South African police have seized hundreds of fake COVID-19 vaccines and arrested four suspects in connection with the haul, the Interpol global police co-ordination agency said.
This comes after Interpol, which is headquartered in France, issued a global alert in December to law enforcement across its 194 member countries, warning them to prepare for organized crime networks targeting COVID-19 vaccines, both physically and online.
Some 400 ampoules – equivalent to about 2,400 doses – containing the fake vaccine were found at a warehouse in Germiston, east of Johannesburg, where officers also recovered a large quantity of fake 3M masks, the agency said on Wednesday on its website.
Three Chinese nationals and a Zambian national were arrested.
The seizure and arrests in South Africa led to the identification of a network selling counterfeit COVID-19 vaccines in China, Interpol said in an emailed comment.
Police in China then raided the manufacturing premises, resulting in the arrest of some 80 suspects. More than 3,000 fake vaccines were seized on the scene, Interpol said on its website.
“Whilst we welcome this result, this is only the tip of the iceberg when it comes to COVID-19 vaccine related crime,” said Interpol Secretary General Juergen Stock.
Interpol said investigations are continuing and it is also receiving additional reports of fake vaccine distribution and scam attempts targeting health institutions, such as nursing homes.
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Month: March 2021
Food Waste Problem Needs Better Data: UN Report
A lot of food is wasted around the world, and the United Nations says it needs better data to determine just how much.
Citing the environmental impact of food production, the U.N. says understanding the scope of food waste is crucial.
Despite the lack of data, the U.N. estimates in its report that 17%, or 931 million tons, of the food produced around the world went to waste in 2019.
“Improved measurement can lead to improved management,” Brian Roe, a food waste researcher at The Ohio State University who was not involved in the report, told the Associated Press.
The U.N. says once the scale of food waste is known, it will be easier to come up with potential solutions, such as turning waste into animal feed or fertilizer.
According to the U.N., food waste is not limited to developed countries, but is a growing problem in poorer countries where refrigeration might not always be available.
“For a long time, it was assumed that food waste in the home was a significant problem only in developed countries,” Marcus Gover, CEO of WRAP, a charity that works with governments to reduce food waste, told Reuters.
Clementine O’Connor, of the U.N. Environment Program and co-author of the report, said many countries “haven’t yet quantified their food waste, so they don’t understand the scale of the problem.”
In the United States, one way to mitigate food waste could be to clarify the meaning of food labeling, such as “sell by,” “best by” and “enjoy by” dates, according to Chris Barrett, an agricultural economist at Cornell University.
He said some people might throw away food based on those dates even though the food may still be safe to eat.
“Food waste is a consequence of sensible decisions by people acting on the best information available,” he told AP.
The U.S. Agriculture Department estimates an American family of four wastes about $1,500 worth of food each year.
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Despite Setbacks, Europe’s Far Right Finds New Ammunition for Its Cause
Europe’s far right has suffered some setbacks recently: Germany’s top opposition party is under surveillance for extremism and France shut down a right-wing youth group. Experts say these groups are using old and new grievances and are inspired by their U.S. counterparts. For VOA, Lisa Bryant reports from Paris.
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Hong Kong Keeps Activists Detained After Granting Bail
A Hong Kong judge ordered 47 pro-democracy activists to remain in custody Thursday after the territory’s Department of Justice appealed an earlier decision to release some of them on bail.Chief Magistrate Victor So granted bail to only 15 of the activists, but they remained in custody after government prosecutors said they would appeal So’s decision.The order came after four days of bail hearings for activists facing charges under a stringent national security law imposed by China, sparking global concern that Beijing is using the law to suppress dissent.Adoption of the security law in June 2020 led to a harsh crackdown on free speech and opposition political activity in Hong Kong. Serious offenders of the law could face life imprisonment.The activists were charged with conspiracy to commit subversion, a criminal offense under the law.They were arrested on Sunday over their participation in an unofficial primary election in 2020 that authorities said was part of a “vicious plot” to “overthrow” the Hong Kong government.The election was supposed to produce the strongest opposition candidates for a legislative council. The government postponed the election, citing the coronavirus pandemic.
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Africa Making Important Inroads on Vaccine Coverage, WHO Says
The World Health Organization says COVID-19 vaccine distribution in African countries is accelerating and hopeful signs are emerging that a significant proportion of Africa’s population will be covered by the end of the year. Latest figures put the number of infections in Africa at more than 3.9 million, with 104,000 deaths.Data show the COVID-19 pandemic overall is on a downward trend in most countries on the continent. However, World Health Organization officials fear a resurgence of cases in the future as pressure increases to ease lockdown restrictions. They point to a recent rise of COVID-19 cases in 10 countries as a worrying sign.At the same time, the acceleration of vaccine distribution in Africa is giving rise to hope. WHO Regional Director for Africa Matshidiso Moeti said nearly 10 million vaccine doses have been delivered to 11 countries this week and she expects about half of all countries on the continent will receive COVID-19 vaccine deliveries in the coming weeks.She said most countries will have vaccination programs underway by the end of March. Moeti said the COVAX facility is targeting three percent of the population as it starts its vaccine rollout across Africa. But, she added, COVAX aims to increase that figure and cover 20 percent of the population by the end of the year.“We are very pleased that the African Union, working through its acquisition, vaccine acquisition task team has targeted ensuring that by the end of the year, sufficient vaccine has been procured and available to countries to cover 60 percent of the population,” she said.By the end of the year, Moeti said she hopes to reach a level of coverage in African countries that not only reduces severe illness and deaths but also starts to slow down the spread of the coronavirus.In other words, she said she hopes the continent will achieve so-called herd immunity.
