A man suspected of helping to smuggle arms from Iran across the border for the Taliban in Afghanistan has been detained, Nato officials say.
A statement described him as a "key Taliban weapons facilitator".
The man was caught last Saturday in southern Kandahar province - the current focus of Nato offensives.
However, Nato has clarified that he is not a member of the elite al-Quds force of Iran's Revolutionary Guards as suggested by its initial reports.
Preliminary intelligence reports led the Nato-led International Security Assistance Force (Isaf) to believe he was a member of the force, but after gathering more information, it was determined that while the individual may be affiliated with several insurgent-related organisations, he is not a member of the al-Quds group."
The man was held in the Zheri district of Kandahar, a province known as the birthplace of the Taliban movement.
He "was considered a Kandahar-based weapons facilitator with direct ties to other Taliban leaders in the province," the Isaf statement added.
A senior Afghan security official in Kandahar said coalition forces had been monitoring the man for some time.
He told the BBC: "Iranian intelligence officers are helping the Taliban and drug dealers in the south. We deal with it every day. This is a known fact now.
"It was the international forces who arrested him. They had been listening to him for some time and monitoring his electronic communications."
The BBC's Bilal Sarwary, in Kabul, says the Iranians are widely suspected of having supplied the Taliban in south and south-western Afghanistan with roadside bombs and other weapons.
Afghan intelligence officials privately suspect Iranian intelligence of meddling, our correspondent says, but are sensitive about making the accusation publicly.
Landlocked Afghanistan's reliance on its western neighbour was highlighted on Thursday when Iran - without any explanation - stopped fuel supplies from going over the border.
A source from the Afghan domestic intelligence agency, the National Directorate of Security, told the BBC some of Afghanistan's border guards were last week jailed in Iran after crossing over the border, apparently by mistake.
The Kabul government handed over some Iranian intelligence officers they had previously detained in order to get their border guards released, the source said.
Earlier this year, it emerged President Hamid Karzai's government had been receiving bags of cash from Iran.
The US voiced concern about the donations, but analysts said a number of foreign governments were running what amounted to slush funds for Afghan officials in an effort to court influence
Saturday, December 25, 2010
Tunisia security forces shoot dead protester
A protester was shot dead and several people injured in Tunisia after security forces opened fire during violent clashes, officials said.
The officers opened fire after coming under attack with Molotov cocktails thrown by the crowd, they said.
Several members of the security services suffered severe burns.
The demonstration in the central town of Menzel Bouzaiene took place in a region reportedly gripped by tensions over youth joblessness.
Agence France-Presse news agency quoted an unnamed interior ministry official as saying: "The groups involved in these acts of violence and trouble encircled and attacked a national guard post by throwing fire bombs and stones."
After attempting to disperse the crowd by firing warning shots, security forces opened fire in self defence, he added.
"This incident led to one death and two injured among the attackers. Several national guard agents suffered burns, including two who are in a coma," a government statement said.
A student representative, Mohamed Fadhel, said the man who died was 18-year-old Mohamed Ammari.
Mr Fadhel said the protesters had also set fire to police cars, a train engine, and the local headquarters of the governing Constitutional Democratic Rally party.
He said police had surrounded the town and were not letting people travel in or out, and that many arrests had been made.
'Political repression'
Tensions have been simmering in the region, Sidi Bouzid, since the attempted suicide last week of a 26-year-old graduate, Mohammed Bouazizi, who sold fruit and vegetables because he could not find a job.
The Tunisian League for the Defence of Human Rights said he doused himself in petrol and set himself alight when police confiscated his produce because he did not have the necessary permit.
Demonstrations followed and tensions heightened when another young man electrocuted himself, saying he was fed up with being unemployed.
The government said the violence was isolated and had been exploited by the opposition. However, Development Minister Mohamed Nouri Jouini travelled to the region on Thursday and announced investment in an employment programme.
The BBC's Magdi Abdelhadi says public protests in Tunisia are rare and political dissent is repressed, while the government is often criticised for its human rights record.
The officers opened fire after coming under attack with Molotov cocktails thrown by the crowd, they said.
Several members of the security services suffered severe burns.
The demonstration in the central town of Menzel Bouzaiene took place in a region reportedly gripped by tensions over youth joblessness.
Agence France-Presse news agency quoted an unnamed interior ministry official as saying: "The groups involved in these acts of violence and trouble encircled and attacked a national guard post by throwing fire bombs and stones."
After attempting to disperse the crowd by firing warning shots, security forces opened fire in self defence, he added.
"This incident led to one death and two injured among the attackers. Several national guard agents suffered burns, including two who are in a coma," a government statement said.
