Mitch McConnell is inviting a constitutional crisis

Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) said on April 10 he doesn't believe special counsel Robert S. Mueller III will be removed from his office. (The Washington Post)

The Associated Press reported on Tuesday afternoon:

Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell on Tuesday thwarted a bipartisan effort to protect special counsel Robert Mueller’s job, saying he will not hold a floor vote on the legislation even if it is approved next week in the Senate Judiciary Committee.

McConnell said the bill is unnecessary because President Donald Trump will not fire Mueller. 

“We’ll not be having this on the floor of the Senate,” McConnell said on Fox News.

His comments came amid widespread opposition to the bill among members of his caucus, with several GOP senators saying the bill is unconstitutional. Others said it’s simply not good politics to try and tell Trump what to do, likening the legislation to “poking the bear.”

Let’s cut through all this: Republicans are petrified of provoking Trump (“the bear”), whom they treat as their supervisor and not as an equal branch of government. The notion that Congress should not take out an insurance policy to head off a potential constitutional crisis when the president has repeatedly considered firing special counsel Robert S. Mueller III and Deputy Attorney General Rod J. Rosenstein defies logic. By speaking up in such fashion, McConnell is effectively tempting Trump to fire one or both of them. That will set off a firestorm and bring calls for the president’s impeachment.

“There is evidently no limit on the complicity [McConnell] is willing to shoulder,” argued Norman Eisen, a former White House ethics counsel during the Obama administration. “Even as bipartisan support for the legislation is emerging in both houses of Congress — or perhaps because it is emerging — he stands in the way.” He added: “It is a betrayal of the rule of law for McConnell to take this position when the president has reportedly tried twice to fire Mueller, and discussed it frequently, and is now agitated over the Michael Cohen developments. McConnell will be fully as responsible as Trump if the special counsel is fired.”

Opinion | If President Trump fires the bane of his legal troubles, he could spark a legal and constitutional crisis. (Adriana Usero/The Washington Post)

At critical points during this saga, McConnell has put party over country, and fidelity to the executive branch over the concerns of an equal legislative branch. Remember, according to multiple news reports, McConnell is the one who, before the 2016 election, wanted to water down a bipartisan warning to the country about Russian interference. It was McConnell, together with Speaker of the House Paul D. Ryan (R-Wis.), who refused to set up a select committee or an independent commission to address possible Russian collusion. It was McConnell who pushed through the confirmation of Attorney General Jeff Sessions, despite ample evidence that he had not been truthful with the Senate Judiciary Committee regarding his contacts with Russians. His refusal to consider legislation that might head off a crisis is remarkably reckless.

“As Senate Majority Leader, McConnell has extraordinary power to control the nation’s legislative agenda — and that power carries great responsibility,” said constitutional scholar Laurence Tribe. 

“By standing in the way of serious legislative efforts to protect the special counsel’s inquiry into presidential obstruction of justice and cooperation with Russia to win the election, McConnell has totally failed to discharge that responsibility.”

There is no one — with the possible exceptions of Ryan and House Intelligence Committee chairman Devin Nunes (R-Calif.) — who has done more to embolden Trump. Seeing no opposition, Trump has continued his crusade to intimidate and bully the Justice Department and the FBI. As Trump has trashed one democratic norm after another, McConnell has remained silent.

Put aside the Russia investigation for a moment. McConnell hasn’t said boo about Trump’s foreign emoluments, his grotesque conflicts of interest, or the nepotism and self-enrichment that are endemic to his administration. If a Democrat was in the White House, McConnell would be leading the inquests into wrongdoing and cheering for impeachment.

McConnell’s seat is not on the ballot in November, but eight other Republican ones are. If McConnell loses a net of two seats, he will be in the minority and no longer able to run interference for Trump. It’s difficult to come up with a better reason to dump the GOP majority than its abject refusal to live up to its oath, act as a check on the executive branch, and take the necessary steps to protect the country and Constitution from Trump. Looking ahead, is there any doubt that McConnell — no matter what Mueller finds, no matter how robust are articles of impeachment that might be sent from the House — would once again ride to Trump’s rescue and shield him from accountability?

