Thursday, January 24, 2013
Wednesday, January 23, 2013
When Male CEOs Have Kids, Employees Make Less Money
If your boss is having his first child, you’d better hope it’s a girl.
That’s the takeaway from a new study published in Administrative Science Quarterly,
which examines how employees’ wages change immediately after a male
chief executive officer has a child. Economics and business professors
from Denmark’s Aalborg University, Columbia Business School, and the
University of Maryland’s Smith School of Business studied the salaries
of 1.2 million people across 10,600 companies in Denmark and found that
when a male CEO has a child, his employees’ wages decrease. It’s not a
large decline—just 0.2 percent, adjusted for inflation—but when spread
across an entire company, that small amount of money (about $100 per
employee) adds up.At the same time, the CEO pads his own pocket with a wage increase of 4.9 percent. “He has a kid, he thinks immediately, ‘I want more money for my family,’” explains Cristian Dezsö, assistant professor at University of Maryland’s Smith School of Business and co-author of the study. “But it comes at the expense of the employees.”
The study was inspired by a 1991 paper by sociologist Rebecca Warner that linked male politicians’ stances on so-called women’s issues with whether or not they had a daughter. (Not surprisingly, she found that those with daughters were more likely to hold feminist views). “Given my interest in business, when I read that paper I immediately thought, Well, does a daughter influence a CEO’s stance on gender relations in the workplace?” Dezsö says. The answer appears to be yes.
Dezsö and his colleagues focused on Danish companies because of the ease with which they could acquire salary data. “In Denmark, people are issued national ID numbers much like the Social Security numbers in the U.S, and they link that ID to pretty much everything,” he explains. “If I know your number, I can see the company you work for, how much money you make, who is your spouse, your kids, and so on and so forth.”
Dezsö discovered that employees’ wages fall farther if the CEO has a son than if he has a daughter—and they do so at different rates for women than for men. If a chief executive’s firstborn child is a son, female employees’ wages go down by .2 percent and men’s drop by .5 percent. Dezsö is quick to point out that this doesn’t mean women suddenly make more than men—just that the gender pay gap, which exists even in Denmark, narrows slightly. The reason for this might be the executive’s newfound respect for motherhood. “Whenever a CEO has his first kid, he is probably married, and so he sees how hard it is to be a mother … by extension he might sympathize more with women. So the salaries of female employees don’t go down as much as men’s,” he says. When the CEO has a daughter, he’s even more sympathetic—and women’s wages actually go up.
This phenomenon occurs only when executives have their first child. With two or more children, employee’s wages decrease no matter who they are. “Think of it as negative and positive forces working against each other—the CEO wants more money for himself, but he also feels more generous to his employees,” explains Dezsö. “With the first child, positive forces win. With the second or third child, the negative forces win and he just takes more money for himself.”
We were curious to know if these findings hold true for American CEOs as well. (According to Dezsö, the study couldn’t be replicated in the U.S. because privacy laws make it too difficult to procure the relevant information.) While he doesn’t know for sure, he has a hunch. Denmark ranks seventh in the world for gender equality, according to the 2012 Global Gender Gap report, “which means that most people there already hold liberal views of women’s rights,” he says. The U.S., meanwhile, is ranked 22—just above Mozambique. In a more biased society, the economic impact might be even more pronounced.
“If I were to get very cocky, I’d say that what we found in Denmark is a very conservative change in CEOs’ outlooks and maybe we’d find bigger effects in the U.S.” But he doesn’t know for sure. “Until we can collect the right kind of data in the U.S.,” he says, “it cannot be more than speculation.”
Kenyans abroad send back $1 billion in 2012
Dollar inflows from Kenyans working in the United States
and Canada were the main contributors to record remittances for the
east African country last year, which cross the $1 billion mark.
Data from the Central Bank of Kenya (CBK) shows that Kenyans abroad sent $1.17 billion in 2012, a 31 per cent increase on 2011.
"The sustained increase resulted to a 31.4 per
cent growth in remittance inflows from $891.1 million in 2011 to $1.2
billion in the full year of 2012, an indication of resilience in
remittance inflows to Kenya despite the weak global economy,” CBK said
in a statement.
The North American region, whose economy is still
recovering, accounted for nearly half of these inflows, followed by
Europe which shares similar economic woes.
Diaspora remittances, along with tourism, tea and horticulture are among Kenya's leading foreign exchange earners.
Meanwhile deposits into money transfer systems
offered by Kenyan mobile phone companies rose by 75.33 per cent in the
nine months to September last year, hitting the highest amount since the
industry regulator started tracking the numbers.
The Communications Commission of Kenya (CCK)
Monday said phone users deposited Sh205 billion ($2.38 billion) into
mobile money transfer systems of the country's four operators, compared
to Sh117.36 billion ($1.36 billion) deposited over a similar period in
2011.
Easier services
The growth was partly attributed to an increase in
the number of agents working for the telcos, making it easier to access
services.
CCK said that the number of agents countrywide
stood at 54,409 as at the end of September last year compared to 44,922
at the end of September 2011.
The ease of using mobile money applications had
also helped to grow the value of money and increased the use of the
mobile money systems.
“This growth indicates that the mobile money
transfer service has become a key payments and transaction tool, mainly
due to its easy use of applications, convenience and low-cost value
propositions,” said CCK in the report.
The CCK data, however, does not capture total
transfers and all mobile money operators which include those that do not
offer voice services such as Mobikash and Tangaza.
This data is tracked by CBK and in the nine months
to September, the banking regulator’s data shows that total transfers
rose by 34.76 per cent to Sh1.117.98 trillion ($1.37 trillion) compared
to Sh829.62 billion transferred as at the end of September 2011.
CCK said that the number of mobile money transfer
subscriptions rose marginally by 4.9 per cent to 19.31 million as at
September last year from 18.4 million over similar period in 2011.
www.businessdailyafrica.com
South Sudan's President Kiir fires 34 military chiefs and a governor
South Sudanese President Salva Kiir has reshuffled the
army’s command, firing 11 top army officers, including deputies to the
Chief of the General Staff, and 23 more senior commanders.
Mr Kiir has also fired Lakes State governor Chol
Tong Mayay, a democratically elected governor in a state engulfed in
bitter cattle raiding and deadly sectional fighting.
In sacking the governor, the president invoked the
presidential powers enshrined in the Transitional Constitution of South
Sudan 2011, which allows the president to sack an elected governor if
that state is engulfed in a major crisis that threatens national
security.
Mr Chol’s sacking comes days after sectional
fighting between two feuding communities in the state killed more than
49 people in two consecutive days of armed confrontation that threatened
to spill over to the state capital, Rumbek, last week.
The reshuffle in the army also saw 10 senior
officers promoted to the rank of lieutenant-generals, some of whom were
immediately deployed in three sectors bordering neighbouring Sudan.
Mr Kiir also appointed six new deputies to the Chief of General Staff James Hoth Mai.
The leader made the sweeping changes in four separate decrees broadcast on the state radio on Tuesday.
Zimbabwe VP John Nkomo is buried
Zimbabwe President Robert Mugabe on Monday called for peace when the country holds its elections later in the year.
Speaking at the burial of Vice-President John
Nkomo he told the thousands of mourners at a national shrine for former
fighters in Zimbabwe’s liberation of the importance of holding peaceful
elections.
“Peace begins with me Robert Mugabe, peace begins
with all of us,” he said. “Let’s carry this exaltation of peace to all
our political parties and hold elections that are peaceful.”
A general election is expected in the second half
of this year amid regional efforts to prevent another violent poll in
Zimbabwe.
Mr Nkomo succumbed to cancer last Thursday at the age of 78.
He was chairman of a peace and reconciliation
forum formed after Zimbabwe’s 2008 elections that were marred by
political violence.
Among the mourners were the vice-presidents of Tanzania, Botswana and South Africa.
He was appointed the country's second vice-president by President Mugabe in 2009.
He became the fourth vice president to die in office since Zimbabwe’s independence in 1980.
He was seen as loyal to the veteran ruler and was
never associated with factions that are reportedly jostling for the
88-year-old leader’s position.
Special Reports Business & Finance Analysis Arts & Culture Blogs Country Profiles multimedia Sports PROGRESS Kenya demands UN to make full refund over Amisom role
Kenya urged the United Nations Security Council on
Monday to make "timely and total reimbursement" of what the country is
owed for its military contributions to the African Union Mission in
Somalia (Amisom).
Kenya's UN ambassador Macharia Kamau warned that
failure to provide Kenya with the full amount pledged by the Security
Council is "unacceptable and unsustainable."
In his speech during a Council debate on UN
peacekeeping activities, Mr Kamau did not specify how much Kenya is
owed. He said only that the country has received "a fraction of the
millions of dollars committed by this Council."
According to Kenya's Daily Nation newspaper, the UN agreed to pay Kenya $132 million by July of this year but has so far provided only $947,000.
"Troop-contributing countries spend significant
amounts of money preparing troops, maintaining readiness and deploying
expensive equipment to support given mandates," Ambassador Kamau noted
in his address. That burden weighs particularly heavily on developing
countries, he added.
Kenya sent troops into Somalia in October 2010
following a series of terror attacks on Kenyan territory said to have
been carried out by forces operating out of Somalia.
The UN Security Council, which partly finances the
six-year-old Amisom operation, approved Kenya's participation in the
17,000-member force in a resolution adopted in February 2011.
A total of 4,664 Kenyan personnel deployed in
Somalia were formally integrated into Amisom's ranks in June of last
year. Kenya had sent troops into the country in October 2011.
In September, the Kenyan forces captured the
strategic port city of Kismayu, which was their strategic target and the
key source of funding for the Al-Shabaab militia.
Kenya has separately asked the UN to designate the
country's maritime forces operating in Somali waters as an official
component of Amisom. Such recognition would enable Kenya to receive
additional reimbursements from the UN.
The Security Council has so far declined to extend
Amisom's mandate to include maritime forces. Mr Kamau says Kenya will
raise the issue again in March when the council conducts a scheduled
review of Amisom.
Boko Haram militants suspected of deadly attacks in Nigeria
Suspected Islamists have been blamed for the deaths of at least 23 people in separate attacks in north-eastern Nigeria.
Witnesses say gunmen apparently targeted hunters selling bush meat in Damboa on Monday, killing 18 people.
Another five people died on Tuesday when a group of men playing draughts was attacked in Kano.
