Venezuela says possibly at least 20 passengers missing after boat sinks in Caribbean

Abstract: CARACAS - A small boat carrying at least 20 people from Venezuela sank in Caribbean coastal waters and most of those on board are missing, an official said Monday, in what appeared to be another case of Venezuelans taking risks to escape their country’s humanitarian crisis. The boat left Guiria in Sucre state and was on its way to the Caribbean nation of Trinidad and Tobago when it sank Thursday, according to the official from the civil protection agency. The official was not authorized to speak to the media and gave the information on condition of anonymity. Relatives of those aboard the boat have been appealing for information. One of the passengers was apparently rescued by Robert Richards, an American businessman and sailor who said on Facebook that he and his crew rescued a young man from Venezuela who had been in the water for 19 hours. Richards posted photos of the man clinging to debris in the sea and said the boat that sank had been on its way to Trinidad island to buy supplies because the Venezuelan island they came from has “limited food that’s very expensive.” Robert Alcala, a member of Venezuela’s opposition-controlled congress, said those on board were migrants trying to escape Venezuela’s humanitarian crisis. Last month, a boat carrying Venezuelans sank in the same area. More than 20 people remain missing from that accident. Several million Venezuelans, or at least 10 percent of the population, have left the country after years of dire economic conditions. While the majority of Venezuelan migrants have traveled by land into neighboring Colombia and Brazil, overloaded fishing boats sometimes smuggle people to nearby Caribbean islands.

venezuela
caribbean
trinidad
maritime accidents
guiria


'Hippie' Vashon Island off Seattle sees shift in low vaccine rate

Abstract: VASHON ISLAND, WASHINGTON - Sarah Day is a school nurse with “street cred” when it comes to the polarizing issue of vaccines on an idyllic island in Washington state known for its rural beauty, counterculture lifestyle and low immunization rates. Since she began communal living on Vashon Island more than 20 years ago, the registered nurse has advocated for getting kids their shots against a loud contingent of anti-vaccine parents in the close-knit community of about 11,000 accessible only by ferry, a serene 20-minute ride from Seattle. And it may now be working, thanks to a “perfect storm” of changes being felt on the island, Day said. The Vashon Island School District has seen a significant increase in fully immunized children. The number of kindergartners who received the required set of state-mandated vaccines jumped by 31 percent in the past six years, from 56 percent to nearly 74 percent in the 2017-18 school year, according to the King County Public Health Department. Amid the nation’s highest number of measles cases in 25 years, pro-vaccine advocates are cheering the apparent shift that challenges Vashon’s reputation as a hotbed of highly educated, anti-establishment parents who choose not to vaccinate their children from preventable and potentially devastating diseases. “We’ve been the poster children for the anti-vaccine or vaccine-hesitancy movement for so long,” Day said. She attributes the rising numbers to increasingly visible pro-vaccine information, expanded access to shots and media coverage of measles outbreaks in the Pacific Northwest and New York this year. The island town with deep roots in organic farming has long drawn those who want to escape urban sprawl and others wary of putting chemicals in their bodies, whether in their food or medical care. Kids run barefoot through untamed forests and families still raise fruits and vegetables without pesticides to share in meals in communal houses. It also has its share of city commuters, tourists and million-dollar vacation homes with sweeping views of Mount Rainier, as well as locals pushing the science that vaccines are safe. While the gains are notable, the Vashon school district still has one of the lowest vaccine rates in the U.S. It is far below the 95 percent target that a majority of U.S. schools hover around and is needed for herd immunity, which protects those who haven’t been vaccinated for medical reasons or because they are too young. The majority of Vashon parents say yes to some vaccines, particularly the tetanus shot for their kids who play outside on the forested island. But many still buck the formal schedule of shots recommended by health officials. They may select some but not all and space them out over a longer period of time. Nicky Wilks, who grew up on Vashon and has three young children, said the changing attitude has led some pro-vaccine parents to exclude from gatherings kids who may not have their shots, while teenagers openly mock those who aren’t vaccinated. “That’s the worst-case scenario, when we are creating physical barriers in our community,” Wilks said. He said he isn’t against all vaccines but doesn’t agree that dozens of shots starting at birth are necessary despite health officials’ insistence. Wilks declined to say if his family is fully immunized. Gator Lanphear says he’s “very judgmental” about parents who don’t vaccinate. He said he not only immunizes his twin 6-year-old daughters but instills in them the importance of getting their shots as a heroic act. “They understand that what they did benefits humankind. Yeah, they got their ice cream for it, but they’re also eradicating polio,” Lanphear said. The number of philosophical exemptions in Vashon has decreased dramatically, but there are still 11.6 percent of students whose families elect not to vaccinate. That’s five times higher than the national median rate. Still, Vashon’s progress can’t be discounted because it’s unusual for immunization to increase so steeply in a few short years when there is deep-rooted anti-vaccine sentiment in the community, said William John Moss, an epidemiology professor at Johns Hopkins University. “That’s an important increase, but they still have a ways to go,” Moss said. “That’s a vaccination rate lower than in many countries in sub-Saharan Africa.” Day, the school nurse, has worked closely with the new Neighborcare Health clinics, the single largest medical provider on the island. Together, they aggressively remind families when they’re due for vaccines and counsel them on their concerns, whether rooted in scientific evidence or not. “The message is really getting through. I feel like the tide is really turning on the island,” Day said. A two-year-old health center at the high school has been especially successful. It’s partly funded by a county grant that helps cover free shots and services for low-income or uninsured students. About half of the school system’s 1,615 students are registered patients and an additional 43 children who are in private school or homeschooled also use the clinic. Manager Stephanie Keller said the center has received a spike in calls from concerned parents amid a measles outbreak in Washington state that’s affected at least 78 people, including seven reported near Vashon. As of May 17, 880 people have contracted measles in 24 states this year, according to the Centers for Disease Control. The outbreak prompted Washington Gov. Jay Inslee to declare a state of emergency and sign a law that eliminates personal or philosophical exemptions for the measles, mumps and rubella vaccine that’s needed before attending a day care center or school. Parents, however, can still claim a medical or religious exemption. Some critics say the Vashon school system’s data isn’t representative of the population because the island is home to many families who live off the grid. Vaccine advocates argue it’s an important benchmark because numbers from a previous islandwide survey aligned with public school data. And there are other signs, too. The top service provided at the student-based health center is vaccinations, Keller said. “That surprised us,” Keller said. “You think of Vashon as being this hippie place where nobody vaccinates.”

u.s .
vaccinations
washington state
measles
seattle
cdc
vashon island


Mass movement: Scientists adopt new definitions of the kilogram, amp, kelvin — and mole

Abstract: PARIS - How we measure the world underwent a quantum leap Monday as scientists adopted new hyperaccurate definitions for units of weight, electricity and temperature derived from the universal laws of nature. The change, on the occasion of World Metrology Day, sees one of science’s most influential objects — a metal cylinder used to define what a kilogram is — retired in favor of an infinitely more precise measurement taken from a quantum ratio. “Le Grand K,” as the platinum-iridium object is known, stood as the world’s benchmark of the kilogram for nearly 130 years before a decision was taken in November to bring several units of measurement into the 21st century. “The kilogram is the last unit of measurement based on a physical object,” Thomas Grenon, director of France’s National Laboratory of Metrology and Testing, said after the decision last year. “The problem is that it’s had a life, it could fluctuate. That’s not good enough, given the level of precision we need today.” Instead of relating to the mass of a singular physical object, the kilogram will now be defined in terms of the Planck constant — the ratio of a frequency of light, on the one hand, to the quantum energy of that frequency, on the other. Energy is intrinsically linked to mass, as Einstein demonstrated with his equation E = mc2. The Planck constant, combined with two quantum phenomena that allow for the creation of electrical power, can be used to calculate mass based on the equivalent mechanical power needed to displace it.

electricity
temperature
weight
world metrology day


Fifth migrant child dies after detention by U.S. Border Patrol

Abstract: HOUSTON - The U.S. government says a 16-year-old Guatemalan died Monday at a Border Patrol station in South Texas, the fifth death of a migrant child apprehended by border agents since December. U.S. Customs and Border Protection identified the teenager as Carlos Gregorio Hernandez Vasquez. CBP said the Border Patrol apprehended the teenager in South Texas’ Rio Grande Valley on May 13. He was found to be unresponsive during a welfare check Monday morning. Carlos was detained for six days at the Border Patrol’s processing center in McAllen, Texas, despite federal law and CBP guidelines generally requiring the transfer of an unaccompanied youth within three days to a facility operated by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. The agency said Carlos was “due for placement” in an HHS facility at the time of his death. CBP said Carlos reported early Sunday morning that he was not feeling well and diagnosed with the flu. He was prescribed the medicine Tamiflu, then transferred later Sunday to the Border Patrol station at Weslaco, Texas, to prevent his flu from spreading to other detainees. He was not hospitalized. An agency official who briefed reporters on the condition of anonymity said Carlos had last been checked an hour before he was found unresponsive. The FBI is investigating the case. The Border Patrol has faced months of scrutiny over its care of children it apprehends at the border. A 2-year-old child died last week after he and his mother were detained by the Border Patrol. The agency says it took the child to the hospital the same day the mother reported he was sick, and he was hospitalized for several weeks. On April 30, a 16-year-old Guatemalan boy died after officials at an HHS detention facility noticed that he was sick. He was hospitalized in intensive care for several days before his death. After the deaths of two children ages 7 and 8 in December, the Department of Homeland Security ordered medical checks of all children in its custody and expanded medical screenings. John Sanders, the acting commissioner of U.S. Customs and Border Protection, said in a statement that his agency was “saddened by the tragic loss of this young man and our condolences are with his family.” “CBP is committed to the health, safety and humane treatment of those in our custody,” Sanders said. Trump administration officials have said they have passed a “breaking point” in the immigration detention system, with the numbers of parents and children crossing the border dramatically exceeding the capacity at facilities. That strain is particularly acute in the Rio Grande Valley, which has more unauthorized border crossings than any other region. The Border Patrol has released photos of adults and children lying in small, military-style tents or on the grass and pavement outside of two of its stations. It also recently opened a 500-person tent near one port of entry and announced plans to open another.