A student representative, Mohamed Fadhel, said the man who died was 18-year-old Mohamed Ammari.
Mr Fadhel said the protesters had also set fire to police cars, a train engine, and the local headquarters of the governing Constitutional Democratic Rally party.
He said police had surrounded the town and were not letting people travel in or out, and that many arrests had been made.
'Political repression'
Tensions have been simmering in the region, Sidi Bouzid, since the attempted suicide last week of a 26-year-old graduate, Mohammed Bouazizi, who sold fruit and vegetables because he could not find a job.
The Tunisian League for the Defence of Human Rights said he doused himself in petrol and set himself alight when police confiscated his produce because he did not have the necessary permit.
Demonstrations followed and tensions heightened when another young man electrocuted himself, saying he was fed up with being unemployed.
The government said the violence was isolated and had been exploited by the opposition. However, Development Minister Mohamed Nouri Jouini travelled to the region on Thursday and announced investment in an employment programme.
The BBC's Magdi Abdelhadi says public protests in Tunisia are rare and political dissent is repressed, while the government is often criticised for its human rights record.
Thousands flee Ivory Coast for Liberia amid poll crisis
About 14,000 people have fled Ivory Coast to neighbouring Liberia following last month's disputed Ivorian presidential election, the UN says.
A spokesperson told the BBC that the UN was prepared for a total of 30,000 refugees in the region.
Most of those fleeing are supporters of Alassane Ouattara, who is recognised internationally as the new president.
Incumbent Laurent Gbagbo has rejected widespread calls to step down, citing vote rigging in northern areas.
The spokeswoman for the UN refugee agency (UNHCR), Fatoumata Lejeune-Kaba, said most of those who had left Ivory Coast since the 28 November election had come from villages in the west of the country.
She said they had been walking for days to escape tensions they feared could explode into violence, and the flow was continuing.
On Friday West African leaders told Mr Gbagbo to stand down or expect to face "legitimate force" from the regional bloc Ecowas.
'Ivorian blood'
Mr Gbagbo's government said the threat was unjust. It also condemned a decision by the West African central bank to give control of Ivory Coast's account to Mr Ouattara.
Earlier Mr Ouattara urged the armed forces to protect civilians against attack from "the militias and foreign mercenaries that are spilling Ivorian blood".
He said perpetrators of recent violence would be prosecuted and invited investigators from the International Criminal Court to the country.
Mr Ouattara and his cabinet are based at a hotel in the main city, Abidjan, under the protection of UN troops.
Mr Gbagbo has demanded that UN and French troops leave the country. A close ally even warned that they could be treated as rebels if they did not obey the instruction.
The UN, which has 10,000 peacekeepers in the country, rejected the call.
UN officials say at least 170 people have been killed in recent attacks linked to the Ivorian armed forces, who remain publicly loyal to Mr Gbagbo.
There have been suggestions that member nations send in troops to strengthen the presence of the UN peacekeeping force.
The election was meant to unite the country after a civil war in 2002 split the world's largest cocoa producer in two, with the predominantly Muslim North supporting Mr Ouattara and the mainly Christian south backing Mr Gbagbo.
A spokesperson told the BBC that the UN was prepared for a total of 30,000 refugees in the region.
Most of those fleeing are supporters of Alassane Ouattara, who is recognised internationally as the new president.
Incumbent Laurent Gbagbo has rejected widespread calls to step down, citing vote rigging in northern areas.
The spokeswoman for the UN refugee agency (UNHCR), Fatoumata Lejeune-Kaba, said most of those who had left Ivory Coast since the 28 November election had come from villages in the west of the country.
She said they had been walking for days to escape tensions they feared could explode into violence, and the flow was continuing.
On Friday West African leaders told Mr Gbagbo to stand down or expect to face "legitimate force" from the regional bloc Ecowas.
'Ivorian blood'
Mr Gbagbo's government said the threat was unjust. It also condemned a decision by the West African central bank to give control of Ivory Coast's account to Mr Ouattara.
Earlier Mr Ouattara urged the armed forces to protect civilians against attack from "the militias and foreign mercenaries that are spilling Ivorian blood".
He said perpetrators of recent violence would be prosecuted and invited investigators from the International Criminal Court to the country.
Mr Ouattara and his cabinet are based at a hotel in the main city, Abidjan, under the protection of UN troops.
Mr Gbagbo has demanded that UN and French troops leave the country. A close ally even warned that they could be treated as rebels if they did not obey the instruction.
The UN, which has 10,000 peacekeepers in the country, rejected the call.