The militant group Boko Haram, which is fighting to create an Islamic state, has staged many attacks in Nigeria.
Boko Haram has been blamed for the deaths of some
1,400 people in central and northern Nigeria since 2010. Last year
alone, the group was linked to more than 600 deaths.
On Monday, gunmen opened fire at a market in
Damboa in Borno state, targeting hunters selling meat from animals such
as monkeys and pigs, local government official Abba Ahmed told
journalists.
Strict Muslims are forbidden to eat this type of bush meat.
"Gunmen suspected to be members of Boko Haram came
to the town market and shot dead 13 local hunters on the spot while
five others died from their injuries at the hospital," the official
said.
Damboa is located near the capital of Borno state,
Maiduguri, the stronghold of Boko Haram. The militant group was founded
in the city in 2002.
Meanwhile, reports have emerged of a deadly attack in Kano, the main city in northern Nigeria, 500km (310 miles) west of Damboa.
Gunmen riding on motorbikes opened fire on people playing an outdoor board game, police and witnesses say.
Gambling is also strictly forbidden under Islamic law.
Friday, January 18, 2013
France continues it airstrikes in mali: residence frantic
France continues Mali airstrikes; residents frantic
UPDATED: Jan 18, 2013 10:40 GMT
French warplanes pounded Islamist militant targets in Mali Thursday as international efforts to help the African nation's government fight insurgentsgained momentum.
For a fourth consecutive day, airstrikes hit in and around Diabaly -- a town in central Mali, about 400 kilometers (250 miles) north of the capital of Bamako -- prompting men, women and children to flee or find cover, witnesses said.
"People are desperate to get out," said Ibrahim Toure, a civilian who left Diabaly on Thursday.
French fighter jets targeted the town since Monday, after Islamist rebels settled in a military camp on its outskirts that had been abandoned by Malian soldiers.
The Islamists told Diabaly's residents they could stay, and they prevented some from leaving, said Cheick Oumar, a construction worker in the town.
Read more: Why Mali matters
"People are left without protection," he said. "The rebels say they will not hurtanyone, but people are afraid they will turn Diabaly into a new Islamist stronghold and impose Sharia law."
Mali had been one of the most successful democraciesin Africa until last year, when a coup toppled the president and Islamists capitalized on the chaos by establishing themselves in the north.
Read more: What's behind the instability in Mali?
There, they imposed a strictinterpretation of Sharia law by banning music, smoking, drinking and watching sports on television. They also damaged Timbuktu's historic tombs and shrines.
360 hortages freed by Algerian special force
Report: 650 hostages freed by Algerian special forces
UPDATED: Jan 18, 2013 15:15 GMT
Algerian special forces havefreed 650 hostages from Islamist militants who seized a gas complex deep in the desert, Algerian state mediasaid Friday, but the fate of some foreign workers remains unclear.
Of those taken hostage Wednesday, 573 were Algerians, according to the state-run Algerian Press Service news agency. It said"over half" of the 132 foreign workers held in the hostage crisis have been freed, according to a provisional count.
CNN has not independently confirmed the APS report.
Details of the total number of hostages seized at the InAmenas installation and theirnationalities are still not clear.
Some foreign workers have sought refuge in various parts of the Saharan site, APS cited a security source as saying.
The special forces are still trying to reach a "peaceful ending," the source told APS, before "neutralizing" the terrorist group. The group is made up of about 30 militants of different nationalities, security sources told the news agency.
The remote gas field, about 60 kilometers (37 miles) west of the Libyan border and 1,300 kilometers (about 800 miles) from the Algerian capital, Algiers, is run by Algerian state oil company Sonatrach in partnership with Britain's BP and Norway's Statoil.
State-run Algerian Radio earlier cited an official source as saying that a major military raid launched Thursday was over but thatthere was "ongoing activity at various locations" near the plant.
British Prime Minister David Cameron said Friday morning that the Algerians were still pursuing terrorists and possibly hostages at the large and complex site.
The number of Britons unaccounted for is"significantly" fewer than 30, he told the House of Commons, but he declined togive an exact number because of the fluidity of thesituation
360 hortages freed by Algerian special force
Report: 650 hostages freed by Algerian special forces
UPDATED: Jan 18, 2013 15:15 GMT
Algerian special forces havefreed 650 hostages from Islamist militants who seized a gas complex deep in the desert, Algerian state mediasaid Friday, but the fate of some foreign workers remains unclear.
Of those taken hostage Wednesday, 573 were Algerians, according to the state-run Algerian Press Service news agency. It said"over half" of the 132 foreign workers held in the hostage crisis have been freed, according to a provisional count.
CNN has not independently confirmed the APS report.
Details of the total number of hostages seized at the InAmenas installation and theirnationalities are still not clear.
Some foreign workers have sought refuge in various parts of the Saharan site, APS cited a security source as saying.
The special forces are still trying to reach a "peaceful ending," the source told APS, before "neutralizing" the terrorist group. The group is made up of about 30 militants of different nationalities, security sources told the news agency.
The remote gas field, about 60 kilometers (37 miles) west of the Libyan border and 1,300 kilometers (about 800 miles) from the Algerian capital, Algiers, is run by Algerian state oil company Sonatrach in partnership with Britain's BP and Norway's Statoil.
State-run Algerian Radio earlier cited an official source as saying that a major military raid launched Thursday was over but thatthere was "ongoing activity at various locations" near the plant.
British Prime Minister David Cameron said Friday morning that the Algerians were still pursuing terrorists and possibly hostages at the large and complex site.
The number of Britons unaccounted for is"significantly" fewer than 30, he told the House of Commons, but he declined togive an exact number because of the fluidity of thesituation
Wednesday, January 16, 2013
Facebook unveils social search tools for users
Facebook unveils social search tools for users
By Dave Lee
Technology Reporter
15 January 2013 Last updated at 18:24
The search tool can handle natural language queries
Facebook has announced a major addition to its social network - a smart search engine it has called graph search.
The feature allows users to make "natural" searches of content shared by their friends.
Search terms could include phrases such as "friends who like Star Wars and Harry Potter".
Founder and chief executive Mark Zuckerberg insisted it was not a web search, and therefore not a direct challenge to Google.
However, it was integrating Microsoft's Bingsearch engine for situations when graph search itself could not find answers.
Mr Zuckerberg said he "didnot expect" people to startflocking to Facebook to do web search.
"That isn't the intent," he said. "But in the event youcan't find what you're looking for, it's really nice to have this."
Finding folks
Earlier speculation had suggested that the world'sbiggest social network wasabout to make a long-anticipated foray into Google's search territory.
"We're not indexing the web," explained Mr Zuckerberg at an event at Facebook's headquarters in California.
"We're indexing our map of the graph - the graph isreally big and its constantly changing."
In Facebook's terms, the social graph is the name given to the collective poolof information shared between friends that are connected via the site.
It includes things such as photos, status updates, location data as well as thethings they have "liked".
Until now, Facebook's search had been highly criticised for being limited and ineffective.
It's going to help drive connections within the network between individuals and between companies and pages
Mark Little, Ovum
The company's revamped search was demonstrated to be significantly more powerful. In one demo, Facebook developer Tom Stocky showed a search for queries such as"friends of friends who aresingle in San Francisco".
The same technology couldbe used for recruitment, he suggested, using graphsearch to find people who fit criteria for certain jobs - as well as mutual connections.
Such queries are a key function of LinkedIn, the current dominant network for establishing professional connections.
"We look at Facebook as abig social database," said Mr Zuckerberg, adding thatsocial search was Facebook's "third pillar" and stood beside the newsfeed and timeline as the foundational elements of the social network.
Perhaps mindful of privacyconcerns highlighted by recent misfires on policies for its other services suchas Instagram, Facebook stressed that it had put limits on the search system.
"On graph search, you canonly see content that people have shared with you," developer Lars Rasmussen, who was previously the co-founder of Google Maps, told reporters.
Test case
Mark Little, principal analyst at research firm Ovum, said he was"underwhelmed" by the announcement.
"I think probably people were looking for somethinga little bit more strategic," he said, adding that graph search might well be a bridge to a more comprehensive search offering in the future.
Play
The BBC's Rory Cellan-Jones explains how the new search tool will work
"On the plus side I think it's going to help drive connections within the network between individuals and between companies and pages," he said. "If you are increasingconnections between friends and pages you areeffectively increasing the reach of advertisers."
In his demonstration, Mr Stocky showed how graph search could help any attempt to go back over old content that a user may want removed. For instance, it could let someone use search queries - such as picturestaken at a certain location,such as a night club - and untag them en masse.
Mr Zuckerberg said that graph search would launchimmediately as a beta test,and would roll out "very slowly". The tool will be usable from the blue banner that sits at the top of every Facebook page.
"We're going to put an encouragement on the home screen of everyone's account so that everyone has the chance to look through these tools.
"We're going to do this before graph search is fully rolled out."
Facebook unveils social search tools for users
Facebook unveils social search tools for users
By Dave Lee
Technology Reporter
15 January 2013 Last updated at 18:24
The search tool can handle natural language queries
Facebook has announced a major addition to its social network - a smart search engine it has called graph search.
The feature allows users to make "natural" searches of content shared by their friends.
Search terms could include phrases such as "friends who like Star Wars and Harry Potter".
Founder and chief executive Mark Zuckerberg insisted it was not a web search, and therefore not a direct challenge to Google.
However, it was integrating Microsoft's Bingsearch engine for situations when graph search itself could not find answers.
Mr Zuckerberg said he "didnot expect" people to startflocking to Facebook to do web search.
"That isn't the intent," he said. "But in the event youcan't find what you're looking for, it's really nice to have this."
Finding folks
Earlier speculation had suggested that the world'sbiggest social network wasabout to make a long-anticipated foray into Google's search territory.
"We're not indexing the web," explained Mr Zuckerberg at an event at Facebook's headquarters in California.
"We're indexing our map of the graph - the graph isreally big and its constantly changing."
In Facebook's terms, the social graph is the name given to the collective poolof information shared between friends that are connected via the site.
It includes things such as photos, status updates, location data as well as thethings they have "liked".
Until now, Facebook's search had been highly criticised for being limited and ineffective.
It's going to help drive connections within the network between individuals and between companies and pages
Mark Little, Ovum
The company's revamped search was demonstrated to be significantly more powerful. In one demo, Facebook developer Tom Stocky showed a search for queries such as"friends of friends who aresingle in San Francisco".
