text:
U.S. Department of State Country Report on Human Rights Practices 2002 - Equatorial Guinea
- Document source:
31 March 2003
Released by the Bureau of Democracy, Human Rights, and Labor
March 31, 2003
Equatorial Guinea nominally is a multiparty constitutional republic; however, in practice President Teodoro Obiang Nguema and the small Mongomo subclan of the majority Fang tribe, which has ruled since the country's independence in 1968, dominated the Government. President Obiang, who has ruled since seizing power in a military coup d'etat in 1979, was re-elected with 97.1 percent of the vote and 98 percent of registered voters participating in a December election marred by extensive fraud and intimidation. The President's Democratic Party of Equatorial Guinea (PDGE) controlled the judiciary and the legislature; the latter was chosen in elections in 1999 that were criticized widely by the international community as seriously flawed. The judiciary was not independent.
President Obiang exercised control over the police and security forces through the Minister of the Interior, who also served as President of the National Electoral Board. The Director General of National Security was the President's brother, Armengol Ondo Nguema. Civilian authorities generally maintained effective control of the security forces; however, there were some instances in which they acted independently of government authority. The security forces committed numerous serious human rights abuses.
Although the 2002 census estimated the population at 1,015,000, credible estimates put the number at closer to 500,000. The opposition claimed that the Government inflated the census in anticipation of the December presidential election. The majority of the population lives by subsistence agriculture, supplemented by hunting and fishing. Unemployment and underemployment were very high. Barter was a major aspect of the economy. The gross domestic product (GDP) grew by 23.8 percent during the year. Per capita income during 2001 grew to $3,852. Much of the growth in income was due to an increase in crude oil, which averaged 280,000 barrels per day during the year. Investment and other use of oil revenues lacked transparency despite repeated calls from international financial institutions and citizens for greater financial openness. Poor fiscal management and a lack of transparency in public accounting of national finances have undermined the country's economic potential. There is little evidence that the country's oil wealth is being devoted to the public good. Most foreign economic assistance was suspended due to the lack of economic reform and the Government's poor human rights record; however, some countries resumed aid during the year.
The Government's human rights record remained poor; although there were some improvements noted in a few areas, numerous serious problems remained. Citizens' ability to change their government peacefully remained somewhat restricted. The security forces committed numerous abuses, including torture, beating, and other physical abuse of prisoners and suspects, which at times resulted in deaths. Members of the security forces generally committed abuses with impunity. Prison conditions remained harsh and life threatening. There were deaths in custody from torture and abuse, combined with a continuing lack of medical care. Prisoners often were tortured to coerce confessions. Security forces used arbitrary arrest, detention, and incommunicado detention. The judicial system repeatedly failed to ensure due process and remained subject to executive pressures. The Government restricted the right to privacy. The Government severely restricted freedom of speech and of the press; however, freedom of speech improved marginally during the year. The Government continued to restrict the rights of assembly and association and limit freedom of religion and movement. There were no effective domestic human rights nongovernmental organizations (NGOs). Violence and discrimination against women remained serious problems. Discrimination against ethnic minorities, particularly the Bubi ethnic group, and foreigners continued. The Government restricted labor rights. Child labor persisted and forced prison labor was used. There were reports of trafficking in persons.
1. Respect for the Integrity of the Person, Including Freedom From:
a. Arbitrary or Unlawful Deprivation of Life
There were reports of unlawful killings during the year. During the year, opposition parties and the international press reported between three and five deaths subsequent to the June coup trial from torture by prison authorities (see Sections 1.c. and 1.e.). For example, on July 3, police officer Juan Odo Nguema died in Malabo's Black Beach prison, reportedly due to torture. Nguema had been sentenced to 6 years in prison for participating in the coup d'etat to oust President Obiang (see Section 1.e.). Government authorities attributed Nguema's death to bronchial pneumonia, a liver abscess, and anemia.
There were reports during the year that prison authorities tortured, beat, and otherwise abused prisoners; such abuse, combined with a lack of medical care, resulted in some prison deaths.
On February 15, the head of a military unit killed 35-year-old Dimas Bueriberi outside of Malabo during a power outage. The shooter said he mistook Bueriberi, an electrician, for a bandit.
On October 7, Presidential Guard Army Commander Narciso Edu Nsue killed Luis Obiang, a sergeant under his command, after both men had been drinking in a Malabo bar. Edu Nsue was detained on charges of homicide and awaits a military tribunal.
The Government did not prosecute any members of the security forces considered responsible for extrajudicial killings in previous years, nor is it likely to do so.
b. Disappearance
There were no reports of disappearances during the year.
c. Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman, or Degrading Treatment or Punishment
The law mandates respect for the liberty and dignity of persons, but does not prohibit specifically torture, cruel, or inhuman punishment. Members of the security forces tortured, beat, and otherwise abused suspects, prisoners, and opposition politicians. After visiting prisons in 2001, U.N. Human Rights Commission (UNHCR) Special Representative Gustav Gallon described torture as a "normal means of investigation." The Government does not provide medical care to prisoners or detainees.
There were reports that prison authorities tortured, beat, and otherwise abused prisoners, and that such abuse, combined with a lack of medical care, resulted in the deaths of some prisoners (see Section l.a.). There were credible reports of three such deaths in Black Beach prison during the year.
There were reports that officials tortured opposition political activists subsequent to the coup trial (see Section 1.e.). There were numerous reports that police authorities tied prisoners' arms and legs behind their backs and suspended them from a bar. During the trial, there was evidence that prisoners suffered dislocated wrists and elbows, and many walked with a limp.
Torture commonly was used to extract forced confessions, particularly from the group of 144 alleged coup plotters arrested in March. For example, Felipe Ondo Obiang, leader of the banned Republican Democratic Front (FDR), reportedly was tortured at Black Beach Prison in Malabo. His hands were beaten so severely that he reportedly lost use of his fingers. He was not allowed visitors, nor did prison guards accept food brought to Obiang from his family and friends. On June 9, Obiang received a 20-year prison sentence after a lengthy trial marked by many procedural abuses.
On July 14, presidential guard soldiers at Black Beach prison beat Bibiana, the wife of imprisoned Convergence for Social Democracy (CPDS) Secretary General Placido Mico, as she took food and clothing to her husband.
During the year, security forces harassed oil company employees. For example, gendarmes removed one employee from an oil company vehicle and beat him unconscious for refusing to pay a bribe. A patrol boat also fired on an oil company boat without causing any injuries.
Local authorities singled out foreigners from neighboring countries for harassment such as verbal intimidation and arbitrary arrest. Police routinely extorted money from citizens of Cameroon, Nigeria, Ghana, Togo, and Benin.
The conditions of jails and prisons in the country remained harsh and life threatening; inmates were not provided with food, medical care, working toilets, drinkable water, clean and healthful living space, and minimum equipment, such as beds. There were credible reports that conditions at Black Beach prison improved during the year, including facility renovations. In November 2001, Special Representative Gustav Gallon paid an unauthorized visit to a Bata gendarmerie detention center. Gallon reported 17 persons, including 4 children, were being held in a cell that measured 4 by 1.5 meters and did not contain toilet facilities. Two of the prisoners had clear signs of torture. When questioned, the prison authorities did not deny charges of torture and could offer no explanation for the prisoners' detention.
Prison authorities and prisoners sexually assaulted female prisoners. Prisoners were used habitually as labor and as workers on construction projects for certain officials, without pay or other compensation. There were unconfirmed reports that judges used prisoners as domestic workers.
On July 29, various sources reported Black Beach Prison's inmate food supply was exhausted, and prison authorities no longer were distributing rice and peas to the prison population; however, observers indicated that inmates were being fed by year's end. Also in July, Black Beach authorities hospitalized inmate Candido Obiang Abia for stomach cramps and high fever. According to reports from other inmates, prison officials had not fed Obiang Abia in 4 days.
Male and female prisoners were not held in separate facilities, nor were adult and juvenile prisoners. Pretrial detainees and political prisoners were not held separately from convicted prisoners.
There were no local NGOs other than the government-controlled National Commission on Human Rights of Equatorial Guinea (CNDH). In the past, the governmental-controlled CNDH has reported that jail and prison conditions were harsh. Although the CNDH reported that prisoners were not mistreated, CNDH reports indicated there were food shortages and a lack of medical care. CNDH officials took partial credit for the Black Beach Prison facility renovations during the year. There were no international human rights NGOs resident in the country. The International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC), which historically has made recommendations to the Government, monitored prison conditions. On October 8, the ICRC signed an accord with the Government institutionalizing its ability to visit detainees and prisoners on a regular basis. The agreement provided that the ICRC would have access to all detained persons, be able to converse freely with all detainees and prisoners, repeat its visits, and receive from the Government a list of all detainees and prisoners. During the ICRC's first November visit under the agreement, ICRC representatives were able to visit all prisoners and detention facilities.
d. Arbitrary Arrest, Detention, or Exile
There were nominal legal procedural safeguards regarding detention, the requirement for search warrants, and other protection of citizens' rights; however, security forces systematically ignored these safeguards, and continued to arrest and detain persons arbitrarily and with impunity. Security forces often detained individuals "on orders from superiors" without any further formality.
Police routinely detained prisoners incommunicado. Foreigners from neighboring countries sometimes were targeted for arbitrary mistreatment and random arrest (see Section 1.c.).
During the year, authorities detained members of political opposition parties for short periods. Some political detentions lasted more than a few months. It was difficult to estimate the number of political detainees, although it was believed to be fewer than 100 persons. The Government used the psychological effects of arrest, along with the fear of beatings and harassment, to intimidate opposition party officials and members.
