IGIHE

Category: People

  • Mugabe tells Rival Tsvangirai to ‘Go hang’

    Zimbabwe President Robert Mugabe Monday said if MDC-T leader Mr Morgan Tsvangirai could not fathom losing the harmonised elections, he was free to go hang.

    The Zanu-PF First Secretary and President who triumphed in the Presidential race after polling over 61% against Mr Tsvangirai’s 33,9%, made the remarks while addressing thousands of people who thronged the National Heroes’ Acre for the Heroes Day main celebrations in Harare.

    Zanu-PF also scooped 160 out of the 210 National Assembly constituencies, wrestling back 61 constituencies the MDC formations won in the 2008 elections.

    A visibly shaken Mr Tsvangirai refused to accept results announced by the Zimbabwe Electoral Commission and has since approached the Constitutional Court seeking nullification of the results citing alleged irregularities.

    “Saka vanenge vachirwadziwa nekukundwa hameno zvavo kana vachizvisungirira ngavazvisungirire. Kana imbwa hadzimbofa dzakanhuwidza nyama yavo vakafa vakadaro,’’ President Mugabe said.

    He said Zimbabwe held elections in line with the electoral democracy the West claims to advance.

    “Takavhotaka maererano nechinangwa chikuru chinonzi democracy. Ndozvamakataura vemhiri zvikabvumwa pasi rose kuti kuve nedemocracy. Heyoka tauya nayo. Tauya nayo munotii?

    “We are delivering democracy on a platter. Do you take it? We say take it or leave it, but the people have delivered it and forward ever. Never will we go back on our achievement, on our victory. Tinoramba tichienda mberi. Hatisi vekudududza isu.”

    The UN, AU, Sadc, Comesa and other observer groups from Africa have endorsed the elections while the United States, Britain and its dominion Australia — who were not invited to observe — have joined MDC-T in condemning the election.

    This has effectively put MDC-T leader Mr Morgan Tsvangirai and his Western sponsors on one side, and Africa and Zanu-PF on another side aping the contestation in Zimbabwe over the past decade.

    President Mugabe said two themes defined this year’s Heroes’ Day commemorations.
    The first was a day when Zimbabweans reflect in remembering all the departed cadres who sacrificed their lives to liberate the country.

    The President said it was an opportunity for Zimbabwe to prove to the heroes and heroines that their sacrifices were not in vain as Zanu-PF’s resounding victory ensured that objectives of the liberation struggle would be safeguarded.

    “Ndima yepiri inoti nhaka yavatisiira heyo yanga iri mumaoko edu, tiine shoko rabva kwavari rekuti kuenda taenda asi heyo nhaka yatakupai moichengetedza.

    ‘‘Pakati apo ndokuita bishi. Ny’any’a hedzo dzotungamira dzichitungamidzwa sezvimbwasungata kuti vaye vatakamborwisa vachitorazve nhaka iyi vogova ndivo vanotigovera. Ndimi inoti tinotenda vana veZimbabwe.

    source:{Herald}

  • N. Korea Unveils ‘Secure, Homemade’ Smartphone

    {{North Korea, one of the most isolated and censored societies on the planet, has unveiled what it says is a domestically-produced smartphone.}}

    Industry analysts say the “Arirang”, built around Google’s Android OS, is likely manufactured in neighbouring China, however.

    The existence of the phone, named after a famous Korean folk song, came to light during a factory inspection by North Korean leader Kim Jong-Un at the weekend.

    During the tour, Kim was given a detailed briefing on the “performance, quality and packing of the Arirang hand phone,” Pyongyang’s official Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) reported.

    Some analysts suggest the “Arirang” is aimed at getting North Koreans to use an officially-approved phone that can be properly monitored.

    While Internet access is virtually non-existent in North Korea, which comes bottom of any media freedom survey, the country is not a complete IT desert.