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Burkina Faso Opposition Says Security Behind Push for Return of Exiled President
Burkina Faso’s opposition has stepped-up pressure on President Roch Kabore to follow through on a one-time campaign promise to allow former president Blaise Compaore to return from exile. It has been seven years since Burkina Faso’s former president Blaise Compaore fled his compound to Ivory Coast, after a popular uprising against his attempt to extend his nearly three decades in power. But his Congress for Democracy and Progress or CDP party says their finishing second in November’s election shows support for Compaore — and his return — are growing. Oumarou Sawadogo, one of more than a million displaced Burkinabes, was driven out of his home by terrorists two years ago and says life was better under Compaore. He says that when Compaore was in charge, his community never experienced insecurity. For that reason, they believe Compaore’s way of ruling worked and his return could help improve security. Compaore made neutrality deals with jihadist groups in Mali in return for security at home — deals that were later scrapped. He committed Burkina Faso to the United Nations peacekeeping mission in Mali, MINUSMA, and was still in power when their troops were for the first time attacked. Nonetheless, Compaore’s party says negotiations with armed groups need to be revived and he is the one to do it. “Reason commands us to do it,” says Eddie Kombiego, the new leader of the CDP and Compaore’s political heir. He points out, the country has been attacked for five years by unidentified groups and suggests the first reaction should be to find out who is attacking you and why. President Roch Kabore’s government last month, for the first time, raised the option of holding direct talks with terrorist groups in parliament, but since then it has become clear negotiations with armed groups have already commenced in the area around the city of Djibo. Despite a campaign speech that promised Campaore’s return, Kabore’s ruling People’s Movement for Progress party, MPP, says it is not guaranteed. But they say he had better relations with jihadists. Lassané Sawadogo, the executive secretary of the MPP, says his party has refrained from making direct accusations against anyone with regard to the phenomenon of terrorism. However, they have observed very good relations between certain terrorist groups attacking the country and the old regime, he adds. Analysts and officials say Campaore’s return could help Burkina Faso’s political reconciliation but are skeptical about the impact he could have on improving security. Siaka Coulibaly, a Burkinabe security analyst, explains that providing advice to today’s political leader will put Compaore in a very different position to address the issue in comparison to when he was in charge of the country’s affairs himself. He thinks Compaore can make a universal contribution in terms of political advice; but, in reality, is not sure he can reverse the trend of violence. With the scars of his ouster still visible, allowing Compaore to return to Burkina Faso could reopen old wounds. Officials say he would also have to face justice for the violent 1987 coup that brought him to power. That could be enough of a threat to keep the former president’s house empty.
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Russia Ends Ban on Hundreds of Jobs Previously Unavailable to Women
It’s a new era for Russian women, at least if they’re aspiring truckers, boat drivers, or pilots. Russia’s government has opened up several hundred professions that previously barred women under late-Soviet-era labor restrictions. From Moscow, Charles Maynes reports.Videographer: Ricardo Marquina Montanana, Producer: Henry Hernandez
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A Taste of The Islands Makes COVID Lockdown Easier
Glenda Andrew pulls a tray of salmon from the oven, filling the community center’s kitchen with the aroma of garlic, cayenne and lemon rising from its crackling skin.
It is the scent of memory, of family dinners and church socials — the warmth of the Caribbean in the middle of a gray English winter made gloomier by COVID-19.
This is food for the soul, Andrew says, and it’s needed now more than ever by Britain’s older immigrants who have been isolated from friends and family by the pandemic. Once a week the 57-year-old joins other volunteers to prepare hot meals with the zing of the islands, which they distribute for free to people in Preston and surrounding communities in northwestern England.
The area has recorded some of the U.K.’s highest coronavirus infection rates.
“It’s a great way to connect and build that relationship, but I didn’t know that at the time,” Andrew said of the project’s beginnings. “I just knew that I wanted to do something and make sure that they were getting a hot meal — not sandwiches, not soup — getting something that they’re accustomed to eating and hope that they would enjoy it.”
Once a week, for the last 42 weeks, the lucky seniors on Andrew’s list have been treated to delicacies such as jerk pork, curry goat and cow foot soup accompanied by rice and peas, yams and plantains. Portions are hefty, so there’s enough to go in the freezer for another day. Last week, some 400 meals were packed into yellow foam packages and delivered by volunteers.
The meal program grew out of Andrew’s work with Preston Windrush Generation & Descendants, a group organized to fight for the rights of early immigrants from the Caribbean and other former British colonies who found themselves threatened with deportation in recent years.
The Windrush Generation, named after the ship that carried the first migrants from the Caribbean in 1948, came to Britain in response to a government call for workers from throughout the Empire to help rebuild the country after World War II.
The Windrush Scandal rocked Britain in 2018 amid a crackdown on illegal immigration. Long-term legal residents lost jobs, homes and the right to free medical care because many arrived as children and couldn’t produce paperwork proving their right to live in the U.K. Some were detained, and an unknown number were deported to countries they barely remembered.
When the coronavirus pandemic struck Britain, the free-spirited Andrew didn’t want the community to be victimized again. She decided to create her own food program tailored to the taste buds of the people she grew up with.
Nothing is too good for Andrew’s people. They get the best. No pilchards here.
“Salmon is a delicacy, isn’t it? You know what I mean? They’re worth it,” she said. “They brought us up, they’ve taught us so many things. They gave up their life in the Caribbean to come here.”
In addition to food, the volunteers offer a bit of human contact.
The loneliness and isolation of the past year is painful for many of the seniors. When deliveries arrive, they seek out friendly gossip with the volunteers about what their neighbors are up to.
Sylius Toussaint, 81, who came from Dominica in 1960, said chatting with volunteers like Dave Williams helps as much as the food.
“They say hello and give you a meal, and maybe for just a few seconds at least you see someone new; someone you haven’t seen all week,” Toussaint said as his wife, Bridget, shot him a bemused look. “If you are on your own, it is so nice to see a fresh face — especially bringing gifts.”
Andrew wants to keep the meals flowing, even as optimism grows that Britain’s mass vaccination program may soon allow lockdown restrictions to be eased.
The project runs on donations and the energy of Andrew, who seemed to be in a dozen places at once as she marshaled her volunteer chefs last week. For now, they use a donated kitchen in a community center, but there’s a glimmer of hope for a more permanent venue at some point — maybe a place the community can gather.
But that’s in the future. For now, the volunteers plan to just keep going, gluing the community together with plates of rice and peas.
“Initially it was the food and, as I said, I didn’t know what we were creating,” Andrew said. “And it’s been amazing.”
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US Hails German Warship Plan to Sail South China Sea
The United States on Wednesday hailed plans by NATO ally Germany to sail a warship across the contested South China Sea, calling it welcome support for a “rules-based international order” in the region, something Washington says is threatened by China.
German government officials said on Tuesday a German frigate would set sail for Asia in August and, on its return journey, become the first German warship to cross the South China Sea since 2002.
“The United States has a national interest in the maintenance of peace and stability, respect for international law, lawful unimpeded commerce, and freedom of navigation and other lawful uses of the sea,” a spokeswoman for the U.S. State Department said.
“We welcome Germany’s support for a rules-based international order in the Indo-Pacific. The international community has a vital stake in the preservation of an open
maritime order.”