In March and April, the Government arrested 144 persons in connection with an alleged coup plot in October 2001, including FDR leaders Felipe Ondo Obiang and Guillermo Nguema Ela. The detainees were held incommunicado at Bata prison and tortured until they confessed (see Section 1.e.).
On April 18, authorities placed CPDS Secretary General Placido Mico under house arrest for his participation in the alleged 2001 coup d'etat plot. In May Mico was arrested, charged with coup conspiracy, tried, and sentenced to 8 years in prison.
On May 17, national security forces, led by President Obiang's brother, Antonio Mba Nguema, arrested and imprisoned 17 members of the Bubi ethnic group on charges of coup plotting. Mba Nguema said members of the security agency found plans for military camps in the detainees' possession. All 17 members were held in Black Beach Prison. The Bubis stated they were not engaged in political activity but rather celebrating the anniversary of their founder and observing the traditional ceremonies of the Bubi people. On May 31, the National Resistance of Equatorial Guinea Group (RENAGE) released a communique stating that during the round-up, security forces cut off the ears of 2 of the 17 detainees, Venancio Epara and Gustavo Epeso. No further information was available at year's end.
In July every security officer at the Bata airport (between 15 and 20) was arrested after the opposition party Popular Union (UP) leader was allowed to board a flight departing for Gabon.
Security forces detained relatives of prisoners and criminal suspects in an attempt to force the prisoners or suspects to surrender (see Section 1.f.).
Unlike in the previous year, there were no reports that government security forces detained oil company employees.
There were no developments in the 2000 case of Nve Maana who was restricted indefinitely to the environs of Mongomo or of Macias Nguema and others arrested in 2000 who remained in detention pending trial on conspiracy charges.
It was unknown if Marcelo Seme Nze, Ruben Sima, and Romualdo Angue Nbons remained in detention at year's end.
Security forces responsible for arbitrary arrest and detention and other abuses were not held accountable for their actions. The U.N. Special Representative noted that some executive officials closely related to the security apparatus of the Government were treated as being above the law.
In April the Government enacted a law to protect women from imprisonment for not repaying the dowry following divorce (see Section 5). Women who had been detained for failure to repay a dowry were released from prison in an October amnesty.
The Government used forced internal exile, including against five men reportedly restricted to Mongomo (see Section 1.f.). The Government did not use forced external exile; however, some persons have fled the country for political reasons. During the year, President Obiang urged exiled opposition figures to return to the country and to legalize their parties. In 2001 Joaquin Elema, leader of the RENEGE-allied Forum for the Democratization of Equatorial Guinea (FODEGE) and General Coordinator of the Coordination of the Democratic Opposition (CODE), returned to the country; however, RENAGE's leaders reported that attempts to return to the country were unsuccessful.
e. Denial of Fair Public Trial
The Constitution provides for judicial independence; however, the judiciary was not independent. Judges served at the pleasure of the President, and they were appointed, transferred, and dismissed for political reasons. Judicial corruption was widespread.
The court system is composed of lower provincial courts, two appeals courts, a military tribunal, and a Supreme Court. The President appoints members of the Supreme Court, who report to him and take their orders from him in practice. The President was the most powerful member of the judicial branch. Tribal elders adjudicated civil claims and minor criminal matters in traditional courts in the countryside. There were no objective criteria for the selection of judges below the Supreme Court; the law allows the Ministry of Justice to undertake periodic inspections and name judges. Some judges were absent regularly from their posts, resulting in delays in judicial proceedings. As a result of these absences, prisoners often remained in detention at police stations awaiting hearings for longer than the 72 hours prescribed by law; in addition, jails became even more overcrowded and unsanitary (see Section 1.d.).
The Constitution and laws provide for legal representation in trials and the right to appeal; however, in practice the authorities often did not respect these provisions. Civil cases rarely came to public trial. Cases involving national security were tried by the military tribunal. Cases that essentially were political in nature frequently were referred to military courts, even when the defendants were civilians and the charges were not related to the military. The Code of Military Justice permitted persons who disobeyed a military authority to be tried in a military tribunal whether or not they are military personnel. Military courts did not provide for due process or other procedural safeguards, and proceedings were not made public. The Parliament's Complaints Commission was the de facto third branch of "judicial authority," although it had no formal legal jurisdiction. According to local media, the Parliament's President acted as a court of last resort.
Beginning on May 22, a special tribunal convicted 68 prisoners and their relatives and sentenced them from 6 to 20 years in prison for a purported coup d'etat plot against President Obiang. Those sentenced included leaders of the three main opposition parties that remained independent from President Obiang's ruling party, including CPDS Secretary General Placido Mico, UP Secretary General Guillermo Nguema Ela, and the leader of the banned FDR, Felipe Ondo Obiang (see Section 1.d.). There were numerous irregularities associated with the trial, including evidence of torture and a lack of substantive proof (see Section 1.c.). The trial was held in a movie theater. The judge consistently overruled the defense attorney's attempt to question the prisoners about torture. Prisoners who renounced confessions allegedly were tortured upon their return to prison. The court provided the defense with charges and defendants' statements the day before the trial began, and defense lawyers did not have access to their clients through most of the proceedings. Most of the defendants noted that their statements were not truthful and were made only to stop the torture. The prosecution alleged that Ondo Obiang led a meeting in Bata in October 2001 to plot the murder of President Obiang and the overthrow of his administration. It produced no other evidence aside from statements extracted under torture. Obiang and the other defendants said that the "coup meeting" actually was a meeting of FDR supporters exploring how to obtain additional names of co-founders from each region of the country in order to apply for the party's legalization. The court based Mico's conviction on testimony from Obiang's nephew, extracted under torture and later denied.
Since the trial, the presiding judge has been appointed to the Supreme Court. Six of those 68 convicted, including UP Secretary General Fabian Nsue Nguema, were released following an October presidential pardon. President Obiang has indicated that others convicted during the coup trials may receive full or partial pardons, or reduced sentences.
On October 12, President Obiang issued an amnesty for 40 ethnic Bubis convicted following a 1998 revolt in Luba. In addition, the President pardoned all women and persons over 70 years of age. All persons included in the amnesty were released by year's end; however, the amnesty applied only to some of the 68 prisoners convicted in June for the alleged October 2001 coup plot. The exact number of those released was not available at year's end.
The Government holds a number of political prisoners; however, the 20 persons previously imprisoned at Evinayong reportedly had been released under the October amnesty.
f. Arbitrary Interference with Privacy, Family, Home, or Correspondence
The law prohibits such actions; however, the Government did not respect these prohibitions in practice. There continued to be reports that security forces regularly searched homes and arrested occupants without warrants, and they generally did so with impunity.
There continued to be reports of government surveillance of members of the opposition parties and foreign diplomats. During the year, Reporters without Borders (RSF) noted that several associative and political journalists complained of increasing difficulties accessing the Internet. The journalists said that there also had been an increase in illegal monitoring of telephone calls and of e-mail, which was controlled by the only (state-affiliated) Internet access supplier (see Section 4).
Authorities displaced approximately 500 Cameroonians living in Malabo following a new government policy to prevent foreign nationals from benefiting from increasing petroleum wealth (see Section 5). At year's end, the evacuees had not been able to return to their residences and their exact status was unknown.
On January 11, UP Secretary General Nguema reported that authorities gave seven high ranking military officials, who had been forced to retire because of their affiliation with the UP, 4 days to leave Malabo for their respective villages. Nguema said the injunction was "without apparent reason" and contravened an accord signed by the Government disallowing extrajudicial confinement.
Membership in the PDGE generally was a prerequisite for hiring and promotion, both in the public and private sectors. Membership in a rival political organization was considered grounds for dismissal from any position, public or private. Opposition politicians who are not participating in the Government often claimed to have been dismissed from their jobs after joining alternate political groups.
Security forces detained relatives of prisoners and criminal suspects in an attempt to force the prisoners or suspects to surrender. For example, during the March arrests of 144 alleged coup plotters, family members of Felipe Ondo Obiang, including his pregnant niece, were detained incommunicado and tortured.
2. Respect for Civil Liberties, Including:
a. Freedom of Speech and the Press
The Constitution provides for freedom of speech and of the press; however, the Government severely restricted these rights in practice. Journalists practiced self-censorship. Freedom of speech has improved marginally in recent years, though many feel the improvements are superficial and ephemeral. A small number of foreign press representatives were allowed to cover the December presidential election.
The Government did not tolerate criticism of public institutions and public sector mismanagement and permitted no criticism of the President or the security forces. Expatriates dependent on the goodwill of the Government did not voice complaints about the frequent government abuses against them. These practices ranged from the police demanding bribes for imaginary offenses to city, provincial, and federal officials extorting money for "licenses" for which there was no statutory basis. Complaints about official conduct in the country continued to be accompanied by requests not to be identified to avoid reprisals.
On April 29, authorities imprisoned Fabian Nsue, President of the UP, for insulting the head of state after Nsue made critical statements about a large pay raise announced, then rescinded by President Obiang. At the time of his arrest, Nsue, a lawyer, was preparing the defense of several persons accused of involvement in an alleged October 2001 coup. Nsue was released in an October amnesty.
There were five general-interest newspapers that published irregularly: La Gaceta, a Malabo-based monthly publication with informal connections to the Government; El Correo Guineo Ecuatoriano, a bimonthly newspaper published by the Gaceta group; La Opinion, an opposition newspaper published every 2 to 3 weeks; El Tiempo, an opposition newspaper; and Ebano, a publication of the Ministry of Information, Tourism, and Culture, which appeared approximately twice a month. Students at the National University have published a magazine, AYO, and the Guinean-Hispano Cultural Center also has published a monthly cultural review, El Patio. The PDGE published La Voz del Pueblo, and the opposition CPDS published La Verdad. Although no laws or regulations were published during the year, La Gaceta has a contract with the Government to publish laws and regulations adopted by the administration regularly.
