Cameroon’s main opposition party says the government is plotting to assassinate its leader, Maurice Kamto. The Cameroon Resistance Movement reiterated its claim Monday, three days after the party says an armed man tried to shoot and kill Kamto during a visit to the city of Garoua. The government says there was no assassination attempt. In a statement Monday, the CRM party said it wants the world to know there are plans to eliminate their leader, Maurice Kamto. In the release, Kamto calls on Cameroonians to take note and insists that he was elected president of Cameroon in the October 2018 polls but that long-serving President Paul Biya stole his victory. On Friday, Kamto visited Garoua, capital of the North Region. He was riding in a car, with crowds of supporters lining both sides of the road, when his private security guards riding behind him dove toward someone following them on a motorcycle. The guards said the man was carrying a rifle to kill Kamto. The security guards took the armed man, later identified as a member of the Cameroon military, to the governor. The governor, who is, the highest-ranking official of the North Region, did not make a statement. On Saturday night, about 40 Kamto supporters demonstrated at CRM headquarters in Yaounde, calling on the government to explain why it sent an armed man after their leader. CRM Secretary-General Christopher Ndong says the actions of the motorcyclist showed that Kamto is no longer safe. “I confirm the assassination plot because we have seen that this particular person was a gendarmerie officer that attempted to kill Maurice Kamto in Garoua. He was arrested by the security forces [Kamtos’ private security] that were around Maurice Kamto and carried to the governor’s office,” he said. Later Friday, a crowd at a Kamto rally subdued a man armed with the sort of gun used by the police and gendarmes. Government spokesperson Rene Emmanuel Sadi said the officer on the motorcycle was simply gathering intelligence and accused the Kamto supporters of molesting him. Sadi says the officers did not try to kill Kamto, and dismissed the CRM’s statements as a bid to manipulate the public and cause a riot at a time when the country needs peace. “Professor Kamto should realize that the claim is an illusion. There comes a time when a politician lay aside his political interest and takes the posture of a statesman in order to safeguard the best interest of the nation,” he said. Kamto recently returned to Cameroon after holding rallies in Paris and Washington. In those events, he thanked Cameroonians living abroad for standing by him through his detention from February to October of last year. He was arrested in February 2019 for contesting the results of the October 2018 presidential election. He was released on October 5, 201,9 when Biya ordered an end to court proceedings against Kamto and hundreds of his supporters.
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Month: March 2020
China Objects to Trump’s ‘Chinese Virus’ Tweet
China expressed its strong opposition Tuesday to U.S. President Donald Trump using the term “Chinese virus” to refer to the novel coronavirus that has spread to more than 150 countries around the world. Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Geng Shuang said Trump’s language stigmatizes China. Trump tweeted Monday: “The United States will be powerfully supporting those industries, like Airlines and others, that are particularly affected by the Chinese Virus.” The United States will be powerfully supporting those industries, like Airlines and others, that are particularly affected by the Chinese Virus. We will be stronger than ever before!— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) Centers for Disease Control and Prevention Director Robert Redfield testifies before the House Commerce subcommittee on Capitol Hill in Washington, Feb. 26, 2020, during a hearing on the budget and coronavirus.When asked at a congressional hearing if it was “absolutely wrong and inappropriate” for the president to use such language, the director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention Robert Redfield said, “Yes.” “China was the first phase. Korea and Iran were the second phase, with Italy, now all of Europe,” Redfield said. The World Health Organization refers to the novel coronavirus as the COVID-19 virus. In announcing the name, WHO chief Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said having such a designation “matters to prevent the use of other names that can be inaccurate or stigmatizing.”
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Coronavirus Pushes China to Show Mercy Rather Than Pursue Companies in Court
Fearful of causing further harm to an economy laid low by the coronavirus epidemic, authorities in China have become a lot more lenient dealing with entrepreneurs breaking the law. Entrepreneurs suspected of crimes ranging from forging VAT invoices to allowing drug use on their property have been let off with warnings to prevent any further drag on production or employment, according to local media reports. This leniency contrasts with the harsh treatment meted out to private firms by courts over the past few decades, as many have found themselves on the wrong side of disputes with local governments and state-owned firms, according to legal experts. “Not arresting and not prosecuting means firms can still operate, and still have leeway to be rescued,” said a court official in Zhejiang, a coastal province with a vibrant private sector. Otherwise the firms could immediately collapse, he told Reuters, declining to give his name due to the sensitivity of the matter. Shaoxing city in Zhejiang said it decided not to prosecute fourteen private companies in February to help with the return to work after the virus-induced shutdown, according to the state-owned China News Service. The reason for opting against prosecution in one case was that nearly 70 workers would have lost their jobs. Leniency has become the order of the day, though the central government has been calling for better treatment of private business for years. “If it is possible to not arrest them, do not,” the Supreme People’s Procuratorate, China’s national agency in charge of prosecutions, said in February, urging enforcement officers to go easy on key personnel in errant firms. Business operators who are not dangerous to society and who show remorse after giving themselves up should not be detained, said another document from the agency published last month. Earlier this month, a Taiwanese factory manager and his company’s Taiwanese legal representative received a warning for conspiring to smuggle in Vietnamese workers into their plant in the eastern province of Fujian, according to a local government-backed paper. Had they been tried and convicted, they could have faced up to seven years imprisonment. Authorities watching companies’ compliance with environmental regulations have also become more permissive. The private sector accounts for 80% of urban jobs and most of China’s GDP, but many firms faced major disruptions to operations and cash flow during the lockdowns ordered to contain the epidemic. As new infection rates subsided, authorities gave the all clear for industry to get back to work, but many companies are still wobbling back to life. China’s factory production plunged at the sharpest pace in three decades in the first two months of the year, with the urban jobless rate hitting 6.2% in February, the highest since official records were published. In China, private firms have been especially vulnerable to legal action. Local governments have sometimes characterized cases brought against companies for illegal fundraising, or contract fraud, as attacks on organised crime, say legal experts. In one ongoing campaign, “obviously innocent people were arrested,” said Jiang Su, a law professor at Peking University. Jiang said the prosecutions were sometimes driven by police quotas and local protectionism. China’s Ministry of Justice and the Ministry of Public Security did not respond to faxed requests for comment.
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Macron Locks Down France, EU Borders to Shut as Coronavirus Spreads Through Europe
The European Union’s external borders will be closed to non-essential travel for 30 days as of Tuesday to fight the spread of the coronavirus, while France is following Italy and Spain in imposing a nationwide lockdown for at least 15 days.In an address to the nation Monday night, President Emmanuel Macron announced France was at war against COVID-19. He announced new measures both within France and across the EU to contain its spread. Macron said as of midday Tuesday, the EU and Europe’s visa-free Schengen zone borders would be shut for 30 days for all but essential travel. Earlier in the day, European Commission chief Ursula von der Leyen said she had made the recommendation to the 27-member bloc. Macron also announced a minimum 15-day lockdown across France and its territories. People must drastically limit their movement outside their homes to essential work, errands and health services also as of Tuesday midday. Getting together with friends and non-household family members is forbidden, and violators risk punishment. The new restrictions come amid surging numbers of coronavirus cases here — and as some hospitals increasingly struggle to cope with an overload of sick patients, especially in the eastern part of the country. Macron also said the second round of local elections would be postponed, along with a series of unpopular reforms his government has pushed through in recent months. He announced measures to support businesses hard hit by the coronavirus, including more than $335 billion in tax and other relief.
