The EconomistNovember 9th 2019 5
The world this week Politics
AstheBritishgeneralelection
campaignofficiallygotunder
waya streamofmps an-
nouncedtheywouldnotstand
again.Sofarover 70 have
steppeddown,morethan
twicethenumberwhochose
nottofacetheelectoratein
2017.Morethan 60 ofthose
supportedRemain,andmost
representedconstituencies
thatvotedforBrexit.TheCon-
servatives’campaigngotoffto
a badstart,withtheresigna-
tionofa cabinetminister.Polls
stillgivethema double-digit
leadoverLabour.JohnBercowstooddownas
SpeakerofBritain’sHouseof
Commonsaftertenyearsinthe
chair.MrBercowwasknown
forcrying“orderrrr!”and
breakingparliamentarycon-
ventions.Hisreplacement,Sir
LindsayHoyle,hashintedata
returntoconventionand
decorum,promisingthathe
willweartheSpeaker’swig“on
traditionaldays”.Inanattempttoshowvoters
thatthegovernmentispre-
paredtotoughenupimmigra-
tionpolicy,France’sprime
minister,ÉdouardPhilippe,
announcedplanstoclearout
somemigranttent-camps,as
wellastoimposequotasfor
migrantworkersandlimit
migrantaccesstonon-urgent
healthcare.Over a barrel
A much-hyped Brazilianauc-
tion of rights to drill for off-
shore oil was a disappoint-
ment. Two of the four
deepwater deposits got no bids
at all. Observers blamed the
high fees set by the govern-
ment, and uncertainty about
the future of both Brazil’s
policies and global oil demand.Colombia’sdefenceminister
saidhewouldresignamid
accusationsthatthearmyhas
committedatrocities.One
senatoraccusedtheminister
ofcoveringupthealleged
bombingofa guerrillacampin
whichchildrenwerekilled.A druggangmurderednine
membersofa Mormonfamily
inSonora,a stateinnorthern
Mexico. Sixchildrenandthree
womendied,perhapsbecause
thekillersmistookthemfor
rivals.TheLeBaronfamily
brokeawayfromthemain-
streamMormonchurchand
settledinMexicointheearly
20thcentury.Thevictimswere
Americancitizens.Not co-operating
Iran took another step away
from the nuclear deal it signed
in 2015 by injecting gas into
centrifuges at its Fordow facili-
ty. The devices could produce
enriched uranium to be used
for nuclear energy or, if highly
enriched, a bomb. Iran said it
would reverse the move if the
deal’s other signatories—
Britain, China, France, Ger-
many and Russia—provide
economic relief.Anti-government protests
continued in Iraq andLeba-
non. Demonstrators in both
countries are seeking big
changes to political systems
dominated by an old elite and
riddled with corruption. In
Iraq the authorities have
responded with violence. More
than 260 people have been
killed since the unrest began
last month. Adel Abdul-Mahdi,
the prime minister, has said he
is willing to resign if a replace-
ment is found.The government of Yemen
reached a power-sharing deal
with southern separatists. The
two are meant to be on the
same side in a civil war that
pits the Saudi-backed govern-
ment against Houthi rebels,
but they have been fighting
each other recently. Saudi
Arabia, which hosted the talks,
said it hoped the deal would
lead to a broader agreement
ending the war.America’sJusticeDepartment
chargedtwoformeremployees
ofTwitterwithsupplying
personalinformationondis-
sidentstoSaudiArabia.JihadistslinkedtoIslamic
Statekilledmorethan 50
soldiersinMaliinanattackon
anarmybase,a monthaftera
similarassaultinwhichmore
than 40 soldierswerekilled.
Thetwoattacksareamongthe
worstsince2013,whenFrench
forcespushedjihadistsoutof
thetownsinthenorthofMali.TheInternationalCriminal
Court sentenceda formerrebel
chiefintheDemocratic
RepublicofCongoto 30 years
inprisonforwarcrimes.Bosco
Ntagandawasknownas“The
Terminator”.Hisarmyforcibly
recruitedchildrenandcom-
mittedmassrape.Hissentence
wasthelongestyetimposedby
thecourt.Follow the leaderIn the 22nd consecutive week-
end of unrest in Hong Kong,
protesters attacked the office
building of Xinhua, a news
agency owned by the Chinese
government. A Chinese news-
paper, Global Times, accused
them of deliberately provoking
the mainland’s authorities. Xi
Jinping met Hong Kong’s em-
battled chief executive, Carrie
Lam, in Shanghai and reiterat-
ed his support for her.Deadly smog engulfed much of
northern India, thanks in part
to farmers burning stubble and
to revellers letting off fire-
crackers to celebrate Diwali, a
Hindu holiday. The govern-
ment of Delhi closed all the
city’s schools and instituted
sweeping measures to limit
traffic, to little avail.An attack on a checkpoint in
southern Thailandkilled 15
people; it was the worst in the
region for years. The attackers
were militants fighting what
they see as the oppression of
ethnic Malays in Thailand.Rodrigo Duterte, the president
of the Philippines, put the
vice-president, Leni Robredo,
in charge of his campaign
against drug dealers, during
which thousands of suspects
have been summarily shot
dead. The president and vice-
president are elected separate-
ly in the Philippines, and Ms
Robredo is a staunch critic of
Mr Duterte.Classic Don
America formally notified the
unof its intention to withdraw
from the Paris agreement to
combat climate change,
through which countries have
pledged (with varying degrees
of sincerity) to cut greenhouse-
gas emissions. The Trump
administration argues that the
accord would hurt American
businesses. The decision can
be undone if a Democrat wins
the presidential election.Elizabeth Warren, one of the
leading candidates to be the
Democratic presidential candi-
date, unveiled details of her
ambitious health-care plan. Ms
Warren wants to spend
$20.5trn over a decade to trans-
form America’s private market
for health insurance into a
government-run programme.
To raise this extraordinary
sum, she would hike taxes,
especially on companies and
the rich.Beto O’Rourkedropped out of
the Democratic race. Once the
darling of the left, Mr O’Rourke
struggled to make an impact in
a crowded field.The Democrats did well in a
smattering of elections, win-
ning the governor’s race in
Kentuckyand taking control
of the state legislature in
Virginiafor the first time in 20
years. The Republicans held on
to the governor’s mansion in
deep-red Mississippi.