All journalists must be registered with the Ministry of Information. According to the Ministry, in 2001 there were 18 independent reporters registered, and between 35 and 45 reporters employed by the official party or government. In previous years, guides from the Ministry were required to accompany visiting foreign reporters; however, during 2001 at least four foreign reporters with various publications traveled and reported independently in the country. The Government allowed approximately 5 foreign journalists to cover the December presidential election.
The law authorizes government censorship of all publications. The Ministry sometimes required publishers to submit copy for approval prior to publication during the year. In addition, all local publications exercised self-censorship and were subject to prior restraint. There was very limited availability of foreign publications.
On May 21, Vice Minister for Press Radio and Television Alfonso Nsue Mokuy signed into law a resolution requiring foreign media houses and press correspondents to obtain ministerial accreditation before entering the country. Prior to the decision, the Ministry of Information merely required media houses and correspondents to be registered with the Ministry. The ruling corresponded with the opening of June's coup d'etat trial and was described as "temporary," renewable on a case-by-case basis. The ruling remained in effect at year's end.
Also in May, authorities prevented the Association of the Press of Equatorial Guinea (ASOPGE) from organizing exhibitions and conferences programmed for the May 3, International Freedom of the Press Day. Mokuy said that ASOPGE previously had been declared illegal and accused the association of working in a "parallel government" rather than legally with the Ministry. The status of ASOPGE was unknown at year's end.
On June 1, presidential security forces questioned ASOPGE President Pedro Nolasco Ndong and threatened to ban him from coup d'etat trial proceedings unless he stopped having contacts with trial defendants and international observers (see Section 1.e.). On July 9, a member of the presidential guard warned him that President Obiang had ordered his arrest. Fearing for his life, Ndong left Malabo the following day for Spain and remained there at year's end. Nolasco Ndong's newspaper La Nacion had published a series of articles criticizing the prison conditions of Malabo's Black Beach Prison where, the articles alleged, many opposition members were being held.
On June 2, coup d'etat trial police authorities banned AFP and BBC freelance correspondent Rodrigo Angue Nguema from entering the courtroom, even after Nguema showed his press card (see Section 1.e.).
Radio was the most important and influential medium of mass communication. During the year, the Government continued to dominate effectively domestic radio broadcasting. It owned and operated the station Radio Malabo. The President's son, Teodorino Obiang Nguema, who also was Minister of Forestry, Environment, and Fisheries, owned the only private local radio station, Radio Asonga. The Government has not approved the one or two other applications for private radio stations that have been pending for several years.
Unlike in the previous year, no radio stations were shut down.
The only domestic television station was government-controlled, and broadcast only a few hours a day. Television Asonga, owned by President Obiang and run by his son in coordination with Radio Asonga, broadcast by cable only in Bata. Foreign cable television was available, and offered the Cable News Network (CNN), French news, movies, sports events, and cartoons; however, relatively few citizens could afford cable. Satellite reception increasingly was available.
The Government generally withheld access to domestic broadcasting from opposition parties and rarely referred to the opposition in anything but negative terms when broadcasting the news.
International electronic media was available and includes Radio France International, which broadcast in Malabo, and Radio Exterior, the international short-wave service from Spain. Radio Exterior often broadcast news about the country and interviews with opposition politicians. It was virtually the only means for the opposition to disseminate its views and positions widely. Its editorials, like those of most of the Spanish media, frequently were highly critical of the Government. The Government regularly accused Radio Exterior, sometimes with justification, of misrepresenting the situation in the country.
Internet service was available, although access was expensive and computer ownership was not widespread. During the year, UP Secretary General Fabian Nsue was arrested and convicted of "slandering" the President in an Internet article.
The Government did not restrict academic freedom.
b. Freedom of Peaceful Assembly and Association
The Constitution provides for the right of assembly; however, the Government restricted this right in practice. Government authorization must be obtained for private home meetings of more than 10 persons for discussions that the Government considers political in nature. Although the Government formally has abolished permit requirements for party meetings within party buildings, in practice opposition parties must inform the authorities in order to hold gatherings of any kind, regardless of location. Security forces generally monitored gatherings in public places, even small gatherings. The Government required notification for public events; however, it did not routinely deny permission for such events.
The Government continued to require that the Catholic NGO Autonomous Rural Development (DAR) in the diocese of Ebibeyin inform the locally appointed official delegate of each board meeting. The DAR complied with the requirement and received permission to meet, but the local delegate insisted on being present during the meetings. During the year, DAR avoided the Ebibeyin order by meeting in Bata.
The Constitution provides for the right of association; however, the Government restricted this right in practice. The law prohibits the formation of political parties along ethnic lines. The law prohibits coalitions between political parties; however, five opposition groups formed a coalition (see Section 3). Opposition party members complained of disruption of meetings.
There were 12 political parties that the Government called "opposition parties;" 11 have allied themselves with the ruling PDGE. The Government advertised these opposition parties as examples of the country's multiparty democracy.
The Progress Party (PP) remained illegal due to criminal sentences imposed in 1997 and again during the year on its leader, Severo Motto, for a coup attempt in 1996. Motto reportedly fled to Spain. The President invited the PP to organize a new political party under another name; however, the PP did not do so by year's end.
The Independent Democratic Socialist Party (PIDS) and the Democratic Republican Front (FDR) still were seeking recognition.
The Government reportedly applied pressure to persuade opposition members or officials to join the PDGE party; significant numbers of opposition members joining the PDGE during the year suggested such practices persisted. Reportedly the Government bribed members of the opposition.
c. Freedom of Religion
The law provides for freedom of religion; however, in practice the Government limited this right in some respects.
The law includes a stated official preference for the Catholic Church and the Reform Church of Equatorial Guinea due to their traditional roots and historic influence in the social and cultural life of the populace. For example, a Roman Catholic Mass normally was part of any major ceremonial function such as the October 12 national day.
A religious organization must be registered formally with the Ministry of Justice and Religion before its religious activities are allowed. While religious groups must be approved and registered in order to function legally, there were no reports during the year that the Government had refused to register any group. The approval process usually takes several years, due primarily to general bureaucratic lag and not the result of a policy designed to impede the operation of any religious group.
The Government continued to restrict the freedom of expression of the clergy, particularly regarding any open criticism of the Government. According to Director of DAR, Jose Maguga, Church representatives practiced self-censorship on these issues during the year. The Government required permission for any religious activity outside the church building, but in practice this requirement did not appear to hinder organized religious groups. The Government required that DAR inform the local delegate in Ebibeyin each time that it had a board meeting (see Section 2.b.).
Religious study was required in schools and was usually, but not exclusively, Catholic.
For a more detailed discussion see the 2002 International Religious Freedom Report.
d. Freedom of Movement Within the Country, Foreign Travel, Emigration, and Repatriation
The law provides for these rights; however, the Government limited them in practice. Local police routinely extorted bribes from occupants of vehicles traveling outside the capital. The police routinely stopped citizens at roadblocks, subjected them to searches, and extorted money from them. Police and solders continued to target citizens of Cameroon, Gabon, and Nigeria (see Section 1.c.). The Government justified these roadblocks as customs controls to compensate for its inability to control the country's borders effectively. These checkpoints effectively restricted the freedom of movement of members of the opposition. Prior to the presidential election, the Government re-opened a number of military roadblocks on the island of Bioko between Malabo and Luba and also in the vicinity of Bata on the mainland.
All citizens were required to obtain permission to travel abroad from the local Police Commissioner, and some members of opposition parties were denied this permission. Those who did travel abroad sometimes were interrogated upon their return (see Section 2.a.). On January 20, the Inter-Ministerial Human Rights Commission eliminated exit visa requirements for citizens traveling outside the country; however, the Government refused issuance of exit visas to some opposition figures early in the year.
During the year, President Obiang continued to urge exiled opposition figures to return to the country and to legalize their parties; however, there were no reports of returnees during the year.
The law provides for the granting of asylum and refugee status in accordance with the 1951 U.N. Convention Relating to the Status of Refugees and its 1967 Protocol. In recent years, an average of one or two persons requested refugee status in the country. The Government provided first asylum and generally granted asylum requests; the Government cooperated with the U.N. High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR).
There were no reports of the forced return of any persons to a country where they feared persecution.
3. Respect for Political Rights: The Right of Citizens to Change their Government
The Constitution provides citizens with the right to change their government peacefully; however, in practice there have been no free, fair, and transparent elections since independence in 1968. The President exercised strong powers as head of state, commander of the armed forces, and leader of the government party, the PDGE. Impeachment of the head of state is forbidden in the constitution. Leadership positions within the Government in general were restricted to the President's Mongomo clan of the Fang ethnic group and its closest supporters. The Government completely dominated the elected Chamber of Deputies and the Minister of the Interior also acted as President of the National Electoral Board.
In 1997 the Government and 13 political parties promulgated a revised national pact that called for the creation of a multiparty electoral commission and an observance commission to monitor compliance with the agreement. The pact also stipulated an end to various political and electoral abuses and the extension of voting rights already nominally provided in the Constitution. However, the Government has not abided by most of the pact's provisions, and opposition activists reported that the Government made virtually no effort to implement the pact. The Government's refusal to issue exit visas to some opposition figures early in the year violated the pact's principle of freedom of travel and the Government's own elimination of the exit visa requirement. The continued arrests of CPDS and UP party leaders further undermined the Government's claims that it abided by the pact, as did its continued restrictions on freedom of movement and the continued lack of access to government media by the opposition (see Sections 2.a. and 2.d.).