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Minorities, Youth & Poor Facing Longest Lines in Primary Elections
Abdul Smith, a 42-year-old African American resident of Santa Monica, California, made six attempts to vote in his state’s Democratic primary on March 3. Long lines at polling stations defeated him each time. “It was the first vote I’d missed since my 18th birthday,” Smith told VOA. “Every time I went to a new polling location, the line was even longer. I couldn’t find anywhere with less than a two-hour wait.” California now allows voters to cast ballots at any polling place in the county where they live. Smith works from home, and repeatedly attempted to vote between morning meetings. He tried again in the afternoon but had to leave to pick up his daughters from school. “By then, the lines were stretching down a stairwell, out a building and down one-and-a-half city blocks,” he said, adding that he intended to vote for Massachusetts Sen. Elizabeth Warren. FILE – A sign points potential voters to an official polling location during early voting in Dallas, Feb. 26, 2020.Others have persevered for as many as seven hours. Some of the longest lines in America’s primary season to date were reported in Houston, Texas, where Alex Palmer waited for nearly five hours earlier this month to cast a ballot for Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders. “These elections are too important to miss,” said Palmer, a recent college graduate. “I wanted my voice to be counted, no matter how long it took.” Palmer’s polling place is located at Texas Southern University, a historically black institution of higher learning in a city with large African American and Hispanic populations. Unusually long lines have not been limited to California and Texas. Twenty-four states held nominating contests ahead of Tuesday’s primaries in Florida, Ohio, Illinois and Arizona. Polling stations from Dallas, Texas, to East Lansing, Michigan, to San Francisco, California, all reported frustrating delays. In Fargo, North Dakota, hundreds of voters stood in minus-10-degree Celsius weather for more than two hours. FILE – In this Feb. 28, 2020 photo, voters wait in line at an early polling site in San Antonio.Widespread reports of voting delays come as Democrats turn out in record numbers in many states to choose a nominee to face President Donald Trump in November. They also come amid renewed allegations of voter suppression in the United States. Caren Short, senior staff attorney for the Southern Poverty Law Center, notes that voting problems tend to affect similar demographics in state after state. “If you look where the longest lines take place, it’s almost always in places with a disproportionate number of voters of color, poor voters, young voters and voters with less access to transportation,” Short said. A historic problem Voter suppression is nothing new to U.S. politics. Suffrage for non-landowners didn’t come until 1828, and it wasn’t until the 15th amendment to the U.S. Constitution was ratified in 1870 that denying the right to vote based on race and color was prohibited. Even after the 15th Amendment, poll taxes and literacy tests disenfranchised poor and minority voters. Of the 330,000 black residents of Mississippi in 1946, only 30,000 could vote. FILE – Photograph of President Lyndon Johnson signing the Voting Rights Act as Martin Luther King, Jr., with other civil rights leaders in the Capitol Rotunda, Washington, DC, Aug. 6, 1965. (Creative Commons)This changed with the passage of the landmark Voting Rights Act of 1965, prohibiting racial discrimination in voting. “A very important piece of that Act,” Short explained, “was a handful of states that had previously restricted the right to vote were now required to obtain federal approval before making any changes to their local election laws.” The law allowed the federal government to veto restrictive barriers to voting. Before 1965, only 23% of African Americans voted in America. That number jumped to 61% by 1969, giving black voters political clout they hadn’t had since the aftermath of the Civil War. This provision lasted for nearly 50 years, before the U.S. Supreme Court deemed in the 2013 Shelby v. Holder decision that this protection was no longer necessary. But Short believes data from the last seven years show otherwise. New rules The Brennan Center for Justice reports 25 states have enacted new voting restrictions in the last decade. Since Shelby v. Holder, these restrictions include new ID requirements, cuts to early voting, the purging of voters from state databases and a dramatic rise in polling place closures. The Leadership Conference on Civil and Human Rights notes that 1,688 polling locations have closed in 13 states in the last six years, and that those closures disproportionately take place in districts with growing populations of minority or young voters, leading to longer voting lines. Many Republican lawmakers see these restrictions as a necessary defense against fraudulent voting. In a 2017 op-ed in The Dallas Morning News, for example, Texas Gov. Greg Abbott wrote, “Ensuring the integrity of the ballot box is one of the most fundamental functions of the government. We must do more to ensure that there is no illegal voting in Texas.” Civil rights organizations, however, insist there is no data to substantiate claims that voter fraud is a serious threat. “It is very, very rare,” Short said, adding that a lack of uniformity in how voting is conducted is a far bigger threat. “Rules are different from state to state, and even from county to county. It’s confusing to voters, but it also makes it difficult to communicate accurate information and to properly train poll workers.” Many states, many problems In Michigan, the long lines were partially being blamed on more than 10,000 voters taking advantage of a new law that allowed them to register on the same day as the primaries, slowing down voting as they completed lengthy paperwork. FILE – Voters work on their ballots in the kiosks in Jackson, Miss., March 10, 2020.Alabama and Mississippi residents reported the moving of polling places to new locations, causing confusion and delays. In Texas, long voting lines are the subject of partisan debate. Democrats blame Republican efforts to close more than 750 polling locations across the state. Republicans blame county Democrats for assigning the same number of voting machines for both parties, even though Democratic primary turnout was expected to be much higher than that of Republicans, as Trump has faced no serious challenge to his nomination for a second term. “It’s easy to get caught up in what the intention of certain laws were that caused long lines,” said Abraham Aiyash, statewide training and political director at Michigan United, “but the most important thing to focus on is that whether it was an honest mistake, overwhelmed volunteers or something more nefarious, people haven’t been able to cast their ballot. That, by definition, is voter suppression, and we need to stop it.” Upcoming elections In Arizona, which is holding its primary election this week, 20% of polling locations have been closed, mostly in urban centers. Florida controversially eliminated early voting locations on and near college campuses, making long lines more likely Tuesday. Georgia — which was scheduled to vote next week, but whose primary was delayed because of COVID-19 — has reorganized polling stations such that seven counties with large minority populations have only one location to cast their ballots.Aiyash says states and counties must learn from and fix voting problems before November’s general election, when voter turnout is expected to be even higher. “If you were overwhelmed in the primaries, imagine what that will look like in November,” he said. Short agrees. “Some people see long lines as an example of great turnout that should be celebrated,” she explained, “but it’s actually an example of voter suppression. It’s unfair, and it’s damaging to our democracy,” she said.