UN officials say at least 170 people have been killed in recent attacks linked to the Ivorian armed forces, who remain publicly loyal to Mr Gbagbo.
There have been suggestions that member nations send in troops to strengthen the presence of the UN peacekeeping force.
The election was meant to unite the country after a civil war in 2002 split the world's largest cocoa producer in two, with the predominantly Muslim North supporting Mr Ouattara and the mainly Christian south backing Mr Gbagbo.
Nigeria's Goodluck Jonathan pledges to find Jos bombers
Nigeria's president has said his government will do all it can to find those responsible for a string of bomb attacks that killed at least 32 people near the central city of Jos.
Goodluck Jonathan promised that the bombers would "face the law". No group has said it carried out the attacks.
The Christmas Eve blasts happened in an area where up to 1,000 people died in sectarian clashes this year.
The region straddles Nigeria's mainly Muslim north and the Christian south.
About 74 people were wounded in the bomb blasts. Some are in a critical condition.
In a separate development, at least six people died in attacks on churches by suspected Islamists in the north-eastern city of Maiduguri.
Speaking in the capital Abuja, President Jonathan said: "I assure all Nigerians that we shall unearth those behind the Jos bomb explosion and apprehend them to face the law."
A statement from his office added: "The president expressed sadness at explosions which killed many innocent Nigerians, Christians and Muslims alike."
Friday night's bomb explosions occurred during Christmas Eve celebrations in villages near Jos, police say.
Gregory Yenlong, a spokesman for Nigeria's Plateau state, told Bloomberg news agency that there had been threats "to disrupt Christmas celebrations in Jos".
Economic conflict
Past clashes have been between rivals gangs of Muslims and Christians, but observers say the underlying causes are economic and political rather than religious.
Muslims are generally from the Hausa- or Fulani-speaking communities. They are often nomadic people who earn a living from rearing animals or petty trade.
The mainly Christian Berom, Anaguta and Afisare groups have traditionally been farmers.
Some Christian farmers feel they are under threat, as Hausa-speaking Muslims come down from the north looking for pasture for their animals.
In Maiduguri, suspected Islamist sect members attacked at least two churches late on Friday.
In one incident, petrol bombs killed five people including a Baptist pastor, Reuters news agency reported.
A security guard at a nearby church died in a similar assault, Reuters added.
Goodluck Jonathan promised that the bombers would "face the law". No group has said it carried out the attacks.
The Christmas Eve blasts happened in an area where up to 1,000 people died in sectarian clashes this year.
The region straddles Nigeria's mainly Muslim north and the Christian south.
About 74 people were wounded in the bomb blasts. Some are in a critical condition.
In a separate development, at least six people died in attacks on churches by suspected Islamists in the north-eastern city of Maiduguri.
Speaking in the capital Abuja, President Jonathan said: "I assure all Nigerians that we shall unearth those behind the Jos bomb explosion and apprehend them to face the law."
A statement from his office added: "The president expressed sadness at explosions which killed many innocent Nigerians, Christians and Muslims alike."
Friday night's bomb explosions occurred during Christmas Eve celebrations in villages near Jos, police say.
Gregory Yenlong, a spokesman for Nigeria's Plateau state, told Bloomberg news agency that there had been threats "to disrupt Christmas celebrations in Jos".
Economic conflict
Past clashes have been between rivals gangs of Muslims and Christians, but observers say the underlying causes are economic and political rather than religious.
Muslims are generally from the Hausa- or Fulani-speaking communities. They are often nomadic people who earn a living from rearing animals or petty trade.
The mainly Christian Berom, Anaguta and Afisare groups have traditionally been farmers.
Some Christian farmers feel they are under threat, as Hausa-speaking Muslims come down from the north looking for pasture for their animals.
In Maiduguri, suspected Islamist sect members attacked at least two churches late on Friday.
In one incident, petrol bombs killed five people including a Baptist pastor, Reuters news agency reported.
A security guard at a nearby church died in a similar assault, Reuters added.
WikiLeaks cables: Bangladeshi 'death squad' trained by UK government - Rapid Action Battalion, accused of hundreds of extra-judicial killings
Members of the Rapid Action Battalion (RAB) have received training in 'investigative interviewing techniques'.
The British government has been training a Bangladeshi paramilitary force condemned by human rights organisations as a "government death squad", leaked US embassy cables have revealed.
Members of the Rapid Action Battalion (RAB), which has been held responsible for hundreds of extra-judicial killings in recent years and is said to routinely use torture, have received British training in "investigative interviewing techniques" and "rules of engagement".
