Several western countries announced new sanctions this week against Chinese officials involved in the mass detentions of ethnic Uyghur Muslims, marking a new united front to pressure Beijing over its human rights abuses.The European Union sanctioned four Chinese Communist Party officials in Xinjiang, including a top security director, and one entity, under the Global Magnitsky sanctions program, a decision later mirrored by Britain and Canada. It is the EU’s first significant sanction against China since the EU arms embargo after the Tiananmen Massacre in 1989.The U.S. added two of the four individuals to its sanction list whom it had not sanctioned before. The sanctioned individuals face travel bans and asset freezes.The foreign ministers of Canada and Britain issued a joint statement with U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken, saying the three countries are united in demanding that Beijing end its “repressive practices” in Xinjiang.“These actions demonstrate our ongoing commitment to working multilaterally to advance respect for human rights and shining a light on those in the PRC government and CCP responsible for these atrocities,” Blinken said in a statement.Over 1 million detainedAt least 1 million Muslims have been detained in camps in Xinjiang, according to U.N. rights experts. The activists and some Western politicians accuse China of using torture, forced labor and sterilizations.Members of Uighur minority demonstrate to ask for news of their relatives and to express their concern about the ratification of an extradition treaty between China and Turkey, Feb. 22, 2021, near China consulate in Istanbul.Analysts said this week’s sanctions are notable because they involve large economies that are important trading partners for Beijing and show that Washington is not alone in trying to publicly pressure China to improve the treatment of its citizens.Julian Ku, Senior Associate Dean and law professor at Hofstra University, told VOA, “It changes the narrative for China, which has been saying this is a U.S. plot to keep China down.”He said the move shows many countries around the world “have a similar view of the United States as to how serious what’s going on in Xinjiang is and that the rest of the world should care about what’s going on. That does change the conversation.”Ku said the Biden administration’s coordinated strategy contrasts with former President Donald Trump, who Ku said tended to make policy decisions without working with traditional allies.FILE – Residents line up inside the Artux City Vocational Skills Education Training Service Center at the Kunshan Industrial Park in Artux in western China’s Xinjiang region, Dec. 3, 2018.Christopher Balding, an American professor who taught at Peking University’s HSBC School of Business in Shenzhen for nine years, said the sanctions still remain a “symbolic” step forward because they focus on regional officials, not anyone at the central government level. He said the Biden administration deserves credit for pulling the coordinated action together, but it’s only a small step forward.“There’s a lot of heavy lifting that needs to be done with regards to changing how Europe and even Canada are going to react to China, and how they’re going to treat China,” he said.Australia and New Zealand followed up with a statement expressing “grave concerns about the growing number of credible reports of severe human rights abuses against ethnic Uyghurs and other Muslim minorities in Xinjiang.”Ku said it’s worth waiting to see if other countries in Southeast Asia and Africa would support the sanctions.China has denied all accusations of abuse and hit back with similar sanctions against 10 individuals and four entities in the EU.
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Month: March 2021
Somali Elections Still Delayed After Failure of President-Hosted Talks
Somalia’s president, Mohamed Abdullahi Mohamed, known as “Farmaajo,” is under increasing pressure to make a deal on holding delayed elections. A two-day conference this week failed to end the political standoff.The U.S. government has called on the leaders of Somalia’s federal government and regional administrations to work towards holding delayed elections in the East African country.The presidential and parliamentary elections which were supposed to take place in February but were postponed due to disagreements on the electoral process by Somali political stakeholders.Somalia ready for electionsMinister for Information Osman Dubbe said the government is ready for the polls once concerned stakeholders can resolve their differences.He was speaking after a two-day election summit concluded without progress because leaders from the regional states of Puntland and Jubbaland did not attend.Dubbe said it was very unfortunate that the leaders from Puntland and Jubbaland didn’t attend the significant meeting. We hope they will join the crucial forum tomorrow on Wednesday to take part in the key discussions including election security, he added.Abdirahman Abdishakur, leader of the opposition Wajir party, dismissed the election summit convened by President Farmajo, saying he has no constitutional mandate to summon such a forum.Opposition parties say the mandate of the president and the federal government of Somalia expired last month.“The FGS mandate is over, therefore other key stakeholders must be part of the meeting and the venue has to secured by neutral forces, i.e AMISOM, and there must mediator and guarantor and the agendas has to be agreed,” Abdishakur said.Al-Shabab a concernSecurity analyst Ahmed Hassan said militant group al-Shabab may try to exploit the political environment.“The political crisis regarding the elections has diverted Somali leaders from their security responsibilities, hence giving militant groups an opportunity to carry out attacks as we have seen what happened in Bosaso on 4th March where al-Shabab raided the main prison, releasing dozens of inmates affiliated to the militant group,” Hassan said.Hassan said another concern is that security forces might be used to intimidate the opposition in the upcoming elections. Opposition officials have accused the government of preparing to do that, though the government has denied the allegations.Meanwhile, the U.N. office in Somalia urged further informal consultations in coming days to ensure full participation in the election talks.
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Biden Looking to Big Infrastructure Spending Deal
With money from the $1.9 trillion U.S. coronavirus relief deal beginning to course through the world’s biggest economy, President Joe Biden’s economic advisers are preparing an even bigger economic stimulus, a possible $3 trillion package to repair the country’s aging infrastructure and — they say — invest in the economy of the future.Details of the new package have yet to be laid out publicly, but Biden campaigned for the presidency last year on the need to upgrade roads and bridges, modernize airports and transit systems and expand broadband technology. Biden said he would help pay for it by raising taxes on corporations and individuals earning more than $400,000 a year.The evolving plan envisions a much broader definition of infrastructure than just physical structures. It is likely to include reducing carbon emissions by expanding the use of renewable energy, narrowing economic inequality and providing free community college enrollment for the masses and universal pre-kindergarten education.The coronavirus relief measure that Biden pushed through Congress solely with the support of Democratic lawmakers over unified Republican opposition was aimed at ramping up vaccinations against the virus and providing aid for hard-hit businesses devastated by the pandemic. The Biden administration envisions the new spending as preparing the economy for the years ahead.In January, as he took office for a four-year term, Biden described the economic boost as part of his “Build Back Better” plan. But infrastructure deals in Washington have often foundered amid disputes among lawmakers over what to fund and how to pay for it. During the administration of former President Donald Trump, plans for “Infrastructure Week” events were overshadowed by more urgent issues and quickly forgotten.Biden’s press secretary, Jen Psaki, said recently that discussions on what might ultimately be included in the new proposal remain fluid.“President Biden and his team are considering a range of potential options for how to invest in working families and reform our tax code so it rewards work, not wealth,” Psaki said. “Those conversations are ongoing, so any speculation about future economic proposals is premature and not a reflection of the White House’s thinking.”Some aspects of the eventual plan put forth by the Democratic president might appeal more to Republican lawmakers than others, with road and bridge repairs high on the list of what lawmakers can point to when they run for reelection.Paying the bill for the upgrades is more problematic.“Anybody making more than $400,000 will see a small to a significant tax increase,” Biden said last week on ABC’s “Good Morning America” show.Senate Republican leader Mitch McConnell told reporters, “I don’t think there’s going to be any enthusiasm on our side for a tax increase.”In the politically divided Congress, where Democrats narrowly control both the Senate and the House of Representatives, Biden used a legislative tactic available for spending proposals to narrowly push through the coronavirus relief deal on a simple majority vote.With the infrastructure proposal, he may need to seek support from at least 10 Republicans to close off the threat of a filibuster in the Senate, which is divided with 50 Republicans and 50 Democrats.Alternatively, he could seek to again deploy the same legislative tactic that was used to pass the relief bill on a straight party-line vote, with Vice President Kamala Harris providing the tie-breaking vote in the Senate. No date has been set for announcing Biden’s infrastructure proposal.