u.s .
immigration
mexico
refugees
texas
donald trump
cbp
hhs
carlos gregorio hernandez vasquez


Sea level rise of 2 meters, leading to displacement of millions, 'plausible' by 2100: study

Abstract: WASHINGTON - Global sea levels could rise by 2 meters (6.5 feet) and displace tens of millions of people by the end of the century, according to new projections by leading scientists that double the U.N.’s benchmark estimates. The vast ice sheets of Greenland and Antarctica contain enough frozen water to lift the world’s oceans dozens of meters. The expansion of water as oceans warm also contributes to sea level rise. But predicting the rates at which they will melt as the planet heats is notoriously tricky. The United Nations’ Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) said its 2013 Fifth Assessment Report that under current emissions trajectories — a “business-as-usual” scenario known as RCP8.5 — sea levels would likely rise by up to 1 meter by 2100. That prediction has since been viewed as conservative, as the levels of planet-warming greenhouse gas emissions continue to rise year on year, and satellites showing accelerated rates of melt-off from massive ice sheets atop Antarctica and Greenland. A group of the world’s leading ice scientists this week released an expert judgement on the situation, drawing on their own experience and observations. While there was still a significant margin of error, they found it “plausible” that under the business-as-usual emissions scenario, sea-level rises could exceed two meters by 2100. The authors said the area of land lost to the ocean could be equivalent to that of France, Germany, Spain and Britain combined and would displace more than 180 million people. “A sea-level rise of this magnitude would clearly have profound consequences for humanity,” they said. The Paris climate deal, struck between nations in 2015, aims to limit global temperature rises to well below 2 degrees C (3.6 F), and encourages countries to work towards a 1.5 C cap. In October the IPCC released a landmark climate report that called for a drastic and immediate drawdown in coal, oil and gas consumption in order to arrest the rapid rise in the levels of greenhouse gases in the atmosphere. That report, however, did not include revised estimates of sea level rise. Earth has already heated 1 C since pre-industrial times, contributing roughly 3 mm to sea levels each year. The authors of the new study, released Monday in the journal Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, argue that the IPCC’s sea-level rise prediction was too constrained by focusing on what was “likely” to happen. At wider probabilities — 5-95 percent likelihood — they found that under 2 C of warming, seas could rise 36-126 cm by 2100. If the world warms by 5 C — unlikely but certainly not impossible given projected fossil fuel demand in the coming decades — they calculated a five percent risk of sea levels rising by two meters, topping out at 238 cm. Willy Aspinall, from the University of Bristol’s School of Earth Sciences, said he hoped the study could provide policymakers with a more accurate worst-case scenario “crucial for robust decision-making.” “Limiting attention to the ‘likely’ range, as was the case in the IPCC Fifth Assessment Report, may be misleading and will likely lead to a poor evaluation of the true risks,” he added.

global warming
climate change
greenhouse gases
sea level


French court tells doctors to resume life support for paralyzed patient

Abstract: STRASBOURG, FRANCE - A French appeals court on Monday ordered doctors to resume giving food and water to a French quadriplegic, lawyers said, some 12 hours after medics switched off the man’s life support against his parents’ will. The fate of Vincent Lambert has renewed a fierce debate over the right to die that has split his family and the country. “The feeding and hydration of Vincent must be restarted without delay,” declared Jean Paillot, a lawyer for Lambert’s parents who launched multiple legal bids to keep his care going. “It’s a huge victory, and only the first.” The 42-year-old former psychiatric nurse has been in a vegetative state since a motorcycle accident in 2008. He has almost no consciousness, but can breath without a respirator and occasionally moves his eyes. His wife, Rachel, and some of his siblings say care should be withdrawn. But Lambert’s Catholic parents, backed by other relatives, say he should be kept alive and have launched a series of legal bids to keep his care going. His doctors in the northeastern city of Reims said earlier this month that they would start withdrawing care after all legal avenues had been exhausted. Earlier on Monday, the medical team stopped feeding Lambert food and water through a gastric tube and was administering sedatives. Lambert’s mother, Viviane, branded them “monsters.” Lambert’s parents filed a last-ditch legal bid to keep him alive at the European Court of Human Rights and appealed to French President Emmanuel Macron to intervene. The Strasbourg-based tribunal declared there was no violation of Lambert’s right to life in the medics’ decision, while the French president said the decision on Lambert’s fate did not rest with him. “But it is for me to hear the emotion that has been stirred and to respond,” Macron added in a statement on Facebook. “All the medical experts have concluded that his condition is irreversible.” However, in a stunning twist, the Paris Appeal Court ruled that doctors must respect a May 3 request made by the U.N. Committee on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities to the French government that it prevent the euthanasia of Lambert while his case is examined. Euthanasia is illegal in France, but in 2016 a law was introduced giving terminally ill patients the right to be put into continuous deep sedation (CDS) by doctors until death. The law draws a distinction between euthanasia and CDS, making France the first country to legislate in such a way. Lambert’s case has divided opinion in France. “We cannot keep him like this, as a vegetable for decades,” said 70-year-old Parisian Marie-Laure Jean. “There have been court rulings, the doctors have given their advice. We have to let him go.” But pensioner Caroline Lorsin saw the other side: “I’m putting myself in his parents’ shoes. It must be hard for them.” Euthanasia is permitted in various forms in the Netherlands, Belgium, Colombia, Luxembourg and Canada, while assisted suicide, which involves a doctor helping a patient to end their own life, is permitted in several U.S. states.

france
euthanasia
disability
emmanuel macron
vincent lambert


N.Y. bill to let U.S. House see Trump's state returns narrowed

Abstract: ALBANY, NEW YORK - A proposal that would grant Congress access to New York state tax returns filed by President Donald Trump has been revised to address concerns that it could jeopardize the privacy of anyone who files a return in the state. Assemblyman David Buchwald, D-Westchester County, submitted an amendment to his bill this weekend to make it apply only to federal, state and local elected officials and companies in which they have significant ownership. Under a bill approved by the state Senate, state tax officials could release any New York returns if requested by any of three congressional committees. Republicans objected on privacy grounds, but Democrats argued the bill would help Congress circumvent the administration’s refusal to hand over Trump’s federal returns. The Assembly could pass the amended proposal this week. The Senate must also approve the change.

u.s .
congress
new york
taxes
donald trump


Nevada judge weighs tossing confession and other defense motions in quadruple killings

Abstract: RENO, NEVADA - Lawyers for a Salvadoran immigrant charged with killing four people urged a judge on Monday to dismiss some of the charges and throw out his confession, citing procedural errors. Wilber Ernesto Martinez-Guzman faces murder, burglary and weapons charges in the deaths of four people in northern Nevada in January. His public defenders say the Washoe County grand jury lacked legal jurisdiction to indict him for two of the January killings that occurred in Douglas County. They say prosecutors also failed to provide the necessary supporting evidence to allow the jury to hear testimony that Martinez-Guzman confessed to fatally shooting and stealing from the victims to support a drug habit. “The grand jury in Washoe County exceeded its powers,” said John Arrascada, Washoe County’s chief public defender. “We could be back here in 20 years to address this issue of process. We need to start this case off properly,” he said. “We’re not saying this case cannot at some point be joined, but that’s somewhere down the road.” Federal officials have said Martinez-Guzman, 20, is in the U.S. illegally but they don’t know how or when he crossed the Mexico border. The case has drawn the attention of President Donald Trump, who says it shows the need for a border wall. Washoe County District Attorney Chris Hicks and Douglas County District Attorney Mark Jackson, who are co-prosecuting the case, said Monday the defense’s “misguided assertions” aren’t supported by law and could “lead to an absurd result.” Jackson said all district courts in Nevada enjoy statewide jurisdiction in cases involving criminal felonies. He said the gun used in the killings was in Martinez-Guzman’s car when he was arrested in Carson City. “He did all of this while in possession of a revolver he used to kill Connie Koontz, Sophia Renken and Gerry and Sherri David,” Jackson said. “The facts of this case are so intertwined that his possession of the firearm was an act requisite to consummation of the crimes in Douglas County.” Jackson said requiring prosecutors to conduct preliminary hearings in all three jurisdictions would delay justice for the families of the victims for years. Public defender Katheryn Hickman said state law prohibits the introduction of a confession unless it’s supported by independent evidence to guard against suspects admitting crimes they didn’t commit. She said the only accompanying material presented to the grand jury that indicted him on 10 counts was based on hearsay testimony, including statements the Davids’ caretaker gave to police about comments Gerald David made about an earlier burglary when police say the handgun was taken. Hicks said there are certain exceptions when hearsay testimony is allowed, including when the witness isn’t available to testify in court. “We all know Mr. David is unavailable,” Hicks said. “Now the defense is seeking to exclude statements made by the person (David) who he (Martinez-Guzman) made unavailable. It flies in the face of judicial procedure.” Washoe District Court Judge Connie Steinheimer said she expected to rule on the motions before the next status hearing June 24. The trial isn’t scheduled to begin until next April.

u.s .
murder
immigration
el salvador
nevada
mass shootings
donald trump
wilber ernesto martinez-guzman


