Janessa Schilmoeller

Janessa Schilmoeller is a Mint Press correspondent and staff writer based in Southern Africa. Janessa has worked with intercultural education programs for several years and focuses on topics of international relations, social change and human rights. She has previously lived in Jordan and has traveled to various countries in the Middle East. Janessa is currently reporting from Southern Africa where she coordinates study abroad programs focused on nation building, liberation theology and decolonizing the mind while reporting on social and political issues in the region. Follow her on Twitter at @jschilmo

Role Reversal: Obama and GOP Hopefuls Lobby AIPAC

(MintPress) On the single most important primary election day leading up to the Republican National Convention, GOP candidates took time to address the audience at the AIPAC policy conference in Washington, DC.  Although politicians are usually on the receiving end of lobbying efforts, the roles seem to be reversed when it comes to the American […]

Janessa Schilmoeller
By Janessa Schilmoeller
Republican presidential candidate, former Pennsylvania Sen. Rick Santorum, arrives to speak before the American Israel Public Affairs Committee (AIPAC), in Washington, Tuesday, March 6, 2012. (AP Photo/Charles Dharapak)

(MintPress) On the single most important primary election day leading up to the Republican National Convention, GOP candidates took time to address the audience at the AIPAC policy conference in Washington, DC.  Although politicians are usually on the receiving end of lobbying efforts, the roles seem to be reversed when it comes to the American

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Holder’s Attempt to Justify Assasinations Does Little To Appease Civil Rights Groups

(MintPress)—Attorney General Eric Holder outlined the legal framework for the use of legal force in targeted killings of Americans overseas on Monday after five months of pressure from civil rights groups to release information about the drone attack that killed U.S. citizen Anwar al-Aulaqi, a senior al-Qaeda recruiter living in Yemen. Since September 2011, three […]

Janessa Schilmoeller
By Janessa Schilmoeller
Attorney General Eric Holder speaks at the Northwestern University law school, Monday, March 5, 2012 in Chicago. (AP Photo/Brian Kersey)

(MintPress)—Attorney General Eric Holder outlined the legal framework for the use of legal force in targeted killings of Americans overseas on Monday after five months of pressure from civil rights groups to release information about the drone attack that killed U.S. citizen Anwar al-Aulaqi, a senior al-Qaeda recruiter living in Yemen. Since

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US Continues to Support Saudi Arabia Against 9/11 Victims in 10-year old lawsuit

(MintPress)—Former Senators Bob Graham (D-FL) and Bob Kerrey (D-NE) recently issued sworn statements in support of a 10-year old lawsuit filed by the families of Sept. 11 victims who claim that the government of Saudi Arabia may have played a bigger role in the 9/11 terrorist attacks than originally thought. Despite allegations accusing Saudi Arabia […]

Janessa Schilmoeller
By Janessa Schilmoeller
President Barack Obama looks at the King Abdul Aziz Order of Merit presented to him by Saudi King Abdullah bin Abdul Aziz at the start of their bilateral meeting at the King's Farm in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, June 3, 2009. The medal is Saudi Arabia's highest honor. (Official White House photo by Pete Souza)

(MintPress)—Former Senators Bob Graham (D-FL) and Bob Kerrey (D-NE) recently issued sworn statements in support of a 10-year old lawsuit filed by the families of Sept. 11 victims who claim that the government of Saudi Arabia may have played a bigger role in the 9/11 terrorist attacks than originally thought. Despite allegations accusing Saudi

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Salvadoran war criminal on path to deportation, thousands more remain on US soil

Generals Vides Casanova (Right) & General Garcia (Left) (MintPress)–A Florida immigration judge has taken the first step in the deportation of former Salvadoran top military commander, Gen. Carlos Eugenio Vides Casanova, who is accused of assisting in severe human rights violations, including the murder of several Americans during the country’s civil war in the 1980s. […]

Janessa Schilmoeller
By Janessa Schilmoeller

Generals Vides Casanova (Right) & General Garcia (Left) (MintPress)--A Florida immigration judge has taken the first step in the deportation of former Salvadoran top military commander, Gen. Carlos Eugenio Vides Casanova, who is accused of assisting in severe human rights violations, including the murder of several Americans during

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Can Corporations Be Sued for International Human Rights Abuses?