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US Worried About Transparency in China’s Trial of 2 Canadians
The United States has expressed concern about the way the Chinese government is conducting the trial of two Canadians charged with espionage, according to a State Department spokesperson.“We remain deeply troubled by the lack of transparency surrounding the legal proceedings of Michael Spavor and Michael Kovrig,” Ned Price tweeted Tuesday. Entrepreneur Spavor and former diplomat Kovrig were both arrested on different occasions in December 2018 following the arrest of Meng Wanzhou, the chief financial officer of China’s Huawei Technologies, in Vancouver on a U.S. warrant.Meng remains under house arrest in Vancouver as she fights extradition. As a chief financial officer of Huawei — one of the world’s largest manufacturers of smartphones — Meng is accused of lying to U.S. officials about Huawei’s business in Iran, which is under U.S. sanctions.The arrests plunged relations between Ottawa and Beijing to their lowest levels in decades.FILE – A protester holds a sign calling for China to release Canadian detainees Michael Spavor and Michael Kovrig outside a court hearing for Huawei executive Meng Wanzhou in Vancouver, March 6, 2019.The espionage trial of Kovrig began Monday behind closed doors in Beijing, three days after Spavor was put on trial behind closed doors in the northeastern Chinese city of Dandong.Diplomats from several nations, including Canada and the United States, gathered Monday outside the Beijing courthouse where Kovrig’s trial was held after they were barred from attending it for what China says are national security reasons.Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau has denounced China’s action as “completely unacceptable, as is the lack of transparency around these court proceedings.”The United States joined the call for “continued consular access in accordance with the Vienna Convention on Consular Relations,” Price’s tweet read in support of the Canadian government.
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Press Freedom Group Sues Facebook Over Misinformation, ‘Hate Speech’
Press freedom advocate Reporters Without Borders (RSF) is suing Facebook in France, saying the social media platform spreads misinformation. The suit was filed Monday with the Paris public prosecutor. “Reporters Without Borders accuses Facebook of ‘deceptive commercial practices’ on the grounds that the social media company’s promises to provide a ‘safe’ and ‘error-free’ online environment are contradicted by the large-scale proliferation of hate speech and false information on its networks,” the group said in a press release. Specifically, the group says Facebook allows “hate speech” against the media, as well as misinformation about the coronavirus pandemic. The group said Facebook allowed posts that were insulting and threatening against French satirical magazine Charlie Hebdo, as well as targeting the TV program “Quotidien” and a regional newspaper, L’Union. Facebook said in a statement that it “has zero tolerance for any harmful content on our platforms,” Bloomberg reported. “Over the last few years, we’ve tripled the size of our safety and security team to 35,000 and built artificial intelligence technology to proactively find and remove harmful content,” the statement continued, according to Bloomberg. “While nobody can eliminate misinformation and hate speech from the internet entirely, we continue using research, experts and technologies to tackle them in the most comprehensive and effective way possible.” Should RSF win its case, the decision could have global repercussions for Facebook, as its terms of service are similar worldwide. Any change in France could trigger changes elsewhere. Facebook and other Big Tech companies have been under intense pressure to stop what some call misinformation. In December, the EU proposed new regulations that could hit companies with fines of up to 6% of their global revenue for not complying with orders to remove content deemed violent hate speech, according to Bloomberg.
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Myanmar Military Junta Blames Protesters for Violence as West Imposes Sanctions
Myanmar’s military junta Tuesday accused the leaders of the ongoing nationwide protests of arson and inciting violence and sought to justify last month’s coup by repeating accusations of fraud against deposed de-facto leader Aung San Suu Kyi.
The comments come a day after the United States and European Union imposed new sanctions against the military leaders for their February 1 coup and the subsequent crackdown on the protests against it.
At a lengthy news conference Tuesday, the military presented displays of seized homemade weapons and videos of street battles to argue that the demonstrators are violent and that efforts to stop them are justified.
Junta spokesman Zaw Min Tun compared the military response to U.S. police responding to the January 6 siege at the U.S. capitol, saying, “Which country would accept these kind of violent acts?” The spokesman said 164 protesters had been killed in Myanmar’s violence and expressed sadness at the deaths.
The Assistance Association for Political Prisoners (AAPP) activist group says it can verify at least 261 people have been killed by Myanmar security forces, but the total is likely much higher. It also reports, from their Twitter account, 2,682 have been arrested, charged or sentenced and 2,302 are still in detention or have outstanding warrants.
Several of Myanmar’s neighboring countries have condemned the violence, including Bangladesh, China, India, Laos and Thailand. Zaw Min Tun told reporters the junta has been cooperating with those countries and wants to maintain good relations with them, as well as all the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) and the rest of the world.
Junta leaders also justified their coup by saying the Nov. 8 election won by Suu Kyi’s National League for Democracy (NLD) was fraudulent – an accusation the electoral commission rejected. They also claim Suu Kyi accepted bribes, a charge her lawyer has denied. She has been in detention since the coup.
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Ethiopia’s Leader Says Atrocities Committed in Tigray War
Ethiopia’s leader on Tuesday said atrocities have been committed in Tigray, his first public acknowledgment of possible war crimes in the country’s northern region where fighting persists as government troops hunt down its fugitive leaders.
