Germany has rejected the U.S. call to join an international mission to protect maritime traffic in the Strait of Hormuz. The United States had asked Germany to join France and Britain in a mission to secure shipping through the strait, the narrow maritime passage through which international tankers transport at least a fifth of the world’s crude oil supply.German Foreign Minister Heiko Maas arrives for the weekly cabinet meeting in Berlin, Germany, July 31, 2019.”Germany will not take part in the sea mission presented and planned by the United States,” Germany’s Foreign Minister Heiko Maas said Wednesday. Mass said the situation in the region is very serious but that “there is no military solution.”Tensions have heightened in the Middle East in recent weeks, with the U.S. and Iran announcing they had shot down each other’s unmanned drones near the strait.In addition, Britain seized an Iranian tanker near Gibraltar that London believed was shipping oil to Syria. Iran’s Revolutionary Guards responded by taking over the British-flagged oil tanker Stena Impero in the strait. Last week, Britain called for a European-led naval initiative, but Washington has insisted on leading the mission. European leaders have been reluctant to back a U.S.-led mission, which they say could further escalate tensions in the region. Tehran and Washington have been at odds since President Donald Trump pulled the U.S. out of an international nuclear deal with Iran and reimposed sanctions on it. German Finance Minister and Vice Chancellor Olaf Scholz said it was important to avoid a military escalation in the Persian Gulf region and that a U.S.-led mission carried the risk of being dragged into an even bigger conflict.
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Month: July 2019
Pelosi Calls Visit to Ghana Transformative’
ACCRA, GHANA — Four hundred years after the first ship of enslaved Africans sailed to America, U.S. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi condemned the “grave evil” of slavery in a speech Wednesday to Ghana’s parliament. The California Democrat, who was the first U.S. House speaker to address Ghana’s lawmakers, said her and her colleagues’ visit was about acknowledging the past while also looking to the future. Pelosi and her delegation, which included members of the U.S. Congressional Black Caucus — including Representatives Ilhan Omar and John Lewis — arrived Sunday in Ghana. They have since met with Ghana’s President Nana Akufo-Addo and have visited Elmina Castle and the “Door of No Return” at Cape Coast Castle. Both were slave forts where people were shipped in chains to the New World. Ghana has marked 2019 as “The Year of Return” to encourage people of African descent to visit the nation. U.S. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi and Ghana’s Speaker Mike Oquaye at Ghana’s parliament, July 31, 2019. (S. Knott/VOA)Sitting next to Mike Oquaye, Ghana’s parliament speaker, on Wednesday, Pelosi told the chamber that visiting the two sites was overwhelming, saying they marked the beginning of the journey of the African-American experience.
“Our delegation has been humbled by what we have seen this week,” she said. “At Elmina Castle, we saw the dungeons where thousands were grotesquely tortured. At Cape Coast Castle, we stood before the Door of No Return, where countless millions caught their last glimpse of Africa before they were shipped to a life of enslavement. Being here has been a transformative experience for all of us.”
Pelosi also spoke about the relationship between the two nations, thanking Ghana for its work in global security, especially its contribution to U.N. peacekeeping missions.
She also acknowledged the fight against discrimination in both nations. Ghana gained its independence in 1957, and it also supported the U.S. civil rights movement.
The visit has had a strong emphasis on economic and trade ties between the two nations, which Pelosi also addressed in her speech, acknowledging the efforts of the Congressional Black Caucus.
“America is strongly committed to economic progress in Ghana — a commitment enshrined and advanced over the course of many years from the Millennium Challenge partnership and the Africa Growth and Opportunities Act,” she said. “Together, our governments must continue to support smart development strategies that spur sustainable economic growth that lifts up all families in Ghana and throughout Africa.” U.S. Representative Ilhan Omar is embraced by Ghana’s former president, Jerry John Rawlings, at Ghana’s parliament, July 31, 2019. (S. Knott/VOA)For Adwoa Safo, deputy majority leader of Ghana’s parliament and the chair of the female caucus, Pelosi’s visit was pivotal. As one of the few women in parliament, Safo said the speech was “right on point.”
“I believe that with her enormous experience in politics, and having risen from the local level up to speaker of the United States, her visit is very historical and inspiring for most of us, as women,” she said. Safo said the two nations had a good relationship that should be strengthened.
“Ghana has a lot to offer when you look at stability in terms of our politics — us being the pacesetters in Africa gaining independence and how we are progressing as a country — and the support we always get from the U.S. government,” she said. “There is a lot for us to offer and a lot they can give in terms of bringing in investment … tapping in on our natural resources and building capacity as well. They have been very, very supportive.”
It was this sense of partnership Pelosi was emphasizing during the visit, along with promoting additional economic and trade ties between the two nations, while underscoring the need to combat climate change, push for female empowerment and provide health care equality.
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Senate Committee Backs Hyten for Pentagon Post
WASHINGTON — The U.S. Senate Armed Services Committee on Wednesday backed General John Hyten to be the second-highest ranking U.S. military official, a day after he denied sexual assault allegations against him. The vote was 20-7 in favor of Hyten’s becoming the vice chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff. Hyten, the outgoing commander of the U.S. military’s Strategic Command, must still be confirmed by the full Senate. A date for that vote has not been announced. FILE – Army Col. Kathryn Spletstoser, who has accused Air Force Gen. John Hyten of sexual misconduct, speaks to reporters following Hyten’s confirmation hearing, July 30, 2019.Hyten on Tuesday vehemently denied the sexual assault allegations against him at his confirmation hearing. His accuser, Army Colonel Kathryn Spletstoser, sat quietly in the room during the hearing, occasionally shaking her head in disagreement, and afterward told reporters that Hyten had lied to the senators under oath. An official Air Force investigation did not substantiate the accusations against Hyten. Hyten’s nomination has posed a challenge to the Senate, which for years has criticized the military for failing to do enough to combat sexual assault in its ranks.
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Trump Welcomes Mongolian President Battulga to White House
President Donald Trump has welcomed Mongolia’s president, Khaltmaa Battulga, to the White House for talks focused on trade.Wednesday’s visit is the first by a Mongolian president since June 2011, the last time a leader of the landlocked country between Russia and China came to the White House.Trump administration officials say they want to explore ways to help the East Asian nation diversify its trade flows since about 90 percent of Mongolia’s trade must go through China.Trump and Battulga are also expected to discuss defense and security matters, among other issues. Battulga is a populist business tycoon and ex-judo champion whose meeting with Trump follows a recent visit to Mongolia by Trump’s national security adviser, John Bolton.
