 Hello and welcome to the International Daily Roundup by People's Dispatch where we bring you some of the major news developments from across the world. Our headlines, Lebanon reimposes containment measures after spike in cases, Bolivian protests against the coup government of Zhaunin and Nez, accused the government of mismanagement of the pandemic, 10 left-wing activists in India arrested over protests demanding the closure of LG Polymers plant from where a gas leak took place, trade unions raised alarm over Shell's continued association with the rights violating contracts in Nigeria and exiled West Papua leader calls out Indonesia for arrests and custodial torture. We begin with our usual COVID-19 update, close to 4.36 million infections have been reported around the world as of today afternoon. The number of deaths has come up to 93,000. The Lebanese government has announced a re-imposition of a national lockdown for four days from the evening of May 13th. The decision was taken after the country recorded a fresh spike in COVID-19 infections over the past few days. The country had recorded almost zero cases for several days last week, following which the government had eased several restrictions and allowed businesses such as restaurants and salons to reopen. Healthcare, food and agricultural sectors have been accepted under the new lockdown norms, but night curfews are to remain in place. The government has also announced a review of its five-phased plan to lift the lockdown. The country was in its third phase. Meanwhile, health workers have complained that 90% of the country's nurses are facing salary cuts despite being frontline workers. Lebanon has recorded over 100 new cases in the past three days. The fresh cases are mostly tied to returning Lebanese expats. Despite this fact, Prime Minister Hassan Diab commented that the country's achievement in containment was being jeopardized by some people who defied the lockdown. This was seen as a reference to the popular protests that resumed last week. As the economic crisis in Lebanon worsened under the lockdown, thousands of people came out in protests. Protesters have particularly targeted banks due to strict limits on transactions and cash withdrawals. Since May 11th, hundreds of Bolivians have been mobilizing against the coup government of Jionin and His. Protesters condemned the government's mismanagement of the health and economic emergency caused by the COVID-19 pandemic. Protests erupted in all major cities including La Paz, El Alto and Cochabamba. Citizens blamed the UNS government for not providing food and economic aid to the most vulnerable sections of the population. The protesters said that they can no longer endure without food and water during the lockdown. They demanded UNS's withdrawal from office and called on the Supreme Electoral Court to set a date for general elections in the country. Protesting citizens also expressed a rejection of the use of genetically modified seeds as well as the intensification of restrictions on press freedom. They banged pots and pans to demonstrate their dissent and broadcasted the demonstrations live on social media due to the media blackout in place. Videos circulating on social media show demonstrators in Cochabamba being attacked by the police and the army. They used tear gas and rubber bullets against the protesters including several people. Deposed Bolivian President Evo Morales condemned the de facto government for the inappropriate use of force. In our next story 10 people were arrested on May 12th in India for protesting against the illegal operations of LG Polymers plant that recently had a deadly gas leak. The leak on May 7th had killed around 12 residents in the surrounding areas with over 800 left hospitalized. Five of those arrested are members of the Communist Party of India Marxist which played an active role in organizing the protest. The people were demanding the permanent closure of the plant and its relocation from residential areas. All 10 were later released on bail the same day. The plant owned by LG Polymers India, a subsidiary of South Korea's LG Corporation, has been operating for decades without proper environmental clearance. In an affidavit from last year, with a state-level environmental watchdog, the company had admitted to never having any proper clearance. Nonetheless, authorities did not take any measures to shut down the plant which eventually led to the industrial accident. Many hamlets around the plant had to be vacated. It is reported that water bodies in five surrounding villages have been contaminated. The protesters demanded that the plant be shut down permanently and its top management arrested. According to the police, during the protest, one woman climbed over the gate of the factory and opened it from inside, whereupon 20 people entered the premises. Five of them were immediately arrested. More arrests followed as the police widened the scope of the investigation. Among those held was Ganga Rao, secretary of the CPIM's Vishakhapatnam city committee. He was picked up by the police from the party's office on the evening of May 10th. On the behalf of its affiliated unions, Industrial has written to Anglo-Dutch oil company Shell, questioning its use of labour contractors and the lack of health insurance for workers in Nigeria. Industrial has also demanded to know whether or not the company's representatives will meet with union representatives to discuss and resolve these issues. Shell in Nigeria is accused of various violations of internationally recognized workers' rights, including occupational safety and the right to join unions. Several workers employed by Shell in Nigeria have reportedly died and many have been left with permanent disabilities due to workplace injuries. The leader of the West Papua and self-determination struggle, Benny Wanda, has called attention to the increasing militarization of the Papuan provinces of Indonesia. In a statement made earlier this week, Wanda claimed that the Indonesian government has been using the pretext to the pandemic to further militarize the region. Benny Wanda, who heads the United Liberation Movement for West Papua in exile, claimed that the Indonesian government and military forces operating in the region were conducting arrests on a mass scale and have been torturing Papuan activists. The Indonesian government recently released over 30,000 prisoners due to the COVID-19 pandemic, but according to him, this included no Papuan prisoner. The Papuan provinces of the Far East of Indonesia have witnessed major political unrest since August 2019 when protests erupted over a spate of racist attacks on Papuans in mainland cities. The violent repression and riots that killed dozens and led to the arrest of hundreds of students and activists was followed by the re-emergence of militancy. On May 11, activists in Colombia denounced violent evictions of families carried out in the national capital, Bogota, in the middle of a COVID-19 pandemic. Many condemned the mayor of Bogota, Claudia Lopez, for leaving vulnerable families on the streets during a public health emergency. Since May 2, the mayor's office and riot police have been forcibly evicting slum-dwelling families in the neighborhood of Altos de la Estancia. The shacks are built on a 46,000 square meter plot of land, housing nearly 700 families. The neighborhood is a park area in the Ciudad Bolivar district, with high terrain risk. It is occupied by homeless locals, migrants, peasants, indigenous people, and unemployed workers. The majority of the people are victims of armed conflicts. The authorities have justified the evictions, arguing that the homes were built on unstable terrain and the people residing there are at high risk of possible landslides. The people evicted, on the other hand, claim that they have no other place to live and that they have not received any assistance from the district or national government. People in the community also said that they were violently attacked by the Mobile Anti-Disturbances Squadron or the S-MAD. The S-MAD is the riot control unit of Columbia's National Police and have been working on the ground to carry out the eviction orders issued by local authorities. Community members also reported that one of the homes were demolished while an elderly man was still in sight. Reports have also stated that S-MAD officials fired tear gas into a house with miners. The popular human rights network of Bogota also condemned the violent and disproportionate intervention by S-MAD. Colombian media network, Colombia Informa, which has been closely following these evictions, claimed that on Saturday their correspondence were prevented from covering the evictions and were removed from the site by security forces. The foundation for freedom of the press condemned the incident and deemed it as an attack on press freedom. Many have questioned the intentions of the district government for speeding up the eviction process during the quarantine since the land has been occupied for more than 20 years. The eviction of the people in the midst of an outbreak and prohibition of media coverage raises serious questions to the so-called progressive government of Mayor Lopez. This is not the first time that the city administration has responded with force and repression to marginalize communities already suffering in the pandemic. That's all we have in this episode of the International Lady Roundup. We'll be back tomorrow with the latest news developments today. Until then, keep watching People's News Branch.