“Reports indicate that atrocities have been committed in Tigray region,” Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed said in an address before lawmakers in the capital, Addis Ababa.
War is “a nasty thing,” Abiy said, speaking the local Amharic language. “We know the destruction this war has caused.” He said soldiers who raped women or committed other war crimes will be held responsible, even though he cited “propaganda of exaggeration” by the Tigray People’s Liberation Front, the once-dominant party whose leaders challenged Abiy’s legitimacy after the postponement of elections last year.
Abiy spoke as concern continues to grow over the humanitarian situation in the embattled region that is home to 6 million people.
The United States has characterized some abuses in the Tigray war as “ethnic cleansing,” charges dismissed by Ethiopian authorities as unfounded. It also has urged Eritrean troops, who are fighting on the side of Ethiopian government forces, to withdraw from Tigray.
The Ethiopian prime minister, who won the Nobel Peace Prize in 2019 for his efforts to make peace with Eritrea, faces pressure to end the conflict in Tigray as well as to institute an international investigation into alleged war crimes, ideally led by the United Nations. The government’s critics say an ongoing federal probe simply isn’t enough because the government can’t effectively investigate itself.
Rupert Colville, a spokesman in Geneva for U.N. High Commissioner for Human Rights Michelle Bachelet, told The Associated Press last week that Ethiopia’s Human Rights Commission had asked to participate with her office in “a joint investigation into allegations of serious human rights violations by all sides” in Tigray.
Accounts of atrocities by Ethiopian and allied forces against residents of Tigray have been detailed in reports by The Associated Press and by Amnesty International.
But Abiy said in Tuesday’s address, which included answering questions from lawmakers, that fighters loyal to the Tigray People’s Liberation Front had committed a massacre in the town of Mai Kadra. “But it is not getting enough attention,” he said of that massacre, describing it as “the worst” in the conflict.
The Tigray conflict began in November, when Abiy sent government troops into the region after an attack there on federal military facilities. The federal army is now hunting the fugitive regional leaders, who have reportedly retreated into Tigray’s remote mountainous areas.
Abiy accused Tigray’s leaders of drumming up “a war narrative” while the area faced challenges such as a destructive invasion of locusts and the COVID-19 pandemic. “This was misplaced and untimely arrogance,” he said, according to a transcript of his comments posted on Twitter by the prime minister’s office.
President Joe Biden last week dispatched Sen. Chris Coons to Ethiopia to express the administration’s “grave concerns” about the growing humanitarian crisis and human rights abuses in Tigray, and the risk of broader instability in the Horn of Africa. Details of Coons’ weekend visit haven’t been released.
Humanitarian officials have warned that a growing number of people might be starving to death in Tigray. The fighting erupted on the brink of harvest in the largely agricultural region and sent an untold number of people fleeing their homes. Witnesses have described widespread looting by Eritrean soldiers as well as the burning of crops.
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Blinken to Consult with NATO Allies on Troop Withdrawal Plans for Afghanistan
U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken pledged Tuesday to consult and share with NATO allies Washington’s plans on any possible military withdrawal from Afghanistan.Washington has committed to pulling out its remaining 2,500 troops and several thousand NATO forces from the war-shattered South Asian nation by May 1. The deadline is outlined in a February 2020 agreement that then-President Donald Trump’s administration signed with the Afghan Taliban insurgency.“We went in together, we have adjusted together and when the time is right we will leave together,” Blinken told reporters in Brussels when asked what he would tell his NATO partners about U.S. plans for Afghanistan.NATO foreign ministers have gathered at the military alliance’s headquarters to spend the next two days discussing the way forward in Afghanistan.Taliban spokesman Zabihullah Mujahid, while reacting to Blinken’s remarks, told VOA the insurgent group expects the U.S. to honor and fully implement the deal.“It is clearly stated in the agreement that America will withdraw all its troops (from Afghanistan) by May 1, and we again ask them to strictly adhere to the mutually agreed deadline,” Mujahid said.“In case Americans do not meet their obligations and abandon the agreement, the Islamic Emirate (Taliban) will be forced to defend their nation and consider all other options to force foreign troops out of the country,” Mujahid said. He did not elaborate.Blinken in his talk Tuesday reiterated that the U.S.-Taliban deal was still being reviewed by President Joe Biden’s administration and that he will “share some of our initial thinking” with NATO allies to “listen and consult” with them.“Last week, President Biden noted that it would be tough to meet the May 1 deadline for a full withdrawal; but whatever the United States ends up doing will be informed by the thinking of our NATO allies, which I’ll take back to me after these conversations and consultations,” said Blinken.“Tactical decisions aside, we are united with our NATO allies in seeking to bring a responsible end to this conflict and to remove our troops from harm’s way just as we are collectively determined to ensure that Afghanistan never again becomes a safe haven for terrorists who could threaten the United States or our allies,” he added.FILE – U.S. troops patrol at an Afghan National Army (ANA) Base in Logar province, Afghanistan, Aug. 7, 2018.NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg, speaking alongside Blinken, supported and welcomed the Biden administration’s renewed efforts to push the Taliban and the Afghan government into a power-sharing peace deal to ensure Afghanistan does not collapse into greater violence and chaos after the foreign troop pullout.“The challenge now is that we have peace talks and we strongly welcome them. They are fragile but they are the only path to a lasting political solution in Afghanistan…and to achieve that, all parties need to negotiate in good faith,” Stoltenberg said.The NATO chief stressed the need for reducing Afghan violence and urged the Taliban to “stop supporting international terrorists, including (the) al-Qaida (network).”The U.S.-Taliban pact encouraged the insurgents to open the first direct talks with representatives of the Afghan government in Doha last September to try to agree on a political deal that would end the nearly two decades of war.But the so-called intra-Afghan peace dialogue has made little progress and remained stalled for most of the time, with both Afghan rivals accusing each other of delays.Blinken said in a strongly-worded letter to Ghani earlier this month it is urgent that the Afghan government accelerate the peace process.He warned that even if the U.S. financial assistance of around $4 billion continued for Kabul to help sustain Afghan security forces after the foreign troop withdrawal, the Taliban would make rapid territorial gains.In a weekly commentary published on its official website Tuesday, the Taliban group said it has “fulfilled all its responsibilities” outlined in the agreement” signed with the U.S. in Doha, the capital of Qatar, in February 2020.“We hope that the other parties, be they foreign or internal, also remain committed to the Doha agreement so that the process of intra-Afghan negotiations may arrive at a successful destination through following this roadmap,” said the insurgent statement.The Taliban reject allegations they maintain ties with transnational terror groups. Taliban leaders have ignored international calls for reducing battlefield attacks in Afghanistan until they strike a power-sharing agreement with Afghan rivals that would see formation of an “Islamic government” in the country.Afghan President Ashraf Ghani has long resisted relinquishing power in favor of a transitional government, saying he will transfer power only through elections. The Taliban reject the Ghani administration as an illegal entity and a product of the U.S. occupation of Afghanistan.