Details of the training were revealed in a number of cables, released by WikiLeaks, which address the counter-terrorism objectives of the US and UK governments in Bangladesh. One cable makes clear that the US would not offer any assistance other than human rights training to the RAB – and that it would be illegal under US law to do so – because its members commit gross human rights violations with impunity.
Since the RAB was established six years ago, it is estimated by some human rights activists to have been responsible for more than 1,000 extra-judicial killings, described euphemistically as "crossfire" deaths. In September last year the director general of the RAB said his men had killed 577 people in "crossfire". In March this year he updated the figure, saying they had killed 622 people.
The RAB's use of torture has also been exhaustively documented by human rights organisations. In addition, officers from the paramilitary force are alleged to have been involved in kidnap and extortion, and are frequently accused of taking large bribes in return for carrying out crossfire killings.
However, the cables reveal that both the British and the Americans, in their determination to strengthen counter-terrorism operations in Bangladesh, are in favour of bolstering the force, arguing that the "RAB enjoys a great deal of respect and admiration from a population scarred by decreasing law and order over the last decade". In one cable, the US ambassador to Dhaka, James Moriarty, expresses the view that the RAB is the "enforcement organisation best positioned to one day become a Bangladeshi version of the US Federal Bureau of Investigation".
In another cable, Moriarty quotes British officials as saying they have been "training RAB for 18 months in areas such as investigative interviewing techniques and rules of engagement". Asked about the training assistance for the RAB, the Foreign Office said the UK government "provides a range of human rights assistance" in the country. However, the RAB's head of training, Mejbah Uddin, told the Guardian that he was unaware of any human rights training since he was appointed last summer.
The cables make clear that British training for RAB officers began three years ago under the last Labour government.
However, RAB officials confirmed independently of the cables that they had taken part in a series of courses and workshops as recently as October, five months after the formation of the coalition government. Asked whether ministers had approved the training programme, the Foreign Office said only that William Hague, the foreign secretary, and other ministers, had been briefed on counter-terrorism spending.
The US ambassador explains in the cables that the US government is "constrained by RAB's alleged human rights violations, which have rendered the organisation ineligible to receive training or assistance" under laws which prohibit American funding or training for overseas military units which abuse human rights with impunity.
Human rights organisations say the RAB cannot be reformed, noting that its human rights record has deterioriated still further in the last 12 months. Human Rights Watch has repeatedly described the RAB as a government death squad.
Brad Adams, the organisation's Asia director, said: "RAB is a Latin American-style death squad dressed up as an anti-crime force. The British government has let its desire for a functional counter-terrorism partner in Bangladesh blind it to the risks of working with RAB, and the legitimacy that it gives to RAB inside Bangladesh. Furthermore, it is not clear that the British government has ever made it a priority at the highest levels to tell RAB that if it doesn't change, it will not co-operate with it."
Amnesty International has also repeatedly condemned the RAB, while the Bangladeshi human rights organisation Odhikar has painstakingly documented the RAB's involvement in extra-judicial killings and torture since the creation of the force in March 2004.
Asked to comment on the rights groups' concern about the RAB, the Foreign Office said: "We do not discuss the detail of operational counter-terrorism cooperation. Counter-terrorism assistance is fully in line with our laws and values." At least some of the British training has been conducted by serving British police officers, working under the auspices of the National Policing Improvement Agency (NPIA), which was established in 2007 to build policing capacity and standards. Recent courses for RAB have been provided by officers from West Mercia and Humberside Police.
Asked whether it believed it was appropriate for British officers to be training members of an organisation condemned as "a government death squad", and whether courses in investigative interviewing techniques might not render torture more effective, an NPIA spokesman said the courses had been approved by the government and by the Association of Chief Police Officers.
"The NPIA has given limited support to the Bangladeshi Police and the RAB in technical areas of policing such as forensic awareness, management of crime scenes and recovery of evidence. Throughout the training we have emphasised the importance of respecting the human rights of witnesses, suspects and victims."The purpose of our sanctioned engagement is to support the development and improvement of professional policing that supports democratic, human rights-based practices linked to the rule of law in countries that may have different laws, faiths and policing practices from our own."
It is understood that there have been disagreements within the Foreign Office about the British government's involvement with the RAB. Some officials have argued that the partnership with the RAB is an essential component of the UK's counter-terrorism strategy in the region, while others have expressed concern that the relationship could prove damaging to Britain's reputation.
Successive Bangladeshi governments have promised to end the RAB's use of murder. The current government promised in its manifesto that it would end all extra-judicial killings, but they have continued following its election two years ago.In October last year, the shipping minister, Shahjahan Khan, speaking in a discussion organised by the BBC, said: "There are incidents of trials that are not possible under the laws of the land. The government will need to continue with extra-judicial killings, commonly called crossfire, until terrorist activities and extortion are uprooted."
