Trade : E-Com at MC11 is effort to hijack basic internet governance issues (PRIV)
(Chakravarthi Raghavan, Geneva)
As issues relating to the monopolistic/oligopolistic control over information and data by the Silicon Valley technology giants and their platforms are beginning to attract adverse public and political attention around the world, these technology platforms (Google, Facebook, Twitter) are attempting to hijack the issue of internet governance and democracy by writing trade rules at the WTO under the rubric of "e-commerce".

Trade : Journalism and algorithmic accountability (PRIV)
(A. S. Panneerselvan, Chennai)
For the last couple of years, Cathy O'Neil, a data scientist and author of the book "Weapons of Math Destruction: How Big Data Increases Inequality and Threatens Democracy," has been speaking about the dangers in the flawed assumption that numbers are neutral and objective.

Climate : South welcome decisions at COP23, register concerns on finance issues (PRIV)
(Jade Chiang and Meena Raman, Kuala Lumpur)
Despite the delayed ending of the climate talks at Bonn by nearly a day, developing countries, in welcoming some key decisions adopted at COP23, also emphatically registered their unhappiness over how the finance issues were addressed at the closing of the climate talks that took place early morning of Saturday, 18 Nov.

Health : Proposed WHO criteria on medicines in transit open door for seizures (PRIV)
(TWN, Geneva)
A discussion document prepared by the Secretariat of the World Health Organization (WHO) proposes criteria to justify interventions with respect to medicines in transit.