The same technology couldbe used for recruitment, he suggested, using graphsearch to find people who fit criteria for certain jobs - as well as mutual connections.
Such queries are a key function of LinkedIn, the current dominant network for establishing professional connections.
"We look at Facebook as abig social database," said Mr Zuckerberg, adding thatsocial search was Facebook's "third pillar" and stood beside the newsfeed and timeline as the foundational elements of the social network.
Perhaps mindful of privacyconcerns highlighted by recent misfires on policies for its other services suchas Instagram, Facebook stressed that it had put limits on the search system.
"On graph search, you canonly see content that people have shared with you," developer Lars Rasmussen, who was previously the co-founder of Google Maps, told reporters.
Test case
Mark Little, principal analyst at research firm Ovum, said he was"underwhelmed" by the announcement.
"I think probably people were looking for somethinga little bit more strategic," he said, adding that graph search might well be a bridge to a more comprehensive search offering in the future.
Play
The BBC's Rory Cellan-Jones explains how the new search tool will work
"On the plus side I think it's going to help drive connections within the network between individuals and between companies and pages," he said. "If you are increasingconnections between friends and pages you areeffectively increasing the reach of advertisers."
In his demonstration, Mr Stocky showed how graph search could help any attempt to go back over old content that a user may want removed. For instance, it could let someone use search queries - such as picturestaken at a certain location,such as a night club - and untag them en masse.
Mr Zuckerberg said that graph search would launchimmediately as a beta test,and would roll out "very slowly". The tool will be usable from the blue banner that sits at the top of every Facebook page.
"We're going to put an encouragement on the home screen of everyone's account so that everyone has the chance to look through these tools.
"We're going to do this before graph search is fully rolled out."
Helicopter crashes into crane in vauxhall london
Helicopter crashes into crane in Vauxhall, London
4 minutes ago
Play
Ex-BBC producer Paul Ferguson: Helicopter 'plummeted straight into the ground'
A helicopter has crashed into a crane at a building site in central London.
Police said it appeared the helicopter had hit the crane on top of a building at about 08:00 GMT. They said it was too early to confirm any casualties.
London Fire Brigade said the crash happened near Wandsworth Road in SouthLambeth. They said more than 60 firefighters were at the scene.
Burning wreckage lay in the road, with all approaches to the Vauxhall Cross one way system closed.
The fire brigade was also attending a second scene involving a crane in a precarious position on St George's Wharf.
Police said they first received calls at 08:00 GMT and the London Ambulance Service said it was also at the scene.
'Enormous bang'
Ex-BBC producer Paul Ferguson said the helicopter "plummeted straight into the ground".
He said: "The building the helicopter hit is shrouded in mist."
Play
Eyewitness Chris Matthison: "There was an unusual buzzing sound and a dull thud"
He said the crane at the top of the building was nowhanging down the side of the building.
Nicky Morgan, MP for Loughborough, witnessed the crash.
"I was walking towards Vauxhall tube station from Lambeth Palace area whereI have a flat," she said.
"There was suddenly an enormous bang - I thoughtsomething exploded.
"It was coming from beyondVauxhall tube station.
"Then clouds and clouds ofblack smoke.
"I presumed what it was I heard was the crane collapsing or the helicoptercrashing into it.
'Huge smoke cloud'
"I heard the bang then sawthe clouds of smoke but there was too much in the way to see much at that point."
Some witnesses reported the wreckage hitting two cars.
Witnesses reported seeingdebris on the ground.
Quinn Murray was cycling when he saw the crash.
He said: "I saw the helicopter hit the top of thecrane and come down just to the left of the station.
"There was quite a large amount of fire and a huge smoke cloud. It wasn't on the road, but into a building site where they are building the new Nine Elms area.
"There's a huge number ofemergency services."
Commuter Sherna Noah described seeing a "large plume of dark grey smoke"as she crossed Battersea Bridge at about 08:00 GMT.
She said: "I was coming across the bridge and basically I could see a few cyclists on the bridge looking towards the water.
"I looked over to see whatthey were looking at and could see a pall of grey smoke coming from the south side.
"You could see a large plume of dark grey smoke."
The BBC's Ross Hawkins said Wandsworth Road near Vauxhall station is closed.
Helicopter crashes into crane in vauxhall london
Helicopter crashes into crane in Vauxhall, London
4 minutes ago
Play
Ex-BBC producer Paul Ferguson: Helicopter 'plummeted straight into the ground'
A helicopter has crashed into a crane at a building site in central London.
Police said it appeared the helicopter had hit the crane on top of a building at about 08:00 GMT. They said it was too early to confirm any casualties.
London Fire Brigade said the crash happened near Wandsworth Road in SouthLambeth. They said more than 60 firefighters were at the scene.
Burning wreckage lay in the road, with all approaches to the Vauxhall Cross one way system closed.
The fire brigade was also attending a second scene involving a crane in a precarious position on St George's Wharf.
Police said they first received calls at 08:00 GMT and the London Ambulance Service said it was also at the scene.
'Enormous bang'
Ex-BBC producer Paul Ferguson said the helicopter "plummeted straight into the ground".
He said: "The building the helicopter hit is shrouded in mist."
Play
Eyewitness Chris Matthison: "There was an unusual buzzing sound and a dull thud"
He said the crane at the top of the building was nowhanging down the side of the building.
Nicky Morgan, MP for Loughborough, witnessed the crash.
"I was walking towards Vauxhall tube station from Lambeth Palace area whereI have a flat," she said.
"There was suddenly an enormous bang - I thoughtsomething exploded.
"It was coming from beyondVauxhall tube station.
"Then clouds and clouds ofblack smoke.
"I presumed what it was I heard was the crane collapsing or the helicoptercrashing into it.
'Huge smoke cloud'
"I heard the bang then sawthe clouds of smoke but there was too much in the way to see much at that point."
Some witnesses reported the wreckage hitting two cars.
Witnesses reported seeingdebris on the ground.
Quinn Murray was cycling when he saw the crash.
He said: "I saw the helicopter hit the top of thecrane and come down just to the left of the station.
"There was quite a large amount of fire and a huge smoke cloud. It wasn't on the road, but into a building site where they are building the new Nine Elms area.
"There's a huge number ofemergency services."
Commuter Sherna Noah described seeing a "large plume of dark grey smoke"as she crossed Battersea Bridge at about 08:00 GMT.
She said: "I was coming across the bridge and basically I could see a few cyclists on the bridge looking towards the water.
"I looked over to see whatthey were looking at and could see a pall of grey smoke coming from the south side.
"You could see a large plume of dark grey smoke."
The BBC's Ross Hawkins said Wandsworth Road near Vauxhall station is closed.
Tuesday, January 15, 2013
Time to take sierra leone from lying hate mongers
Time to take Sierra Leone back from Lying Hate Mongers
By Dr. Sylvia Olayinka Blyden (Officer of Order of the Rokel)
Jan 11, 2013, 17:20 Email this article
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Sorie Fofana & Umaru Fofana areamongst those who thrive on Chaos in Sierra Leone because they know they cannot compete or survive in an Ordered, Civilised& Decent Society where value for the truth is supreme. Latest gimmick is to stir Tribal hate by publishing dangerous lies...
Many people have been asking to read the 8th January 2013 GLOBAL TIMES article of Sorie Fofanawhich sparked the proactive stance of the Head of State in granting an exclusive interview to us this week to condemn tribal stoking in the media. We have today published the article verbatim today. Alongside it, is another terrible and similarly unfortunate article which was Umaru Fofana’s lead story on his POLITICO newspaper of 10th January 2013. It appearsthat now the plot to incite the Mendes has boomeranged, opposition media agents like Umaru Fofana wish to turn their attention to inciting the Temnes in the country. A mostunfortunate situation.
Sadly, these fellows (Umaru Fofana and Sorie Fofana) are not Mendes neither Temnes but they keep on stoking these tribal sentiments to serve their hidden motives to perpetuate chaos in our country. This shameful and disgusting use of tribal tools to score political points must be condemned. We are going to henceforth name and shamethe true enemies of this country’s peace and unity.
Umaru Fofana, President of SLAJ and Sorie Fofana, publisher of Global Times are amongst the enemies of this country’s tranquility and unity
Time to take sierra leone from lying hate mongers
Time to take Sierra Leone back from Lying Hate Mongers
By Dr. Sylvia Olayinka Blyden (Officer of Order of the Rokel)
Jan 11, 2013, 17:20 Email this article
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Sorie Fofana & Umaru Fofana areamongst those who thrive on Chaos in Sierra Leone because they know they cannot compete or survive in an Ordered, Civilised& Decent Society where value for the truth is supreme. Latest gimmick is to stir Tribal hate by publishing dangerous lies...
Many people have been asking to read the 8th January 2013 GLOBAL TIMES article of Sorie Fofanawhich sparked the proactive stance of the Head of State in granting an exclusive interview to us this week to condemn tribal stoking in the media. We have today published the article verbatim today. Alongside it, is another terrible and similarly unfortunate article which was Umaru Fofana’s lead story on his POLITICO newspaper of 10th January 2013. It appearsthat now the plot to incite the Mendes has boomeranged, opposition media agents like Umaru Fofana wish to turn their attention to inciting the Temnes in the country. A mostunfortunate situation.
Sadly, these fellows (Umaru Fofana and Sorie Fofana) are not Mendes neither Temnes but they keep on stoking these tribal sentiments to serve their hidden motives to perpetuate chaos in our country. This shameful and disgusting use of tribal tools to score political points must be condemned. We are going to henceforth name and shamethe true enemies of this country’s peace and unity.
Umaru Fofana, President of SLAJ and Sorie Fofana, publisher of Global Times are amongst the enemies of this country’s tranquility and unity
Monday, January 14, 2013
Bostwana Maun hit by shortage of plot
Maun hit by shortage of plots
SYLVIAH DISELE
Correspondent
Tawana Land Board (TLB) has announced it has only 620 available plots against a backlog of applications pegged at 30 600 in 2010.
Briefing the media at Maun Lodge recently, sub-land board secretary Naledi Demasaid by March 1, 2012, the land board had indefinitely suspended applications and the allocation of new plots tofind more land and screen applications for eligibility.