After attacks from Trump, U.S. Republican defends his impeachment remarks

Abstract: WASHINGTON - Justin Amash, the first Republican in the U.S. Congress to say openly that President Donald Trump has committed impeachable offenses, on Monday fired back at critics, including Trump. Standing behind his earlier remarks, Amash issued a string of tweets that challenged some of the most common arguments of those who defend Trump over special counsel Robert Mueller’s probe of Russian meddling in the 2016 U.S. election. The new Amash tweets followed his earlier remarks on Twitter on Saturday, when he said that the Mueller report on Russia showed that Trump, a fellow Republican, had obstructed justice. “President Trump has engaged in impeachable conduct,” the Michigan conservative said then, drawing a broadside from Trump. In his usual caustic style, the president on Sunday tweeted that Amash was “a total lightweight” and “a loser.” In addition, in a case of swift political retribution, Amash drew an election challenge from within his own party on Monday when Jim Lower, a Michigan state legislator who described himself as “pro-Trump,” said he would challenge Amash in the 2020 Republican primary, the Detroit Free Press reported. Amash in his latest tweets said that people who say Trump could not have intended to illegally obstruct Mueller’s investigation relied on several falsehoods, including a claim that there were no underlying crimes. “In fact, there were many crimes revealed by the investigation, some of which were charged, and some of which were not,” Amash wrote on Twitter. Mueller’s investigation led to criminal charges against 34 people, including Trump’s first national security adviser, Michael Flynn, who agreed to cooperate with the probe. Amash also said that bringing an obstruction of justice case did not, as some of Trump’s backers have argued, require the prosecution of an underlying crime. Further, he said, “high crimes and misdemeanors,” the U.S. Constitution’s standard for removing a president from office, does not require corresponding statutory charges. “The context implies conduct that violates the public trust,” Amash said. No U.S. president has ever been removed from office as a direct result of the U.S. Constitution’s impeachment process. Democrats have debated for months whether to start proceedings to remove Trump from office, but no Republican in Congress, other than Amash, has called Trump’s conduct impeachable. While Amash’s remarks made calls in Congress for Trump’s removal bipartisan, there were no signs late on Monday of other Republicans following his lead. A long-time Trump critic, Amash is part of the House Freedom Caucus, a conservative House of Representatives faction whose members normally defend Trump. Amash has also signaled he would consider running as a libertarian against Trump in 2020. Amash has been in Congress since 2011 and has faced only one serious primary challenge since then. He beat that opponent by nearly 15 points in 2014. Amash’s new Republican challenger, Lower, posted a photo of himself on Facebook in front of a “Trump 2020” sign. “Congressman Justin Amash tweets yesterday calling for President Trump’s impeachment show how out of touch he is … He must be replaced and I am going to do it,” Lower said, according to the Detroit newspaper. Michigan voters helped put Trump in the White House in 2016 by a slim margin. Democrats gained ground in 2018’s congressional and state elections, making the Midwestern state a key political battleground in 2020.

u.s .
congress
michigan
robert mueller
impeachment
donald trump
russia probe
justin amash
jim lower


Trump tells former White House counsel Donald McGahn to defy congressional subpoena, skip House committee hearing

Abstract: WASHINGTON - President Donald Trump directed his former White House counsel, Donald McGahn, to defy a congressional subpoena Monday, citing a Justice Department legal opinion that maintains McGahn would have immunity from testifying about his work as a close Trump adviser. A lawyer for McGahn said he will follow the president’s wishes and skip a House Judiciary Committee hearing Tuesday. Trump’s action, the latest in his efforts to block every congressional probe into him and his administration, is certain to deepen the open conflict between Democrats and the president. Democrats have accused Trump and Attorney General William Barr of trying to stonewall and obstruct Congress’ oversight duties. The House Judiciary Committee had issued a subpoena to compel McGahn to testify Tuesday, and the committee’s chairman, New York Democratic Rep. Jerrold Nadler, has threatened to hold McGahn in contempt of Congress if he doesn’t. Nadler has also suggested he may try and levy fines against witnesses who do not comply with committee requests. William Burck, McGahn’s lawyer, said in a letter to Nadler that McGahn is “conscious of the duties he, as an attorney, owes to his former client” and will decline to appear. Still, Burck encouraged the committee to negotiate a compromise with the White House, saying his client “again finds himself facing contradictory instructions from two co-equal branches of government.” McGahn was a key figure in Special Counsel Robert Mueller’s investigation, describing ways in which the president sought to curtail that federal probe. Democrats hoped to question him as a way to focus attention on Mueller’s findings and further investigate whether Trump did obstruct justice. “This move is just the latest act of obstruction from the White House that includes its blanket refusal to cooperate with this committee,” Nadler said in a statement. “It is also the latest example of this Administration’s disdain for law.” As he left the White House for a campaign event in Pennsylvania on Monday, Trump said the maneuver was “for the office of the presidency for future presidents.” “I think it’s a very important precedent,” Trump said. “And the attorneys say that they’re not doing that for me, they’re doing that for the office of the president. So we’re talking about the future.” Separately on Monday, a federal judge in Washington ruled against Trump in a financial records dispute, declaring the president cannot block a House subpoena for information from Mazars USA, a firm that has done accounting work for him and the Trump Organization. And a hearing is planned in New York on Wednesday in another case, this one involving an effort by Trump, his business and his family to prevent Deutsche Bank and Capital One from complying with subpoenas from two House committees for banking and financial records. If McGahn were to defy Trump and testify before Congress, it could endanger his own career in Republican politics and put his law firm, Jones Day, in the president’s crosshairs. Trump has mused about instructing Republicans to cease dealing with the firm, which is deeply intertwined in Washington with the GOP, according to one White House official and a Republican close to the White House not authorized to speak publicly about private conversations. Administration officials mulled various legal options before settling on providing McGahn with a legal opinion from the Department of Justice to justify defying the subpoena. “The immunity of the President’s immediate advisers from compelled congressional testimony on matters related to their official responsibilities has long been recognized and arises from the fundamental workings of the separation of powers,” the department’s opinion reads. “Accordingly, Mr. McGahn is not legally required to appear and testify about matters related to his official duties as Counsel to the President.” The Judiciary Committee still plans on meeting even if McGahn doesn’t show up and McGahn “is expected to appear as legally required,” Nadler said. Trump has fumed about McGahn for months, after it became clear that much of Mueller’s report was based on his testimony. The president has bashed his former White House counsel on Twitter and has insisted to advisers that the attorney not be allowed to humiliate him in front of Congress, much as his former personal legal fixer, Michael Cohen, did, according to the official and Republican. The Justice Department has long held the opinion that close presidential advisers have “absolute immunity” from being compelled to testify before Congress about their work for the president. A federal judge rejected a similar argument in 2008 in a dispute over a subpoena for Harriet Miers, who was White House counsel to George W. Bush. U.S. District Judge John Bates said it was an unprecedented notion that a White House official would be absolutely immune from being compelled to testify before Congress. Miers had to show up for her testimony, but still had the right to assert executive privilege in response to any specific questions posed by legislators, the judge said. But in 2014, under the Obama administration, the Justice Department issued an opinion arguing that if Congress could force the president’s closest advisers to testify about matters that happened during their tenure, it would “threaten executive branch confidentiality, which is necessary (among other things) to ensure that the President can obtain the type of sound and candid advice that is essential to the effective discharge of his constitutional duties.” The House Judiciary Committee voted earlier this month to hold Barr in contempt after he defied a subpoena for an unredacted version of Mueller’s report.

u.s. congress
robert mueller
justice department
donald trump
don mcgahn
russia probe


Battle breaks out for WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange's computers

Abstract: BOGOTA - With Julian Assange locked away in a London jail, a new battle has broken out over what may contain some of the WikiLeaks founder’s biggest secrets: his computers. On Monday, judicial authorities from Ecuador carried out an inventory of all the belongings and digital devices left behind at the London embassy following his expulsion last month from the diplomatic compound that had been his home the past seven years. It came as Sweden announced it was seeking Assange’s arrest on suspicion of rape, setting up a possible future tug-of-war with the United States over any extradition of Assange from Britain. It’s not known what devices authorities removed from the embassy or what information they contained. But authorities said they were acting on a request by the U.S. prosecutors, leading Assange’s defenders to claim that Ecuador has undermined the most basic principles of asylum while denying the secret-spiller’s right to prepare his defense. “It’s disgraceful,” WikiLeaks’ editor in chief, Kristinn Hrafnsson, said in an interview with The Associated Press. “Ecuador granted him asylum because of the threat of extradition to the U.S. and now the same country, under new leadership, is actively collaborating with a criminal investigation against him.” Assange, 47, was arrested on April 11 after being handed over to British authorities by Ecuador. He is serving a 50-week sentence in a London prison for skipping bail while the U.S. seeks his extradition for conspiring to hack into military computers and spill secrets about U.S. operations in Iraq and Afghanistan. Hrafnsson, who has visited the Australian activist in jail, said Assange saw his eviction coming for weeks as relations with President Lenin Moreno’s government deteriorated, so he took great care to scrub computers and hard drives of any compromising material, including future planned leaks or internal communications with WikiLeaks collaborators. Still, Hrafnsson said he fully expects Moreno or the Americans to claim revelations that don’t exist. He called Monday’s proceedings a “horse show” because no legal authority can guarantee Assange’s devices haven’t been tampered with, or the chain of custody unbroken, in the six weeks since his arrest. “If anything surfaces, I can assure you it would’ve been planted,” he said. “Julian isn’t a novice when it comes to security and securing his information. We expected this to happen and protections have been in place for a very long time.” A group of Assange’s supporters gathered outside the Ecuadorean Embassy in London to protest the judicial proceeding. Demonstrators put banners on the railings with images of Assange, his mouth covered by an American flag, and chanted “Thieves! Thieves! Thieves! Shame on you!” Ecuadorian authorities said they will hand over any belongings not given to U.S. or Ecuadorian investigators to Assange’s lawyers, who weren’t invited to Monday’s inventory-taking. Hrafnsson said he didn’t have a full inventory of Assange’s devices Moreno decided to evict Assange from the embassy after accusing him of working with political opponents to hack into his phone and release damaging personal documents and photos, including several that showed him eating lobster in bed and the numbers of bank accounts allegedly used to hide proceeds from corruption. Moreno’s actions immediately were celebrated by the Trump administration, which was key in helping Ecuador secure a $4.2 billion credit line from the International Monetary Fund and has provided the tiny South American country with new trade and military deals in recent weeks. “The Americans are the ones pulling the strings, and Moreno their puppet dancing to the tune of money,” said Hrafnsson. Separately on Monday, Swedish authorities issued a request for a detention order against Assange. On May 13, Swedish prosecutors reopened a preliminary investigation against Assange, who visited Sweden in 2010, because two Swedish women said they were the victims of sex crimes committed by Assange. While a case of alleged sexual misconduct against Assange in Sweden was dropped in 2017 when the statute of limitations expired, a rape allegation remains. Swedish authorities have had to shelve it because Assange was living at the embassy at the time and there was no prospect of bringing him to Sweden. The statute of limitations in the rape case expires in August next year. Assange has denied wrongdoing, asserting that the allegations were politically motivated and that the sex was consensual. According to the request for a detention order obtained by The Associated Press, Assange is wanted for “intentionally having carried out an intercourse” with an unnamed woman “by unduly exploiting that she was in a helpless state because of sleep.”

