Syphilis cases have soared in Europe over the last decade and become, for the first time since the early 2000s, more common in some countries than new cases of HIV, health experts said Friday.Reported cases of the sexually transmitted disease are up by 70% since 2010, a report from the European Center for Disease Prevention and Control (ECDC) showed, with the rise driven by more unprotected sex and riskier sexual behavior among gay men.“The increases in syphilis infections that we see across Europe … are a result of several factors, such as people having sex without condoms and multiple sexual partners, combined with a reduced fear of acquiring HIV,” said Andrew Amato-Gauci, an ECDC expert on sexually transmitted infections.FILE – A billboard above a gas station, April 1, 2016, promotes testing for sexually transmitted diseases. The number of cases of STDs – chlamydia, gonorrhea and syphilis – in California reached a record high in 2017.The European report comes after the World Health Organization said last month that around a million people each day worldwide catch a sexually transmitted infection.Left untreated, syphilis can have severe complications in men and women, including causing stillbirths and newborn deaths and increasing the risk of HIV. Syphilis was one of the leading causes of baby loss globally in 2016.The Stockholm-based ECDC, which monitors health and disease in Europe, said that overall, more than 260,000 syphilis cases were reported from 30 countries from 2007 to 2017.In 2017, syphilis rates reached an all-time high with more than 33,000 reported cases, the ECDC said. This meant that for the first time since the early 2000s, the region reported more cases of syphilis than new cases of the human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) that causes AIDS.But the problem varied significantly by country, with rates more than doubling in five countries — Britain, Germany, Ireland, Iceland and Malta — but dropping by 50% or more in Estonia and Romania.Close to two-thirds of the cases reported between 2007 and 2017 where sexual orientation was known were in men who have sex with men, the ECDC report said, while heterosexual men contributed 23% of cases and women 15%.The proportion of cases diagnosed among men who have sex with men ranged from less than 20% in Latvia, Lithuania and Romania to more than 80% in France, Germany, Ireland, the Netherlands, Sweden and Britain.Amato-Gauci said complacency among men who have gay sex and seem unconcerned about HIV risks appeared to be fuelling the problem. “To reverse this trend, we need to encourage people to use condoms consistently with new and casual partners,” he said.
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Month: July 2019
Trump Blasts Bitcoin, Facebook’s Libra, Demands they Face Banking Regulations
U.S. President Donald Trump on Thursday criticized Bitcoin, Facebook’s proposed Libradigital coin and other cryptocurrencies and demanded that companies seek a banking charter and make themselves subject to U.S. and global regulations if they wanted to “become a bank.””I am not a fan of Bitcoin and other Cryptocurrencies, which are not money, and whose value is highly volatile and based on thin air,” Trump wrote on Twitter.”If Facebook and other companies want to become a bank, they must seek a new Banking Charter and become subject to all Banking Regulations, just like other Banks, both National and International,” he added.Trump’s comments come one day after Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell told lawmakers that Facebook’s plan to build a digital currency called Libra cannot move forward unless it addresses concerns over privacy, money laundering, consumer protection and financial stability.Powell said the Fed has established a working group to follow the project and is coordinating with other government’s central banks. The U.S. Financial Stability Oversight Council, a panel of regulators that identifies risks to the financial system, is also expected to make a review.Hours earlier on Thursday, Trump criticized large technology companies at an event at the White House, who he said treated conservative voices unfairly.The Internet Association, a trade group representing major tech firms like Facebook, Twitter and Google, said, “Internet companies are not biased against any political ideology, and conservative voices in particular have used social media to great effect.”
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UN Launches Probe on Philippines Drug War Deaths
The United Nations Human Rights Council has voted to launch an investigation into the alleged killings of tens of thousands of Filipinos during the government’s war on drugs.The measure, put forward by Iceland, was approved 18-14 Thursday. It cites extrajudicial killings, arbitrary arrests and disappearances at the hands of police since President Rodrigo Duterte launched the anti-narcotics campaign in 2016.Philippines ambassador in Geneva, Evan Garcia, immediately rebuked the U.N. move saying it “does not represent a triumph of human rights, but a travesty of them.”Filipino activists have claimed that about 27,000 people have been killed as police terrorize poor communities, using cursory drug “watch lists” to identify users or dealers. The government counters that about 6,600 people have been killed by police in shootouts with drug dealers.The resolution was welcomed by human rights groups. “This vote provides hope for thousands of bereaved families in the Philippines,” Amnesty International said in a statement. “It’s a crucial step towards justice and accountability.”
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Seoul-Tokyo Trade Tension Could Complicate US Efforts on North Korea Denuclearization
Lee Jo-eun of VOA’s Korean Service contributed to this report.WASHINGTON — Growing trade tensions between Seoul and Tokyo could undermine regional stability and complicate U.S. efforts to make progress on denuclearization with North Korea, said experts.The tension between the two countries, with origins in Japan’s pre-World War II occupation of Korea, has become an “unprecedented emergency,” said South Korean President Moon Jae-in in a Wednesday meeting with executives of South Korea’s top 30 conglomerates. “We can’t rule out the possibility that the situation would be prolonged, despite our diplomatic efforts to resolve the issue.”The meeting took place in response to Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe imposing tight export controls on three Japanese-made high-tech materials to South Korea. The materials restricted July 4 are used in the production of memory chips, TVs and smartphones.Working level talks between South Korea and Japan are scheduled to begin Friday in Tokyo, according to South Korea’s trade ministry. The talks come after Moon this week urged Japan to roll back the export restriction, saying he wants to resolve the dispute diplomatically. South Korean students shout slogans as they march to denounce Japanese government’s decision near the Japanese embassy in Seoul, South Korea, July 10, 2019.‘White list’The restriction comes in the form of a Evans Revere, former U.S. deputy ambassador for East Asian Affairs, speaks to the National Committee on American Foreign Policy and a North Korean delegation led by Vice Foreign Minister Ri Yong Ho, at The Korea Society in New York, March 10, 2012.DenuclearizationThe tensions also touch on denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula.Evans Revere, acting assistant secretary of state for East Asian and Pacific Affairs during the George W. Bush administration, said, “One rarely mentioned reason for the current level of Japan-Korea tensions is that Tokyo does not believe that South Korea is as dedicated to the cause of denuclearization as Japan is, and that (South Korea) may be prepared to tolerate a nuclear-armed North Korea, while Japan will never accept this.” Japan is the only country that has experienced a nuclear attack. Days before the end of World War II, the U.S. dropped nuclear bombs on Hiroshima and Nagasaki.”It is widely believed among Japanese experts and officials that Seoul prioritizes reconciliation over denuclearization, a view that is also shared by many American experts,” Revere added.With Japan, the U.S. has a missile defense treaty and joint missile defense system to deter North Korea’s nuclear threats in the region. The U.S. is also obligated to defend Seoul under a security treaty it entered with South Korea at the end of the Korean War. On Tuesday, North Korea denounced Japan’s plan to set up the U.S.-developed Aegis Ashore missile defense system in the country. Pyongyang called the defense system a “malignant cancer” and “overseas aggression” that can target not only the Korean Peninsula but also China and Russia.Tokyo said the purpose of the Aegis Ashore deployment is to defend against possible North Korean ballistic missiles aimed at Japan. The South Korean defense ministry said Thursday that it is against the U.N. Command’s push to include Japan as an official member of the U.N. Command in South Korea. The U.N. Command in Korea on Thursday denied the report.The U.S. leads the 16 countries in the U.N. Command in South Korea that can send troops and war supplies and support if war breaks on the Korean Peninsula. The multilateral military force was established during the Korean War to fight against North Korea and has been stationed in South Korea since then. U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo speaks during a news conference at the U.S. Embassy in Kabul, Afghanistan, June 25, 2019.Essential alliesSneider said daily military cooperation between the two U.S. allies is essential to guard against North Korean threats.”A lot of day-to-day (activities) that go on between South Korean military and Japanese military … are all being undermined by this from a security point of view,” Sneider said. U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo stressed “the importance of U.S.