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Air travel hit a pandemic-era high Sunday, with hordes of people taking trips for the Thanksgiving holiday despite the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention strongly advising against so.
South Africa is one of the hardest-hit countries in Africa with over 740,000 infections.
The country recorded 60 more virus-related deaths on Wednesday, bringing the death toll to 20,011.
The dangerous information simply acquired worse on Wall RoadThursday. Propelled by fears of the coronavirus, inventory losses steepened.The Customary & Poor’s 500 entered a bear marketplace for the primary time…
Ivory Coast President Alassane Ouattara met with a main opposition rival on Wednesday and promised to pursue talks aimed at calming a standoff over the October 31 election, which has ignited clashes killing scores of people.
Ouattara met with opposition candidate and former president Henri Konan Bedie in Abidjan.
The election handed Ouaterra a third term, which some say violates a two-term constitutional limit.
\"It was a first meeting... to break the ice and restore trust,\" said Ouattara.
\" And we agreed to meet again very soon to continue this dialogue, which has got off to a good start and mutual trust is restored.\"
Both Ouattara, 78, a nd Bedie said the meeting was an important first step but did not indicate that they had made any concessions.
Bedie, 86, said: “In the days and weeks ahead, we will call each other and meet so that the country becomes what it was before.”
Ouattara was declared victor of the election with more than 94 percent of the vote, which was boycotted by the main opposition.
Up to 85 people have been killed in the clashes that ensued after Ouattara decided to run for a third term.
More than 8,000 people have fled the country to seek refuge in neighbouring states, fearing the violence last seen after the 2010 election, which killed more than 3,000 people, could reignite.
THE trial of two Beitbridge policemen who allegedly assaulted citizens under the guise of monitoring compliance to the COVID-19 lockdown regulations failed to kick off because their lawyer was absent. BY REX MPHISA Carrotnos Wafawanaka and Hardlife Shoko are accused of assaulting Tafadzwa Mukutiri who sustained serious head injuries on April 17 this year. Resident magistrate Toyindepi Zhou acknowledged receipt of Wafawanaka and Shoko’s Bulawayo lawyer Tatenda Razemba’s letter to the court indicating that he had a commitment at the High Court. “The State has indicated it is ready for trial, but we will note that it is your constitutional right to access legal representation of your choice. I have a letter from your lawyer stating he is committed at the High Court,” Zhou said. Prosecutor Tsitsi Mutukwa suggested that since it was the defence that was not ready, it should propose a date suitable for trial and next Tuesday was agreed upon. Allegations against the two are that they assaulted Mukutiri while he was in handcuffs, accusing him of breaking COVID-19 regulations. Mukutiri, who was in the company of Cyprian Badze and Ronald Kapfunde, was allegedly bashed on the head and sustained deep cuts for which he sought medical attention. The two cops, however, allegedly destroyed his medical affidavit to conceal the crime and ordered Mukutiri to pay a fine. Zhou has already nullified the fine and ordered the police to refund him. Wafawanaka, Shoko and other policemen at Beitbridge Urban face another charge of beating up civilians during arrest while their colleague, Constable Utete from the Canine Unit, faces a charge of setting his dog on non-violent citizens. Up to 20 people were bitten by dogs and treated at Beitbridge District Hospital during the lockdown period. Follow us on Twitter @NewsDayZimbabwe
A top official linked to the Olympic Games suggested on Thursday that a cheering ban could be put in place in Tokyo to limit the spread of COVID-19.
[New Times] The International Residual Mechanism for Criminal Tribunals on Wednesday, November 11 started the hearing of the case of Felicien Kabuga, a genocide mastermind who was arrested in France in May.
The alleged financier of the 1994 Rwandan genocide, Felicien Kabuga, pleaded not guilty on Wednesday as he made his first appearance at a UN court after a quarter of a century on the run.
Once one of Rwanda's richest men, Kabuga allegedly helped set up hate media that urged ethnic Hutus to \"kill the Tutsi cockroaches\" and funded militia groups.
