This week in the news

What is happening in Scotland in the news this week?
Scottish independence: Referendum White Paper unveiled
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-scotland-scotland-politics-25088251
Salmond to keep Sterling but not the BBC
http://www.theguardian.com/politics/2013/nov/26/scottish-indpendence-fairer-prosperous-alex-salmond

What's happening in the rest of the world this week?
20 questions about the Iran nuclear deal: What it says, what's at stake, what's next
http://edition.cnn.com/2013/11/24/world/meast/iran-nuclear-deal-qa/
Iran welcomes nuclear deal which Israel calls 'mistake'
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-middle-east-25083875
Public stoning consideration is latest setback for Afghan women's rights
http://www.theguardian.com/world/2013/nov/25/public-stoning-womens-rights-afghanistan-government-adultery
Australia and Indonesia - Revealing whose secrets
http://www.economist.com/blogs/banyan/2013/11/australia-and-indonesia?zid=306&ah=1b164dbd43b0cb27ba0d4c3b12a5e227
US bombers challenge it's disputed China air zone 
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-asia-25110011
The UK have claimed that Spain have breached protocol
http://www.theguardian.com/world/2013/nov/26/uk-spain-serious-infringement-gibraltar-diplomatic-bag

Our event: Say 'yes' or 'no' to Scottish Independence.

Firstly, we would like to thank our guest speakers on behalf of the Better Together Youth and Students campaign, Christine Jardine, and on behalf of the Yes Aberdeen Youth and Students, Councillor Graham Dickson, for coming to join us for this event and present both sides of what seems to be a very controversial subject amongst the students of the University of Aberdeen. 

If you missed this event, here is a little summary of what happened!

The debate was opened by Better Together speaker, Christine Jardine.

Here are a few of her main points: 

- To suggest that Scotland will be better without the influence of the UK, is to say that Scots are better than everyone else, in my eyes, we are not, we are equal. Who is to say that we will be better off alone?

- We will lose our voice amongst international politics. In organisations such as the UN, we have our own voice as the British people.

- To say that a valid reason for independence is that parliament is far away from Scotland is silly. Look at the US. 

- The pro's of being part of the British Embassy - offering protection for our nationals worldwide - these are things we take for grants as we do not see it in practice every day. 

This was followed by an argument presented by Yes Aberdeen speaker, Graham Dickson.

Here are a few of his main points: 

- Scotland will be better at running Scotland. No one knows what is best for Scotland better than Scotland does. 

- Our oil gives Scotland a surplus, if we gain independence, we can decide how we spend that money ourselves. 

- There is nothing to suggest that the EU would reject our application to be a part of it.

- The pound cannot be taken from us, and we do not have to be part of the Euro to be part of the EU. To suggest otherwise is false. 

- The disparity of the 9.9% of UK taxation Scotland pays compared to the 9.3% it receives. 

This was followed by question time, and there was no shortage of those. Questions were asked from both Yes and No supporters, and former P&IR President Monique Bouffé forced Graham into a corner with a question about practicality vs conviction - was the Yes side really about what’s best for Scotland on a realistic level, or simply on the basis of their belief in an independent nation? No answer was forthcoming. 

More of the questions asked by students included: 

Where will the funding for universities throughout Scotland come from if 'Rest of the UK' students no longer have to pay £9,000 a year for tuition?

Do you think it is entirely true to say that Scotland would have to take the Euro?

However, it is fair to say that neither sides of the debate could present clear enough answers, as the information is not available.

Most importantly, we would like to know what you, the students think of this subject.

Take part in the poll in the side bar to the right of the page, or comment below with your opinions!

Thanks to everyone that attended this event, we had a fantastic turn out.

A special thanks to Jonathan Kerr for his help with this post!

OUR NEXT EVENT: 

Wednesday 27th November 

'Who runs the world? Do women make the better Heads of States?'

Discussion on feminism with Dr Marysia Zalewski

Macrobert MR310 - Third Floor 

BE THERE!

Facebook confirms that it will allow beheadings to be posted on their site..

Today, MP's were told by the spokesperson of Facebook that they will not continue to ban footage of beheadings, violence and killings on their website. In July of this year, due to the pressure from MP's and pressure groups, Facebook decided to place a ban on video's that contained violent content. 

However, today, Mr Milner of Facebook, told MP's that they will not continue to do this. He claimed that it isn't Facebook that uploads these videos, it is the users, and that the videos should be allowed to be posted in the 'right context'. 

