14, May 2021

Rights Group condemns jail term for Cameroon transgender women ⁰

Rights activists in Cameroon have condemned a five-year jail sentence given to two transgender women for “attempted homosexuality” and public indecency. A lawyer for the two, who were arrested for wearing women’s clothing in a restaurant, say they are preparing an appeal.

In a statement, Human Rights Watch describes the jail sentence issued by the court as harsh.

Police arrested Njeuken Loic, also known as Shakiro, and Mouthe Roland, also known as Patricia, in the coastal city of Douala on February 8. Police said they were wearing typically female clothing while eating in a restaurant.

Prosecutors charged them with attempted homosexual conduct, public indecency, and non-possession of their national identity cards.

They pleaded not guilty to the charge of attempted homosexuality.

Tamfu Richard, one of the lawyers defending Shakiro and Patricia, says justice was not done during the trial.

“We consider the decision to be too severe against these accused persons because no evidence was produced before the court to sentence our clients on charges of attempted homosexuality, public indecency, non-possession of ID cards,” Richard said. “So our next action will be to file an appeal before the appeal court and we hope that, before the court of appeal, we will be able to make sure justice is done at that level.”

HRW said that after Shakiro and Patricia were arrested in February, they were taken to the overcrowded Douala central prison, where they reported being beaten and insulted by guards and other inmates.

Activists say that for transgender women, five years in a Cameroonian men’s prison can amount to a death sentence. HRW calls on Cameroon authorities to release Shakiro and Patricia and vacate the charges immediately.

Rights lawyer Alice Nkom says the sentence indicates how LGBTQ people continue to be persecuted in Cameroon. She says the international community should intervene to force Cameroon to respect the rights of its citizens.

“We are waiting to obtain a copy of the (court) decision to know the motivations that allow these results,” Nkom said. “We have 10 days to file an appeal and the dateline of doing so expires on May 21. The judge did not apply any attenuating circumstance, neither the numerous violations of the laws, nor the violation of the general principle of law, nor the jurisprudence of the Supreme Court.”

HRW says Shakiro and Patricia are the latest victims of a system plagued by absolute disregard for the due process rights of people targeted based on sexual orientation or gender identity. It calls on Cameroon to repeal its anti-homosexuality laws and stop interfering in the private lives of Cameroonians.

Contacted by phone, Cameron’s Ministry of Communication and Government spokesperson, Rene Emmanuel Sadi, declined to comment on the sentence.

Source: VOA

14, May 2021

French Cameroun cancels national day festivities due to COVID-19 ⁰

Cameroon’s President Paul Biya has cancelled all official ceremonies marking the 2021 edition of the country’s national day due to the coronavirus pandemic.

Ferdinand Ngoh Ngoh, secretary general at the president’s office, said in a statement that Biya urged Cameroonians to strictly observe government-prescribed social distancing measures during the commemoration of May 20 as well as the celebration of forthcoming religious feast days.

Unity Day is a holiday in Cameroon celebrated on May 20 as the country’s national day.

On May 20, 1972 in a national referendum, Cameroonians voted for a unitary state as opposed to the existing federal state.

In the statement late Wednesday, Ngoh Ngoh recalled that despite the country’s commendable performance in the fight against COVID-19, the pandemic is a tragic reality against which “we should endeavor to protect ourselves by complying with barrier measures and getting vaccinated.”

The Central African country has so far registered 74,946 coronavirus cases, with 70,497 recoveries and 1,152 deaths, according to the Africa Centres for Disease Control and Prevention.

Source: Anadolu Agency

13, May 2021

Champions League final moved from Istanbul to Porto due to Covid restrictions ⁰

UEFA announced on Thursday that the Champions League final between Manchester City and Chelsea had been moved from Istanbul to Porto.

The match on May 29 has been switched to the Estadio do Dragao to allow English spectators to attend as travel between the UK and Turkey is suspended because of the coronavirus pandemic.

Earlier, European football’s governing body announced up to 6,000 supporters from each club will be able to attend.