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Fears Growing Congo’s Ebola Could Spread to Neighboring Countries
As the Ebola epidemic in the eastern Democratic Republic of Congo enters its second year, experts from the World Health Organization (WHO) are voicing concern about the growing risk of the virus spreading to neighboring countries.Fears that the deadly Ebola virus could spread to Congo’s nine neighboring countries are growing with the death of the second person confirmed to have had the disease in Goma, a city of more than one million people. Goma, the capital of conflict-ridden North Kivu province, borders Rwanda and DRC’s gateway to the rest of the world.Uganda has had three imported cases of Ebola. While it has successfully contained the spread of the disease, WHO experts warn of the potential dangers should the virus enter South Sudan, which is a particularly vulnerable, unstable country.This is the 10th Ebola outbreak over the past four decades in the DRC. The executive director of WHO Emergencies, Michael Ryan, finds this current one presents unprecedented challenges. Ryan notes previous outbreaks were generally small, self-contained, and often confined to remote rural areas. This has changed. He says factors such as a conflict, forced migration, unsafe health facilities, and disease amplification are increasing the risks from emerging diseases.”So, the risk of an individual disease emerging may not change,” he said. “But, the impacts of those emergencies are changing. In that sense it is a new normal and we need to be ready…About 80 percent of our high-impact epidemic responses are in fragile, conflict-affected, and vulnerable countries. So, about 30 countries around the world represent around 80 percent of these high-impact epidemics.” Ryan says African countries need international assistance to help them strengthen their fragile health systems. Without this aid, he warns, Congo and other nations will have great difficulty in tackling future outbreaks of Ebola and other emerging diseases.The World Health Organization has deployed more than 700 international experts in the field. The U.N. agency says it is scaling up Ebola preparation measures in the neighboring countries, especially Burundi, Uganda, South Sudan and Rwanda, which are most at risk.It says frontline health workers are being vaccinated against the disease, more Ebola treatment centers are being set up, and more than 3,000 health workers are screening people for the virus at major points of entry.
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Demise of US-Russian Nuclear Treaty Triggers Warnings
In December 1987, U.S. President Ronald Reagan hosted Soviet leader Mikhail Gorbachev at the White House for a ceremony that signaled the changing times.Reagan, a Cold War hardliner who’d once labeled the U.S.S.R. “the Evil Empire,” was all smiles as he and Gorbachev sat down to sign the latest symbol of growing U.S.-Soviet detente — the Intermediate-Range Nuclear Forces, known as the INF Treaty. “It was a momentous occasion,” remembers George Shultz, Reagan’s Secretary of State from 1982-1988 — and a key figure in crafting the INF deal. Schulz, now 98 years old and still active as a fellow at Stanford’s Hoover Institution, credits the INF agreement in large part to a shift in Reagan’s attitude toward nuclear weapons.FILE – President Ronald Reagan gestures to Soviet leader Mikhail Gorbachev during arrival ceremonies at the White House, Dec. 8, 1987.”He thought they were immoral. Where is it written that a man can push a button and kill a million people? That’s God,” Schultz says. Gorbachev also viewed nuclear weapons as “genocidal” says Pavel Palazhchenko, a Soviet diplomat who oversaw the INF negotiations and served as Gorbachev’s longtime English translator. “Gorbachev and Reagan had the goal of arms reduction and they did not allow themselves to be pushed off track,” Palazhchenko says. “[It was] definitely a huge step forward. Two great nations, two nuclear superpowers have finally been able to stop the arms race in at least two categories of nuclear weapons.”With the agreement, the U.S. and U.S.S.R. formally renounced the development and deployment of ground-launched missiles with a range of 500 to 5,500 kilometers. Both sides were still armed with enough nuclear weapons to destroy one another — and the rest of the planet. But George Shultz says the INF’s elimination of short- and medium-range arsenals made the world infinitely safer in one critical regard — time.”Between when they’re fired and when they hit is only about 10 or 11 minutes. So if you’re trying to do something about it, you don’t have much time,” Shultz says. A new nuke arrives The crisis around shortened impact times started in the mid 1970s. The Soviet Union had developed a new class of mobile medium-range nuclear missiles — the so-called SS20s — that were capable of striking targets in Western Europe with little warning. The problem? The U.S. had nothing comparable. At least not initially.
It was not until the early 1980s that the U.S. unveiled the Pershing II, which the U.S. and its NATO allies threatened to deploy in West Germany — as close as possible to the communist bloc borders — in 1984. FILE – The U.S. Army launched a Pershing II missile from the Cape Canaveral Air Force Station in Florida, Jan. 13, 1988.Palazhchenko, Gorbachev’s aide, says the threat proved convincing to Soviet hardliners who — up until that point — saw little point in negotiating.Now they understood time was working against the Soviets, too. “When the Americans completed their program of deployment, then the situation became at least on the face of it quite different,” Palazhchenko says. “Americans have ballistic missiles that have a flight time to Moscow of less than 10 minutes.” ‘Euroshima’While strategic balance had been restored, the short-range weapons also magnified the risks of what some called a potential “Euroshima.” Where once the Cold War threat consisted of missiles lobbed across oceans, the new quick delivery missiles incentivized a first strike and immediate response. There was little time to verify whether an attack was real — or a false alarm. Fear of the superpowers stumbling into nuclear Armageddon gripped the European public. Thousands marched in opposition to the U.S. missiles — a factor that increasingly influenced Washington’s own decision-making. FILE – A life-size mockup of a Pershing II missile dwarfs the demonstrators protesting the scheduled deployment of missiles, in downtown Bonn, Germany, Oct. 22, 1983.”We were negotiating not only with the Soviets but the European public,” recalls Shultz. “Who would want a nuclear missile on their soil? It makes you a target.” Indeed, public opposition in Europe — and a desire to grab the moral high ground — drove President Reagan to embrace a concept called the “Zero Option.”The idea? That when it came to negotiating over intermediate and short-range nukes, Reagan wouldn’t just push for the U.S. and U.S.S.R. to limit their arsenals. They’d demand both sides give up everything.Russian proverbCritical to selling the idea to skeptics were intensive inspections — with Reagan often citing an old Russian proverb: doverai no proverai. Trust but verify.”The INF treaty contains in it the most clear verification provisions — onsite inspections!” Schultz says. “People said we could never get that but we did.” Over the next three years, inspectors observed as both sides destroyed their arsenals — over 800 missiles by the U.S. and nearly double that from the Soviet side.Viktor Litovkin, a military journalist who covered the events for the the Soviet daily Izvestia newspaper, remembers watching as Soviet engineers carried out the treaty’s provisions — destroying missile after missile with tears in the eyes. “I understood why,” says Litovkin. “It was their life’s work and they were experiencing every parent’s worst nightmare.” They were outliving their children. INF 1987-2019 (RIP)Today, the Trump administration argues it is the INF Treaty that has now outlived its use.Last October, President Donald Trump’s National Security Adviser, John Bolton, traveled to Moscow to deliver the news: The U.S. would leave the INF agreement amid long-standing U.S. accusations that Russia was violating the treaty.FILE – U.S. National Security Adviser John Bolton, left, and Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov shake hands prior to their talks in Moscow, Oct. 22, 2018.The INF was also “outmoded,” argued Bolton, so long as other countries — like China — that have immediate-range weapons weren’t part of the agreement.”Under that view, exactly one country was constrained by the INF Treaty — the United States,” Bolton said. Russian President Vladimir Putin soon followed suit — announcing that Russia, too, was leaving the pact. Barring a last-minute reprieve, the INF treaty expires Aug. 2. Both sides have vowed to develop weapons once banned under the INF. A new arms race? All of this has left Europe, once again, the battleground in a potential new arms race — with tomorrow’s weapons promising shorter warning times. “We will miss the INF when it’s gone,” says Ulrich Kuhn, an arms control expert at the Institute of Peace Research and Security in Hamburg, Germany. “We are going back to the Cold War.” Kuhn points to divisions in Europe over how to best respond to any future Russian nuclear deployments — feelings exacerbated by the history of former Warsaw Pact countries that joined the NATO alliance following the collapse of the U.S.S.R. “We might see a situation where Central and Eastern European states say we really need to push back against the Russians and other Europeans saying we don’t want that,” Kuhn says. “That could put NATO in serious trouble.” Meanwhile, nearly 30 years after the initial INF Treaty signing, the diplomats who crafted the agreement worry today’s politicians are too cavalier about the nuclear threat. “When something like the INF goes down the drain almost like nothing, it shows you the degree to which people have forgotten the power of these weapons,” Shultz says. “One day it’ll be too late.” FILE – Pavel Palazhchenko, former chief interpreter for Soviet leader Mikhail Gorbachev, speaks during his interview to the Associated Press in Moscow, Russia, July 23, 2018.”We are, unfortunately, moving toward a situation where we might — maybe within a few years — have no arms control, no mutual verification and no mutual restraint,” warns Gorbachev’s aide, Palazhchenko.”The INF was a success story,” Palazhchenko says. “And there aren’t many success stories in U.S.-Soviet and U.S.-Russia relations.”