The electoral law mandates the replacement of open voting by secret ballots in future elections but prohibits coalitions between political parties. Nevertheless, five opposition groups including the CPDS, Front for Democratic Opposition (PSD), PP, Progressive Democratic Alliance (ADP), and the UP formed the Front of Democratic Opposition (FOD). The formation of this alliance with an unrecognized party widely was alleged to be the real reason behind CPDS Secretary General Placido Mico's detention (see Section 1.d.). Significant segments of the political opposition either remained banned or had yet to be recognized by the Government by year's end, including the FDR, the PP, the PIDS, and the Movement for Autodetermination of Bioko Island (MIAB) (see Section 2.b.).
The last legislative elections that should have been held in 1998 were postponed until March 1999. The three opposition parties initially called for a boycott of the polls to protest pre-election irregularities; however, all but one of the parties, the CPDS, ultimately participated in the voting. One CPDS candidate was elected; however, he refused to take his seat after the Government accused him of rigging the election. International observers considered the 1999 legislative election process to be seriously flawed and characterized by numerous irregularities and restrictions on the ability of the opposition to campaign. Roadblocks impeded the opposition's ability to travel, and opposition leaders were detained intermittently and sometimes mistreated, tortured, or assessed stiff fines. The UP and CPDS opposition parties won 5 of the 80 seats, refused to take their seats in the new legislature, and called for the results to be annulled and new elections held.
Prior to the December presidential elections, there were reports that arrests and harassment of opposition party members increased (see Section 1.d.).
President Obiang won the December 15 election, with 97.1 percent of the vote and 98 percent of registered voters participating. Opposition leaders charged earlier in the year that census results showing a twofold population increase were flawed and that numbers were inflated to perpetuate election fraud. Four of the leading opposition candidates published a statement that rejected the vote and called for new elections. There were widespread reports of irregularities on election day, including intimidation at the polls. For example, in some towns, commission members gathered voters and asked whether any intended to vote for the opposition. When none responded affirmatively, their votes were counted for the President. Voters were discouraged from voting in secret, ballots were opened, and ruling party representatives reportedly cast votes in their own right as well as on behalf of minor children and the deceased. There also were reports that security forces intimidated voters by their presence in polling booths. The European Union (E.U.) expressed concern regarding the democratic process, severely criticized the way the presidential election was carried out, and recommended that the Government invite the U.N. or the E.U. to send an electoral assistance mission.
There were no legal restrictions on the participation of women or minorities in politics. There were 5 women in the 80-member legislature and 3 women in the 41-member cabinet.
4. Governmental Attitude Regarding International and Nongovernmental Investigation of Alleged Violations of Human Rights
There were no effective domestic human rights NGOs. The law restricts NGOs and identifies specific areas in which they may operate; human rights was not one of these areas.
CNDH was established by Parliament in 1991 and had as its main responsibility monitoring respect for fundamental human rights throughout the country. It concentrated primarily on prison conditions. Unconfirmed sources have said that the Parliament, ("Peoples' House of Representatives"), appointed CNDH members.
No international human rights NGO was resident in the country; however, there were signs of improvement in the relations between some international organizations and the Government. During the year, the Government signed a convention providing the ICRC regular prison access (see Section 1.c.).
Catholic Relief Services (CRS) confined its programming to health-related issues, citing safety concerns for staff and partners. There have been allegations from CRS, Reporters Without Borders, and the Center for Rural Development that NGO representatives visiting Malabo have had their movements, calls, e-mails, and faxes monitored (see Section 1.f.).
In August a Spanish volunteer associated with the NGO Central Caritas spent 3 weeks in jail on charges of espionage after he was arrested in Malabo for viewing, from a public street, solar panels mounted on a military facility.
During the year, the Government denied requests from Micominsen, a Spanish order of nuns whose charitable work includes stocking hospitals and providing clean water sources, to enter the country.
In April the Commission on Human Rights terminated the mandate of UNCHR Special Representative Gustavo Gallon, despite protest from the international community and the former Special Representative himself. Gallon stated in his January report that the country should continue to be monitored, and according to the Commission's resolution, advisory and technical support in the area of human rights will continue.
5. Discrimination Based on Race, Sex, Disability, Language, or Social Status
The Constitution prohibits all forms of discrimination; however, both governmental and societal discrimination against women and ethnic minorities continued.
Domestic and societal violence against women, particularly wife beating, was common. The public beating of wives was forbidden by government decree; however, violence in the home generally was tolerated. The Government does not prosecute perpetrators of domestic violence. Many prisons do not have separate areas for men and women, and women were subjected to sexual abuse both from the authorities and other prisoners while in detention.
The massive influx of single foreign men in the petroleum sector has contributed to an increase in prostitution. During periodic crackdowns, police arrested prostitutes but allowed their clients, generally expatriates, to go free.
Although the Constitution provides for equal rights, women largely were confined by custom to traditional roles, particularly in agriculture. Polygyny, which was widespread among the Fang, contributed to women's secondary status, as did limited educational opportunity.
There was no discrimination against women in formal inheritance and family law; however, in the Fang, Ndowe, and Bisio cultures, primogeniture was practiced. Because women become members of their husband's family upon marriage, they usually were not accorded inheritance rights. When the husband dies, a widow either remains with his family in a dependent, marginalized position or she returns the dowry and leaves with nothing.
There was discrimination against women in traditional practice. For an estimated 90 percent of women, including virtually all ethnic groups except the Bubi, tradition dictates that if a marriage is dissolved, the wife (or her father or brother) must return the dowry given her family by the bridegroom at the time of marriage. Tradition also dictates that if a girl's family accepts a dowry from a man, she must then marry him, regardless of her wishes. If the marriage does not take place, the family is required by tradition to return the dowry, which they sometimes cannot do. This could lead to imprisonment of the bride or a family member for the debt (see Section 1.d.). If a marriage dissolves, the husband also automatically receives custody of all children born after the marriage, while the mother maintains custody of all children born prior to the marriage.
According to the law, women have the right to buy and sell property and goods; however, in practice the male-dominated society permitted few women access to sufficient funds to engage in more than petty trading or to purchase real property beyond a garden plot or modest home.
No provisions for the welfare of children were legislated. The Government devoted little attention to children's rights or their welfare and had no set policy in this area. Education was compulsory through primary school, but the law was not enforced. In practice boys were expected either to complete an additional 7 years of secondary school or to finish a program of vocational study following primary education. Pregnancy and the requirement to assist in agricultural work made this level of education less likely for girls. Many rural families were unable to afford the school fee and book expenses for children over 10 years of age. The 1999 report by the U.N. Special Representative noted that only 12 percent of girls reach the secondary level of education compared with more than 24 percent of boys. Only 9 percent of girls finish fifth grade. Generally women have only one-fifth the educational level of men. New schools have opened; however, they were reported to be without basic materials such as books and desks. Teachers were political appointees and often received no training. Children suffered poor health and a high mortality rate.
Persons with Disabilities
There was no constitutional or legal provision to protect persons with disabilities from discrimination in employment, education, or the provision of other state services. While there was no formal evidence of discrimination against persons with disabilities, anecdotal evidence suggested that basic care may be withheld when children have potentially disfiguring diseases such as polio. The law does not mandate access for persons with disabilities to buildings.
National/Racial/Ethnic Minorities
Discrimination against ethnic or racial minorities was not legal, and the Government did not overtly limit their participation in politics; however, the monopolization of political power by the President's Mongomo clan of the Fang ethnic group persisted. In practice some members of ethnic minorities faced discrimination because they were not members of the Fang ethnic group, or belonged to a Fang subclan other than the President's.
Differences among clans of the Fang ethnic group, in particular resentment of the political dominance of the Mongomo clan, also were sources of significant political tensions and in past years, of occasional violence.
Beginning on July 24, police forced approximately 500 Cameroonians out of Malabo following implementation of a new policy concerning nationals of neighboring countries. A government spokesperson claimed the policy was designed to curb the illegal entry of Cameroonians attracted by increasing petroleum-led growth.
Several thousand citizens of Nigeria, Ghana, and Francophone Africa continued to reside in the country. Most were small traders and businesspersons. The police reportedly continued to harass and extort money from them as well as harassing asylum seekers on an individual basis.
6. Worker Rights
a. The Right of Association
The Constitution provides for the right to organize unions; however, the Small Farmers Syndicate (OSPA), was the country's only legally recognized labor union. According to the International Confederation of Free Trade Unions (ICFTU), the Government never has allowed the registration of unions; as a result, the Equatorial Guinea Trade Union has been forced to carry out its activities in secret. There were a few cooperatives with limited power. The law stipulates that a union must have at least 50 members who are from a specific workplace and located in the same geographic area to register; this effectively blocked union formation. The CPDS tried unsuccessfully to legalize its affiliated Syndicated Workers' Union (UST), and an independent union, Independent Syndicated Services (SIS), was denied registration despite having met the requirements of the law. In April the Government shut down a newly created bar association, an action that reportedly discouraged early efforts to organize a college of physicians.
The 1992 Law of Associations and Syndicates provides that a separate law be enacted to govern unions for civil servants; however, this law has not been enacted. During the year, the International Labor Organization (ILO) advised the Government on the formation of professional organizations.
During the year, the country's major private employer, the oil industry, which was dominated by foreign firms, continued to take steps to reduce government control of hiring in the industry. Companies employed methods ranging from public advertising of jobs and objective testing to screening of applicants by non-citizens only, in an attempt to eliminate the former political bias in the hiring process. According to regional representatives of the ILO, oil industry efforts largely have been ineffective, and the Government continued to influence employment in all sectors.