-Japan-(South Korea) trilateral cooperation” in denuclearizing North Korea when he spoke with South Korean Foreign Minister Kang Kyung-wha by phone Wednesday, according to State Department spokesperson Morgan Ortagus.Revere said, “The major concern for many Americans about the current Japan-South Korea dispute is that it is undermining trilateral solidarity in the effort to deal with North Korea.”He continued, “The evident erosion of Seoul-Tokyo cooperation, dialogue, and summitry has damaged the close policy synchronization that once characterized trilateral cooperation against North Korea. The ultimate beneficiary of this is North Korea.”Democratic Sen. Chris Coons of Delaware told VOA’s Korean Service, “My hope is that this can be worked out in a responsible fashion between two sets of trusted allies.”Republican Sen. Ted Cruz of Texas said, “There are always delicate issues with allies at the end of the day. Both Japan and South Korea are and will remain close friends and close allies.” Japan’s roleThe current tensions grow in part from Korean anger at Japan for decades of colonization and occupation of Korea from 1910 until Japan’s 1945 surrender to the U.S. to end World War II. During that period, many Japanese companies used Korean forced labor. Compensation for the victims came in a 1965 bilateral treaty that normalized postwar relations between the two countries. The treaty’s terms came up short, according to Korean activists who argued Japan’s payment of about $300 million failed to provide fair compensation to people conscripted to work in Japanese companies. Japan contends the treaty settled the compensation issues. The treaty said all claims are “settled completely and finally.” However, after decades of court battles in South Korea and Japan, South Korea’s top court ruled last year that while the 1965 treaty settled disputes between the two governments, former forced laborers could sue Japanese companies individually. Then, in two related rulings, the court ordered Japan’s Nippon Steel & Sumitomo Metal Corp., and Mitsubishi Heavy Industries Ltd., to pay a combined total of 14 South Korea plaintiffs hundreds of thousands of dollars in compensation. Seoul has asserted that the current Japanese export control move is a politically motivated economic retaliation for the South Korean Supreme Court ruling allowing individuals to sue. Japan’s chief cabinet secretary, Yoshihide Suga, referenced the court ruling in a press conference after the export curbs were announced last week, but denied the two issues were linked. Mitsubishi faces a July 15 deadline to respond to a formal request for talks with Korean former forced laborers, according to Jiji News, and Japan has set a July 18 deadline for South Korea to meet its demand for a third-party arbitrator in the forced-labor dispute.Tokyo also claims the export controls are in part a response to Seoul’s violation of international sanctions imposed on North Korea. Last August, Seoul announced that South Korean companies had illegally imported North Korean coal in violation of international sanctions on Pyongyang, and on Sunday, Abe told Japanese media that Seoul could be cheating on North Korea sanctions. Abe said, just as “Seoul is not abiding by international commitments on the wartime labor issue,” it is likely “not regulating trade” in compliance with North Korea sanctions.Last week, South Korea released two of its ships that were impounded for carrying out ship-to-ship transfers to North Korean vessels in 2017 and 2918, in apparent violation of sanctions. The U.N. approved the release of the ships because, according to the South Korean foreign ministry, the ships did not deliberately breach the sanctions.
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Erdogan Faces New Challenger as Party Split Looms
Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan could be facing his biggest political challenge, with the resignation of his former economic czar Ali Babacan threatening to split his ruling AKP Party. Party discontent is escalating amidst economic malaise and deteriorating human rights.”Under the current conditions, Turkey needs a brand-new vision for its future,” Babacan said Monday upon resigning. “It has become inevitable to start a new effort for Turkey’s present and future. Many of my colleagues and I feel a great and historic responsibility toward this effort.”New political partyBabacan is expected to launch a new political party as early as September. A founding member of AKP, Babacan served as foreign and economy minister in the early years of the party’s rule. He is widely credited with presiding over Turkey’s economic transformation with unparalleled record growth.”We can normalize the society, end the polarization within society,” said Osman Can, a former national AKP board member, who now supports Babacan’s movement. “We can normalize relations with the United States and Europe. We can also be a hope for the region. This is why I am hopeful, for Babacan lives as a conservative but his thinking is liberal.”Turkey’s President Recep Tayyip Erdogan speaks during a meeting of a pro-government trade-union, in Ankara, Turkey, July 10, 2019. Erdogan has confirmed that he fired the Central Bank chief over his refusal to cut interest rates.The AKP originally was a coalition of liberals and religious conservatives, ushering in wide-ranging democratic reforms in its early years of rule. However, criticism of Erdogan’s leadership within the party has been building, with his centralizing of power and accusations of increasing authoritarianism. Following the 2016 failed coup, hundreds of thousands have been purged from their jobs or jailed, in a crackdown that continues.”After the coup attempt, Mr. Erdogan came to the decision [that] he is under attack and only needs loyal people and family advising and working for him,” said Can. “In the AKP, there is only one will, the will of Mr. Erdogan. There is no person able to criticize or willing to criticize.”Analysts suggest the tipping point for an AKP split and whether a new party succeeds is the economy. For the last year, Turkey has fallen into an economic malaise of recession, near-record unemployment and double-digit inflation.Backdropped by a poster of Binali Yildirim, former Prime Minister and candidate for Istanbul of the ruling Justice and Development Party’s (AKP), people chant Islamic slogans during a protest in Istanbul, March 11, 2019.”According to a recent poll, 30% of AKP voters are extremely unhappy with the economic management,” said analyst Atilla Yesilada of Global Source Partners, a business management consultancy. “The message is simple, if Erdogan improves the economy they [the new party] will have less of a chance. If he screws up once again, then Mr. Babacan, with proven crisis management skills, will be well-placed.”Gul to support BabacanAccording to sources linked to the new movement, Babacan is receiving financial support from conservative businesses, who traditionally back the AKP. Such support is likely facilitated by former President Abdullah Gul. He is another AKP founder, who is backing Babacan and has close links to conservative companies.However, analysts warn Babacan has to look for support beyond the AKP. “If it becomes a movement or party built and run by former AKP party members, then forget it. It will be a huge failure,” said sociology professor Mesut Yegen of Istanbul’s Sehir University.”I think Turkish people are really demanding a new style of politics,” he added, “and you can see this in other parties as well. This is why they [Babacan’s party] need to find some new faces to introduce to the Turkish public.””There should be new faces,” agreed Can, “from the center-right and center-left, not just conservatives. It should be people who are rational, not rigid, and Babacan and others are in talks with such people.”There could be risksHowever, openly challenging Erdogan has risks. Observers say some AKP dissidents who’ve sought to set up a new party or break ranks have run into legal troubles on trumped-up charges from a compliant judiciary.”There are strong voices in Ankara to make pressure, to make accusations and investigations,” said Can, a law professor at Istanbul’s Marmara University and a former judge-rapporteur at Turkey’s Constitutional Court.”Their [AKP’s] power in Ankara is dissolving. They are losing support within the state, within the bureaucracy, the judiciary,” he added. “These people see things are changing. They are changing their minds, and they are starting not to work with the government. They know change is coming and they are protecting themselves.”For now, Erdogan is dismissing Babacan, saying he “will not reach anything by doing this.” Setting up a new party infrastructure in Turkey is challenging and time-consuming, given the country’s size and population of 80 million.Erdogan plans tourHowever, in a move widely interpreted as shoring up support and containing any defections to Babacan’s movement, Erdogan is set to tour Turkey, visiting party branches.The president is already reeling from last month’s loss of the Istanbul mayorship in a shock opposition landslide victory. Yegen suggested Babacan’s move against Erdogan could benefit from a new mood in Turkey.”There are signs that Turkey is thirsty for new forms of leadership, and this can be translated into new programs and new styles of politics. But on the other hand, we cannot be sure this change will take place in a gradual manner or suddenly,” said Yegen.