In December last year the high court in Dhaka ruled that such killings must be brought to a halt following litigation by victims' familes and human rights groups, but they continue on an almost weekly basis. Most of the victims are young men, some are alleged to be petty criminals or are said to be left-wing activists, and the killings invariably take place in the middle of the night.
In the most recent "crossfire" killings, the RAB reported that it had shot dead Mohammad Mamun, 25, in the town of Tangail, shortly after midnight on Monday, and that 90 minutes later its officers in Dhaka, 50 miles to the south, had shot dead a second man, Taku Alam, 30. Today the RAB announced it had shot dead a 45-year-old man, Anisur Rahman, said to be a member of the Communist party in the west of the country.
Thursday, December 23, 2010
Ghana Currency Strengthens as Mining Companies Sell Dollars
Ghana’s currency, the cedi, strengthened against the dollar after mining firms sold the U.S. currency to finance their operations in the West African nation.
Cedi buyers were offering the West African currency for 1.4855 per dollar, while sellers were offering 1.4825 as of 11:58 a.m. Accra time, according to data from Barclays Bank of Ghana Ltd. The cedi topped 1.49 to the dollar late yesterday.
“The levels close to 1.49 did attract some dollar sellers on to the market from the mining side, that’s why it pulled back,” said Kobla Nyaletey, a currency trader with Barclays, in a phone interview today.
Nyaletey said he expected light trading this afternoon as businesses slow operations before Christmas.
..............
Ivory Coast Cocoa Smuggled Into Ghana as Political Crisis Hampers Industry
Higher cocoa prices paid to farmers in Ghana and political instability in Ivory Coast has reversed a smuggling trend between the world’s top two producers of the chocolate ingredient that cut Ghana’s official output last season.
Between 75,000 and 100,000 metric tons of cocoa have been smuggled to Ghana from Ivory Coast since the 2010-11 harvest began on Oct. 1, Steven Haws, an analyst with New York-based Commodities Risk Analysis, said in an interview from the city on Dec. 21. Between 30,000 and 50,000 tons has been smuggled into Ghana, Jonathan Parkman, joint head of agriculture at Marex Financial Ltd., said in an interview from London, where the company is based, yesterday.
In times of high international prices, cocoa farmers in Ghana, where fixed prices are paid for beans, seek better earnings in markets with fewer controls such as neighboring Ivory Coast.
This season, “roadblocks, lawlessness and delays raise the transport costs of bringing cocoa to the ports of Abidjan and San Pedro” in Ivory Coast, Haws said in a separate e-mailed response to questions. The shift has resulted in the rise in the illegal trade from Ivory Coast to Ghana.
The Ghana Cocoa Board, which regulates the industry in the world’s second-largest grower of the beans, said Sept. 28 it would increase prices paid to Ghanaian farmers by 33 percent to 3,200 cedis ($2,169) per ton. Ivory Coast’s average farmgate price for the week ending Dec. 12 was 850 CFA francs ($1.69) per kilogram, or $1,690 per ton, according to the country’s cocoa and coffee exchange, which is based in Abidjan. Cocoa for march delivery rose 1.9 percent to 2,048 pounds ($3,154) a ton as of 4:13 p.m. local time on London’s Liffe exchange.
Refusal to Cede
Ivory Coast’s Laurent Gbagbo has refused to cede power to rival Alassane Ouattara, who was named winner of a Nov. 28 vote by the country’s electoral commission and has support from the U.S., United Nations, European Union and former colonial ruler France. Gbagbo has the backing of the army after the Constitutional Council dismissed the vote count in some northern areas, where Ouattara draws much of his support, and named him as victor.
Ghana’s higher price had begun to reverse the flow of illegal cocoa smuggling in the region even before Ivory Coast’s disputed vote, Haws said.
Ghana lost about 100,000 tons of beans to smuggling during the 2009-10 season, worth $300 million, Alhaji Dramani Egala, deputy chief executive officer of the Ghana Cocoa Board, said Aug. 27. The cocoa harvest year in both Ivory Coast and Ghana typically begins in October.
‘Finding Buyers’
“I think it’s pretty clear up until recently that the economic benefit of moving cocoa from the Ivory Coast to Ghana has been significant, with the recent political turmoil it’s become even more significant,” Marex’s Parkman said. “At the moment, moving cocoa, even finding buyers around Abidjan has become difficult.”
Ivorian cocoa may not meet Ghana’s quality standards, Haws said.