A spokesman for the foreign ministry in China, which claims most of the South China Sea, said countries enjoyed freedom of navigation and overflight in the waterway under international law, but added: “they cannot take it as an excuse to undermine the sovereignty and security of littoral countries.”German officials said the warship would not pass within the 12-nautical-mile limits China and rival states claim as territorial waters around contested features in the strategic
Waterway.
China has established military outposts on artificial islands it has built in the South China Sea and Washington has rejected Beijing’s disputed claims to offshore resources in most of the sea as “completely unlawful.”
The U.S. Navy regularly conducts “freedom of navigation” operations in which its warships pass close by to some of these islands. It has been keen for allies to follow suit.
Last month, France said a French nuclear-propelled attack submarine and warship patrolled in the South China Sea to underscore freedom of navigation.
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From First Ladies’ Gloves to Face Masks – How Small US Business Survives the Pandemic
A glove factory in New York City called Wing+Weft Gloves has had a unique Washington DC connection for decades. But when the coronavirus crisis erupted, this woman-owned small business had to reinvent itself. Nina Vishneva has the story, narrated by Anna Rice.Camera: Alex Barash
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Downfall of Asia’s ‘Biggest Drug Lord’ Seen Unlikely to Dent Regional Narcotics Trade
Given the estimated $70 billion being made each year in Asia’s drug trade, regional experts say recent arrests of two key drug figures are seen as unlikely to dent the long-term flow of narcotics. Dutch police said in January they had arrested Tse Chi Lop, allegedly the leader of the Asian drug syndicate known as The Company or Sam Gor (Brother No. 3 in Cantonese). It is alleged to have made tens of billions of dollars each year off drugs in the region.Dutch Police Arrest Alleged Asian Drug Syndicate KingpinTse Chi Lop, a Chinese-born Canadian national, was detained Friday at the request of Australian policeThen in February, it was announced that Lee Chung Chak, suspected of being a second leader of the syndicate, had been arrested. The syndicate’s cash cow is methamphetamine, produced in laboratories in the Golden Triangle, straddling Myanmar, Laos, Thailand and China, for the Australian, Japanese and Taiwanese markets.Myanmar Opium Production Drops as Meth Surges, UN Says Synthetic drug trade more lucrativeThe arrests “might temporarily disrupt the clientele they were working with and the networks they work with, but the reality is that the demand has been built,” Jeremy Douglas, regional representative of the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime told VOA news February 8, saying seizures have been surging over the last few years, reflecting the vast supply. The UNODC estimates that Sam Gor may control as much as 40% to 70% of the methamphetamine market, sending the drug out in tea packets — a branding device indicating high quality. “Someone will assume a role within Sam Gor, or other big players are going to come in and say, that opportunity is too big for me to pass up. I’m taking it… I’m going to seize the day and go for it,” Douglas said.
Meth men Methamphetamine comes in two forms in Southeast Asia. The first is small “yaba” (“crazy medicine” in Thai) pills, which are cut with caffeine and now go for as little as 30 cents a pill in Thailand’s border areas. Cheap and abundant it has long been a favorite high of Southeast Asian laborers, truck drivers and clubbers. “Ice” — or crystal meth — though, is more addictive and damaging. The price of a gram has also plummeted in the countries nearest to the production sites as drug lords flood the market in their product. In Thailand a gram now costs as little as $26, nearly 40% cheaper than the price a few years ago. By the time it is smuggled to Australia, ice commands a higher price. Use of it there it has reached epidemic levels. Government statistics released in December say the drug carried an annual social cost of around $4 billion to the economy in 2014 and 2015, while four times more people are dying from use than did so a decade ago. In late 2019, Australian border police intercepted 1.8 metric tons of ice, with a street value of around $800 million stuffed in the Sam Gor’s signature tea packets, hidden inside stereo speakers on a cargo ship off the Melbourne coast. It had been shipped from Thailand. The Australian Federal Police has led the global police response to the Sam Gor. The syndicate is believed to have emerged from a union of several former rival triad groups — the 14K, Wo Shing Wo and Sun Yee On — from Hong Kong and Macau. They pulled in a coalition of partners, from the Myanmar-based ethnic militias — whose product can be made secretly inside the Golden Triangle — to Thai gangs that transport it and Australian bikers and Japanese Yakuza who get it on the streets. Thai police arrested Lee in October in the Luangsuan area, an upmarket Bangkok neighborhood, acting on a warrant issued by Australia, which is seeking his extradition. Lee is believed to be the logistics maestro for The Company, with contacts that opened borders. For around a decade Lee and Tse “used Thailand as a meeting point because it is close to the Golden Triangle production site,” a police source told VOA, requesting anonymity. “Most of the negotiations are done here,” he said. There has been a disruption to the large shipments of drugs to Australia since the arrests, according to Montree Yimyam, commissioner of Thailand’s Narcotics Suppression Bureau. “But when the heads are cut off there’ll always be someone rising to take their place and demand in Australia remains the same, so it’s still business as usual for the drug trade,” he told VOA. Secrets to be spilled Thailand plays a key role in the drug trade. Its borders with Myanmar and Laos are vast and open, enabling easy transport into the kingdom, where large shipments are stored for onward movement through ports, road and rail links.Thai drug police are hunting another member of the The Company: Arsue Songkittikul, a 48-year-old with Myanmar and Thai passports and who goes by several aliases, the police source said.. Arsue is wanted in Myanmar over a 1.7-metric-ton seizure of ice in 2016 and Thai police believe he procured drugs for the Sam Gor syndicate. Regional law enforcement authorities are desperate to see what intelligence the arrests of Tse Chi Lop and Lee will yield, especially on a money trail that launders billions in illicit cash through casinos, condos and cryptocurrency. In contrast to their Latin American peers who covet the limelight with their notoriously flashy lifestyles — and make headlines with extreme violence, Asia’s drug kingpins “in a sense, stay in the shadows,” according to the UNODC’s Douglas. “Asian groups function less as a hierarchy — like you see with the Latin Americans — and more as a network of common interests. In other words, make profits, keep your profile low and spread the talent around,” he added.
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Inspector General Finds Misuse of Office by Elaine Chao at Transportation Dept
The Transportation Department’s watchdog asked the Justice Department to criminally investigate Elaine Chao late last year after it determined she had misused her office when she was transportation secretary under President Donald Trump but was rebuffed, according to a report released Wednesday.
The report said the Justice Department’s criminal and public integrity divisions declined in December to take up the case for criminal prosecution following the inspector general’s findings that Chao inappropriately used her staff and office for personal tasks and to promote a shipping business owned by Chao’s father and sisters. That company does extensive business with China.
