Weekly Round-up: May 20th

International News

Liberation News

Turtle Island

Six Indigenous tribes in South Dakota have now banned Governor Kristi Noem from their land. On Friday, Sisseton Wahpeton Oyate and Yankton Sioux tribes joined Cheyenne River Sioux, Oglala Sioux, Rosebud Sioux, and Standing Rock Sioux in declaring Gov. Noem is not welcome on native land. These declarations come after the governor made racist comments about life on the reservations and accused tribal leaders of benefiting from drug cartels. Noem has been vocal in the past about her anti-Indigenous and tribal sovereignty views. Before becoming the governor of South Dakota, a U.S. House of Representatives, Noem proposed legislation giving federal law enforcement officers the authority to arrest people for state crimes on reservations. The proposed bill would have allowed state officials to request federal warrants for people who travel into reservations. Such a law would infringe on tribal sovereignty and their ability to govern their land. State and local law enforcement officers are not allowed on tribal land. Banning the governor is taking a step to assert their sovereignty in the face of attacks by the settler-colonial agent. 

In terms of digital sovereignty, the Confederated Salish and Kootenai Tribes (CSKT) and the National Congress of American Indians (NCAI) filed an amicus brief with the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth District in the Alario v. Knudsen case dealing with Montana's ban of TikTok. In the brief, the tribes laid out how Montana's TikTok ban infringes on tribal sovereignty and jurisdiction. They are most worried about law enforcement or how the law will be carried out. Since the law states the "territorial jurisdiction" of Montana, users not in Montana's jurisdiction but on tribal land may still be impacted (tribal lands are separate from the states they may be geographically in) because of their IP address, which uses geolocation. 

The assertion of tribal rights and sovereignty is critical to decolonizing Turtle Island, and more needs to be done to ensure Indigenous people are the stewards of their data and maintain autonomy over it, in addition to the land we live on, as the devastating impacts of climate change persist. 

Niger

The African country Niger, which has been one of three countries in the Sahel region to end ties with former and neo-colonizer France and the United States, has reached a new deal with the stars and stripes. Between May 15-19th, the United States and the Republic of Niger reached a "disengagement agreement" where the U.S. will have four months to remove troops. U.S. troops will have to be out of the country by Sept 15. The agreement signifies a powerful shift and steps towards autonomy where former colonies can determine their future without the threat of colonizers on their shoulders. 

Alliance of Sahel States (AES)

In September 2023, three states in the Sahel Region, Niger, Mali and Burkina Faso joined in a defense pact. On Saturday, May 18, the three countries finalized their agreement in Niamey, Niger, to establish the Confederation of the Alliance of Sahel States (AES). The objective of this meeting was to finalize the draft text dealing with institutions and operations, basically the logistics of the pact. Western regimes like France and the United States are nervous about the global order shifting out of their hands, with each country building closer relationships with Russia. Russia has a long history in the continent, dating back to before the fall of the Soviet Union, because of how pivotal the state was in helping former colonies achieve independence, including South Africa, Algeria, Angola, and Mali. 

Elections 2024

Panama; May 5

Voters in Panama elected right-wing candidate José Mulino, who was essentially a stand-in for former President Ricardo Martinelli. Martinelli served as the President of Panama, winning 60% of the vote and serving from 2009 to 2014. During his term, he was accused of tampering with the Supreme Court, asking the U.S. to tape his political opponents, and attempting to reduce the time before he could be eligible for re-election.  In July 2023, a Panamanian court sentenced Martinelli to 10 years for money laundering. Then, a few months ago, the Panamanian Supreme Court upheld the decision in February, making him ineligible to run in their May elections. The past events lead us here: Martinelli has since fled to Nicaragua to escape serving time in prison and was granted asylum by the country. The new President may grant his former employer a pardon, which will have serious political implications. 

After the election, President-elect Jose Mulino's successful campaign was praised by Martinelli, and many Panamaians believe he will govern the country from behind the scenes, which Mulino denies. While working as the Minister of Public Security under Martinelli from 2010 to 2014, Mulino was known to repress protests. In 2012, an indigenous Ngobe protestor was shot and killed in a confrontation against the police to defend the forest. The death showed a blatant contradiction to what Mulino had stated, which was that officers were not carrying firearms. What Mulino will do in office and how he will preside is up in the air. However, with his connection to the Martinelli administration and campaign to bring business, I think we may see deepened connections with the United States and slashes to social programs to pay for companies.