What is the right context for posting a disgusting video of someone being brutally murdered? Apparently, according to Facebook, it is okay for this content to be posted if it is in order to raise awareness for the violence that takes place, and if it is posted by human rights activists wishing to draw attention to such violence. However, with users as young as 13, and graphic video's like this being shared 'for fun' it isn't exactly fair to claim that this is in the 'right context'. The videos are often titled incorrectly, and do not contain warnings - anyone can watch them. On sites like youtube, there is a warning message, and people under the age of 18 cannot view explicit content, violent content or things that are just generally inappropriate. Is it about time Facebook did something similar? Does a 13 or 14 year old child, need to be made aware of such things in this way, or should they learn about this kind of violence in school, in a controlled environment where the images will be more carefully presented and they will not witness things that can seriously harm them, specifically not on a website where the video is titled: 'Challenge: bet you can't watch this!'

What do you think about the actions of Facebook? 
Is this a justified reason for posting these videos or should something further be done to prevent this?

Post your comments in the box below!
and if you have anything that you have seen in the news and want to write about, email me at:
pirsocblog@outlook.com 

thanks,
Ysabelle McGuire

see the original BBC article here: http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-politics-24998833

Politics & International Relations Society Blog 2.0

Welcome, new members and old, to the new and improved (kind of) politics and international relations society blog. 

The aim of the new and improved blog is to get EVERYONE involved, we want students and lecturers to be involved in the making and production of this brand new blog. 

The basic idea of the new blog is to make sure every bit of information you need is in one place. 
Here you can find information about events upcoming and past, your committee, upcoming trips, new related to students or just political news. 
The main idea is to get as many people as possible involved in the production of content.
We want your opinions, ideas, and articles to be published here for everyone to see. 
So if you're a budding writer, blogger or just an opinionated person - send us your articles! There are no word limits, no particular content needed, and you are free to write whatever you want (within reason of course). 
If you want to cover one of our events on the blog, take some photos and write up a little summary and submit it so we can post it on here. 

You can submit entries to: pirsocblog@outlook.com

In addition to all of this, we want the blog to be somewhere that you can submit questions to, anonymously if needed, about your courses and essays to get help from an older student that has been there, done it and got the t-shirt! 

So, enjoy reading, and hopefully you'll gain something from the blog in your time as a member of the politics and international relations society! 

Thanks,
Ysabelle

Climate Week 2013

Climate week, a national initiative organised between the 4th and 10th of March this year, attracted more attention than ever. Our university has joined in by organising various fun events for students and staff alike. The Environment Office, as the primary organiser of the Climate Week on campus, collaborated with many student societies and groups to make the event as widely accessible as possible. The “I Say Climate Change, You Say …” Art Exhibition was open to the public throughout the week and ran simultaneously with the Society’s Festival in Butchart. The subject, in all cases, revolved around the different age groups’ understanding of the effects of climate change and what could be done to slow down the process, and various mediums were used and recycled to produce the artwork exhibited. The exhibition portrayed art work submitted by the 2 – 4 year old children of the on-campus Rocking Horse Nursery as well as the 16 year olds’ of the St Machar Academy. Photographs shot by Jonathan MacDonell on behalf of AUSA for the University’s new sustainably campaign were one of the highlights of the display shown around the Shelter Box tent.

Have you been wondering what the large scale installation was placed in the Games Hall? The tent sponsored by Rotary International was envisaged to reflect what the older generation is doing to respond to the devastating effects of climate change and bring to your attention to an area in which you could also get involved by raising funds or volunteering for the scheme. All around the world many people are left without shelter, lack of nutrition, sanitation and adequate medical supplies after having been struck by environmental disasters which as we know are inter-relatedly magnified by climate change. The large box and the equipment kept in it provides shelter for as many as ten people, along with tools such as a wood burning or multi-fuel burning stove, blankets, hammer, saw, axe, cutter, etc. to make the first steps on the road to recovery. For more information on the box and how you could get involved visit:http://www.shelterbox.org/about.php?page=9 or the Aberdeen Rotaract Club for the 18-30 year olds at:https://www.facebook.com/groups/110723069083883/

Following the opening of the exhibition by Emma Carlen, on behalf of AUSA Society’s, and Fraser Lovie, head of Sustainability and Social Responsibility on campus, the dialogue on climate change continued with the feature event of the week, the War over Natural Resources Conference. In conjunction with the Politics and International Relations Society the one day event was organised in order to examine what local, national and international authorities as well non-governmental actors are doing in the area of sustainable resource management. The conference attracted over 50 participants from various disciplinary areas and looked into the questions behind how technology and research, the concept of culture and our relationship with the natural environment surrounding us, as well as various policies can be applied to tackle climate change while helping us work towards a more sustainable future in peace.