Aside from his failure to live up to his constitutional responsibilities, the majority leader is taking an awfully big political risk. “It’s very nice that Sen. McConnell is confident President Trump will not interfere with the work of the special counsel, but that does not help me sleep at night in view of the President’s constant threats to fire Mueller,” Rep. Jerrold Nadler (D-N.Y.), the ranking Democrat on the House Judiciary Committee, told me. “It is outrageous that Sen. McConnell and other Republican leaders won’t allow a vote on a bill to protect the investigation — a bicameral, bipartisan bill that continues to gain support on both sides of the aisle.”

Well, if Trump does fire Mueller or Rosenstein, the country will rightly blame McConnell and the GOP-controlled Senate. It would be quite a political legacy.

Challenges in ridding India of the scourge of rape

 2018-04-17

India is being rocked by country-wide public protests over the rape of three females. Two of them, just 8 and 11 years of age, were also murdered in the most gruesome manner.   
While these gory deeds could be treated as a law and order problem, the phenomenon of rape and violence against women needs to be addressed in a holistic way as it is both widespread and multi-dimensional with social, economic, historical and political aspects.   
The public anger is directed against the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) led by Prime Minister Narendra Modi because the States in which these gruesome acts occurred have the BJP either as the sole ruling party or as a key partner in government.   
The 17-year-old was raped in Unnao, Uttar Pradesh, where the BJP is all in all. The 8-year-old Asifa was raped and murdered in Kathua in Jammu and Kashmir, where the BJP is a key partner in a coalition government. The 11-year-old was raped and murdered in Gujarat where the BJP has a monopoly of power.   
While rape and cum murder is not uncommon in the still feudal India, what outraged the public was the State’s stoic silence and the partisan nature of the deeds of the governments and their political supporters.   

The Incidents

A 17-year-old girl was raped by a BJP State legislator, Kuldeep Sengar in Unnao in Utta Pradesh in mid-2017. In a lone fight against police indifference, the girl tried to commit suicide outside the residence of State Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath. Her father was then beaten to death by the legislator’s brother and BJP cadres in the presence of the police.   
After an uproar in civil society, Sengar’s brother was arrested and continued protests led to his arrest by the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI). But this took place only in April 2018.   
In January 2018, a Muslim tribal child of 8 was abducted, raped, and murdered by a former government officer and a serving police officer with an intention to terrorize the nomadic Muslim Bakherwal community to vacate Kathua en masse.   
Two ministers of the BJP in the Jammu and Kashmir government along with the Kathua BJP legislator, led a procession supporting the rapists. They made provocative speeches inciting violence against the nomads.   

What outraged the public was the State’s stoic silence and the partisan nature of the deeds of the governments

Lawyers, many of them known to the ruling party members, blocked the court to prevent the police from filing the charge sheet

Even the UN, which usually turns a blind eye to atrocities in India, was stirred into action

Lawyers, many of them known to the ruling party members, blocked the court to prevent the police from filing the charge sheet against the rape accused saying that the police had a pro-Muslim mentality because Jammu and Kashmir is a Muslim-majority State. But the truth was that the chief investigating officer who cracked the case, was a Hindu, Ramesh Kumar Jalla.   
The third incident came to light on Sunday when the raped and murdered body of a 11-year-old was found in a forest in Surat in Modi’s home State of Gujarat. The girl had been killed on April 5 even as anti-rape protests were on country-wide. Investigations into this have just begun.   
When the Prime Minister Modi spoke, after an excruciatingly long period of silence, he did so casually at a function, and tweeted his comment. No executive or political action was announced or taken, though he dubbed the rape and murder as “shameful”. Clearly, he had placed his partisan interest before the national interest.   
Deepa Narayan, author of a book on violence against women in India told The New York Times: “Modi is always a slow reactor. He waits for an issue to go away and when it doesn’t, and he’s in a corner, he speaks up and makes platitudes. I think the B.J.P. will suffer from this. They will pay a price for the impunity they’ve unleashed by not treating crimes as crimes but by politicizing them.”   