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Sudan General Says Coup Attempt Foiled
Sudan’s ruling military council has foiled a coup attempt, a top general announced on state television Thursday, saying that 12 officers and four soldiers had been arrested.The announcement came as the ruling military and civilian protesters agreed last week to end a political impasse after the army in April ousted longtime ruler Omar al-Bashir on the back of a popular uprising.”Officers and soldiers from the army and National Intelligence and Security Service, some of them retired, were trying to carry out a coup,” General Jamal Omar of the ruling military council said in a statement broadcast live on state television.”The regular forces were able to foil the attempt,” he said, but did not say when the attempt was made.Omar said of the 12 officers arrested, five of them were retired, and that security forces were looking for the mastermind of the attempted coup.FILE – People walk past graffiti reading in Arabic “Freedom, Peace, Justice and Civilian” in the Burri district of Khartoum, Sudan, July 10, 2019.”This is an attempt to block the agreement which has been reached by the Transitional Military Council and the Alliance for Freedom and Change that aims to open the road for Sudanese people to achieve their demands,” Omar said.The announcement late Thursday came as legal advisers of the ruling military council and protest leaders were going through the details of the agreement at a luxury hotel in Khartoum.The landmark agreement that aims to form a new joint transitional civilian-military ruling body was reached last week after mediation by African Union and Ethiopian envoys.The forming of the new governing body is the first step toward installing an overall transitional civilian administration in Sudan as demanded by demonstrators.Demonstrators’ demandsSudan has been rocked by a political crisis since protests first erupted against Bashir’s rule in December.The protests finally led to the army ousting him on April 11, but the generals who seized power have so far resisted demonstrators’ demands to hand it over to a civilian administration.Tension had further soared between the two sides after a brutal raid on a longstanding protest camp outside army headquarters in the capital Khartoum that killed dozens of demonstrators and wounded hundreds on June 3.The raid came after talks between the generals and protest leaders collapsed in May over who should lead the new governing body — a civilian or soldier.Intense mediation by African Union and Ethiopian mediators finally led to the agreement reached on the new joint governing body on July 5.The agreement proposes a little more than a three-year transition period, with the president of the new ruling body to be held by the military for the first 21 months and a civilian for the remaining 18 months.
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Trump Accuses Big Tech of Bias Against Conservative Voices
President Donald Trump said Thursday that big tech companies must not be allowed to censor the voices of the American people on social media, even as he hailed conservative critics for using the platforms to get around the “fake news filter.”Trump has weaponized social media to eviscerate opponents and promote himself. He convened Thursday’s White House Social Media Summit of like-minded critics of Big Tech, excluding representatives from the very platforms he exploits.Earlier Thursday, Trump sent a stream of Twitter messages lashing out at social media companies and the press, familiar targets that resonate with his conservative base. The meeting represented an escalation of Trump’s battle with companies like Facebook, Google and even his preferred communications outlet, Twitter. The president has claimed, without evidence, that the companies are “against me” and even suggested U.S. regulators should sue them on grounds of anti-conservative bias.In remarks to the participants, whom Trump called “online journalists and influencers,” Trump said, “You’re challenging the media gatekeepers and corporate censors to bring the truth to the American people.””You communicate directly with our citizens without going through the fake news filter,” he said.Greater scrutinyTrump signaled tough actions ahead by his administration against big tech companies.The firms already are under closer scrutiny than ever by regulators and in Congress following a stream of scandals including Facebook’s lapses opening the personal data of millions of users to Trump’s 2016 campaign, and a bipartisan push for new data privacy legislation has emerged in Congress. Regulators at the Justice Department and the Federal Trade Commission are pursuing antitrust investigations of Facebook, Google, Apple and Amazon.Invited guests take photos as President Donald Trump speaks during the Social Media Summit in the East Room of the White House, July 11, 2019.Trump’s volley of Twitter messages Thursday had familiar targets — “certain companies,” the press and his Democratic rivals — that have proven resonance with his political base. The president predicted, without foundation, the demise of the press and the social media platforms if he loses to a Democrat in 2020. He hailed himself as “so great looking and smart, a true Stable Genius!”A “big subject” of the summit would be “the tremendous dishonesty, bias, discrimination and suppression practiced by certain companies,” Trump said in his tweets.”We will not let them get away with it much longer,” he said.Accusations commonly leveled by conservatives against the social media platforms include anti-religious bias, a tilt against abortion foes and censorship of conservative political views.Trump has made it a priority to reach out to voters who oppose abortion. The anti-abortion groups Live Action and Susan B. Anthony List say Twitter has blocked their advertising. By policy, Twitter prohibits paid ads with content “that is inflammatory or provocative and is likely to evoke a strong negative reaction.”Donald Trump Jr. weighed in on the subject Wednesday, tweeting, “Twitter: We won’t allow pro-life groups like (at)LiveAction to run ads on our ‘platform’ & if you’re a conservative we might ban you for 1st Amendment protected speech that we arbitrarily deem ‘offensive.'”Response to accusationsWhile some Silicon Valley company executives may lean liberal, they have asserted that their products are without political bias.Representatives for Facebook, Google and Twitter have declined to comment specifically on the White House meeting. The Internet Association, the industry’s major trade group representing Facebook, Google and dozens of other companies, said online platforms “are the best tool for promoting voices from all political perspectives in history.”Radio host Sebastian Gorka listens as President Donald Trump speaks during the Social Media Summit in the East Room of the White House, July 11, 2019.”Internet companies are not biased against any political ideology, and conservative voices in particular have used social media to great effect,” the group’s president Michael Beckerman said in a statement Thursday. “Internet companies depend upon their users’ trust from across the political spectrum to grow and succeed.”Facebook has banned extremist figures such as Alex Jones of Infowars and Louis Farrakhan of the Nation of Islam. Twitter has banned hate speech on the basis of someone’s race, gender and other categories. Twitter broadened its policy this week to include banning language that dehumanizes others based on religion, and the company said it may also ban similar language aimed at other groups, such as those defined by gender, race and sexual orientation.”I’ve never seen evidence of tech firm bias against conservatives,” said Rep. David Cicilline, D-R.I., who has been sharply critical of the big companies for reasons of their market dominance and effect on competition. He leads a House Judiciary subcommittee that has opened a bipartisan probe into the tech giants’ market conduct.”If someone wants to show me some empirical data, instead of some alt-right member’s paranoid claims, I’d appreciate it,” Cicilline said in a statement Wednesday.Trump has an estimated 61 million followers on Twitter and uses the platform almost daily to speak directly to them. He has a knack for tweeting outrageous, divisive or tongue-in-cheek missives that spur frenzied reactions from the mainstream press.At the same time, Trump has accused Twitter, without evidence, of making it “very hard for people to join me” and “very much harder for me to get out the message.”