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Miami’s South Beach Confronts Disastrous Spring Break
Florida’s famed South Beach is desperately seeking a new image.
With more than 1,000 arrests and nearly 100 gun seizures already during this year’s spring break season, officials are thinking it may finally be time to cleanse the hip neighborhood of its law-breaking, party-all-night vibe.
The move comes after years of increasingly stringent measures — banning alcohol from beaches, canceling concerts and food festivals — have failed to stop the city from being overrun with out-of-control parties and anything-goes antics.
This weekend alone, spring breakers and pandemic-weary tourists drawn by Florida’s loose virus-control rules gathered by the thousands along famed Ocean Drive, at times breaking into street fights, destroying restaurant property and causing several dangerous stampedes. The situation got so out of hand that Miami Beach Police brought in SWAT teams to disperse pepper bullets and called in law enforcement officers from at least four other agencies. Ultimately, the city decided to order an emergency 8 p.m. curfew that will likely extend well into April after the spring break season is over.
“We definitely want people to come and have fun,” Miami Beach Commissioner Ricky Arriola said Monday. “It’s a nightlife city. We want people of all races, genders, sexual orientation. But we can’t tolerate people thinking they can come here and act out a scene from ‘Fast and the Furious,’ speeding down the streets and shooting guns in the air.”
Some tourists are angry about the curfew, which they say has put a damper on long-sought vacations for which they paid good money. Meanwhile, some officials say they should have enacted more stringent measures sooner — as was done in New Orleans prior to Mardi Gras last month — instead of reacting in the middle of the chaos.
But Arriola and other commissioners argued the city may need an entirely different approach.
They note that over the past few seasons, the city has been steadily upping the ante with new rules and regulations, such as banning scooter rentals after 7 p.m. restricting alcohol sales after 8 p.m. and cracking down on loud music — to no avail.
“Every year we come up with new restrictions and they have no impact, so at what point are we going to try something new?” asked Arriola, who suggested hosting more family-oriented and business-friendly events.
The pandemic provided the perfect storm for large crowds: an unseasonably cold winter, pent-up demand from being quarantined at home and the lure of a sunny climate with miles of sandy beaches in a state with few COVID-19 restrictions.
New Orleans, which attracts thousand of tourists every year for Mardi Gras, successfully avoided the mayhem that erupted in Miami. Gov. John Bel Edwards, a Democrat, had already put a statewide mask mandate in place as well as occupancy limits on bars, restaurants and other businesses.
New Orleans Democratic Mayor LaToya Cantrell, also a Democrat, went even further by closing bars completely in the city, even those allowed to operate as restaurants. City officials also closed iconic Bourbon Street to cars and limited pedestrian access for the final weekend of the season.
Despite strong opposition from Republicans and business leaders, Edwards and Cantrell were determined not to repeat Mardi Gras 2020, which state officials later said contributed to New Orleans being an early Southern hot spot in the coronavirus pandemic.
“If people think they’re going to come to Louisiana, anywhere … and engage in the kind of activities they would have pre-pandemic, then they are mistaken and, quite frankly, they are not welcome here to do that,” Edwards said in a news conference ahead of Mardi Gras.
Miami Beach took less proactive measures under Republican Gov. Ron DeSantis, who has refused to implement a mask-wearing rule and has insisted on letting businesses stay open. Instead, city officials this year sent text messages that warned tourists to “Vacation Responsibly or Be Arrested” and spelled out a lengthy list of rules. The city also canceled all concerts and food festivals, trying to avoid large crowds, but that only left the throngs of people who showed up anyway to congregate aimlessly in impromptu street parties.
Some visitors were frustrated by the mixed messages after being lured to the state by a $5 million national tourism advertising campaign, the largest in 20 years.
Reg Mac, a paralegal from Orlando, spent $800 on his trip to Miami, which he said was a bust thanks to the 8 p.m. curfew. He’d been looking forward to letting loose — and had even set aside special outfits for the after-hours scene.
“I was expecting to go out to enjoy the nightlife,” said Mac, who instead returned to his hotel room to sleep. “The food was horrible and the service sucked.”
Added Deaja Atwaters, who traveled from Harker Heights, Texas: “It’s unfortunate that you can’t do everything that we want to do, that we plan to do, but we’re going to make the best of it.”
Miami Beach officials said the crowd of partiers consisted mostly of adults from out of state, not college students. They said many of them didn’t even patronize restaurants and local businesses.
“Not all people that visit Miami beach are bad and come to Miami Beach with the intent of breaking the law and disrupting our quality of life, but this is a different situation and it calls for drastic measures,” said interim City Manager Raul Aguila, who enacted the emergency curfew.
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Nigeria Sustains Tuberculosis Progress Despite Global Pandemic Setbacks
Campaigners against tuberculosis, a bacterial disease that mainly affects the lungs, say the coronavirus pandemic has rolled back years of progress in treating TB. But Nigeria — one of the countries hardest hit by the disease — has managed to maintain its progress, as Timothy Obiezu reports from Abuja.
Camera: Emekas Gibson
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Scotland’s Sturgeon Cleared of Breaching Ministerial Code
Results of an independent inquiry announced Monday cleared Scotland’s first minister, Nicola Sturgeon, of breaking a ministerial code of conduct, but she is likely to face an opposition-led vote of no confidence in parliament Tuesday. Sturgeon has been under intense scrutiny over what she did and did not do when she learned of complaints by several women against Alex Salmond – her predecessor as first minister and, once a close friend and ally in the cause of Scottish independence. Salmond was charged in 2019 with sexual assault and attempted rape after allegations by nine women who had worked with him as first minister or for the party.He was acquitted by a criminal court in 2020, and claims the allegations made by several women were part of a conspiracy to wreck his political career.James Hamilton, a widely respected Irish lawyer appointed to conduct an independent inquiry into Sturgeon’s conduct, found that she had not breached the ministerial code. Had he reached the opposite conclusion, she would have been expected to resign.Hamilton rejected suggestions that she had broken the rules by failing to record meetings with Salmond in 2018, that she tried to influence an investigation into his behavior or that she misled the Scottish parliament.A second inquiry, by a committee of Scottish lawmakers, is due to publish a report on Tuesday. British media have reported that the committee voted 5-4 in favor of finding that Sturgeon gave an inaccurate account to Scotland’s Edinburgh-based parliament about when she learned of allegations against Salmond.The Conservatives, who are in power in the United Kingdom as a whole but in opposition in Scotland, are planning a vote of no confidence in Sturgeon on Tuesday. With an election coming in May, Sturgeon called the vote a “political stunt” and said she was confident of winning.