A formal investigation into potential misuses of position was warranted,'' deputy inspector general Mitch Behm wrote in a letter to lawmakers.Asian audiences welcome and respond positively to actions by the secretary that include her father in activities when appropriate,” that memo said.
Chao, the wife of Senate Republican leader Mitch McConnell of Kentucky, stepped down from her job early this year in the last weeks of the Trump administration, citing her disapproval over the Jan. 6 insurrection at the Capitol by Trump's supporters.Chao has denied wrongdoing. In the report released Wednesday, she did not specifically respond to allegations, instead providing a September 2020 memo that argued promoting her family was an appropriate part of her official duties at the department.
The watchdog report cited several instances that raised ethical concerns. In one, Chao instructed political appointees in the department to contact the Homeland Security Department to check personally on the status of a work permit application for a student who was a recipient of her family’s philanthropic foundation.
Chao also made extensive plans for an official trip to China in November 2017 – before she canceled it – that would have included stops at places that had received support from her family’s business, the New York-based Foremost Group. According to department emails, Chao directed her staff to include her relatives in the official events and high-level meetings during the trip.
Above all, let's keep (the Secretary) happy, one of the department’s employees wrote to another staffer regarding Chao’s father. If Dr. Chao is happy, then we should be flying with a feather in our hat.''may be ethical and/or administrative issues” but no evidence to support possible criminal charges.
The report found that Chao also directed the department's public affairs staff to assist her father in the marketing of his personal biography and to edit his Wikipedia page, and used staff to check on repairs of an item at a store for her father.
The IG report said Justice Department officials ultimately declined to take up a criminal review, saying there
As a result, the inspector general’s office said in the report it was now closing its investigation based on the lack of prosecutorial interest'' from the Justice Department.Public servants, especially those responsible for leading tens of thousands of other public servants, must know that they serve the public and not their family’s private commercial interests,” he said.
Rep. Peter DeFazio, D-Oregon, chairman of the House transportation committee, who requested the investigation, expressed disappointment that the review was not completed and released while Chao was still in office.
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Myanmar Anti-Coup Protests Continue After ‘Bloodiest Day’ Since Military Takeover
Demonstrations against Myanmar’s military junta took place across the country again Thursday in the wake of what the United Nations described as “the bloodiest day” since the February 1 coup. Reuters says security forces opened fire and hit protesters with tear gas to break up demonstrations in the main city of Yangon and the central town of Monywa.Protests also took place in Mandalay, where mourners also gathered for the funeral of Kyal Sin, a 19-year-old student who was shot dead Wednesday during demonstrations in that city. Attendees held up pictures of Kyal Sin wearing a t-shirt with the phrase “Everything will be OK” written on the front. Kyal Sin was one of at least 38 people the United Nations says were killed across Myanmar during Wednesday’s protests, with witnesses saying security forces used live ammunition as well as rubber bullets and tear gas to disperse the crowds. Several people were reportedly injured, among them reporter Htet Aung Khant with VOA’s Burmese Service, who was hit by rubber bullets under his arm as he covered the protests. “Today, it was the bloodiest day since the coup happened on the first of February,” Christine Schraner Burgener, the U.N. special envoy for Myanmar, told reporters in a video call from Switzerland. Schraner Burgener said she was very disturbed by videos circulating of police shooting a protester at close range and another of police beating an unarmed medical crew who did not resist arrest. “From the video clips, I asked some weapons experts to verify to me, it’s not clear, but it seems that the police used weapons like 9-millimeter submachine guns — live ammunition,” she said.Myanmar has been mired in chaos and violence for one month, since the military’s overthrow of the civilian government and the detentions of de facto leader Aung San Suu Kyi and other high-ranking officials of her National League for Democracy (NLD) Party. Schraner Burgener said she is in daily contact with Suu Kyi and the committee that represents NLD legislators, known as the CRPH. The envoy last spoke with Deputy Military Chief Soe Win on February 15 but said she sent him a long letter on Sunday. She has not received a direct response but said the military sends her some information every day.People attend the funeral of Angel, 19-year-old protester also known as Kyal Sin who was shot in the head as Mynamar forces opened fire to disperse an an anti-coup demonstration in Mandalay, Myanmar, March 4, 2021.New elections The military has claimed widespread fraud in last November’s election, which the NLD won in a landslide. Myanmar’s electoral commission has denied the claims. Military Chief Min Aung Hlaing declared a one-year state of emergency and said new elections will be held to bring about a “true and disciplined democracy.” But he has not said when the vote would be held. Schraner Burgener said Soe Win told her those elections would happen in one year.“He said that it is due to the constitution,” she said. “We talked also to constitutional experts, and they said it doesn’t have to be one year. But clearly, I think that was the real plan of the army.”Schraner Burgener expressed concern that the military would conduct sham investigations of the NLD that would lead to their being banned and then the army would illegitimately win the election and stay in power. But she said while this strategy may have worked in the past, it will not work now. “But today, we have young people who lived in freedom for 10 years. They have social media, and they are well-organized and very determined. They don’t want to go back in a dictatorship and in isolation,” she said. “So, I think the army is surprised, and maybe we have to help them come out of this situation.” However, Schraner Burgener also said the junta is unconcerned about any response from the international community. When she warned the regime it would face “huge, strong measures” in the form of sanctions, “the answer was, ‘We are used to sanctions and we survived those sanctions in the past,” referring to the military’s previous five-decade rule. The envoy also said the regime told her, “We have to learn to walk with only a few friends,” when she warned it would face isolation. Demonstrators gather on a road during an anti-coup protest in Yangon, Myanmar, March 4, 2021.Escalation fears Schraner Burgener said the situation could escalate. She pointed to the declaration by 10 of the 21 armed ethnic groups in Myanmar that they would fight back if the army attacks civilians in their regions. “If both sides use violence, then we have a situation of a real war in Myanmar, which is in nobody’s interest,” the U.N. envoy said. She will brief the U.N. Security Council Friday in a closed-door meeting. She last briefed them February 2 at the first and only discussion on the situation.She told reporters she is still pressing the military to allow her to visit Myanmar, where she has an office and has spent a great deal of time during the three years she has held her mandate.Myanmar’s UN ambassadorIn a separate development, Tin Maung Naing, who was appointed Sunday as Myanmar’s chargé d’affaires at the United Nations by the military regime, has reportedly resigned, according to a post on his Facebook page.A United Nations spokesperson said they are aware of the reports but had received no official communication.Ambassador Kyaw Moe Tun was fired by the junta after denouncing the coup at a meeting of the U.N. General Assembly on Friday. He said he is still the ambassador because he was appointed by the democratically elected president. The matter has now gone to the nine-member U.N. credentials committee for review.