Dema said the TLB on average receives about 600applications every month forresidential plots. Some applications date as far backas 2000. In that year, the government relocated some residents from Botshabelo and Mabudutsa wards to give way to the expansion of the Maun airport and the construction of the bus and taxi ranks. The relocated residents were settled in Disaneng on plots that were apparently demarcated for new applicants.
Although the Maun Revised Plan provides for more than 40 000 people comprising of 13 000 dwellings in the Maunplanning area by 2031, shortage of land is a hurdle.Maun is the second biggest village in Botswana with a population of 60 263 after Molepolole which is home to 66 466.
In addition, Maun is the fourth-densely populated area in the country. Its population has increased by almost 17 000 in the past 10 years. Dema revealed that the land board has not been successful at convincing some owners of ploughing fields to surrender their fields to the board. "Some owners either turn us down while others complain about the little compensation paid by the land board," she said.
Dema said the land board was disturbed by the emergence of squatter townsin Botshabelo and Boseja. She claimed that some of the squatters were relocated from Botshabelo but sold their plots in Disaneng.The TLB also announced that it was freezing the allocation of boreholes for a year to do a thorough feasibility study.
Meanwhile, efforts to get the2011 and 2012 plot applications and allocations proved futile. Maun West MP Tawana Moremi was not available for comment at press time as his phone wasoff air. In 1971, Maun had a population of 9 614 which grew to 13 925 in 1981, an annual growth rate of 4.5 percent. By 1991, it had 26 769 people and in 2001 it was home to 43 776 people. Maun is the largest settlement in the Ngamiland district and is classified as aprimary centre in terms of the National Settlement Policy
In Sierra Leone now Diamond lure children out of school.
SIERRA LEONE: Diamonds lure children out of school
KOIDU, 6 December 2012 (IRIN) - Sierra Leone’s diamonds fuelled the 1991-2002 civil war, and are now boosting economic growth, but at the sametime they are keeping thousands of children out of school.
At a mine resembling a lunar landscape outsideKoidu town in Kono Region - the diamond mining heartland in northeastern Sierra Leone - thousands of young men dig and shovel gravel in search of the precious stone.
“I had to support my family so I dropped out of school. When I could not find a job in my home town I came here,” said 21-year-old Mumuni Diallo, who arrived in the mining fields when he was 17.
“I am very tired. I havebeen digging this pit formonths, but so far I have found nothing. Still, in mining, every day is a new possibility,” said Diallo,explaining that he was lured by tales of peoplestriking riches.
About 70 percent of Sierra Leone’s youth are unemployed .
Twenty-year-old Alhadji Gborie, who left his home town of Lungi near the capital Freetown for the miningfields, blames the government for failing to provide jobs.
“There is too much talkfrom the president. Let him come here and work for a day to see how it is,” said Gborie, standing in a thigh-deep, muddy water hole.
On 17 November SierraLeoneans re-elected President Ernest Bai Koroma for a second term of office, helped by the fact that the country has seen extensive infrastructure improvement and economic growth in the past five years.
Driven by exports of gold, diamonds and ironore, the country’s economy will grow by up to 21.3 percent this year, according to the International Monetary Fund, but this wealth has yet to filter down to most ordinary SierraLeoneans.
“In many families, children are becoming the breadwinners,” Esate Konteh, from a local NGO in Kono Region, told IRIN. “When the civil war ended in 2002, many families had lost one ortwo parents. Some of them had their limbs amputated and could not work or were not eligible for employment.”
Children are paid 10,000-20,000 leones (US$3-6) a day and 40,000 leones if they find diamonds. In Kenema, to the east of the capital, and Koidu around 3,000 children are estimated to be working in the mines, but there are no officialfigures and the numbermight be much higher, Konteh said.
Youths work either in mines, open pits or riverbeds.
Marginalized youth
“If you work in the pit you don’t go to school. These youth have been marginalized in society from a very young age. Some of theboys were forced to take up arms during the civil war. When they returned home they were met by burntdown houses. Some of them have lost all their family members… This makes it even harder for them to find work and almost none of them returned to school,” said Denis Lansana of local NGO Network Movement for Justice and Development.
Youth training programmes funded by the World Bank and theInternational Red Crosshave only been partially successful, he added.
“With no skills and no other possibility to find work, the mine is an easy way to get rich,” said Lansana, adding: “Diamond mining is just more attractive and lucrative than woodwork or farming. The children enrolled inclasses ended up selling their textbooks before returning to the pit.”
“Our aim is that no children should work in the pits. However, this is hard to control as wehave no means to follow up on the [government] ban [on children working in mines],” said Sahr Tamba, a director at the Ministry of Mines.
In Sierra Leone now Diamond lure children out of school.
SIERRA LEONE: Diamonds lure children out of school
KOIDU, 6 December 2012 (IRIN) - Sierra Leone’s diamonds fuelled the 1991-2002 civil war, and are now boosting economic growth, but at the sametime they are keeping thousands of children out of school.
At a mine resembling a lunar landscape outsideKoidu town in Kono Region - the diamond mining heartland in northeastern Sierra Leone - thousands of young men dig and shovel gravel in search of the precious stone.
“I had to support my family so I dropped out of school. When I could not find a job in my home town I came here,” said 21-year-old Mumuni Diallo, who arrived in the mining fields when he was 17.
“I am very tired. I havebeen digging this pit formonths, but so far I have found nothing. Still, in mining, every day is a new possibility,” said Diallo,explaining that he was lured by tales of peoplestriking riches.
About 70 percent of Sierra Leone’s youth are unemployed .
Twenty-year-old Alhadji Gborie, who left his home town of Lungi near the capital Freetown for the miningfields, blames the government for failing to provide jobs.
“There is too much talkfrom the president. Let him come here and work for a day to see how it is,” said Gborie, standing in a thigh-deep, muddy water hole.
On 17 November SierraLeoneans re-elected President Ernest Bai Koroma for a second term of office, helped by the fact that the country has seen extensive infrastructure improvement and economic growth in the past five years.
Driven by exports of gold, diamonds and ironore, the country’s economy will grow by up to 21.3 percent this year, according to the International Monetary Fund, but this wealth has yet to filter down to most ordinary SierraLeoneans.
“In many families, children are becoming the breadwinners,” Esate Konteh, from a local NGO in Kono Region, told IRIN. “When the civil war ended in 2002, many families had lost one ortwo parents. Some of them had their limbs amputated and could not work or were not eligible for employment.”
Children are paid 10,000-20,000 leones (US$3-6) a day and 40,000 leones if they find diamonds. In Kenema, to the east of the capital, and Koidu around 3,000 children are estimated to be working in the mines, but there are no officialfigures and the numbermight be much higher, Konteh said.
Youths work either in mines, open pits or riverbeds.
Marginalized youth
“If you work in the pit you don’t go to school. These youth have been marginalized in society from a very young age. Some of theboys were forced to take up arms during the civil war. When they returned home they were met by burntdown houses. Some of them have lost all their family members… This makes it even harder for them to find work and almost none of them returned to school,” said Denis Lansana of local NGO Network Movement for Justice and Development.
Youth training programmes funded by the World Bank and theInternational Red Crosshave only been partially successful, he added.
“With no skills and no other possibility to find work, the mine is an easy way to get rich,” said Lansana, adding: “Diamond mining is just more attractive and lucrative than woodwork or farming. The children enrolled inclasses ended up selling their textbooks before returning to the pit.”
“Our aim is that no children should work in the pits. However, this is hard to control as wehave no means to follow up on the [government] ban [on children working in mines],” said Sahr Tamba, a director at the Ministry of Mines.
In Sierra Leone now Diamond lure children out of school.
SIERRA LEONE: Diamonds lure children out of school
KOIDU, 6 December 2012 (IRIN) - Sierra Leone’s diamonds fuelled the 1991-2002 civil war, and are now boosting economic growth, but at the sametime they are keeping thousands of children out of school.
At a mine resembling a lunar landscape outsideKoidu town in Kono Region - the diamond mining heartland in northeastern Sierra Leone - thousands of young men dig and shovel gravel in search of the precious stone.
“I had to support my family so I dropped out of school. When I could not find a job in my home town I came here,” said 21-year-old Mumuni Diallo, who arrived in the mining fields when he was 17.
“I am very tired. I havebeen digging this pit formonths, but so far I have found nothing. Still, in mining, every day is a new possibility,” said Diallo,explaining that he was lured by tales of peoplestriking riches.
About 70 percent of Sierra Leone’s youth are unemployed .
Twenty-year-old Alhadji Gborie, who left his home town of Lungi near the capital Freetown for the miningfields, blames the government for failing to provide jobs.
“There is too much talkfrom the president. Let him come here and work for a day to see how it is,” said Gborie, standing in a thigh-deep, muddy water hole.
On 17 November SierraLeoneans re-elected President Ernest Bai Koroma for a second term of office, helped by the fact that the country has seen extensive infrastructure improvement and economic growth in the past five years.
Driven by exports of gold, diamonds and ironore, the country’s economy will grow by up to 21.3 percent this year, according to the International Monetary Fund, but this wealth has yet to filter down to most ordinary SierraLeoneans.
“In many families, children are becoming the breadwinners,” Esate Konteh, from a local NGO in Kono Region, told IRIN. “When the civil war ended in 2002, many families had lost one ortwo parents. Some of them had their limbs amputated and could not work or were not eligible for employment.”
Children are paid 10,000-20,000 leones (US$3-6) a day and 40,000 leones if they find diamonds. In Kenema, to the east of the capital, and Koidu around 3,000 children are estimated to be working in the mines, but there are no officialfigures and the numbermight be much higher, Konteh said.
Youths work either in mines, open pits or riverbeds.
Marginalized youth
“If you work in the pit you don’t go to school. These youth have been marginalized in society from a very young age. Some of theboys were forced to take up arms during the civil war. When they returned home they were met by burntdown houses. Some of them have lost all their family members… This makes it even harder for them to find work and almost none of them returned to school,” said Denis Lansana of local NGO Network Movement for Justice and Development.
Youth training programmes funded by the World Bank and theInternational Red Crosshave only been partially successful, he added.
“With no skills and no other possibility to find work, the mine is an easy way to get rich,” said Lansana, adding: “Diamond mining is just more attractive and lucrative than woodwork or farming. The children enrolled inclasses ended up selling their textbooks before returning to the pit.”