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Sudan Protests Continue as Authorities Close Schools
Hundreds of protestors rallied in the central Sudanese city of Obeid Tuesday after security forces shot and killed six demonstrators, including five students, on Monday.”Blood for blood, we don’t want compensation,” marchers chanted, according to news agency Agence France Presse.Protests followed sharp increases in bread prices. Security forces, seeking to quell protests, shot six people dead and wounded dozens more.A curfew and state of emergency have been declared in the city.Across the nation, schools have been ordered to shut down.”Orders have been given to governors of all states to shut kindergartens, primary and high schools from tomorrow [Wednesday] until further notice,” according to Sudan’s Suna news agency.The killings in Obeid were felt all over Sudan. After the shootings, talks that were originally scheduled to resume between opposition leaders and military officials were postponed by protest leaders.”What happened in Obeid is sad. Killing peaceful civilians is an unacceptable crime that needs immediate accountability,” said General Abdel Fattah al-Burhan, chairman of Sudan’s military council.Military rulers allege that the killings were not carried out by Sudanese military forces, but rather by unaffiliated militia forces.Protests against then-President Omar al-Bashir broke out across the country in December. In April, the military deposed Bashir.Violence peaked in June, when security forces killed around 100 people in a crackdown at a protest camp in the country’s capital of Khartoum.A power-sharing agreement has been reached between generals and protest leaders that would eventually implement civilian rule. Under the agreement, a joint ruling committee would be in place for 39 months until elections take place.
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Russian Hospital Says Tests Exclude Navalny Poisoning
The head of a Russian medical center says laboratory tests performed on unspecified biomaterial taken from opposition politician Aleksei Navalny have excluded poisoning as a reason for his recent hospitalization.Aleksei Tokarev, chief physician of the Moscow Sklifosovsky Medical Center, said on July 31 that Navalny’s samples had been delivered to the center’s lab on July 29 and that the results state “no substances that could cause poisoning have been found.”A handout image made available on the official website of Russia’s opposition leader Alexei Navalny (Navalny.com) on July 29, 2019, shows Russia’s jailed opposition leader Alexei Navalny sitting on a hospital bed in Moscow.The Kremlin critic, who is currently serving a 30-day jail sentence for calling a protest last weekend where almost 1,400 people were detained by police, was taken to hospital late on July 28 with severe swelling of the face and a rash, sparking fears he had been the victim of a poisoning attempt, though hospital officials characterized the illness as “a generalized allergic reaction.”Navalny was released from the hospital a day later and transferred back to jail and has said he shares the suspicions of his lawyer and his personal doctor that he may have been poisoned in prison.The physician treating Russian opposition leader Alexei Navalny, Dr. Anastasiya Vasilyeva speaks to journalists at a hospital after Navalny was discharged, in Moscow, Russia, July 29, 2019.Dr. Anastasia Vasilyeva said she has taken Navalny’s hair and clothing samples for independent testing, as well as calling for any video from internal cameras in the jail where the 43-year-old was being held.Navalny’s lawyer, Olga Mikhailova, said on July 29 that she was asking for the court to terminate the case “due to the lack of evidence or to terminate his administrative arrest due to his poor health condition.”The Kremlin critic also posted a picture of himself on social media with a bloated face and one eye shut.The rally on July 27 took place in protest of Moscow election officials who have refused to register several independent and opposition candidates to run in the September 8 vote to the 45-seat Moscow City Duma legislature.The municipal legislature has oversight over Moscow’s $43 billion budget, the largest of any city in the country.The United States, the European Union, Canada, and human-rights groups have denounced what they called the “disproportionate” and “indiscriminate” use of force against the demonstrators.
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Democratic Presidential Hopefuls Prepare for 2nd Debate
Former U.S. Vice President Joe Biden will be center stage as U.S. Democratic presidential candidates take part in a debate for a second consecutive night to make the case they are the party’s best hope to defeat U.S. President Donald Trump when he seeks re-election in 2020.Biden is currently the front-runner for the Democratic presidential nomination in national surveys.FILE – Democratic presidential candidate former vice president Joe Biden, speaks during the Democratic primary debate hosted by NBC News at the Adrienne Arsht Center for the Performing Arts in Miami, June 27, 2019.He had a shaky first debate performance a month ago, faltering as California Senator Kamala Harris challenged him to explain his opposition three decades ago to forced busing of schoolchildren to racially desegregate public schools. Harris said that she, as a black woman and the daughter of an Indian mother and Jamaican father, benefited from such a busing program to attend a better school while growing up in California.FILE – Democratic presidential hopeful U.S. Senator for California Kamala Harris speaks during the second Democratic primary debate of the 2020 presidential campaign at the Adrienne Arsht Center for the Performing Arts in Miami, June 27, 2019.Biden, a fixture on the U.S. political scene for four decades, and Harris, a former state attorney general before winning election to the Senate, will be standing alongside each other on the debate stage. Biden is promising a more robust performance than in the first debate, saying, “I’m not going to be as polite this time.” But questions remain about Biden’s standing, whether at 76 he is too old to lead the country, even though Trump is 73, and whether Democratic voters want a candidate with more progressive views than Biden on health care, crime prevention, immigration at the U.S.-Mexican border and other issues.Tough-on-crime legislationOn the same stage Wednesday, Biden is also likely to face a challenge from Sen. Cory Booker, an African American former mayor of Newark, New Jersey.Booker has assailed Biden’s support 25 years ago for get-tough-on-crime legislation that led to the disproportionate imprisonment of black defendants.FILE – Democratic presidential candidate Sen. Cory Booker, D-N.J., speaks during a Democratic primary debate hosted by NBC News at the Adrienne Arsht Center for the Performing Art, in Miami, June 26, 2019.Biden recently offered a new criminal justice plan, reversing key provisions of the 1994 measure, such as ending the stricter sentencing for crack cocaine versus powder cocaine. Aside from Biden, Harris and Booker, the Wednesday debate stage also includes former Housing and Urban Development Secretary Julian Castro, Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand of New York, Congresswoman Tulsi Gabbard of Hawaii, Washington Gov. Jay Inslee, Colorado Sen. Michael Bennet, entrepreneur Andrew Yang and New York Mayor Bill de Blasio.Five other Democratic candidates did not qualify for the Detroit debates, but the 20 who did had to have collected campaign donations from at least 65,000 individuals and hit a 1% threshold in at least three separate polls.First nightU.S. health care was the primary topic during Tuesday night’s debate, with more moderate challengers attacking Senators Elizabeth Warren and Bernie Sanders, the leading progressives