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Republicans Pursue Voting Changes after Record US Election Turnout
Months after record-high U.S. voter turnout propelled Democrats to victory in the 2020 elections, giving them control of the White House and both houses of Congress, Republicans are attempting to reshape election laws in state legislatures across the nation.In state after state, Republicans seek to limit opportunities for early and absentee balloting that Americans flocked to last year — Democratic voters in particular.In America’s heartland, Iowa is among the first examples of the trend.More than 2 million Iowans were registered to vote in the 2020 general election, a record in a state with a population of just over 3.1 million.Of 1.7 million ballots ultimately cast in Iowa last November, more than 1 million were submitted through the mail as absentee ballots — also a record — as many voters shunned the polls during a pandemic.Former President Donald Trump, a Republican, won Iowa but lost the national election to Democrat Joe Biden.Now Republicans, who control Iowa’s state legislature, have passed a bill limiting early, in-person voting and shortening the time allotted for absentee ballot submissions. Republicans argue that expanded use of both could invite fraudulent balloting even if no evidence of widespread fraud emerged from the 2020 elections.’You make improvements’“The question I get most often is, ‘Why?’” Iowa State Representative Bobby Kaufmann, a Republican, told fellow lawmakers during debate over the legislation in late February. “Why are we doing an election bill? ‘Do you not think that we had a successful 2020 election?’ I do. ‘Do you think that Iowa is rife with election fraud this last election?’ I do not. But the job of the state government committee is to ensure election integrity. You make improvements, and that’s exactly what we are doing here today.”What Republicans promote as preventing potential voter fraud, Democrats see as voter suppression that would disproportionately impact minorities and other Democratic-leaning groups that sometimes struggle to get to the polls on Election Day.“Iowans oppose this legislation and want us to make sure that it is easy to vote and hard to cheat,” State Rep. Eric Gjerde, a Democrat, explained to his colleagues during the legislative session ahead of voting on the measures. “We want to make the freedom to vote as easy as possible for every single Iowa voter. I have many constituents who work multiple jobs and are parents and need the flexibility to vote when they have the time.”Democrats failed to defeat the Republican effort in Iowa, and the bill passed both houses of the state legislature with unified majority Republican backing.Iowa is not alone, and Democrats are sounding the alarm.At a recent hearing in Washington, newly elected Georgia Democratic Sen. Jon Ossoff said legislation advancing in his state would disproportionately deter voting by minorities.Ossoff said the legislation “would make it harder for Georgians to vote, for example, to end Sunday early voting, which is used heavily by Black and working-class voters.”’No rationale for it’Election observers say Georgia and Iowa are among dozens of states where Republicans seek to rewrite voting laws. They add that the timing, immediately after Democratic electoral victories, is no coincidence.“It’s pretty widespread,” said Michelle Kanter Cohen, senior counsel at the Fair Election Center, who spoke to VOA during a recent Skype interview. “It’s not surprising to me having worked in this area of voting rights for some time to see a backlash against a high turnout election.”The Fair Election Center is a nonprofit, nonpartisan organization addressing voting rights and election registration reform. Kanter Cohen said she has a hard time understanding many of the current changes under consideration in state legislatures.“There’s no rationale for it being given that makes any sense,” she told VOA. “It’s not as if there was, for example, a problem with the polls being open until 9 instead of 8. In fact, voters who work a long day may only be able to vote at that time.”Others say the end result of Republicans’ efforts is hard to predict.“A lot of things that are meant to objectively suppress the vote have instead angered people who then showed up in record numbers,” said Jessica Huseman, editorial director at Votebeat, an independent, nonpartisan news organization covering election integrity.Huseman said some of the proposed reforms are practical, not problematic.“There are a lot of states, for example, whose deadlines for requesting absentee ballots were unrealistically close to the election. So, election administrators just didn’t have time to get those ballots out the door and have voters return them,” she told VOA during a recent Skype interview. “But there is certainly no need to change broad swaths of the election system that we have now. You see states that are overcorrecting from perceived but not real problems from the 2020 election in order to satisfy the most extreme part of their base.”Voting reforms in Iowa await the signature of that state’s Republican governor, the first in what Huseman said could be a wave of voting changes in multiple states ahead of the 2022 U.S. midterm elections that could determine how much of Biden’s agenda in the second half of his term in office becomes law.
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Ex-South Korean Transgender Soldier Found Dead at Home
The body of South Korea’s first openly transgender soldier was found in her home Wednesday, more than a year after she was discharged from active duty.Authorities in the central city of Cheongju, located south of Seoul, say rescue workers went to check on 23-year-old Byun Hee-soo after mental health counselors had not heard from her since Sunday.Authorities said she had been dead for several days, but the cause of Byun’s death was not immediately known. According to South Korea’s Yonhap news agency, the local mental health care clinic said Byun attempted suicide three months ago.Byun, who rose to the rank of staff sergeant, was discharged last January, just two months after undergoing sex reassignment surgery in Thailand, as South Korea prohibits transgender people from serving in the military. She petitioned the army for reinstatement in July but was rejected.Byun had filed a lawsuit against the military with the help of the Center for Military Human Rights Korea, arguing her dismissal was unconstitutional. An initial hearing was scheduled for next month.The Defense Ministry expressed its condolences over Byun’s death.
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Thai Activist Arrested After Burning King’s Portrait
An anti-government activist accused of burning a portrait of Thailand’s King Maha Vajiralongkorn was arrested on Wednesday, police said, the latest among dozens of people charged in recent months for insulting the monarchy.Musician Chaiamorn “Ammy” Kaewwiboonpan, 32, admitted after his arrest that he had torched the king’s portrait as a gesture of defiance and to vent frustration at the detention of fellow activists awaiting trial for royal insult.Chaiamorn is charged under a strict lese majeste law that carries a penalty of up to 15 years in prison if found guilty, as well as arson and computer crimes.The incident took place on Sunday in front of a Bangkok prison where four members of a youth-led protest movement are being held over remarks about the royal family made at rallies last year.”The burning of the royal portrait was done by me and I am solely responsible, the movement is not involved,” Chaiamorn wrote on his band’s Facebook page, a post his lawyer confirmed was authentic.Chaiamorn said his action was foolish and had landed him in trouble and he was frustrated at being unable to help the detained activists.Bangkok police chief Pakapong Pongpetra said there were witnesses and forensic evidence linking him to the offense and others may have been involved.Chaiamorn was receiving medical treatment for an injury unrelated to his arrest, police said. His lawyer said a bail request was rejected by the court.Months of youth-led demonstrations against the government of Prime Minister Prayuth Chan-ocha last year also broke traditional taboos by calling for reform of the powerful monarchy.At least 61 people have subsequently been charged with lese majeste, according to legal aid group Thai Lawyers for Human Rights.The portrait burning took place hours before protesters marched on a military base to urge the king to give up direct control over army units transferred to him in 2019 by the government of Prayuth, a former military chief.Police used rubber bullets against the protesters for the first time on Sunday, as well as tear gas and a water cannon.