“Our aim is that no children should work in the pits. However, this is hard to control as wehave no means to follow up on the [government] ban [on children working in mines],” said Sahr Tamba, a director at the Ministry of Mines.
In Sierra Leone now Diamond lure children out of school.
SIERRA LEONE: Diamonds lure children out of school
KOIDU, 6 December 2012 (IRIN) - Sierra Leone’s diamonds fuelled the 1991-2002 civil war, and are now boosting economic growth, but at the sametime they are keeping thousands of children out of school.
At a mine resembling a lunar landscape outsideKoidu town in Kono Region - the diamond mining heartland in northeastern Sierra Leone - thousands of young men dig and shovel gravel in search of the precious stone.
“I had to support my family so I dropped out of school. When I could not find a job in my home town I came here,” said 21-year-old Mumuni Diallo, who arrived in the mining fields when he was 17.
“I am very tired. I havebeen digging this pit formonths, but so far I have found nothing. Still, in mining, every day is a new possibility,” said Diallo,explaining that he was lured by tales of peoplestriking riches.
About 70 percent of Sierra Leone’s youth are unemployed .
Twenty-year-old Alhadji Gborie, who left his home town of Lungi near the capital Freetown for the miningfields, blames the government for failing to provide jobs.
“There is too much talkfrom the president. Let him come here and work for a day to see how it is,” said Gborie, standing in a thigh-deep, muddy water hole.
On 17 November SierraLeoneans re-elected President Ernest Bai Koroma for a second term of office, helped by the fact that the country has seen extensive infrastructure improvement and economic growth in the past five years.
Driven by exports of gold, diamonds and ironore, the country’s economy will grow by up to 21.3 percent this year, according to the International Monetary Fund, but this wealth has yet to filter down to most ordinary SierraLeoneans.
“In many families, children are becoming the breadwinners,” Esate Konteh, from a local NGO in Kono Region, told IRIN. “When the civil war ended in 2002, many families had lost one ortwo parents. Some of them had their limbs amputated and could not work or were not eligible for employment.”
Children are paid 10,000-20,000 leones (US$3-6) a day and 40,000 leones if they find diamonds. In Kenema, to the east of the capital, and Koidu around 3,000 children are estimated to be working in the mines, but there are no officialfigures and the numbermight be much higher, Konteh said.
Youths work either in mines, open pits or riverbeds.
Marginalized youth
“If you work in the pit you don’t go to school. These youth have been marginalized in society from a very young age. Some of theboys were forced to take up arms during the civil war. When they returned home they were met by burntdown houses. Some of them have lost all their family members… This makes it even harder for them to find work and almost none of them returned to school,” said Denis Lansana of local NGO Network Movement for Justice and Development.
Youth training programmes funded by the World Bank and theInternational Red Crosshave only been partially successful, he added.
“With no skills and no other possibility to find work, the mine is an easy way to get rich,” said Lansana, adding: “Diamond mining is just more attractive and lucrative than woodwork or farming. The children enrolled inclasses ended up selling their textbooks before returning to the pit.”
“Our aim is that no children should work in the pits. However, this is hard to control as wehave no means to follow up on the [government] ban [on children working in mines],” said Sahr Tamba, a director at the Ministry of Mines.
Sunday, January 13, 2013
President koroma must be given the freedom to what he thinks that is better for the country's development
In Part 1 of the series, I used the metaphor of the goalkeeper to demonstrate my point that ”.. …the President must be given the free handto choose the people he believes will help him achieve results.” I stressed the important need for the President to work with people hetrusts and who are ready to cooperate fuly with him to helphim achieve his agenda. I posited that the goalkeeper“has to be comfortable with hisdefenders around him and the backs must be serving the best interest ofthe team’s playing style for the goalieto do a great job between the posts” and for his team to succeed .I said that there must be greater understanding between the goalkeepers and his defenders because the goalkeeper has to know what his defenders will do inany given situation for him to make informed decisions to commit himself to attempt a save or remain between theposts waiting for the opposing attackers to strike.
I did not mean that the President can only be a goalkeeper. It was just one metaphor among the many one could use to dissect the roles the President has to play. Indeed, the President is all-round team player . He can be adefender , keeping his goalmouth secure from raidingopponents. He can be a midfield playermasterminding and directing attacks onthe opponents’ goal like Paul Scholes does so magnificently for Manchester United or Frank Lampard so efficiently for Chelsea. The President can also be a striker ( A centre forward in the mold of our eternally famous King Kama Dumbuya) whose role is to receive passes andscore goals or dribble himself and notch the required goals . The metaphors can go on and on and on and on. But the central message in Part 1 must not be missed —That “This issue of demanding that President Ernest Koroma appoint certain classes, categories or ages or educational levels of people willbe counter-productive if such appointments are not well tailored to cohere with what makes the President comfortable to perform well and what will serve the best interest of thenation.”
I did not in any wayimply that PresidentErnest Koroma should not include youths, women and other groups in his cabinet. My friend,Mr. Sheku Sheriff of the SEGBWEMA BLOGSPOT therefore got it all wrong when he interpreted my position in these words : “In other words those calling for the president toinclude youths, women and diversity in his new government were wrong, as in Kabbs Kanu’s opinion, the President should only work with people he trusts, regardless of age, sex or background,as by doing so he will work better in the interest of “thecountry”. I think you got me all wrong, Mr. Sheriff. And you got me wrong just at a timeI was thanking God for you for being one of the many journalists who understood the dilemma that has gripped the nation after the elections — the dog-fight for government appointments among journalists , which is forcing some to adopt a dog-eat-dog philosophy to attack appointees helping to promote the government in the media , thinking that , by so doing, they will be called and givengovernment appointments. Or these appointees will be removed andtheir jobs handed to these desperate men . It took a smart man like you to notice it and bring it to the attention of your readers . Many people have forwarded your article to me, titled ,THE QUEST FOR PRESIDENTIAL APPOINTMENTS IN SIERRA LEONE HAS BECOME SUBLIME . Though I disagree with your portrayal of Sylvia Blyden, Titus Boye-Thompson and others in that article, I think you correcty mirrored the dilemma government appointees under attack from the madman are going through.
However, you got me wrong on the advise that the President be allowed to appoint whom he wants to work with .
President koroma must be given the freedom to what he thinks that is better for the country's development
In Part 1 of the series, I used the metaphor of the goalkeeper to demonstrate my point that ”.. …the President must be given the free handto choose the people he believes will help him achieve results.” I stressed the important need for the President to work with people hetrusts and who are ready to cooperate fuly with him to helphim achieve his agenda. I posited that the goalkeeper“has to be comfortable with hisdefenders around him and the backs must be serving the best interest ofthe team’s playing style for the goalieto do a great job between the posts” and for his team to succeed .I said that there must be greater understanding between the goalkeepers and his defenders because the goalkeeper has to know what his defenders will do inany given situation for him to make informed decisions to commit himself to attempt a save or remain between theposts waiting for the opposing attackers to strike.
I did not mean that the President can only be a goalkeeper. It was just one metaphor among the many one could use to dissect the roles the President has to play. Indeed, the President is all-round team player . He can be adefender , keeping his goalmouth secure from raidingopponents. He can be a midfield playermasterminding and directing attacks onthe opponents’ goal like Paul Scholes does so magnificently for Manchester United or Frank Lampard so efficiently for Chelsea. The President can also be a striker ( A centre forward in the mold of our eternally famous King Kama Dumbuya) whose role is to receive passes andscore goals or dribble himself and notch the required goals . The metaphors can go on and on and on and on. But the central message in Part 1 must not be missed —That “This issue of demanding that President Ernest Koroma appoint certain classes, categories or ages or educational levels of people willbe counter-productive if such appointments are not well tailored to cohere with what makes the President comfortable to perform well and what will serve the best interest of thenation.”
I did not in any wayimply that PresidentErnest Koroma should not include youths, women and other groups in his cabinet. My friend,Mr. Sheku Sheriff of the SEGBWEMA BLOGSPOT therefore got it all wrong when he interpreted my position in these words : “In other words those calling for the president toinclude youths, women and diversity in his new government were wrong, as in Kabbs Kanu’s opinion, the President should only work with people he trusts, regardless of age, sex or background,as by doing so he will work better in the interest of “thecountry”. I think you got me all wrong, Mr. Sheriff. And you got me wrong just at a timeI was thanking God for you for being one of the many journalists who understood the dilemma that has gripped the nation after the elections — the dog-fight for government appointments among journalists , which is forcing some to adopt a dog-eat-dog philosophy to attack appointees helping to promote the government in the media , thinking that , by so doing, they will be called and givengovernment appointments. Or these appointees will be removed andtheir jobs handed to these desperate men . It took a smart man like you to notice it and bring it to the attention of your readers . Many people have forwarded your article to me, titled ,THE QUEST FOR PRESIDENTIAL APPOINTMENTS IN SIERRA LEONE HAS BECOME SUBLIME . Though I disagree with your portrayal of Sylvia Blyden, Titus Boye-Thompson and others in that article, I think you correcty mirrored the dilemma government appointees under attack from the madman are going through.
However, you got me wrong on the advise that the President be allowed to appoint whom he wants to work with .
Fuel crisis in Sierra Leone wilk be over this week
The fuel crisis in Sierra Leone will be over this week as a ship load of the precious material arrived in Freetown this morning. SLBC News showed a photo of the ship docking .
The ship sailed in with 7.5 thousand metric tons of fuel enough to bring situation to normal and Government officials are assuring members of the public that it will do everything to ensure that the shortage does not occur in the foreseeable future.
The fuel shortage was caused by a scarcity of petroleum materialsin West Africa, leading to even oil-producing Nigeria facing a similar fuel crisis last week.
The Government has shown its concern to the people by responding speedily to the crisis.
Fuel crisis in Sierra Leone wilk be over this week
The fuel crisis in Sierra Leone will be over this week as a ship load of the precious material arrived in Freetown this morning. SLBC News showed a photo of the ship docking .
The ship sailed in with 7.5 thousand metric tons of fuel enough to bring situation to normal and Government officials are assuring members of the public that it will do everything to ensure that the shortage does not occur in the foreseeable future.
The fuel shortage was caused by a scarcity of petroleum materialsin West Africa, leading to even oil-producing Nigeria facing a similar fuel crisis last week.
The Government has shown its concern to the people by responding speedily to the crisis.