“We accept that the decision of the British Government to place Turkey on the red list for travel was taken in good faith and in the best interests of protecting its citizens from the spread of the virus but it also presented us with a major challenge in staging a final featuring two English teams,” UEFA president Aleksander Ceferin said in a statement.

“After the year that fans have endured, it is not right that they don’t have the chance to watch their teams in the biggest game of the season,” he added.

UK citizens returning from red list countries are required to quarantine at a government-approved hotel for 10 days.

Earlier this week, newspaper reports claimed the match would be played at Wembley Stadium.

Supporters groups from the Blues and City had requested the game be moved to England.

The UK’s Transport secretary Grant Shapps said he would have welcomed the fixture being played in London.

“The difficulties of moving the final are great and the FA and the authorities made every effort to try to stage the match in England and I would like to thank them for their work in trying to make it happen,” Ceferin said.

UEFA said coronavirus rules in the UK made it difficult to hold the fixture in the English capital.

“UEFA discussed moving the match to England but, despite exhaustive efforts on the part of the Football Association and the authorities, it was not possible to achieve the necessary exemptions from UK quarantine arrangements,” it said.

The final capacity at the ground in northern Portugal is still to be set.

Last season’s final as well as a ‘Final 8’ tournament for the quarter-finals were also held in Portugal, but in the capital Lisbon.

“Once again we have turned to our friends in Portugal to help both UEFA and the Champions League and I am, as always, very grateful to the FPF (Portuguese Football Association) and the Portuguese Government for agreeing to stage the match at such short notice,” Ceferin said.

The last round of the country’s top-flight Primeira Liga will see spectators return to stadia on May 19, with a limited number of people permitted, the league said on Wednesday.

(AFP)

13, May 2021

Italy fines Google €100 million for shutting out rival’s smartphone app ⁰

Italy’s anti-trust authority said Thursday it had fined Google more than 100 million euros ($120mn) for shutting out a rival’s smartphone app offering recharging of electric vehicles.

The authority said Google, whose Android operating system and Google Play app store dominate the Italian market, had abused its market position by blocking an Enel X app for users of electric vehicles.

The regulator added it would require Google to make Enel X’s app available on Android Auto, which mirrors features of an Android device, such as a smartphone, on a car dashboard screen.

The fine of 102,084,433.91 euros is for a violation of article 102 of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union which regulates monopolies and issues involving restriction of competition.

Italy found Google did not allow Enel X Italia to develop an Android Auto-compatible version of its JuicePass app. JuicePass offers services relating to recharging electric vehicles, such as finding the nearest charging station and reserving a space there.

“By refusing Enel X Italia interoperability with Android Auto, Google has unfairly limited the possibilities for end users to avail themselves of the Enel X Italia app when driving and recharging an electric vehicle,” the authority stated.

“Google has consequently favored its own Google Maps app,” added the authority.

“The exclusion of the Enel X Italia app from Android Auto has been going on for more than two years, and if it were to continue, could permanently jeopardise Enel X Italia’s chances of building a solid user base at a time of significant growth in sales of electric vehicles.”

This, the body concluded, amounted to “an impoverishment of consumer choice and an obstacle to technological progress” which could influence the development of electric mobility.

The authority as a result said it had ordered Google to make available to Enel X Italia and other app developers app programming tools which are interoperable with Android Auto while adding it would monitor compliance of its ruling via an independent expert with whom Google would be obliged to cooperate.

Source: AFP

13, May 2021

Southern Cameroons: President Sisiku Ayuk Tabe congratulates Muslims on Eid al-Fitr ⁰

In the message, President Sisiku Ayuk Tabe of the Federal Republic of Ambazonia wished for prosperity of all Southern Cameroons believers who carried out the commands of the Almighty during the holy month of blessings.

The Southern Cameroons leader also expressed hope to witness solidarity among all Ambazonia Self Defense Groups in the fight against French Cameroun colonialism and genocidal campaign in Southern Cameroons.

President Sisiku Ayuk Tabe wished for Southern Cameroons Muslims’ unity in the struggles and quest for the independence of Southern Cameroons.