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Black Women Breaking Barriers
From being Africa’s newest female president, to holding the second highest office in America, to leading the World Trade Organization, Black women are breaking barriers in various fields. Mariama Diallo reports on recent and past history-making moments as the world celebrates women’s achievements in March.
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Swelling COVID-19 Protest Movement Takes Over French Theaters
After aviation, Europe’s cultural and creative sector has been hit hardest by the coronavirus crisis, losing nearly $240 billion, according to a recent study by an accounting firm. Now as France weathers its third lockdown in a year, the creative arts industry is pushing back, with a growing protest movement now occupying dozens of theaters nationwide.It’s been months since the Odeon theater was last open. But these days, Parisians can listen to a bit of live jazz at this Paris Left Bank landmark. Some were dancing on a recent afternoon, despite a chilly rain.A jazz band previews Odeon theatre’s afternoon assembly by occupation protesters. (VOA/Lisa Bryant)This was just a preview to the main act. The Odeon has been holding daily public assemblies— ever since a group of protesters took over the theater earlier this month. They listed the latest tally of other occupied theaters across France—now about 70 and growing. The occupation movement began with demands the government reopen cultural venues—shuttered for months under coronavirus restrictions. They also want benefits extended for out-of-work artists and the repeal of an unpopular unemployment reform. Opera singer Aurelie Magnier, who attended the assembly, says she has been out of work for months. Luckily, she says, her partner has a steady job. Otherwise she wouldn’t be able to make ends meet. Also here is Monique Pedron, a member of the yellow vest protest movement that sparked a political crisis in France a couple years back. Its presence at the Odeon shows how this latest protest movement is spreading to include students and others hard hit by the pandemic’s fallout. Pedron says she misses culture, and she’s had it with COVID-19 restrictions. It’s more dangerous to take the metro, she says, than to attend a play. She hopes other French will join the occupation movement. Europe-wide, revenues from the cultural and creative industries dropped nearly a third last year from 2019, accounting firm EY reported recently. Banners at the Odeon proclaim “Culture Sacrificed” and “Power to the People.”Protesters gather at the Odean theater, which started the nationwide theater protest movement. (VOA/Lisa Byrant)That was also the message at France’s Cesar film awards ceremony, where actress Corinne Masiero stripped naked to demand more government support. She’d written “no culture, no future” on her torso. Culture Minister Roselyne Bachelot visited the Odeon. She says she understands the artists’ concerns but calls the occupations of the theaters useless and dangerous. It’s not clear, however, whether anyone here or elsewhere is listening.
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Australian Ruling Party Rocked by New Sex Scandal
Australia’s ruling party is dealing with a new sexual misconduct scandal involving male staffers that Prime Minister Scott Morrison calls “absolutely shameful.” A report carried by The Australian newspaper and the national Ten Network on Monday revealed that several staffers had filmed themselves performing sex acts in Parliament House, including on the desk of at least one female lawmaker, and shared the images on a special Facebook group chat page. Prime Minister Morrison told reporters Tuesday that he was “shocked and disgusted” by the report, and that a lawmaker’s staff member has been fired for taking part in the group. The prime minister and his conservative Liberal Party has come under intense scrutiny in recent weeks over a series of allegations of sexual misconduct within its ranks. The most serious allegation came from Brittany Higgins, a former staff member of Defense Minister Linda Reynolds, who said she was raped by a senior staffer in Parliament House in 2019. Another involves Attorney-General Christian Porter, who has also been accused of raping a 16-year-old girl in 1988 when he was 17, an allegation he denies. The scandals prompted mass rallies across Australia more than two weeks ago with protesters demanding an end to sexual violence against women.Women Rally Across Australia Demanding End to Violence Against Women “March 4 Justice” marches sparked by allegations of rape lodged against members of ruling Liberal Party Prime Minister Morrison said Tuesday that he was open to the Liberal Party introducing a minimum quota on female candidates in order to increase the number of female lawmakers.
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Ten Killed in US Grocery Store Shooting
Police in the U.S. city of Boulder, Colorado, say 10 people were killed Monday in a shooting at a grocery store. Boulder Police Chief Maris Herold said the dead included officer Eric Talley, who was the first to arrive at the scene after reports of gunfire. Herold called Talley’s actions “heroic.”Herold told reporters at a nighttime briefing that one suspect was in custody, and that the investigation of the shootings was expected to take at least five days. District Attorney Michael Dougherty said it was too early to speculate on a motive for the attack. He said Boulder “suffered a terrible and horrific mass shooting.” “These people were going about their day, doing their food shopping, and their lives were cut abruptly and tragically short by the shooter who is now in custody,” Dougherty said. “I promise the victims and the people of Colorado that we will secure justice and do everything we must do to get justice in this case.” Authorities said efforts to identify the other victims and notify their families were ongoing. Mass shootings in the United States rekindle the debate about access to guns in the country. The Senate Judiciary Committee is scheduled to hold a hearing Tuesday on “Constitutional and Common Sense Steps to Reduce Gun Violence,” the first of a series of hearings planned to discuss steps in reducing gun violence. Colorado has been the sight of several mass shootings in recent times, including a 2012 attack at a movie theater in Aurora and the 1999 attack at a school in Columbine. Monday’s attack comes a week after the killing of eight people at three Atlanta-area massage businesses. It was at least the seventh mass killing this year in the United States.Atlanta Slaughter Fuels Fear, Anger Among Asian Americans Shootings bring up feelings of disappointment, resentment at still being seen as less than fully American
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Blinken in Europe to Boost Alliances
