of the 2012 movement have remained largely unapplied over the years. Some initiatives were made to bring the discussion to the forefront, notably during the Montreal Student Movement Convention in summer 2014 with a discussion on how the movement can be anti-racist, in solidarity with people of colour and in general be more open and inclusive. A similar workshop was also offered at the ASSÉ feministe training camp in March 2015 at the initiative of one of the authors.
Such initiatives leading up to and during P15 bore little fruit with regards to the inclusion of people of color in the movement. The organizing space, as in the past, remained dominated by white people, for the most part Francophones, and the mobilisation did little to take into consideration the fact that regressive measures such as austerity in the end hit and affect the marginalized communities more than anyone else. The spring 2015 mobilization in Quebec, like that in 2012, was not a welcoming organizing space for marginalized communities, though it had shown some signs of promise.
An attempt was made to bring attention to the effects of austerity on both people of colour and Indigenous peoples during the early stages of P15. While the analysis about POC never came out, a flyer on "Austerity and First Nations" educated people on how important it was to be in solidarity with Indigenous peoples:
"The austerity agenda also hits Indigenous peoples the hardest: funding for their social programs and services are cut first and deepest […] But the frontlines of impact are also the forefront of change. In territories across Quebec, First Nations have been the fiercest opponents of this elite's agenda."
Some similar progress can be seen as a result of P15, as ASSÉ voted in their annual congress in April 2015 a mandat to be in solidarity with Indigenous Peoples resistance to colonial practices. This was an upgrade to the existing anti-colonial mandate from 2012. To what extent this mandate will be put into practice remains to be seen.
Melissa Mollen Dupuis, a prominent member of the Indigenous community and spokesperson of Idle No More movement, states on the progress of Indigenous solidarity that "solidarity isn't built instantly, and the good thing is that the dialogue is started! And let's say that it's an immense progress from 1990", referring to the Kanehsatà:ke siege. The events of that summer 25 years ago centred around the resistance of Mohawk people to colonial practices when Quebec's military, the SQ, opened fire on the indigenous people in a confrontation over land commonly referred to as the Oka Crisis.
Indigenous peoples in Quebec and Canada have been at the forefront of oppositional social movements, including the impressive 2013 mobilization dubbed Idle No More. With these communities rising up, one is left wondering why we, who are on their land, haven't been working with them in movement building.
Another gain in spring 2015 was the fact the struggle against fossil fuels was linked to austerity. Though this was not an easy pairing nor an obvious connection to organizers and onlookers alike, a number of actions were organized to this aim. These actions and this overall attempt were commendable, however one fundamental critique has been put forward. Front-line and indigenous communities directly affected by fossil fuel exploitation were not prevalent in this discourse.
A women's sub-committee was created as part of P15 committees but ran into problems and by February 2015 had separated from P15. A different group named FUCA (Femmes Unis Contre l'Austérité; Women United Against Austerity), a new group that formed in February 2015, showed some signs of intersectional analysis of what was unfolding in society. FUCA, formerly a women's sub-committee of P15 who left the P15 fold stating domination by men and lack of feminist analysis, was promising in several ways. It wanted to be a women's movement and not a student's. It attracted more than students to include workers, poor women, women at home, people from LGBT community, in particular some trans folks. People of colour, when present, would be very much the minority. At one event, a brunch, people from Women of Diverse Origins were able to talk about how austerity was affecting marginalised communities.
The analysis, among some, acknowledged that what white middle class circles call austerity is a day-to-day reality for other communities. It was also noted that what some protested as isolated incidents of police brutality were regular occurrences in other parts of Quebec. However, this instance of intersectional exchange wasn't built upon, and the movement as well as subsequent events by FUCA remained fairly white and francophone, leaving issues of race and that of marginalised communities in the audio recording of the intersectional brunch.
P15 was against a fossil fuel economy in its core messaging, but did little to work with indigenous communities. Some promotional materials mentioned indigenous peoples, but little was done to, for example, work with Mohawk communities whose lands are still occupied and who continue to be denied the right to self-determination. One way to go forward would be to open spaces so that diverse voices are heard and that organizers themselves have a chance to learn and understand the effects of austerity on the marginalized peoples and integrate that in their analyses. The effect of this would be seen in popular education materials but also, with sufficient internal reflections, has a potential to intrinsically transform the perspectives beyond those of the organisers and activists.
Going Forward
Perhaps the main success of P15 was the creation of convergences and networks as the demographic involved went beyond students to include union members, people working precarious jobs, those working in the community sector, the unemployed and so on.
The task ahead is to maintain these links and networks as we mobilise towards a general strike in fall 2015.
The popular motto for leading a strike mobilisation so far has been to Unite the Left, Rally the Center, and Isolate the Right. Had there been enough time, the divisions between ASSÉ and P15 could have been probably resolved. Austerity, also, was not a straightforward issue, unlike a tuition hike, or some other student related issue that is focused and contained. The mobilisation for Printemps 2015, however, can be considered as an escalation process towards a potential general student strike this fall.
In their annual congress in April, ASSÉ voted to mobilise for an unlimited general strike in fall and have created a mobilisation hub http://unmouvement.org (One Movement) laying out the problem and reasons why the pressure needs to be escalated to a strike. This strike mandate is confirmed in the September congress. ASSÉ also initiated an informal coalition, Rassemblement Syndical en Education (Union Gathering for Education) to unite and strategize anti-austerity efforts of various unions in the education sector.
The mobilisation advanced at a number of fronts over the summer months and concrete outcomes are seen this fall, such as the militant members of ASSÉ have already voting a number of one-day strikes and have mandates for unlimited strike later in the semester. As for the labour unions, Autonomous teacher's federation (FAE), representing 34,000 teachers, was on strike on September 30th. The 150,000 strong demonstration on October 3rd by the Common Front, composed of a number of public sector unions, gave an ultimatum of general strike to the government.
Despite the spectre of special law that could force labour back to work, the steps towards a general (social) strike are firm. Starting with the week of October 26, Common Front member unions in health care, social services, school boards, colleges, government agencies and the public service will be on rotating strikes. Some are working for improvements of working conditions through contract negotiations and others are trying to push a society-wide rejection of austerity in all its forms.
Intensifying the pressure, the community sector also gearing up for a strike on November 2 and 3. ASSÉ is mobilizing for a massive demonstration on November 5 - thousands of students already have a strike mandate for the day or longer. Public sector unions have a number of strike mandates for the rest of November building to a massive strike early December for which almost half a million already have a strike mandate.
Thus, students, the rank and file of public sector unions, community sector, and activists from various social sectors are all now working to resist austerity. What began in the spring, and was unable then to reach its full expression, is being continued this fall in a more strategic, organized and intensified fashion. The struggle against austerity in Quebec for sure isn't over.
We would like to thank all the student organizers who spoke with us, helped shape the analysis and gave feedback on this article. Also we would like to note that the issue at hand and the dynamics involved were complex, and that its possible that some points may have been left out.
Rushdia Mehreen is a graduate student at UQAM and has been involved in student and community organizing since 2010. She contributed to building the unlimited student strike at Concordia University in 2012 and was a member of Social Struggles Committee of ASSÉ/CLASSE.
David Gray-Donald is a journalist based in Montreal and Toronto focusing on social movements and privilege.
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