Anguish of Ex-Civil Service Honchos   

Reacting to the government’s callous indifference, 49 retired top officials, sent an open letter to Modi which said: “ The bestiality and the barbarity involved in the rape and murder of an eight year old child shows the depths of depravity that we have sunk to. In post-Independence India, this is our darkest hour. We see no light at the end of the tunnel and we hang our heads in shame.”   
“Prime Minister, we write to you not just to express our rage over the agenda of division and hate your party and its innumerable, often untraceable offshoots that spring up from time to time, have insidiously introduced into the grammar of our politics, our social and cultural life and even our daily discourse.”   
“It is that which provides the social sanction and legitimacy for the incidents in Kathua and Unnao.”   
“In Kathua in Jammu, it is the culture of majoritarian belligerence and aggression promoted by the Sangh Parivar which emboldened rabid communal elements to pursue their perverse agenda.”   
“ They knew that their behavior would be endorsed by the politically powerful and those who have made their careers by polarizing Hindus and Muslims across a sectarian divide.”   
“In Unnao in Utar Pradesh it is the reliance on the worst kinds of patriarchal feudal mafia dons to capture votes and political power that gives such persons the freedom to rape and murder and extort as a way of asserting their own personal power.”   
“But even more reprehensible than such abuse of power, it is the response of the State Government in hounding the victim of rape and her family instead of the alleged perpetrator that shows how perverted governance practices have become.”
“Given your supremacy within the party and the centralized control you and your Party President exercise, you more than anyone else, have to be held responsible for this terrifying state of affairs.”   
“You have not condemned the communal pathology behind the act nor shown the resolve to change the social, political and administrative conditions under which such communal hate is bred.”  

UN awakens 

Even the UN, which usually turns a blind eye to atrocities in India, was stirred into action.   
“We are deeply concerned about the prevalence of gender-based violence, including sexual violence against women and girls, which we are witnessing in India,” said Yuri Afanasiev, UN’s Resident Representative in India in a statement.   
“ The cases reported are not isolated ones. There are many others which remain invisible, unheard and therefore, not counted due to everyday normalization of sexual and other forms of violence.”   
“An unequivocal commitment by the leadership at the highest level to address sexual violence and to ensure accountability for such crimes is essential for justice to be delivered,” Afanasiev said.   

Grisly Statistics 

According to the 2016 figures put out by the Indian National Crime Records Bureau (NCRB), incidents of rape of children had increased by over 82% compared to 2015. It was for the first time that such a sharp increase in sexual assaults on children had been registered.   
The NCRB data shows that while in 2015, 10,854 cases of rape were registered, 2016 saw 19,765 such cases being registered.   
The numbers reported were the highest in Madhya Pradesh (2467), Maharashtra (2292), and Uttar Pradesh (2115), all States ruled by the BJP.   

Prime Minister Modi confronted by angry protests in London

Demonstrator holding placards and protesting against India's Prime Minister Narendra Modi walk past supporters of Prime Minister in Parliament Square, London, Britain, April 18, 2018. REUTERS/Hannah McKay

Tom Ball-APRIL 18, 2018

LONDON (Reuters) - Hundreds of noisy protesters greeted Prime Minister Narendra Modi when he arrived in London on Wednesday, demonstrating over a rising tide of sexual violence at home including two particularly brutal rapes.

Holding placards reading “Modi go home” and “we stand against Modi’s agenda of hate and greed,” they gathered outside Downing Street and parliament as Modi arrived for talks with Prime Minister Theresa May.

Sexual violence against women is a highly charged political issue in India, where protests regularly erupt about entrenched violence against women and the failure to protect them.

“The Indian government are doing nothing, and you feel sorry for the families because of the total injustice of it all,” said Navindra Singh, an Indian-born lawyer who lives in Britain.

“He has been in power for four years now and there has been no policy change to help protect women and children.”

Protests have erupted across India after the latest rape cases were reported. Police officers and a politician are under investigation in two of the unrelated cases.

In a crime that shocked India, an 8-year-old Muslim girl in the northern state of Jammu and Kashmir was kidnapped, drugged and held for several days while she was raped repeatedly and then murdered.

Demonstrator holds a placards and pictures of India's Prime Minister Narendra Modi in Parliament Square, London, Britain, April 18, 2018. REUTERS/Hannah McKay

In the other case, a state lawmaker from Modi’s Bharatiya Janata Party stands accused of raping a teenager. No action was taken against the politician until the girl threatened to set herself on fire earlier this month. Her father died soon afterwards from injuries he sustained while in police custody.

Modi addressed the outrage over the rapes last week by promising justice regardless of whoever the guilty were.

Nearly 40 percent of India’s rape victims are children and the 40,000 reported rapes in 2016 marked a 60 percent increase over the level in 2012. But women’s rights groups say the figures are still gross underestimates.


