ANKARA, Sep 21 (IPS) - Public approval of the Turkish government’s foreign policy has reached its lowest point - a mere 18 percent - in the past decade, according to a poll released here this week that showed only 18 percent of respondents said they favoured Ankara’s handling of the escalating sectarian violence in neighbouring Syria.

HAVANA, Sep 21 (IPS) - His carpenter’s certificate has made Antonio Tejero into a passionate champion of the trades, because, he says, he works “directly for society.” That attitude is in line with the government’s plan to train more technicians and skilled workers to give a boost to the economy.

UNITED NATIONS, Sep 21 (IPS) - Friday is not just any day – it's the International Day of Peace. Concerts, debates and moments of silence will be held all over the planet to commemorate the ideal of global truce and tolerance.

MEXICO CITY, Sep 21 (IPS) - The authorities in Mexico seem to have thrown in the towel in the fight against illegal fishing, which is hurting fisheries, the environment, and incomes.

KAMPALA, Sep 21 (IPS) - Almost a decade since Uganda initiated negotiations with China for the favourable export of coffee beans to the Asian giant, it is struggling to create even trade relations with the world's second-biggest economy. But economic experts predict that the East African nation could close the gap through the promotion of agriculture and the eventual export of oil.

TRIPOLI, Sep 21 (IPS) - The dark rain clouds and circling military helicopter accentuated the mood of the small, sombre crowd gathered in Tripoli’s Martyr’s Square to commemorate Libya’s dead heroes.

ROME, Sep 21 (IPS) - As the world searches desperately for ways to boost food production by at least 70 percent by 2050 to feed an increasingly hungry planet, many are looking to Africa as the place where a large part of this potential can be realised, mainly for its huge portion of arable land.

UNITED NATIONS, Sep 21 (IPS) - In 1996, Maria Mamerita Mestanza Chavez, a 33-year-old Peruvian mother of seven, was threatened with imprisonment if she did not comply with the government policy of undergoing sterilisation. After suffering post-operative complications for which she was refused treatment, Chavez died nine days later.

WASHINGTON, Sep 21 (IPS) - A top United Nations official has presented the first ever international investigation into the situation of indigenous peoples in the United States, urging the adoption of new policies and mechanisms to “address persistent deep-seeded problems related to historical wrongs, failed policies of the past and continuing systemic barriers”.

GENEVA, Sep 20 (IPS) - The impact of human rights education, a rising star, is highlighted in a short documentary sponsored by United Nations experts and civil society.