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US Capitol Police Warn of Thursday Threat
The U.S. Capitol Police Department says it is taking seriously intelligence about a possible plot by a militia group to breach the Capitol on Thursday.“We have already made significant security upgrades to include establishing a physical structure and increasing manpower to ensure the protection of Congress, the public and our police officers,” the department said in a statement. “Our department is working with our local, state, and federal partners to stop any threats to the Capitol.”The building where Congress meets has been protected with the help of National Guard troops and surrounded by an extended security perimeter with tall fencing since a Jan. 6 attack on the Capitol by supporters of then-President Donald Trump.That mob breached the Capitol as members of Congress met to certify President Joe Biden’s election victory over Trump.Thursday’s date is connected to a far-right conspiracy theory that Trump, who repeatedly falsely claimed mass voter fraud cost him the election, would return to power on March 4. The date was inauguration day for U.S. presidents until it was moved to Jan. 20 in 1933.Earlier this week, the FBI and Department of Homeland Security warned local law enforcement officials in a joint intelligence bulletin that a group of militia extremists had discussed encouraging people to travel to Washington and try to take control of the Capitol.The threats prompted the House of Representatives to cancel its Thursday session. The Senate is scheduled to meet.Lawmakers have held several hearings about what was known before the Jan. 6 attack and how local and federal agencies responded.The Justice Department has charged more than 300 people with taking part in the siege that left five people, including a Capitol Police officer, dead.
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Vietnam Tapping Hackers to Silence Critics, Experts Warn
An international advocacy group’s claim that the Vietnamese government has tapped hackers to target activists shows that the communist Southeast Asian state is widening the use of technology to quash its biggest opponents, experts believe. Ocean Lotus, a shadowy group suspected of working with the Vietnamese government, is “behind a sustained campaign of spyware attacks,” London-based Amnesty International said in a statement on February 24 following two years of research. It says the attacks surfaced in 2014 and targeted rights activists and the private sector, inside Vietnam as well as abroad. The hack attacks would signal a growing use of technology to muzzle strong vocal opponents of Vietnam’s officials, country observers say. Police already use internet trolls and authorities have been known to damage people’s Facebook accounts, said James Gomez, regional director of the Asia Centre, a Bangkok-based think tank. The FILE – Vietnamese Ministry of Foreign Affairs deputy spokesperson Ngo Toan Thang speaks to media in Hanoi, Vietnam, Nov. 7, 2019.”This is groundless information,” deputy ministry spokesperson Ngo Toan Thang told a news conference in May, as quoted on the ministry’s website. “Vietnam strictly bans all cyber-attacks against organizations and individuals in any form.” The ministry’s English-language website does not address Amnesty International’s claims. Amnesty International’s Security Lab said in the February 24 statement it had found Ocean Lotus’s influence in phishing emails sent to two Vietnamese “human rights” advocates. One lives in Germany, the statement says, and the other was a Vietnamese nongovernmental organization in the Philippines. “The hacking group has been repeatedly identified by cybersecurity firms as targeting Vietnamese political dissidents, foreign governments and companies,” the statement adds. Vietnam ‘cyber-troops’French journalism advocacy group Reporters Without Borders said in 2018 Vietnam had appointed 10,000 “cyber-troops” to fight online dissent. The journalism group called the deployment an “army of internet trolls” aimed at attacking independent media outlets. Authorities showed last year they can quickly shutter social media accounts registered in foreign countries. After Vietnamese blogger Bui Thi Minh Hang livestreamed an interview with a woman whose 3-year-old child was exposed to tear gas, her posts quickly disappeared from Facebook and YouTube and she was arrested hours later. She lost access to her accounts.Vietnam Pressures Social Media Platforms to Censor Vietnam’s laws and requests for content removal are stifling free speech, bloggers and rights organizations say Jack Nguyen, a partner at the business advisory firm Mazars in Ho Chi Minh City, suggests that internet commentators stick to issues rather than targeting the state or the Communist Party. Pollution and drought are acceptable topics, he said, and it’s even OK to suggest policy changes. “Don’t criticize the party,” Nguyen said. “You can criticize some of the policies but don’t do anything that they can say that it’s counterrevolutionary.”
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US Part of Global Trend of Democratic Backsliding
Nearly 75% of the world’s population lives in countries where freedom is declining, including in the United States, according to a new report by the Washington-based research and advocacy group Freedom House. White House correspondent Patsy Widakuswara has more on the democratic backsliding.
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Countries Roll Out Chinese-Made COVID Vaccines
Nearly 50 countries have either received or ordered at least one of the three Chinese-developed COVID-19 vaccines, according to an Associated Press survey. More with VOA’s Mariama Diallo on the vaccine rollouts.
