Pedro Castillo, the Peruvian President under the legal scanner, declared a national emergency, dissolved the Congress, and anointed himself as the dictator. Half the capital’s populace came out on the streets to save democracy, the Congress convened to impeach the despot and by the night he had been arrested and jailed. Popular protests continue to dissolve the Congress and hold democratic elections.

In Germany, 25 persons were arrested in a plot to storm the Reichstag parliament, seize power and overthrow the government. The conspirators included members of the extremist Reichburger group (Citizens of the Reich) who do not believe in the legitimacy of the German State. A crackpot movement, harking back to the days of the Kaiser Emperor and then the Fuhrer, was stopped in its tracks because of good intelligence reports and the law and order machinery cracking down. This seditious group was already known for violent protests and racist and anti-Semitic attacks. A cache of 100 lethal weapons was recovered. Also uncovered were plans to execute and arrest people in the government, media and business. Those arrested included an ex-Member of Parliament, a sitting judge, a celebrity chef, and Wilhelm XIII, the ring leader, and an aristocratic real estate baron. Loony times?!! The German police estimate the committed cadres to number around 30,000.

On the 6^th Jan 2021, the US Capitol was stormed by right-wing mobs fed on deranged conspiracy theories of a stolen election. The MAGA coup attempt egged on by Trump was supported by Senators and Congressmen, civil servants, and some media outlets. The evidence is all over the place. During the insurrection attempt, there were chilling chants of ‘Hang Pence’ (the VP) and ‘Where is Nancy?’ (Pelosi- the head of the Democratic-controlled House). Almost 2 years since the shameful event no top conspirator has been arrested and thrown in jail. The venal Trump is going to stand for re-election in 2024. His cult base of almost 30% white adult Americans are rooting for him. Simply put, neither the Justice Department, Congress or President Biden have the balls to indict and arrest this most dangerous of ex-Presidents. His powerful accomplices have also got away with acts of sedition, exposing an impotent legal and administrative system. MSNBC, and CNN have finally started drawing parallels with Peru’s fight for democracy and the German crackdown on the plot to oust the elected Government.  Not the normal B.S. about ‘this is not who we are as a people’ or about being the greatest and oldest democracy. Take a leaf out of the Peruvian book. Peru is not ‘the banana republic’. Get the point?!

The USA is a highly polarised nation but it is getting even crazier. Amongst Trump’s fervent supporters are the lunatic Q’ Anon who avow the belief that Trump is waging a secret war against elite Satan-worshipping pedophiles in government, business, media, and entertainment. This cult has grown to scary proportions since its origins in 2017. Also, many rabid evangelical leaders embraced and endorsed the corrupt Donald as the man to right things, especially for the white folks-abolish abortion, and LGBTQ rights and clamp down on immigration. The ‘land of the free and the brave’ also has a rigged and subverted Supreme Court- SCOTUS- which would be a disgrace in any other civilized democracy. Filled with ultra-conservative Trump appointees with lifetime tenure. So SCOTUS has turned the clock back 50 years (Roe v Wade) by declaring abortion illegal except in the rare case of rape victims. The USA has moved even ahead of Indonesia which recently declared sex outside marriage as a criminal offense.

When there is a coup plot in Deutschland (Germany) can Italy be far behind? Giorgia Meloni, the PM is inspired by Mussolini and heads a far-right government. The fascist II Duce (the leader) still has his fan base in Italy. Definitely not good news in 2023 for gay rights, abortion laws, and especially for minorities and immigrants.

We have heard a lot of sermons from the European Union Headquarters in Brussels on democratic values, human rights, freedom of speech… Now the Qatar corruption scandal has blown open the sleaze at the Brussels Institution. A  Vice President at the EU along with a few others have been arrested for alleged illicit lobbying for Qatar, money laundering, and for a soft stance in the run-up to the World Cup. Euros 1,50,000 were found in cash at the VP’s apartment and her PR for Qatar in the lead-up to the World Cup and other issues are trending on social media and news channels. The hypocrisy is deafening.

The controversial allotment of the ongoing World Cup to Qatar happened in 2010. The sordid story is well documented in ‘FIFA Uncovered’ on Netflix. This premier sports body is again managed and controlled by major European countries. The scale of greed and manipulation is staggering. Now that the tournament is well on its way, the deaths of thousands of migrant workers whilst constructing the grand stadiums and infrastructure facilities will be reduced to a mere statistic. The appalling living and working conditions will all be forgotten.