    Cell phones were introduced in 2008 through a joint venture with the Egyptian telecom firm Orascom, which says there are now two million users in North Korea.

    A domestic Intranet was launched in 2002 and some state bodies have their own websites.

    It is a natural progression for an impoverished country desperate for investment, but in North Korea the economic imperative is always weighed against the potential for social disruption.

    Subscribers to the sole cell phone system provider, Koryolink, can call each other, but not outside the country.

    The Intranet is similarly cut off from the rest of the world, allowing its very limited number of users to exchange state-approved information and little more.

    Access to the full-blown Internet is for the super-elite only, meaning a few hundred people or maybe 1,000 at most.

    For all the regime’s efforts, the information barrier erected around North Korea has, in recent years, begun to lose some of its prophylactic power.

    Smuggled Chinese mobile phones allow people near the border to connect with Chinese servers and make international calls, while re-wired TVs allow access to outside broadcasting.

    The KCNA report on Kim’s factory visit noted that the young leader praised the “Arirang’s” developers for coming up with a product that “provides the best convenience to the users while strictly guaranteeing security”.

    agencies

  • Nazi war crimes suspect Laszlo Csatary dies

    {{A 98-year-old Nazi war crimes suspect, Hungarian Laszlo Csatary, has died while awaiting trial, his lawyer said.}}

    Csatary died in a Hungarian hospital after suffering from a number of medical problems, Gabor Horvath said.

    He at one time topped the list of most wanted Nazi war crimes suspects and is alleged to have helped deport 15,700 Jews to death camps in World War II.

    He faced charges relating to his wartime activities in both Hungary and in neighbouring Slovakia.

    Mr Horvath said his client died on Saturday morning. “He had been treated for medical issues for some time but contracted pneumonia, from which he died.”

    Csatary had denied the allegations against him, saying he was merely an intermediary between Hungarian and German officials and was not involved in war crimes.

    Art dealer
    He was charged in June by Hungarian prosecutors in relation to what they said had been his role as chief of an internment camp for Jews in Kosice, a town then part of Hungary but now in Slovakia.

    Kosice, known at the time as Kassa, was the first to be established after Germany occupied Hungary in March 1944.

    wirestory

  • Mandela Can Now sit up, Says Daughter

    {{South Africa’s ailing ex- president Nelson Mandela managed to sit up, a sign of great improvement in his condition, his daughter Zindzi said.}}

    “He’s fine, Tata (father) now manages to sit up, like now he sits up in a chair for a few minutes in a day, every day you know he becomes more alert more responsive,” Zindzi said in remarks published by the South African Broadcasting Corporation (SABC).

    “Tata is determined not to go anywhere anytime soon, I cannot stress this enough. People must stop saying to the family let go let go, we are just looking at this man who is saying I’m not going anywhere,” Zindzi added.

    Zindzi said her father has a strong constitution, will and strength which keeps him alive. “You know he just doesn’t have the strength of a man, he just has the strength that is beyond anything that can be explained. Because even now with the challenges to his health, he somehow manages to bounce back when everyone assumes this is the end,” Zindzi said.

    The 95-year-old anti-apartheid icon has been in hospital for two months, receiving treatment for a recurring lung infection. He was admitted to hospital on June 8.

    On Thursday, Mandela’s ex-wife Winnie Madikizela-Mandela said Mandela was now breathing normally.

    Winnie denied reports that Mandela was in a permanent vegetative state, saying there was no need to conceal the fact.

    Mandela’s eyes still “lit up” when his children came to visit him, Winnie told the British Sky News.

    “That is how he communicates with them.” Winnie said the medical team has done a good job in ensuring that Mandela remains “comfortable.”

    {wirestory}

  • Morsi supporters march in Cairo

    {{Supporters of Egypt’s deposed President Mohamed Morsi are continuing to stage rallies, with some clashes reported, despite a warning from the interim prime minister of an imminent crackdown on their protest camps.}}

    Morsi supporters called for marches to begin after Friday afternoon prayers as the nation rested on the second day of the Eid al-Fitr holiday.