He expressed hope to witness restoration of peace and stability throughout the Federal Republic of Ambazonia. “Happy Eid Al Fitr to our Muslim brothers and sisters. After a month of fasting, charity and prayer, Allah has brought you through safely today. May Allah grant your heart’s desire or a better, just, peaceful and prosperous nation of Ambazonia” President Sisiku Ayuk Tabe opined.

By Fon Lawrence

13, May 2021

Southern Cameroons Crisis: Ambazonia Interim Gov’t vows more support for Ground Zero ⁰

The Southern Cameroons Interim Government has vehemently condemned the French Cameroun regime’s recent atrocities in Mezam and Bui including other rural areas across the Ambazonian territories, pledging to stand more powerfully in support of Southern Cameroons Restoration Forces.

Vice President Dabney Yerima reportedly directed Amba Self Defense Groups operating in Ground Zero to protect Southern Cameroons civilian population and supervise the implementation of “Kontry Sunday” which is a Southern Cameroons name for ghost towns.

In a Wednesday statement, the exiled Southern Cameroons leader considered providing assistance to Ambazonia fighters in Ground One to ease the work of the resistance in Ground Zero.

Provision of such support, the Yerima statement added, is in line and part of the legacy of all Southern Cameroonians martyred ever since the Biya French Cameroun war against the English speaking people of Southern Cameroons started four years ago.

Since the beginning of the conflict, the Biya Francophone dominated army has carried out countless assaults on Southern Cameroons towns and villages. Thousands of Ambazonians have died in the process at the hands of, what the Dabney Yerima statement called a genocidal campaign.

By Chi Prudence Asong

12, May 2021

Iran’s Ahmadinejad submits name for presidential poll ⁰

Iranian ultra-conservative ex-president Mahmoud Ahmadinejad put his name forward Wednesday as a candidate to succeed moderate President Hassan Rouhani in elections next month.

“Millions of people across the country have invited me to stand for election, and even ordered me to come here to register, placing a heavy responsibility on my shoulders,” Ahmadinejad said, speaking after he submitted his application to the interior ministry.

The build-up to June 18 polls comes as Iran and world powers wrangle over reviving a 2015 nuclear accord, from which the US withdrew unilaterally in 2018, reimposing crippling sanctions.

Hopefuls have until Saturday to register, and will then be vetted by the conservative-dominated Guardian Council before a list of approved candidates is published by May 27, after which campaigning begins.

But Iranian media considers Ahmadinejad’s chance of being approved are close to zero.

The 64-year-old said that if he is not approved, he will “not participate” in the election, either by backing a candidate or voting.

Ahmadinejad claimed, as he has often done in recent years, that the Iranian people have lost confidence in the country’s authorities.

He added that he considered the upcoming election “perhaps the last chance” to save the Islamic republic in the face of “very sensitive” challenges, both domestic and international.

Ahmadinejad, president from 2005 to 2013, had to stand down at the end of two consecutive terms as per the constitution — like outgoing president Rouhani will in June.

In 2009, Ahmadinejad’s disputed re-election sparked protests that were severely put down, shaking the Islamic republic.

On Wednesday he was cheered by several supporters as he submitted his name, chanting “we support you!”

The populist ex-president had also put his name forward for the 2017 presidential election, against the advice of the country’s supreme leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei.

Unsurprisingly, his candidacy was rejected by the Guardian Council, an unelected body dominated by conservatives and responsible for overseeing the presidential polls.

Source: AFP

12, May 2021

Pope’s joy as he resumes audience with public ⁰

Pope Francis expressed his pleasure Wednesday at being once again among his flock as he delivered his weekly general audience in public for the first time in six months.

He greeted a baby, signed a book, donned a hat someone gave him and chatted with children who had painted him pictures as the faithful — all in masks, unlike the vaccinated pontiff — lined up to greet him.

“I am happy to resume this face to face because I tell you one thing — it is not nice to talk in front of nothing, in front of a camera,” Francis told them as they sat on socially-distanced chairs to listen to his audience in the San Damaso Courtyard at the Vatican.

The pope abandoned his Wednesday public audiences when coronavirus swept across Italy early last year, instead delivering them via video link from the Apostolic Library.