U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken is holding talks Tuesday with NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg in Brussels, then attending meetings with NATO foreign ministers and a separate session with his counterparts from Britain, France and Germany. Stoltenberg said ahead of the start of the two-day NATO session that ministers would look toward strengthening the alliance for the future and specifically consult about the situation in Afghanistan as well as what NATO can do to build stability in the Middle East and North Africa. For Blinken, the State Department said his trip to Belgium is aimed at boosting ties with NATO allies and partnering on issues such as climate change, counterterrorism and ongoing efforts in combating the coronavirus pandemic. FILE – NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg speaks during a media conference at NATO headquarters in Brussels, Feb. 15, 2021.”It’ll be an opportunity for the secretary and the foreign ministers to discuss the NATO 2030 initiative,” Philip Reeker, acting assistant secretary for the Bureau of European and Eurasian Affairs, told reporters ahead of Blinken’s trip. “Proposals under that (2030 initiative) for alliance adaptation, concerns over China and Russia, as well as climate change, cybersecurity, hybrid threats, combating terrorism, energy security — clearly the global pandemic enters into this, and other common challenges that we face together.” After four years of foreign policy under former President Donald Trump that focused only on prioritizing U.S. interests, Reeker said Blinken will deliver a speech in Brussels outlining a commitment to “rebuilding and revitalizing alliances,” while highlighting the importance of NATO. “We know we’re stronger and better able to overcome challenges when we face them together, and we’re going to modernize our alliances, mend them as needed, and deal with the world as we face it,” Reeker said. Blinken’s arrival in Europe on Monday came as the United States issued coordinated sanctions with the European Union on both China and Myanmar. The Myanmar sanctions targeted top officials who are linked to last month’s military coup, while the China sanctions were aimed at several Chinese officials accused of human rights abuses against the Muslim Uyghur minority in China’s Xinjiang province. FILE – European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen and EU High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy Josep Borrell hold a joint news conference, in Brussels, Belgium, Jan. 8, 2020.Regarding Iran, Reeker said the top U.S. diplomat will consult with EU colleagues about the prospects of the United States and Iran mutually returning to the agreement signed in 2015 that limited Iran’s nuclear program in exchange for sanctions relief. Both the United States, which left the deal under Trump in 2018, and Iran, which responded by taking steps away from its commitments, have expressed a willingness to observe the agreement once again, but each has signaled the other side should start first. The final part of Blinken’s trip agenda is bilateral talks with Belgian Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs Sophie Wilmès.
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Congo President Appears Poised to Win a Fourth Term
Electoral officials in the Republic of Congo say results from the central African nation’s presidential election could be announced within days. Early results Monday indicate President Denis Sassou Nguesso is on pace to clinch a fourth term, winning 100 percent of the vote in some districts. The vote counting continues although Sassou Nguesso’s main rival died suddenly as people were going to the polls Sunday to choose the Congo’s next leader. A spokesman for Guy-Brice Parfait Kolelas’ campaign said the 61-year-old died of COVID-19 as he was being evacuated from Brazzaville to France for treatment.Congolese Presidential Opposition Candidate Dies of COVID-19 Campaign spokesman says Guy Brice Parfait Kolelas died on Election Day as he was being evacuated to France for treatment Kolelas supporter Edgar Masomba said he was very sad and disappointed because his candidate was someone everybody loved because he was kind and had the charisma that could bring change to the country. Kolelas was challenging Sassou Nuguesso for a second time in Sunday’s election, finishing second to the country’s longtime leader in 2016. Sassou Nguesso first took office in 1979 and served until 1992. He has served uninterrupted since winning the presidency again in 1997. The full results of his latest contest are likely to be announced on Tuesday or Wednesday, according to the electoral commission, Agence France Presse, the French news agency reported.
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Tanzania Resumes National Mourning Ahead of Late President’s Burial
Tanzania resumes its national mourning Tuesday of the late President John Magufuli, with the people of Chato, his hometown, getting a chance to pay their last respects ahead of his burial on Thursday. On Monday, Tanzania’s newly appointed president, Samia Suluhu Hassan, led thousands of people who paid their respect to Magufuli at the stadium in the capital city of Dodoma. She was joined by Congo’s President Felix Tshisekedi, Kenya’s Uhuru Kenyatta, Zimbabwe’s Emmerson Mnangagwa and South African President Cyril Ramaphosa, who gave condolences to Magufuli’s family. Magufuli, an ardent coronavirus skeptic, died from heart disease last Wednesday at age 61, according to Hassan who made the announcement on state television on March 17.Tanzanian President Dies Officials say John Magufuli died of heart disease; he leaves mixed legacy Hassan said on the Thursday, a public holiday, Magufuli will be a buried after a funeral mass at the Chato Catholic Church in the Kagera region of the country. Meantime, as Hassan leads the country through its mourning, containing COVID-19 looms as the first big challenge of her presidency. Magufuli played down the impact of the virus, placing no emphasis on measures to protect the public such as obtaining vaccines and wearing mask. Tanzania confirmed more than 509 infections and 21 deaths, according to Johns Hopkins University Resource Center.
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More Australia Flood Evacuations Possible as Rains Remain Heavy
Australian authorities said Tuesday that more evacuation orders may be issued as relentless rains pummeled the country’s east coast, with several regions in Sydney’s west facing the worst floods in half a century. The wild weather system pounding New South Wales (NSW) over the last three days was expected to gather more strength in the next 24 hours thanks to the combination of a tropical low over northern Western Australia and a coastal trough off the east. “Overnight, unfortunately, some weather conditions have worsened, and those weather conditions are likely to worsen during the day so many communities will experience increasing heavy rainfall,” NSW Premier Gladys Berejiklian told reporters. Berejiklian said 15,000 more residents may need to be evacuated soon after authorities moved 18,000 to safe zones Monday.Severe flooding in Sydney, March 22, 2021.With 38 disaster areas declared in the state, authorities Tuesday described the next 24 hours as critical, as fast-moving flood waters overflowed riverbanks and inundated houses, farms and bridges across large swathes of the state. Though the weather system is likely to start easing starting late Wednesday, officials warned that residents may not be able to return to their homes immediately as incessant rains dump more water in river catchment areas. “Some of you may be wondering why you can’t go back home because it’s a sunny day. It’s because conditions are unsafe for that to occur,” Berejiklian said. Neighboring Queensland was also bracing for heavy showers Tuesday in the southern parts of the state, with the weather system expected to shift south to parts of Victoria and the island state of Tasmania over the next few days. About 10 million people in all states and territories except Western Australia will be affected by the extreme weather, the weather bureau said, with NSW and Queensland expected to bear the brunt of the system.