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Millions of Girls Worldwide Still Subjected to Painful, Dangerous Genital Cutting
The internationally condemned ritual of female genital mutilation (FGM) is practiced in at least 92 countries, according to a new study released Monday by three advocacy groups. Despite a decline in its prevalence in recent decades, there are still millions of girls around the world subjected to the painful and highly dangerous practice. An age-old ritual, FGM is practiced for a variety of cultural and religious reasons, primarily as a means to curb women’s interest in sex and to cure perceived sexual problems. In the Dawoodi Bohra Muslim community of the Indian subcontinent, it is widely practiced as an initiation rite for girls. It was used in the United States to discourage female masturbation before the cutting practice became outlawed in the 20th century. The study, conducted by End FGM European Network, End FGM/C U.S. Network, and Equality Now, highlights the extent to which national survey data collected by United Nations agencies in recent years have underestimated the extent of FGM — also known as FGM/C (female genital mutilation/cutting) — around the world. Widespread practice The U.N. estimates that more than 200 million girls have undergone the ritual in 32 countries during recent decades, based on large-scale national surveys from those countries. The new study examined smaller national studies and indirect estimates to document evidence of the practice in an additional 60 countries. “There is growing evidence of the currency of FGM/C in more countries than actually measured,” said Ghada Khan, one of the authors of the study. “We wanted to highlight the fact that this is a global issue, it is occurring worldwide and that it requires a global response.” ‘Female circumcision’ Known as female circumcision in some countries, FGM ranges in severity from the partial or total removal of the clitoris to other harmful procedures such as pricking, piercing, incising and scraping the female genitalia. The ritual is performed as early as infancy to the teen years, often using crude implements such as scissors and without an anesthetic. An implement used for performing female genital mutilation (FGM) on young girls in Karamoja, Uganda, Jan. 31, 2018.With well-documented physical and psychological harm to girls and young women, the practice has long been considered a human rights and women’s rights violation. Serious human rights abuse The U.S. government considers FGM “a serious human rights abuse, and a form of gender-based violence and child abuse,” according to the State Department. Thirty-two mostly African nations have long been known as FGM hot spots. In addition, the study found FGM evidence in 31 Western countries, including the United States, where the ritual is practiced in immigrant communities, and more than half a million girls have either undergone the ritual or are at risk; and in 29 other countries where small-scale national studies and other evidence confirm the existence of the practice. Ritual crosses religious and cultural lines Though prevalent among some Muslim majority countries, FGM runs across religious, cultural and geographic lines. In Colombia, a 2011 study documented the existence of FGM among the country’s Embera indigenous community. In Israel, a 2012 study found evidence of FGM among Ethiopian Jews living in the country. And in the United States, several cases of FGM among white Christian women have come to light in recent years. Silence surrounds the practice “There is such a silence that surrounds this practice, that until we are talking about it more, we are really never going to know the number of girls in the U.S that have been affected,” Jenny, a white Christian woman who underwent FGM at the age of 5, is quoted as saying in the report. “We have to remove the shame, make it a subject safe to talk about,” she said. “This is not a race, culture, religious, regional or anything else kind of issue. It is a human issue. Period.” Congress seeks to beef up the law
The findings come as the U.S. Congress seeks to beef up a 1996 anti-FGM law that was declared unconstitutional by a federal judge two years ago. Last week, the House Judiciary Committee advanced legislation that would clarify the constitutional basis of the law, making it a federal crime to perform genital cutting. The current law, enacted by Congress in 1996, bans female genital cutting in the United States and prohibits parents from taking their children overseas to undergo the practice. In addition, 35 states forbid the practice, while others are considering passing similar legislation.A man shows the logo of a T-shirt that reads “Stop the Cut” referring to Female Genital Mutilation (FGM) during a social event advocating against harmful practices such as FGM at the Imbirikani Girls High School in Imbirikani, Kenya, April 21, 2016Detroit doctors charged In 2017, the Justice Department charged two Detroit-area doctors with performing FGM on nine girls as young as five years old. The doctors are members of the Dawoodi Bohra Muslim sect. But the following year, a federal judge in Michigan dismissed the charges against them, ruling that the law was unconstitutional. In a highly unusual move, the Justice Department then declined to appeal the decision and instead asked Congress to amendment the law. With bipartisan support, the House bill, which would raise the maximum penalty for performing FGM on a minor, is widely expected to pass in the coming months. “It is critical that we take steps to update the FGM statute to ensure that girls are protected from this brutal practice,” House Judiciary Committee Jerrold Nadler said last week. Anti-FGM laws The U.S. is one of only 51 countries with anti-FGM laws, according to the study. Advocates have been working with members of Congress to pass the legislation. “We’re excited about (the House bill) because the whole world is looking toward the U.S. as a leader in this area, and for the U.S. not to have federal law is extremely problematic,” Khan said. In 2015, U.N. members set eradication of FGM as one of their sustainable development goals for 2030. But a 2018 United Nations Population Fund report warned that if current population trends hold, at least 68 million more girls will face FGM by 2030, with the number of victims rising to 4.6 million per year. “Even these alarming figures are grossly inadequate, as they do not take into account, as outlined in this report, at least 60 countries where there is no national-level prevalence data available,” the report states. “If we want to achieve worldwide eradication of FGM/C by 2030, we must measure FGM/C prevalence in every country and accelerate global efforts to end this harmful practice,” the report said.
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South Sudan Ministers Announce Travel Ban to Stop Coronavirus Spread
South Sudan President Salva Kiir has issued new directives to prevent the spread of the new coronavirus, including a travel ban on all newly appointed ministers. During the swearing-in Monday of his new cabinet, Kiir told the ministers they were not permitted to travel anywhere outside the country and issued a new order for diplomats returning from travel. “I have just ordered self-quarantine of all senior government officials who have just arrived from countries with established infections and transmission of COVID-19. All planned social gatherings like sporting events, religious events, social, cultural [events] such as weddings and political events must be postponed,” Kiir told the ministers. Newly-appointed Foreign Affairs Minister Beatrice Khamisa Wani, who recently returned from an unidentified country with confirmed cases of the virus, is in self-isolation for two weeks since returning to Juba. Newly appointed Deputy Minister of the Interior Mabior Garang did not attend the swearing-in. His absence was not explained by officials. President Kiir said any minister who travels to a country with known cases of coronavirus must observe the World Health Organization’s restrictions and stay in isolation for at least fourteen days. Kiir also ordered restrictions on the issuing of new visas to South Sudanese. “Any unessential travel to affected countries must be called off or postponed to a later date. We have ordered restrictions for the movement of people including declining to issue new visas and revoking visas and resident permits and denial of admission at the port of entry,” Kiir said. Kiir warned against any foreign travel, even to neighboring countries like Kenya. “This thing is not far from you my people, because my ministers have been traveling a lot. And this time, it will start with you. You stop these travels until the situation clears itself,” Kiir told his ministers. The president called on the general public to maintain personal hygiene, to stop shaking hands and to practice social distancing at their place of work, noting confirmed cases of the virus have been identified in neighboring Kenya and Sudan. He also directed South Sudan’s security organizations to ensure that all large public gatherings are suspended.