Now in his 80s, he was arrested in France in May and transferred to the court in The Hague in October to face charges of a key role in the killing of 800,000 Tutsis and moderate Hutus.
The frail Kabuga sat in a wheelchair behind a glass screen in the courtroom, wearing a coronavirus mask. A court official helped him adjust his headphones.
His defense lawyer Emmanuel Altit said Kabuga was \"very tired\" and \"preferred not to speak\" when asked by judge Iain Bonomy if the former businessman wanted to enter a plea.
\"Given the situation, I would be grateful if you could consider this lack of response as a plea of not guilty on all the counts, under the rules and procedures,\" Altit told the court.
Kabuga, who until his arrest near Paris was one of the world's most wanted men, had already denied the charges in his court appearances in France.
The Rwandan faces seven counts including genocide, incitement to genocide, extermination, and persecution.
The UN court will later decide if he will be transferred to its branch in Tanzania for trial.
'Contributed to deaths'
The UN says 800,000 people were murdered in a 100-day rampage that began in April 1994 in Rwanda, in scenes of horror that shocked the world.
An ally of Rwanda's then-ruling party, Kabuga allegedly helped create the Interahamwe Hutu militia group and the Radio-Television Libre des Mille Collines (RTLM), whose broadcasts incited people to murder.
The lengthy indictment, read out by a court official, said that \"RTLM broadcasts contributed to the deaths of hundreds of thousands of persons identified as Tutsi civilians.\"
The radio station also identified the hiding places of Tutsis where they were later killed, it said.
Kabuga controlled and encouraged the station's content, failed to stop the broadcasts, and defended it when the minister of information criticized the broadcasts, the indictment said.
He is also accused of helping to buy machetes that were distributed to militias and ordering them to kill Tutsis.
Kabuga spent years on the run using a succession of false passports, with investigators saying that he had been helped by a network of former Rwandan allies to evade justice.
Following his arrest in a small apartment near Paris, his lawyers argued that Kabuga -- who says he is aged 87 but according to the arrest warrant is 84 - should face trial in France for health reasons.
But France's top court ruled he should be moved to UN custody on a warrant issued in 1997 by the International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda (ICTR).
Kabuga was initially to be transferred to the UN court's facility in Arusha, Tanzania, which took over the ICTR's duties when it formally closed in 2015.
But a UN
A MUTARE man lost his vehicle and some belongings to two machete-wielding robbers who pounced on him last Friday. BY KENNETH NYANGANI Manicaland police spokesperson Inspector Tavhiringwa Kakohwa yesterday confirmed the incident to NewsDay. He said on November 6 at around 4pm, the complainant, Marshal Jujuwa, was at Dangamvura bus terminus in Mutare when he was approached by two unknown persons who requested to hire his vehicle. The two said they wanted him to take them to Zimunya township claiming they wanted to consult a prophet there. At around 6pm when they were in Zimunya at a secluded place, the two produced a machete and threatened to kill Jujuwa. They tied his legs with electric cables and gagged him with insulation tape. The robbers then took his money and other belongings and drove off. The complainant untied himself before making a police report. The assailants are still on the run. Follow Kenneth on Twitter @KennethNyangan1
CHURCHES and residents in Bulawayo yesterday expressed displeasure over a proposed Bill which seeks to enable access to reproductive healthcare services by young people from the age of 12 years. BY PRAISEMORE SITHOLE Church leaders and residents expressed reservations yesterday during a consultative meeting convened by the Parliamentary Portfolio Committee on Health and Child Care to gather public views on the Bill . Zimbabwe Christian Alliance representative Mehlokazulu Ncube said the proposed Bill would affect innocent children. “This thing is against the Constitution of Zimbabwe and my question is why is Parliament pushing such an agenda? We elected parliamentarians to stand for us and it is their duty to deny such Bills which do not promote ubuntu and are against the Constitution,” Ncube said. “What have they done as parliamentarians to educate children and if this Bill is passed, where are they going to get money to buy these things when as a country we have a serious deficit?” A resident, Patricia Chininge, said most of the parents were not helping their children with issues