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Miami’s South Beach Confronts Out-of-Control Spring Break
Florida’s famed South Beach is seeking a new image. With more than 1,000 arrests and nearly 100 guns seized during this year’s spring break season, officials are thinking it may finally be time to cleanse the hip neighborhood of its law-breaking, party-all-night vibe. The move comes after years of increasingly stringent measures — banning alcohol from beaches, canceling concerts and food festivals — have failed to stop the city from being overrun with out-of-control parties and anything-goes antics. This weekend alone, spring breakers and pandemic-weary tourists drawn by Florida’s loose virus-control rules gathered by the thousands along famed Ocean Drive, at times breaking into street fights, destroying restaurant property and causing several dangerous stampedes. The situation got so out of hand that Miami Beach Police brought in SWAT teams and called in law enforcement officers from at least four other agencies. Ultimately, the city decided to order an emergency 8 p.m. curfew that will likely extend well into April after the spring break season is over. Beachgoers play in the waves on Miami Beach, Florida’s famed South Beach, March 22, 2021.”We definitely want people to come and have fun,” Miami Beach Commissioner Ricky Arriola said Monday. “It’s a nightlife city. We want people of all races, genders, sexual orientation. But we can’t tolerate people thinking they can come here and act out a scene from ‘Fast and the Furious,’ speeding down the streets and shooting guns in the air.” Some tourists are angry about the curfew, which they say has put a damper on long-sought vacations for which they paid good money. Meanwhile, some officials say they should have enacted more stringent measures sooner — as was done in New Orleans before Mardi Gras last month — instead of reacting in the middle of the chaos. But Arriola and other commissioners argued the city may need an entirely different approach. They note that over the past few seasons, the city has been steadily upping the ante with new rules and regulations, such as banning scooter rentals after 7 p.m., restricting alcohol sales after 8 p.m., and cracking down on loud music — to no avail. “Every year we come up with new restrictions and they have no impact, so at what point are we going to try something new?” asked Arriola, who suggested hosting more family-oriented and business-friendly events. The pandemic provided the perfect storm for large crowds: an unseasonably cold winter, pent-up demand from being quarantined at home and the lure of a sunny climate with miles of sandy beaches in a state with few COVID-19 restrictions. New Orleans, which attracts thousands of tourists every year for Mardi Gras, successfully avoided the mayhem that erupted in Miami. Gov. John Bel Edwards, a Democrat, put a statewide mask mandate in place as well as occupancy limits on bars, restaurants and other businesses. Edwards also limited the hours in which alcohol could be sold in restaurants, closed iconic Bourbon Street to cars and pedestrians, and ordered bars closed completely for the final weekend of the season. New Orleans Democratic Mayor LaToya Cantrell went even further by closing bars completely, even those allowed to operate as restaurants. FILE – People walk along Ocean Drive during spring break festivities, amid the coronavirus outbreak, in Miami Beach, Florida, March 5, 2021.Despite strong opposition from Republicans and business leaders, Edwards and Cantrell were determined not to repeat Mardi Gras 2020, which state officials later said contributed to New Orleans being an early Southern hot spot in the coronavirus pandemic. “If people think they’re going to come to Louisiana, anywhere … and engage in the kind of activities they would have pre-pandemic, then they are mistaken and, quite frankly, they are not welcome here to do that,” Edwards said in a news conference ahead of Mardi Gras. Miami Beach took less proactive measures under Republican Gov. Ron DeSantis, who has refused to implement a mask-wearing rule and has insisted on letting businesses stay open. Instead, city officials this year sent text messages that warned tourists to “Vacation Responsibly or Be Arrested” and spelled out a lengthy list of rules. The city also canceled all concerts and food festivals, trying to avoid large crowds, but that only left the throngs of people who showed up anyway to congregate aimlessly in impromptu street parties. Some visitors were frustrated by the mixed messages after being lured to the state by a $5 million national tourism advertising campaign, the largest in 20 years. Reg Mac, a paralegal from Orlando, spent $800 on his trip to Miami, which he said was a bust thanks to the 8 p.m. curfew. He’d been looking forward to letting loose — and had even set aside special outfits for the after-hours scene. “I was expecting to go out to enjoy the nightlife,” said Mac, who instead returned to his hotel room to sleep. Added Deaja Atwaters, who traveled from Harker Heights, Texas: “It’s unfortunate that you can’t do everything that we want to do, that we plan to do, but we’re going to make the best of it.” Miami Beach officials said the crowd of partiers consisted mostly of adults from out of state, not college students. They said many of them didn’t even patronize restaurants and local businesses. “Not all people that visit Miami Beach are bad and come to Miami Beach with the intent of breaking the law and disrupting our quality of life, but this is a different situation, and it calls for drastic measures,” said interim City Manager Raul Aguila, who enacted the emergency curfew.
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Police: Multiple People Killed at Colorado Supermarket
A shooting at a Colorado supermarket killed multiple people Monday, including a police officer, and a suspect was in custody, authorities said.Boulder police Cmdr. Kerry Yamaguchi said at a news conference that the suspect was being treated but didn’t give more details on the shooting or how many people were killed. Officers escorted a shirtless man with blood running down his leg out of the store in handcuffs, but authorities would not say if that was the suspect.Boulder County District Attorney Michael Dougherty said authorities know how many people were killed and suggested they are not releasing the number because they need to notify families of the victims.Yamaguchi said police were still investigating and didn’t have details on motive.A man who had just left the store in Boulder, Dean Schiller, told The Associated Press that he heard gunshots and saw three people lying face down, two in the parking lot and one near the doorway. He said he “couldn’t tell if they were breathing.”Video posted on YouTube showed one person on the floor inside the King Soopers store and two more outside on the ground, but the extent of their injuries wasn’t clear. What sounds like two gunshots are also heard at the beginning of the video.One person was taken from the shooting scene to Foothills Hospital in Boulder, said Rich Sheehan, spokesman for Boulder Community Health, which operates the hospital. Sheehan said he could not provide additional details but did say that “we have been notified we will not be receiving any additional patients.”Law enforcement vehicles and officers massed outside the store, including SWAT teams, and at least three helicopters landed on the roof. The city is home to the University of Colorado and is about 25 miles (40 kilometers) northwest of Denver.Some windows at the front of the store were broken. At one point, authorities over a loudspeaker said the building was surrounded and that “you need to surrender.” They said to come out with hands up and unarmed.Sarah Moonshadow told the Denver Post that two shots rang out just after she and her son, Nicolas Edwards, finished buying strawberries. She said she told her son to get down and then “we just ran.”Once they got outside, she said they saw a body in the parking lot. Edwards said police were speeding into the lot and pulled up next to the body.”I knew we couldn’t do anything for the guy,” he said. “We had to go.”James Bentz told the Post that he was in the meat section when he heard what he thought was a misfire, then a series of pops.”I was then at the front of a stampede,” he said.Bentz said he jumped off a loading dock out back to escape and that younger people were helping older people off of it.Colorado Gov. Jared Polis tweeted a statement that his “heart is breaking as we watch this unspeakable event unfold in our Boulder community.” He called it “very much an active situation” and said the state was “making every public safety resource available to assist the Boulder County Sheriff’s Department as they work to secure the store.”Boulder police had told people to shelter in place amid a report of an “armed, dangerous individual” about 3 miles (5 kilometers) away from the grocery store but later lifted it and police vehicles were seen leaving the residential area near downtown and the University of Colorado. They had said they were investigating if that report was related to the shooting at the supermarket but said at the evening news conference that it wasn’t related.The FBI said it’s helping in the investigation at the request of Boulder police.White House press secretary Jen Psaki tweeted that President Joe Biden had been briefed on the shooting.
