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	Hundreds of thousands of people across the globe mark May Day by Reuters & agencies   May 1, 2012   Hundreds of thousands of people across the globe have taken to the streets to mark May Day, also known as International Workers Day.   In Athens, Jakarta, Madrid, Tunis and beyond, the people called for decent wages and working conditions.   The Jakarta Globe reported that Indonesia held Asia’s biggest May Day rally with over 160,000 protesters across the nation demanding better labor conditions.   Helena Smith writing in the Guardian reported that "workers across Greece have taken to the streets of towns large and small to protest the unprecedented belt-tightening ordinary Greeks have been subjected to over the course of the past two years of harsh austerity measures."   In the Philippines tens of thousands hit the streets to protest low wages. Xinhua reports that groups "unveiled a symbolic mural depicting the collective strength of masses as the "real political power."   In Hong Kong, where thousands have staged protests, one protester told AFP that the "problem with Hong Kong is that the wealth is concentrated in a small number of people, while many people are still living in poverty," university professor Fernando Cheung, who teaches social work, said at the rally.   "That"s why Hong Kong has one of the world"s highest income gaps between rich and poor. We urgently need a redistribution of wealth," he said.   From the eye of the eurozone debt storm in Madrid to the streets of Paris and Athens, marchers denounced job losses, spending cuts and inequality in the distribution of wealth.   More than two years after the eurozone sovereign debt crisis erupted, frustration with austerity is boiling over across the continent as voters wait in vain for signs of the economic pay-off.   In Spain, suffering the industrialised world"s highest jobless rate of 24.4 percent in the first quarter of 2012, protests took place in 80 cities.   Tens of thousands massed in central Madrid"s Neptuno square, decrying economic stagnation, unemployment, the Governments new labour reforms that make it easier to fire workers, reductions in minimum wages and conditions, and cut backs to health care and education budgets and services.   "They are going to destroy more jobs with the labour reform," said 28-year-old Sonia Calles. "Already in Spain employment insecurity is hitting those in their 30s and 40s, not just the young" she said in the capital.   Not far from the Italian capital in Rieti, three leading trade unions organised a concert attended by 300,000 young people where labour leaders called for austerity policies to be scrapped in exchange for pro-growth measures.   In Portugal, thousands rallied in Lisbon and elsewhere to condemn deep spending cuts.   In Poland, the Czech Republic and elsewhere on the continent, people expressed their growing frustration with an era of crushing economic hardship brought on by Government austerity measures imposed to meet global financial institutions imperatives, with crowds reaching 100,000 in Vienna.   In Tunisia, home of the uprising that sparked the Arab Spring, some 20,000 protesters flooded a main avenue the capital criticising the moderate Islamist government for not doing enough to curb unemployment that approaches 50 percent in some regions.   In Turkey, tens of thousands from all political parties packed the emblematic Taksim Square in Istanbul.   Occupy Wall Street protesters held demonstrations outside Manhattan corporate institutions. Those taking part said they are protesting against corporate greed, widespread inequality and the plight of ordinary people.
	Protecting Children from Lead Poisoning by Human Rights Watch Nigeria   Amina Murtala is only 20, but she has already lost three children to lead poisoning – a deadly consequence of small-scale gold mining in her home state of Zamfara in Nigeria.   Human Rights Watch researched the impact of lead poisoning on communities near Zamfara’s mines, shooting video of the families, teachers, and healthcare workers we interviewed. We created a multimedia report exposing the devastation – the worst lead poisoning epidemic in modern history.   Our objective was to persuade Nigeria’s federal government, which controls funding for lead clean-up, of the situation’s urgency. Together with our partner organizations, we urged the Nigerian government to protect families at risk of lead poisoning. Last week President Goodluck Jonathan agreed to release 650 million Naira (roughly US$4 million) for environmental remediation and to put in place safer mining practices in Zamfara state. This clean-up could give Amina’s newest baby a better chance at a healthy life.   http://www.hrw.org/video-photos/interactive/2012/01/31/heavy-price-lead-poisoning-and-gold-mining-nigerias-zamfara Visit the related web page
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