    “The Egyptian people are continuing, and the days will only increase their determination to persist in their peaceful struggle until the country returns to the democratic path, until the coup is completely ended,” the Anti-Coup Alliance said in a statement.

    The pro-Morsi group called on the marchers to set off from mosques in Cairo.

    Twenty-eight pro-Morsi protesters and one police officer were injured when clashes broke out between the demonstrators and police as crowds gathered outside the security directorate in Fayoum, police said.

    Reuters news agency later quoted security sources saying that the clashes had taken place between several hundred supporters and opponents of Morsi.

    Some of the injured suffered the effects of teargas inhalation, while birdshot wounds were also reported by the health ministry.

    In separate incidents in the Nile Delta province of Gharbiya, four people were injured in fights between pro-Morsi protesters and residents near an army base, state-run Al-Ahram newspaper said. Thirteen Morsi supporters were arrested, according to media.

    {wirestory}

  • Turkish Publisher Faces Trial over ‘Vulgar’ French Book

    {{Turkey’s Supreme Court of Appeals unanimously overturned the acquittal of the publisher and translator of a French book, saying the book’s content failed to fall under freedom of speech protections due to its descriptions of “unnatural” sexual acts.}}

    French author Guillaume Apollinaire’s book, “The Exploits of Young Don Juan” (Les exploits d’un jeune Don Juan), gives detailed accounts of “unnatural sexual intercourse” and offers no “form of a plotline”, according to the court, and therefore was not protected under freedom of speech laws.

    Sel Publishing’s owner İrfan Sancı and translator İsmail Yerguz were initially taken to court over the explicit nature of the book following its release, but an Istanbul court granted them an acquittal, describing the book as a work of literature.

    The Supreme Court, however, overturned the ruling on the grounds that freedom of speech had to include “a sense of responsibility”, instead demanding that Sancı and Yerguz be tried on charges that carry a possible sentence of between six and 10 years.

    “During the exercise of freedoms, one has to act with a sense of responsibility, and such freedoms are subject to limitations that aim to preserve order and protect society’s morals and general health,” the court stated.

    The book aims to “exploit and arouse the sexual desires and harm the modesty of society” and contains “vulgar and simple language”, the court added.

    france24

  • Kenya’s Deputy President Warns Chiefs Over Teen Pregnancies

    {{Kenya’s Deputy President William Ruto has warned members of Provincial Administration in Mt Elgon and other parts of the country, who fail to report cases of child molestation.}}

    Ruto said chiefs and assistants chiefs, who fail to identify suspects, who impregnate underage girls will be held liable.

    Speaking after an inter-denominational church service at the weekend at Kapsokwony Primary School, Ruto said chiefs must play a critical role to stem the vice.

    “For every pregnant schoolgirl, the chiefs and their assistants should be able to identify the culprit responsible. It is against the law and everyone, who engages in sex with minors should be brought to book and put behind bars,” he said.

    “We should act tough and deal firmly with the culprits to eradicate this debilitating vice. Once some people are arrested and prosecuted, then it will serve as a deterrent to others.”

    Standard

  • Spain Arrests Paedophile Freed by Morocco

    {{Police have arrested a Spanish paedophile who had his pardon revoked by Morocco’s King Mohamed VI after it sparked protests in the north African country, the interior ministry in Madrid said.}}

    Daniel Galvan, who was convicted of raping 11 children aged between four and 15 and sentenced in September 2011 to 30 years in prison in Morocco, was detained in Murcia in southeastern Spain, an interior ministry spokesman was quoted as saying by media.

    Galvan, who once worked at the University of Murcia, will be taken to Madrid “in the coming hours” where he will be brought before Spain’s top criminal court, the National Audience, which will decide his fate, the spokesman added.

