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Mali's Constitutional Council has declared a huge victory in a vote to introduce a new constitution which would strengthen the president's power
He replaces Debretsion Gebremichael, whose immunity from prosecution was removed Thursday.
Meanwhile, Amnesty International said Thursday that scores of civilians were killed in a \"massacre\" in the Tigray region, that witnesses blamed on forces backing the local ruling party.
The \"massacre\" is the first reported incident of large-scale civilian fatalities in a week-old conflict between the regional ruling party, the Tigray People's Liberation Front (TPLF), and the government of Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed, winner of last year's Nobel Peace Prize.
\"Amnesty International can today confirm... that scores, and likely hundreds, of people were stabbed or hacked to death in Mai-Kadra (May Cadera) town in the southwest of Ethiopia's Tigray Region on the night of 9 November,\" the rights group said in a report.
Amnesty said it had \"digitally verified gruesome photographs and videos of bodies strewn across the town or being carried away on stretchers.\"
The dead \"had gaping wounds that appear to have been inflicted by sharp weapons such as knives and machetes,\" Amnesty said, citing witness accounts.
Witnesses said the attack was carried out by TPLF-aligned forces after a defeat at the hands of the Ethiopian military, though Amnesty said it \"has not been able to confirm who was responsible for the killings\".
It nonetheless called on TPLF commanders and officials to \"make clear to their forces and their supporters that deliberate attacks on civilians are absolutely prohibited and constitute war crimes\".
Abiy ordered military operations in Tigray on November 4, saying they were prompted by a TPLF attack on federal military camps -- a claim the party denies.
The region has been under a communications blackout ever since, making it difficult to verify competing claims on the ground.
Abiy said Thursday his army had made major gains in western Tigray.
Thousands of Ethiopians have fled across the border into neighboring Sudan, and the UN is sounding the alarm about a humanitarian crisis in Tigray.
COVID-19 was the cause of canceling a slew of events this year but not the Super Bowl halftime show. The... View Article
The post The Weeknd to perform 2021 Super Bowl halftime show: 'I'm humbled' appeared first on TheGrio.
Nigerian-born author Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie's novel has been voted the best book to have won the Women's Prize for Fiction in its 25-year history.
Adichie, who won the prize in 2007 for her 'Half of a Yellow Sun', was selected in a public vote from a list of 25 winners.
The one-time award marks the anniversary of the prize, previously called the Orange Prize and the Bailey's Prize.
Half of a Yellow Sun is set in Africa's most populous nation, Nigeria during the Biafran War.
The novel explored the end of colonialism, ethnic allegiances, class, race and female empowerment.
\"I'm especially moved to be voted Winner of Winners because this is the prize that first brought a wide readership to my work, and has also introduced me to the work of many talented writers\", Adichie said.
The book garnered global acclaim when it was published in 2006.
A 25-YEAR-OLD Pfungwe man was allegedly killed by his lover after he caught her in a compromising position with another man in a makeshift tent along Mazowe River. BY JAIROS SAUNYAMA The suspect, Juliet Munhuwa of Gurupira village, under Chief Chitsungo, is wanted by police over the death of her boyfriend Misheck Reza. Mashonaland East provincial police spokesperson Inspector Tendai Mwanza confirmed the incident. “We are appealing to members of the public who might have information on the whereabouts of the suspect to report to any nearest police station. Violence should never be an option and people should always find amicable ways to resolve their differences,” he said. It is reported that on November 4, at around midnight, Reza went to the suspect’s tent and found Munhuwa being intimate with another man and an altercation ensued. Reza reportedly dragged the suspect out and assaulted her with open hands. The suspect reportedly retaliated and a fight broke out. Munhuwa allegedly picked a stone and struck Reza on the head. The two tussled for a long time before heading towards Chikukwa business centre. It is reported that along the way, the suspect picked another stone and struck the now-deceased on the head before he fell on the ground. After realising that she had committed a crime, Munhuwa returned to the tent where she collected her belongings and fled. Reza’s body was discovered by a villager who alerted the police. The police detected that he had a wound on the head and bruises on the abdomen. The body was taken to Murewa Hospital Mortuary for post-mortem.
BELIZE CITY, (Reuters) - Belize resoundingly voted to elect opposition leader Johnny Briceno to replace longtime Prime Minister Dean Barrow in Wednesday’s general election as the Central American nation seeks to revive an economy battered by the coronavirus pandemic.
The article Belize elects opposition leader to succeed retiring prime minister appeared first on Stabroek News.
Approximately 80 percent of all Texas inmates who died from COVID-19 were in pre-trial detention and had not yet been... View Article
The post 80 percent of Texas inmates who died from coronavirus were not convicted of crime appeared first on TheGrio.
