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Tag: InternationalNews

  • Cuba Relaxes Travel Rules

    {{Ana Liliam Garcia has never left Cuba but she hopes that will soon change, excitedly talking of her desire to meet her many relatives in Florida, and perhaps even Mickey Mouse.}}

    The raven-haired 16-year-old is eagerly awaiting a new law taking effect Monday that will let the vast majority of Cubans travel abroad for the first time in 50 years.

    The overhaul of Cuba’s decades-old migratory law, announced three months ago, is perhaps the most highly anticipated of a series of reforms initiated under President Raul Castro.

    It eliminates the hated “white card” exit visa that Cuba long forced its citizens to apply for before they could leave the island, something that led opponents to refer to the communist-run country as an “island prison.”

    “My cousins and my uncles, they’re all in Miami,” Garcia said in Havana. “I would like to see Disneyland in the United States. I’ll be able to travel!”

    While the law has ignited dreams of travel, observers predict it will result in only a modest initial increase in trips by Cubans, who must still get visas from the destination countries, including the United States.

    And critics note that the law includes a “national security” clause that could be used to bar exits by government opponents, skilled workers and those privy to sensitive information.

    But if applied evenhandedly, the opening would eliminate one of the biggest human rights criticisms leveled against Cuba: that the state decides who can and who cannot leave the country.

    AP

  • 3 Kurdish Women ‘Executed’ in France

    {{In France, 3 Kurdish women were found dead with gunshots to the head in the early hours of Thursday, police in Paris said, in an unexplained act of violence that will likely shock the Kurdish community.}}

    French Interior Minister Manuel Valls told reporters in Paris the three women had been “without doubt executed” and described the killings as “totally unacceptable.”

    The bodies were found at about 2 a.m. local time in the Information Center for Kurdistan in Paris, in a central district of the capital, a police representative said.

    A criminal investigation is under way, according to police. They have not yet confirmed the names or ages of the three women, but a police spokesman told CNN the victims were in their 30s.

    Valls said one of the victims was the head of the Information Center for Kurdistan, Fidan Dogan.

    The minister said an anti-terror unit had been mobilized alongside the criminal police to investigate.

    It’s not yet clear what the motive for the killings might be.

  • Insulin Breakthrough Could See End to Needles

    {{Breakthrough Australian research mapping how insulin works at a molecular level could open the door to novel new diabetes treatments, ending daily needle jabs for millions, scientists said Thursday.}}

    A Melbourne team have been able to lay out for the first time how the insulin hormone binds to the surface of cells, triggering the passage of glucose from the bloodstream to be stored as energy.

    Lead researcher Mike Lawrence said the discovery, more than 20 years in the making, would make new and more effective kinds of diabetes medication possible.

    “Until now we have not been able to see how these molecules interact with cells,” said Lawrence, from the Walter and Eliza Hall Institute of Medical Research.

    “We can now exploit this knowledge to design new insulin medications with improved properties, which is very exciting.”

    Lawrence said the team’s study, published in the latest edition of Nature, had revealed a “molecular handshake” between the insulin and its receptor on the surface of cells.

    “Both insulin and its receptor undergo rearrangement as they interact — a piece of insulin folds out and key pieces within the receptor move to engage the insulin hormone,” he said of the “unusual” binding method.

    Understanding how insulin attaches to cells was key to developing “novel” treatments of diabetes, a chronic condition in which the pancreas does not produce enough insulin or the body cannot use it properly.

    “The generation of new types of insulin have been limited by our inability to see how insulin docks into its receptor in the body,” said Lawrence.

    “This discovery could conceivably lead to new types of insulin that could be given in ways other than injection, or an insulin that has improved properties or longer activity so that it doesn’t need to be taken as often.”

    Importantly, he said it could also have ramifications for the treatment of diabetes in developing nations, allowing for the creation of more stable insulins that do not need refrigeration.

    There are an estimated 347 million diabetes sufferers worldwide and diagnoses are increasing, particularly in developing countries, due to growing levels of obesity and physical inactivity.

    It is expected to be the seventh leading cause of death in the world by 2030, with the World Health Organisation projecting total deaths from diabetes will rise by more than 50% in the next 10 years.