The Russia-Ukraine war takes us back to the tense decades of the Cold War. NATO’s reach-out to countries like Ukraine and Finland which border Russia has had Tsar Putin fuming. After all, he was a mid-level KGB operative in East Berlin when the Wall fell in 1989 leading to the collapse of the Soviet Union. If this totally unnecessary war continues Ukraine will be reduced to rubble as is the case with the unfortunate Syria and Yemen.  It’s the 70-year-old geopolitics of brinkmanship being played out again and again. No mature diplomacy or well-thought-out response from both sides. The world is certainly not a better place in 2022.

After 2 years of the Covid pandemic seriously undermining the world economy, Putin’s switching off the Nord Stream gas to Europe has ushered in a fresh crisis. A cold winter, double–digit inflation, and looming recession and unemployment.

It’s been 3 years since the outbreak of the Wuhan virus in China through a lab leak. The independent figure of the pandemic mortalities is over 6 million globally, with the World Health Organisation finally admitting to 3 million deaths. Remember – the Secretary General of WHO played PR for China and played down their negligence in the spread of the deadly virus which then mutated into other forms. Recently scientists and researchers from the USA and Europe have admitted to the leak from the Wuhan lab where a ‘Gain of Function’ research was on without adequate safety and security measures. Briefly, the virologists control the ‘serial passaging of micro-organisms to increase their transmissibility, virulence, immunogenicity and host tropism by applying selective pressure to a culture.’ Both the USA and China have conducted these experiments for bio-chemical warfare also. A top US epidemiologist who worked closely with the Wuhan lab for 2 years has recently spoken out that ‘what he saw at the lab terrified him.’ Many US & European scientists have been part of the cover-up as they benefitted from the huge grants in this space- ‘Gain of Function research.’ The close association of some US institutions and private firms with the Wuhan lab is now being exposed.   At least an apology from China, WHO, USA, and the top researchers in the know, if no reparations- wishful thinking, what?! The double standards and sheer sense of entitlement are shocking. The Dragon nation is now facing a resurgence of Covid and a record-high number of cases. Leading to Zero Covid lockdowns and unprecedented public protests. The Chinese vaccines are not effective and the wheel has come full circle.

Anti-hijab protests started in Iran more than 4 months back after the tragic death of a young woman in the custody of the moral police. After more than 450 deaths, 2 public executions and thousands of arrests by a brutal, repressive regime, the young and the women agitators remain unbowed. Shockingly, women have been shot in the face and genitals by pellet guns. The movement has now morphed into a resounding call for democracy, equal rights, and a modern State. Yet another nation where the rulers have turned the clock back to 1979-80 instead of progressing forward.

Now, a take on our erstwhile colonial master, the United Kingdom.  The Brexit vote in 2016 was a narrow one- 51.8% to 48.2%. Russian hackers swayed the ‘Aye’ voters through images of hordes of brown and black immigrants. The pitch for regaining British sovereignty was a pure hallucination. Within 3 years the volume of British Trade with the EU has slumped by almost 20% and it has had an adverse impact on the labor market in the UK.  It’s just a matter of time before foreign investment takes a hit as also the pivotal position of London as a financial capital. As of now, London is the most attractive refuge destination for financial scamsters from across the world.  You see the extradition process is tedious and difficult as in the case of Vijay Mallya and Nirav Modi.  The country is facing a bleak winter further aggravated by strikes by nurses, rail employees, and many unions. And lest we forget, in the last 5 years there have been 4 Prime Ministers at 10 Downing Street, all from the Conservative Party. Not becoming of a civilized, mature, functioning democracy, is it?!

The West has long patronized and dominated the ‘Third World countries. They have created a lot of hotspots and war zones through their manipulative geo-political games. They have exploited natural and human resources for their own gain subverted emerging democracies and installed puppet rulers. But their hollow preaching and high moral ground stands have gone unopposed and unquestioned for decades. Not anymore. There are many developing nations asserting themselves in a multi-polar world and many voices cutting through these hypocritical posturing. Social media is also exposing the rot with real reporting from the ground. It’s time to reset the equation with the so-called First World. Peru’s tryst with democracy is showing the mirror to the United States of America.  The island country of Mauritius not only boasts of a growing economy but has a high literacy rate of over 90%, a life expectancy of 75 years, provides free health care and schooling, and is a beautiful and safe African country to visit. Brazil is a leader and the largest job creator in renewable energy and one of the most respected experts on climate change on the global stage. India’s leadership is being accepted globally not only as the 5th largest economy and a soft power to reckon with but as a responsible military power, especially with hostile neighbors in China and Pakistan. A multi-polar world does not necessarily mean a more peaceful and collaborative world.  But it does open up an opportunity by dismantling the old order and having more seats at the global geopolitical table.