Newscast for Friday, March 5, 2010

Iraqi voters face 'decisive moment' in elections
This Sunday Iraqis will go to the polls for parliamentary elections throughout the country. At stake are the 325 seats that could determine the next prime minister. But the process has been marred with controversy. In January, some candidates were barred from running and targeted bombings of polling sites have increased this week.

The top UN envoy in Iraq, Ad Melkert, said the country faces a choice.

"It is for Iraq a very decisive moment. I think it's actually the most decisive moment since 2003, the invasion that of course turned the country upside down. And now is the chance, also against the backdrop of the withdrawal of the American troops in the next few years that Iraqis really define by themselves their own way forward, their own destiny."

We're joined now by Raed Jarrar. He's a senior fellow on the Middle East at Peace Action, a nationwide grassroots peace organization. He's also one of the first Iraqi bloggers and he grew up in Baghdad.

Israeli troops use tear gas, rubber bullets to counter protests in West Bank
In the West Bank today, Israeli troops used tear gas and rubber coated steel bullets to counter several anti wall protests. Earlier this week Israel started to build a new section of the Wall in the southern West Bank. Residents say that it threatens homes, land and is leading to the destruction of valuable olive trees in the area. FSRN’s Ghassan Bannoura has the story.

Shelter deteriorates for thousands in Haiti as heavy rains continue
Heavy rains hit Haiti this week as hundreds of thousands remain in makeshift shelters. The organization Partners in Health says that the need for sanitation and clean water is "extreme." The group runs health posts for five spontaneous settlements and reports that the clinics are still seeing around 6,000 patients every week. Attention has also turned toward offering rehabilitation services for amputees and providing prosthetics to patients, but staff and supplies are still short.

Executive Director Ophelia Dahl spoke to reporters on a teleconference today. She explained witnessing hundreds of thousands of residents in Port Au Prince in flimsy shelters. With the recent rains over the past few days, she said, the conditions are deteriorating.

“So what little people have is now soaked, they’re sleeping in the rain and the makeshift shelters are already breaking down and dissolving and the conditions for these homeless and displaced people are absolutely inhuman and getting worse every single day."

Partners in Health also said that they have stopped calling the shelters "tent cities" because it implies a structure that does not exist. Ted Constan, the group's Chief Program Officer, said the disaster has changed the landscape, making it more precarious.

"The other thing we've understood is that with the earthquake there are a lot of changes to the rock and underlying aquifer in Port Au Prince so as the rain comes the water isn’t even going to go in its normal pathways so there will be flooding and mudslides in areas that have never experienced it before. Probably the worst scenario right now is if you’re on a mountainside in a settlement camp because you're in trouble."

Constan said that what is required is to move beyond tarps to more resilient transitional shelter that can withstand strong wind and rains.

The International Organization of Migration launched an effort in the end of February to register those living in makeshift camps. In announcing the effort, the IOM predicted heavy rains to begin mid-March, but it appears this year that the rainy season is coming earlier and making recovery efforts dire.

Sugar workers in Nicaragua demand compensation after illnesses
In Nicaragua, sick sugar cane workers are demanding compensation from their former employer, Nicaraguan Sugar Estates Limited, one of many companies owned by the wealthy Pellas family. More than 8,000 current and former sugar cane workers suffer from chronic illness and more than 3,000 people have died.  They say they were poisoned by the toxic chemicals used on the sugar cane in production.  Nan McCurdy has more from Nicaragua.

Federal agency that monitors globalization to be eliminated
Unemployment numbers released today show little change up or down, meaning the economy isn’t recovering as fast as some had hoped or tanking as fast as some had feared. Meanwhile, the Bureau of Labor Statistics is finding its budget under the knife too and a little-known office that tracks globalization is slated for closure and attracting new interest. FSRN'S Tanya Snyder reports.