Friday, January 11, 2013
15 people including a councellor arrested over killing of women in Mara Region
15 arrested over killing of women Send to a friend
Friday, 11 January 2013 12:22
IGP Said Mwema. By Beldina Nyakeke
The Citizen Correspondent
Fifteen people, including a councillor, have been arrested in connection with the wave of ritual killing of women in Mara Region.
Mara Regional Police Commander Absalom Mwakyoma said the suspectswere arrested in Musoma and Butiama districts, where several women have been killed and some of their bodyparts taken by the killers.
The arrests were made during an operation led by Deputy Commissioner of Police Simon Sirro.
Mr Mwakyoma said the suspects were being questioned and were expected to appear in court soon.
The Police Force headquarters earlier this week dispatched a team to Mara Region to assist in the hunt for people involved in the gruesome killings that have been linked to witchcraft.
Residents of Musoma and Butiama districts have been living in fear for several months since the killings began last August.
Six people have been killed so far, forcing women to curtain their routine activities such as fetching water and firewood and tilling the land.
Frightened residents suspect there is a serial killer on the loose or some crazed people motivated by superstitious beliefs associated with mining.
The first victim was an elderly woman from Mhare Village, who was killed by unknown assailants who cut off and took her legs and tongue.
In October, a Standard Six pupil was killed in Etaro Village as she walked home from Lake Victoria where shehad gone to fetch water.
The next victim was a woman from Nyakirira Village, followed by an incident in December in whichMs Blandina Peru of Mahare Village was killed as she wasfetching firewood.
In yet another incident, Ms Sabina Mkireri, a resident of Kabegi Village in NyakatendeWard, was killed by unknownassailants, who fled with herhead and genitals.
More killings are said to have taken place in Nyakatende Ward after a constitutional review meeting.
15 people including a councellor arrested over killing of women in Mara Region
15 arrested over killing of women Send to a friend
Friday, 11 January 2013 12:22
IGP Said Mwema. By Beldina Nyakeke
The Citizen Correspondent
Fifteen people, including a councillor, have been arrested in connection with the wave of ritual killing of women in Mara Region.
Mara Regional Police Commander Absalom Mwakyoma said the suspectswere arrested in Musoma and Butiama districts, where several women have been killed and some of their bodyparts taken by the killers.
The arrests were made during an operation led by Deputy Commissioner of Police Simon Sirro.
Mr Mwakyoma said the suspects were being questioned and were expected to appear in court soon.
The Police Force headquarters earlier this week dispatched a team to Mara Region to assist in the hunt for people involved in the gruesome killings that have been linked to witchcraft.
Residents of Musoma and Butiama districts have been living in fear for several months since the killings began last August.
Six people have been killed so far, forcing women to curtain their routine activities such as fetching water and firewood and tilling the land.
Frightened residents suspect there is a serial killer on the loose or some crazed people motivated by superstitious beliefs associated with mining.
The first victim was an elderly woman from Mhare Village, who was killed by unknown assailants who cut off and took her legs and tongue.
In October, a Standard Six pupil was killed in Etaro Village as she walked home from Lake Victoria where shehad gone to fetch water.
The next victim was a woman from Nyakirira Village, followed by an incident in December in whichMs Blandina Peru of Mahare Village was killed as she wasfetching firewood.
In yet another incident, Ms Sabina Mkireri, a resident of Kabegi Village in NyakatendeWard, was killed by unknownassailants, who fled with herhead and genitals.
More killings are said to have taken place in Nyakatende Ward after a constitutional review meeting.
15 people including a councellor arrested over killing of women in Mara Region
15 arrested over killing of women Send to a friend
Friday, 11 January 2013 12:22
IGP Said Mwema. By Beldina Nyakeke
The Citizen Correspondent
Fifteen people, including a councillor, have been arrested in connection with the wave of ritual killing of women in Mara Region.
Mara Regional Police Commander Absalom Mwakyoma said the suspectswere arrested in Musoma and Butiama districts, where several women have been killed and some of their bodyparts taken by the killers.
The arrests were made during an operation led by Deputy Commissioner of Police Simon Sirro.
Mr Mwakyoma said the suspects were being questioned and were expected to appear in court soon.
The Police Force headquarters earlier this week dispatched a team to Mara Region to assist in the hunt for people involved in the gruesome killings that have been linked to witchcraft.
Residents of Musoma and Butiama districts have been living in fear for several months since the killings began last August.
Six people have been killed so far, forcing women to curtain their routine activities such as fetching water and firewood and tilling the land.
Frightened residents suspect there is a serial killer on the loose or some crazed people motivated by superstitious beliefs associated with mining.
The first victim was an elderly woman from Mhare Village, who was killed by unknown assailants who cut off and took her legs and tongue.
In October, a Standard Six pupil was killed in Etaro Village as she walked home from Lake Victoria where shehad gone to fetch water.
The next victim was a woman from Nyakirira Village, followed by an incident in December in whichMs Blandina Peru of Mahare Village was killed as she wasfetching firewood.
In yet another incident, Ms Sabina Mkireri, a resident of Kabegi Village in NyakatendeWard, was killed by unknownassailants, who fled with herhead and genitals.
More killings are said to have taken place in Nyakatende Ward after a constitutional review meeting.
IMF say Tanzania can borrow more
IMF says Tanzania can borrow more Send to a friend
Thursday, 10 January 2013 22:40
By Alawi Masare
The Citizen Reporter
Dar es Salaam. Tanzania cannow borrow money from foreign commercial banks without restrictions because its debt levels are sustainable and the performance of the economy is good, according to the International Monetary Fund. The IMF has always discouraged borrowing from foreign commercialsources ornon-concessional borrowing because servicing such debts is expensive and alsodue tothe high risk of defaulting by poor countries such as Tanzania.
But in a statement released yesterday after Executive Board talks on Tanzania, IMFDeputy Managing Director Naoyuki Shinohara said the fund had established that the country’s debt is sustainable and borrowing from foreign credit facilities will not harm the economy.
Mr Shinohara, who chaired the talks, said in a statementyesterday: “The budget for 2012/13 appropriately balances the country’s development and social spending needs with the debt-stabilising objective. To preserve the fiscal consolidation path and avoida build-up of arrears, any revenue shortfalls would be offset by cutbacks in recurrent and non-priority capital expenditures while safeguarding critical social spending.”
The IMF Board has approvedTanzania’s request for a waiver of “non-observance of the continuous performance/assessment criterion on the ceiling on external non-concessional debt contracted or guaranteed by the government. The staff judged that the non-observance would not materially affect the country’s debt sustainability.”
The IMF’s waiver also comesafter the government requested, last July, to be allowed to raise the externalnon-concessional borrowing under the three-year Policy Support Instrument ceiling from $1.5 billion to $1.8 billion.
This would enable the government to accommodate its financial needs for infrastructure, mainly in the energy sector, in the 2012/13 budget. The projects that were to be financed through loans from foreign banks included $1.25billion Mtwara-Dar gas pipeline and the $135 million debt the government guaranteed for the TanzaniaElectric Supply Company limited (Tanesco). There are also debt facilities worth$1.4 billion for other development projects.
IMF said that Tanzania’s debt is sustainable and projects a decline in the primary deficit to a debt-stabilising level of 2.5 per cent of the gross domestic product (GDP) by 2014/15 and a further decline to between 1.5 and two percent. Seasoned economists warn, however, that Tanzania should not use the opportunity to pile-up the national debt andpush the country in an unnecessary crisis. They nonetheless commend the move by the IMF.
“It shows the IMF has confidence in Tanzania’s economic performance but wehave to tread carefully on this….with the planned Eurobond, meant help Tanzania get funds for infrastructure development, chances are that we may endup accumulating a huge debt that may not be good for thecountry’s economic development,” said Prof Delphin Rwegasira from the University of Dar es Salaam.
Economics Professor Humphrey Moshi echoed these sentiments: “It’s a good move for a country likeTanzania as it gives the country more policy space and freedom of policy choice.Although the country can freely negotiate loans from any source, the government must carefully borrow to avoid piling-up the national debt as was the case in the 2000s.”
Tanzania’s external debt stock stood at $10.5931 billion at the end of November 2012. That was a rise of $89.9 million and$582.1 million over the amount recorded at the end of the preceding month and corresponding period in 2011 respectively, accordingto the Bank of Tanzania.
Of the external debt stock, Disbursed Outstanding Debt accounted for 86 per cent and the rest was interest arrears.
The ratio of external debt toGDP, in nominal terms, was 37.1 per cent while that of public and private sector external debt to GDP was 30.4 per cent and 6.6 per cent, respectively.
The profile of external debt by borrower category indicates that Central Government debt rose to$8.1551 billion and its share in external debt stock rose to 77 per cent from 70.9 per cent recorded in the corresponding period in 2011 due to new disbursements received fromInternational Development Association (IDA) and Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA).
According to the IMF statement, in completing the SCF review, the board made available for disbursement an additional $57 million, bringing total resources available for potential disbursement under the arrangement to $114 million. The board approved the precautionary 18-month SCF arrangement for Tanzania inJuly 2012 to an amount equivalent to $228 million.
3 kurdish women activists shot dead in Paris
3 Kurdish women activists shot dead in Paris
UPDATED: Jan 10, 2013 17:28 GMT
The apparent assassinationof three Kurdish women political activists in central Paris on Thursday, all shot in the head, has provoked shock among the Kurdish community.
Mystery swirls around the slayings, with no claim of responsibility or any indication from authorities as to who might have pulled the trigger.
The fact that one of the women is a founding memberof the Kurdish Workers' Party, or PKK -- a group viewed by Turkey, the United States and others as a terror organization -- hasled to heightened speculation.
The killings come at a delicate time for Kurds in Turkey, where analysts saythe government has recently entered into talks with Kurdish leaders -- among them the jailed head of the PKK, Abdullah Ocalan.
Analysts suggest the attack could be an attempt to deraila nascent peace process, inwhat is one of the Middle East's longest-running conflicts.
The PKK, a pan-Kurdish nationalist movement, is best known internationally for the guerrilla war it has fought for nearly three decades against the government of Turkey, a conflict that has claimed more than 40,000 lives.
The ethnic Kurdish population extends across parts of Turkey, Syria, Iran and Iraq.
French Interior Minister Manuel Valls told reporters in Paris the three women had been "without doubt executed" and described the killings as "totally unacceptable."
