The World Today for July 04, 2023

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Gassed

NIGERIA

One of Bola Tinubu’s first actions, when he became president of Nigeria in May, was eliminating the oil-producing country’s fuel subsidy. As the Economist explained, the subsidy that in 2022 reached $10 billion a year has long been a drag on the Nigerian economy. Because of the subsidy, the state-owned Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation contributed nothing to the government’s coffers year after year, even though the country pumps more oil than any other on the African continent.

Foreign investors hailed the move towards “orthodoxy,” or more conservative economic and fiscal principles, the Financial Times reported, adding that Tinubu is also liberalizing foreign exchange rules, making it easier to put money in and pull money out of the country.

The president’s move immediately caused a run on gas stations as Nigerians sought to fill their tanks with the last remaining cheap fuel. The long-term effects will likely be more important, however.

It also nearly destroyed black markets in Cameroon, Benin and Togo that sell contraband fuel, Reuters added, threatening to destabilize Nigeria’s neighbors.

In the country, human rights activists expressed concerns about the knock-on effects of the dramatic hike in the price of fuel, which increased 300 percent to $1.20 a liter after Tinubu’s announcement. Almost half of the Nigerian population lives in poverty. Only recently the United Nations issued a warning that 4.3 million people in the country’s northeastern states were facing severe food shortages.

“Millions of Nigerians … are concerned that they will be unable to meet the costs of education, food, and healthcare,” said Amnesty International Nigeria’s acting director Isa Sanusi. “The government is yet to suggest any ways to mitigate the impact of this decision for people on low incomes.”

Fuel prices, in turn, are causing general inflation. Comparing income rates in January through late May, the World Bank estimated that rising prices alone cast four million people into poverty, reported Punch, a Nigerian newspaper.

Muslims, for instance, who comprise around half the country’s population, have toned down celebrations during the holy month of Ramadan. Many can’t afford to drive to relatives’ homes or buy goods to mark the holidays due to high fuel costs, Voice of America wrote.

The World Bank also estimated that the measure would save the Nigerian government $5.1 billion, Business Insider Africa wrote. That extra money can shore up the government’s finances, help avoid financial crises, and potentially give Tinubu room to launch new programs to help poor Nigerians.

The president might not get a chance to propose those efforts, however, if his constituents are miserable and he’s wildly unpopular.

THE WORLD, BRIEFLY

Making a Comeback

GERMANY

The far-right Alternative for Germany (AfD) party won its first mayoral race this week, the latest election victory of the anti-immigrant group as it experiences increasing support in the polls, the Telegraph reported.

AfD candidate Hannes Loth won 51 percent of the vote to become mayor of the town of Raguhn-Jeßnitz in the eastern state of Saxony-Anhalt.

It marks the first time the AfD has won a mayoral election and is its second triumph of late in local polls: Last week, the far-right party made headlines when it won local district elections in Sonneberg, in the central state of Thuringia – the first time it won control of a county administration.

Since its founding a decade ago, the AfD has run on a platform of Euroscepticism and anti-immigration. Following the 2017 general election, the AfD entered the German parliament for the first time, riding on a wave of anti-migrant sentiment over the influx of refugees into Europe during the preceding years, according to the Associated Press.

It experienced a dip in popularity in the 2021 elections. But in recent months, polling between 19 and 20 percent nationally, the AfD has emerged ahead of Chancellor Olaf Scholz’s Social Democratic Party to become the second-most popular political party.

Analysts attribute the trend to discontent with rising migrant numbers, as well as the coalition government’s plans to boost green energy, particularly a new law that bans gas and oil heating in new buildings, Politico noted.

Of Freedom and Treachery

INDIA

An Indian court dismissed a lawsuit by Twitter challenging the government’s censorship orders, a ruling that underscores a victory for authorities as they seek to bring the social media giant and other foreign tech firms to heel, the Washington Post reported.

The case centered over a long-running dispute between Twitter and Indian officials that began in 2021 when millions of farmers were protesting against the government’s plan to cut subsidies and overhaul the agricultural market.

At the time, the Indian government ordered the social media platform to take down thousands of tweets sent from groups supporting farmers. Between February 2021 and February 2022, authorities demanded the removal of more than 1,400 accounts, saying they undermined India’s “sovereignty and integrity.”

Last July, Twitter filed a lawsuit against the government, claiming that Indian authorities were going beyond protecting national security. The US-based firm alleged that officials were “arbitrarily” seeking to silence journalists, activists, and politicians critical of Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s government.

But the court rejected Twitter’s allegations and sided with the government, concluding that “many of (the tweets) have outrageous content; many are treacherous & anti-national.”

It also ordered the platform to pay roughly $60,000 as punishment.

Indian officials welcomed the ruling, but Internet and free speech advocates warned that the case denies Twitter users any recourse to challenging government censorship in India.

A Big Trip

AUSTRALIA

Australia became the first country in the world to legalize the use of psychedelics to treat mental health conditions, a move that was met with praise and caution from the scientific community, the BBC reported this week.

The new regulations – which became official on July 1 – will allow psychiatrists to prescribe the synthetic drug MDMA for treating post-traumatic stress disorder, and magic mushrooms for some types of depression.

MDMA – also known as the party drug ecstasy – acts as a hallucinogen and is known for increasing the user’s energy levels and sensory experience. Naturally grown magic mushrooms also have hallucinogenic effects because of the psilocybin compound they contain.

Even so, the use of hallucinogens will be carefully monitored and could cost thousands of dollars, according to Australian media.

Some mental health researchers described the move as a “game-changer” that could help in providing better treatments for patients. But others noted that the legalization was rushed and cautioned that more research is needed to determine the long-term outcomes of the therapy.

The decision comes as other countries, including the United States and Israel, are conducting their own clinical trials on hallucinogens in treating mental health.

Earlier this year, Australia’s Therapeutic Goods Administration (TGA) reclassified MDMA and psilocybin for therapeutic use, considering them relatively safe in medically controlled environments for patients with serious mental health conditions.

The TGA believes the benefits for some patients outweigh the risks, despite the presence of unknowns and inconclusive evidence.

DISCOVERIES

Proto-dishes

Archaeologists in Pompeii discovered a still-life fresco depicting a very Mediterranean meal, including what appears to be a pizza, Live Science reported.

The Archaeological Park of Pompeii unveiled the image last week, which was found during recent excavations on the ancient city destroyed by the eruption of Mount Vesuvius in 79 CE.

The well-preserved image showed a full wine glass on a silver tray, pomegranates, yellow berries, and a flatbread with a bunch of condiments on top of it – the presumed pizza.

But park officials noted that the deceiving image is in fact depicting a flat focaccia with some spices and pesto. They explained that focaccias – back then known as panis focacius – were commonly eaten in Pompeii and were considered frugal meals.

They added that it couldn’t be a pizza because the key ingredients, mozzarella and tomato sauce, were not present before 79 CE: Tomatoes were introduced in Europe around the 16th century, while mozzarella was made sometime during the 11th century.

“How can we not think about pizza,” Gabriel Zuchtriegel, the park’s director general, said in a statement, noting it was a food “born as a ‘poor’ dish in southern Italy that has now conquered the world.”

Pizzas were baked in Italy from around the 19th century.

Even so, the fresco – known as a xenia – served as an important symbol of hospitality in the ancient city, according to archaeologists.

Its presence at the atrium of the house reflected the homeowner’s desire to treat guests well – despite the absence of actual pizzas.

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