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Drive-Thru Coronavirus Tests for Cleveland Clinic
Cleveland Clinic in Ohio and University Hospitals have added a second location for drive-through COVID-19 testing for patients with a doctor’s order. Patients can stay in their cars while samples are taken with nasal and throat swabs. People with symptoms are instructed to start with an online visit to Cleveland Clinic’s Express Care Online or call their primary care physician. The Cleveland Clinic says it has tested more than 600 people on Monday. The Cleveland Clinic and University Hospitals opened their first testing location on Saturday. So far they have tested 800 patients, with 26 testing positive who are then treated at the clinic. Brian Rubin, head of the clinic’s pathology medicine, said the group is following CDC’s (Centers for Disease Control) guidelines. Rubin told Reuters news agency that local testing is very important because the specimens don’t need to be transported and the results can be obtained rapidly. But he added that the role of big laboratories is also important because they can test a large number of people. Rubin warns the public this is not a short-term health problem. “If I had to guess right now, I would say we’re in for at least a three month haul to deal with this virus before we really understand it and are able to cope with it in a more reasonable way,” he said.
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EU Borders to Shut, France under Lockdown: Macron
The European Union’s external borders will be closed to non-essential travel for 30 days as of Tuesday to fight the spread of the coronavirus, while France is following Italy and Spain in imposing a nationwide lockdown for at least 15 days.In an address to the nation Monday night, President Emmanuel Macron announced France was at war against COVID-19. He announced new measures both within France and across the EU to contain its spread. Macron said as of midday Tuesday, the EU and Europe’s visa-free Schengen zone borders would be shut for 30 days for all but essential travel. Earlier in the day, European Commission chief Ursula von der Leyen said she had made the recommendation to the 27-member bloc. Macron also announced a minimum 15-day lockdown across France and its territories. People must drastically limit their movement outside their homes to essential work, errands and health services also as of Tuesday midday. Getting together with friends and non-household family members is forbidden, and violators risk punishment. The new restrictions come amid surging numbers of coronavirus cases here — and as some hospitals increasingly struggle to cope with an overload of sick patients, especially in the eastern part of the country. Macron also said the second round of local elections would be postponed, along with a series of unpopular reforms his government has pushed through in recent months. He announced measures to support businesses hard hit by the coronavirus, including more than $335 billion in tax and other relief.
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Four Killed in Missouri Shooting
A gunman who crashed his car into a convenience store in Springfield, Missouri, on Sunday fatally shot four people, including himself, police said Monday. A police officer is among the dead. Officials say they arrived at the store after receiving a number of calls that someone in a car was shooting at other drivers and had deliberately driven through the front of the store. The gunman opened fire at officers and customers, leaving three dead at the scene before taking his own life. Springfield’s police chief said the officer died at a hospital. The gunman has not been identified, and the motive for his violent rampage is unclear.
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In Thailand, US Threads Between Military Interest and Democratic Ideals
Thanat Apichonpongsakorn, a 34-year-old business owner, had nearly given up on Thai politics. But after he saw young politicians launch a new party, he went to the polls last year with a new attitude, not just to vote “no” as he had the previous two elections since 2011. Thanat left the voting booth on March 24, 2019, filled with optimism for the Future Forward Party. Within less than a year, the party he supported was gone after a court ruled against its financial practice, a verdict that pries open Thanat’s prior view on politics. “No matter who the new government will be,” he said, “There will be the same kind of people and bodies. Nothing is going to change.” The demise of Future Forward, the country’s second-biggest opposition party, removes a challenge in the parliament for the military-backed government and armed forces, and has a knock-on effect to the U.S.-Thai relationship. It tests the ability of the U.S. to thread a delicate line between strengthening military ties with its oldest ally in Asia and advocating for democracy in a region where strongman rulers including Cambodia’s Hun Sen and Thailand’s General Prayut Chan-o-cha emerged triumphant from elections regarded as flawed by international observers.Election Monitor Slams ‘Deeply Flawed’ Ballot Counting in Thailand
A regional election observation group is criticizing the initial results from Sunday’s general election in Thailand as “deeply flawed.”
Preliminary results released Monday by the country’s election commission show the military-backed Phalang Pracharat was leading in the ballot counting, but the populist Pheu Thai is leading in the number of parliamentary seats with 137 versus 97 seats for Phalang Pracharat. The commission blames the confusing and contradictory results on “human error.”