They resumed in September and October — not in St Peter’s Square but in the courtyard with a limited crowd of 500 — only to stop once again due to a fresh wave of infections.

The courtyard was not full Wednesday, but the 300 or so people who came expressed their joy at seeing the pope up close.

There was a cheer when he arrived inside the courtyard in a blue Ford. “Pope Francis, we’re with you!” they shouted, standing on chairs to get a better view as he passed by.

“It was lovely, to see him so close — he wasn’t in a hurry, he took his time,” said a nun from Rome who gave her name as Helene.

“He was happy to be with the people.”

Thomas Viallon, 34, from Paris, added: “It was the first time weve seen the pope. We were really close. He seemed very close to the people.”

Source: AFP

12, May 2021

Football: Manchester City crowned English Premier League champions as Leicester win at Man United ⁰

Manchester City were confirmed as Premier League champions with three games to spare after second-placed Manchester United lost 2-1 at home to Leicester City on Tuesday.

Pep Guardiola’s City side, who missed the chance to seal the title when they were beaten 2-1 by Chelsea on Saturday, are 10 points clear of United, who also have three games left.

It is City’s third Premier League title in five seasons under Guardiola and their fifth in the last 10.

Despite their home defeat by Chelsea at the weekend, City have enjoyed a magnificent turnaround this season after picking up 12 points from their first eight games — their worst start since 2008-09.

Since then they have been head and shoulders above their rivals and since hitting the top have looked unstoppable.

After losing at Tottenham Hotspur in November, they won 22 of their next 27 matches, including a 15-game winning run and a record-equalling 11 successive away league wins.

Guardiola’s side, who were second-best to Liverpool last season, also won a fourth-straight League Cup and can claim a treble by beating Chelsea in this month’s Champions League final.

Manchester United had delayed City’s title celebrations by beating Aston Villa away on Sunday but it was only putting off the inevitable and the party can now start in earnest.

On the other side of Manchester a huge “Champions” banner was draped outside City’s Etihad Stadium.

(REUTERS)

12, May 2021

French soldiers warning of ‘civil war’ in open letter told to quit ⁰

The French army’s chief of staff on Tuesday called on a group of soldiers who signed an open letter warning about the risk of “civil war” in France to quit the armed forces.

“The most reasonable step is certainly to leave the institution in order to freely express their ideas and convictions,” General Francois Lecountre said in a letter to military personnel that contained no threat of sanctions.

The letter by the soldiers had warned of unrest in the country because of what they called “concessions” to Islamism by French President Emmanuel Macron.

The document, posted on the website of the right-wing Valeurs Actuelles magazine late Sunday, echoes a letter published by the same publication last month but appears to have been written by an unknown number of younger troops still in active service.

“Over the past several weeks …, the obligation of discretion for members of the armed services has been largely violated,” Lecointre said in his message.

He said those who had signed the letter “in order to defend personal convictions” had dragged the army into political debates it should steer clear of.

“Every soldiers enjoys freedom of thought but must unambiguously distinguish between civic and military duties,” the general added.

Those who signed the letter described themselves as soldiers from the younger generation of the military, a so-called “generation of fire” that had seen active service.

“They have offered up their lives to destroy the Islamism that you have made concessions to on our soil,” they wrote.

The latest letter as well as the previous one have prompted political uproar in France with Defence Minister Florence Parly dismissing them as part of a “crude political scheme” and reminding soldiers of their obligation of neutrality.

Last month an open letter by retired generals in Valeurs Actuelles warned Macron the country was headed for “civil war” unless he cracked down on Islamists, anarchists and anti-racism activists.

A number of serving defence force members also signed the dramatically-worded letter which warned that “laxist” policies would result in chaos requiring “the intervention of our comrades on active duty in a perilous mission of protection of our civilisational values”.

Failure to act against the “suburban hordes” — a reference to residents of the mainly immigrant tower blocks that ring French cities — and other unnamed groups who “scorn our country, its traditions and its culture” will lead to “civil war” and deaths “in the thousands”, the signatories warned.

Source: AFP