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Biden Administration: Homeland Security Will Decide Whether to Extend TPS for Haitians
The Biden administration has declined to comment on whether Temporary Protected Status (TPS) will be extended for Haitians. “By law, TPS designations are made by the Department of Homeland Security after consultation with the appropriate agencies,” State Department spokesperson Ned Price told VOA. “So, we wouldn’t want to comment on any sort of internal deliberations when it comes to TPS.” TPS is a designation made by the secretary of homeland security to individuals from countries severely impacted by natural disasters or armed conflicts. It allows beneficiaries to live and work in the United States for a period of time. The TPS status Haitians currently hold was enacted by the Obama administration on January 21, 2010, nine days after a massive 7.0-magnitude earthquake hit the island nation, killing at least 250,000 people and displacing 5 million others. In October 2020, then-candidate Joe Biden made a campaign stop in the Little Haiti neighborhood of Miami, Florida, where he courted the Haitian-American vote and promised to act on an immigration issue high on their list of priorities, the TPS program. More than 55,000 Haitians are enrolled in the program, according to the Temporary Protected Status (TPS) holder Kerlyne Paraison, foreground, of Haiti, holds up a sign as she demonstrates during a rally for a permanent solution for TPS holders in front of the Citizenship And Immigration Services Field Office.Prominent Haitian immigration advocate reaction Reacting to the State Department’s stance on TPS, the Miami-based Family Action Network Movement (FANM), a grassroots immigration advocacy group, called on the Biden administration to act quickly. “This is something FANM has been advocating for, along with other immigrant rights organizations. The time to do this is now,” Marleine Bastien, executive director of FANM, told VOA. What’s happening in Haiti?Haiti has battled political turmoil and a spike in violent crime over the past year. President Jovenel Moise is at odds with members of the opposition about when his term expires. He plans to step down on February 7, 2022, when a newly elected president takes power. But the opposition cites an article in the Haitian constitution that states Moise’s term should have ended on February 7, 2021. Moise was sworn in on February 7, 2017, for a five-year term after winning a 2016 presidential election. That vote was a re-do after the 2015 election results were annulled over fraud allegations. The U.S. and much of the international community back Moise’s claim that his term will end next year. However, both the Trump and Biden administrations have repeatedly criticized Moise for ruling by decree since January 2020, when two-thirds of the parliament’s terms expired. They have also called on him to organize elections as soon as possible. The United Nations, the Organization of American States and the European Union have expressed the same concerns. Moise defended his decision not to organize elections last year, citing the pandemic, a crippling economic crisis, a spike in violent crimes and “peyi lok,” a series of massive anti-government protests that halted operations of businesses, schools and transportation. Moise announced in February that a constitutional referendum was planned for April and legislative and presidential elections would be held in September. New wave of asylum seekers?Asked by VOA if the current political instability in Haiti could cause more Haitians to seek asylum in the U.S., the State Department’s Price did not give a direct answer.“What I would say is that it is the responsibility of Haiti’s government to organize elections in 2021 that are free, that are fair, that are credible,” Price told VOA. “We join the international community in calling Haitian stakeholders to come together to find a way forward. What we have said is that the Haitian people deserve the opportunity to elect their leaders and to restore Haiti’s democratic institutions.”
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US, EU Remain Wary of Erdogan’s Diplomatic Charm Offensive
Since U.S. President Joe Biden’s election, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has been making diplomatic overtures to the West, pledging democratic reforms at home and promising a serious effort to improve ties with Turkey’s NATO partners.The Turkish leader told France’s president, Emmanuel Macron, in a video call Tuesday that cooperation has “very serious potential,” and he added that dialogue has an important role to play.“As two strong NATO allies, we can make significant contributions to peace, stability, and peace efforts in a wide geography — from Europe to the Caucasus, the Middle East, and Africa,” Erdogan said in a statement following the conversation.Also Tuesday, Erdogan unveiled a long-awaited action plan he has trailed heavily since Biden’s election win last November, which he says is aimed at improving human and civil rights in Turkey.“The ultimate aim of Turkey’s action plan is a new civilian constitution,” the Turkish president highlighted in his speech. The plan originates from the state’s “obligation to protect, in all of its affairs and acts and with all of the state institutions and organizations, the physical and moral integrity and the honor and dignity of individuals,” he announced.FILE – Members of Reporters Without Borders hold stencils representing portraits of imprisoned Turkish journalists, during a demonstration in front of the Turkish Embassy, in Paris, Jan. 5, 2018.But Erdogan’s critics say the action plan sits oddly with his government’s quashing of dissent — Turkey jails more journalists than any other country in the world — and the imprisoning of the Turkish leader’s political opponents, as well as a rolling crackdown on dissident groups, which became more expansive after a 2016 coup attempt failed to topple the Islamist populist leader.Wariness, skepticismDespite the overtures to Biden and Brussels, which have included the appointment of a new Turkish ambassador to the U.S. and Erdogan’s stated hopes to turn a new page in relations with the West after years of strained relations, the diplomatic charm offensive has been received so far in Washington with wariness and skepticism.U.S. officials say only last year Erdogan was engineering a dangerous standoff in the eastern Mediterranean with Greece and Cyprus over lucrative gas and oil drilling rights. Western Europeans and Turkey’s other regional neighbors accused Ankara of brinkmanship in a deadlock that saw opposing warships come close to clashing. And even in December, the Turkish president was continuing to complain about a Western conspiracy being formed against Turkey aimed at frustrating the projection of Turkish power and influence abroad.FILE – A handout photograph released by the Turkish Defense Ministry Aug. 12, 2020, shows Turkish seismic research vessel Oruc Reis, center, as it is escorted by Turkish Naval ships in the Mediterranean Sea, off Antalya, Aug. 10, 2020.“There are few signs that the leopard really has changed its spots,” an American official told VOA on Wednesday. He was speaking just hours after Turkey said it is considering purchasing a second S-400 anti-aircraft missile system from Russia, despite strong disapproval from the U.S. and NATO.FILE – The first parts of a Russian S-400 missile defense system are unloaded from a Russian plane near Ankara, Turkey, July 12, 2019.Ankara’s original purchase last year of the Russian air defense system, which NATO members say is incompatible with membership in the Western alliance, prompted even the more forbearing Trump administration to impose sanctions on Turkey.U.S. and Western officials say it is hardly surprising they remain skeptical about Erdogan’s intentions. “It is hard not to conclude that he is talking from both sides of his mouth,” said a Western diplomat. “There are no signs of him easing his crackdown on domestic dissent nor turning aside from a marriage of convenience with Russia.”Biden has taken an even harder line on Turkey than his White House predecessor, Donald Trump. Before being elected, Biden tagged Erdogan as an autocrat, and the new administration has rebuked Ankara for rights abuses and urged the release of prominent activist Osman Kavala.FILE – A journalist stands in front of a poster featuring jailed philanthropist Osman Kavala, during a press conference given by his lawyers, in Istanbul, Turkey, Oct. 31, 2018.Biden and Erdogan have yet to speak. The only high-level contact so far featured a phone conversation between Jake Sullivan, the U.S. national security adviser, and Ibrahim Kalin, a security adviser to the Turkish leader. EU, Turkish relationsLater this month, European Union heads of state and government are scheduled to review the bloc’s relations with Turkey. “There is no doubt that EU governments want a calmer, more predictable relationship with Ankara,” according to Marc Pierini, a visiting scholar at the Carnegie Europe research organization.He says they want to see improved relations with Turkey for economic reasons and because they fear that any further deterioration could prompt Erdogan to break his deal with the EU to block refugees from using Turkey again as a gateway to Europe.But in a commentary for Carnegie Europe, Pierini notes that Erdogan’s diplomatic charm offensive places the Europeans in a tricky spot. They don’t want to be seen “giving a blessing to Turkey’s autocratic leanings at a time when the country blatantly disregards and mocks Europe’s fundamental values,” he said. “Ankara is striving to dodge punitive measures and fill the agenda with reforms that are palatable to the Europeans. Yet, domestic developments in Turkey keep pointing in the opposite direction.” Rights issuesWestern diplomats say Ankara wants to limit any dialogue with the U.S. and Europe just to trade and economic matters with rights issues and Erdogan’s adventurism in Syria, Libya and Central Asia off the agenda.So far, that doesn’t seem to be working.FILE – U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken speaks at the State Department in Washington, Feb. 4, 2021.On Monday, 170 U.S. lawmakers, Democrats and Republicans, sent a letter to U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken urging the Biden administration to address “troubling” human rights issues as it shapes its policy toward Turkey.Lawmakers noted in the letter that Turkey has long been an important partner, but they say Erdogan is responsible for the strains in the relationship.“Strategic issues have rightfully received significant attention in our bilateral relationship, but the gross violation of human rights and democratic backsliding taking place in Turkey are also of significant concern,” the lawmakers said, pointing to the weakening of Turkey’s judiciary, the appointment of Erdogan’s political allies to key military and intelligence positions, and the wrongful imprisonment of political opponents, journalists and members of minority groups.