of reproduction. “The society morality has broken down from parents to children and now there are so many child-headed families, but as a society and the government, we have failed to help those children and they end up being exposed to sex and other things,” she said. “Is giving children this type of education the only solution? I am totally against the Bill. Let’s rise up as the society, as the government as the people and find a solution to deal with this problem. The problem is that children are having sex at an early stage. There is no guidance, there is no education, so let’s bring better ways to deal with that.” Baptist Union of Zimbabwe member Godwin Moyo said the Bill seemed to put everything in one basket. “There are problems that are there concerning early pregnancies, child-headed families, but the solution is the one that we are saying no to,” he said. Nkulumane MP Kucaca Phulu said people had not properly understood the Bill. “The young people are having their own angle of understanding and the elderly are having their own interpretation. So, I wish to get time and have more discussions with both the youths and the elderly,” he said. Former Health and Child Care minister David Parirenyatwa said they were sent by Parliament to gather public views. “As you can see, most of the parents and churches are saying ‘no, 12 years is still too young, they are too immature. We are really leading them into child prostitution’ and they are also challenging the age of consent,” he said. “The youths are saying, ‘let everyone have reproductive healthcare’ and so this is the discussion we were having. The parents’ morale is very low and parents have been complaining that not enough consultation was done. We should have consulted teachers, churches, parents and youths separately and I agree with them.”
A study found that at least 350 transgender people were killed in 2020.
Zerina Akers is taking the fashion industry by storm. The Maryland bred fashion guru is known to the Beyhive as Beyoncé's stylist and the Black woman responsible for the singer's most iconic looks in her music videos, IG posts and red carpet appearances. Most recently, Zerina gained notoriety for the gorgeous looks she created for […]
By NQOBANI NDLOVU A JOSHUA Mqabuko Nkomo Polytechnic (JMNP) lecturer recently tested positive for COVID-19 while over 50 learners and educators at the institution were put on isolation after they were identified as primary contacts. By NQOBANI NDLOVU There are fears a second wave of COVID-19 will hit the country as cases begin to rise globally with many countries in Europe reverting to lockdowns to deal with new strains of the virus . In Zimbabwe, while the number of recorded cases has been modest, health experts warn that the country is headed for a new deadly wave of COVID-19 as people throw caution to the wind and ignore measures to tame the spread of the virus. NewsDay heard that the government provincial COVID-19 committee is “managing the situation” after a lecturer at the JMNP tested positive for the coronavirus. “The committee will continue to guide and advise us on how to operate after this unfortunate development. For now, they have advised us to continue with our scheduled lectures and examinations while ensuring strict adherence to COVID-19 safety protocols,” a leaked memo addressed to lecturers at the institution read. The memo said 28 lecturers and 25 students were identified as primary contacts who should be tested. JMNP principal Ngoni Moyo could not be reached for comment. Matabeleland South provincial medical director Ruth Chikorodze said: “I cannot confirm that (statistics from JMNP). We only collect samples and give the statistics to the national level. We don’t look where the person comes from.” Matabeleland South province has recorded 868 out of 8 667 confirmed COVID-19 cases in the country, the Health and Child Care ministry said in its most recent update. The ministry said Zimbabwe yesterday recorded 57 new cases and no deaths. Of these, 20 were local transmissions and the remainder from returnees from neighbouring South Africa. Follow Nqobani on Twitter @NqobaniNdlovu
As Black people disproportionately suffer from Covid-19, there are lingering questions about the distribution process that will determine who gets the coronavirus vaccine first.
With these words, the president-elect, Joe Biden, set a new tone and a new mood in Washington. No longer will the bully pulpit of the White House be used to spew lies and insults or to fan division and hatred. The White House will once again call on the “better angels” of Americans and not our “darkest impulses.”
The post A White House That Once Again Calls on Our Better Angels appeared first on Los Angeles Sentinel.