In May 2001, an ILO team met with the Government to discuss reform of the country's labor laws and ILO assistance for labor inspectors; however, no subsequent action has been taken.
There was no law prohibiting antiunion discrimination.
b. The Right to Organize and Bargain Collectively
The law provides workers the right to organize and bargain collectively; however, there were many legal requirements before collective bargaining was permitted, which limited unions' ability to organize. There was no evidence of collective bargaining by any group; however, the Labor Ministry sometimes mediated labor disputes. The Government and employers set wages, with little or no participation by workers.
The law provides for the right to strike. The Labor Code contains provisions to uphold worker rights, but the Government generally did not enforce them, in part because of inadequate staffing in the Ministry of Labor. Apart from the Labor Ministry, workers had few other places to seek redress. Members of the National Assembly reportedly tried to mediate employer-worker disputes over wages or dismissals; however, they had no legal authority to do so.
There were no export processing zones.
b. Prohibition of Forced or Bonded Labor
The law forbids forced or bonded labor, including by children, and slavery; however, detainees and convicted felons performed extensive labor outside prison, including for prison officials, without compensation (see Section 1.c.).
There were reports that forced child labor occurred (see Section 6.f.).
c. Status of Child Labor Practices and Minimum Age for Employment
The legal minimum age for the employment of children was 14 years, but the Ministry of Labor did not enforce this law, and child labor was common particularly on family farms and businesses. The Government also did not enforce the law that stipulates mandatory education through primary school. Underage youth performed both family farm work and street vending. While the Ministry of Labor was responsible for the enforcement of labor legislation, the Government did not have a comprehensive policy on child labor.
e. Acceptable Conditions of Work
Employers must pay the minimum wages set by the Government, and most companies pay more than the government-established minimum wage. The minimum monthly wage ranges from $100 (75,000 CFA francs) per month for unskilled workers to $1,000 (750,000 CFA francs) per month for oil sector professionals. The mandated minimum wage in the oil sector was twice the minimum wage in commercial enterprises, and oil sector workers received a much higher scale than elsewhere in the national economy, often 10 times the minimum wage. The minimum wage for unskilled workers was not sufficient to provide a decent standard of living for a worker and family. The law prescribes a standard 35-hour workweek and a 48-hour rest period, which were observed in practice in the formal economy.
The Labor Ministry reportedly took no further action on the 2001 case where several employees of the Malabo city administration sought payment of overdue wages.
The Labor Code provides for comprehensive protection for workers from occupational hazards; however, the Government did not enforce this in practice. The Government has seven labor inspectors in Malabo and five based in Bata, which was an insufficient number to oversee local industry. The Government began training more inspectors in 2001.
Employees who protested unhealthy or dangerous working conditions risked losing their jobs.
f. Trafficking in Persons
The law does not prohibit trafficking in persons, and reports that the country increasingly was a minor destination and transit point for trafficked persons continued. The government sent representatives to Libreville to attend a regional conference on trafficking in persons; however, no legislative or policy changes had resulted by year's end.
Children primarily were trafficked into the urban labor sector in Malabo and Bata, mostly from Benin and Nigeria. Benin girls between the ages of 12 and 16 worked 12-hour days selling cosmetics on the streets of Malabo. These girls often were unpaid and physically mistreated. Nigerian boys worked in market stalls in Bata, often without pay or personal freedom. UNICEF reported that country served as a transit point for children who were trafficked to Gabon. The country was both a destination and a transit point for trafficked women, mostly from Cameroon, Benin, and Nigeria. Women were trafficked into hubs of prostitution to serve the growing businessman population in Malabo.
This is not a UNHCR publication. UNHCR is not responsible for, nor does it necessarily endorse, its content. Any views expressed are solely those of the author or publisher and do not necessarily reflect those of UNHCR, the United Nations or its Member States.


text:
Due to the following maintenance announced by the .ORG Registry, the PUSHTIWEBINDIA.COM .ORG Product would be offline as well:
Maintenance Window
Date: April 9, 2011
Time: 03:00 PM - 07:00 PM (1500 hrs - 1900 hrs) GMT/UTC
Duration: 4 Hours
Affected Systems: Domain Name Registrations, Renewals, Transfers, Management on the Live servers.
This outage shall have no impact on the resolution/working of your already registered domain names. Please feel free to get in touch with our Support Team at http://www.pushtiwebindia.com, in case of any queries/doubts.

subset: commoncrawl


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Driving for Change at COP15
Tesla spent two weeks in Copenhagen for the United Nations Climate Change Conference, Dec 7 to Dec 18. We spread the word about Tesla Motors to climate change experts, policymakers, journalists, and fans. We decided to exhibit the Roadsters on the streets of "Hopenhagen". We wanted to demonstrate that zero emissions vehicles are a reality, and show that the Roadster is capable of driving in severe weather conditions – snow, rain and freezing temperatures. Over the course of the two weeks at COP15, the only things we needed were an electrical outlet and a few car washes. We did about 400 drives around town. The event saw the biggest lineup of Teslas in Europe to date – 10 Roadsters. U.S. Ambassador Laurie S. Fulton invited Tesla Motors to a reception for California Governor Arnold Schwartzenegger. Los Angeles Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa also attended the event. A pair of Tesla Roadsters welcomed the guests at the red carpet entrance. Guests included heads of state, ministers, and business leaders. Virgin CEO Richard Branson chose a Tesla Roadster as his car service for the event. He became so fond of the car, he insisted on driving it himself - and provided rides for other high-level international VIPs. He drove a Radiant Red Roadster - to match the Virgin brand! UN Secretary-General Bang Ki-Moon was offered a ride, but like Branson, asked to drive it himself. We were thrilled to be a part of such a noteworthy event. See more photos here.


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This is definitely an experimental recipe… one that ended up tasting great, but, trust me, looked a bit funky.
I got introduced to Ube in the form of ice cream from Mitchell's Ice Cream here in San Francisco. I was ready to finally try an Ube cupcake recipe, so I went to Pacific Super, an awesome Asian grocery on Alemany Street not too far from where I live, and bought nearly everything Ube.
I reconstituted Ube powder per the instructions on the packet, but didn't like the taste very much at all. I boiled and mashed some fresh purple yams and they tasted much better. It was an easy decision to skip the powdered and go with the fresh.
One thing I didn't do, that I noticed the few recipes on the net did, is add food coloring. After my red velvet experience, I have been anti-food-coloring-in-batter. In this case, I think I would have been better off to relax my newfound prejudice…
The yams were a deep purple blue, which was great, but when mixed with the yellow egg yolks and other ingredients, the batter ended up a ghastly green. Maybe a little red food coloring would have balanced it out. On the other hand, I can say that the ghastly green is natural! Maybe a half cup of smashed beets might do the trick, if anyone cares to experiment even further.
One definite keeper for me is the topping of peanuts crushed with a good amount of salt. This is something I stole from a caterer friend. The salty-sweet taste is very satisfying.
Ube Cupcakes
24 regular cupcakes / 350 degree oven
3-4 small to medium purple yams (ube)
4 large eggs, room temperature
2 cups sugar
1 cup oil, grapeseed or vegetable
1/2 cup macapuno, chopped
1 teaspoon vanilla
3 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 cup buttermilk milk
1. Peel and slice the yams into inch thick slices. Transfer into a medium pan, rinse, then cover with cool water. Bring to boil and simmer until tender. Mash with a fork
2. Crack eggs into a large bowl. Beat with a whisk until yellows and whites are combined.
3. Gradually add sugar and whisk until combined.
4. Add oil and whisk until combined. Add chopped macapuno and vanilla and stir with a wooden spoon to combine.
5. Sift together flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt in another bowl.
6. Add about a third of the flour mixture to the wet mixture and mix to combine.
7. Add about one half of the buttermilk and mix to combined.
8. Repeat above, alternating flour and buttermilk and ending with the flour mixture.
9. Scoop into cupcake papers about half to two-thirds full (depending on whether you want flat or domed cupcakes. Note that these cupcakes will don't shrink. Two-thirds full will result in domed cupcakes.)
10. Bake for 22-25 minutes until a cake tester comes out clean.
Bubble Buttercream
3 cups water
1/4 cup tapioca balls
1 cup (2 sticks) butter, room temperature
5-6 cups powdered sugar, sifted
1 teaspoon vanilla
1. Boil the water in a medium saucepan (I used the water from the yams).
2. Add the balls to the boiling water and boil for 30 minutes, stirring occasionally.
3. Turn off heat and let the balls steep in the water for another 30 minutes.
4. Transfer balls to a sieve and rinse with cool water to remove starch. Transfer to a bowl and cover with cold water until ready to use.
5. Beat butter in an electric mixer until soft.
6. Add 3 cups of the sifted sugar and beat until combined.
7. Drain tapioca balls and measure out 1/2 cup. Fold into the frosting.
8. Add remaining sugar, 1 cup at a time, stirring until combined.
Note: This frosting was very soft and almost looked a little curdled. It definitely has a not so pretty texture, but it tasted fine. The tapioca balls are a novelty and perhaps not necessary. There is the added interest of the chewy texture, but I am not sure it's worth the sacrifice in the visual appeal. If you are looking for something picture perfect, definitely skip this recipe. It needs work.
1. Pipe frosting onto cooled cupcakes.
2. Crush about a 1/3 cup of unsalted peanuts with about a teaspoon of salt. Sprinkle over cupcakes.


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How to Use Linked Sections (Enterprise)
Linking Your Sections
If you use Schoology Enterprise, you have the option to link the sections of any course together. Course section linking is a great way to manage all sections of a course more efficiently.