The message all participants came away with from the conference was the following:

Respect and care for your surroundings, be informed, have your voice heard on issues important to you and do not be shy to express new ideas by contacting your local representatives or a pressure group as you all are able to do your bit!

Lili Nagy

Iranian Political Campaign: Running on Global Ideas

University of Aberdeen Politics and International Relations Society hosts Iranian Presidential Candidate Dr. Hooshang Amirahmadi. 

The Politics and International Society hosted a sell-out talk given by Dr. Hooshang Amirahmadi on the 18th of February which attracted more than three hundred and fifty guests. The Iranian‑American economics professor is running in the 2013 Iranian Presidential Elections and is currently on a mission to change the way the world thinks about Iran and demonstrate his vision is to resolve the historical, political and economic tension between the global powers of the West and his country of origin.

The talk was introduced by Dr. Amirahmadi’s Director of Communications, Kayvon Afshari, the main person behind the revolutionary global grassroots campaign. The initiative is committed to engaging people in the Iranian political elections from all over the world through the use of social media and by Dr. Amirahmadi touring the world. Mr Afshari, similarly to Dr. Amirahmadi, has always dreamt of having a job where he could apply his extensive knowledge of international and foreign affairs as well as his skills in public relations and the media and make a real difference through being a pioneer in something he really believes in. The two professionals, who met in 2006, re-joined only a couple of months ago to start a campaign that would raise the world’s awareness of Iran and the desire of a section of the Iranian community who are longing to break the Western stereotype which has existed for a long time.

The Campaign

The modern campaign is engaging people from all over the world who are committed to closing the empowerment gap and widen the global perspective on the Middle East, and who believe in the power of global movements and free exchange of ideas and skills. “We are running on ideas,” said Mr. Afshari also pointing to their lean budget which is made up of individual donations. The world-wide attention they have been receiving through the social networks of the Internet has allowed the presidential candidate to develop his campaign with the help of the international community. Dr. Amirahmadi and his advisor travel by budget airlines, stay in modest accommodations and speak to everyone who is interested in what they have to say. For the past few months they have been visiting universities and various organisations primarily in the United States, United Kingdom, and United Arab Emirates, but will soon be visiting Iran as well as many other countries.

In his talk to the students of the University of Aberdeen, Dr. Amirahmadi candidate called himself “a bridge builder” and “a peace-maker” and he said he wished to become the Deng Xiaoping of Iran. He referred to the Chinese reformist politician as someone who has changed the direction of China without changing the political system and this is exactly what he wishes to do in Iran as well. His campaign is therefore based on resolving the three biggest conflicts he feels need urgent attention in Iran without changing the traditional political system of the country.

Factional conflicts within the country, the struggling economy and the tension between the United States and Iran are the three main pillars he concentrates his manifesto on. He has a strategic plan which he would apply if elected to solve the three problems as he believes they create a vicious circle which does not allow the government to solve any one without the other.

But why does he spend all this time campaigning outside of Iran? First of all, due to the the rigid and very closely controlled political system, the Guardian Council has the role of vetting the nominees and the list of the presidential candidates able to stand at the elections will only be released later on this year. Before receiving the Council’s approval however, by law public campaigning cannot be done. Therefore, Dr Amirahmadi is in the same position as any other declared candidate, only he is using his time to develop this unique political movement outside of Iran. Furthermore, he speculates that since there are as many as seven million Iranians living around the world, most of whom have families back home, if he can convince them of his cause then through their friends and relatives in Iran they will be of support to his campaign. The Iranian people are now also very connected to the rest of the world and can learn about the campaign through Facebook, the Internet, and satellite television. Last but not least, he is very intrigued to learn what the rest of the world think of Iranian political affairs. He closed his speech by declaring: 

“This movement is a good one, and if I am elected, I can assure that I won’t disappoint anyone.”

If you would like to learn more about the campaign visit the campaign website at: http://www.amirahmadi.com/ or go to their Facebook page at:https://www.facebook.com/hooshangamirahmadiofficialpage

To organise an event, email Kayvon.Afshari@amirahmadi.com

Lili Z Nagy