DEVELOPMENT: World Bank, IMF Meet’s Success a Subjective Matter

After two days of official debates and many more days of informal gatherings and seminars during the joint session of the board of governors of the World Bank and the International Monetary Fund (IMF), the question remains: What did they achieve? The answer depends on whom you ask.

POLITICS: Washington Accused of ‘Divide and Rule’ in Caribbean

President George W. Bush's invitation to meet some Caribbean leaders for a working breakfast Wednesday is being viewed as another of Washington's attempts to divide and rule the region, as the administration seeks more bilateral agreements to counter opposition to its global policies.

POLITICS: As India-Israel Ties Grow, So Do Pakistan’s Worries

For Pakistan, the warming of relations between India and Israel is simply the creation of what it calls an ''axis of oppression'' that will work to suppress the right of peoples fighting for self-determination in Kashmir and Palestine.

POLITICS-BALKANS: Armies Shrink on the Road West

Armies are shrinking in size all over the Balkans as governments and the military turn away from their communist past towards the West.

RIGHTS: World Bank Said to Ignore Migrant Abuse in Mideast

The World Bank, which claims to fight child labour in poor countries, is holding its annual board meeting in a country widely known for exploiting migrant labour, a leading human rights organisation charged Monday.

COSTA RICA: Controversial Plan for U.S.-Run Int’l Police Academy

A proposal to open a U.S.-run international police academy in Costa Rica continues stirring up heated debate in this Central American country, where a movement of civil society groups is opposed to the initiative.

POLITICS: Donor Delay Dooming Afghanistan – Aid Agency

By completing just one percent of the reconstruction required in Afghanistan to date, the United States and other donors are risking renewed conflict, if not disintegration, in the devastated country, says an unusually frank new report released Wednesday by U.S. relief organisation, CARE.

WTO-CANCUN: UN Makes The Most of Observer Status

Though the UN was only an observer at the five-day WTO conference, it made a significant contribution by highlighting issues of genuine concern to the marginalised and disempowered in the developing lands.

WTO-CANCUN: And What of South-South Trade?

Developing countries should be given effective access to markets of developed countries, but south-south trade is equally significant, says Foreign Trade Minister for the Netherlands Karien Van Gennip.

WTO-CANCUN: Future of Millions of Farmers at Stake

The future of nearly half the world population will be directly affected by farm trade negotiations at the Fifth WTO Ministerial Conference in this Caribbean resort city, where both the developing South and the industrialised North have drawn lines in the sand.