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Democrats Push Trump Administration on Immigration Oversight
Congressional Democrats hope to put last month’s scuffle over the $4.6 billion emergency border bill behind them with renewed oversight of the Trump administration’s immigration policies and legislation to strengthen protections for families detained at the U.S.-Mexico border.The push comes amid reports Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) will begin nationwide immigration raids Sunday.House Speaker Nancy Pelosi told reporters Thursday, “It’s never too late to do the right thing for the children, and when it comes to children, again, I’m the lioness, I’m just going to protect our cubs. And so we’re going to use every legislative tactic at our disposal.” House legislationHouse Democrats introduced a series of measures earlier this week intended to address the gap between a House-passed bill restricting the Trump administration’s operations on the border and the Senate version of the bill that ended up passing both chambers in June.Democratic leadership had to quell a rebellion from House progressives who objected to voting for the Senate version of the bill, which provided emergency funding to address the humanitarian crisis at the border. A handful of Democrats refused to vote for that bill on the ground it enabled the Trump administration’s treatment of asylum-seekers.House Speaker Nancy Pelosi of Calif. arrives for a House Democratic caucus meeting on Capitol Hill in Washington, July 10, 2019.Pelosi declined to answer if she would attach this week’s measures to must-pass legislation, a move that would avoid a repeat of the embarrassing scenario the leadership encountered last month.Republican leadership pointed to the new legislation as proof Democrats were finally acknowledging problems on the border.”I’m just excited that now the Democrats realize there’s a crisis,” House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy of California said. “The problem is their lack of action made the crisis worse, or lack of action when it comes to the supplemental.”Republicans argue Democrats have failed to address increases in undocumented immigration, harming the children and families they want to help.”By refusing to address our border crisis, we invite child smuggling and child abuse,” Texas Sen. Ted Cruz said on the Senate floor Thursday. “Nobody who is compassionate, nobody who wants to be virtuous, nobody who cares about other human beings would want to perpetuate what is happening at the border for even a single day.”Detention policyBut Democrats argue the Trump administration is creating the crisis. Senate Democrats Thursday introduced legislation addressing the administration’s family detention policy, while recognizing it has no chance of passing the Republican-controlled chamber.Senate Minority Leader Sen. Chuck Schumer of N.Y. (L) listens as Sen. Patty Murray, D-Wash., speaks at a news conference on proposed legislation regarding detention of immigrants on the southern border, July 11, 2019, Capitol Hill, Washington.”If Democrats were in the majority, we’d move this legislation immediately,” Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer of New York said. “We’re not. And the question looms: Will [Majority] Leader [Mitch] McConnell stand up for the children and work with us to pass these new standards into law?”The bill would seek a legislative end to the policy of separating migrant parents from children, along with mandating congressional oversight of children in custody.
“This is a conscious policy decision by this administration to create what they call a deterrent, to make the mistreatment of people at the border a signal and message to people across the world that the door is closed in the United States for asylum and for refuge. And they’re doing this in a conscious manner,” Illinois Democratic Sen. Dick Durbin said.The effort in both chambers provides Democratic lawmakers with political cover with constituents concerned about Trump administration policies. But lawmakers are likely to gain more traction with oversight efforts in committees.
The House Committee on Oversight and Reform on Friday will examine claims of inhumane conditions by members of Congress who visited border detention facilities, as well as hear testimony from officials charged with oversight of the government agencies overseeing detention facilities. In a hearing next week, the committee will hear testimony from acting Secretary of Homeland Security Kevin McAleenan.Additionally, the House Judiciary Committee authorized subpoenas Thursday that would assist an investigation into administration policies at the border.The investigation would require administration officials to answer questions about reports President Donald Trump offered then-Customs and Border Protection Commissioner McAleenan a pardon if he was jailed for obeying a presidential order denying asylum seekers entry into the United States.
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Italy: Lawmakers Want Salvini to Explain Alleged Russia Deal
Opposition lawmakers in Italy demanded Thursday to have Interior Minister Matteo Salvini appear in Parliament about allegations that a covert Russian oil sale scheme was devised to fund his pro-Moscow League party.Democratic Party lawmakers pressed for a parliamentary inquiry following another media report with allegations that a former Salvini associate proposed an under-the-table arrangement to pump money into the right-wing party.The alleged proposal for the multimillion-euro plan was made last year after the League became a partner in Italy’s populist coalition government and ahead of May’s European Parliament elections.Italian Senator Gregorio De Falco, top right, speaks at the Senate in Rome, July 11, 2019. Opposition lawmakers want to question Italian Interior Minister Matteo Salvini about allegations of a Russian oil deal to fund his pro-Moscow League party.As he did when the allegations first surfaced earlier this year, Salvini shrugged off the latest version.”Never took a ruble, a euro, a dollar or a liter of vodka of financing from Russia,” Salvini said after the BuzzFeed report was published Wednesday.Salvini has openly admired Russian President Vladimir Putin and vigorously advocates an end to European Union economic sanctions on Russia.The opposition lawmakers specifically want to question Salvini, the BuzzFeed journalist who reported the allegations, Italy’s ambassador to Moscow, and Russia’s ambassador to Rome.They also want to hear from Gianluca Savoini, a League associate close to the Russians who allegedly championed the proposed deal.AllegationsThe BuzzFeed article about a Moscow meeting aimed at arranging such a deal in 2018 largely mirrored allegations that appeared months ago in Italian magazine L’Espresso.BuzzFeed built on L’Espresso’s story, saying it had obtained an audio of the conversation about the purported deal among Italians and Russians at a Moscow hotel.Both articles said the alleged deal would have involved a Russian energy company selling fuel to an Italian energy company. The fuel would be allegedly offered at a discount, with part of the difference purportedly going to the League’s coffers. Both L’Espresso and BuzzFeed stressed the reporters had no confirmation the deal was sealed or evidence that fuel was delivered or funds channeled to the League. Reaction from Salvini Asked what role alleged middleman Savoini has in the League, Salvini replied brusquely, “I don’t know. Ask him. It’s ridiculous, all that I read in the papers.”Milan daily Corriere della Sera quoted Savoini, in a text message exchange with the newspaper, as saying of the BuzzFeed account: “All conjecture! Nothing concrete because neither money nor funds ever came to the League from Russia. Never!”The League is the junior partner in a populist coalition with the 5-Star Movement that had led the Italian government since June 2018.Premier Giuseppe Conte told reporters he hadn’t listened to the audio linked to the BuzzFeed report but had faith in Salvini and welcomes any investigation.The Italian news agency ANSA said that Milan-based prosecutors had started looking into possible international corruption after L’Espresso’s article in February.Salvini contends sanctions against Russia unfairly hurt Italian exporters.
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France Adopts Pioneering Tax on Internet Tech Giants After US Threat
France adopted a pioneering tax on internet giants like Google, Amazon and Facebook on Thursday, despite U.S. threats of new tariffs on French imports.The final vote in favor of the tax in the French Senate came hours after the Trump administration announced an investigation into the tax under the provision used last year to probe China’s technology policies, which led to tariffs on $250 billion worth of Chinese imports.”Between allies, we can, and we should, solve our differences without using threats,” Bruno Le Maire said. “France is a sovereign country. It will make its own sovereign decisions on fiscal measures.”The tax amounts to a 3% annual levy on the French revenues of digital companies with yearly global sales worth more than 750 million euros ($844 million) and French revenue exceeding 25 million euros. The tax primarily targets those that use consumer data to sell online advertising.”Each of us is seeing the emergence of economic giants with monopolistic attributes and who not only want to control a maximum amount of data and make money with this data, but also go further than that by, in the absence of rules, escaping taxes and putting into place instruments that could, tomorrow, become a sovereign currency,” Le Maire said.The French Finance Ministry has estimated that the tax would raise about 500 million euros annually ($563 million) at first — but predicted fast growth.The tech industry is warning that consumers could pay more. U.S. companies affected included Airbnb and Uber as well as those from China and Europe.The bill aims to stop multinationals from avoiding taxes by setting up headquarters in low-tax EU countries. Currently, the companies pay nearly no tax in countries where they have large sales like France.France failed to persuade EU partners to impose a Europe-wide tax on tech giants, but is now pushing for an international deal with the 34 countries of the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development.”The internet industry is a great American export, supporting millions of jobs and businesses of all sizes. Global tax rules should be updated for the digital age — and there is a process to do so underway at the OECD — but discriminatory taxes against U.S. firms are not the right approach,” said Jordan Haas of the Internet Association, an industry trade group whose members include Facebook, Google and Uber.Another U.S. trade group, the Computer and Communications Industry Association, also said the French proposal discriminated against American companies.The U.S. investigation got bipartisan support from the top members of the Senate Finance Committee. In a joint statement, Republican Chuck Grassley of Iowa, committee chairman, and Democrat Ron Wyden of Oregon said: “The digital services tax that France and other European countries are pursuing is clearly protectionist and unfairly targets American companies in a way that will cost U.S. jobs and harm American workers.”Also on Thursday, Britain moved ahead with similar plans as the government published draft legislation for a “digital services tax.” Starting in April, search engines, social media platforms and online marketplaces that “derive value from U.K. users” will be subject to a new 2% percent tax.Small companies and unprofitable startups will also be spared in the British proposals. The levy will apply to companies with more than 500 million pounds ($626 million) in revenue, if more than 25 million pounds comes from British users.The tax is temporary and would be replaced by a global deal, which Britain has also been pushing for through the OECD and the Group of 20 major economies.