THE majority of residents in Zimbabwe’s major urban areas are drinking sewage-contaminated water due to poor management systems by local authorities, Auditor-General Mildred Chiri has revealed in her latest audit report. BY MIRIAM MANGWAYA An assessment by the Auditor-General on six major cities in the country showed that urban local authorities were failing to attend to sewer blockages within 24 hours, resulting in raw sewage mixing with drinking water. This ultimately gives rise to outbreaks of waterborne diseases such as typhoid, dysentery and cholera, among others. Unattended sewer blockages also result in sewage back-flowing, which further weakens the pipes, according to the audit findings for the period 2013 to 2017 following a public outcry over sewer bursts. “The assessment of the urban local authorities’ management of sewerage system revealed a number of weaknesses which contributed to the increase in the number of sewer blockage complaints from consumers,” Chiri said. “If local authorities fail to attend to blockages within the stipulated eight to 24 hours, raw sewage is lost into the environment before reaching the treatment plants, thereby contaminating water bodies. “According to interviews conducted, engineers cited that they were doing more of reactive maintenance rather than planned maintenance.” Results of the assessment also showed that Harare, with the highest population of over 1,5 million people, records the highest number of sewer blockages on average each year, which places residents in the capital city at high risk of contracting waterborne diseases. The United Nations Environment report of 2013 ranked Lake Chivero, Harare’s main water source, as one of the most 10 polluted lakes in the world. Statistics from the audit show that Harare discharges about 4 000 megalitres of raw or partially-treated water into water systems. In responding to the audit, city fathers blamed residents over sewer blockages, citing dumping of kitchen utensils and other items in sewage pipes as the major contributor to infrastructure damages. Although with a higher population, the audit report said Bulawayo had a better sewer system compared to other councils. In 2013 alone, 560 people died of waterborne diseases, while close to 600 000 others contracted the diseases countrywide. In 2008, five years before the audit, Zimbabwe recorded its worst cholera outbreak, which claimed over 5 000 lives, with Harare’s Budiriro and Glen View high-density suburbs the worst hit. Harare and Bulawayo are staring another crisis due to recurrent water shortages, with Harare declaring incapacitation to buy water treatment chemicals. Last week, Harare City Council confirmed four cases of typhoid, a bacterial infection that can be transmitted through contaminated water. The local authorities do not have modern equipment and technologies for sewer system inspection and maintenance and Chiri stated that the government was losing about US$194 million annually owing to poor sanitation practices. The Auditor-General also noted that poor service
AP reports that Texas is the first state to reach over one million confirmed cases of COVID-19 according to data from Johns Hopkins University. Texas has now surpassed California, the most populous state, and reportedly has the 10th most cases in the world.
By Samuetta Hill Drew Last week the safety article's focus was on being COVID-19 prepared for a possible perfect storm. Some in the medical community reference contracting the flu and COVID-19 the perfect storm because both will be prevalent this fall and winter season. The recent Nov. 3 election did not end COVID-19, which is […]
Amelia Ashley Ward has had Kamala Harris’ back since their early days in San Francisco, when Ward was running a Black community newspaper and Harris was a little-known Black woman running for district attorney. Ward endorsed her then — and reported on Harris’ riding a cable car through the streets of the city to drum […]
In summary When the state consolidates inmate fire camps next month, remote Modoc County is left with few resources to prevent and battle its lightning-sparked fires. Nestled in California’s northeast corner, Modoc County calls itself the “last best place.” Home to the sprawling Modoc National Forest and graced with lava flows, cinder cones, juniper flats […]
The post California’s final frontier faces firefighter shortage appeared first on Black Voice News.