u.s .
u.k .
ecuador
julian assange
wikileaks


'Tortilla movement' seeks to restore Mexico's iconic food

Abstract: MEXICO CITY - As Mexico City’s 9 million residents sleep in the predawn darkness, busy hands are already preparing the day’s corn tortillas in the small kitchen of Molino El Pujol, a tortilla shop that is part of a famed chef’s bid to help recover Mexico’s iconic food. As the old tortilla machine roars to life at 5 a.m., a steaming hot mass of lime-treated corn mash is loaded into one end, where it is divided into small portions, flattened and baked. Fresh tortillas come out the other end, letting customers taste a bit of Mexican history that chefs say is being eroded by modern production techniques and modern corns. If the “Pujol” in the shop’s name sounds familiar, it’s because its creator is chef Enrique Olvera, whose Mexico City restaurant, Pujol, is rated among the world’s best restaurants. Why would the star of Mexico’s culinary world open a simple tortilla shop, or tortilleria, which conjures up images here of working class homemakers lining up for their tortillas with cloths that save them a peso on paper wrapping? For the 43-year-old Olvera, it was a logical step, given that he had already started supporting the local farmers who supply his restaurants. His shop is part of a new tortilla movement launched by a handful of chefs, restaurants and organizations to restore and popularize authentic tortillas. And Amado Ramirez, an agronomist who helped Olvera select the native corn varieties in the southern state of Oaxaca, often viewed as Mexico’s culinary cradle, said starting a tortilleria was also an act of nostalgia. “For him, a tortilla shop is about recovering his past,” said Ramirez. “It was stepping back into the time when he would be sent to the street to get tortillas and bring them home for supper.” That memory is part of the childhood of millions of Mexicans. Children would go hand-in-hand with their grandmothers to wait at the local tortilleria for the steaming hot discs of corn. Such scenes are still common in Mexico, but the practice has been eroded by the spread of pre-packaged tortillas, and many chefs say the raw materials are no longer the same. Corn was domesticated — hybridized from the tiny ears of wild teozintle — in Mexico thousands of years ago. Like the French baguette, the list of ingredients for a true tortilla is short: corn, water and lime or calcium carbonate. The corn is slowly cooked or soaked in the lime in a process called “nixtamalization.” Many experts say the quality of modern tortillas suffers from excessive processing and industrialization. The culprits include techniques that bypass the nixtamal process, GMO corn and the addition of preservatives. In big cities many Mexicans have lost sight — or memory — of the taste of authentic tortillas, or the differences between the vast varieties of native corn, which vary in color, consistency and taste. “Mexico took its corn for granted,” says Rafael Mier, director of the Tortilla Foundation, which focuses its efforts on promoting quality tortilla production and informing people of its benefits. Historically, tortillas have been Mexico’s greatest source of energy, though wheat bread has made inroads. “A poor quality tortilla yields poor performance,” said Mier. “Tortillas are a part of Mexico’s culture, national identity, economy and gastronomy.” Other Mexico City “authentic tortilla” shops like Maizajo and Cal y Maiz (Lime and Corn) can appear to be specialty stores catering to Mexico’s upper classes, in part because their distribution is limited to a few shops and restaurants. And they are a drop in the bucket compared to the mass production of giants like Maseca, which uses a dry corn flour tortilla recipe that differs from nixtamal. But tortilla advocates aren’t deterred, even though the costs — and prices — are higher than Maseca, bakery giant Bimbo, or grocery chains that sell packaged tortillas as “loss leaders” to get people inside their stores. The Alliance for Our Tortilla has published a list of 10 commandments for good tortillas, including that they be made by the nixtamal process because cooking with lime breaks down the indigestible outer layer of a corn kernel and releases nutrients. Another factor is the use of locally sourced corn varieties: blue, red or white. Yellow corn in Mexico is generally used for animal feed. Still, many Mexicans find the prices at places like Molino El Pujol prohibitive. Concepcion Reyes, 84, buys her tortillas at a local shop in Mexico City’s San Rafael neighborhood, and says she would never pay the 60 pesos ($3) per kilogram charged at Molino El Pujol. Reyes says she pays 13 pesos per kilogram at her shop, and won’t pay more. Still some people are willing to pay the higher prices — often foreigners who want to taste an “authentic” Mexican tortilla. Molino El Pujol, where the air is scented with the doughy aroma of corn, was opened a year ago in Mexico City’s trendy Condesa district. Customers can order at a wooden counter or sit at benches. The shop offers more than just tortillas, though everything is corn-based. There is a blackboard menu listing a dozen items, including a sweet, thick, corn-dough drink known as atole. Customers can also try the cooked corn tamales with local herbs and beans. But, true to tradition, sometimes the tortillas are just so good that locals will shun the fancy dishes, grab the salt shaker always present at the counter of tortillerias and have a “taco de sal” — a hot tortilla with a dash of salt.


Work underway to pull oil from British tanker sunk by U-boat off New York in WWII

Abstract: SOUTHAMPTON, NEW YORK - Work is underway to extract oil from a British tanker sunk by a German U-boat off Long Island during World War II. A team has been at the site of the tanker, named Coimbra, since April 29 and has pumped more than 62,000 gallons (235,000 liters) of oil since May 11, the Coast Guard said in a news release. Initial dive operations found the tanker was leaking small amounts of oil. The Coimbra was carrying more than 2 million gallons of oil when it was torpedoed in January 1942, killing 36 officers and crew members. It now lies 180 feet (54 meters) beneath the surface of the Atlantic Ocean, about 30 miles (48 km) off Long Island’s south shore. The Coast Guard and the state Department of Environmental Conservation are working with a private company, Resolve Marine, to assess and reduce any pollution threats posed by the leak. German U-boats sank 148 petroleum tankers and countless other ships near the U.S. Gulf and East coasts. Some came harrowingly close to heavily populated areas. The one that torpedoed the Coimbra had ventured just hours earlier along the New York City shoreline, bobbing on the surface near Rockaway Beach, Queens, and in view of Coney Island’s Parachute Jump and Wonder Wheel amusement rides, according to “New York at War,” a book by Steven H. Jaffe. The seemingly peaceful scene was a precursor to destruction. As the torpedo slammed into the Coimbra’s hull, it “sent a blinding sheet of fire boiling up into the night sky,” Jaffe wrote. The government censored information on such attacks and counterattacks, asking that any witnesses keep quiet as a matter of national security. But “with the Coimbra’s oil and life preservers washing up on Long Island beaches, and survivors reaching shore, a news blackout was impossible,” wrote Jaffe.

wwii
u.s .
new york
u.k .
oil
germany
coimbra


Trump plans official launch of 2020 re-election campaign in mid-June, sources say

Abstract: WASHINGTON - U.S. President Donald Trump, facing a potentially difficult path to winning a second term in November 2020, plans an official rollout to his re-election campaign in mid-June, the four-year anniversary of his first run, sources said Monday. Trump is likely to kick off his campaign with a rally in Florida, possibly on June 15, followed in the days afterward with stops in battleground states, said the sources, who are close to the White House and spoke on condition of anonymity. The date will be close to the four-year anniversary of when Trump rode the escalator at Trump Tower down to a crowd of supporters and announced his candidacy on June 16, 2015. The Trump campaign declined to comment. The president has already been raising money for his re-election and holding political rallies for many months. Trump considers Florida to be something of a second home, since he owns the Mar-a-Lago club in Palm Beach and stays there regularly. He won Florida in 2016. But as is the case for Trump in many battleground states, his victory is not assured there in 2020 and he will likely face a fight to win it again. Since Trump took over as president in early 2017, the U.S. economy has soared with low unemployment and strong growth. Typically presidents with an economy this vibrant would be strong bets for re-election. But Trump’s polarizing presidency has given hope to a host of Democratic contenders that he can be denied a second term. Democratic front-runner Joe Biden, who was vice president to President Barack Obama, has sounded a unifying theme to try to rally Americans behind his candidacy. In second place in the Democratic polls is democratic socialist Sen. Bernie Sanders. Trump has dubbed Biden “Sleepy Joe” to try to undermine him, in much the same way as he gave Republican contender Jeb Bush the nickname, “low-energy Jeb” in 2016. Trump tweeted on Monday that China, locked in difficult trade talks with Trump, would like Biden as president. “Looks like Bernie Sanders is history. Sleepy Joe Biden is pulling ahead and think about it, I’m only here because of Sleepy Joe and the man who took him off the 1 percent trash heap, President O! China wants Sleepy Joe BADLY!” he wrote. Trump is expected to stress the strong economy in his re-election effort, but he told the Fox News Channel’s “The Next Revolution with Steve Hilton” last week that the economy alone will bore his supporters at his rallies. “If I stood there and talked about the economy for that long a period — let’s say, the economy’s great, unemployment’s low, we’re doing wonderful … they’d start falling asleep,” he said.

u.s .
donald trump
2020 u.s. presidential election


Palestinians to snub U.S.-led economic confab seen as prelude to Trump peace plan