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Cameroon Fights Boko Haram Recruitment with Goats, Sheep
The government of Cameroon this week began rolling out an unlikely weapon in the fight against Boko Haram militants.Authorities are distributing thousands of goats and sheep to young Cameroonians in villages along with border with Nigeria.The program aims to providing livestock for a basic income in order to stop the Islamist militant group’s recruiting tactics. The hope is that the livestock will empower thousands of vulnerable families and stop them from joining the extremists, who promise jobs.In the village of Salak, 17-year-old Oumar Nafisatu received four sheep.Nafisatu says she is looking forward to having baby sheep so she can sell them to pay for her school fees. She is the only one to take care of herself, she says, after her father and mother passed away.Beneficiaries of the initiative take possession of their livestock in Maroua, Cameroon, July 11, 2019. (M. Kindzeka/VOA)Boko Haram fighters killed Nafisatu’s parents, along with 21 others, when they attacked her village in 2017, forcing her to flee.Just a week later, Nafisatu’s only sister was killed in a suicide bomb attack in a mosque at Kolofata. Boko Haram had recruited her with promises of a job as a house cleaner, then forced her to carry out the attack.Cameroon’s government plans to distribute 60,000 goats and sheep by the end of the year. The minister of livestock, known only as Dr. Taiga, said the animals will go to those who have suffered in the fight against Boko Haram.He said the initiative is to help families who are vulnerable by providing animals that are fruitful and enable them to have money. They will provide for their basic needs, said Taiga, take care of their families, and help to avoid temptations that can jeopardize peace and bring chaos.Cameroon’s minister of livestock, known only as Dr. Taiga, speaks in Maroua, Cameroon, July 11, 2019. (M. Kindzeka/VOA)The Lake Chad Basin Commission, with eight member nations in the region including Cameroon, says some areas attacked by Boko Haram have unemployment rates as high as 90 percent.Midjiyawa Bakary, governor of Cameroon’s Far North region, notes there have been no major Boko Haram attacks in the past year but says the militants are still recruiting, and the military remains on alert.He said people should be vigilant because Boko Haram is recruiting jobless youths with promises to improve their living conditions. Village militias, known as self-defense groups, should be reactivated to work in collaboration with the military, officials, traditional rulers and the clergy, said Bakary. He said they can share information on any suspected activities that may upset the peace that has been returning to villages and towns.
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Nominee for Top US General: Afghan Withdrawal Would Be ‘Strategic Mistake’
President Donald Trump’s nominee for the top military officer of the United States says leaving Afghanistan prematurely would be a “strategic mistake,” as the U.S. and the Taliban are negotiating a potential peace settlement to end nearly two decades of war.”I think it is slow, it’s painful, it’s hard. I spent a lot of my life in Afghanistan, but I also think it’s necessary,” Army Gen. Mark Milley, the current Army Chief of Staff and nominee for Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, told lawmakers at a Senate Armed Services Committee nomination hearing Thursday.Milley said he saw “progress” in the peace negotiations meant to bring the war to an end.A deal between the U.S. and the Taliban has been expected to be centered on a U.S. promise to withdraw foreign troops in exchange for a Taliban pledge not to let Afghanistan be used as a base for terrorism.FILE – U.S. troops wait for their helicopter flight at an Afghan National Army (ANA) base in Logar province, Afghanistan, Aug. 7, 2018.Milley on Iran
When questioned on Iran, Milley said Tehran’s “intensity of malign activity” has increased since the U.S. withdrawal from the Iran nuclear deal, the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action, (JCPOA) that was signed in 2015.Milley also pointed out that Iran has “always been a malign actor,” and that Iranian-backed terrorist organizations have killed U.S. troops in Iraq.His comments come as Britain said Thursday three Iranian vessels unsuccessfully tried to impede the passage of a British commercial vessel through the Strait of Hormuz but were turned away after “verbal warnings” from a British navy ship accompanying the vessel.“We are concerned by this action and continue to urge the Iranian authorities to de-escalate the situation in the region,” the British government said.Iran’s Revolutionary Guard has denied the allegations.Iran and Iranian-backed forces have been blamed for several recent incidents in the region, including attacks on several tankers, attacks on a Saudi airport, an attack on a Saudi oil pipeline and a rocket attack in the Iraqi capital of Baghdad’s Green Zone.President Trump said Wednesday he would soon “substantially” increase economic sanctions against Iran, as the U.S. accused Tehran of “nuclear extortion” by breaching the 2015 international pact aimed at curtailing its nuclear weapons development.Iran has acknowledged it is now enriching uranium beyond the limits of the accord Trump withdrew from last year and keeping a bigger stockpile than it was allowed.Despite the war in Afghanistan and the increased tensions with Iran, Milley said his biggest concern was “modernization and recapitalization of the nation’s nuclear triad.”The nuclear triad is the U.S. military’s ability to respond to threats with nuclear weapons by air, sea and land via bombers, submarines and intercontinental ballistic missiles.“There are many reasons why there hasn’t been a great-power war since 1945. Clearly one of them is nuclear deterrence,” Milley said, adding that the international order is “currently under the most stress since the end of the Cold War.”
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‘Our Lost Son’: Migrant Boy Still Separated From Parents
A judge will rule on whether a 9-year-old Guatemalan boy who was separated from his father at the border can stay in this country, and whether his father will be allowed to return to the United States.After spending nearly a year in federal facilities, Byron Xol (Shol) has been living with a Texas family in recent months. His father, David, was deported to Guatemala.He says he and his son left that country because they had been threatened by gangsters. He is an evangelical Christian, and says he refused to join the gang because his faith forbids violence.David is one of 21 parents included in an American Civil Liberties Union motion that they be allowed to re-enter the country and seek asylum.
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South Africans Skip Lines, Get Medicine From Vending Machines
An innovative system to dispense medicine to patients with chronic illnesses is taking off in South Africa. The award-winning “Pelebox,” created by South African engineer Neo Hutiri, is a computer-controlled vending machine stocked with prescription drugs, which patients access using a personal code.The Pelebox has been hailed as a life saver for many, who use often-crowded South African hospitals and clinics. The medicine dispenser resembles the common automated teller machine and functions in a similar way.Hutiri explains why he created the Pelebox.“If you have been to public clinics, one of the biggest challenges that you face is spending hours and hours to get access to your chronic medication. The idea was very simple: Can we create a technology, locally manufactured, locally born idea where we can get somebody to collect medication in a couple of seconds, instead of waiting for hours?” asked Hutiri.