    Earlier on Monday, King Mohamed sacked the country’s prison chief after an inquiry blamed his department for Galvan’s release.

    “The inquiry concluded that the said administration inadvertently provided erroneous information about the criminal record of the prisoner in question when requested by the royal court,” a palace statement said on Monday.

    {Aljazeera}

  • Morocco’s king revokes paedophile pardon

    {{King Mohamed VI of Morocco on Sunday revoked a pardon granted to a Spanish serial paedophile whose release sparked angry protests in the kingdom, a palace statement said.}}

    The king “has decided to withdraw the pardon previously accorded to Daniel Galvan Vina”, said the text of the statement, published by the official MAP news agency.

    Although several media reports have said Vina has left the country, the agency said the justice minister would discuss with Madrid “the next step after the pardon’s revocation”.

    The king’s announcement came shortly before a large demonstration was due to take place against the pardon, after baton-wielding police dispersed demonstrations on Friday.

    Vina, said to be in his 60s, was pardoned by the king and freed last Tuesday from jail in Kenitra, north of the capital. He had been sentenced in September 2011 to 30 years in prison.

    Vina, convicted of raping 11 children aged between four and 15, was among 48 Spanish prisoners released in response to a request from Spanish King Juan Carlos, who visited Morocco in mid-July, the justice ministry said.

    Earlier, the palace said in a statement carried on MAP that the king had been unaware of the nature of the man’s crimes and had ordered a probe into his release.

    The investigation should “determine the responsibilities and the failures that led to this regrettable release”, the statement said.

    “The king was never informed – in any way or at any time – of the seriousness of the abject crimes of which the person concerned was convicted,” the palace added.

    “It is clear that the sovereign would never have consented” to his release, given the “monstrous crimes” he committed, the statement concluded.

    (AFP)

  • Berlusconi allies threaten to resign from government

    Supporters of Silvio Berlusconi threatened to resign from Italy’s government on Friday after a verdict against the billionaire tycoon that could place him under house arrest and eject him from parliament.

    “We are ready to resign to defend our ideal,” Interior Minister Angelino Alfano, Berlusconi’s closest ally from the People of Freedom party, was quoted by Italian media as saying at a meeting with the mogul.

    Berlusconi himself reportedly said: “We have to ask for new elections as quickly as possible and win them.”

    Prime Minister Enrico Letta, who presides over the uneasy alliance between his centre-left Democratic Party (PD) and Berlusconi’s centre-right coalition, earlier pleaded for calm “for the good of Italy”.

    But he added: “I do not think a deterioration is advantageous and I do not believe that continuing at any cost is in the interests of the country.”

    Italy’s current government was installed following a two-month deadlock between Berlusconi and their eternal rivals, the PD, after close-run February elections in which both won around a third of the vote.

    “The government is a dead man walking,” the Il Fatto Quotidiano daily said in an editorial.

    Opinion polls based on surveys carried out in the run-up to Thursday’s verdict indicated that Berlusconi’s coalition would win new elections by a large margin.

    A key question will also be whether Letta will manage to contain growing discontent within the PD about governing together with a confirmed criminal.

    “It is impossible to imagine that the PD can remain allied to the party of Silvio Berlusconi,” said Nichi Vendola, leader of the small leftist opposition party Left, Ecology and Liberty.

    Some leftists have called for the 76-year-old Berlusconi to be expelled from the Senate as soon as possible, with the Five Star protest movement calling for an immediate vote on his ousting.

    But Alfonso Stile, a law professor at Rome’s Sapienza university, said the procedure to exclude him from parliament would be “long and tortuous” and would be a similar to a re-run of the tax fraud trial.

    Italy’s top court on Thursday handed Berlusconi his first definitive conviction in a 20-year political career dogged by legal woes and sex scandals.

    The court ordered the three-time premier to do a year of community service or be placed under house arrest — a sentence due to be enacted in October.

    agencies