Abstract: RAMALLAH, WEST BANK - Palestinians will stay away from a U.S.-led conference in Bahrain next month that the Trump administration has cast as an overture to its own plan for peace between them and Israel, a Palestinian cabinet minister said on Monday. Washington announced the conference on Sunday, describing it as an opportunity to drum up international investment for the Israeli-occupied West Bank and the Gaza Strip. The Palestinians, who have boycotted the Trump administration since it recogniaed Jerusalem as Israel’s capital in December 2017, have shown little interest in discussing a plan on which they had no input and that they anticipate will fall far short of their core demands. Palestinian Prime Minister Mohammad Shtayyeh said on Monday that his government had not been consulted on the June 25-26 gathering in Manama. After the Cabinet met, Ahhmed Majdalani, the social development minister and a member of the Palestine Liberation Organization executive committee, said: “There will be no Palestinian participation in the Manama workshop. “Any Palestinian who would take part would be nothing but a collaborator for the Americans and Israel,” he said. Shtayyeh reiterated Palestinians’ aspirations for a two-state peace agreement with Israel entailing control of the occupied West Bank and Gaza — currently run by the Islamist group Hamas — as well as East Jerusalem as their future capital. Internationally mediated talks to that end have been stalemated for years. Israel calls Jerusalem its indivisible capital and has said it might declare sovereignty in its West Bank settlements, which are deemed illegal by the United Nations and most foreign governments. U.S. officials have predicted the Manama event will include representatives and business executives from Europe, the Middle East and Asia, as well as some finance ministers. The economic component discussed will constitute an announcement on the first part of the Trump peace plan, U.S. officials have said. But Bashar Masri, a Palestinian businessman and the founder of Rawabi, the first Palestinian planned city in the West Bank, said he had turned down an invitation to speak at the conference. “We will not engage in any event outside the Palestinian national consensus,” Masri wrote on social media. “The idea of an economic peace is an old one now being asked in a different way, and just as our people have rejected it in the past, we reject it now.” Israel’s finance minister, Moshe Kahlon, said on Sunday he had yet to receive any invitation to the Bahrain meeting. On Monday, Israeli Deputy Foreign Minister Tzipi Hotovely said Israel was open to attending. “We have no problem sending representatives to Bahrain, but the problem, as always, is that the Palestinian side is not genuinely interested in economic benefits,” said Hotovely, a member of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s right-wing Likud party. The Trump administration has said its still-secret peace plan would require compromise by both sides. Since being boycotted by the Palestinians, it has cut back on U.S. aid for them, contributing to economic hardship in the West Bank and Gaza. Gaza’s ruling Hamas movement, shunned in the West for its hostility to Israel and locked in a power struggle with Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas’s secular Fatah party, also condemned the Bahrain conference.

u.s .
israel
middle east
palestinians
hamas
mahmoud abbas
donald trump
mohammad shtayyeh


Milkshakes become weapon of choice against Brexit-backing populist right

Abstract: LONDON - The lowly milkshake has turned into an unlikely weapon of choice for Britons determined to make a splashy statement against the rise of the Brexit-backing populist right. Former U.K. Independence Party (UKIP) leader Nigel Farage became the latest political figure Monday to be doused with the sticky concoction while campaigning for his new Brexit Party in this week’s European Parliament election. Images shared on social media showed a grim-faced Farage — his black suit covered from shoulder to toe — being led away by a bodyguard during a campaign stop in the northern city of Newcastle. The suspected culprit told the Press Association it was a £5.25 ($6.70) banana and salted caramel shake he bought at the local Five Guys hamburger chain store. Paul Crowther, who was detained in handcuffs at the scene, said he threw the shake to protest Farage’s “bile and racism.” “I didn’t know he was in town. I thought this is my only chance,” the 32-year-old was quoted as saying before being detained by the police. He said he had been looking forward to the milkshake, “but I think it went on a better purpose.” First-time offenders in such cases usually pay a small fine. In a tweet, Farage blamed the incident on EU supporters who “have become radicalized, to the extent that normal campaigning is becoming impossible.” The European Parliament election campaign has turned into a test of Britons’ support for Brexit three years after they first narrowly voted to leave the bloc. Farage’s Brexit Party is leading the polls on its promise to get Britain out quickly and by any means. The Remain camp’s milkshake resistance meanwhile has also targeted a far-right leader who is best known by his online alias Tommy Robinson — an adviser to UKIP who once headed the now-banned English Defense League. A clip that went viral this month showed a young man of Asian descent splashing Robinson in the face with a McDonald’s drink in response to something the far-right leader said. Robinson fought back by landing a few punches at the man before being restrained. Meanwhile, UKIP European Parliament candidate Carl Benjamin — known by his social media pseudonym Sargon of Akkad — has been “milkshaked” at least four times this month. A defiant Benjamin showed up to one of his events this week with a McDonald’s cup in his hand. The entire mess prompted McDonald’s to temporarily halt milkshake sales near the site of a campaign event Farage held last week. “We will not be selling milkshakes or ice cream tonight,” a sign taped to the door of the fast food chain’s central Edinburgh restaurant said. “This is due to a police request given recent events.” That decision elicited a controversial comeback from the U.S. chain’s eternal rival Burger King. “Dear people of Scotland,” the @BurgerKingUK account wrote on Saturday. “We’re selling milkshakes all weekend. Have fun. Love BK.” It signed the post with the #justsaying hashtag. A flurry of angry comments on Twitter prompted the account to later add: “We’d never endorse violence — or wasting our delicious milkshakes!” A spokesman for Theresa May said on a more sombre note that the prime minister “has been clear that politicians should be able to go about their work and campaign without harassment, intimidation, or abuse.”

eu
u.k .
protests
ukip
nigel farage
brexit
theresa may


Despite Venezuela's upheaval, Maduro touts an anniversary since disputed polls

Abstract: CARACAS - Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro on Monday celebrated the anniversary of his disputed re-election amid a growing humanitarian crisis and political upheaval. Maduro tweeted that the May 20, 2018, election, was a “victory” for Venezuelans, though the opposition and many countries have derided it as unfair. In a speech at a government-organized rally, Maduro said he is prepared to face the opposition in legislative elections, though he has made similar challenges in the past while dismissing allegations that his re-election was fixed. He referred to a recent effort by Norway to mediate between Venezuela’s opposing factions and said he favored dialogue, though critics accuse him of using past negotiations to play for time. “Why don’t they respond when I make this proposal?” Maduro said of his election offer to the opposition, which is demanding that he step down to make way for a transitional government before elections can be held. Meanwhile, members of a loyalist assembly assigned by Maduro to write a new constitution decided to extend their work until the end of 2020. The assembly rivals the opposition-controlled congress, headed by Juan Guaido, that says Maduro has steered Venezuela toward authoritarian rule and ruined the economy. The United States has imposed sanctions on Venezuela in a bid to unseat Maduro, compounding the problems of the country’s deteriorating oil industry. Maduro says Guaido is a pawn in a U.S. coup plot. Also Monday, Carlos Vecchio, a government opponent who the U.S. recognizes as Venezuela’s ambassador, met with Pentagon officials at the request of Guaido. The U.S. has insisted “all options” are on the table for dealing with Venezuela’s crisis and Guaido in recent weeks has publicly speculated about the idea of requesting foreign military assistance to help rid Venezuela of Maduro. Even so, the U.S. says it is focusing on diplomatic and economic pressure on Maduro, and there are no indications of any military buildup. Maduro’s re-election to a second six-year term lies at the heart of Venezuela’s political standoff, in which Guaido has sought unsuccessfully to get the military command to support him. The opposition leader’s failed call for a military uprising on April 30 was followed by deadly clashes between police and protesters. Ahead of Maduro’s 2018 re-election, the main opposition coalition refused to field a candidate, saying there was no possibility of a fair vote. The government had previously stacked the electoral council and judiciary with its supporters, and the opposition’s most combative leaders were banned from participating, imprisoned or exiled.

u.s .
venezuela
nicolas maduro
juan guaido


U.S. education secretary DeVos used personal emails for work and didn't save data properly, probe says

Abstract: WASHINGTON - Education Secretary Betsy DeVos has sometimes used her personal email accounts for government business and has not always properly saved the messages, according to an internal investigation released Monday. The agency’s Office of Inspector General, which was investigating at the request of House Democrats, said it searched the department’s email system and found a “limited” number of messages to or from DeVos’ personal accounts. In total, it said there were “fewer than 100” emails linked to four personal accounts. Most of the emails were from the first six months of 2017, soon after DeVos took office, and most were from a single person, the inquiry found. The person, who was not identified in the report, was writing to recommend candidates for agency jobs. Other emails were from people who congratulated DeVos on her confirmation or offered other job advice. In total, investigators said they identified six emails sent by DeVos on private accounts, including five that involved official agency business. The inquiry concluded there was no evidence of “active or extensive” use of DeVos’ personal accounts. The secretary’s office told investigators it was taking “additional steps to identify and preserve” emails in her personal accounts. A department spokeswoman declined to comment for this story. Under department rules, employees are forbidden from using personal emails for government business except in rare circumstances when their work accounts are unavailable. In those cases, employees are required to forward the messages to their work accounts within 20 days. But in DeVos’ case, the report said, that never happened. “We did not identify any instances where the secretary forwarded emails from her personal accounts to her department email accounts,” the report said. It added that “the secretary’s emails related to government business were not always being properly preserved.” The inspector general’s office urged the department to improve its training on the issue. It said there was no other evidence of irregularities around the use of personal emails. During his 2016 campaign, President Donald Trump repeatedly attacked Democratic rival Hillary Clinton over findings that she used a private email server for work while she was secretary of state. At rallies, Trump often called for her prosecution and led supporters in chants of “lock her up!” The Education Department review was requested in October 2017 by Rep. Rosa DeLauro, D-Conn. The inspector general’s office said it was unable to begin work until “well into 2018” because of staffing challenges.