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German Intel Agency Puts Far-Right AfD Under Surveillance
Germany’s domestic intelligence agency recently put the far-right Alternative for Germany (AfD) Party under surveillance for suspected extremist links that pose a potential threat to democracy, German media outlets report. The Federal Office for the Protection of the Constitution (Bundesamt für Verfassungsschutz, or BfV) would not comment on the reports because of ongoing legal action by the AfD. The Interior Ministry, which oversees the BfV, would neither confirm nor deny the news reports, but multiple German media organizations confirmed the surveillance through government sources close to the situation. On Wednesday, AfD’s parliamentary leadership, which controls 88 of 709 seats in the legislative body, described the surveillance as “completely unjustified” and vowed to fight it in court. The co-leader of the Alternative for Germany far-right party Alexander Gauland and the vice-leader of the parliamentary group Tino Chrupalla, left, address a press conference, in the parliamentary compound of the Bundestag in Berlin, March 3, 2021.BfV’s February 24 decision to classify AfD as a potential security threat is the first time in Germany’s post-war history that a political party represented in Parliament has been put under such scrutiny. The designation gives the intelligence agency additional surveillance powers, including tapping phones and other communications, and monitoring the movements of AfD members. The AfD has become the main opposition in the German Parliament, which is entrenched in politics at all levels across the nation. The move also comes ahead of the September election that will choose Chancellor Angela Merkel’s successor. Alexander Gauland, AfD’s parliamentary floor leader, told reporters the designation is clearly an effort to ruin the party’s chances in the election, and the matter will be decided in the courts. The AfD is currently the largest of four opposition parties in the national Parliament and has lawmakers in all 16 state assemblies. The party has moved steadily to the right since it was founded in 2013 for critics of the shared euro currency. It has been strongly denounced in recent years for its anti-immigrant rhetoric and ties to neo-Nazis. Several AfD members sympathized with the violent storming of the U.S. Capitol on January 6. Several senior figures have quit in recent years, warning that the party was being taken over by far-right extremists. Recent polls have shown support for AfD sagging as low as 9% after winning 12.6% of the vote in 2017.
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US House Cancels Thursday Session After Police Warn of Possible Plot on Capitol
The U.S. House of Representatives canceled its planned Thursday session after the Capitol Police warned on Wednesday of a possible plot by a militia group to breach the building, a threat that echoed the deadly Jan. 6 attack.
The House had been scheduled to debate and vote on a police reform bill on Thursday. But a House Democratic aide said that the police warning, based on intelligence that “an identified militia group” could present a security threat, contributed to the change in plans.
Authorities have said right-wing extremists were part of a mob of supporters of former President Donald Trump that stormed the Capitol in January, interrupting the formal congressional certification of President Joe Biden’s election victory.
Thursday marks the date when some right-wing conspiracy theorists have falsely claimed that Trump, defeated by Biden in the November 3 election, will be sworn in for a second term in office.
The Justice Department has charged more than 300 people with taking part in the Capitol siege, in which five people, including a police officer were killed. Among those arrested were members of the right-wing groups called the Oath Keepers, Three Percenters and Proud Boys. The Oath Keepers and Three Percenters are armed militia groups.
“The United States Capitol Police Department is aware of and prepared for any potential threats towards members of Congress or towards the Capitol complex,” it said in its statement.
It said it is working with local, state and federal agencies “to stop any threats to the Capitol,” adding, “We are taking the intelligence seriously.” It did not disclose the nature of the intelligence.
The police statement noted that the department already has made “significant security upgrades” at the Capitol, home to the U.S. House of Representatives and Senate.
The Senate had been aiming to debate Biden’s $1.9 trillion COVID-19-relief bill on Thursday. Senator Dick Durbin said the Senate would be adjourned until 12 p.m. Thursday.
On Tuesday, Acting House Sergeant at Arms Timothy Blodgett notified members of Congress of a possible security threat spanning Thursday through Saturday. It referred to “potential protests and demonstration activity surrounding what some have described as the ‘true Inauguration Day.'”
For nearly a century, U.S. presidents have been inaugurated on January 20, including Biden, who took the oath of office on the grounds of the Capitol. Previously, March 4 had been the swearing-in date.
Acting Capitol Police Chief Yogananda Pittman testified to Congress on Feb. 25 that Trump supporters who launched the Jan. 6 attack have indicated they want to “blow up” the building and kill members of Congress.
Since January 6, National Guard troops have been dispatched to the Capitol grounds and tall fencing has been erected to extend the security perimeter of the Capitol. Blodgett told lawmakers that the Capitol Police department has “enhanced” its security posture for the coming days.
Congress has held a series of hearings on the riot and congressional leaders in the coming days are expected to receive recommendations for new, permanent security measures at the Capitol.
The House impeached Trump on January 13 on a charge of inciting an insurrection, focusing on an incendiary speech he made to supporters shortly before the mob converged on the Capitol, though the Senate acquitted him on February 13.
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