PRESIDENT Emmerson Mnangagwa’s son, Tarirai David Mnangagwa is being accused of seizing gold mining claims in Gweru after the owners had invited him to invest in the project. The gold mining claims in question are under Block 16 Quarts mining claims called Jilikin 25, registration number 12641BM whose owner, according to court papers seen by NewsDay, is Chad Cecil Mupandanyama, since 2005. BY STAFF REPORTER But last month, Mnangagwa filed an application with the court, alleging that he had been duped of US$4 million by Mupanganyama after he was booted out a company which he co-founded. Mupandanyama together with his company, Swifteagle Investment Business Consultancy (Pvt) Ltd, cited Eliazel Mushiringi, Tarirai David Mnangagwa, Ruan Meats Enterprises (Pvt) Ltd, Wozheri Stone Crushers (Pvt) Ltd, Registrar of Companies, provincial mining director, Mines minister Winston Chitando as co-respondents in the matter. Mupandanyama said initially, he was partners with Mushiringi, who later roped in Mnangagwa to register a company called Wozheri Stone Crushers (Pvt) Ltd using a forged signature and other documents obtained fraudulently. As a result, Mupandanyama is seeking the High Court to issue an order declaring the registration of Wozheri Stone Crushers unlawful. Mupandanyama is also seeking the cancellation of the memorandum of agreement entered into between Mushiringi and Mnangagwa on November 28, 2017. “… and consequently, that the first to the fourth defendant’s (Eliazel Mushiringi, Tarirai David Mnangagwa, Ruan Meats Enterprises, Wozheri Stone Crushers) together with their sub-tenants, assignees, invitees, members and all other persons claiming occupation through them should within 10 days of service of this court order vacate from the mining claim,” Mupandanyama said in his affidavit. According to Mupandanyama, the drama started on January 7, 2016, when he entered into a tribute agreement with Mushiringi in terms of which he (Mupandanyama) agreed to grant mining rights to Mushiringi to develop, extract, mill and treat ore from the same and dispose of the product for own account. “In terms of the agreement first defendant (Mushiringi) undertook to pay 5% of the total gross value of gold and/or any other valuable product extracted from the said mining location,” he said. On March 18, 2016, Mupandanyama said Mushiringi entered into another agreement with Mnangagwa in terms of which he agreed to give up his mining rights, which he was exercising by virtue of the tribute agreement with Mupandanyama, to Swifteagle. This included installation of a granite crushing plant, payment of council fees, mine inspection fees, transport, food, accommodation, site fencing, costs of assaying and application of certificates. “The second plaintiff (Swifteagle) paid a commitment fee of US$10 000 to the first defendant and the agreement will be expiring in March 2036,” he said. However, around September 2017, Mupandanyama registered a company with Mushiringi to carry out mining activities at his mining claims. They agreed to dissolve their
TEACHERS have rejected the government’s 40% salary hike offer, describing it as a mockery, vowing not to return to work until their employer pays them meaningful salaries. BY HARRIET CHIKANDIWA/LORRAINE MUROMO Government on Tuesday proposed a 40% salary hike for all its workers and a 10% risk allowance to teachers as a way of enticing them to end the job boycott that started in September when schools reopened for examination classes, throwing schools into chaos. According to Information minister Monica Mutsvangwa during a post-Cabinet Press briefing, the 40% salary hike will be awarded to all grades below director level. The offer came after teachers rejected a 20% salary hike last week announced through the National Joint Negotiating Council. But teachers yesterday scoffed at the government offer that will leave them earning $18 237, which they said was grossly inadequate. “Incapacitated teachers have rejected the 40% salary increase offered by Cabinet on Tuesday, the increase is procedurally defective and grossly insufficient in quantum,” Progressive Teacher of Union of Zimbabwe (PTUZ) president Takavafira Zhou said. “Salaries and conditions of service are subject to bargaining between the employer and workers and not a product of employer machinations. Government attempts to render unions useless must be rejected in toto.” He said the PTUZ was ready for meaningful dialogue with the government. Government has been resisting increasing salaries for reachers, with Labour minister Paul Mavima, saying such a move would trigger inflation. Schools opened on Monday for the final phase with pupils being turned away because teachers did not report for duty. The teachers are demanding US$520 per month. “We remain worried at government’s reluctance to pay its workers in forex at a time the economy has dollarised,” Zhou said, adding the 40% salary hike would not improve the standard of living for the struggling teachers. “The government is also silent on prioritisation of health and safety of teachers and pupils, more so given cases of COVID-19 in schools. In light of the foregoing, the best foot forward for incapacitated teachers remain the incapacitation modus operandi until we are capacitated.” Zhou urged parents to keep their kids in the safety of their homes. He reiterated that the educators would not be intimidated by the steps taken by government to record names of absent teachers in order to dock their incomes. “We urge school heads to resist submission of names of incapacitated teachers to any office. We urge all teachers to rise and be counted in our incapacitation struggle. The darkest hour is just before dawn,” he said. “We implore government to engage leaders of teacher unions in order to find a holistic solution to the current impasse in schools.” He added: “We reiterate that no amount of threats and brutality can force teachers back to their workplaces. Dialogue and capacitation are the only means available, and the sooner they are employed the better for the education system in Zimbabwe.” Zimbabwe Rural Teacher