looking to oust Trump.Warren and Sanders have both called for a sweeping end to the country’s current health care system centered on private company insurance plans offered to 150 million workers through their employers. But their views were under attack almost from the start of the debate on a theater stage in Detroit, Michigan, the country’s auto industry hub.FILE – Sen. Bernie Sanders, I-Vt., and Sen. Elizabeth Warren, D-Mass., talk during in the first of two Democratic presidential primary debates hosted by CNN in the Fox Theatre in Detroit, July 30, 2019.”We don’t have to go around and be the party of subtraction and telling half the country who has private health insurance that their health insurance is illegal,” former Maryland Congressman John Delaney said. “It’s also bad policy. It’ll under-fund the industry, many hospitals will close, and it’s bad politics.”Warren, a former Harvard law professor, and Sanders, a self-described democratic socialist, are friends of long-standing and often political allies. They now are both looking for votes from the liberal wing of the Democratic Party. Both defended their position calling for a government-run health care system.But their challengers lobbed multiple attacks at the pair, saying their proposals would, over four years or longer, upend the long-standing U.S. health care system, including government-subsidized insurance for moderate and low-income families under the Affordable Care Act, popularly known as Obamacare.Also taking part Tuesday were Senator Amy Klobuchar of Minnesota, former Congressman Beto O’Rourke of Texas, Ohio Congressman Tim Ryan, former Colorado Governor John Hickenlooper, former Maryland Congressman John Delaney, Montana Governor Steve Bullock, self-help guru Marianne Williamson and South Bend, Indiana Mayor Pete ButtigiegIt gets tougher to appear on the stage at the third debate six weeks from now. To qualify then, candidates must have 130,000 campaign contributors and at least 2 percent support in four polls.Seven of this week’s 20 debaters have already met the third debate criteria: Biden, Harris, Sanders, Warren, Buttigieg, Booker and O’Rourke.
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44 People Charged with Rioting in Hong Kong
Prosecutors in Hong Kong have charged 44 people with rioting following an unauthorized protest Sunday that led to a violent confrontation with police.Those arraigned Wednesday included an airline pilot, a teacher, a nurse and a couple who were carrying an injured teen when they were arrested. The defendants face up to 10 years in prison if convicted. One defendant failed to appear in court, so the magistrate in Eastern District Court issued a warrant for that person’s arrest.Each defendant stands accused of joining the standoff that unfolded after officials refused to allow the protesters to march in Hong Kong Island’s western district. The event was billed as an action against gangs of people who recently beat dozens of people in a suburban town as bystanders begged police for help. The protesters called for an independent investigation into claims that police used excessive force at demonstrations.Wearing masks and holding umbrellas, demonstrators blocked a road in a commercial district. Some protesters held wooden shields and hurled bricks while others made barricades using bamboo poles and road signs.For hours, police pushed back the crowd and fired multiple rounds of tear gas and sponge bullets. Dozens of injuries were reported.At the courthouse, a few protesters acknowledged that they stood in the roadway that night, a few meters from the front line. When tear gas canisters landed at their feet, some people panicked and ran, causing others to trip in the crush to get away. Police caught several of those who fell.Hectar Pun, a lawyer for several defendants, said during a break that the protesters’ actions did not merit such serious charges. “The only allegation is the police asked them to go, and they didn’t go,” he said.One couple, days from their wedding, stayed out that night to treat gassed protesters with saline solution. They were carrying an injured 16-year-old when the three were arrested, said the couple’s lawyer, Taylor Li.Hong Kong has been on edge for two months, starting when many residents demanded that the government kill legislation that would have allowed criminal suspects to be extradited to mainland China. Silence from Chief Executive Carrie Lam, along with police use of rubber bullets and beatings with batons to disperse the crowds, altered the protest demands. As residents called for greater democratic voting rights and an independent investigation into policing methods, more people turned to increasingly dangerous and provocative tactics.The announcement of the charges prompted more clashes with police. Hundreds of protesters surrounded a police station on Tuesday night, leading to physical fights with officers. One commander, who said his helmet had been snatched off, aimed a rifle directly at protesters. On Wednesday, hundreds of protesters, wearing the campaign’s colors of all-black attire, chanted for hours outside the courthouse on Hong Kong island’s eastern side. A photographer captured the image of some protesters attacking a police van.The defendants were released on bail of about $127 USD and required to report to their neighborhood police station. They were told to relinquish their passports. Most were given curfews.Johnson Yeung, 27, a longtime civil rights activist, attended the hearing to support those inside. He, too, was arrested on Sunday, as he crossed a footbridge in another neighborhood, encountered riot police, and was charged with obstruction of an officer.The government’s decision to lodge riot charges, he said, won’t dissuade people who are willing to confront police, he said. Yeung said the government is “just provoking people to do more stuff. …They may use more innovative ways to get around the accusation of illegal assembly.”Some friends of those charged said the prosecutions would not stop the accused from fighting in the streets.“No,” said Milly, a 25-year-old who works in sales. “Never.”
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Reagan Called Africans ‘Monkeys’ in Taped Conversation With Nixon
Then-California governor Ronald Reagan made racist remarks about Africans, calling them “monkeys” in a newly-discovered taped conversation with US president Richard Nixon.The tape of the October 1971 phone call was unearthed by Tim Naftali, former director of the Richard Nixon Presidential Library, and his findings were published online on Wednesday in The Atlantic magazine.The tape is of a call Reagan placed to Nixon after the United Nations voted to recognize the People’s Republic of China.Reagan, who went on to win the presidency in 1980, was an ardent defender of Taiwan and called Nixon to vent his anger at the African nations which defied the United States and voted at the UN to grant recognition to the People’s Republic.In the call, Reagan criticizes the African countries which sided against the United States.”Last night, I tell you, to watch that thing on television as I did,” Reagan said.”Yeah,” Nixon said.Reagan continued: “To see those, those monkeys from those African countries — damn them, they’re still uncomfortable wearing shoes!”Nixon responded with a huge guffaw and went on to gleefully repeat Reagan’s remarks in other taped conversations with his advisers.Naftali, who is now an associate professor at New York University, said the portion of the tape containing Reagan’s remarks was initially withheld to protect his privacy but the complete version was released by the National Archives two weeks ago.President Donald Trump has been accused of repeatedly making racist remarks and was rebuked recently by the Democratic-controlled House of Representatives over “racist comments” he made about four minority Democratic lawmakers.