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“I still think that Washington would prefer to have a more democratic government in Thailand than exists today,” said Paul Chambers, a visiting research scholar at Kyoto University in Japan. “A more democratic government would be more popular and the U.S. would rather connect with a popular, democratic government with which it can boost the U.S. interests.” Elsewhere, the U.S. has chosen strategic interest in security over ideological principle, and vice versa. For Thailand, growing discontent with the government could determine the choices of the Washington’s approach in the future. Storm of criticism On February 21, the Thai Constitutional Court ruled that the Future Forward Party violated a law when it took $6-million loans from its leader Thanathorn Juangroongruangkit, a 41-years-old tycoon who had left his family automotive empire to dabble in politics. The ruling touched off a storm of criticism in Thailand and abroad. “While the United States does not favor or support any particular political party in Thailand, more than six million voters chose the Future Forward Party in the March 24th elections,” the U.S. Embassy in Bangkok said in a statement hours after the court’s verdict. “The decision to disband the party risks disenfranchising those voters and raises questions about their representation within Thailand’s electoral system.” On February 25, one of Future Forward’s fiercest critics, Thai Army Chief Apirat Kongsompong, entered the Hart Building in Washington, DC, free from the legion of Thai news crew who had followed him at home in recent weeks. He was greeted by Senator Tammy Duckworth, the Democrat from Illinois who is a member of Senate Armed Services Committee. “As a Thai-American, I feel strongly that we must continue building upon the strong relationship between the U.S. and Thailand. … We should be doing more to support and advance our partnerships in Southeast Asia,” Duckworth said in a statement. Apirat’s trip, by American Army Chief James McConville’s invitation, coincided with the full participation of the U.S. in the Cobra Gold military exercise in Thailand, the largest international military drills in the Indo-Pacific region. Military exercise between Thai and U.S. had been scaled down after a coup that overthrew the democratically elected government of Prime Minister Yingluck Shinawatra in 2014. During that period, Thailand and China forged deeper ties, leaving the U.S. to play catch up to counterweigh Beijing’s power when Thai democracy was restored. Balancing act The U.S. balancing act in Thailand as a shepherd of democratic ideal and a military realist offers a window into how Washington walks a policy tightrope, more deliberately than it did in some parts of the world. In Egypt, Army Chief Abdel Fattah el-Sissi ousted the country’s first democratically elected president, Mohamed Morsi, in 2013. The U.S. government under President Barak Obama didn’t call Morsi’s removal a coup thus circumventing a legally binding requirement to withdraw $1.5 billion aid in U.S. aid for Egypt, long a strategic ally that helped keep peace in the region. But it’s a different story in the Philippines. The longstanding U.S.-Philippine military alliance started faltering when Washington criticized President Rodrigo Duterte for his crackdown on drugs after he took office in 2016. In January this year, Washington canceled the visa of Senator Ronald Dela Rosa of the Philippines who served as national police chief when Duterte began his anti-drug campaign in which thousands of people were killed extrajudicially. On February 10, the Manila government announced that it had sent a “notice of termination” regarding the Visiting Forces Agreement to the U.S. Embassy in Manila. The agreement, signed in 1998, allows for U.S. forces on Philippine soil to conduct military exercises and humanitarian missions in the region. Thailand’s turning point When Thailand’s Yingluck was ousted from office six years ago by Prayut who was then army chief, the military was credited for ending political gridlock and taking down the political dynasty of Thaksin Shinawatra. The telecom tycoon-turn-politician rose to power with a landslide victory in the 2001 election, which was later tarnished by cronyism and corruption allegations. Many supporters of former junta leader Prayut who became prime minister again after the 2019 elections, think the general is overstaying his welcome. “He could be remembered forever as ‘The man who returned the democracy to Thailand’ but instead he chose to further dirtying his hands,” said a Thai business owner who identified himself as Derndin Kinkaogang. “Let’s just say I lost faith.” Prayut fatigue has intensified in recent weeks as his administration has faced the economic repercussion from the global outbreak of COVID-19. Citing analysts, Bloomberg News reported on January 31, that Thailand’s economy may slide into a technical recession in the first quarter this year. The disbandment of Future Forward is helping to fan the sense of despair. “The regime just doesn’t care,” said Boonyawee Johnson, a Thai resident in Washington areas. “Why, just why did (the party’s executive members) have to get banned from politics for a decade over this mere loan issue?” The so-called “flash mobs” against the government by more than 35 universities and high schools could nudge the country into a cycle of swelling demonstration, unstable government, military interference and another general election all over again. Analysts said, faced with a series of setback from a shortage of surgical masks to recent spikes in the number of confirmed cases of the coronavirus in Thailand, Prayut may try to appease public discontent by removing cabinet members who gained less support than others after the censure debates during February 24-27. While a cabinet reshuffle may send a message to Thailand’s democratic allies that Prayut takes into account opposition voice, there are detractors who call for a bigger change.
“It has come to a point where the rip tide of public discontent is too strong for a reshuffle to make it recede,” Pannika Wanich, one of Future Forward’s executive members said in an interview. If this rip tide forewarns further ebbs of Thai democracy, the U.S. may have to recalibrate its balancing act. “For decades, we have witnessed the U.S.’s complicated interplay of democracy promotion, and American security interests,” said Siripan Nogsuan Sawasdee, lecturer at Faculty of Political Science, Chulalongkorn University in Bangkok. “This perplexity makes it difficult for the U.S. to find a balance in her relations with Thailand, between democratic rhetoric, and military power and benefits.”
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Major Military Exercise in Africa Now Canceled
One of the U.S. military’s largest exercises in Africa has been canceled due to the threat of the coronavirus, after already being significantly scaled down last week. U.S. Africa Command said Monday the decision to cancel the massive, U.S.-led African Lion exercise was made “out of an abundance of caution” and based on both international travel restrictions associated with COVID-19 and the desire to minimize the risk of service members being exposed to the coronavirus. The massive, U.S.-led African Lion exercises in Morocco, Tunisia and Senegal were supposed to involve 9,300 troops from eight nations. The troops use the exercises to improve military readiness and integration, while preparing to combat transregional threats. Last week, Gen. Stephen Townsend, commander of U.S. Africa Command, told VOA and The Wall Street Journal that he had decided to to significantly scale down the exercise “in scale and scope” based on coronavirus concerns. At that time, Army exercises were to be cut because they involved troops being housed in closed quarters. However, Townsend and his international partners had planned to continue training events that required “less interaction between large troop formations like air activity, naval activity, and maybe some special operations activity,” the general said.African Lion was scheduled to take place from March 23 to April 4. While African Lion 2020 has been canceled, planning continues for 2021. Meanwhile, U.S. officials have significantly scaled down long-awaited Defender 2020 exercises in Europe. Pentagon spokesman Jonathan Hoffman said Monday that while the main exercise may be constrained, the Pentagon hopes to continue some individual components of the exercise to get as “much benefit out of them as possible.” Defender 2020 was intended to test the Army’s ability to move a force of between 10,000-20,000 troops for training across 10 European countries. About 6,000 soldiers had already deployed from the United States to Europe since January.
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Terrorism Charge Brought Against Russian Journalist Prokopyeva
Russian journalist Svetlana Prokopyeva has been formally charged with justifying terrorism in a case that has drawn criticism from rights and media watchdogs.Prokopyeva, a freelance contributor for RFE/RL’s Russian Service, said on March 16 she had been handed the indictment document at the prosecutor’s office in Pskov.She denies the charge, which stem from comments made during a 2018 Ekho Moskvy broadcast.If found guilty, the journalist faces seven years in prison.RFE/RL President Jamie Fly condemned Prokopyeva’s indictment, saying that “the charges lack any merit, and have been brought instead in a cynical effort to silence an independent journalist.””Independent journalists in Russia should be respected for their critical role in providing people with important news and information about issues they are facing, and not treated as criminals for doing their jobs,” Fly added.
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Tanzania Confirms First Case of Coronavirus
At least 30 countries across Africa have now reported cases of coronavirus, including four that reported their first instances Monday – Benin, Liberia, Somalia and Tanzania. Speaking to reporters Monday, Health Minister Ummy Mwalimu said the coronavirus patient is a 46-year-old Tanzanian woman who arrived in Arusha from Belgium on the afternoon of March 14. Mwalimu said the passenger arrived through Kilimanjaro Airport and was checked by the health officials but was not found to have a fever. Later, she started feeling unwell while in a hotel and went to the Mount Meru regional hospital, where a sample was taken to the public health laboratory in Dar es Salaam for an investigation.Mwalimu said the laboratory results have confirmed the person has COVID-19. The minister said the patient is in good condition and officials are tracing those with whom she came into contact after her arrival. Authorities announced other steps to halt the spread of the virus. President John Magufuli postponed the Uhuru torch ceremony, an annual event that involves relaying a torch across the country. The government advised all citizens to postpone nonessential travel to countries with reported COVID-19 cases. And officials advised public places such as schools, hotels, churches and mosques to install hand sanitizers.