Details of each patient are uploaded into a computer system connected to the machine. The patient must indicate the clinic or point where they want to get their medication. The machine consists of a simple wall of lockers controlled by a digital system. And Hutiri, who once had a chronic illness, explains the most exciting experience for patients.Jenifer Shingange, a patient with a chronic illness, says the Pelebox has been a god-sent for her (T. Khumalo/VOA)“We take pre-packed medicine, we would scan the medicine, load it inside the unit. It then sends an SMS to a patient saying ‘Neo your medication is ready for collection, here is a one-time pin, please come and collect your medication at Winnie Mandela clinic.’ The patient simply walks to the unit. On that touch screen, enters their cell phone together with a pin. It pops open the door. They collect and they are on their way,” said Hutiri.The technology, first introduced in 2016, has been a hit among patients. There are 11 Peleboxes already operational across the country.For years, 45-year-old Jenifer Shingange, a beneficiary of the technology, had to line up at dawn to collect her medication every month. She says since she started getting her drugs from the Peleboxes, she chooses a time that suits her, including after work.“I would like to say very thank you. Thank you so much. What is making me excited is that when I come here I don’t stand in a long queue. I just put my cellphone and pin and press and get my treatment,” said Shingange.The Aurum Institute, a leading health care organization that has partnered with Hutiri, expects to introduce 10 more machines in the city of Ekurhuleni. Up to 26 machines will be functioning across the country by September.With each of the Peleboxes serving over 1,200 patients a month, authorities say they will go a long way toward shortening lines in hospitals and clinics.
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China Blasts 22-Nation Letter Criticizing Xinjiang Policies
China on Thursday attacked a statement by 22 Western countries at the United Nations urging it to stop holding members of its Muslim population in detention centers, calling the measure necessary for national security and accusing the countries of trampling on its sovereignty.Foreign ministry spokesman Geng Shuang said at a daily briefing that the letter “disregarded the facts, slandered and attacked China with unwarranted accusations, flagrantly politicized human rights issues and grossly interfered in China’s internal affairs.”“The Chinese side expressed strong dissatisfaction and resolute opposition,” Geng said, adding that China had registered “solemn complaints” with the countries involved.“We urge these countries to respect the facts, discard prejudice, abide by the purposes and principles of the U.N. Charter, and stop politicizing human rights issues and intervening in China’s internal affairs with the Xinjiang issue,” he said.In addition to travel restrictions and a massive surveillance network, China is estimated to have arbitrarily detained up to 1 million Muslims in prison-like detention centers in Xinjiang, with reports of harsh treatment and poor living conditions inside.China denies committing abuses in the centers and calls them training schools aimed at providing employable skills and combating extremism.Geng said Xinjiang has not suffered any new violent incidents for more than two years, proving the effectiveness of the government’s approach.“The happiness … and sense of security of the people of all ethnic groups have substantially improved, and they sincerely support the government’s policies,” he said.While China restricts access and reporting in Xinjiang, Geng said it would welcome a visit by the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights.“We welcome those who truly uphold the objective and fair principle to go to Xinjiang and look around, but we resolutely oppose any external forces using the Xinjiang issue to interfere in China’s internal affairs and undermine China’s sovereignty and territorial integrity,” Geng said.
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Trump: China Fails to Buy Agricultural Goods as Promised
US President Donald Trump on Thursday accused China of backsliding on promises to increase purchases of American farm exports.The president’s latest salvo on Twitter comes the same week that US and Chinese trade officials had their first contact in months in an effort to revive negotiations that nearly collapsed in May.Trump and his Chinese counterpart Xi Jinping met last month on the sidelines of the Group of 20 summit in Japan, agreeing to cease further hostilities while the talks resumed.Mexico is doing great at the Border, but China is letting us down in that they have not been buying the agricultural products from our great Farmers that they said they would. Hopefully they will start soon!— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) July 11, 2019Following the Osaka summit, Trump announced that, in return for suspending a planned tariff increase on $300 billion in Chinese imports, Beijing had offered to buy “a tremendous amount of food and agriculture product.”Reducing America’s soaring trade deficit with China has long been a principal aim in Trump’s trade battle with Beijing, which he also accuses of stealing American technology and unfairly intervening in markets.Since last year, the two countries have traded tariffs on more than $360 billion in two-way trade.
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Uber Considers Expanding into Senegal’s Capital
Ride-hailing app Uber is considering expanding its services to Senegal’s capital.But in a city full of taxis and drivers who don’t have smartphones, the San Francisco-based company will have to overcome a lot of challenges to be useful to Dakar residents and turn a profit.The city, like most African capitals, has an abundance of taxis. In most parts of the city, any time day or night, it’s easy to find a ride. But the city is rapidly expanding, and Uber says it has seen an opportunity to move in.“Any progressive, forward-thinking city that has a need for safe, reliable, efficient transportation is where we want to be,” Francesca Uriri, Uber’s head of communications in West Africa, told VOA. “We are part of a broader mobility movement in establishing smart cities of the future and will continue to explore what our options in West Africa.”No fixed addressesAmong the challenges Uber will face in Dakar is a lack of fixed addresses. Taxi drivers know the city inside and out and tend to navigate based on landmarks. How the app could work in a city that rarely uses map applications is a big question for some residents.“Like when you are coming to my house, I will not be able to tell you exactly where my house is located on the map. So, you will have to you know, I will have to tell you a building or somewhere, a school somewhere I can pick you from,” Sa Ngoné, a Dakar resident who has used Uber’s services while traveling in the United States, explained.“It might work here, but it will require lots of investment because we don’t have the same organization as in the U.S.,” he said.Unlike Ngoné, most Dakar residents haven’t heard specifically of Uber. But similar services, including Allo Taxi, a service you call and arrange rides with, already exist here.Welcome additionHowever, some say the services that already exist here aren’t fully developed, and Uber coming in would be a welcome addition.“I think if this company came in it would create competition and add something new to the landscape of transportation in Dakar. I think it could work really well,” M. Dieye, a Dakar resident, told VOA.For most taxi rides in Dakar, riders and drivers must negotiate prices before getting in. Both parties think they would be happier if the price was fixed based on mileage and time.“If they hire us as drivers, for example, that could help us out a lot,” Modou N’Diaye, a taxi driver in Dakar, told VOA.No hagglingGora Séne, who has been driving a taxi since 1998, explained that often price negotiations lead to him getting paid less than he should, and sometimes arguments with riders end with him not being paid at all.“[Uber] could work well here. If they hire drivers with experience here they could be successful — like if they hire us, that’s a possibility. But it depends on what they will offer,” he said.But whether taxi drivers, most of whom don’t have smartphones, will be able to join Uber or compete with them, is yet to be seen.Uber has expanded to 23 cities in Africa, including Abuja, Lagos and Accra in West Africa.
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Vegas Police Release Report on Lessons From 2017 Massacre
Las Vegas police learned from the deadliest mass shooting in modern U.S. history to secure high-rise buildings overseeing open-air crowds and train more officers with rifles to stop a shooter in an elevated position, Clark County Sheriff Joe Lombardo said Wednesday.
Among 93 recommendations in a newly released department “after-action review” are requirements to plan ahead with neighboring police, fire, hospital and coroner officials; to let responding officers remove reflective vests so they’re less of a target to a shooter; and to ensure more paramedics and trauma kits are available at large-scale events.
“We hope we never have to use these procedures that we are putting in place,” said Lombardo, who characterized the report as “our textbook on our response” to the October 2017 massacre that killed 58 people at an open-air music festival on the Las Vegas Strip. He said it’s now required reading for every Las Vegas police officer above the rank of sergeant.