u.s .
hillary clinton
emails
donald trump
betsy devos


With summer of travel, Trump looks to wrap himself in trappings of presidency as 2020 campaign gears up

Abstract: WASHINGTON - Four days in Tokyo. Then it’s off to see Queen Elizabeth before a jaunt to Normandy, France, and perhaps time in Ireland. A return trip to Japan? Why not. And throw in Seoul. Then it’s back to France for President Donald Trump for a summit with world leaders. The homebody president is preparing for a jet-setting summer of travel as he heads into 2020, with an itinerary that will see Air Force One fly more than 36,000 miles (58,000 km) — almost 1.5 times the earth’s circumference — not counting helicopter trips and motorcades. The flurry of international travel is a marked change of pace for a president who likes to sleep in his own bed and rarely strays far from the White House unless it’s to his own properties. The packed calendar is the product of both a concerted attempt by Trump to wrap himself in the trappings of the presidency heading into re-election season and a fluke of the global summit calendar. It will play out as an array of foreign challenges, from Venezuela to North Korea and Iran, confronts a president who ran on an isolationist “America First” platform. “When things are hot in Washington, there’s an appeal to going abroad, being diplomatic, meeting with overseas leaders” and redirecting media attention, said Julian Zelizer, a history professor at Princeton University. He said White Houses often hope that the images beamed home from such trips will help presidents look more “presidential.” A stream of television footage of Trump with foreign leaders “makes him look like he is the one directing the country, a contrast with the Democrats,” Zelizer said. Trump is set to depart Friday for a four-day state visit to Japan, where he will be the first world leader to meet with the country’s new emperor. He plans to hold a joint news conference with Prime Minster Shinzo Abe and present a trophy at a sumo wrestling tournament. Five days after he gets home, Trump is off for a state visit in the United Kingdom, where he’ll mingle with the royal family and mark the 75th anniversary of D-Day with ceremonies in Portsmouth, England and Normandy. He had been expected to return to Ireland, where he owns a golf course, but that stop was in question because of Prime Minister Leo Varadkar’s concerns about meeting with the president at a Trump property rather than more neutral territory, according to Irish media. Deputy Prime Minister Simon Coveney said reports of the spat were “a total exaggeration” and he told Irish broadcaster RTE that details of the visit were still being finalized. The end of June will see Trump in Japan a second time. Meetings with Chinese President Xi Jinping and Russian President Vladimir Putin are planned on the sidelines of the Group of 20 summit in Osaka, followed by consultations in Seoul with South Korean President Moon Jae-in on the state of North Korean nuclear negotiations. Trump returns to France in late August for a Group of Seven summit in the seaside town of Biarritz on the Basque Country coast. Trump is likely to be gone during at least one day of the inaugural Democratic presidential debates, scheduled to be held on back-to-back nights in late June owing to the sizable field of would-be Trump challengers. While his rivals are clamoring for the spotlight on stage, Trump will be abroad, welcomed by red carpets, honored with state dinners and engaging in policy discussions with presidents and prime ministers. It’s a split screen his campaign is eagerly awaiting. “As they squabble in a field of two dozen socialists, President Trump is orchestrating the hottest economy on record, rectifying our trade relations across the globe, meeting with world leaders and pushing America First foreign policy,” said campaign spokeswoman Kayleigh McEnany. “All of this while rallying with his supporters across the country. I’d say to the 2020 Democrats, good luck keeping up.” The trips also come as foreign policy is increasingly dominating Trump’s agenda. His administration is promoting a change of government in Venezuela, Trump’s friend Kim Jong Un is firing off missiles in North Korea, and tensions are growing between the U.S. and Iran. The U.S. is in an escalating trade war with China, with negotiations to find a solution at their lowest point in months. While Trump’s team believes the pageantry of global affairs offers an advantage to the incumbent, it also brings pitfalls. Trump has at times flouted diplomatic protocol and called into question the U.S. commitment to its alliances like no recent leader. That’s a frequent line of attack from Democrats such as former Vice President Joe Biden, who has made returning to an internationalist foreign policy a centerpiece of his campaign. Already, surveys show global affairs threaten to be a significant political liability for Trump heading into his 2020 re-election bid. Overall, 63 percent of Americans disapproved of Trump’s job handling foreign policy in a January poll conducted by The Associated Press-NORC Center for Public Affairs Research. Like other issues, the partisan divide was overwhelming: 76 percent of Republicans approved, while just 8 percent of Democrats said the same. After a pair of whirlwind tours in 2017, Trump has lagged his predecessors in overseas travel and has skipped several world gatherings typically attended by American presidents, sending Vice President Mike Pence instead. Aides often note that Trump agrees to trips ahead of time then complains to them about the pace of travel once they’re under way. Nonetheless, Trump, like other presidents, has often tried to deploy the majesty of presidential travel for political gain, using Air Force One as a backdrop for campaign rallies and playing footage of his meetings with world leaders in tweeted videos. But Ari Fleischer, White House press secretary under President George W. Bush, said he didn’t think the visuals mattered much for Trump. “I don’t think it makes a lick of difference,” he said. While past presidents may have been keen to show off their foreign policy know-how, forge alliances and convey strength, Fleischer said “this cycle is not like that” because Trump’s appeal is driven so much by his personality. Zelizer agreed, noting the unusual stability of Trump’s approval and disapproval ratings. For Trump haters, those emotions “will overshadow any handshakes,” he said, while “for those who love him, I don’t think that’s why.”

shinzo abe
osaka
g20
donald trump
2020 u.s. presidential election


Joe Biden visits Tennessee and vows to 'restore' America's soul

Abstract: NASHVILLE, TENNESSEE - Former Vice President Joe Biden says eight years of a Donald Trump presidency will “fundamentally” change the character of the country. Biden made the remarks Monday in Nashville during a campaign fundraising stop attended by the state’s top Democrats. Biden says his aim is to restore the soul of the country and he believes that people are more united on major issues than divided. The Democratic presidential hopeful largely ignored his long list of political opponents, but paused briefly to describe the group as “great” while urging the election must result in a change in the political system. Biden is one of the first Democratic presidential contenders to swing through Republican-dominant Tennessee. Another, U.S. Sen. Elizabeth Warren, made a stop in March.

u.s .
joe biden
democrats
tennessee
donald trump
2020 u.s. presidential election


U.N. alleges possible war crime as Libya gunmen cut water pipeline to besieged Tripoli

Abstract: TRIPOLI - Gunmen have cut off the main water pipeline to Libya’s besieged capital, Tripoli, spelling more misery for residents already reeling from weeks of fighting. The United Nations said the water blockage was a possible war crime as Libya’s internationally recognized government accused forces loyal to Khalifa Hifter, which have been trying to capture Tripoli, of being behind the blockage. The group on Sunday raided a station of the Great Man-Made River Project, a pipe network supplying ground water from the Sahara, the company said. The gunmen forced employees to turn off the pipes at the installation 400 km (250 miles) south of Tripoli. The eastern forces of Hifter’s Libya National Army (LNA) launched an assault on Tripoli in early April and are bogged down in southern suburbs by fighters loyal to the U.N.-backed government of Prime Minister Fayez al-Serraj. In past attacks on the pipeline, which was one of former dictator Muammar Gadhafi’s few development projects, it has taken up to two days for households to notice water shortages in the coastal city of 2.5 million people. The Tripoli government blamed a group that also cut the water supplies in 2017, saying its commander, Khalifa Ehnaish, belonged to Haftar’s forces. The LNA denied that. Ehnaish could not be reached. “Considering this was a closure of the valves in an LNA-controlled area, the complicity of Ehnaish with the LNA in orchestrating this cannot be discounted,” said Emad Badi, a non-resident scholar with the Middle East Institute. Fighting in the battle for Tripoli has killed at least 510 people, forced 75,000 out of their homes, trapped thousands of migrants in detention centers, and flattened some southern suburbs. It has also forced the closure of schools, split families on different sides of the front line, and brought power-cuts. The conflict is one of the most serious flare-ups in years of chaos since the 2011 toppling of Gadhafi, and has sharpened Gulf divisions over Libya.

conflict
u.n .
libya
war crimes
tripoli
khalifa hifter


Polish sextuplets doing well as mom visits her babies

Abstract: WARSAW - A 29-year-old Polish mother who gave birth to sextuplets has been able to leave her hospital bed and visit her babies in another ward, where the infants are said to be doing fine, doctors said Tuesday. The four girls and two boys were born prematurely Monday in the 29th week of pregnancy by cesarean section in Krakow, southern Poland. Dr. Ryszard Lauterbach at the University Hospital said the babies were “born in a condition surprisingly good for sextuplets,” but their respiratory, nervous and digestive systems are immature and require medical care. The sextuplets were a surprise to the family — their mother, Klaudia Marzec, said on TVN24 the family was expecting five babies, not six. “We have made some logistical plans at home for five, but now they will need to be changed,” Marzec said. “Now we just want them to leave hospital in the best condition possible.” They were conceived naturally, the hospital said. The babies, whose individual birth weights ranged from 890 grams (1.96 pounds) to 1,300 grams (2.86 pounds), are in incubators. Doctors say the little ones can breathe on their own but will likely remain in hospital for around three months. Hospital director Marcin Jedrychowski called the operation an “extremely difficult” one that involved up to 40 doctors and medical personnel. The surprise sixth girl had a moment of warm physical contact with her mother before a sixth incubator arrived for her, according to Lauterbach. The boys’ names are Filip and Tymon and the girls are Zosia, Kaja, Nela and Malwina. Their father, Szymon Marzec, said their arrival was a “great joy, but we also have plenty of concerns.” “We are happy that the kids are in the best hands possible, and all that we can give them now is our love and presence near them.”


