Looking Back 2022

Future historians may come to regard 2022 as a hinge in history, marking the end of one era and the beginning of another. Major war returned to Europe, with the attendant threat showing a sign of new world order. The past twelve months did bring some good news and some are not so impressive. Most notably, the COVID-19 pandemic eased in many countries. But overall, 2022 brought more bad news than good news. Here are some top world events in 2022.

COVID 19 Eases

Pandemics eventually end. Three years after COVID burst onto the scene, the world appears to have turned the corner on the first global pandemic in a century. In September, the head of the World Health Organization declared that the end of the pandemic is “in sight.” They were able to do so because of the success of vaccines and therapeutic treatments using mRNA in lowering the chances of dying from COVID infection.  Based on the death tolls in the United States and other countries experienced in 2020, COVID will remain a deadly disease for years.

SOCCER WORLD

The giant of the Soccer world and one of the most beloved players Pele died of colon cancer at 82.

TURMOIL RACKS BRITISH POLITICS 

Turmoil Rocks British Politics, as it is never good when a prime minister’s tenure is measured in “Scaramuccis.” But that was the United Kingdom’s situation in 2022. Liz Truss became the Prime Minister  and lasted just forty-five days— the shortest tenure of any British prime minister in history. She sealed her doom by immediately slashing taxes causing plummeting British pound and ultimate entry into recession. Rishi Sunak, who helped engineer Johnson’s downfall, got the honor to become the Britain’s first prime minister of color.

THE CROWN

The year began with celebrations to mark the start of Queen Elizabeth II's Platinum Jubilee Year, as she became the first British monarch to reign for seven decades. This year also marked with the passing of the Queen on September 8, aged 96, ruling over 15 countries in the Commonwealth and 14 additional overseas territories.

King Charles III inherited the British throne after Queen Elizabeth II died. At 73, he's the oldest person to become a monarch in the UK. Britain's King Charles III greets the newly appointed Conservative Party leader and Prime Minister Rishi Sunak at Buckingham Palace in London on October 25.

RUSSIA INVADES UKRAINE

Humanitarian Crises Deepen. Russian President Vladimir Putin launches the biggest invasion in Europe since World War II on February 24 to “demilitarise and de-Nazify” the country, causing millions of Ukrainians to flee abroad. Some 32 million people around the world currently are refugees, meaning they have fled their native country because of persecution, conflict, or violence. The untold sufferings of innocent Ukrainians and billions of dollars infrastructure damages re-establish the footing of NATO, making the organization stronger than ever. 

LATIN AMERICA MOVES LEFT

It is an example what a difference five years can make. In 2017, right-of-center politicians dominated politics in Latin America. A regional shift to the left has precedent in Latin America. In the late 1990s and early 2000s politicians like Hugo Chavez, Lula, and Evo Morales won election and spurred talk of a “pink tide.” At the same time, political polarization has deepened across the region. It is safe to say that all these leaders will taste the salt of weaker economy due to supply chain disruption and slowdown of global economy. The left move began in 2018 with the election of Andrés Manuel López Obrador in Mexico, the winds shifted. Center-left candidate Alberto Fernández claimed Argentina’s presidency in 2019. Socialist Luis Arce won Bolivia’s presidency in 2020. Last year, socialist Pedro Castillo became president of Peru and leftist Gabriel Boric became president of Chile. The trend to the left continued in 2022 as democratic socialist Xiomara Castro was sworn in as president of Honduras, former rebel fighter Gustavo Petro made history by becoming Colombia’s first leftist president, and former Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva returned to the presidency by defeating the incumbent right-wing firebrand Jair Bolsonaro.

IRANIAN PROTEST

The reality is haunting the leaders of the Islamic Republic of Iran, who in 2022 saw the most significant challenge to their rule since they came to power in 1979. The protests began in September when “morality police” in Tehran arrested Mahsa Amini, a twenty-two-year-old Kurdish-Iranian woman,  for failing to cover her hair properly. She died in police custody. The protests quickly spread throughout the country as Iranians across social, class, and ethnic lines marched to the slogan: “Women, life, freedom!” The government tried to quell the protests with force. The persistence of the protests prompted the government to disband the ‘morality police’.