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Algerian Justice Minister Fired Amid Anti-Graft Probes
Algeria’s interim president fired the justice minister on Wednesday and named the Algiers public prosecutor to replace him, the presidency said, amid a series of corruption investigations involving allies of former President Abdelaziz Bouteflika.Abdelkader Bensalah appointed Belkacem Zeghmati to replace Slimane Brahmi “after consultation with the prime minister,” the presidency said in a statement.The judiciary has been conducting probes and several former senior officials, including ex-prime ministers Ahmed Ouyahia and Abdelmalek Sellal, have been placed in custody over charges including “dissipation of public funds.”The investigations followed mass protests that erupted in the North African country on Feb. 22, with demonstrators calling for the removal of the ruling elite and the prosecution of people involved in corruption cases.Bouteflika resigned under pressure on April 2, but the demonstrations continued as protesters sought the departure of the remaining symbols of the elite that has governed the country since independence from France in 1962.The army is now the main player in Algeria’s politics, and its chief of staff, Lieutenant General Ahmed Gaed Salah has promised to help the judiciary and protect it from pressure.The departing justice minister, Brahmi, had been in the job since March 31, when Bouteflika named a new government shortly before his resignation.Protesters are now demanding the departure of Bensalah, a former head of the upper house of parliament, and Prime Minister Noureddine Bedoui, regarding them as part of the old guard.Authorities have postponed a presidential election previously planned for July 4, citing a lack of candidates and have not set a new date for the vote. Bensalah last week named a panel to start talks with the opposition over the election.
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China: Differences to Be ‘Properly’ Resolved at SE Asia Meet
Southeast Asian foreign ministers opened their annual meeting Wednesday with a call from host Thailand for deeper integration amid rising global challenges and a pledge from China that differences will be “properly” resolved amid growing tensions in the South China Sea.The meeting is taking place in the shadows of rising security tensions on the Korean Peninsula, China’s aggressive territorial claims in the South China Sea and the U.S.-China trade war.The Association of Southeast Asian Nations, a 10-country bloc seeking to boost its own voice as a global player, is also playing host to a series of foreign ministers from key strategic and dialogue partners, including U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo, Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi and Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov.Thai Foreign Minister Don Pramudwinai told ASEAN colleagues that they must be “more agile” amid increasing nationalism globally.“We must recognize that looking inward and being myopic is not our option and never will be,” Don said in his opening speech. “Amid a great turmoil, we must be more outward and forward looking than ever before.”He warned that the road ahead “could be treacherous” but said greater cooperation among ASEAN members and outside partners could help sustain long-term growth.“It is a difficult balancing act, but overcoming fear and distrust among ourselves, and between us and other powers, will make ASEAN an integral part of sustainable global peace and prosperity that could lift all boats,” Don said. The struggle for influence between the U.S. and China has put ASEAN in a tight spot. At their summit in June, ASEAN leaders adopted an Indo-Pacific engagement framework that sought to find a middle ground and keep on the good side of both Washington and Beijing.Beijing is attempting to project its influence globally through its Belt and Road Initiative, an ambitious development program of major infrastructure projects, while Washington is using the Free and Open Indo-Pacific strategy, which Beijing says is directed against it.South China Sea issueASEAN’s concerns about China are sharpest in the South China Sea, where Beijing is using a projection of force to maintain a territorial claim over a huge area, with parts overlapping claims by ASEAN members Vietnam, the Philippines, Malaysia and Brunei.Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi, at a meeting with his ASEAN counterparts on Wednesday, said Beijing and ASEAN nations are focused on “handling our differences properly” and have pledged to work together to uphold peace and security in the region.Two-way trade between ASEAN members and China topped $580 billion last year, while Chinese investment in Southeast Asian nations hit nearly $10 billion, making the region its second-largest investment destination for the first time, Wang said, adding that China has Belt and Road projects with every ASEAN member.Wang said ASEAN and China had in the past year explored a “rules-based approach” to the governance of the South China Sea and aims to conclude talks on a Code of Conduct within three years. ASEAN and China have completed the first round of negotiations on the code of conduct, but experts said the next two rounds of talks are likely to be contentious because there is no sign that China will agree to anything that would undermine its maritime claims.Tensions flared anew earlier this month after Vietnam accused China of violating its sovereignty by interfering with offshore oil and gas activities in disputed waters.Defusing tensions on the Korean Peninsula was expected to be a big concern at the 27-member regional security forum ASEAN is also hosting this week. South Korea said North Korea fired two short-range ballistic missiles off its east coast early Wednesday in its second weapons test in less than a week, seemingly raising the stakes for the security discussions.U.S. Secretary of State Pompeo will be Washington’s point man at the ASEAN meetings. But he will have no significant North Korean interlocutor to deal with on the issue of denuclearization. Thai officials say that North Korean Foreign Minister Ri Yong Ho is not coming, and that the North will instead be represented by its ambassador to Thailand.
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Second Ebola Death in DRC City of Goma
Lisa Schlein contributed to this report from Geneva.Officials in the Democratic Republic of Congo say the person who was confirmed as the second case of Ebola in the city of Goma has died.The announcement was made Wednesday, a day after the latest case was first revealed.The case involved a man who traveled to Goma from a northeastern rural community in Ituri province. He was diagnosed a few days after arrival and was being treated at the Goma Ebola Treatment Center.Goma is home to more than a million people and lies directly on Congo’s border with Rwanda, where tens of thousands cross on foot daily.Earlier this month, a pastor tested positive and later died after arriving in Goma by bus, sparking fears the disease could spread quickly through the densely populated city.After that incident, the World Health Organization declared the Ebola epidemic in DR Congo’s conflict-ridden North Kivu and Ituri provinces a Public Health Emergency of International Concern. More than 2,500 cases of Ebola have been reported since the outbreak began in August 2018. Of them nearly 1,670 people have died. The United Nations’ Children’s Fund, or UNICEF, reports an unprecedented number of children have been infected in this outbreak. Children account for more than 700 of the 2,671 reported cases of Ebola. UNICEF health specialist Jerome Pfaffman said more than half of the youngsters infected are below the age of five. This is the 10th outbreak of the disease over the last four decades in the DRC. It is the second largest outbreak after the 2014 historic epidemic in West Africa that killed more than 11,300 people.(VOA’s Lisa Schlein contributed to this report.)