Report: Turkey's Kurdish conflict has turned more violent
The main pro-Kurdish political party in Turkey, thePeace and Democracy Party,or BDP, identified the three victims as Sakine Cansiz, who was a co-founder of the PKK, Leyla Sonmez and Fidan Dogan
Syrian accuses U.N pointman of "bias"
Syria accuses U.N. pointman of 'bias'
UPDATED: Jan 10, 2013 18:14 GMT
Syria accused the diplomat working to forge peace of an unfair tilt toward the enemies of Damascus, according to a state news report on Thursday.
Lakhdar Brahimi, the U.N. and Arab League special envoy to Syria, has"deviated from the essence of his mission and clearly unveiled his bias to circles known for conspiring against Syria and the interests of the Syrian people who have not read the political program for solving crisis objectively," the report said.
The state-run Syrian Arab News Agency, a governmentmouthpiece, quoted an official source at the Foreignand Expatriates Ministry.
Syria's remarks come after the BBC interviewed Brahimi,who has been trying to persuade the government and rebels to cease hostilities, urge world powers to move along a political settlement, and end a civil war that has left morethan 60,000 people dead.
Brahimi told BBC that President Bashar al-Assad told him last month that "he was thinking of taking a newinitiative." Brahimi was quoted as saying he told al-Assad that "it would haveto be different from initiatives in the past ... which had not changed the situation one iota."
But, Brahimi said, "what has been said this time is not really different. It is perhapseven more sectarian, more one-sided."
In a public address on Sunday, al-Assad laid out a plan for a solution to the crisis, which he said should start with regional countriesending their support for"terrorists." The government frequently usesthat term to describe dissidents.
It includes a national dialogue as well as the drawing of a new constitution that would be put up for a public referendum. A major caveat to the plan: Al-Assad said he will not deal with"terrorists."
BBC said Brahimi confirmed reports that al-Assad told him he was considering a run for president next year.Al-Assad and his late father, Hafez, before him have run Syria for decades.
"I think what people are saying is, a family ruling for 40 years is a little bit too long," he saidThe international community is talking about the need fora government transition. Brahimi said al-Assad uses the word, "but whether he means the transition that is needed is uncertain."
The Syrian source said Damascus "expected the U.N. envoy to read and analyze the political programfor solving the crisis which we provided his office in Damascus with a copy of, asthe only way out of the crisis, for it is based on the comprehensive dialogue among all elements of the Syrian society to agree on anational pact to be put to referendum and charts the political, economic and judicial system of Syria on democratic pluralistic bases."
Top British diplomat: "All options are on the table"
British Foreign Secretary William Hague told the Houseof Commons on Thursday that the country will ramp upits help for the opposition inan effort to achieve a political transition.
But he said that "all options are on the table."
Syrian accuses U.N pointman of "bias"
Syria accuses U.N. pointman of 'bias'
UPDATED: Jan 10, 2013 18:14 GMT
Syria accused the diplomat working to forge peace of an unfair tilt toward the enemies of Damascus, according to a state news report on Thursday.
Lakhdar Brahimi, the U.N. and Arab League special envoy to Syria, has"deviated from the essence of his mission and clearly unveiled his bias to circles known for conspiring against Syria and the interests of the Syrian people who have not read the political program for solving crisis objectively," the report said.
The state-run Syrian Arab News Agency, a governmentmouthpiece, quoted an official source at the Foreignand Expatriates Ministry.
Syria's remarks come after the BBC interviewed Brahimi,who has been trying to persuade the government and rebels to cease hostilities, urge world powers to move along a political settlement, and end a civil war that has left morethan 60,000 people dead.
Brahimi told BBC that President Bashar al-Assad told him last month that "he was thinking of taking a newinitiative." Brahimi was quoted as saying he told al-Assad that "it would haveto be different from initiatives in the past ... which had not changed the situation one iota."
But, Brahimi said, "what has been said this time is not really different. It is perhapseven more sectarian, more one-sided."
In a public address on Sunday, al-Assad laid out a plan for a solution to the crisis, which he said should start with regional countriesending their support for"terrorists." The government frequently usesthat term to describe dissidents.
It includes a national dialogue as well as the drawing of a new constitution that would be put up for a public referendum. A major caveat to the plan: Al-Assad said he will not deal with"terrorists."
BBC said Brahimi confirmed reports that al-Assad told him he was considering a run for president next year.Al-Assad and his late father, Hafez, before him have run Syria for decades.
"I think what people are saying is, a family ruling for 40 years is a little bit too long," he saidThe international community is talking about the need fora government transition. Brahimi said al-Assad uses the word, "but whether he means the transition that is needed is uncertain."
The Syrian source said Damascus "expected the U.N. envoy to read and analyze the political programfor solving the crisis which we provided his office in Damascus with a copy of, asthe only way out of the crisis, for it is based on the comprehensive dialogue among all elements of the Syrian society to agree on anational pact to be put to referendum and charts the political, economic and judicial system of Syria on democratic pluralistic bases."
Top British diplomat: "All options are on the table"
British Foreign Secretary William Hague told the Houseof Commons on Thursday that the country will ramp upits help for the opposition inan effort to achieve a political transition.
But he said that "all options are on the table."
Monday, January 7, 2013
Be self-decipline president Koroma urges Sierraleonans
“Be Self-disciplined”…President Koroma urges Sierra Leoneans
By: State House Communications Unit on January 7, 2013.
Freetown: His Excellency Dr. Ernest Bai Koroma (in photo) on Friday, 4th January 2013, called on Sierra Leoneans from across the board to inculcate and develop the culture of self-discipline, if the country was to move forward.
The President made the declaration while addressing representatives of petty traders and market women aswell as civil society and youthgroups during the commitment ceremony for operation WasteDisposal and Management, Improved Road Safety and Decongestion of City Streets (WID) at the forecourt of StateHouse, Freetown.
Acknowledging the fact that lawlessness was a cause for concern in the country, President Koroma pledged to take the bull by the horns through robust action and vigilance, saying, “although lawlessness was on the rise, if the law enforcement agencies enforce the laws in Sierra Leone it will take the country a long way. Because even the developed nations of the world are disciplined and law abiding”.
He described the issue of lawlessness as a huge challenge to the country, warning that the moment to straighten the “rough edges”has finally come.
“Lawlessness has to stop thisyear because it is right for usto be law abiding. We all should turn a new page as the honeymoon is over. A society which is set for development must allow the law to reign supreme”, he maintained.
The Head of State further encouraged all citizens of thisgreat nation to develop the culture of personal restraint not for political consideration, but it should be part of us as a nation. He also described the occasion as a great moment for the country’s business community.
President Koroma however declared that the time for “orders from above” was over as no one was above the law, irrespective of political, social or economic status. “No “orders from above” should be given to police officers while executingtheir constitutional duties as law enforcement agents”, he warned.
The Mayor of Freetown City Council, Franklyn Bode Gibsonsaid that this is the first time a government was demonstrating the political will to address the issue of indiscipline in the country.
He warned against the disposal of garbage on the streets, and that people should stop using public places as dustbins. Mayor Gibson also frowned at the reckless manner in which motorists and cyclists are using the roads, saying that there should be high regard for road safety.
“We are going to decongest the roads so that people should stop using the roads as garages and the operationis bound to succeed and be sustained”, he vowed.
The Inspector General of Police Francis Alieu Munu said that operation WID will help the flow of traffic and will alsofacilitate emergency situations. He said the Sierra Leone Police will commit every available resource to ensure that the operation succeeds.
Sierra Leone Roads TransportAuthority’s Dr. Sarah Bendu said the Ministry of Transportand Aviation was more than ready for the implementation and full enforcement of the operation.
Commitments toward the implementation and full enforcement of the operation were also made by the Director General of the Sierra Leone Roads Authority, MundaRogers, Gibril Turay of the Traders Union, Alphonso Manley of Youth Coalition, Madam Marie Bob Kandeh of the Market Women, representative of Heath Alert,David Sesay of National Biker Riders Union, etc
Israel to build fence along Syrian border
Israel to build fence along Syrian border
UPDATED: Jan 7, 2013 09:36 GMT
As regional fears mount over spillover from Syria's civil war, Israel plans to build a fence along its border with the embattled country.
The announcement came during Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's weekly Cabinet address, in which he cited the construction of a 230-kilometer fence along Israel's southern border with Egypt.
Read more: Scavenging for food, Syrian children witness war
"We intend to erect an identical fence, with a few changes based on the actualterritory, along the Golan Heights. We know that on other side of our border with Syria today, the Syrian army has moved away, and in its place, global jihad forces have moved in," Netanyahu said, according to a transcript of his remarks.
"Therefore, we will defend this border against both infiltration and terrorism, just as we are successfully doing on the Sinai border."
Syrian opposition and government sources have reported that the extremist al-Nusra Front, which the United States has designated as a terrorist group with links to al Qaeda in Iraq, has taken part in some of the fighting in Syria.
Watch: Lost youth for Syria's war witnesses
Netanyahu also said the Syrian government is "very unstable" and expressed concerns about the possibleuse of chemical weapons.
Israel seized the Golan Heights, along with the WestBank, Gaza and the Sinai Peninsula, during the 1967 war. The Sinai has since been returned to Egypt.
Israel annexed the Golan Heights in 1981, a move not recognized by the international community and condemned by Syria, which still claims the land.
Israel to build fence along Syrian border
Israel to build fence along Syrian border
UPDATED: Jan 7, 2013 09:36 GMT
As regional fears mount over spillover from Syria's civil war, Israel plans to build a fence along its border with the embattled country.
The announcement came during Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's weekly Cabinet address, in which he cited the construction of a 230-kilometer fence along Israel's southern border with Egypt.
Read more: Scavenging for food, Syrian children witness war
"We intend to erect an identical fence, with a few changes based on the actualterritory, along the Golan Heights. We know that on other side of our border with Syria today, the Syrian army has moved away, and in its place, global jihad forces have moved in," Netanyahu said, according to a transcript of his remarks.
"Therefore, we will defend this border against both infiltration and terrorism, just as we are successfully doing on the Sinai border."
Syrian opposition and government sources have reported that the extremist al-Nusra Front, which the United States has designated as a terrorist group with links to al Qaeda in Iraq, has taken part in some of the fighting in Syria.