“When cocoa is smuggled from Ivory Coast, it is common that Ivorian and Ghanaian beans are mixed to just barely pass the more stringent Ghanaian specifications,” he said.
“Ghana cocoa is of premium quality and we wouldn’t want any Ivorian cocoa,” Tony Fofie, chief executive officer of the the cocoa board, said in an interview from his mobile phone yesterday, denying that there has been a surge in smuggling.
The Accra-based board has raised its production forecast for 2010-11 by 14 percent to 800,000 tons, Fofie said, citing an “increase in yields from very good rainfall and some of the programs we’ve put in place” to improve growing practices.
Cedi buyers were offering the West African currency for 1.4855 per dollar, while sellers were offering 1.4825 as of 11:58 a.m. Accra time, according to data from Barclays Bank of Ghana Ltd. The cedi topped 1.49 to the dollar late yesterday.
“The levels close to 1.49 did attract some dollar sellers on to the market from the mining side, that’s why it pulled back,” said Kobla Nyaletey, a currency trader with Barclays, in a phone interview today.
Nyaletey said he expected light trading this afternoon as businesses slow operations before Christmas.
..............
Ivory Coast Cocoa Smuggled Into Ghana as Political Crisis Hampers Industry
Higher cocoa prices paid to farmers in Ghana and political instability in Ivory Coast has reversed a smuggling trend between the world’s top two producers of the chocolate ingredient that cut Ghana’s official output last season.
Between 75,000 and 100,000 metric tons of cocoa have been smuggled to Ghana from Ivory Coast since the 2010-11 harvest began on Oct. 1, Steven Haws, an analyst with New York-based Commodities Risk Analysis, said in an interview from the city on Dec. 21. Between 30,000 and 50,000 tons has been smuggled into Ghana, Jonathan Parkman, joint head of agriculture at Marex Financial Ltd., said in an interview from London, where the company is based, yesterday.
In times of high international prices, cocoa farmers in Ghana, where fixed prices are paid for beans, seek better earnings in markets with fewer controls such as neighboring Ivory Coast.
This season, “roadblocks, lawlessness and delays raise the transport costs of bringing cocoa to the ports of Abidjan and San Pedro” in Ivory Coast, Haws said in a separate e-mailed response to questions. The shift has resulted in the rise in the illegal trade from Ivory Coast to Ghana.
The Ghana Cocoa Board, which regulates the industry in the world’s second-largest grower of the beans, said Sept. 28 it would increase prices paid to Ghanaian farmers by 33 percent to 3,200 cedis ($2,169) per ton. Ivory Coast’s average farmgate price for the week ending Dec. 12 was 850 CFA francs ($1.69) per kilogram, or $1,690 per ton, according to the country’s cocoa and coffee exchange, which is based in Abidjan. Cocoa for march delivery rose 1.9 percent to 2,048 pounds ($3,154) a ton as of 4:13 p.m. local time on London’s Liffe exchange.
Refusal to Cede
Ivory Coast’s Laurent Gbagbo has refused to cede power to rival Alassane Ouattara, who was named winner of a Nov. 28 vote by the country’s electoral commission and has support from the U.S., United Nations, European Union and former colonial ruler France. Gbagbo has the backing of the army after the Constitutional Council dismissed the vote count in some northern areas, where Ouattara draws much of his support, and named him as victor.
Ghana’s higher price had begun to reverse the flow of illegal cocoa smuggling in the region even before Ivory Coast’s disputed vote, Haws said.
Ghana lost about 100,000 tons of beans to smuggling during the 2009-10 season, worth $300 million, Alhaji Dramani Egala, deputy chief executive officer of the Ghana Cocoa Board, said Aug. 27. The cocoa harvest year in both Ivory Coast and Ghana typically begins in October.
‘Finding Buyers’
“I think it’s pretty clear up until recently that the economic benefit of moving cocoa from the Ivory Coast to Ghana has been significant, with the recent political turmoil it’s become even more significant,” Marex’s Parkman said. “At the moment, moving cocoa, even finding buyers around Abidjan has become difficult.”
Ivorian cocoa may not meet Ghana’s quality standards, Haws said.
“When cocoa is smuggled from Ivory Coast, it is common that Ivorian and Ghanaian beans are mixed to just barely pass the more stringent Ghanaian specifications,” he said.
“Ghana cocoa is of premium quality and we wouldn’t want any Ivorian cocoa,” Tony Fofie, chief executive officer of the the cocoa board, said in an interview from his mobile phone yesterday, denying that there has been a surge in smuggling.
