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France

Euthanasia and assisted suicide must not be considered as care

(14 March 2023) (sv) Representatives of 13 professional nursing associations in France have taken it upon themselves, with a view to possible changes in the law, to reflect on the consequences of legalising assisted suicide and euthanasia (see Box 1) on daily nursing practice and to inform legislators and the population about the results. – We print here the abridged version of their statement, which received wide attention in France. It deserved this attention in many Western countries where the ban on killing has already been challenged or abolished.

The ninth anniversary of the Ukraine war

by Prof. Jeffrey D. Sachs,* USA

(7 March 2023) We are not at the 1-year anniversary of the war, as the Western governments and media claim. This is the 9-year anniversary of the war. And that makes a big difference.

The West and the Global South

‘You can’t be neutral in Ukraine War’

You are either with us, or against us

by Ben Norton,* USA

(7 March 2023) The foreign ministers of the United States, Germany, and Ukraine have told the world “you can’t be neutral” in NATO’s proxy war with
Russia,1 recalling President George W. Bush’s infamous declaration, “You are either with us, or against us”. In doing so, these Western officials are implicitly criticizing the vast majority of the countries on Earth, which are in the Global South, and which have maintained strict neutrality over the war.
Russia

A new life: four student portraits

A report on young people who, despite the conflict in Ukraine, decided to make a success of their lives

by Maria D.*

(7 March 2023) No one knows in advance what life will bring, and therefore, you can hardly prepare for unpredictable twists of fate. At present, the whole world is watching the great drama unfolding in the Slavic area.

About Swiss Neutrality

Neutrality by the day

by Olivier Delacretaz,* Lausanne

(7 March 2023) On 19 March 2021, the Swiss government published the report entitled “China Strategy 2021-2024”. This report criticises the democratic inadequacy of China, in particular the persecution of its ethnic minorities. Federal Councillor Ignazio Cassis threatens to adopt a “more robust” attitude if China does not behave better. This somewhat ridiculous interference in Chinese internal affairs is certainly not the work of a neutral state.

Democracy in Times of War

Challenges to our Common Humanity

I.P.O. President Hans Köchler delivers opening speech at “World Forum on Democracy & Peace” in Berlin

(28 February 2023) (News release) Referring to Immanuel Kant’s seminal treatise on Perpetual Peace, Hans Köchler, President of the Vienna-based “International Progress Organization”, earlier this week [15–18 February 2023] reminded an audience of global leaders assembled at the “Academy for Cultural Diplomacy” in Berlin, Germany, that only a polity where citizens have an influence on the conduct of foreign affairs offers a prospect of a peace that is durable and more than a temporary cessation of arms.