INFLATION RETURNS

Sometimes the good old days were not so good. The late 1970s are a case in point. Anyone who lived through those years experienced what it was like to see inflation eat through their paychecks. In the four decades since then the world has lived in a low inflation environment.  Two thousand twenty-two saw inflation rise around the world. The price spikes were driven by a combination of demand and supply issues. On the demand side, years of easy government monetary policy combined with a flood of government spending to prevent an economic collapse and putting more money in consumers’ pockets. On the supply side, first COVID and then Russia’s invasion of Ukraine disrupted global supply chains, creating scarcities in a wide array of goods. Spiking prices have roiled politics in rich and poor countries alike as leaders scrambled to address growing public anger.

US ABORTION SHOCK

The US Supreme Court causes global shockwaves in June when it overturns its landmark 1973 “Roe v Wade” decision enshrining access to abortions nationwide. Following the ruling, abortion bans are brought in by Republicans in 16 US states, home to 26.5 million women. The issue impacted the November’s midterms outcome. This resulted a smaller than expected gains for Donald Trump loyalists in the Republican camp, as US voters in several states side with candidates advocating access to abortion. Trump nonetheless announces he will stand again for president in 2024.

CLIMATE CHANGE INTENSIFIES

Forty years ago, when scientists first warned of a possible climate catastrophe and many world leaders ignored it. The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change of the United Nations warned in April that the effects of climate change will soon become irreversible. Two thousand twenty-two showed that that perilous future has arrived. Once rare extreme weather events became commonplace. Europe experienced record heat waves that burned forests and dried up rivers. Pakistan endured a similarly brutal heat wave that was followed by epic monsoons in the recorded history that left as much as one-third of the country under water.  The brutal drought in Africa is showing a sign of a significant famine in many African countries, especially in the Horn of Africa. The U.S. southwest endured a record drought that shrank reservoirs like Lake Mead and diminished crops yields. On the other side of the country, Hurricane Ian wreaked havoc on Florida. There were a few bright spots in the climate change debate. The COP27 meeting at Sharm El Sheikh, Egypt, ended with a loss and damage agreement that in theory will lead wealthy countries to compensate poor countries harmed by climate change. But no breakthroughs were made in cutting emissions. Instead, the share of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere continued to rise in 2022.

US-CHINA TENSION GROW

The great power competition between China and the United States is fully underway. The Joe Biden administration’s National Security Strategy, released in October 2022, made the point bluntly: “China harbors the intention and, increasingly, the capacity to reshape the international order in favor of one that tilts the global playing field to its benefit,” and the United States intends to “win the competition.” The administration pointed to Beijing’s militarization of the South China Sea, its support for Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, its efforts to intimidate Taiwan, and its rampant theft of intellectual property as evidence that Beijing’s behavior had forced the United States to abandon its policy of welcoming China’s rise. Another anti-China provoking mood was US House Speaker’s visit to Taiwan. China’s belligerent response to U.S. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi’s visit to Taiwan in August highlighted just how tense relations had grown between the two countries. In October, Biden took a major step to limit China’s rise by denying it access to the advanced semiconductor chips and technology essential to dominating fields like artificial intelligence. Biden also continued to urge friends and allies to take similarly tough stances on China. However, the administration’s act might behave like a tug of war only, as the US and West rely on majority of their day-to-day consumer products from China. Many large US and Western investors, who are enjoying the trade benefit, will encourage to limit this as only a ‘tug of war’ without any effect.  In mid-November, Biden and Chinese President Xi Jinping met on the sidelines of the G-20 Summit. They promised to work to reduce mutual tensions and pledged cooperation in areas like climate change and public health. Nonetheless, mutual suspicion and acrimony are likely to dominate the relationship for years to come.

Xi CONTROLS POLITICAL ARENA

President Xi Jinping cements his control at the helm of China after winning a historic third term in November as leader the world’s second-largest economy. But the Chinese lose patience with the snap lockdowns, mass testing and curbs on movement occasioned by his signature zero-Covid strategy. Thousands of people took part in protests against the restrictions and government eased its restriction resulting a soar in Covid infections. 