U.S. aircraft carrier seen as barometer of tensions with Iran

Abstract: DUBAI, UNITED ARAB EMIRATES - Ordered by the White House to the Persian Gulf, the USS Abraham Lincoln aircraft carrier has become a 100,000-ton barometer of the tensions between Iran and the U.S. So far, the Lincoln and its accompanying ships have yet to enter the gulf through the Strait of Hormuz. It has been filmed by the U.S. Navy on Friday carrying out exercises with other American warships in the Arabian Sea, which is over 1,000 km (620 miles) away. While U.S. military officials aren’t publicly explaining the delay, it may be to calm nerves before the ships pass through the strait, a narrow waterway where Iran often shadows American vessels. In December, about 30 Iranian Revolutionary Guard vessels trailed the USS John C. Stennis aircraft carrier and its strike group through the strait as Associated Press journalists on board watched. One small vessel launched what appeared to be a commercial-grade drone to film the U.S. ships. Other transits have seen the Iranians fire rockets away from American warships or test-fire their machine guns. The Guard’s small fast boats often cut in front of the massive carriers, running dangerously close to running into them. The Guard has perfected “swarm attacks” on carriers, with bomb-carrying drones and sea-to-sea and surface-to-sea missiles in its arsenal. Iran has increasingly threatened to close the strait if it is unable to sell its own crude oil to the global market as a result of the U.S. pressure campaign following Washington’s withdrawal a year ago from the 2015 nuclear deal between Tehran and world powers. Any transit through the strait also carries the risk of a catastrophic mistake by either side spinning out of control. In 1988, a U.S. warship accidentally shot down an Iranian commercial airliner, killing all 290 on board.

u.s .
iran
donald trump
persian gulf
uss abraham lincoln


Australia's climate wars set to heat up after coal champion Scott Morrison clinches win

Abstract: CANBERRA - Prime Minister Scott Morrison’s surprise victory in Australia’s election was a win for the coal industry and ensures the debate about tackling climate change will continue to polarize the nation. Rather than backing the opposition Labor Party’s plans for sweeping cuts to greenhouse gas emissions, voters fell in behind a conservative government that has refused to legislate its Paris Agreement commitments. Morrison once brandished a lump of coal in parliament as a mark of his support for the industry, and in focusing his energy policy on lowering electricity prices has derided the reliability of wind and solar. “The battle to combat climate change in Australia has suffered a major setback,” said Frank Jotzo, an academic in climate economics and policy at the Australian National University. “Australia could hugely benefit from the worldwide shift from fossil fuels to renewables. My colleagues around the world are shaking their heads in disbelief about the political system’s inability to translate those advantages into reality.” Since coming to power in 2013, the Liberal-National coalition has largely rejected market-driven measures to tackle climate change. It scrapped the carbon price mechanism introduced by the previous Labor government and refused to legislate any measures to penalize greenhouse-gas polluters. As treasurer in 2017, Morrison taunted rival Labor lawmakers in parliament with a lump of coal, saying they were “scared” of the industry and its implications for their policy platform of reducing emissions. The jibe proved prescient. Adani Power Ltd.’s plan to develop a coal mine in Queensland state was hugely divisive during the election campaign and ultimately helped derail Labor leader Bill Shorten’s bid for office. He equivocated on his support for the mine, unable to balance the need to create blue-collar jobs with his environmental pledges. In contrast, Morrison’s support for the project resonated with voters and the coalition picked up crucial seats in the state. The Adani project, first proposed in 2010 and still lacking final environmental approvals from the Queensland state government, would open up a new coal-mining region that could see Australian coal exports double. The fuel generates the bulk of Australia’s power and contributes 60 billion Australian ($41 billion) a year in export income. Despite Australia having huge coal resources, the renewables industry has still found a niche. Industries such as wind, solar and hydro accounted for about 19 percent of Australia’s power generation in 2018, up from less than 10 percent a decade ago. Still, there’s concern the transition to renewables may slow or stall under Morrison. The industry had been preparing for a Labor government, which was targeting a 45 percent cut in emissions from 2005 levels by 2030 and pledged an additional A$10 billion over five years to support large-scale renewable generation and storage projects. “That’s not now going to happen,” said Stephen Panizza, head of renewable energy at Federation Asset Management in Sydney. “Do we get to the same place anyway? Yes, we do, perhaps just over a longer period of time.” While the coalition does support some renewable energy projects, such as a massive upgrade to the nation’s largest hydro-electric project, it’s also weighing up whether to use taxpayer dollars to subsidize a new coal-fired plant and to keep aging ones operating. That’s despite a Lowy Institute poll released in July showing 59 percent of Australians believe global warming is a serious problem that needs to be combated even if it involves significant costs. Morrison has said Australia will meet its Paris Agreement target to reduce carbon emissions by at least 26 percent from 2005 levels by 2030 “at a canter,” but has not enshrined the target in legislation. He’s pledged A$2 billion for a new Climate Solutions Fund and promised to plant 1 billion trees by 2050. The response to Morrison’s victory is mixed. The Australian Conservation Foundation condemned the lack of “substantive climate-change policies” proposed by the government and called for the Adani mine to be blocked. Mining industry lobbyists welcomed Morrison’s win, saying it will boost regional jobs. “There is now a clear mandate for resources projects that have lawful approvals to proceed,” including the Adani mine, the Minerals Council of Australia said. Still, businesses operating in Australia need policy certainty on issues including energy and climate change, BHP Group Chief Financial Officer Peter Beaven said Monday on the sidelines of a Melbourne conference. A deep ideological divide over climate policy has fractured the Liberal Party over the years and contributed to former Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull being ousted by his own lawmakers in August. While Morrison’s victory gives him a newfound authority to set policy direction, it remains unclear whether he will steer a more moderate line and do more to support renewables. Labor lawmakers vying for the party’s leadership after Shorten announced he would step down are indicating climate change will remain at the heart of future battles to win office.

australia
elections
coal
emissions
climate change
scott morrison


Hong Kong leader presses on with extradition bill undeterred by critics

Abstract: HONG KONG - Hong Kong’s leader said Tuesday that her administration was determined to push through an extradition bill that could see individuals sent back to mainland China for trial, despite mounting opposition locally and internationally. The proposed legislation has stoked mass protests in the former British colony, which was promised a high degree of autonomy under a “one country, two systems” formula when it returned to Chinese rule in 1997. On Monday, the government said it would bypass legislative procedure to expedite the passage of amendments to the Fugitive Offenders Ordinance, which the U.S. State Department last week described as threatening the rule of law in Hong Kong. Opponents had disrupted a succession of legislative sessions meant to scrutinize the bill, with brawls breaking out in the legislative council. “Valuable time for deliberation has been lost,” Hong Kong’s Chief Executive Carrie Lam told reporters. “The most serious issue is that we couldn’t see a way forward, how to break this deadlock other than to force me to scrap this bill, but this is unrealistic,” she told reporters. She said the bill would now be sent directly to the full legislature June 12 for a second reading, to try to pass it before the legislature’s summer recess. If the bill is passed, Hong Kong would allow, for the first time, ad hoc extradition requests to countries with no existing extradition treaties, including places like Taiwan, and crucially, mainland China. Taiwan has said the bill would extend China’s reach into Hong Kong, putting at risk any Taiwanese who pass through the city. The Hong Kong government insists the extradition law has safeguards to protect human rights, including the need for all extradition requests to be approved by a local court. During the past week, Beijing has hardened its stance, with senior officials saying the law was urgently needed, though Lam said the initial push for the law had come from her government. Criticism has also poured in from the business, legal, media and diplomatic communities in Hong Kong. More large protests are expected, including on June 4, when the city hosts an annual candlelight vigil for victims of a bloody crackdown on the pro-democracy movement in and around Beijing’s Tiananmen Square in 1989. Lam Cheuk-ting, an opposition Democratic Party lawmaker, criticized the government’s move to fast-track the “evil law.” Lawmakers may still be able to propose amendments to the bill, but critics say the government can choose not to adopt them, given backing from a pro-Beijing majority in the legislature. Pro-democracy media magnate Jimmy Lai, who runs Hong Kong’s tabloid Apple Daily newspaper, said in a talk at the Hong Kong Foreign Correspondents’ Club that the law’s implications were grave. “In one swoop it finishes Hong Kong. It’s a massacre of our freedom, of our legal system, of the free press. Everything,” Lai said.

china
hong kong
taiwan
rights
extradition bill


Official count shows Widodo won Indonesian election, but challenger Subianto disputes results

Abstract: JAKARTA - The official count from last month’s Indonesian presidential election shows President Joko Widodo won 55.5 percent of the vote, the Election Commission said Tuesday, securing him a second term. The formal result from the April 17 election was almost the same as the preliminary “quick count” results drawn from a sample of polling stations on election day. Widodo’s challenger for a second time, former Gen. Prabowo Subianto, has refused to accept defeat and declared himself the winner last month. Thousands of police and soldiers are on high alert in the capital, Jakarta, anticipating protests from Subianto’s supporters. Subianto has alleged massive election fraud in the world’s third-largest democracy but hasn’t provided any credible evidence. Votes are counted publicly and the commission posts the tabulation form from each polling station on its website, allowing for independent verification. Counting was completed just before midnight Monday and the Election Commission announced the results early Tuesday before official witnesses from both campaigns. “We reject the results of the presidential election,” said Azis Subekti, one of the witnesses for Subianto. “This refusal is a moral responsibility for us to not give up the fight against injustice, fraud, arbitrariness, lies, and any actions that will harm democracy.” Under Indonesia’s election law, Subianto can dispute the results at the Constitutional Court. He and members of his campaign team have said they will mobilize “people power” for days of street protests rather than appeal to the court because they don’t believe it will provide justice. In a video released after results were announced, Subianto again refused to concede defeat but called on supporters to refrain from violence. Police this month have arrested 31 Islamic militants they say planned to set off bombs during expected street protests against the election result.

indonesia
elections
joko widodo
prabowo subianto


'Mother of Satan' bombs show foreign hand in Sri Lanka bombings, investigators say