ACCRA — When it comes to food security, the challenge is not always about producing more – it’s also about quality: producing food that is wholesome and preserved safely. About 690 million people go hungry each year. The COVID-19 pandemic is expected to add between 83-132 million people to this number based on socio-economic factors. Even before the pandemic, about half of Africa’s citizens were food insecure. And much of Africa’s food is of low quality or lost before it even reaches the consumer. Africa has made some great strides in food production over the last decade even though it continues to be a huge net food importer to the tune of US$47 billion in 2018. But this pandemic has halted successes chalked in fighting poverty and disease and progress towards reaching the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). COVID-19 is not the only challenge. In the past year, Africa has grappled with locust swarms, droughts, flooding and conflicts which have slashed livelihoods and brought hunger to many in the region. Restrictions on movement during lockdown also impact on commodities like seeds, fertilizers and farming implements which has, in turn, led to decreased food production. Many crops were not readily accessible and farmers struggled to get their produce to markets. And then, adding to the crisis, the continent’s poor storage facilities were not up to scratch. COVID-19 showed the fault lines in our food production systems and this has compromised the livelihoods of millions of farmers. Food systems on the continent — including production, storage and processing, distribution and transportation, retailing and promotion — are dominated by traditional methods which are vulnerable to unexpected crises. The Comprehensive African Agricultural Development Programme, one of African Union’s continental frameworks under Agenda 2063, urges African governments to increase investment for agriculture by allocating at least 10% of national budgets to achieve agricultural growth rates of at least 6% per annum. Also in the declaration on Food security and Nutrition during the COVID-19 pandemic, African ministers of agriculture committed to putting in place measures that will reduce food post-harvest losses and make more food available in the markets. Now, as countries struggle to recover from the impact of the pandemic, there is the need for an action plan to consolidate efforts at these policies. Past interventions for Africa have focused on food production through improvement on crop varieties and yield. But we are not living in normal times. We must do more than simply look at production. Resilient systems need efficient storage and production processes. Post-COVID-19 Africa must invest in appropriate storage technology which is lacking in most developing nations and this causes unnecessary waste and considerable loss to their economies. For example, it is estimated that 60%–70% of food grains produced in developing nations are stored in traditional structures either in threshed or unthreshed at the home. However, most traditional
GWERU residents yesterday urged the council to give incentives to people who pay their bills in United States dollars, saying such a move would enable the local authority to collect revenue in foreign currency. BY Stephen Chadenga The residents made the call at a consultative meeting for the 2021 budget. Gweru United Progressive Residents and Ratepayers Development Association Trust executive director David Chikore said council should charge less in US dollars to encourage ratepayers to settle their bills in hard currency. “Since council has adopted dual pricing we propose that instead of billing the US dollar component using the interbank rate, they can lower it a bit compared to the RTGS$ charge,” he said. “By introducing incentives council will be able to directly get revenue in US dollar and pay its suppliers without hassles. Without incentives people will continue opting to pay in Zimdollars.” Mayor Josiah Makombe said his council would consider the proposal. He said council was also working on ways to implement the payment of tariffs in the 2021 budget in a manner that would ease the burden on ratepayers. “That is a welcome move by residents to propose for incentives to those residents who settle their rates in US dollars and we are going to seriously consider it,” Makombe said. “We will do everything as a local authority to make sure that we implement payment methods that ease the burden on our residents.”
By Stacy M. Brown NNPA Senior National Correspondent Medical and scientific experts have sounded the alarm, wanting people to understand that COVID is not the flu or a common cold, and recovery may not be permanent. According to a new study, 20 percent of recovering coronavirus patients develop some form of mental illness within 90 […]
The post New study suggests COVID patients more susceptible to mental illness appeared first on North Dallas Gazette.
By Erica Wright The Birmingham Times When Lauren “Lo” Harris broke her hand while riding a crowded train, it rekindled a passion she had put aside—ironically, a passion that involved her hand. “I was on New Jersey Transit during Christmastime, the train was packed, and I think my hand hit against someone in the crowd […]
Researchers at Oxford University in Great Britain noted that first-time diagnosis of anxiety, depression, and insomnia increased two-fold in patients after they’ve recovered from COVID. Further, they discovered that COVID survivors also found significantly higher risks of dementia.
Analysis - Disputed elections in the Ivory Coast and Guinea, violence in Nigeria: many West Africans hope for foreign support, but the European Union has kept itself at a distance. Publicly, at least.
Kyrie 6 & Air Max 1 Highlight Nike's N7 Winter Collection
By Miami Times Staff Reporter - Returning nursing home residents won't be tested for COVID-19 - The Gov. Ron DeSantis administration, which has made a concerted effort to scale back restrictions enacted because of the [...]