(MintPress)—The U.S. Supreme Court heard arguments on Tuesday to determine whether corporations can be held legally responsible for their involvement in international human rights abuses. The Court’s decision could have widespread implications on corporate person-hood and liability in regards to corporate complicity in violations of international law. The case in question, Kiobel v. Royal Dutch […]

Janessa Schilmoeller
By Janessa Schilmoeller
In this photo taken Thursday, Feb. 16, 2012, Charles Wiwa, 44, poses for a portrait in Chicago. Wiwa, fled Nigeria in 1996 following a crackdown on protests against Shell’s oil operations in the Niger Delta. He and other natives of the oil-rich Ogoni region claim Shell was eager to stop protests in the area and was complicit in Nigerian government actions that included fatal shootings, rapes, beatings, arrests and property destruction. U.S. Supreme Court justices will hear arguments Tuesday, Feb. 28, 2012, over the reach of the Alien Tort Statute and a 20-year-old law that allows victims of torture to pursue civil lawsuits against the responsible individuals. (AP Photo/Charles Rex Arbogast)

(MintPress)—The U.S. Supreme Court heard arguments on Tuesday to determine whether corporations can be held legally responsible for their involvement in international human rights abuses. The Court’s decision could have widespread implications on corporate person-hood and liability in regards to corporate complicity in violations of international

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Stratfor Emails Reveal Israel May Have Already Destroyed Iran’s Nuclear Capabilities

(MintPress)—Correspondence between several Stratfor intelligence analysts suggesting that Israel may have already destroyed Iran’s nuclear capabilities has emerged among over 5 million company e-mails recently released by WikiLeaks. According to an e-mail thread from November 2011, a Stratfor source reported that, “Israeli commandos in collaboration with Kurd forces destroyed few underground facilities mainly used for the […]

Janessa Schilmoeller
By Janessa Schilmoeller
DAVOS/SWITZERLAND, 26JAN12 - Ehud Barak, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Defence of Israel captured during the session 'Responsible Leadership in Times of Crisis' at the Annual Meeting 2012 of the World Economic Forum at the Swiss Alpine High School (SAMD) in Davos, Switzerland, January 26, 2012 (Photo by World Economic Forum)

(MintPress)—Correspondence between several Stratfor intelligence analysts suggesting that Israel may have already destroyed Iran’s nuclear capabilities has emerged among over 5 million company e-mails recently released by WikiLeaks. According to an e-mail thread from November 2011, a Stratfor source reported that, “Israeli commandos in

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TransCanada moves ahead with Pipeline, Landowners Cling to Property

(MintPress)—TransCanada Corporation announced on Monday its plan to go ahead with construction on the southern portion of the Keystone XL pipeline despite opposition from landowners and denial of a Presidential Permit granting construction rights for the full pipeline from Canada to Texas. The Gulf Coast Project, which will stretch from Oklahoma to Texas, does not need […]

Janessa Schilmoeller
By Janessa Schilmoeller
FILE - In this Sept. 15, 2005 file photo, the marker that welcomes commuters to Cushing, Okla. is seen. Canadian company TransCanada says it will build an oil pipeline from Oklahoma to Texas after President Barack Obama blocked the larger Keystone XL pipeline from Canada. The company says the new project does not require presidential approval since it does not cross a U.S. border. The shorter pipeline is expected to cost about $2.3 billion and be completed in 2013. The Obama administration had suggested development of an Oklahoma-to-Texas line to alleviate an oil glut at a Cushing, Okla., storage hub. (AP Photo/The Oklahoman, Matt Strasen, File)

(MintPress)—TransCanada Corporation announced on Monday its plan to go ahead with construction on the southern portion of the Keystone XL pipeline despite opposition from landowners and denial of a Presidential Permit granting construction rights for the full pipeline from Canada to Texas. The Gulf Coast Project, which will stretch from Oklahoma

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