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US, China Agree to Hold Next Round of Trade Talks in September
The latest round of trade talks between U.S. and Chinese negotiators ended in Shanghai Wednesday with an agreement to meet again in September in the U.S.The White House called the talks “constructive” and said “forced technology transfer, intellectual property rights, services, non-tariff barriers, and agriculture” were among the topics negotiators discussed.”The Chinese side confirmed their commitment to increase purchases of United States agricultural exports,” the White House said. The statement also said the U.S. expects “negotiations on an enforceable trade deal to continue in Washington, D.C. in early September.”China’s official Xinhua news agency reported the talks were “frank, highly efficient and constructive” and that negotiators discussed “the issue of China increasing its purchases of U.S. agricultural products.”U.S. and Chinese representatives held talks at a working dinner on Tuesday and less than a half day of negotiations on Wednesday before the U.S. delegation headed straight to the airport.Shortly after U.S. negotiators arrived in Shanghai on Tuesday, U.S. President Donald Trump warned China against negotiating a deal after the 2020 U.S. presidential election — declaring a delayed agreement would be less attractive than a deal reached in the near term.”The problem with them waiting … is that if & when I win, the deal that they get will be much tougher than what we are negotiating now … or no deal at all,” Trump said in a post on Twitter….to ripoff the USA, even bigger and better than ever before. The problem with them waiting, however, is that if & when I win, the deal that they get will be much tougher than what we are negotiating now…or no deal at all. We have all the cards, our past leaders never got it!— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) July 30, 2019Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Hua Chunying responded to Trump’s tweet on Wednesday, telling reporters at a daily news briefing in Beijing “it doesn’t make any sense for the U.S. to exercise its campiagn of maximum pressure at this time.”Hua also said “It’s pointless to tell others to take medication when you’re the one who sick.”U.S. and Chinese officials gathered in Shanghai in an attempt to revive talks, with both sides trying to temper expectations for a breakthrough.The world’s two largest economies are engaged in an intense trade war that has dragged on for more than a year, having imposed punitive tariffs on each other totaling more than $360 billion in two-way trade.The Shanghai negotiations came after Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping agreed at June’s G-20 summit to resurrect efforts to end the costly trade war over China’s technology ambitions and trade surplus.China is resisting U.S. demands to abolish government-led plans for industrial leaders to enhance robotics, artificial intelligence and other technologies.The U.S. has complained China’s plans depend on the acquisition of foreign technology through theft or coercion.Days prior to the Shanghai meeting, Trump threatened to withdraw recognition of China’s developing nation’s status at the World Trade Organization. China responded by saying the threat is indicative of the “arrogance and selfishness” of the U.S.The U.S. delegation in Shanghai was represented by Treasury Secretary Steve Mnuchin and Trade Representative Robert Lighthizer. They met with a Chinese delegation led by Vice Premier Liu He, who serves as the country’s economic czar.
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Haiti Anti-Corruption Protesters Demand US Stop Supporting President Moise
Haiti’s anti-corruption protesters have a message for U.S. President Donald Trump: change your strategy. “Ambassador M. Sison supporting this corrupt government of Haiti is racist” were the words printed on posters held by protesters in front of the U.S. Embassy in Port-au-Prince. The posters were also adorned with a collage of photos of the American president.“We are here to tell Donald Trump we aren’t going to accept this from him [his administration],” a female protester told VOA Creole. “Come and get your thief [President Moise]. Gang leader Arnel Joseph has been arrested but until we see Jovenel Moise arrested you can’t tell us you’ve caught the [real] thieves.”Moise has denied all allegations of wrongdoing and says he is not corrupt.Since July 25, hundreds of protesters have gathered in front of the massive secure complex daily to express their disappointment and anger at the continuing U.S. support for President Moise. Protesters deem their elected leader too corrupt to govern effectively. They want him to step down and be judged for his alleged crimes. Protester holds sign that says « Ambassador M. Sison supporting the corrupt government of Haiti is racist ». (VOA/S. Lemaire)“Stop supporting corrupt leaders. If you are a true friend of Haiti you have to prove it,” a protester standing in front of the embassy said.In an interview with VOA Tuesday, U.S. Chargé d’Affaires Robin Diallo responded to the criticism.
Robin Diallo US Embassy Charge d’Affaires in Haiti video player.
FILE – Haiti’s President Jovenel Moise delivers a speech in Port-au-Prince, July 13, 2019.President Moise and two of his companies have been implicated in the PetroCaribe dossier for the alleged misuse of billions of dollars in revenue generated from an oil alliance Haiti signed with Venezuela. The money had been earmarked for infrastructure projects, education and social programs.In response to calls for his resignation, Moise has made repeated calls or a national, inclusive dialogue. Last week, he named a new prime minister, Fritz-William Michel, a 38 year old who is a virtual unknown. Michel’s proposed cabinet sparked criticism for being too “young” and won praise for including nine women.“We are not a Republic of Dinosaurs,” opposition lawmaker Abel Descolines said. “A person’s age has no bearing on his / her performance.” The deputy cited countries such as France, Austria and North Korea with leaders who took power in their 30s.The prime minister nominee and his Cabinet have not yet been approved by the parliament because the opposition is insisting the PetroCaribe dossier be discussed first.Back in front of the U.S. Embassy, a protester blew into a big conch shell as another man nearby flew a huge red, white and blue Russian flag.A protester holds a Russian flag saying Haiti is unfriending the US. (VOA/S. Lemaire)“Today we are breaking up with the United States,” the young man holding the Russian flag told VOA. “We are unfriending the U.S. We’ve been friends for over 200 years but what they give us is hand-me-downs – from education to culture to religion. They marginalize us.”Asked why he was holding a Russian flag, he responded: “We the people have a right to sit down with people who are working for our well being.”Chargé d’Affaires Diallo told VOA those who say the United States does not do enough for Haiti are uninformed. She cited hundreds of millions of dollars spent yearly by the U.S. on health care, entrepreneurship, education and vocational training which has improved the lives of millions of Haitians.
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With Latest Launches, North Korea Perfecting ‘Scary Impressive’ Missile
With its latest test Wednesday, North Korea has now launched seven ballistic missiles over the past three months, after having refrained from such launches for a year and a half.By firing missiles into the ocean, North Korea is expressing its anger at upcoming U.S.-South Korea joint military exercises and presumably trying to increase its leverage over the two allies amid stalled nuclear talks.But the missile tests have more than symbolic importance. North Korea appears to be perfecting a new short-range missile that represents a unique threat to U.S. interests in the region.Though the latest launch is still being analyzed, South Korean officials say the North appears to have tested some version of the same weapon each time: a modified version of a Russian-developed Iskander missile. The North’s missile, dubbed KN-23 by U.S. and South Korean intelligence officials, is easy to hide, can be quickly deployed, and is difficult for U.S. and South Korean missile defenses to intercept, according to analysts. “It is not appropriate to shrug off these tests as short range.” says Leif-Eric Easley, a professor at Ewha Womans University in Seoul. “These missiles represent technological developments that threaten U.S. allies and forces in Asia.”Though he has not commented on the latest launch, U.S. President Donald Trump has downplayed the importance of the prior tests, saying the missiles are not long-range and cannot reach the United States. Trump’s laid-back response, which has been echoed by South Korea’s government, is an apparent attempt to preserve the possibility of talks with North Korea that have been stalled for months. But by refusing to heavily criticize the launches, Washington and Seoul risk encouraging more tests of North Korean missiles that represent a major threat to South Korea, which hosts nearly 30,000 U.S. troops.