Watch: Lost youth for Syria's war witnesses
Netanyahu also said the Syrian government is "very unstable" and expressed concerns about the possibleuse of chemical weapons.
Israel seized the Golan Heights, along with the WestBank, Gaza and the Sinai Peninsula, during the 1967 war. The Sinai has since been returned to Egypt.
Israel annexed the Golan Heights in 1981, a move not recognized by the international community and condemned by Syria, which still claims the land.
Israel to build fence along Syrian border
Israel to build fence along Syrian border
UPDATED: Jan 7, 2013 09:36 GMT
As regional fears mount over spillover from Syria's civil war, Israel plans to build a fence along its border with the embattled country.
The announcement came during Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's weekly Cabinet address, in which he cited the construction of a 230-kilometer fence along Israel's southern border with Egypt.
Read more: Scavenging for food, Syrian children witness war
"We intend to erect an identical fence, with a few changes based on the actualterritory, along the Golan Heights. We know that on other side of our border with Syria today, the Syrian army has moved away, and in its place, global jihad forces have moved in," Netanyahu said, according to a transcript of his remarks.
"Therefore, we will defend this border against both infiltration and terrorism, just as we are successfully doing on the Sinai border."
Syrian opposition and government sources have reported that the extremist al-Nusra Front, which the United States has designated as a terrorist group with links to al Qaeda in Iraq, has taken part in some of the fighting in Syria.
Watch: Lost youth for Syria's war witnesses
Netanyahu also said the Syrian government is "very unstable" and expressed concerns about the possibleuse of chemical weapons.
Israel seized the Golan Heights, along with the WestBank, Gaza and the Sinai Peninsula, during the 1967 war. The Sinai has since been returned to Egypt.
Israel annexed the Golan Heights in 1981, a move not recognized by the international community and condemned by Syria, which still claims the land.
Israel to build fence along Syrian border
Israel to build fence along Syrian border
UPDATED: Jan 7, 2013 09:36 GMT
As regional fears mount over spillover from Syria's civil war, Israel plans to build a fence along its border with the embattled country.
The announcement came during Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's weekly Cabinet address, in which he cited the construction of a 230-kilometer fence along Israel's southern border with Egypt.
Read more: Scavenging for food, Syrian children witness war
"We intend to erect an identical fence, with a few changes based on the actualterritory, along the Golan Heights. We know that on other side of our border with Syria today, the Syrian army has moved away, and in its place, global jihad forces have moved in," Netanyahu said, according to a transcript of his remarks.
"Therefore, we will defend this border against both infiltration and terrorism, just as we are successfully doing on the Sinai border."
Syrian opposition and government sources have reported that the extremist al-Nusra Front, which the United States has designated as a terrorist group with links to al Qaeda in Iraq, has taken part in some of the fighting in Syria.
Watch: Lost youth for Syria's war witnesses
Netanyahu also said the Syrian government is "very unstable" and expressed concerns about the possibleuse of chemical weapons.
Israel seized the Golan Heights, along with the WestBank, Gaza and the Sinai Peninsula, during the 1967 war. The Sinai has since been returned to Egypt.
Israel annexed the Golan Heights in 1981, a move not recognized by the international community and condemned by Syria, which still claims the land.
Sunday, January 6, 2013
Morsy want al-assad tried for war crimes
Morsy wants al-Assad tried for war crimes
UPDATED: Jan 6, 2013 16:54 GMT
Egyptian President MohamedMorsy supports calls by people in Syria for PresidentBashar al-Assad to be tried for war crimes, he told CNN on Sunday in an exclusive interview.
Morsy has also invited the heads of the two major Palestinian factions to meet in Cairo in hopes of building unity -- a task he acknowledged won't be easy.
Speaking to CNN's Wolf Blitzer in Cairo, Morsy said he invited Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas to meet withKhaled Meshaal, the political leader of Hamas, who lives in Cairo.
Hamas controls Gaza; Abbas'party, Fatah, controls the West Bank. The two factionshave clashed violently overthe years.
The United States, Israel, and the European Union list Hamas as a terrorist organization. The group hascarried out numerous attacks killing scores of civilians.
Morsy, who came to power in June after the country's first democratic elections, helped broker an end to theNovember conflict between Israel and militants in Gaza.
In the interview Sunday withCNN, Morsy sought to assure viewers around the world, as well as people in his own country, that he is committed to promoting democracy and protecting minorities, including the country's Coptic Christians, from discrimination.
Having spent time in the United States receiving a doctorate at the University of Southern California, Morsy knows U.S. democracy-- and said he is committed to allowing free speech.
Asked about Syria, he repeated his previous calls for al-Assad to leave power. And, he said, he supports the many Syrian people who want al-Assad charged with war crimes for what he has done in the conflict since 2011.
Friday, January 4, 2013
U.S troops arrive in Turkey
U.S. troops arrive in Turkey; rebels battle for airport in Syria
UPDATED: Jan 4, 2013 08:41 GMT
U.S. troops arrived in Turkey on Friday to man Patriot missile defense batteries near the Syrian border, according to Turkish state media.
Syria has previously launched Scud missiles at cities near the Turkish border in a desperate bid toextend its firepower.
In response, the U.S., Germany and the Netherlands deployed Patriot air defense missiles to the border region to intercept any Syrian ballisticmissiles.
The missiles and troops will be under the overall controlof NATO, but the missiles will be operated by U.S. forces
A group of 27 U.S. troops landed in Gaziantep, Turkey, where they will survey the Patriot deployment, according to Turkish state news agency, Anadolu.
U.S. officials did not release any information about the troops arrival, but had said last month that forces will bedeployed to Turkey.
"We've made very clear to them that were going to protect countries in this region," Defense Secretary Leon Panetta said last month. "We have to act to do what we have to do to make sure that we defend ourselves and make sure that Turkey can defend itself."
The fight for the helicopter airport
Taftenaz airbase in northern Syria has been a deadly thorn in the side of rebels for months.
For the third day Free Syrian Army fighters tried towrest control of the helicopter airbase from government forces
U.S troops arrive in Turkey
U.S. troops arrive in Turkey; rebels battle for airport in Syria
UPDATED: Jan 4, 2013 08:41 GMT
U.S. troops arrived in Turkey on Friday to man Patriot missile defense batteries near the Syrian border, according to Turkish state media.
Syria has previously launched Scud missiles at cities near the Turkish border in a desperate bid toextend its firepower.
In response, the U.S., Germany and the Netherlands deployed Patriot air defense missiles to the border region to intercept any Syrian ballisticmissiles.
The missiles and troops will be under the overall controlof NATO, but the missiles will be operated by U.S. forces
A group of 27 U.S. troops landed in Gaziantep, Turkey, where they will survey the Patriot deployment, according to Turkish state news agency, Anadolu.
U.S. officials did not release any information about the troops arrival, but had said last month that forces will bedeployed to Turkey.
"We've made very clear to them that were going to protect countries in this region," Defense Secretary Leon Panetta said last month. "We have to act to do what we have to do to make sure that we defend ourselves and make sure that Turkey can defend itself."
The fight for the helicopter airport
Taftenaz airbase in northern Syria has been a deadly thorn in the side of rebels for months.
For the third day Free Syrian Army fighters tried towrest control of the helicopter airbase from government forces
Gunman kills atleast three people in Philippine town
Gunman kills at least three people in Philippine town
UPDATED: Jan 4, 2013 08:26 GMT
A gunman opened fire in a town near the Philippine capital on Friday, killing at least three people and wounding 10 others, police said.
The attacker was subsequently killed in a gun battle with police officers who had tried to persuade him to surrender, said Plaridel Daprosa, an officer at the municipal police station in Kawit, the town where the shooting took place.
Police are still investigating the motive for the attack, which happened Friday morning in a residential areaof Kawit, a town about 20 kilometers south of central Manila, Daprosa said.
Before the shooting, Filipinos had already been debating whether their country, where gun crimes are frequent, needed stricter controls on firearms.
The concerns had been prompted by the death of a seven-year-old girl, Stephanie Ella, who was shot in the head amid celebratory gunfire on New Year's Eve, according to CNN affiliate ABS-CBN.
A four-year-old boy was also killed by a stray bullet on the same day, ABS-CBN reported. But it was Stephanie's death, which happened while she was watching fireworks with her father, that set off soul-searching about gun ownership in the Philippine news media.
"This incident should not be allowed to become just another statistic," Vice President Jejomar Binay said in a statement Thursday about the girl's death.
The Philippines already has enough laws governing the use of guns, he said, "but the problem has always been in the enforcement of the laws, especially those on loose firearms."
The country's police firearms and explosives office says there were 1.2 million registered firearms inthe Philippines as of last year, ABS-CBN reported. Ontop of that, the office estimates there were roughly 600,000 unlicensed firearms in circulation nationwide.
The Philippines has a population of about 104 million people.
Gunman kills atleast three people in Philippine town
Gunman kills at least three people in Philippine town
UPDATED: Jan 4, 2013 08:26 GMT
A gunman opened fire in a town near the Philippine capital on Friday, killing at least three people and wounding 10 others, police said.
The attacker was subsequently killed in a gun battle with police officers who had tried to persuade him to surrender, said Plaridel Daprosa, an officer at the municipal police station in Kawit, the town where the shooting took place.
Police are still investigating the motive for the attack, which happened Friday morning in a residential areaof Kawit, a town about 20 kilometers south of central Manila, Daprosa said.
Before the shooting, Filipinos had already been debating whether their country, where gun crimes are frequent, needed stricter controls on firearms.
The concerns had been prompted by the death of a seven-year-old girl, Stephanie Ella, who was shot in the head amid celebratory gunfire on New Year's Eve, according to CNN affiliate ABS-CBN.
A four-year-old boy was also killed by a stray bullet on the same day, ABS-CBN reported. But it was Stephanie's death, which happened while she was watching fireworks with her father, that set off soul-searching about gun ownership in the Philippine news media.
"This incident should not be allowed to become just another statistic," Vice President Jejomar Binay said in a statement Thursday about the girl's death.
The Philippines already has enough laws governing the use of guns, he said, "but the problem has always been in the enforcement of the laws, especially those on loose firearms."
The country's police firearms and explosives office says there were 1.2 million registered firearms inthe Philippines as of last year, ABS-CBN reported. Ontop of that, the office estimates there were roughly 600,000 unlicensed firearms in circulation nationwide.
The Philippines has a population of about 104 million people.
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