The Accra-based board has raised its production forecast for 2010-11 by 14 percent to 800,000 tons, Fofie said, citing an “increase in yields from very good rainfall and some of the programs we’ve put in place” to improve growing practices.
Ivory Coast Cocoa Smuggled Into Ghana as Political Crisis Hampers Industry
Higher cocoa prices paid to farmers in Ghana and political instability in Ivory Coast has reversed a smuggling trend between the world’s top two producers of the chocolate ingredient that cut Ghana’s official output last season.
Between 75,000 and 100,000 metric tons of cocoa have been smuggled to Ghana from Ivory Coast since the 2010-11 harvest began on Oct. 1, Steven Haws, an analyst with New York-based Commodities Risk Analysis, said in an interview from the city on Dec. 21. Between 30,000 and 50,000 tons has been smuggled into Ghana, Jonathan Parkman, joint head of agriculture at Marex Financial Ltd., said in an interview from London, where the company is based, yesterday.
In times of high international prices, cocoa farmers in Ghana, where fixed prices are paid for beans, seek better earnings in markets with fewer controls such as neighboring Ivory Coast.
This season, “roadblocks, lawlessness and delays raise the transport costs of bringing cocoa to the ports of Abidjan and San Pedro” in Ivory Coast, Haws said in a separate e-mailed response to questions. The shift has resulted in the rise in the illegal trade from Ivory Coast to Ghana.
The Ghana Cocoa Board, which regulates the industry in the world’s second-largest grower of the beans, said Sept. 28 it would increase prices paid to Ghanaian farmers by 33 percent to 3,200 cedis ($2,169) per ton. Ivory Coast’s average farmgate price for the week ending Dec. 12 was 850 CFA francs ($1.69) per kilogram, or $1,690 per ton, according to the country’s cocoa and coffee exchange, which is based in Abidjan. Cocoa for march delivery rose 1.9 percent to 2,048 pounds ($3,154) a ton as of 4:13 p.m. local time on London’s Liffe exchange.
Refusal to Cede
Ivory Coast’s Laurent Gbagbo has refused to cede power to rival Alassane Ouattara, who was named winner of a Nov. 28 vote by the country’s electoral commission and has support from the U.S., United Nations, European Union and former colonial ruler France. Gbagbo has the backing of the army after the Constitutional Council dismissed the vote count in some northern areas, where Ouattara draws much of his support, and named him as victor.
Ghana’s higher price had begun to reverse the flow of illegal cocoa smuggling in the region even before Ivory Coast’s disputed vote, Haws said.
Ghana lost about 100,000 tons of beans to smuggling during the 2009-10 season, worth $300 million, Alhaji Dramani Egala, deputy chief executive officer of the Ghana Cocoa Board, said Aug. 27. The cocoa harvest year in both Ivory Coast and Ghana typically begins in October.
‘Finding Buyers’
“I think it’s pretty clear up until recently that the economic benefit of moving cocoa from the Ivory Coast to Ghana has been significant, with the recent political turmoil it’s become even more significant,” Marex’s Parkman said. “At the moment, moving cocoa, even finding buyers around Abidjan has become difficult.”
Ivorian cocoa may not meet Ghana’s quality standards, Haws said.
“When cocoa is smuggled from Ivory Coast, it is common that Ivorian and Ghanaian beans are mixed to just barely pass the more stringent Ghanaian specifications,” he said.
“Ghana cocoa is of premium quality and we wouldn’t want any Ivorian cocoa,” Tony Fofie, chief executive officer of the the cocoa board, said in an interview from his mobile phone yesterday, denying that there has been a surge in smuggling.
The Accra-based board has raised its production forecast for 2010-11 by 14 percent to 800,000 tons, Fofie said, citing an “increase in yields from very good rainfall and some of the programs we’ve put in place” to improve growing practices.
Between 75,000 and 100,000 metric tons of cocoa have been smuggled to Ghana from Ivory Coast since the 2010-11 harvest began on Oct. 1, Steven Haws, an analyst with New York-based Commodities Risk Analysis, said in an interview from the city on Dec. 21. Between 30,000 and 50,000 tons has been smuggled into Ghana, Jonathan Parkman, joint head of agriculture at Marex Financial Ltd., said in an interview from London, where the company is based, yesterday.
In times of high international prices, cocoa farmers in Ghana, where fixed prices are paid for beans, seek better earnings in markets with fewer controls such as neighboring Ivory Coast.
This season, “roadblocks, lawlessness and delays raise the transport costs of bringing cocoa to the ports of Abidjan and San Pedro” in Ivory Coast, Haws said in a separate e-mailed response to questions. The shift has resulted in the rise in the illegal trade from Ivory Coast to Ghana.