“Trump unfortunately dismisses short-range ballistic missiles, so it enables Pyongyang to continue to develop its weapons,” says Duyeon Kim, an adjunct senior fellow at the Center for a New American Security (CNAS). President Donald Trump, left, meets with North Korean leader Kim Jong Un at the North Korean side of the border at the village of Panmunjom in Demilitarized Zone, Sunday, June 30, 2019.A unique threatNorth Korea has long possessed a multitude of short-range weapons capable of striking South Korea. But what makes the KN-23 different is that it may be able to evade U.S. and South Korean missile defense systems. “It can disarm our missile defense capacity if the missiles fly lower than 40 kilometers, which is below the coverage of the Thaad missile defense system,” says Kim Dong-yub, a North Korea specialist at Seoul’s Institute for Far Eastern Studies. “And the speed will be faster than Mach 7, so the Patriot (missile defense system) will also be of no use.”According to pictures released by North Korean state media, the KN-23 appears to have jet vanes, which allows the missile to be maneuvered in-flight, much like a cruise missile. “It can be maneuvered during its ballistic trajectory making it difficult to predict where the missile will land and intercept it before it does, and difficult to detect exactly where the missile came from,” says CNAS’ Duyeon Kim. Another danger, according to Kim, is the KN-23’s portability, since it is fired via truck launchers. “Being road mobile, North Korea can increase survivability of its missiles by continuously moving them, hiding them in tunnels, warehouses, and even highway underpasses. And because the missiles are solid-fueled, they can be kept ready for longer periods of time and can be moved around pre-fueled,” Kim says.“And the payload could be nuclear or conventional,” she adds. ‘Full spectrum’ of capabilitiesThe missiles that North Korea launched Wednesday traveled about 250 kilometers, reaching an altitude of 30 kilometers, the South Korea defense ministry says. People watch a TV showing a file image of North Korean leader Kim Jong Un during a news program at the Seoul Railway Station in Seoul, South Korea, July 25, 2019.The launch distances of the missiles North Korea has tested since May have ranged from 270 kilometers to 600 kilometers, according to estimates by South Korea’s military. Their altitude has ranged from 30-60 kilometers. If confirmed as the KN-23, the latest launches show that North Korea is “really showing off the full spectrum” of the weapons’ capabilities, says Vipin Narang, a nuclear and geopolitical expert at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. “(A) scary impressive missile,” Narang said in a tweet. North Korea has now conducted seven successful tests over the course of less than three months. The tests have demonstrated “a variety of different ranges and trajectories, simulating different payloads,” tweeted Ankit Panda, a senior fellow at the U.S.-based Federation of American Scientists.Bigger provocations coming?North Korea has given a variety of justifications for its ballistic missile tests. Its first launch in early May was part of a “regular and self-defensive” exercise that did not mean to target anyone or escalate regional tensions, North Korea’s foreign ministry insisted at the time. But North Korean leader Kim Jong Un said last week’s test of the same weapon was aimed at sending a message to “warmongers” in South Korea.Pyongyang is angry that Seoul and Washington are preparing to conduct joint military exercises. North Korea is also upset at the South’s recent acquisition of U.S.-made F-35 jet fighters.The launches appear to be part of North Korea’s strategy to slowly increase pressure on Washington and Seoul to gain leverage for future talks, even while avoiding steps that would prompt Trump to walk away.Trump, who now appears to have established a precedent for not complaining about North Korea’s short-range missile tests, is in an awkward position. “Trump’s reactions to the missile tests have to walk that fine line between reacting too strongly and killing talks and not reacting at all which could encourage Kim to keep testing in the future,” says Eric Gomez, a policy analyst focusing on missile defense systems at Washington’s Cato Institute. “Trump has leaned more toward a light reaction to keep diplomacy alive,” he says. “This isn’t a bad approach, but he could also stand to be a bit tougher on North Korea rhetorically in order to try and get them to stop testing missiles,” Gomez says.”For example, Trump or another senior member of the administration could issue a strongly worded message criticizing the test while offering talks on security assurances that could include military drills as a topic. Sending the message that there is a way for Kim to get what he wants but he can only do so via diplomacy and not missile tests,” he adds.North Korea has warned that bigger provocations may be coming. In July, an unnamed North Korean foreign ministry spokesperson warned that Pyongyang may restart intercontinental ballistic missile or nuclear tests if Washington and Seoul go ahead with their joint military drills.
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North Korea Conducts 2nd Ballistic Missile Test in a Week
North Korea fired two short-range ballistic missiles early Wednesday, according to South Korea’s military, Pyongyang’s second launch in less than a week amid stalled nuclear talks. The missiles, launched from near the eastern port city of Wonsan, flew for about 250 kilometers and reached an altitude of 30 kilometers, South Korea’s Joint Chiefs of Staff said. The launch comes six days after North Korea’s previous ballistic missile test, which it said was a response to South Korea’s decision to purchase U.S. weapons and hold military drills with the United States.A South Korean defense ministry official said the missiles launched Wednesday appear to be similar to those launched last week, since they both flew at a relatively low altitude, according to the Yonhap news agency.South Korea’s National Security Council, which held an emergency meeting Wednesday, voiced “strong concerns” over the launch, which it said could have a “negative impact on efforts to establish peace on the Korean Peninsula.” Pyongyang last week tested what appears to be its own version of a Russian-made Iskander short-range ballistic missile. The North also tested that missile in May. The launches are consistent with North Korea’s recent pattern of escalating pressure on Washington and Seoul, even while being careful not to completely upset nuclear talks. North Korea has said it could restart intercontinental ballistic missile and nuclear tests if Seoul and Washington go ahead with military exercises planned for later this year. Pyongyang has also said it may not resume working-level nuclear talks with the United States.U.S. President Donald Trump has not responded to the latest launch, but shrugged off North Korea’s launches last week as short-range missiles that “many other countries test.” “I have a good relationship with him. I like him. He likes me. We’ll see what happens,” Trump said earlier Wednesday. A U.S. official told VOA “we are aware of reports of a missile launch from North Korea…and we will continue to monitor the situation.”North Korea is banned from any ballistic missile activity under United Nations Security Council resolutions. But U.S. and South Korea have downplayed the launches, in an apparent attempt to preserve talks with the North. Many analysts have said that approach virtually ensures that North Korea will test more missiles, which will allow Pyongyang to further perfect its short-range missile technology.”It is not appropriate to shrug off these tests as ‘short range.’ These missiles represent technological developments that threaten U.S. allies and forces in Asia,” says Leif-Eric Easley, a professor at Ewha Womans University in Seoul. Trump says he and North Korean leader Kim Jong Un agreed to restart working-level talks during their meeting in late June at the demilitarized zone separating the two Koreas. White House officials described the DMZ meeting as a possible breakthrough in the talks, which broke down in April after Trump and Kim failed to reach a deal at their second summit in Hanoi, Vietnam.North Korea is seeking sanctions relief and security guarantees from the United States in exchange for partial steps to dismantle its nuclear program. The Trump administration has been reluctant to ease sanctions until North Korea commits to abandon its entire nuclear weapons program. But more recently, U.S. officials have signaled more flexibility.U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo said Tuesday he hopes the two sides can find “creative solutions” for unlocking the talks.
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N. Korea, China on Agenda as Pompeo Heads To Thailand, Australia, Micronesia
U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo is headed to Southeast Asia, Australia and Micronesia, and is not ruling out working-level talks with North Korean officials on the sidelines of ASEAN regional meetings in Thailand this week. Tensions with China are also likely to be a major theme. VOA’s Diplomatic Correspondent Cindy Saine has more from the State Department.
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Tanzania Plans to Install Cable Cars on Mount Kilimanjaro
Tanzania is planning to build a car cable service on Mount Kilimanjaro, Africa’s tallest peak and a world heritage site. The country wants to boost tourist numbers but a quarter million porters and mountain guides worry the quick ride up the mountain is a threat to their livelihoods. Charles Kombe reports from Kilimanjaro.