When sections are linked, they all share the same set of materials and grade setup. This means you only need to create materials and set up your gradebook once, even when you teach multiple sections of the same course. Linked sections also have toggles you can use to switch between each section instantly, so you can keep the sections separate while enjoying a more streamlined workflow.
The linked sections feature was designed to improve the instructor's experience. Your students will continue to see and experience Schoology in the same way they always have.
Important Notes about Course Section Linking:
- Depending on the settings in place at your organization, this feature may not be available.
- Linked sections cannot be imported into Schoology, sections can only be linked after being created/populated in Schoology.
- Schoology strongly advises against linking or unlinking sections once school has started, as it results in loss of grade data for child sections. When you begin linking sessions together, the master section is the one that you link other sections to. Those sections that are linked to the master section will set aside any existing materials, grade settings, and data. The child linked sections then replace any existing materials and grade setup with that of the master section.
- If you need to unlink your linked sections at any point during the school year, be aware that if you separate two linked sections, only the master section retains the materials, setup, grades, and data. Scroll down to Unlinking Sections for additional information.
- When you link or unlink sections, student assignment submissions in the child section(s) are not recoverable. As a safeguard against losing grade data for child sections, you are prompted to download a CSV spreadsheet file containing all the grade data for child sections. See the Gradebook File Download when Linking or Unlinking Sections instructions below for details.
Requirements for linking sections of a course:
- The sections must be within the same Course.
- The sections must be associated with the same grading period.
- Enrollment must be unique across the linked sections. There cannot be any overlap in the students.
The sections must have the same Course Admins.
- You cannot link one set of linked sections to another set of linked sections. For example, if you have two sets of linked sections (English: Section 1, Section 2 and English: Section 3, Section 4), you cannot combine them to make one linked set (English: Section 1, Section 2, Section 3, Section 4)
- The maximum number of sections to be linked is 10.
How to Link Sections
If you are a course admin who has the Link sections permission enabled by your system admin, and your sections meet the prerequisites outlined above, you can link your existing sections together by following these steps.
There are three different ways to create linked sections:
Linking Existing Sections Together
- Click your Courses drop-down menu and and select My Courses.
Steps 2-7 demonstrated below: - In your list of courses, click the gear icon to the right of the section you consider to be the "master section". If you have materials in both courses, the "master section" is the one that holds the materials and grades you would like to continue to use between the two sections.
- Select Link Existing Sections from the dropddown.
- Select the section(s) to link and click Next.
- As a safeguard against losing grade data for child sections, you must select to download a grade export file for each section being linked. See the "Gradebook File Download when Linking or Unlinking Sections" instructions below for details.
- Select the file type to download:
- As a Standard CSV spreadsheet.
- As a CSV file that you can use to import into other systems, such as an SIS.
- Click Download and Next.
- Click Link Sections.
- A warning message displays:
"Materials from (section name) will not be copied into: (section name). Once complete, the sections will share: grade setup, materials, and course profile (of the destination section). Member enrollments will still belong to their respective sections."
This means that the section for which you clicked the gear icon will be the master section–the linked sections will now all have access to and use the materials in that master section. This includes Course Materials and items in your Grade Setup (such as Grading Categories, Rubrics, etc). However, the original rosters of students when the sections were separate will remain the same after you link the sections. - Click Link Sections.
If the requirements for linked sections are not met, the other section(s) will be grayed out. If you hover your mouse over the grayed-out section, you will see a tooltip explaining the cause of the issue.
Creating a New Course with Linked Sections
Alternately, you can create linked sections while creating a new course. To do this:
- Click your Courses drop-down menu and and select My Courses.
Click the option to Create Course on the top right of the My Courses area.
If you do not see the Create Course button, it may be because your System Admin has not enabled the permission to create new courses for your role.
- In the Create Course menu, press +Add to add a linked section to the new course and section you are creating.
- When the form is complete, click Create to create the new course with a master section and linked sections.
If you are unsure about how to fill in the Section Code field, check with your System Administrator to ensure your naming convention is consistent with other courses at your school. You can also learn more in this article on section code vs. section school code.
Adding a New Linked Section to an Existing Course
You can also create new sections that are linked to an existing course from the Course Options area of the existing section.
To create a new section that will be linked to an existing section:
- Click Courses on the top navigation bar.
- Select the section in the menu that you would like to make the master section.
- Click Course Options in the left column of the course page and select Edit Info.
- Click +Add in the top Section Name row to create new sections that are automatically linked to the current section.
How to Use Linked Sections
Linked sections share the same Materials and the same Grade Setup. All other areas of the course are separate, but as the Course Admin you can toggle among sections in each area.
- Making announcements and posting updates
- Creating materials
- Using Course tools
- Course tools include: Gradebook, Mastery, Attendance, Members, Analytics, Workload Planning, and course-level Apps
- Grading
Making Announcements and Posting Updates in Linked Sections
When you link your sections together, you can send updates to all of your sections within a course at once. When you create an update, by default, the post will go to all of your sections. You can click the x next to each section name if you do not want that section to see your post.
When you post an Update to linked sections, it will appear multiple times in your Updates area–once for each section you post to. However, the update only displays once for your students, for the section in which they're enrolled.
Creating Materials in Linked Sections
Linking sections enables you to manage your materials in one place. When you click Add Materials after linking your sections, the items you add to your course are added across all of the sections.
To create identical items across the linked sections, simply clicking Add Materials and fill out the create form of your desired material type. Enter the due date in the date field next to All Sections.
Customizing Materials in Linked Sections
If you would like to differentiate the due date and availability of this item for each of your linked sections, click Select Sections to Customize below the Due Date field. Select the section(s) to customize and enter the Due Date for each section. If you would like to make an exception for one section to have its own due date (or time), click Select Sections to Customize and then check the desired section. Selecting a specific section will pull out that section's availability fields, and all the other sections are labeled Everyone Else:
If you would like each section to have its own due date, check Select All, as in the example below.
You can also use the Bulk Edit area to customize the availability of an item. The published section is displayed next to the due date:
Each course section is displayed under the Due date column. Use your cursor to hover over the book icon next to the due date to confirm the course section name. A green circle indicates the item is published in that course section. The gray circle indicates the item is unpublished in that course section.
A Note about Availability of Materials in Linked Sections: If you publish items from the gear icon drop-down menu on the Materials page, you publish the item to all sections; you cannot customize availability.
You will receive the message "Are you sure you want to publish [material title] for all linked sections?"
Click Publish All to add the material.
Using Course Tools in Linked Sections
Courses with linked sections share the same Materials and Grade Setup. Everything else in your course, however, remains separate.
In your other Course tools — the Gradebook, Mastery, Badges, Attendance, Members, Analytics, and Workload Planning areas — you'll have toggles to switch among different sections. These toggles appear near the top left of the page.
For example, this screenshot of the Gradebook area in a course with linked sections shows the expanded drop-down menu you can use to toggle between linked sections in a course.
This same drop-down menu appears in the Mastery, Badges, Attendance, Members, Analytics and Workload Planning areas as well:
Grading in Linked Sections
Setting Up Your Gradebook
Grade Setup does not change at all once your sections are linked. This screen looks the same as it would if you did not link your sections, and all of the items you create here — grading categories, grad scales, rubrics, and the settings you apply to your gradebook — will apply to all of the sections within this course.
Administering Grades
You can grade your materials in Schoology from directly in the Gradebook, or from the item itself.
Gradebooks across linked sections remain separate. You can use the toggle tool and drop-down menu to move among the gradebooks for your different linked sections:
Similarly, you will see a toggle tool when grading from the item itself. Below you can see screenshots of this tool in the different types of materials:
- Open the assignment.
- In the Submissions column, select a section to see its list of student submissions.
- Click the Discussion to open it from the Materials page.
- Use the toggle in the Discussion Toolbar to switch among the posts in the different sections.
- Open the test/quiz from the Materials page.
- Select the Results tab along the top.
- Use the section toggle at the top to switch among submissions for the different sections.
- Open the Assessment from the Materials page.
- Select Student Attempts.
- Use the section toggle to switch among submissions for the different sections.
Unlinking Sections
Once you've linked sections, you can also unlink them. However, when you unlink sections, the materials, grades, and data will remain only in the master section. Therefore, Schoology does not recommend unlinking sections once the school year has begun or once student submissions have been made in the child section.
To unlink sections:
- Click Courses at the top of the screen.
- Select My Courses..
- In your list of courses, click the gear icon to the right of the linked sections.
- Select Unlink Sections from the drop-down menu on the gear icon.
When you click Unlink Sections, you are prompted to select the section(s) to unlink, as well as the two options of what happens to the unlinked section(s). Make sure you are aware of the effects:- Unlink and restore original section — restores that section to the way it was before it was linked. If it was an existing section with data, that data that existed before you linked the sections will be restored. Only the master section retains the materials, setup, grades, and data. In other words, any material created after linking sections will only be retained in the master section when you unlink. The child section will revert back to what it looked like before you linked the sections.
- Unlink and move enrollments into an new section — moves the students enrolled in that section into a new blank course - without materials or any other data. This action cannot be undone.
- As a safeguard against losing grade data for child sections, you must select to download a grade export file for each section being unlinked.
- Select the file type to download:
- As a Standard CSV spreadsheet.
- As a CSV file that you can use to import into other systems, such as an SIS.
- Click Download and Next.
- Click Unlink Sections to complete the process.
Gradebook File Download when Linking or Unlinking Sections
When you link or unlink sections, the grade data for child sections is not retained–only the student grade data for the master section remains visible in Schoology. The child sections are restored to how they were before the sections were linked or unlinked.