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Spain Adopts Italy-Style Measures to Contain Coronavirus
Spain is suffering Europe’s worst coronavirus contagion after Italy, according to government officials who have declared a “state of alarm” to implement the type of emergency measures instituted in Italy, forcing people to stay indoors even at the risk of economic paralysis. According to Spanish health authorities, the number of confirmed coronavirus cases rose past 9,000 on Monday, increasing at a rate of 35% over the weekend when the government issued quarantine orders for all of Spain. In Italy, confirmed coronavirus cases by Monday had exceeded 24,000, second only to China where the infection began. The government there has been criticized for not instituting emergency measures earlier than it did. “By applying nationwide measures early on we hope to get above the contagion curve,” said Madrid Community Vice President Ignacio Aguado, who administers health programs in Spain’s capital where about half of Spain’s coronavirus cases are concentrated. He says the number of fatalities has been reduced through stepped-up testing and emergency care throughout the country, including the requisitioning of private hospitals and mobilizing of military medical teams. Fewer than 350 people were reported to have died in Spain as of Monday, compared to more than 1,800 in Italy. But the measures are expected to take a heavy toll on the economy. “Calculations of the economic impact are of major proportion” said Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez when he announced the state of emergency on Saturday. As in other countries, the Madrid stock market has seen share values decline by about one-third. Tourism – a major source of income which has helped to cushion Spain from previous economic crises – has suffered the heaviest blow as beaches, scenic town centers and all forms of outside entertainment have been declared off limits or banned. During the weekend, police vans and drones armed with loudspeakers warned citizens to stay away from beachside promenades and boulevards, while tourists crowded into airports to await repatriation to their respective countries. A woman takes shelters from the rain under an umbrella while passing graffiti reading,”Privatizing Health Service kills. Capitalvirus”, in Pamplona, northern Spain, March 16, 2020.The city of Seville is being forced to cancel its annual holy week processions, famous bull fights and horse fairs at a cost of about $500 million – a sum that some fear could bankrupt the southern region of Andalucia. Union and business leaders say they fear massive unemployment if the crisis drags on for months. Public health officials in Madrid predict that that the epidemic will not peak until April. Madrid Mayor Jose Luis Martinez Almeida has blamed the rapid propagation of the virus in Spain’s capital on a March 8 Women’s Day march led by government ministers. City officials had called for the march to be canceled in view of the growing health emergency. The wives of Sanchez and of Deputy Prime Minister Pablo Iglesias were found to be infected with the virus after participating the march. The entire leadership of the far right VOX party also went into quarantine last week following a rally in the Madrid suburb of Vista Alegre. At a press conference Sunday night, the ministers of interior, defense, sanitation and transport – who make up a newly formed emergency cabinet – announced plans to reduce road transport throughout Spain by 85%. Their declaration followed complaints from local authorities in eastern and southern coastal regions that Madrid residents were coming to serve their quarantines at their vacation homes. Protesting neighbors gathered outside the villa of former prime minister Jose Maria Azanar when he arrived from Madrid at the southern resort of Marbella with his family.
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Is it Safe to Eat Out, Grocery Shop in the Age of Coronavirus?
Several U.S. states are closing dine-in restaurants and bars, limiting the establishments to carry-out or delivery service, in an effort to stem the spread of coronavirus. The governors of California, Connecticut, Ohio, Illinois, New York, New Jersey, Massachusetts and Washington State are among those who have ordered the restrictions. Mayors in some towns across the United States are also putting similar measures in place. “These are very difficult decisions, but hours count here and very strong measures are necessary to slow the spread of the virus,” Washington state Governor Jay Inslee said.Customers order and wait for their food at a restaurant in Chicago, March 15, 2020.Ben Chapman, a professor and food safety specialist at North Carolina State University, says it is important for people to remember that, when it comes to coronavirus, the risks of eating out have nothing to do with the food itself. “I’m worried about someone coughing on surfaces, but food itself has not been identified at all as a risk factor in this outbreak,” Chapman says. “Eating food, handling food, has not been identified as a risk factor in this outbreak, or in any other respiratory virus outbreak.” Health experts are still trying to get a full grasp on how COVID-19 spreads. The Restaurant manager Natalie Marquez sanitizes tables and stacks chairs in Chicago, March 16, 2020.The National Restaurant Association has issued guidelines advising eating establishments in the U.S. on steps they can take to avoid spreading coronavirus. These measures include wiping surfaces down more often and using a list of disinfectants that, according to the Environmental Protection Agency, are effective against coronavirus. “State and local food codes establish strict safe food handling requirements for restaurants,” Larry Lynch, senior vice president of science and industry for the National Restaurant Association told VOA via email. “And operators are being proactive by stepping up existing cleaning and sanitation procedures.”
An area of concern for both restaurants and grocery stores is self-serve food bars where utensils are regularly shared. Chapman advises establishments to regularly clean or swap out shared serving utensils. “I think that restaurants and grocery stores are taking notice of these common high-touch surfaces and best practice would be to clean and sanitize, and/or replace those in at an interval that matches how often they’re being used,” Chapman says. “That’s where it gets a little tough and you kind of have to look at it business by business.” While people can avoid restaurants if they choose to, most will have to eventually go to the grocery store to buy food. A shopper wheels her cart full of groceries in Skokie, Ill., Saturday, March 14, 2020.While the primary risk factor is being around sick people, there is a contamination concern about hard surfaces like grocery carts, tongs and self-serve areas, sliding doors where refrigerated foods are kept, door handles, and going to the restroom. Shoppers can manage that risk by washing their hands, not touching their face, and using hand sanitizer. But what if someone infected with coronavirus sneezes in the produce department where many fruits and vegetables are displayed out in the open? “Even though something like an apple seems like a really hard surface, there are a lot of biological components that can make it not the greatest surface for a virus to survive on,” Chapman says. “The fact that someone even coughs on my food is gross, but doesn’t really, at this point, increase my risk of getting coronavirus because I’m going to eat that produce, and it’s going to go into the high acids environment in my stomach.” And if even carry-out food is a worry for some people, Chapman says consumers can take proper precautions. “If I’m worried about something on a package or on a bag, as soon as I’m finished touching that bag, before I touch my food, I will wash my hands and use hand sanitizer,” he says. “Do not think that you’re not in control of the risk because you do have a step to reduce your individual risk.”