    Complications of diabetes include blindness, limb amputation and kidney failure.

    AFP

  • Argentina Naval Ship Seized in Ghana Arrives Home

    An Argentine naval ship which was detained in Ghana for more than two months has arrived back home.

    The Libertad had been seized following legal action by an investment company trying to recover money still owed after Argentina’s 2002 debt default.

    Thousands of people lined the shore as it arrived in Mar del Plata, three weeks after a United Nations court ordered its release from Ghana.

    President Cristina Fernandez called the Libertad’s return “a victory”.

    She personally welcomed the ship and its crew home at a lavish ceremony including fireworks and a fly-past by Argentine air force planes.

    She told the crowds assembled in the harbour that “we’re going to keep on fighting because no one’s going to get anything out of Argentina with extortion”.

  • China Newspaper Publishes Again

    {{An influential weekly newspaper whose staff rebelled to protest heavy-handed censorship by Chinese government officials published as normal Thursday after a compromise that called for relaxing some intrusive controls but left lingering ill-will among some reporters and editors.}}

    The latest edition of the Southern Weekly bore no hints of the dispute that erupted last week over a New Year’s editorial that was rewritten to praise the Communist Party, driving some staff to stop work in protest.

    Still fuming, some editors and reporters tried late Wednesday to insert a carefully worded commentary praising the newspaper as a tribune of reform, but were rebuffed by management, an editor said.

    Academics spoke of a coming reckoning by authorities to reassert control at the Southern Weekly and any other media that might take encouragement.

    “Overall, the authorities do not want this situation to spread,” Peng Peng, a political science researcher at the Guangdong province Social Sciences Academy said.

    The weeklong fracas at the Southern Weekly evolved quickly from a row over censorship at one newspaper to a call for free speech and political reform across China, handing an unexpected test to the party leadership headed by Xi Jinping just two months after he took office.

    AP

  • India Rape Suspects Beaten–Lawyer

    {{Indian Police badly beat the five suspects arrested in the brutal gang rape and killing of a young woman on a New Delhi bus, the lawyer for three of the men said Thursday, accusing authorities of tampering with evidence in the case that has transfixed India.}}

    “They are innocent,” Manohar Lal Sharma said of his three clients ahead of a court hearing. He said police have beaten the men and placed other prisoners into the suspects’ cells to threaten them with knives, adding, “You can’t believe the reality of Indian prisons.”

    Five men have been charged with attacking the 23-year-old woman and a male friend on a bus as it was driven through the streets of India’s capital.

    The woman was raped and assaulted with a metal bar on Dec. 16 and eventually died of her injuries. Rape victims are not identified in India, even if they die, and rape trials are closed to the media.

    Sharma, who has made a series of inflammatory and often-contradictory statements over the past two days, at one point Thursday said the dead woman’s male companion, who boarded the bus with her after the pair saw a movie together, was “responsible for the whole thing.”

    He gave no details, though, and a few hours later said the man’s responsibility “was only my opinion.”

    The case has sparked protests across India by women and men who say India’s legal system doesn’t do enough to prevent attacks on women.

    Women have told stories of relentless abuse — from catcalls to bus gropings to rapes — and of a police and judicial system that does little to stop it, often blaming victims’ unchaste behavior.

    The woman and her male friend were coming home from a movie at a New Delhi mall when they boarded a bus that police say was carrying the defendants, who were traveling together on a joy ride through the city.

    The woman’s friend, who has not been identified, has said he tried to defend the woman but was soon beaten unconscious. The two were eventually stripped and dumped from the bus.

    Sharma said that authorities, under pressure to quickly wrap up the case, would convict his clients no matter what evidence, including forcing them to make incriminating statements.

    “What happened to this woman was so heinous, so horrible,” Sharma said, adding that, “the police will manipulate the facts.”

    Sharma also said that the woman’s companion was ultimately responsible.

    “The boyfriend betrayed” her, he said. “The boyfriend is responsible for the whole thing,” he said, before backing away from the statement later in the day.

    Sharma spoke to reporters before a hearing for the suspects in a New Delhi court complex. He says he represents bus driver Ram Singh, Singh’s brother Mukesh, and another man, Akshay Thakur.

