Spanish Doctors Refuse Directive to not Treat Immigrants
The Spanish Society of Family Physicians will continue to provide free assistance to immigrants, said Salvador Tranche today, criticizing the new law prohibiting such care to undocumented immigrants. The neoliberal rule prohibiting care will enter into force on September 1st as part of a package from Mariano Rajoy’s government to reduce public spending from 8.9 percent of gross domestic product (GDP) in 2011 to three per cent in 2014.
Tranche is one of the nearly 900 doctors who signed a manifesto in which they promise to continue treating illegal immigrants through the public health service.
The signatories thus joined the network for conscientious objectors recently created by the Spanish Society of Family and Community Physicians (semFYC), which already has the support of 19,500 professionals, according to signatures received.
“My loyalty to patients does not allow me to fail in my ethical and professional duty through abandonment,” says the text on the Internet.
The shock wave from the document is already visible in the autonomous areas of of Catalonia, Asturias, Andalucia and the Basque country, regions that will continue to treat patients without payment, refusing to follow the government decision.
The Vice President of the Junta de Andalucía, Diego Valderas, said the new law is meaningless and lacks solidarity.
According to this law, foreigners who do not pay social security must pay 710 euros a year in exchange for medical care, while those over 65 years must pay 1,864 euros.
Former Head of UN Syria Mission Rules Out Military Intervention
The former head of the UN Mission for Syria, Norwegian General Robert Mood, ruled out a military intervention as a good way to solve the conflict in that Arab country, and said Syrians must be supported to decide their own future.
“A foreign intervention is not a good solution; internal support is,” said the former UN Mission chief in an interview published here today.
Mood considered the involvement of regional powers, as Turkey and Iran as crucial to find any kind of solution to the conflict, and urged the need for “policies to be activated.”
For this, Mood called for support for the process inside Syria, saying that its citizens must decide their own future, live together, and protect their minorities.
The Norwegian general emphasized that it is common knowledge that Syria’s future as well as the region’s future, is at stake, but there is an incapacity to join and demonstrate leadership.
Mood said that Damascus is a strong State, “where many pieces are moving, and rebels do not control a large part of the territory.”
Meanwhile, the Protocol director at the Syrian Presidential Palace, Muhelddin Meslmanieh, denied reports distributed by Arab and Western press about his defection.
Meslmanieh said that the information broadcast by Al Arabiya television channel on Thursday is false and part of a media war against the Syrian government.
For their part, Syrian authorities announced an attack carried out by anti-government armed groups on a bus, which left seven dead and various wounded.
The bus was transporting civilians on the highway between Homs and Damascus to Myssiaf city, when it was ambushed near a restaurant in Qara locality, about 70 kilometers north of this capital.
Typhoon Haikui Leaves 19 Dead in Manila
Nineteen people died and nearly two million people were displaced as torrential rains inundated northern and central Philippines in the past few days, officials said Thursday.
The National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council ( NDRRMC) said nine of the victims died from landslide, eight from drowning and two from electrocution. Four were injured while three remained missing. A total of 1.95 million people were affected by one of the worst flood to hit the country since 2009 as Typhoon Haikui paralyzed Manila and most of Luzon island.
The social welfare department, local government units and non governmental organizations have provided 22.98 million pesos (549, 892 U.S. dollars) worth of relief assistance to the floood victims.
Tropical storm Haikui has already left the Philippines Thursday morning but the capital region- Metro Manila – and surrounding provinces continue to experience light to moderate rainfall.
Private and public offices have reopened, but schools remain closed in flood-hit areas. Some roads are passable as floods subside. Philippine Airlines said that all flights will proceed but there will be slight delays due to the weather condition.