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Economists Say Coronavirus Will Slam African Economies
As the coronavirus spreads across Africa, countries are taking stronger measures to curb its spread. The restrictions may contain the virus, but will likely have a deep impact on the continent’s economies. With several African governments closing borders, canceling flights and enforcing strict quarantine requirements to curb the spread of the virus, experts say there will be consequences for the continent’s economy. The United Nations said it now estimates Africa’s GDP rate will fall from 3.2 percent to 1.8 percent this year. “This is going to deal a very severe blow to growth,” said Vera Songwe, secretary-general of the United Nations Economic Commission for Africa, “even though the numbers of cases on the continent are quite small. If you look at that Africa does not seem to be affected. But then when you look at the economics, I think that is where the big story is for Africa. We are being severely affected.” Over the weekend Kenya shut its border to foreigners, while Ghana banned entry to anyone who visited a country with the coronavirus in the last two weeks. South Africa, already in a recession, declared a national state of emergency and banned travel to and from China, Europe and the U.S.FILE – People ride a boat past an oil discharge facility in Lagos, Nigeria, Nov. 10, 2016.Economists say these restrictions and others around the world will disrupt global supply chains and decrease travel, which in turn should cause oil prices to drop. Songwe said African oil exporters will feel the impact. “If you’re a country like Nigeria, which is a net oil exporter — one, we’re demanding less oil from you, but secondly the amount of oil that we’re demanding from you has dropped [in price]. We’ve estimated that Nigeria could lose almost $19 billion if the trend continues and that’s a big shock to Nigeria’s economy, which was already growing at quite a low rate of 2.8 percent.” In order for Africa to meet its global targets under the UN’s Sustainable Development Goals, economists say Africa must grow at a minimum of 8 percent. Stephen Karingi, the director of the trade division at the UN’s Economic Commission for Africa, told VOA that the impact on Africa’s economy and health systems would be devastating. “As things stand now the 3.2 percent growth has actually been insignificant when it comes to meeting these SDG goals,” he said. “That’s the point that we want to make. In other words, we are going to see an increase in the number of people who are actually poor or below the poverty line.” The coronavirus also resulted in the cancellation of talks in Addis Ababa that were aimed at completing the African Continental Free Trade Area, which is scheduled to launch on July 1. Wamkele Mene, the secretary-general of the free-trade bloc, told VOA that without the talks, the deadline will be hard to meet. “We will have to find a way to expedite the work,” he said. “To give you an example in 2018, we worked for 26 days nonstop from nine in the morning until 2 or 3 am, 25 to 26 days nonstop to meet the deadlines of March 21, the signature of the agreement. So we will have to find a way and do something similar to expedite the work.” For the moment, most African government are focused on simply containing the coronavirus. South African Finance Minister Tito Mboweni said Monday the government would need to set aside additional funding to deal with the crisis. More than 50 cases have been identified in South Africa to date, while both Ethiopian and Cameroon on Monday confirmed their fifth case respectively.
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Supreme Court Postpones Arguments Because of Virus Outbreak
The Supreme Court announced Monday that it is postponing arguments for late March and early April because of the coronavirus, including fights over subpoenas for President Donald Trump’s financial records. Other business will go on as planned, including the justices’ private conference on Friday and the release of orders in a week’s time. Some justices may participate by telephone, the court said in a statement. Six of the nine justices are 65 and older, at higher risk of getting very sick from the illness, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Justices Ruth Bader Ginsburg, 87, and Stephen Breyer, 81, are the oldest members of the court. There is no new date set for the postponed arguments. the building has been closed to the public since last week. The only other time the 85-year-old court building was closed for arguments was in October 2001, when anthrax was detected in the court mailroom. That led the justices to hold arguments in the federal courthouse about a half mile from the Supreme Court, Within a week and after a thorough cleaning, the court reopened. In 1918, when the court still met inside the Capitol, arguments were postponed for a month because of the flu pandemic. In the nation’s early years, in August 1793 and August 1798, adjustments were made because of yellow fever outbreaks, the court said.
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Global Times: China’s Airlines to Cut International Flights Due to Coronavirus
Chinese airlines including Air China, China Southern Airlines and China Eastern Airlines are planning to reduce international flights in response to the coronavirus pandemic, the Global Times reported on Monday, citing unidentified sources. The aviation industry in China, where the virus emerged, has been one of the worst-affected by the crisis, following travel curbs by nations fearing contagion and shriveling demand. The Chinese government last month criticized some of those curbs, especially those imposed by the United States, saying some countries had over-reacted. In this March 12, 2020, photo, a man wearing a mask stands near a display board at the Capital International Airport terminal 3 in Beijing.However, the country has tightened checks on international travelers in recent days as the number of imported cases begins to exceed locally transmitted ones. The capital Beijing is ordering 14 days in its quarantine facilities for anyone arriving from aboard, starting Monday. Data from Cirium showed the number of flights to, from and within China cancelled or removed from schedules totaled 506,662 from Jan. 1 through March 10. Of those, 101,906 were international flights, it said. Chinese airlines reported a total loss of 20.96 billion yuan ($2.99 billion) in February, Civil Aviation Administration of China said last week.
