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by Salima Lebel Agence France Presse KUWAIT CITY, Kuwait (AFP) — The murder of a Filipina maid whose body was found in a freezer in Kuwait has triggered outrage and prompted Manila to impose a departure ban for its citizens planning to work in the Gulf state. But the estimated 252,000 Filipinos and Filipinas already working in Kuwait must weigh their fear of sharing the fate of Joanne Demafelis against the potential loss […]
BEIRUT, Lebanon (AFP) — The employers of a Filipina maid found dead in a freezer in Kuwait were both arrested in the Syrian capital Damascus, a Lebanese judicial official said on Saturday. Syrian authorities surrendered Nader Essam Assaf to Beirut on Friday because of his Lebanese citizenship but his Syrian wife Mona remains in custody in Damascus, the official said. The murder of Joanna Demafelis sparked outrage in the Philippines and prompted President Rodrigo […]
MANILA, Philippines (AFP) — Philippine officials are headed to Kuwait on Thursday to seek greater protection for migrant workers after a diplomatic row over the alleged mistreatment of Filipinos in the Gulf state. Labor Secretary Silvestre Bello told reporters Wednesday one of his deputies would lead the delegation, which is also due to stop in Saudia Arabia and Qatar to urge reforms. Topping the list are demands that Filipino workers be allowed to keep their cellphones and […]
ABUJA, Nigeria (AFP) — Nigeria has freed another 51 Boko Haram suspects in the latest round of dropped cases for lack of evidence, the justice ministry said Monday. Over the course of last week, hundreds of suspected Boko Haram extremists appeared before a court at the Kainji military base in central Niger state. A total of 526 suspects have been released from custody after it was found there was not enough evidence to prosecute them, underscoring concerns […]
LONDON, United Kingdom (AFP) — British women won the right to vote 100 years ago after an intense struggle marked by a violent fringe campaign that shocked the country but helped to change the world. On February 6, 1918, the Representation of the People Bill became law and added to the voting roll around eight million women who were aged over 30 and met other conditions. It was not until 1928 that British women gained […]
BRAZILIA, Brazil (AFP) — Police violence in Brazil is unabated, Human Rights Watch warned on Thursday, calling on the government to take action against a spate of extrajudicial killings. In its latest report on human rights in 90 countries, HRW said that 437 police officers were killed in Brazil in 2016, the vast majority of them while off duty. The same year, police officers killed at least 4,224 people, about 26 percent more than in 2015, according […]
YANGON, Myanmar (AFP) — The detention of two Reuters journalists in Myanmar was extended for two more weeks, a court said Wednesday, in the pair’s first public appearance since their December 12 arrest under a draconian colonial-era secrecy law. Wa Lone, 31, and Kyaw Soe Oo, 27 — Myanmar nationals who had been reporting on a military-led crackdown on Rohingya Muslims — were arrested after being invited to meet police for dinner on the […]
YANGON, Myanmar (AFP) — Foreign and local journalists jailed for flying a drone near Myanmar’s parliament could be released from prison in early January after police dropped additional charges that carried at least three more years behind bars, their lawyers said Tuesday. Lau Hon Meng from Singapore and Mok Choy Lin from Malaysia, who were on assignment for Turkish state broadcaster TRT, were detained late October along with Myanmar journalist Aung Naing Soe and […]
KATHMANDU, Nepal (AFP) — Nepali authorities have rescued the country’s last known “dancing bears”, officials said Sunday, ending the medieval tradition of abuse of the beasts for entertainment. The Himalayan nation banned performing bears back in 1973 but the illegal practice — a traditional occupation for some street performer communities — lingered on in parts of its southern region. Police and animal charities said they spent more than a year hunting the captors of the […]
BEIJING, China (AFP) — An artist that could not be reached for more than a week after he painted a politically charged mural in southern China wrote on Twitter Monday that he has been “released”. “I was released a few days ago and we are in my hometown now,” the Twitter account of painter Hu Jiamin read days after Hong Kong newspaper Ming Pao reported that the couple had been taken away by plainclothes men. Hu noted […]
by Dave Clark and Douglas Gillison Agence France-Presse WASHINGTON, United States (AFP) — The United States slapped sanctions on Chechen strongman Ramzan Kadyrov on Wednesday, accusing Russian leader Vladimir Putin’s key regional ally of personal involvement in repression, torture and murder. Kadyrov was added to the US Treasury’s blacklist along with Chechen security official Ayub Kataev and three Russians linked to the corruption case uncovered by deceased whistleblower Sergei Magnitsky. The sanctions were authorized under the 2012 Magnitsky Act, […]
YANGON, Myanmar (AFP) — Myanmar’s army burned down dozens of Rohingya homes within days of signing a refugee repatriation deal with Bangladesh, showing the agreement was a mere “public relations stunt,” Human Rights Watch said Monday. The rights group, citing analysis of satellite imagery, said buildings in 40 villages were destroyed in October and November, increasing the total to 354 villages that had been partially or completely razed since last August. Dozens of buildings were burned the […]