BY PATRICIA SIBANDA EPIDEMIOLOGY and disease control director in the Health and Child Care ministry, Portia Manangazira, has emphasised on the need for the unification of traditional and conventional medicines in the fight against the COVID-19 pandemic. Addressing a workshop in Bulawayo on Wednesday, Manangazira said there was need to ensure the maximum use of locally available medicines and herbs in the supportive care and management of COVID-19 patients. She said her ministry had harnessed traditional medical practitioners, conventional medical practitioners and their communities together so that dual intervention is done to mitigate COVID-19. “So we must start, we should have continued and furthered that, and today, we would be having even a large manufacturing plant which we say, it's our marula tree or some other nutritious shrub,” she said. “Sometimes we end up having healthy animals and malnourished people and we haven’t really explored that. All I am saying is, we are living and failing to utilise our locally available medicines.” She said it was worrisome that the ministry had not taken traditional medicine on board. “We do have a lot of herbs and they form raw materials for the pharmaceuticals. If I heard correctly, the International Traditional Healers Association leader said uMsuzwane has got some anti-ceptive properties, a bit disappointing is that we have not taken our traditional medicine a step further so that we describe and display the content and the ingredients in the market places.” Manangazira said the late former Health minister Herbert Ushewokunze attempted to introduce the system, but died before his ideas were adopted. “I think we are also in the right place because at some time, we had a former Minister of Health, the late Herbert Ushewokunze. He operated the Marondera Clinic here in Bulawayo and that clinic was unique. It would treat you for modern medicine if you so wished or for traditional medicine and he had labels on his containers, but he died and that practice also died with him,” she said.
Taking Up Arms
A military operation has been launched by Morocco in the buffer zone of Guerguerat near Mauritania, as announced Friday.
The North African nation also denounced \"the provocations of the Polisario\" in Western Sahara — once a colony of Spain with a still undefined status. Classified as a \"non-autonomous territory\" by the United Nations (UN).
The aim of the ongoing operation is to \"put an end to the blockade situation\" and \"restore free civil and commercial movement\" on the road leading to Mauritania — whose existence is denounced by the Sahrawi independence fighters and which Rabat considers essential for its trade with sub-Saharan Africa.
For about three weeks, local sources claim militias of some 70 armed men have been \"attacking truckers, banning traffic and racketeering.\"
All this in spite of UN settlement efforts — as the organisation-led negotiations involving Morocco, the Polisario, Algeria and Mauritania have been suspended for several months.
Polisario in response has stated its Sahrawi troops will retaliate in self-defence in light of what it perceives as Morocco being \"aggressive\" and liquidating the 1991 cease-fire.
Background
The region of Guerguerat has already been at the centre of strong tensions between the Polisario and Morocco, particularly in early 2017. Morocco controls more than two-thirds of this vast desert territory in its western part, along the Atlantic Ocean and has seen friction for decades with the pro-independence Polisario Front supported by Algeria.
Angolan police fired live ammunition and used tear gas against youths protesting against poverty Wednesday in Luanda.
Protests against the government, usually met with violence, have been going on for several weeks in Luanda, motivated by high unemployment, the cost of living, and state corruption.
Protesters, supported by UNITA, the main opposition party, also called for local elections, which had been postponed due to the coronavirus pandemic to be held.
Demonstrations were rare when current President Joao Lourenco succeeded Jose Eduardo dos Santos in 2017, raising hopes for change after decades of corruption and nepotism.
But disenchantment has swelled in recent months with the government, which is seen as unable to deliver on its promises to rid itself of corruption and revive the economy.
WELLINGTON, (Reuters) - The West Indies cricket team have been cleared to leave their biosecure facility in Christchurch today after their third round of novel coronavirus tests were negative, New Zealand Cricket said yesterday.
The article Windies cleared to leave isolation in NZ after COVID-19 testing appeared first on Stabroek News.