Demonstrator holds a placards and pictures of India's Prime Minister Narendra Modi in Parliament Square, London, Britain, April 18, 2018. REUTERS/Hannah McKay

Modi, a Hindu nationalist, is a divisive figure in India and his second trip to Britain as prime minister represents a remarkable turnaround for a man who was once banned from the UK over his alleged role, as chief minister of Gujarat, in riots that killed about 1,000 people in 2002.

Britain ended a boycott of Modi in 2012 after he emerged from being a provincial politician to the likely leader of the world’s largest democracy. He has denied wrongdoing and was exonerated by an inquiry ordered by India’s Supreme Court.

Bangladesh PM refuses to answer questions on human rights record

LONDON (Reuters) - Hundreds of noisy protesters greeted Prime Minister Narendra Modi when he arrived in London on Wednesday, demonstrating over a rising tide of sexual violence at home including two particularly brutal rapes.

Alex Thomson-17 Apr 2018Chief Correspondent

The Prime Minister of Bangladesh Sheikh Hasina has refused to answer questions about her country’s human rights record. She is in the UK as part of the Commonwealth Summit. This programme has been investigating the many cases of the so-called “missing” in Bangladesh who are political opponents of her government.

Myanmar: Time to focus on Economy

With no immediate chance of any constitutional reforms either, there is some realization that what is doable in only in the field of economy and that economy should take precedence now.

by Dr. S.Chandrasekharan- Apr 18, 2018

( April 18, 2018, New Delhi, Sri Lanka Guardian) With the Cease fire process as well as the desired progress in Constitutional reforms going no where, it is but natural, that the Government of Suu Kyi is trying rearrange the priorities and focus more on the economy.

In his inaugural speech on 29th March, President Win Myint spelt out the major objectives of the Union Government that included rule of law, an improvement in socio economic conditions, national reconciliation and peace and constitutional reforms in that order. He specifically pledged to improve the living conditions of farmers and labourers. He ended his speech pledging that he will earnestly “strive for the change that citizens want to see”.

State Counsellor Suu Kyi on the second anniversary of the NLD Government reiterated the objectives of her government in the same order spelt out earlier by the President. She said that the main goals of her government will be the development of the socio economic life. In the coming year she promised that the government will adopt programmes that will bring real benefits to the citizens.

Two years ago, when the NLD Government took over governance, Suu Kyi’s priorities were seen to be ethnic reconciliation, constitutional reforms and economic empowerment in that order. She seemed to have had high hopes in bringing the Panglong spirit once again and the two conferences she had, did bring about some forward movement but was not to the extent expected. The conflicts in the north and north eastern region have become more complicated with no immediate hopes of even a cease fire.

With no immediate chance of any constitutional reforms either , there is some realization that what is doable in only in the field of economy and that economy should take precedence now.

In a commentary on the inauguration, a leading daily pointed out that many people from all walks of life have “consistently” complained that economy has deteriorated under the NLD and that businesses are dying. It is also said that the present deterioration of economy is not a little due to prioritization of the State Counsellor Suu Kyi of political matters such as peace process over the economy.

It is therefore natural that a subtle change in the priorities has to be made and is being thought of. Unfortunately Myanmar has been labelled as the “richest of the poor countries” and though rich in fossil fuels, rubies, jade and gold as well as other natural resources, it continues to be poor. Its per capita income is said to be even less than that of Kampuchea! Agriculture provides almost 60 percent of the GDP and the call to improve the life the farmers made by the incoming President should be welcomed by the people. The President’s speech did raise hopes but as pointed out by the media, it has also reminded the people of the political realities. What is doable is to improve the living conditions of the people and that is what needs to be attempted if the NLD is to face the next general elections and repeat its earlier success.

In the course of the peace talks held with the people in Ayeyawady Region on April 10, Suu Kyi Suu Kyi told the people that peace and development are inseparable and that if a country is rich economically and physically it will provide security for the people. Given the constraints faced by Suu Kyi, it looks very doubtful of any major breakthrough in the peace talks with the militant entities and yet at least some progress can be achieved in improving the economy.

After the 2015 agreement when eight groups signed the cease fire agreement, only two minor groups have signed the agreement so far while the major and more powerful groups like the UWSA and the KIA have refrained from signing it. In fact the most powerful group backed by China is demanding a totally different narrative for the peace dialogue.