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Ethiopia Plants Trees to Curb Climate Change Effects
Ethiopian Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed and his guest, director of the World Food Program David Beasley, planted tree seedlings on Tuesday in a salute to Ethiopia’s Green Legacy Initiative, which seeks to combat climate change through mass tree planting. Volunteers in the Horn of Africa state planted 350 million trees in the past week in an effort to curb climate change effects.
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Body of 1930s Gangster John Dillinger to Be Exhumed
The body of notorious 1930s gangster John Dillinger is expected to be exhumed from an Indianapolis cemetery in September more than 85 years after he was killed by FBI agents outside a Chicago theater.The Indiana State Department of Health approved a permit July 3 sought by Dillinger’s nephew, Michael C. Thompson, to have the body exhumed from Crown Hill Cemetery and reinterred there.The permit doesn’t give a reason for the request, and Thompson couldn’t immediately be reached for comment. The Indianapolis-born Dillinger was one of America’s most notorious criminals. He and his gang pulled off a bloody string of bank robberies across the Midwest in the 1930s. The FBI says that Dillinger’s gang killed 10 people, but Dillinger was never convicted of murder.Dillinger was awaiting trial in the slaying of an East Chicago police officer when he escaped from jail in Crown Point, Indiana, in March 1934 with a gun carved out of wood. While on the run, he underwent plastic surgery to alter his face and was said to have tried to remove his fingerprints with acid.Dillinger, who was portrayed by Johnny Depp in the 2009 movie “Public Enemies,” was fatally shot in July 1934 by FBI agents outside the Biograph theater in Chicago after he was betrayed by a woman who became known in the papers as the “Lady in Red.”Indiana health department spokeswoman Jeni O’Malley said that based on the permit, the agency expects Dillinger’s body will be exhumed and reinterred on Sept. 16 — the date listed on the document.“In terms of the way the permit reads that’s what it signals,” she said Tuesday.Crown Hill Cemetery spokeswoman Crystal King said the cemetery has no information about the plans to exhume Dillinger, whose grave is an attraction at the hilltop graveyard on Indianapolis’ near north side.Messages seeking comment were left Tuesday for Jeffery Scalf, whose grandmother was Dillinger’s half-sister, and for Savanah Light, the funeral director whose name is listed on the permit. .
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Rights Advocates Question Myanmar’s Conditions to Repatriate Rohingya Refugees
VOA Asia’s Ira Mellman contributed to this report.Myanmar is beginning to yield to international pressure to repatriate the more than 700,000 Rohingya refugees living in Bangladesh, but rights advocates worry its commitment is only surface level.
The country stepped up its efforts over the weekend, when Myanmar permanent foreign secretary U Myint Thu led a 10-member delegation to talks with refugee representatives last weekend at Kutupalong — the largest refugee camp in the world.
Rohingya representatives put citizenship and guaranteed safety up as requirements for the ethnic group’s return, but government representatives only offered a path to naturalized citizenship, beginning with an application for a national verification card.
“[Myanmar] is essentially playing games with the discussions about citizenship,” Phil Robertson, deputy director of Human Rights Watch’s Asia division, told VOA Asia.
Some Rohingya worried that the cards, which the government also proposed in 2018, could be used to further persecute against group members.
Refugees rejected a previous repatriation offer made in October.International pressure
Myanmar has been hit with increasing international pressure to repatriate the Rohingya, especially from Bangladesh.
Bangladesh Foreign Minister Abul Kalam Abdul Momen told VOA Bangla earlier in July that the country expected to hold Rohingya refugees temporarily, as in the past.
“We believed this time they would take them back, because they assured us [they would],” Momen said. “But, they have not created a conducive environment in Myanmar, so that these people feel secure if they go back.”
The two countries signed a repatriation deal in November 2017, but no Rohingya have voluntarily returned. Bangladeshi authorities even gave Myanmar a list on Monday, with the names of 25,000 refugees from 6,000 families for potential repatriation.
Last weekend’s meetings were part of a push by Myanmar to make conditions livable for returning refugees. But after Myanmar’s refusal to grant the Rohingya citizenship and recognize them as an indigenous group, human rights advocates are skeptical.
“We haven’t seen that political commitment, to be honest,” Robertson said. “We have our doubts.”
He pointed at the 120,000 Rohingya displaced in 2012, still living in camps, as evidence of the government’s true intentions.
“These are people who are essentially locked down in camps or unable to move. They’re unable to pursue livelihoods or have access to basic services like health and education. And they haven’t gotten citizenship,” he added.
Rohingya refugees in Bangladesh keep in touch with those in Myanmar through WhatsApp and other messaging services, so they know about current conditions, Robertson said. Their awareness of treatment back home could further fuel their distrust of the Myanmar government, he added.
Recent media reports also have shown Myanmar has continued to destroy the remaining Rohingya settlements, further casting doubt on the country’s public statements. Military facilities may now occupy the villages’ locations, a report by the Australian Strategic Policy Institute found.Rohingya want guaranteed safety
Some Rohingya representatives at Sunday’s talks wanted U.N. peacekeepers to ensure the group’s safety, Robertson said, but it’s unlikely that Myanmar would let U.N. forces in.
Still, Robertson echoed a need for international monitoring, saying without it, Rohingya lives could be at risk.
“The Rohingya are very acutely aware that if they go back without a security guarantee, they’re basically placing their fates back in the hands of the military and the police who two years ago were raping and killing them,” he said.
The Myanmar government has restricted the group’s rights for decades, but the military most recently cracked down in 2017. In reaction to attacks by some Rohingya, the military carried out what it called a cleansing campaign, which included mass killings, rapes and arsons. The U.N. and other human rights advocates have called their actions genocide.
The Rohingya were excluded from a 1982 citizenship law that bases full legal status through membership in a government-recognized indigenous group. The Myanmar government considers the Rohingya illegal immigrants from Bangladesh, effectively rendering the ethnic group stateless.
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Congo Confirms 2nd Ebola Case in Border City of Goma
VOA’s Lisa Schlein contributed to this report.Officials in the Democratic Republic of Congo have confirmed a second case of the deadly Ebola virus in the city of Goma. Goma is home to more than a million people and lies directly on Congo’s border with Rwanda, where tens of thousands cross on foot daily.”I have just been informed of a case of Ebola in Goma,” Dr. Aruna Abedi, coordinator of the Ebola response in North Kivu province, told AFP.The case involves a man who traveled to Goma from a northeastern rural community in Ituri province. He was diagnosed a few days after arrival and is being treated at the Goma Ebola Treatment Center.Earlier this month, a pastor tested positive and later died after arriving in Goma by bus, sparking fears the disease could spread quickly through the densely populated city.After that incident, the World Health Organization declared the Ebola epidemic in DRC’s conflict-ridden North Kivu and Ituri provinces a Public Health Emergency of International Concern. More than 2,500 cases of Ebola have been reported since the outbreak began in August 2018; nearly 1,670 people have died. The United Nations’ Children’s Fund, or UNICEF, reports an unprecedented number of children have been infected in this outbreak. Children account for more than 700 of the 2,671 reported cases of Ebola. UNICEF health specialist Jerome Pfaffman said more than half of the youngsters infected are below the age of five. This is the 10th outbreak of the disease over the last four decades in the DRC. It is the second-largest outbreak after the 2014 historic epidemic in West Africa that killed more than 11,300 people.
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