    He said all three will plead not guilty. Another lawyer, V.K. Anand, says he also represents the two Singh brothers. It’s not yet clear if the other defendants have lawyers.

    The suspects were quickly hustled into the courtroom Thursday afternoon for the hearing, their faces covered by scarves or hats. They were surrounded by rings of policemen, and it was not clear if they were handcuffed or shackled.

    Thursday’s hearing is expected to result in the case being sent to a special “fast-track” court. India’s legal system is painfully slow, corrupt and inefficient, with many cases lasting years, even decades.

    Sharma appears to be preparing a defense based, in part, on the many problems with that system. He indicated the men had been picked up because the authorities needed to make arrests given the public outcry, and the suspects all come from poor or working class families.

    “If the parents of these boys had money, they would not be in court today,” he said. India’s court system is notorious for allowing wealthy defendants to go free, or at least delaying their trials for years.

    He said his clients had all been badly beaten by authorities — a practice common for those under arrest in India — and had repeated whatever statements the police asked them to make. He said Mukesh Singh, 22, was now constantly in tears.

    “He is sobbing like a child and saying ‘Get me out of here, sir,’” Sharma said.

    Authorities have charged the men with murder, rape and other crimes that could bring the death penalty. A sixth suspect, who is 17 years old, is expected to be tried in a juvenile court, where the maximum sentence would be three years in a reform facility.

    Prosecutor Rajiv Mohan said last week that a DNA test confirmed that the blood of the victim matched blood stains found on the clothes of all the accused.

    {Associated Press}

  • Indian Soldier Beheaded

    Pakistan has rejected accusations that it killed any Indian soldiers or fired across the Line of Control (LoC) which divides Kashmir.

    India called the attack “barbaric” and summoned Pakistan’s top envoy in Delhi over the incident.

    Claimed by both countries, Kashmir has been a flashpoint for over 60 years.

    A statement from the Indian foreign ministry said the soldiers’ bodies had been subjected to “barbaric and inhuman mutilation” which was “in contravention of all norms of international conduct”.

    India’s military said one of the soldiers had been beheaded by the Pakistani army.

    Troops searched the area afterwards but could not find the head,India Military said.

    India believes the Pakistanis took the head with them when they retreated.

    The Pakistani foreign ministry says India’s allegations are “baseless” and it is willing to have a UN investigation.

    Photo>BBC
    {Wirestory}

  • Hugo Chavez Swearing-in Ceremony Postponed

    {{Venezuela’s decision to postpone the inauguration of President Hugo Chavez as he remains in Cuba battling cancer has prompted furious accusations from the opposition that the government is violating the constitution and should tell the country how ill the socialist leader really is.}}

    But government officials argued the inauguration can legally take place at a later date before the Supreme Court and it is unclear what, if anything, the opposition can do to prevent the delay given courts perceived as being pro-government, public sympathy for Chavez as he fights for his life and varying interpretations of an at-times vague constitution.

    Vice President Nicolas Maduro broke the news that Chavez would not be able to attend the scheduled inauguration in a letter to National Assembly President Diosdado Cabello.

    Then, later Tuesday, Venezuela’s National Assembly, which is dominated by Chavez’s allies, approved the proposal for Chavez to be sworn in at a later date before the Supreme Court.

    The news sparked passionate debate in the assembly, with the opposition coalition arguing that if he is not sworn in on Thursday, Chavez must temporarily step aside and let the head of the National Assembly, Cabello, assume the presidency.

  • Toyota & Audi Roll Out New Driverless Cars

    {{Toyota Motor Corp. and Audi AG are throwing their hats into the ring of potential suppliers of self-driving vehicles.}}

    Both auto makers confirmed on Thursday that they will be demonstrating autonomous-driving features at the Consumer Electronics Show in the coming week, signaling a new effort to raise the technology’s profile among consumers.

    In a preview video posted to its website on Thursday, Toyota showed a five-second clip of one of its Lexus brand cars outfitted with various sensors and the caption, “Lexus advanced active safety research vehicle is leading the industry into a new automated era.”

    An Audi official also said the luxury-car company will be demonstrating autonomous vehicle capabilities at the Las Vegas show, including a feature that allows a car to find a parking space and park itself without a driver behind the wheel.