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UNICEF Assists with Rescue, Recovery at Rohingya Camp Fire
UNICEF workers have arrived at the scene of a fire at a Rohingya refugee camp in Bangladesh to assist local authorities with rescue and recovery efforts, according to a press statement Monday. The Rohingya refugee camp in Cox’s Bazar is one of the largest refugee settlements in the world. It is home to about 877,000 refugees, many of whom escaped ethnic cleansing in Myanmar four years ago. More than half of the refugees are believed to be children, the UNICEF statement said. “Our priority is to secure the immediate safety, security and protection of children in coordination with the concerned authorities, first responders and partner organizations in the U.N. and NGO community,” UNICEF said in the statement. UNICEF fears many of the injured are children and that many have been separated from their families, according to the statement, which said efforts are under way to assist children in need, reunite families, and deliver emergency supplies as well as clean drinking water. The Bangladesh Red Crescent Society tweeted “reports of casualties are being verified.” In the same tweet, it indicated that the fire was “finally coming under control” in the Balukhali camp, noting it had destroyed a large expanse of shelters and facilities. Reports suggest about 1,200 shacks have been destroyed while some 10,000 people were sheltered in schools. Although UNICEF said many of the residents displaced by the inferno were evacuated, it said “the full extent of the disaster is yet to be confirmed.”
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North Korean National Makes First Court Appearance in Money Laundering Case
Mun Chol Myong, a North Korean national, made his first appearance Monday in federal court in the District of Columbia to face money laundering charges.Mun, 55, was extradited to the U.S. from Malaysia after nearly two years of legal proceedings. He is the first person from the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea (DPRK) to be extradited to the U.S. The DPRK is North Korea’s official name.According to the indictment and other court documents unsealed Monday, between April 2013 and November 2018, Mun is alleged to have defrauded U.S. banks and violated both U.S. and United Nations sanctions as part of his money laundering-related transactions valued at more than $1.5 million.Mun was indicted May 2, 2019. He is accused of laundering money through the U.S. financial system as part of a scheme to import luxury items to North Korea. He faces six counts of money laundering, including conspiracy to commit money laundering.Mun, who is in his 50s, has denied the allegations. He lived in Malaysia for a decade and was arrested there May 14, 2019. North Korea broke off diplomatic ties with Malaysia over its decision to extradite Mun.“We are pleased that Mun has been extradited and will stand trial for the offenses alleged in the indictment,” Acting U.S. Attorney Channing D. Phillips for the District of Columbia said in a statement Monday.“The U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Columbia will always be prepared to protect our nation’s financial system and pursue those who violate our laws, regardless of where they might hide,” Phillips added.The indictment also alleges Mun was associated with North Korea’s primary intelligence agency, the Reconnaissance General Bureau, which is the subject of both U.S. and U.N. sanctions.
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US, EU, Britain, Canada Impose Sanctions on Chinese Officials Over Uyghurs
The United States, the European Union, Britain and Canada have imposed sanctions on several Chinese officials for human rights abuses against the Muslim Uyghur minority in China’s Xinjiang province, prompting retaliation from China. U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken said the U.S. sanctions were taken in solidary with U.S. allies. “A united transatlantic response sends a strong signal to those who violate or abuse international human rights, and we will take further actions in coordination with like-minded partners,” Blinken said in a statement Monday. FILE – Secretary of State Antony Blinken speaks on foreign policy at the State Department in Washington, March 3, 2021.The U.S. Treasury Department said Monday it was sanctioning two Chinese officials — Wang Junzheng, former deputy party secretary in Xinjiang, and Chen Mingguo, director of the Xinjiang Public Security Bureau. The EU and Britain sanctioned those same officials, along with two others — Wang Mingshan, a member of the Communist Party’s standing committee in Xinjiang, and Zhu Hailun, former head of China’s Xinjiang region. China’s Foreign Ministry responded immediately after the first sanctions were announced, denouncing them as “based on nothing but lies and disinformation.” China then announced its own sanctions against 10 European individuals and four institutions, saying they had “maliciously spread lies and disinformation.” Those sanctioned included five members of the European Parliament. The EU sanctions are the first significant economic penalties it has placed on China since 1989, when Beijing was cited for its violent crackdown on pro-democracy protesters in Tiananmen Square. The EU accused Chen of being responsible for “arbitrary detentions and degrading treatment inflicted upon Uyghurs and people from other Muslim ethnic minorities, as well as systematic violations of their freedom of religion or belief,” according to its Official Journal. FILE – Residents line up inside the Artux City training center in western China’s Xinjiang region, Dec. 3, 2018.The Xinjiang Production and Construction Corps Public Security Bureau was also sanctioned by Britain and the European Union. All 27 EU governments agreed to the sanctions. Canada’s foreign ministry said: “Mounting evidence points to systemic, state-led human rights violations by Chinese authorities.” Separately Monday, Blinken along with the foreign ministers of four countries — Britain, Australia, New Zealand and Canada — released a joint statement that said the evidence of China’s abuses in Xinjiang, “including from the Chinese Government’s own documents, satellite imagery, and eyewitness testimony is overwhelming.” “We will continue to stand together to shine a spotlight on China’s human rights violations,” they said. Human rights advocates say about 1 million Uyghurs are being held in camps. Some accuse Beijing of torture, forced sterilization and forced labor. China maintains its actions in Xinjiang are to root out Islamic extremism. Zhang Ming, China’s ambassador to the EU, said last week that sanctions would not impact Beijing’s policies and warned of retaliation. “We want dialogue, not confrontation. We ask the EU side to think twice. If some insist on confrontation, we will not back down, as we have no options other than fulfilling our responsibilities to the people in our country,” he said.
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