JANUARY 6 PROBE CONCLUDES

A year full of hearings and subpoenas is culminating in the January 6 Select Committee’s final report is out at last, just week before the change of hands on US Congress. Its investigation into the Capitol riot on January 6, 2021 comes to an end with the committee making criminal referrals against Trump, recommending an ethics inquiry into several Republican lawmakers and recommending legislation to prevent another similar event – an unprecedented move against any US President.

TRIBAL CHIEFTAIN

India elects its President, Droupadi Murmu, the first person from India's tribal minority to occupy the top constitutional post. Born into a Santhal family in Uparbeda village, Mayurbhanj district, Odisha, in 1958, she was the first girl in her village to go to college. She went on to serve as a panchayat councilor, a minister of state and the governor of Jharkhand. Now the President of India, a country with the largest democracy.

UNPRECEDENTED FORCED MIGRATION AROUND THE WORLD

The number of people around the world who have been forcibly displaced – either internally or across international borders – has grown considerably in recent years. Low- and middle-income countries host the vast majority of the world’s refugees. As their stay is lengthened, host countries are focusing on integrative policies including housing, employment, and education. Some of the receiving countries are facing considerable pressure as they have very limited resources even to meet their own domestic demands.

According to the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) at the end of 2022, over 100 million people had been forcibly displaced worldwide. These refugees are facing unparalleled difficulties to led their daily lives and raising children. According to UNHCR, the number of forcibly displaced people worldwide propelled by new waves of violence or protracted conflict in countries including Ethiopia, Burkina Faso, Myanmar, Nigeria, Afghanistan and the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Ukraine.  Many Human Rights groups are raising concerns that the international organizations and the Western world are extending their supports based on the color of the affected people.

Here are the top countries of origin that account for the most refugees in the world today. More than two-thirds of today’s refugees have been forced to flee from these five countries.

1. Syria — 6.8 million refugees and asylum-seekers

Most Syrians who are refugees because of the Syrian civil war remain in the Middle East. Turkey hosts about 3.8 million, the largest number of refugees hosted by any country in the world. Syrian refugees are also in Lebanon, Jordan, and Iraq. About 6.9 million are displaced within Syria, and nearly 14.6 million people in Syria need humanitarian assistance, according to the United Nations.

2. Venezuela — 4.6 million refugees, asylum-seekers, and migrants

Years of economic and political instability in Venezuela have caused millions of Venezuelans to leave the country since 2014. They’ve migrated to seek food, work, and a better life, most of them to nearby countries. Many Venezuelans on the move lack legal status and need international protection and aid, according to the U.N. Refugee Agency.

3. Afghanistan — 2.7 million refugees and asylum seekers

About 2.7 million people from Afghanistan are refugees, representing one of the largest long-term refugee situations in the world — and that number increases when you add asylum-seekers applying for refugee status. Another 3.5 million Afghans are displaced within the country due to conflict, drought, and other natural disasters. Pakistan hosts about 1.5 million Afghans, including some second- or third-generation Afghan refugees who have never lived in their home country.

4. South Sudan — 2.4 million refugees and asylum-seekers

The protracted conflict in South Sudan has caused one of the largest refugee crises in Africa. About 2 million people are displaced within the country, and an additional 2.4 million are refugees who fled to the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Ethiopia, Kenya, Sudan, and Uganda.

5. Myanmar – 1.2 million refugees and asylum-seekers

For many years, but especially since 2017, the Rohingya people have fled violence, persecution, and human rights violations in Myanmar’s Rakhine state. Today, around 2.0 million stateless Rohingya refugees live in the world’s largest and most densely populated country Bangladesh.

6. Ukraine – 6 million refugees

In 2022, the war in Ukraine has displaced 8 million within the country this year and forced around 6 million to leave the nation. Many of them migrated to the Western countries and they are providing all required support to this group.

Let’s hope for a new world with peace and harmony in 2023. Happy New Year!!