The Peace Process itself is not proceeding smoothly and its success is now dependent upon the Armed Forces and China and the Chinese supported militant units. Suu Kyi’s government appears to have lost the script. The reasons appear to be-

* The most powerful groups consisting of seven units that form the “Federal Political Negotiating Council Consultative Commission (FPNCC)” consisting of over 50000 well-armed fighters have not signed the National Cease fire agreement and instead have suggested a three-stage formula for negotiating as a group and not as individual units.

* The FPNCC group is allied to China and one of its aims to look for stability and peace on the Sino Myanmar border. It is no surprise that the FPNCC has enthusiastically supported the BRI ( Belt and Road Initiative) of China.

* The FPNCC alliance has openly sought continued support from China and has declared that China’s involvement has become more important and cannot be avoided. The aim of the group is to have a genuine federal union with right of self determination, regional autonomy and equality are guaranteed.

* The fighting between the KIA and the Army (Tatmadaw) has intensified in the past few weeks and there appears to be no desire on either side to reduce the conflict.

* On the other hand, the situation has become more complicated with fighting between signatories and non signatories and even between the Army and the signatories thus complicating the situation further. The general feeling amongst the non signatories is that the Army with its dominating political presence will never agree to a federal union which is a minimum that is being demanded by the militant outfits. Surprisingly, no one is demanding outright secession!

* There are allegations from outfits like the RCSS and the NMSP- signatories that they are being prevented by the Army to have public consultations in their areas.

It is therefore no surprise that Suu Kyi’s government is looking for economic empowerment as a priority without giving up the two other objectives of ethnic reconciliation and constitutional reforms. It is doable and would go a long way in satisfying the people and in line with their slogan “Together”.

Op-Ed: Why Malaysia is leading the way in Asean for poverty eradication

By V. Paramasivam | 17th April 2018

A group of children in Raub, Pahang, watch cartoons on a tablet. Malaysia's poverty rate is lowest among its peers in Southeast Asia at 3.8pc. Source: Shutterstock.

SO MUCH – perhaps too much – has been said of late about matters pertaining to poverty incidence and income or wealth disparity in Malaysia.

These commentaries, even when looked at objectively, can shine through to even the most politically apathetic among us as mere rhetoric parroted by parties and groups intent on pushing forward an opposition-leaning agenda.

But cut through the noise, look at the facts and it becomes easier to see how and why Malaysia has become something of a model nation among its Southeast Asian peers for poverty eradication.

Let’s break it down:

In just a little over 60 years, Malaysia has transformed itself from a low-income agricultural-based economy to a nation on track towards attaining advanced economy status in two years’ time.

Among its achievements in national development, Malaysia lays claim to a pretty remarkable decline in poverty rates and remains an example of poverty reduction in Southeast Asia.

Why? Results and data have shown that efforts by the government to promote equitable opportunities for all and grow the local economy have achieved its desired results.

SEE ALSO: 5 girls and a tale of hope, despair in Kuala Lumpur’s public housing

The Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) World Factbook 2017, for example, has reported that Malaysia’s poverty rate is the lowest among Southeast Asian countries at 3.8 percent, as compared to Vietnam and Indonesia (11.3 percent), Thailand (12.6 percent), Laos (22 percent), the Philippines (25.2 percent) and Burma (32.7 percent).

The report also highlighted that Malaysia’s per capita gross domestic product stands at US$27,200, which is far better than those of its regional peers in Thailand (US$16,800), Indonesia (US$11,700), the Philippines (US$7,700), Vietnam (US$6,400), Burma (US$6,000) and Laos (US$5,700).

Meanwhile, arguments claiming Malaysia’s wealth gap or Gini coefficient has grown are not backed by fact. Quite the contrary, the country’s Gini Coefficient fell to 0.399 in 2016 from the 0.401 registered back in 2009. This puts Malaysia on much better footing than some advanced economies such as Singapore (0.458) and even Hong Kong (0.539).

Malaysia’s Gini Coefficient has improved over the years. Source: Shutterstock

According to one of the most recent reports by the World Bank, Malaysia has had an inclusive economic growth rate of about 7 percent annually for the past 25 years.

Since this growth has been inclusive, Malaysia has been successful at nearly eradicating poverty in the country.