For this reason, Schoology strongly recommends against linking or unlinking during the school year; but we also realize that sometimes you will have to link or unlink sections. For this reason, we've added a safeguard to ensure that grade data in child sections is still available to Course Admins: requiring a download of the gradebook spreadsheet for each child section when linking or unlinking.
Before completing the linking or unlinking process, Course Admins must choose from one of two downloads:
- Standard CSV:
- Select this option to download a CSV file version of your gradebook. This spreadsheet is formatted similarly to how it is in Schoology, with the student names vertically and material titles along the top.
- CSV for import into other system:
Select this option to download a CSV file with more detailed student data. This spreadsheet is separated by columns for mapping purposes to use to import into another system, such as an SIS gradebook.
Individually assigned items will be marked with a hyphen for students who were not assigned the item.
Grade Calculation Differences
There are several important differences in how grades are calculated between the two formats.
Gradebook as CSV | CSV for import into other system | |
Overall / Grading Period Grade | Overall or Grading Period grade calculations are included in the report. | Overall or Grading Period grade calculations are not included in the report. |
Hidden or Unpublished Materials | Not included in the report or grade calculations. | Not included in the report. |
Factors | Items with a factor are multiplied by that factor and then included in the final score. | Items with a factor are not multiplied by that factor before being included in the final score. |
Weighted Categories | Do impact grade calculations. | Do not impact grade calculations. |
Be sure to consider these variables when deciding the file format to download.


text:
HS Code
HS code
Harmonized Commodity Description & Coding System, commonly known as HS Codes were created for international use by the Custom Department to classify commodities when they are being declared at the custom frontiers by exporters and importers
Section Notes.
1. Live animals.
2. Meat and edible meat offal.
3. Fish and crustaceans, molluscs and other aquatic invertebrates.
4. Dairy produce; birds' eggs; natural honey; edible products of animal origin, not elsewhere specified or included.
5. Products of animal origin, not elsewhere specified or included.
Section Notes.
6. Live trees and other plants; bulbs, roots and the like; cut flowers and ornamental foliage.
7. Edible vegetables and certain roots and tubers.
8. Edible fruit and nuts; peel of citrus fruit or melons.
9. Coffee, tea, maté and spices.
10. Cereals.
11. Products of the milling industry; malt; starches; inulin; wheat gluten.
12. Oil seeds and oleaginous fruits; miscellaneous grains, seeds and fruit; industrial or medicinal plants; straw and fodder.
13. Lac; gums, resins and other vegetable saps and extracts.
14. Vegetable plaiting materials; vegetable products not elsewhere specified or included.
Section Notes.
15. Animal or vegetable fats and oils and their cleavage products; prepared edible fats; animal or vegetable waxes
Section Notes.
16. Preparations of meat, of fish or of crustaceans, molluscs or other aquatic invertebrates.
17. Sugars and sugar confectionery.
18. Cocoa and cocoa preparations.
19. Preparations of cereals, flour, starch or milk; pastrycooks' products.
20. Preparations of vegetables, fruit, nuts or other parts of plants.
21. Miscellaneous edible preparations.
22. Beverages, spirits and vinegar.
23. Residues and waste from the food industries; prepared animal fodder.
24. Tobacco and manufactured tobacco substitutes.
Section Notes.
25. Salt; sulphur; earths and stone; plastering materials, lime and cement.
26. Ores, slag and ash.
27. Mineral fuels, mineral oils and products of their distillation; bituminous substances; mineral waxes.
Section Notes.
28. Inorganic chemicals; organic or inorganic compounds of precious metals, of rare-earth metals, of radioactive elements or of isotopes.
29. Organic chemicals.
30. Pharmaceutical products.
31. Fertilisers.
32. Tanning or dyeing extracts; tannins and their derivatives; dyes, pigments and other colouring matter; paints and varnishes; putty and other mastics; inks.
33. Essential oils and resinoids; perfumery, cosmetic or toilet preparations.
34. Soap, organic surface-active agents, washing preparations, lubricating preparations, artificial waxes, prepared waxes, polishing or scouring preparations, candles and similar articles, modelling pastes, "dental waxes" and dental preparations with a basis of plaster.
35. Albuminoidal substances; modified starches; glues; enzymes.
36. Explosives; pyrotechnic products; matches; pyrophoric alloys; certain combustible preparations.
37. Photographic or cinematographic goods.
38. Miscellaneous chemical products.
Section Notes.
39. Plastics and articles thereof.
40. Rubber and articles thereof.
Section Notes.
41. Raw hides and skins (other than furskins) and leather.
42. Articles of leather; saddlery and harness; travel goods, handbags and similar containers; articles of animal gut (other than silk-worm gut).
43. Furskins and artificial fur; manufactures thereof.
Section Notes.
44. Wood and articles of wood; wood charcoal.
45. Cork and articles of cork.
46. Manufactures of straw, of esparto or of other plaiting materials; basketware and wickerwork.
Section Notes.
47. Pulp of wood or of other fibrous cellulosic material; recovered (waste and scrap) paper or paperboard.
48. Paper and paperboard; articles of paper pulp, of paper or of paperboard.
49. Printed books, newspapers, pictures and other products of the printing industry; manuscripts, typescripts and plans.
Section Notes.
50. Silk.
51. Wool, fine or coarse animal hair; horsehair yarn and woven fabric.
52. Cotton.
53. Other vegetable textile fibres; paper yarn and woven fabrics of paper yarn.
54. Man-made filaments.
55. Man-made staple fibres.
56. Wadding, felt and nonwovens; special yarns; twine, cordage, ropes and cables and articles thereof.
57. Carpets and other textile floor coverings.
58. Special woven fabrics; tufted textile fabrics; lace; tapestries; trimmings; embroidery.
59. Impregnated, coated, covered or laminated textile fabrics; textile articles of a kind suitable for industrial use.
60. Knitted or crocheted fabrics.
61. Articles of apparel and clothing accessories, knitted or crocheted.
62. Articles of apparel and clothing accessories, not knitted or crocheted.
63. Other made up textile articles; sets; worn clothing and worn textile articles; rags.
Section Notes.
64. Footwear, gaiters and the like; parts of such articles.
65. Headgear and parts thereof.
66. Umbrellas, sun umbrellas, walking-sticks, seat-sticks, whips, riding-crops and parts thereof.
67. Prepared feathers and down and articles made of feathers or of down; artificial flowers; articles of human hair.
Section Notes.
68. Articles of stone, plaster, cement, asbestos, mica or similar materials.
69. Ceramic products.
70. Glass and glassware.
Section Notes.
71. Natural or cultured pearls, precious or semi-precious stones, precious metals, metals clad with precious metal and articles thereof; imitation jewellery; coin.
Section Notes.
72. Iron and steel.
73. Articles of iron or steel.
74. Copper and articles thereof.
75. Nickel and articles thereof.
76. Aluminium and articles thereof.
77. ( Reserved for possible future use in the Harmonized System)
78. Lead and articles thereof.
79. Zinc and articles thereof.
80. Tin and articles thereof.
81. Other base metals; cermets; articles thereof.
82. Tools, implements, cutlery, spoons and forks, of base metal; parts thereof of base metal.
83. Miscellaneous articles of base metal.
Section Notes.
84. Nuclear reactors, boilers, machinery and mechanical appliances; parts thereof.
85. Electrical machinery and equipment and parts thereof; sound recorders and reproducers, television image and sound recorders and reproducers, and parts and accessories of such articles.
Section Notes.
86. Railway or tramway locomotives, rolling-stock and parts thereof; railway or tramway track fixtures and fittings and parts thereof; mechanical (including electro-mechanical) traffic signalling equipment of all kinds.
87. Vehicles other than railway or tramway rolling-stock, and parts and accessories thereof.
88. Aircraft, spacecraft, and parts thereof.
89. Ships, boats and floating structures.
Section Notes.
90. Optical, photographic, cinematographic, measuring, checking, precision, medical or surgical instruments and apparatus; parts and accessories thereof.
91. Clocks and watches and parts thereof.
92. Musical instruments; parts and accessories of such articles.
Section Notes.
93. Arms and ammunition; parts and accessories thereof.
Section Notes.
94. Furniture; bedding, mattresses, mattress supports, cushions and similar stuffed furnishings; lamps and lighting fittings, not elsewhere specified or included; illuminated signs, illuminated name-plates and the like; prefabricated buildings.
95. Toys, games and sports requisites; parts and accessories thereof.
96. Miscellaneous manufactured articles.
Section Notes.
97. Works of art, collectors' pieces and antiques.
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Donovan Bixley / The Looky Book
or 6 weekly payments from $4.00 learn more
Hours of fun for the kids - and the adults! The Looky Book is a puzzle book mostly for young children with 11 different puzzles all with colourful New Zealand landscapes, birds and animals. Find the numbers with the crazy All Black lambs, spot the difference: the mischievous keas have changed around somebody's campervan, find the animals hidden deep in the bush, match the farmers to their animals. Plus spot what's wrong in the weird and wonderful scenes: Should a kiwi be flying? Could a sheep round up the dogs? And why is there a penguin at the top of that tree?
Donovan Bixley is an illustrator and designer. His design company, Magma Design, is based in Taupo. Donovan has illustrated more than 100 stories and book covers as well as over 50 books, including Harry Hobnail & the Pungapeople and Mr Tanglewood & the Pungapeople by beloved New Zealand author Barry Crump. Donovan was the illustrator of the bestselling children's book The Wheels on the Bus (2010) and Old Macdonald's Farm (2011). He has also written and illustrated half a dozen books of his own, including Faithfully Mozart which was a finalist in the 2006 Montana New Zealand Book Awards.