Lombardo noted that report authors Capt. Kelly McMahill and Detective Stephanie Ward studied other mass casualty incidents around the country, and said he hoped the Las Vegas report would help others prepare.
The 158-page document acknowledged communications snags similar to those described in a separate August 2018 “after-action report” by the Federal Emergency Management Agency, Clark County Fire Department and Las Vegas police.
That 61-page document said communications were overwhelmed by 911 calls, the number of victims, and by false reports of active shooters at other Las Vegas Strip hotel-casinos and nearby McCarran International Airport.
Lombardo, the elected head of some 5,000 officers, said the new report focuses on internal department “preparedness, response and recovery.”
It comes almost a year after Las Vegas police closed the criminal investigation with a 187-page criminal investigation report and nearly six months after the FBI issued a three-page summary of its behavioral analysis of gunman Stephen Paddock.
Paddock, 64, a former accountant and high-stakes video poker player with homes in Reno and the southern Nevada resort community of Mesquite, killed himself before officers reached his hotel room.
The FBI said Paddock sought notoriety but that investigators found no “single or clear motivating factor” for the shooting.
Investigators said Paddock planned meticulously and acted alone amassing an arsenal of assault-style weapons before opening fire from a 32nd-floor suite at the Mandalay Bay resort into a crowd of 22,000 country music fans below. Authorities said more than 850 people were wounded or injured fleeing the gunfire.
Lombardo noted the NFL’s Oakland Raiders plan to move to Las Vegas and begin play in 2020 at a 65,000-seat Las Vegas Stadium being built just off the Las Vegas Strip.
He said policing changes will apply to scheduled events drawing at least 15,000 people, and the report listed more than 17 such events: New Year’s Eve fireworks on the Strip; conventions including the Consumer Electronics gadget show at the Las Vegas Convention Center; NASCAR races at Las Vegas Speedway; the Las Vegas Rock `n’ Roll Marathon; uncounted hotel “day club” pool parties; and 41 NHL Vegas Golden Knights hockey home games per year at T-Mobile Arena.
Lombardo noted that Las Vegas police already make presentations about what the department experienced in October 2017 to law enforcement officials in the U.S. and abroad. He said the department has already implemented 40% of the new report’s recommendations.
The release comes a week after Las Vegas police confirmed the firing in March of a veteran officer who froze in a hotel hallway one floor below while Paddock rained rapid gunfire into the concert crowd below.
Lombardo said an unspecified number of other officers received lesser discipline for turning off or failing to activate body-worn video cameras, and one for accidentally firing a three-round burst of gunfire inside Paddock’s suite.
Police union executive director Steve Grammas said the dismissed officer, Cordell Hendrex, was one of two officers disciplined following departmental reviews of their actions during the shooting. The union is fighting to get Hendrex reinstated.
Grammas said the only other officer he knew of who had been disciplined for actions during the shooting got his job back after an arbitrator reviewed his firing.
Grammas declined to identify that officer, but said he had at least seven years on the job.
The Las Vegas Police Protective Association official said the officer had been accused of making comments the department deemed unbecoming and of telling a woman to keep moving away from the scene of the shooting instead of investigating her complaint that she had been a victim of a crime.
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Jakarta Citizens Sue Government Over Polluted Air
Retno Daru’s doctor told her to limit her outdoor activity and put her on medication to help relieve her swollen nasal passages inflamed by pollution in Indonesia’s capital city, Jakarta.This is not an easy task for the English teacher who spends a lot of time outside often taking motorbike taxis to get around the congested city and exercising outdoors.“It’s really inconvenient, because I swim and now I can’t,” she said.The air pollution in Indonesia’s capital has become so bad that Jakarta regularly tops real-time charts of the world’s most polluted cities.Indonesian environmental activists participate in a protest as they filed a lawsuit against Jakarta’s toxic air pollution at the Central Jakarta court, July 4, 2019.Residents of Jakarta sueThis prompted a group of residents to sue their president and other government officials demanding they revise regulations on air pollution control and tighten national air quality standards to protect the health of its people and the environment.For the past 10 years Istu Prayogi has experienced headaches and difficulty breathing as a result of the polluted air.“The doctors told me to wear mask all the time, it’s really uncomfortable. I’m sure there are many others who complain about the same thing and have the same illness,” he said. Though he now lives a suburb outside Jakarta, he worked and lived in the city for 30 years.Prayogi is one of 31 citizens who joined together to file a lawsuit July 4 saying the government has done little to address pollution in the city.A general view of the capital city as smog covers it in Jakarta, Indonesia, July 4, 2019.Change the policyAyu Eza Tiara is a lawyer for the Jakarta Legal Aid Institute, a nonprofit organization that provides legal assistance. Tiara said the organization, which represented the citizens in this class action lawsuit, demanded the government take action on the pollution problem.“We want a change in public policy, and a tangible act. What are the plans,” Tiara asked. She said the government should provide adequate information to the public on the effect of air pollution and its current condition.According to Tiara, they have been advocating for cleaner air since 2016.“We’ve been waiting for the government to make changes and improve the air quality. But there was no such thing, so we have to resort to a lawsuit,” she said.She admitted the legal process will take months if not years. “But we are determined,” she said.Public transportationIn response to the lawsuit, Jakarta Governor Anies Baswedan said last week that Jakarta is a city with a lot of economic activities and air pollution is a product of those activities. “That’s why I encourage everyone to decrease the use of personal transportation,” he said, encouraging citizens to take public transportation.Jakarta is home to more than 10 million people and 18 million vehicles, including cars and motorcycles.Andono Warih, the acting head of Jakarta’s Environment Office, also pointed out that one of the main factors contributing to air pollution is vehicle emissions. “The cause of pollution in Jakarta, 75% comes from transportation, the rest is industrial and domestic activities,” he said.Old policy and low standardThe Forum for the Environment (WALHI), an environmental advocacy group, also represented the citizens in this lawsuit.Tubagus Soleh Ahmadi, the executive director of WALHI, criticized the governor’s response saying he doesn’t understand the root of the problem.The AQI is based on the amount of particulate matter in the air. These microscopic particles — about 3% of the diameter of a human hair — can be damaging to public health because they can enter deep into the lungs, impact the heart and potentially enter the bloodstream.“The particle is smaller and certain groups such as pregnant women and children are even more vulnerable. The government does not consider this as the (air quality) standard,” he said.Ahmadi added that the government should create a list of sources of pollution. “Yes, the main source is from transportation, what about mandatory emission tests for vehicles and the industry,” he asked.“Data is important to create the action plan. And the policy, it’s been 20 years and the regulation hasn’t been revised, our quality standard is too low,” he said.
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Uber’s Expansion in West Africa Faces Hurdles
Ride-hailing application Uber, after successful launches in Ghana and Nigeria, is looking to expand in West Africa to Senegal’s capital, Dakar. But in a city full of taxis, and drivers without smartphones, the Silicon Valley company will have to overcome a lot of challenges to make a profit. From Dakar, VOA’s Esha Sarai reports.