Nonetheless, with the rise of new forms of poverty particularly in urban areas brought about by mass and rapid urban migration, there is admittedly still plenty to be done for Malaysia to attain its zero-poverty target.

SEE ALSO: In wealthy Kuala Lumpur, the tragedy of child poverty in its public flats

Wary of this, the government, together with various stakeholders, continues to build on its national policies and plans, implementing numerous initiatives to help raise the incomes of the urban poor and vulnerable groups.

These can be divided into two main categories: short-term and long-term.

Short-term initiatives

Aiming to address the immediate needs of the urban poor, numerous aids and subsidies have been made available, including:

Bantuan Rakyat 1Malaysia (BR1M)

Introduced in 2012, BR1M is part of the Economic Transformation Program (ETP) to assist low-income earners in Malaysia. The aid (a yearly, one-off cash payment of RM500) aims to reduce the cost of living amongst households with less than RM3,000 monthly income.

Other financial aids

Eligible single mothers, the disabled, senior citizens in need as well as low-income households are also provided with a number of financial aids to help ease their burden. 

These aids come under the purview of the Women, Family and Community Development Ministry and Department of Social Welfare Malaysia.

SEE ALSO: Malaysia goes to polls on May 9

Long-term initiatives

Long-term programmes are also in place to equip the underprivileged with the necessary knowledge, skills and/or capital to become more financially independent in the long run. These include:

1Malaysia Programme

A nationwide ongoing programme with multiple initiatives to help ease the burden of the poor. Initiatives include Kedai Rakyat 1 Malaysia, PR1MA affordable housing scheme, KAR1SMA social assistance programme and Program Susu 1 Malaysia for school-going children.

2 Years Exit Programme (2YEP)

Introduced in 2010, 2YEP provides temporary welfare assistance to eligible candidates over two years whilst helping them to build on their abilities. After 2 years, the candidate is expected to be able to live independently without relying on subsidies. To date, 2YEP has helped 122 hardcore poor people, including those with disabilities to come out of poverty.

Transformative Education Policy

The Government has long been committed to provide free education for all Malaysians, free textbooks in public schools, continuously transform the education system and provide scholarships to further boost the social and economic standing of all races. Malaysia is unique in the sense that it provides a vernacular education system (Chinese and Tamil) to cater to the specific needs various communities in the country.

Simply put, poverty eradication is a challenging and continuous process. And the simple fact is there are no quick fixes.

The hope is that these holistic programmes will serve to lift those concerned out of poverty, empower them and in time, help them become active participants in Malaysia’s economy.

* V. Paramasivam as a former director in a Malaysian think-tank focusing on national and international issues.

 ** This is the personal opinion of the writer and does not reflect the views of Asian Correspondent

Does vaginal seeding boost health?

By James Gallagher-17 April 2018

Should Caesarean-section babies be smeared with a sample of their mother's vaginal fluids as soon as they are born?

"Vaginal seeding" is not mainstream medicine, but it is growing in popularity.

The idea is to give these newborns something they missed when they emerged into the world - the good bacteria that live in their mother's vagina.

A swab is taken of mum's vaginal fluid, which is then rubbed on to her child's skin and mouth.

The hope is this microbial gift will boost their child's long-term health - particularly by reducing their risk of immune disorders.

It is a crucial time.

We might have been sterile in the womb, but in our first few moments of life an invisible bond is being established between baby and bacteria.

It's a relationship that will last a lifetime, and the first contact is as important as a first date.

"The first time a baby's own immune system has to respond are to those first few bacteria," says Prof Peter Brocklehurst, from the University of Birmingham.

"That we believe is important for, in some way, setting the baby's immune system."

There is a noticeable difference between the microbiomes - the collection of bacteria, viruses, fungi and archaea - of babies born vaginally and by Caesarean section.

It lasts for about the first year of life.

A baby born vaginally is first exposed and colonised by microbes from their mother's vagina and gut.

But for Caesarean-section babies, the first exposure "if they're lucky", says Prof Brocklehurst, comes from the very different organisms on their mother's skin.

He is running the Baby Biome Study to see if these different microbial colonists on Caesarean-section babies explain why they have higher rates of diseases such as asthma and allergies later in life.