    Toyota’s prototype vehicle is a Lexus LS 600h fitted with radar and camera equipment that can detect other vehicles, road lane lines and traffic signals, giving the vehicle the ability to navigate streets without a driver.

    It also includes what appears to be the same roof-mounted laser that Google Inc. has been using on its autonomous research cars. Google began testing self-driving cars in 2009.

    While Google uses many Toyota vehicles in its autonomous fleet, the two companies confirmed that Toyota’s technology wasn’t the result of a partnership, and that each firm is developing driving systems independently.

    The Japanese auto maker plans to discuss its autonomous car in more detail next week, according to a Toyota official.

    Dave Sullivan, an analyst with research firm AutoPacific Inc., said Toyota’s decision in particular to throw its name behind autonomous driving technology will likely spur adoption.

    “To have somebody with the weight of Toyota throwing their weight behind this is impressive,” Mr. Sullivan said.

    He added that Toyota has already been spotted testing an autonomous vehicle near its Ann Arbor, Mich., engineering campus.

    Building-block technologies at the heart of self-driving vehicles already exist widely, but auto makers have been cautious in adding tools that could take the responsibility out of the hands of drivers.

    For instance, adaptive cruise control, available in dozens of vehicles on the market, can allow people to steer their vehicle and avoid touching the brake or accelerator on long trips.

    Daimler AG’s Mercedes-Benz is working on technology for its S-class sedan that will handle braking and accelerating in stop-and-go traffic.

    There are safety technologies that will gently pull a car back into its lane if the car detects the driver is veering too much.

    Meanwhile, auto makers also have developed safety technology designed to protect pedestrians. Toyota’s top Lexus LS, for example, has a radar that can detect people walking in front of a vehicle.

    If it sees a pedestrian, the safety system will stop the car, even if the driver continues stepping on the accelerator pedal. Other car makers also offer a similar technology.

    Besides Audi and Mercedes-Benz, other car makers are developing autonomous driving technology as well.

    Ford Motor Co. Chairman Bill Ford Jr. has said that autonomous vehicles are coming and likely are a good solution to congestion problems because they could be coordinated with traffic information and reroute drivers past traffic jams.

    Google has been the most visible proponent of autonomous cars so far. It has released numerous videos of its self-driving cars in action, including putting a blind man in the driver’s seat.

    It has also lobbied to legalize computer-controlled cars, recently scoring legislative wins in Nevada, Florida and California.

    Toyota has taken a more aggressive approach to new technologies and design under the leadership of Akio Toyoda, the company’s chief executive officer and grandson of the company’s founder.

    Aside from its popular Prius gasoline-electric hybrid cars, Toyota has struck a deal to partner with Silicon Valley startup Tesla Motors Co. to make plug-in electric cars, among other things.

    {Wall Street Journal }

  • Mild Temperatures Reduce Australian Wildfire

    {{Record temperatures across southern Australia cooled Wednesday, reducing the danger from scores of raging wildfires but likely bringing only a brief reprieve from the summer’s extreme heat and fire risk.}}

    Australia had its hottest day on record Monday with a nationwide average of 40.33 degrees Celsius (104.59 degrees Fahrenheit), narrowly breaking a 1972 record of 40.17 C (104.31 F).

    Tuesday was the third hottest day at 40.11 C (104.20 F).

    Four of Australia’s hottest 10 days on record have been in 2013.

    “There’s little doubt that this is a very, very extreme heat wave event,” said David Jones, manager of climate monitoring and prediction at the Bureau of Meteorology.

    “If you look at its extent, its duration, its intensity, it is arguably the most significant in Australia’s history,” he added.

    Cooler conditions brought relief to firefighters, who were battling around 200 fires across Australia’s southeast, and gave them the chance to build earth breaks to try to contain the blazes.

    The risk from fire was expected increase later in the week as temperatures again rise.

    No deaths have been reported from the wildfires, although around 100 people haven’t been accounted for since last week when a blaze destroyed around 90 homes in the Tasmanian town of Dunalley, east of the state capital of Hobart.

    On Wednesday, police spokeswoman Lisa Stingel said it was likely most of those people simply haven’t checked in with officials.

    AP