Abstract: COLOMBO - One month after the Sri Lanka suicide attacks that killed more than 250 people, investigators have said the bombers used “Mother of Satan” explosives favored by the Islamic State group that are a new sign of foreign involvement. Detectives said the backpack bombs used in the April 21 attacks on three churches and three hotels were manufactured by local jihadis with Islamic State expertise. They named the explosive as triacetone triperoxide, or TATP, an unstable but easily made mixture favored by Islamic State militants who call it “Mother of Satan.” It was also used in the 2015 attacks in Paris, by a suicide bomber who hit the Manchester Arena in England in 2017 and attacks on churches in Indonesia one year ago. The Islamic State group has claimed the Sri Lankan bombers operated as part of its franchise. But Sri Lankan and international investigators are anxious to know just how much outside help went into the attacks that left 258 dead and 500 injured. “The group had easy access to chemicals and fertiliser to get the raw materials to make TATP,” an official involved in the investigation said. Sri Lankan detectives say the National Thowheeth Jama’ath (NTJ), local militants blamed for the attacks, must have had foreign help to assemble the bombs. “They would have had a face-to-face meeting to transfer this technology. This is not something you can do by watching a YouTube video,” said the official, speaking on condition of anonymity. Investigators had initially believed that C4 explosives — a favored weapon of Tamil Tiger rebels — were used, but forensic tests found TATP, which causes more burning than C4. Police have also confirmed that 100 kilograms (220 pounds) of explosives found in January in the island’s northwest was TATP. They are checking the travel records of the suicide bombers as well as foreign suspects to see when and where bomb-making lessons could have been staged. “It looks like they used a cocktail of TATP and gelignite and some chemicals in the Easter attacks. They were short of the 100 kilos of raw TATP that were seized in January,” said the investigator. Sri Lankan security forces have staged a series of raids since the bombings. Police spokesman Ruwan Gunasekera said Sunday that 89 suspects are in custody. Army chief Mahesh Senanayake said last week that at least two suspects have been arrested in Qatar and Saudi Arabia, underscoring the international link. On April 26, six militants, three widows of the suicide bombers and six of their children were killed at an NTJ safe house near the eastern coastal town of Kalmunai. Police found large quantities of chemicals and fertilizer there that was probably meant to make bombs, authorities said. The government has admitted that Indian warnings of the looming attacks in early April were ignored. But President Maithripala Sirisena has said eight countries are helping the investigation. A U.S. FBI team is in Sri Lanka and Britain, Australia and India have provided forensic and technical support. China offered a fleet of vehicles to bolster the mobility of the security forces tracking down militants. The Sri Lankan who led the attacks, Zahran Hashim, was known to have traveled to India in the months before he became one of the suicide bombers. Moderate Muslims had warned authorities about the radical cleric who first set off alarm bells in 2017 when he threatened non-Muslims. He was one of two bombers who killed dozens of victims at Colombo’s Shangri-La hotel on April 21. Army chief Senanayake said Hashim had traveled to Tamil Nadu state in southern India and been in contact with Islamists there. Hashim, one of seven bombers who staged the attacks, also appeared in an Islamic State group video that claimed responsibility for the attacks. Another bomber who was meant to have hit a fourth hotel, has been named as Abdul Latheef Jameel who studied aviation engineering in Britain and Australia. Authorities in the two countries are investigating whether he was radicalized while abroad. Jameel blew himself up when confronted at a hideout after the attacks.

terrorism
sri lanka
islamic state
police
sri lanka attacks


Hong Kong transport authorities approve LGBT ad after backlash over ban

Abstract: HONG KONG - A Cathay Pacific advertisement featuring two men holding hands can now be displayed across Hong Kong’s transport network, after its reported ban sparked a public outcry. The South China Morning Post reported Monday that the city’s airport and MTR train operator had barred the gay-friendly ad from its crowded terminals, citing sources. The news emerged just after Taiwan legalized same-sex marriage in a landmark first for Asia, placing the island at the vanguard of the region’s burgeoning gay rights movement. By contrast, campaigners have criticized semi-autonomous Hong Kong for lagging behind on equality issues. Neither Cathay Pacific nor the transport authorities directly confirmed or denied the ban, which triggered a massive backlash. LGBT group Big Love Alliance launched a campaign on Monday encouraging Hong Kongers to share on social media photos of themselves holding hands with their same-sex partners or friends at the airport or the MTR. As public pressure mounted, airport authorities said on Tuesday the advert now had their full blessing. The ad is deemed “not in infringement of the Airport Authority’s established guidelines on advertisements displayed in the terminal,” a spokesperson said in a statement. JCDecaux, an agency that handles advertising bookings for the MTR Corporation, also appeared to have reversed course. “We have advised … that the design can be posted at MTR stations,” a JCDecaux spokeswoman in Hong Kong said. Ray Chan, Hong Kong’s first openly gay lawmaker, welcomed the move saying public and media pressure have made transport officials and their advertising agencies “right their wrong.” The city airport is operated by a Hong Kong government body, while the MTR Corporation is majority-owned by the government. Hong Kong does not recognize same-sex marriage or civil unions and only decriminalized homosexuality in 1991. But a British lesbian won the right to live and work in Hong Kong with her partner in a landmark ruling last year hailed by rights groups. A separate case has been lodged by two Hong Kong men directly challenging the same-sex marriage ban as unconstitutional.


North Korean females tell of slavery and gang rape in China cybersex dens

Abstract: LONDON - Tens of thousands of North Korean women and girls — some as young as 9 — are being trafficked into sexual slavery in China as they try to flee poverty and oppression in their homeland, experts on the reclusive state said Monday. The sexual exploitation of North Koreans generates at least $105 million in annual profits for the Chinese underworld, according to a report by the nonprofit Korea Future Initiative, which includes harrowing accounts from trafficked women. “Victims are prostituted for as little as 30 Chinese yuan ($4.30), sold as wives for just 1,000 yuan, and trafficked into cybersex dens for exploitation by a global online audience,” the report’s author, Yoon Hee-soon, said. “Many are sold more than once and are forced into at least one form of sexual slavery within a year of leaving their homeland.” An estimated 60 percent of North Korean girls and women in China are trafficked into the sex trade, according to the report, launched at an event held at the British Parliament. Nearly half are pressed into prostitution, about a third sold into marriage and most others pushed into cybersex, researchers said. No one at the Chinese Embassy in London was immediately available for comment. Gathering information in North Korea is notoriously difficult. Many North Koreans are enslaved in brothels in districts in northeast China with large migrant worker populations, the report said. Trafficking survivors said prostitutes further south, in Shanghai, were branded with tattoos such as lions and butterflies to show ownership and deter abductions by rivals. Interviewees told of women dying from sexually transmitted diseases and abuse. Girls and women enslaved in cybersex dens are usually aged between 12 and 29 but are sometimes younger, the report said. They are forced to perform sex acts or sexually assaulted in front of webcams. A live-stream featuring a young girl can cost $110, researchers said, adding that many subscribers appeared to be South Korean. One woman, referred to as Ms. Choi, told how she was taken to an apartment where she was shocked to see pre-pubescent girls. “(There) was a bed in front of a table with a computer and webcam. Four men . . . gang raped me. When the third man began raping me (I) was bleeding . . . I cannot remember any more.” The report said women forced into marriage were mostly sold in rural areas for 1,000 to 50,000 yuan, and were raped and abused by their husbands. Estimates of the number of North Koreans in China vary between 50,000 and 200,000. China’s policy of detaining and repatriating North Koreans forces them to live in the shadows, placing them at high risk of exploitation, Yoon said. Some are sold by policemen after arrest, while others are duped by traffickers offering to get them to countries where they can claim asylum, the report said. Abductions are also common. Researchers said some trafficking networks stretched into North Korea where “sub-brokers” scour markets, villages and transport hubs for destitute-looking girls to fulfill orders from Chinese pimps and madams. David Alton, co-chairman of Britain’s All-Party Parliamentary Group on North Korea, said the abuse uncovered by the two-year-long investigation was “horrific. He said the trafficking of North Korean women is tied to China’s one-child policy, which has distorted the country’s gender balance due to the preference for boys. One trafficking survivor, who was repatriated three times before finally escaping to South Korea, told the launch event how pregnant women sent back to North Korea were forced to undergo abortions. The woman said she was sent to a concentration camp where a doctor ripped her baby from her body — without anesthetic — and tore him limb from limb. The London-based Korea Future Initiative urged all states to help North Koreans in China escape and said embassies should accept asylum seekers as refugees.

china
north korea
rape
u.k .
women
sexual slavery
cybersex


Images show Chinese ships are back in South China Sea to harvest endangered clams and wreck coral

Abstract: WASHINGTON - China’s “most destructive” clam fishing boats have returned to the disputed South China Sea in force over the last six months to harvest endangered giant clams, destroying vast swaths of coral reef, a U.S. think thank said in a study released Monday. Citing satellite imagery since late 2018, the Center for Strategic and International Studies said Chinese clam fleets operated frequently at Scarborough Shoal, disputed between China and the Philippines, and throughout the Paracel Islands, which are claimed by Vietnam, China and Taiwan. These fleets typically include dozens of small fishing vessels accompanied by a handful of larger “motherships,” CSIS said, adding, “Now, as then, Chinese authorities are aware of and appear to condone the activities of these fleets.” The clam shells are transported back to Hainan Province, in southern China, where they fetch thousands of dollars each in a thriving market for jewelry and statuary. From 2016 to late 2018, the number of Chinese clam ships operating in the South China Sea dropped sharply, after such harvesters severely damaged or destroyed at least 28 reefs across the contested waterway from 2012 to 2015. In July 2016, an arbitral tribunal that ruled on a case brought against Beijing by Manila found that China had violated its obligations under international law to protect the marine environment. CSIS, however, said the study has not found clear evidence of new clam harvesting in the Spratly Islands, claimed in whole or in part by China, Taiwan, Vietnam, Brunei, Malaysia and the Philippines.

china
oceans
animals
endangered
disputed islands
south china sea
coral