The microbiome

• You're more microbe than human - if you count all the cells in your body, only 43% are human
• The rest is our microbiome and includes bacteria, viruses, fungi and single-celled archaea
• The human genome - the full set of genetic instructions for a human being - is made up of 20,000 instructions called genes
• But add all the genes in our microbiome together and the figure comes out at between two million and 20 million microbial genes
• It's known as the second genome and is linked to diseases including allergy, obesity, inflammatory bowel disease, Parkinson's, whether cancer drugs work and even depression and autism

More than half your body is not human

Gut Instinct: Why I put my poo in the post

The early interaction between the immune system and microbes appears crucial.

Obviously our bodies do attack the dangerous ones - but the overall relationship between microbial and immune cells is about more than conflict, it's a far deeper dynamic.

Graham Rook, a professor of medical microbiology at University College London, says the microbiome is the immune system's teacher.

"This is a learning system, it is like the brain. Now, the thing about the adaptive immune system is it needs data, just like the brain needs data."

Listen to The Second Genome on BBC Radio 4.

The next episode airs 11:00 BST Tuesday April 17, repeated 21:00 BST Monday April 23 and on the BBC iPlayer

And that "data" is coming from microbes and the chemicals they produce. They provoke a reaction in the immune system that can last a lifetime.

Prof Rook says: "The initial setting up of the immune system occurs during the first weeks and months of life.

"We know that because there's a window of opportunity during those first months of life when if you give antibiotics you can disrupt the microbiota and then in adulthood those individuals are more likely to have immunological problems and are more likely to put on weight."

This is the idea that some parents are buying into when they perform vaginal seeding.

Do dogs boost a baby's microbiome?

Even the type of home you bring your baby back to may affect their long-term health.

Research has shown households with dogs have lower rates of asthma.

The idea is they help us swim against the hygiene tide by traipsing their muddy paws round the house and sticking their noses into everything.

"The speculation has always been that the dog brings, from the outside, microbes that are helpful in stimulating the infant's immune system," says Prof Anita Kozyrskyj, from the University of Alberta.

She is analysing data on about 3,500 families in the Canadian Healthy Infant Longitudinal Development Study.

One of its findings is that the microbiomes of three-month-olds is far richer and more diverse (a good sign) if there is a pet in the house.

Two types of beneficial bacteria seemed to be more common.

"The Oscillospira have been associated with leanness and the Ruminococcus have been associated with reduced risk of allergic disease."

Breastfeeding or formula, antibiotics and method of delivery all affect the microbiome.

But studies into the microbiome and long-term health have often been too small to be definitive.

The Baby Biome study is aiming to collect faecal samples from 80,000 babies.

That will be a lot of soiled nappies to analyse, but it will be an unparalleled resource for interrogating the impact of decisions made around birth.

Many of those will be out of parents' hands.

No doctor or parent would hold back on life-saving antibiotics because of an uncertain long-term impact.

Breast milk feeds gut bacteria

This study will let scientists see which microbes the body first hooks up, what that means years later and, tantalisingly, whether damaging relationships with the wrong bacteria can be repaired.

The faecal samples will end up at the Wellcome Sanger Institute in Cambridge and in the hands of microbial enthusiasts such as Dr Trevor Lawley.

"My latest favourite microorganism is Bifidobacterium," he says.

"It is one of the first bugs to colonise humans early in life, and we believe they feed off sugars in the breast milk.

"So, there's a very sophisticated evolutionary set-up where the bugs are passed from the mother to child and the mother nurtures that bug to establish the early microbiome."

Dr Lawley's lab will be trying to uncover every microbe that colonises a newborn and what that means later in life.

He thinks the end result of the project will be to change policy around avoidable antibiotic use and Caesarean sections.

Or, alternatively, "maybe we could culture the bugs from the mums to purposefully colonise the babies to allow their microbiome to mature and develop properly" - in other words, a scientifically controlled version of vaginal seeding.

So are some parents just ahead of the game?

Prof Brocklehurst says: "At the moment some parents believe this hypothesis enough that they are doing their own vaginal seeding.

"Now, there could be real downsides to that."

One concern is dangerous bugs could be transferred.

Up to a quarter of women are thought to carry group-B strep in their vagina, and exposing babies to this bacterium could be fatal.

Prof Brocklehurst says: "It too early to start introducing bacteria artificially into the baby until we've got a good handle on how likely this is to be the mechanism or not."

Follow James on Twitter.

Illustrations: Katie Horwich