A bitter row over the difficulties of debating racism in France has erupted after a high-profile feminist and anti-racism campaigner was forced off a government advisory body, prompting the resignation of the director and scores of members. Journalist Rokhaya Diallo has repeatedly spoken out against what she calls institutional racism in France, notably police stop and search practices against non-white young men.

Diallo, 39, was one of 30 people appointed last week to France’s national digital council, the CNNum, an independent commission of digital experts. The voluntary panel was to advise the centrist president Emmanuel Macron’s government on a new, more inclusive digital policy. The appointments were approved by the digital minister Mounir Mahjoubi – one of the few faces of ethnic diversity in government – as well as the prime minister. But the government then bowed to complaints about Diallo’s presence.(theguardian)…[+]

The EU has triggered a process that could ultimately see Poland stripped of voting rights in Brussels in an unprecedented step designed to force the country’s rightwing government to drop reforms the bloc regards as a threat to the country’s democracy.

The country’s fellow 27 member states have been advised by the European commission that the legislative programme of Poland’s government is putting at risk fundamental values expected of a democratic state by allowing political interference in its courts. “Within a period of two years a significant number of laws have been adopted – 13 in total – which put in serious risk the independence of the judiciary and the separation of powers”, the vice president of the commission, Frans Timmermans, told reporters in Brussels. “Judicial reforms in Poland mean that the country’s judiciary is now under the political control of the ruling majority. In the absence of judicial independence, serious questions are raised about the effective application of EU law.”(theguardian)…[+]

BRIDGETOWN – The Board of Directors of the Caribbean Development Bank (CDB) has approved a grant of USD218,020 to the Government of Guyana to build capacity in key areas of local government to facilitate decentralisation of public service delivery, and greater local involvement in social and economic development, consistent with the sustainable development goals.The Project will assist the Government of Guyana in building the capacity of the Ministry of Communities to better support the process of reform in local government; as well as capacity building of the Guyana Association of Municipalities (GAM) and an institutional assessment of five municipalities, to help these entities improve performance and results delivery.

To better support local government reform efforts, the Project will aim to achieve key results, including:

• attaining greater clarity on the resource needs of Ministry of Communities, GAM and the municipalities;
• identifying areas for cooperation and potential synergies to reduce and eliminate wasteful public expenditure; and
• identifying the needs of the vulnerable groups who are likely to be socially and economically excluded;(CDB)…[+]