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Trump Team Sends Mixed Messages on Severity of Pandemic
U.S. President Donald Trump and other members of his administration are seeking to quell a panicky nation after the shelves at many stores across the country went bare due to hoarding amid the coronavirus pandemic. Trump, after holding a conference call Sunday with 30 grocery executives, said: “You don’t have to buy so much. Take it easy. Just relax.” As state after state reports new cases of COVID-19 infections, shoppers rush to stores to stock up on supplies, leaving the shelves empty, March 14, 2020. (Photo: Diaa Bekheet)The president said, “We have no shortages other than people are buying anywhere from three to five times what they would normally buy.” Trump, unannounced, appeared briefly in the press briefing room with some members of the coronavirus task force but did not take questions. The coronavirus is “something we have tremendous control of,” Trump said before turning the hour-long briefing over to Vice President Mike Pence, who heads the task force. Vice President Mike Pence points to a question as he speaks during a briefing about the coronavirus in the James Brady Press Briefing Room of the White House, Sunday, March 15, 2020, in Washington.Some members of that group on the podium expressed greater caution about the course ahead. The head of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, Dr. Anthony Fauci, emphasized that “the worst is yet ahead for us” while the president’s health secretary, Alex Azar, warned that the pandemic has the potential to overwhelm the capacity of the American health care system. The briefing was held as more cities and states ordered restrictions for the sizes of public gatherings. Governor Gavin Newsom order the closure of all bars and wineries in California, which has the largest population of any state. He also declared that people aged 65 or older enter into home isolation as they are a high-risk group for complications from contracting COVID-19. The governor of the state of Ohio, Mike DeWine, ordered all restaurants to not seat any customers – take-out and delivery service only. The same restrictions apply to New York and Los Angeles, the nation’s two largest cities, after their respective mayors announced new restrictions late Sunday that also include closing entertainment venues such as movie theaters. “We are taking a series of actions that we never would have taken otherwise in an effort to save the lives of loved ones and our neighbors,” New York Mayor Bill de Blasio said. After those announcement, the Centers for Diseases Control and Prevention issued a nationwide recommendation that there be no gatherings of more than 50 people for the next eight weeks. Asked if there should be nationwide restrictions, as other countries have done, Fauci replied: “To protect the American people we’ll consider anything and everything on the table.” Dr. Anthony Fauci, director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, with Vice President Mike Pence behind him, speaks during a briefing about the coronavirus at the White House, March 15, 2020.Officials in at least 35 of the 50 states have either temporarily closed schools, or recommended they close. New York Governor Andrew Cuomo on Sunday announced schools will close in New York City. Long wait times and panic were seen at airports across the United States as authorities work under new regulations imposed to deal with the spread of the coronavirus. Those long lines “are unacceptable,” the acting homeland security secretary, Chad Wolf, told White House reporters, explaining that processes have been adjusted at ports of entry and the wait times, as of Sunday, were down to about 30 minutes. U.S. nationals and permanent residents who are returning from countries that are part of a new travel ban will be required to undergo additional screening and questioning to determine if they can return to their communities, according to the Department of Homeland Security. If not required to seek medical help, they will be sent home and will spend two weeks in self-quarantine. Foreign nationals living in the U.S. who have traveled to countries on the ban, however, will not be allowed to return in the United States. A DHS official said they would have to travel to a third country, not included in the ban, and wait out the two-week period of self-quarantine before traveling to the United States. The United States has more than 3,621 confirmed coronavirus cases in all but one of the 50 states. There are 69 deaths reported from the disease in the country. The Senate, controlled by the president’s Republican party, on Monday is to consider an emergency aid package which the House, controlled by the Democratic Party, has approved. The legislation includes funds to support small- and medium-sized businesses faced with increased costs from sick leave, as well as individuals incurring loss of income from quarantines or reduced economic activity. Central to the president’s emergency measures is the expansion of testing for the coronavirus disease. The United States has been criticized for its slow roll out of coronavirus test kits, and Trump has pledged to accelerate the testing capacity, including setting up drive-through testing sites. The White House says 1.9 million testing kits will be available this week and a web site to pre-screen those who will be prioritized for such tests is to be online within days.
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Japan to Advise People to Avoid Travel to Much of Europe – NHK
Japan plans to widen travel warnings to much of Europe urging people avoid trips there as the coronavirus pandemic spreads, public broadcaster NHK said.
Japan will widen a level three advisory, which already applies to much Italy, to surrounding areas in Europe, NHK reported. That notice urges people to avoid all travel and asks Japanese resident there to prepare for possible evacuation.Other European nations including Germany, France and Norway, although not including Britain, will be subject to a level two advisory, which asks people to avoid non-essential travel, NHK said.
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Russia’s Constitutional Court Approves New Term for Putin
Russia’s Constitutional Court has approved amendments that, among other changes, would allow Vladimir Putin to run again for president in 2024. The constitutional changes are due to be put to a nationwide vote in April.In January, Putin announced a major shake-up of Russian politics and a constitutional overhaul, which the Kremlin described as a redistribution of power from the presidency to parliament. FILE – Russian President Vladimir Putin speaks during a session of the State Duma, the Lower House of the Russian Parliament, prior to its members voting on constitutional amendments, in Moscow, March 10, 2020.But last week Putin, who is in his fourth presidential term and has been president or prime minister of Russia for two decades, appeared in the State Duma to back a new amendment that would allow him to ignore a current constitutional ban on him running again in four years’ time. The previous rules forbade him from running for a third consecutive mandate, but that changes with the provisions of the amendments, meaning he can seek a fifth overall presidential term in 2024, and conceivably a sixth in 2030.
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South Africa Shuts Borders, Schools to Try to Slow COVID Spread
The rise of coronavirus cases in South Africa has prompted President Cyril Ramaphosa to announce tough measures to try to slow the virus’ spread. The respiratory illness, now a global pandemic, has infected more than 153,000 people worldwide since it was first reported in China at the end of 2019. Since South Africa reported its first case on March 5, the nation’s burden has risen to at least 62 confirmed cases, with the World Health Organization classifying it a as a country with local transmission. “We have decided to take urgent and drastic measures to manage the disease, protect the people of our country, and to reduce the impact of the virus on our society and on our economy,” Ramaphosa said in a televised address Sunday night. “We have now declared a national state of disaster in terms of the Disaster Management Act. This will enable us to have an integrated and coordinated disaster management mechanism that will focus on preventing and reducing the outbreak of this virus.”South Africa’s government this past weekend repatriated 114 citizens from Wuhan, the Chinese city where the outbreak started. The citizens will be kept in quarantine for three weeks, although none has tested positive for the virus.South African President Cyril Ramaphosa delivers his State of the Nation Address in Cape Town, Feb. 13, 2020.Ramaphosa announced a travel ban from high-risk countries including Italy, Iran, South Korea, Spain, Germany, the United States, Britain and China. He also said that all schools would close from Wednesday and banned all public gatherings of more than 100 people.In South Africa’s economic and transportation hub, Johannesburg, the minibus taxi ranks are usually buzzing with activity. On Monday morning, it appeared people were heeding the president’s warnings and staying away. Many said they were concerned. “I’m glad that they took the measures,” said freelance journalist Marcia Zali. “I’m just concerned because I’m a mother, and schools are closing early. I’m not sure about what creches (nursery schools) are going to do because I have two kids, one is in creche and one goes to school. So, we’ll hear what the schools and creches are going to say about that.”Others expressed concerns about their livelihoods, like 74-year-old lawyer Phillip Vallet.“My worry is, how long is it going to take?” he said. “Because just from a business point of view, if we have to shut down parts of our business or drastically interfere with how our business is run, I’m just worried about how long we can stand it. And I’m worried about our staff. I’m worried about the taxis. If there are no taxis and there are no buses, we might not have a business.”Project manager Phili Chikale said she may have to cancel as many as 18 upcoming projects; but, she said, she agrees with the strict measures.“I think it was just the right time, because all this time we’ve been taking this disease lightly,” she said. “It’s like it’s only now that the president has made us aware of the seriousness and how much it’s going to affect us, that we also aware that, oh, no this is really a big deal and we should now start taking care of ourselves.”But not everyone is concerned. Some say they’ll continue as usual, like sales consultant Mandla Ncube, who said he would continue to work and to go to church services. “I’m not worried, not a bit,” he said. “I mean at work, I’m already, you know, exposed — I said my guys are well-traveled. So, I’m exposed. So, I’m already exposed. So, I can’t lose at work.”
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Spain’s Coronavirus Cases Rise to 8,744, Death Toll Up at 297
Spain’s tally of coronavirus cases rose to 8,744 on Monday and the number of fatalities rose to 297, said Fernando Simon, the head of the country’s health emergency center.
The previous tally was 7,753 cases on Sunday, with 288 fatalities
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