24 Pages


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Having spent a lot of time on this blog talking about the new generation of the GRI Guidelines and the G4 Exposure Draft, and speculating about what it will look like when it is actually launched, it is now time for the talking to stop and the action to begin, as we enter the countdown phase for the G4 launch. It's time for everyone to start placing bets as the exact format for the G4 launch is being kept well under wraps. If you are not in Amsterdam on May 22-24, to hear the first exposure of the G4 draft, and engage with 1,500 or more sustainability professionals, consultants, commentators, academics, regulators, activists and optimists at the Innovation, Information, Integration GRI Conference, you will be missing out on THE sustainability event of the 2013 calendar. Download the conference agenda here. Plus, if you attend, you'll get to meet all our online friends at the TWEET-UP, which will be at 12:00 noon on Wednesday 22nd May, a unique opportunity to put all those Twitter handles to Twitter faces.
One of the star attractions of the conference will, of course, be the first exposure of the G4 guidelines and the proposals for adopting them as the reporting journey moves forward. The G4 track runs through the conference, starting with the launch at the end of Day 1, running through Day 2 and finishing up on Day 3. If you attend all these sessions, you will become a true G4 expert and be able to advise your company on its reporting journey going forward.
Day One Wednesday 22nd May
17:30 G4 Launch
"This plenary will showcase the G4 development process and present the views of different stakeholders on how G4 will help advance organizational reporting and transparency." Speakers are: Denise Esdon, Ernst & Young; Karin Ireton, Standard Bank Group; Mervyn King, IIRC; Roel Nieuwenkamp, Director Trade Policy at Dutch Ministry of Economic Affairs; Herman Mulder, Chairman GRI
Day Two Thursday 23rd May
09:00: G4 Content Briefing: Jo Confino of the Guardian and Nelmara Arbex of the GRI will introduce the G4 guidelines
10:00: Defining Report Content: Material Aspects and Boundaries discussion will be moderated by Simon Longstaff, St. James Ethics Centre
11:30: Disclosure on Management Approach (DMA) discussion will be moderated by Judy Kuszewski, SustainAbility
Governance and Remuneration discussion will be moderated by Christianna Wood, Chairman of the Board of Governors of the International Corporate Governance Network
Supply Chain discussion, moderated by Simon Longstaff, St. James Ethics Centre
Day Three Friday 24th May
09:00: Greenhouse Gas Emissions reporting discussion, moderated by Simon Longstaff... again.
In addition to the G4 track, there are "Trends in Reporting" sessions, Regional Overviews by Delegations from around the world, Policy and Regulation sessions and Learning Sessions, such as "First Time Reporting Made Easy" with Crystal Crawford, Corporate Responsibility Specialist of Liberty Global, whose report I featured on the CSR Reporting blog a while ago. (10:00 Thursday 23rd, Day Two)
In other words, plenty of interesting perspectives, updates, networking, discussion, insight, information, innovation and integration. I am looking forward to seeing absolutely loads of old, new, offline, online and bothline friends, colleagues and sustainability movers-and-shakers at the conference.
In the meantime, before you get to Amsterdam, there is something else you can be doing.
As you may know, the voting period for GRI's Next Generation Competition began on Wednesday 20th March, on GRI's Facebook page. More than 60,000 Facebook users have been reached, and more than 3,000 votes (or "likes") for the different posters presented have already been received. The competition was designed to encourage young professionals up to age 30 to engage with the sustainability agenda and compete for the opportunity to be part of a landmark conference and turning point in Sustainability Reporting history. The challenge was to design a poster that promotes an inspiring concept or message to encourage people and/or companies to accelerate the transition towards a sustainable global economy, while relating to one or all of the key words that make-up the theme of the GRI Global Conference: Information, Integration, Innovation.
The Facebook album of the 25 posters submitted can be viewed on Facebook via this link: http://on.fb.me/16006K9, and you are invited to "like" the posters you believe best reflect and inspire sustainability. Public voting closes on 10th April, which means your chance to vote for the top 10 is quickly approaching!
See the full selection of posters, and vote for your faves, on Facebook! |
Once determined by public voting, the top 10 posters will be submitted to an international jury (which includes me, myself and I, as well as other sustainability pros) for a shortlist selection of the top three posters. The authors of these top three posters will be invited to join GRI (and us) at the Global Conference in May and conference delegates will select the overall winner. This 1st Prize winner will be invited to give a speech at the closing plenary session of the conference, to explain her or his entry and inspire the international audience! Who knows, one of these poster-masters may well be a global corporate sustainability leader of the future...wouldn't you like to be able to say you had a hand in her or his professional development? Sure you would... so take a look, vote and see you at the GRI conference!
PS: I will be on the lookout for the best ice-cream in Amsterdam, so all suggestions welcome!
PS: I will be on the lookout for the best ice-cream in Amsterdam, so all suggestions welcome!
elaine cohen, CSR consultant, winning (CRRA'12) Sustainability Reporter, HR Professional, Ice Cream Addict. Author of Sustainability Reporting for SMEs: Competitive Advantage Through Transparency AND CSR for HR: A necessary partnership for advancing responsible business practices Contact me via www.twitter.com/elainecohen or via my business website www.b-yond.biz (Beyond Business Ltd, an inspired CSR consulting and Sustainability Reporting firm)


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Thriving Well
Goals give us a sense of purpose and helps guide us in the direction we want to head towards. It keeps us engaged in the activities we've set out for ourselves, and hopefully, lead us towards a more balanced and happy life. However, life is full of obstacles and our best intentions don't always win. As humans, we are also constantly changing so what we thought worked for us at one point might not work for us after that. These changes are very much part of life and more than okay; we just need to pause sometimes to readjust out goals to accommodate them all.
24 Jan 2020
Life happens
There are many reasons why we may need to change our goals. One of the key reasons is the fact that our priorities in life are rarely static. Any alteration to our lives or schedule no matter small or large – staying late at work, getting a promotion, starting a family - can have a significant impact on whether our goals can be achieved or not. In the context of exercise, the smallest injury can set you back quite a bit in terms of achieving your fitness goals. Instead of getting angry or frustrated at these things you cannot control, see this as an opportunity to reconsider and adjust your goals.Reality bites
Sometimes, it's not so much changes in your life that affect your goals but your attempts at achieving them in the first place. Even the most experienced person makes mistakes, thinking that they can hit better targets than humanly possible. Struggling in your journey towards achieving your goals shouldn't be seen as a bad thing; in fact, they can help you learn and improve yourself in other ways. It tells you what your body and mind is capable of, and helps you grow into a better and stronger person. Use this new knowledge and start on Plan B.Let them go
One of the hardest, but most important aspects of adjusting your goals, is learning to let go of your unachievable goals. It's tempting to feel like you've failed, but what is important is that you acknowledge what doesn't work. There is no point using your energy, time and mental strength on something that won't get you the results you want. Learn to allow yourself to chuck them out so that you can find new ways to get yourself as close to the original goal as possible in different ways. This doesn't mean you've given up trying; instead, this is a sign that you're clever enough to quickly find a solution that fits your life.
Making modifications
Adjusting your goals doesn't mean just changing what you have been dreaming of. Sometimes, all you need to do is make smaller modifications to make sure that they are more achievable. When it comes to fitness, one of the most significant barriers to success is the timeline you set for yourself. This may be in terms of how frequent you visit the gym, sign up for Zumba classes or how long you are setting yourself to hit that weight or bulk target. A small change like visiting the gym twice a week instead of three times may be all you need to do.Assess and evaluate
Whether or not your goals are working for now, it never hurts to schedule in time for some evaluation of your progress. You can do this by initially setting smaller goals and assessing it at that point, or include periods for evaluation as part of your larger goals. At these stages, check in to see which elements are you making progress on and which you're struggling with.Make new goals
Adjusting your goals doesn't mean only making small tweaks to the task you've set for yourself, or the timeline. Sometimes, after trying it out for a while, you might realise that no matter what you do, you won't be able to be successfully in completing the task. That's okay! At this stage, use the knowledge and experience you have to start making new goals. A fresh new start can sometimes be good not just for motivation, but also because it will suit whatever state your life is in at that moment, making them more achievable.


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The Houston Texans are 10-1 and control their own destiny in the playoff race, but all isn't sunny for these AFC heavies.
Thursday's 34-31 overtime win over the Detroit Lions produced a pile of game film that promises to have Texans coach Gary Kubiak and his defensive coordinator, Wade Phillips, burning the midnight oil.
Lions quarterback Matthew Stafford threw over, around and through the Texans' defense without interruption. Four days after the Texans allowed the Jacksonville Jaguars to pour out 378 passing yards, Stafford ripped off 31 completions for 441 yards and two touchdowns. Houston didn't have an answer for Stafford's handiwork.
Granted, this happened without cornerback Johnathon Joseph in the lineup, but even when he returns, the Texans remain a damaged, banged-up defense.
Phillips initially was masterful in masking linebacker Brian Cushing's absence, but the injuries keep coming for the Texans. Linebacker Bradie James was lost Thursday with a hamstring injury, and yet another linebacker, Brooks Reed, was lost with a groin injury that appeared serious.
Cushing was excellent in pass coverage, able to blanket the conference's top tight ends and take away the middle of the field. There isn't another front-seven player in Houston capable of that, one reason we're seeing teams throw on the Texans at will.
Phillips has worked magic with this group of players, but Houston is far from invincible because of these deficiencies. The Texans will be there in January, but this recent play has etched the blueprint for how this team can be tested -- and possibly taken down.
Follow Marc Sessler on Twitter @MarcSesslerNFL.