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Cambodia Scraps Pay-to-Stay ‘Hotel’ Prison Plans
The Cambodian government is abolishing a controversial “hotel” prison project, according to Ministry of Interior officials.The government had announced earlier this month that it would soon open the new prison facilities, in which inmates can pay to stay. The facilities are said to be more comfortable than the regular cells at prison Prey Sar, which have been criticized for being severely overcrowded. Interior Minister Sar Kheng had dubbed the new prison complex a “hotel,” and at other times Ministry of Interior spokesman Khieu Sopheak called it a “5-star prison.” Construction started in 2017 by Kunn Rekon Holdings Co Ltd.But in a turn of events, Interior Ministry Department of Prisons spokesman Nouth Savna told Voice of America those plans would now be scrapped, pending official notification.“I think the whole paid idea, the concept … has been dropped,” he said. “But we need to go through a formal process with clearing with the company and informing the government. … There will be no paid prison.”Savna declined to elaborate further on reasons for canceling the plan, and multiple attempts to reach him later for comment failed.FILE – Cambodian land activist Tep Vanny speaks to journalists outside Prey Sar prison in Phnom Penh, Aug. 21, 2018.Change of plansEarlier, Savna explained that the government was concerned the company, Kunn Rekon Holdings Co. Ltd., would not be able to meet international and national standards for the facility, which was initially designed to hold up to 400 prisoners, and would therefore likely nationalize the prison. Savna said the government might have to pay the company compensation for terminating the contract, as the complex has been built.A company employee, who declined to be named, said his company was not in a position to comment to journalists as they were under the supervision of the Ministry of Interior.Asked about the change of plans, the employee said he could not provide further information.“We haven’t gotten any official notification from them, that’s all I know,” he said.Criticism of ‘two-class’ prisonThe prison project had drawn criticism for creating a “two-class” system.Chak Sopheap, executive director of Cambodian Center for Human Rights, said in an email that prisons in Cambodia posed an “acute human rights concern.”“Cambodian prisons are overcrowded to a dangerous degree,” she said. A prison in which inmates could pay to stay for more comfort, however, would not be an adequate solution, she said.“It sends the message that if you commit a crime, your punishment will depend on the amount of money you have at your disposal. As usual, when it comes to access to justice, the poor will suffer the most,” she said.Rhona Smith, the Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights in Cambodia, had also expressed concerns about the prison in her 2018 report. “All detainees should be afforded the same conditions of detention, conditions that meet, and even exceed, the minimum standards specified in the United Nations treaties Cambodia accepts and additional guidelines,” she said in her statement.Tackling prison overcrowdingIn an email to VOA, United Nations Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights representative Simon Walker said that overcrowding could be tackled in various ways. For example, he said his organization had been working with the government on reducing pretrial detention and “promoting alternatives to sentencing” to reduce the number of inmates.Ministry of Interior spokesman Khieu Sopheak said the government would take over the facility. “Please be informed that after debated, the plan has been canceled,” he said in a message to VOA. “We drop the plan. No more thinking about that, no more writing about that,” he said in a brief follow-up phone call.
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After Leaked Cables Draw President Trump’s Ire, Career UK Diplomat to US Resigns Early From Post
Transatlantic controversy surrounds the departure of Britain’s ambassador to the US, Kim Darroch, who resigned Wednesday after making candid and unflattering remarks about U.S. President Donald Trump in classified diplomatic cables. His comments were leaked to news media Sunday. Trump later tweeted his displeasure with both Darroch and outgoing British Prime Minister Theresa May. Arash Arabasadi reports.
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Art Ring Charged With Smuggling $143 Million in Antiquities
An art dealer who authorities called one of the most prolific smugglers in the world and seven others were charged with trafficking more than $140 million in stolen antiquities, prosecutors said Wednesday.Authorities described the case as one of the largest of its kind, saying the conspiracy began more than three decades ago and involved more than 2,600 recovered artifacts, including statues and ancient masterworks.A criminal complaint filed in Manhattan state court said the smuggling was orchestrated by Subhash Kapoor, a New York art gallery owner who was arrested in Germany in 2011 and later extradited to India, where he faces similar charges.An email seeking comment was sent to Kapoor’s defense attorney.Priceless worksThe prosecution involves artifacts stolen from Afghanistan, Cambodia, India, Pakistan and other countries that were sold for profit to dealers and collectors around the world. Some of the items appeared in world-renowned museums without officials realizing they were ill-gotten gains.”These are, in many instances, priceless works that represent the culture and history of the countries from which they were stolen,” Manhattan District Attorney Cyrus R. Vance Jr. told The Associated Press in an interview. “They are of enormous value.”In all, authorities said, the network trafficked more than $143 million worth of antiquities. The international investigation was called “Operation Hidden Idol.”The U.S. Department of Homeland Security has described Kapoor as “one of the most prolific art smugglers in the world.” He faces 86 counts in the criminal complaint, including grand larceny and criminal possession of stolen property.The lead prosecutor, Matthew Bogdanos, told the AP that none of the defendants is believed to be in the United States. He said the authorities asked Interpol to issue international warrants for their arrest.Criminal complaintKapoor, 70, owned the Art of the Past gallery on Manhattan’s Upper East Side, which authorities raided in early 2012.The criminal complaint says Kapoor went to extraordinary lengths to acquire the artifacts, many of them statues of Hindu deities, and then falsified their provenance with forged documents.It says Kapoor traveled the world seeking out antiquities that had been looted from temples, homes and archaeological sites. Some of the artifacts were recovered from Kapoor’s storage units in New York.Prosecutors said Kapoor had the items cleansed and repaired to remove any damage from illegal excavation, and then illegally exported them to the United States from their countries of origin.”Kapoor would also loan stolen antiquities to major museums and institutions,” the complaint says, “creating yet another false veneer of legitimacy by its mere presence in otherwise reputable museums and institutions.”The other defendants in the case include suppliers and restorers accused of conspiring with Kapoor.
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Hundreds of Released Migrants in Libya Call for Resettlement
“Aid organizations don’t protect us from bombs and fear,” said one teenager as he walked away from the detention center where he had been held for two years after trying to take a smuggler’s boat from Libya to Europe.
He trudged along dusty streets under the hot sun with more than 200 other migrants after they demanded release from the center. Police met their demands, the young man said, by replying, “We won’t stop you.”
They embarked on a six-hour march that ended at another facility, where exhausted migrants rested after receiving pledges from aid organizations that they would receive help resettling in countries outside their countries of origin and Libya.
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On the phone and via social media, the young man shared news of the march and protests over the weekend with VOA, saying they were now planning to wait “a few days” to see if authorities can propose a lasting solution to their situation.
The travelers fled wars, violence and extreme poverty in their home countries, mostly in sub-Saharan Africa. On the road to Libya, many were kidnapped, assaulted or tortured and then detained after risking their lives to try to cross the sea to Europe.
Last week, they were victims of a bombing in the detention center that killed 53 people and wounded at least 130.
The United Nations had warned both sides engaged in Libya’s war that civilians were held in the location before the bombing, and the facility had been previously targeted. Protests
Over the weekend, the detainees who later marched off the premises protested behind the walls of the detention compound. They slept outside, as most of the facility was destroyed. Many reported refusing food as part of a hunger strike.
They carried signs, holding them up for the few secret mobile phone cameras. “We are in a grave,” said one sign, while another read, “Save Us From Next Bombing.”
In a statement on Wednesday morning, the UNHCR said it “welcomes the decision today to give the remaining detainees in Tajoura the choice to freely leave the detention centre.” FILE – Migrants march toward the offices of international organizations to demand help traveling to Europe after Libyan police agreed to meet their demand for release from a bombed-out facility, in Tripoli, Libya, July 9, 2019. (H.Murdock/VOA)Plea for solutions
The organization said it had a plan to relocate the “55 most vulnerable refugees,” but it called on the international community to seek solutions for the other 200-plus people now temporarily housed in a facility migrants say is short on food, water and sanitation.
The new location is “a facility for the most vulnerable refugees for whom a solution outside Libya has already been identified,” and not suitable for long-term housing, according to the UNHCR.
The young migrant talking to VOA on the phone was unsure if he could leave freely, or why he would leave while waiting for an answer to the most pressing question of his and his fellow-protesters’ lives: Will they help them get to Europe?
“There is police at the gate,” he said. “Anyway, where should I go?”
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