The Ghana Cocoa Board, which regulates the industry in the world’s second-largest grower of the beans, said Sept. 28 it would increase prices paid to Ghanaian farmers by 33 percent to 3,200 cedis ($2,169) per ton. Ivory Coast’s average farmgate price for the week ending Dec. 12 was 850 CFA francs ($1.69) per kilogram, or $1,690 per ton, according to the country’s cocoa and coffee exchange, which is based in Abidjan. Cocoa for march delivery rose 1.9 percent to 2,048 pounds ($3,154) a ton as of 4:13 p.m. local time on London’s Liffe exchange.
Refusal to Cede
Ivory Coast’s Laurent Gbagbo has refused to cede power to rival Alassane Ouattara, who was named winner of a Nov. 28 vote by the country’s electoral commission and has support from the U.S., United Nations, European Union and former colonial ruler France. Gbagbo has the backing of the army after the Constitutional Council dismissed the vote count in some northern areas, where Ouattara draws much of his support, and named him as victor.
Ghana’s higher price had begun to reverse the flow of illegal cocoa smuggling in the region even before Ivory Coast’s disputed vote, Haws said.
Ghana lost about 100,000 tons of beans to smuggling during the 2009-10 season, worth $300 million, Alhaji Dramani Egala, deputy chief executive officer of the Ghana Cocoa Board, said Aug. 27. The cocoa harvest year in both Ivory Coast and Ghana typically begins in October.
‘Finding Buyers’
“I think it’s pretty clear up until recently that the economic benefit of moving cocoa from the Ivory Coast to Ghana has been significant, with the recent political turmoil it’s become even more significant,” Marex’s Parkman said. “At the moment, moving cocoa, even finding buyers around Abidjan has become difficult.”
Ivorian cocoa may not meet Ghana’s quality standards, Haws said.
“When cocoa is smuggled from Ivory Coast, it is common that Ivorian and Ghanaian beans are mixed to just barely pass the more stringent Ghanaian specifications,” he said.
“Ghana cocoa is of premium quality and we wouldn’t want any Ivorian cocoa,” Tony Fofie, chief executive officer of the the cocoa board, said in an interview from his mobile phone yesterday, denying that there has been a surge in smuggling.
The Accra-based board has raised its production forecast for 2010-11 by 14 percent to 800,000 tons, Fofie said, citing an “increase in yields from very good rainfall and some of the programs we’ve put in place” to improve growing practices.
Nigeria Evacuates Diplomats' Families From Ivory Coast as Tensions Mount
Nigeria moved the families of its diplomats in Ivory Coast’s main city, Abidjan, to neighboring Ghana “following the escalation of tension and clashes” in the country, a spokesman for the Foreign Affairs Ministry said.
The Nigerian mission in Abidjan is open only for “essential services,” the spokesman, Ozo Nwobu, said in an e- mailed statement today.
Ivory Coast has been left with two governments since incumbent Laurent Gbagbo refused to resign after the country’s electoral commission named Alassane Ouattara the winner of a disputed presidential election on Nov. 28. Ouattara’s win was annulled by Ivory Coast’s Constitutional Council on Dec. 3. The council named incumbent Gbagbo as the victor after canceling ballots from the country’s north, alleging irregularities.
Pro-Gbagbo forces fired on marchers supporting Ouattara last week, killing at least 50 and wounding 240, according to the United Nations, which is protecting Ouattara’s administration at a hotel in Abidjan. The French government advised its citizens yesterday to leave Ivory Coast "temporarily."
Presidents of countries in the Economic Community of West African States will hold talks in the Nigerian capital, Abuja, on Dec. 24 to discuss developments in Ivory Coast, the regional body said.
The Nigerian mission in Abidjan is open only for “essential services,” the spokesman, Ozo Nwobu, said in an e- mailed statement today.
Ivory Coast has been left with two governments since incumbent Laurent Gbagbo refused to resign after the country’s electoral commission named Alassane Ouattara the winner of a disputed presidential election on Nov. 28. Ouattara’s win was annulled by Ivory Coast’s Constitutional Council on Dec. 3. The council named incumbent Gbagbo as the victor after canceling ballots from the country’s north, alleging irregularities.
Pro-Gbagbo forces fired on marchers supporting Ouattara last week, killing at least 50 and wounding 240, according to the United Nations, which is protecting Ouattara’s administration at a hotel in Abidjan. The French government advised its citizens yesterday to leave Ivory Coast "temporarily."
Presidents of countries in the Economic Community of West African States will hold talks in the Nigerian capital, Abuja, on Dec. 24 to discuss developments in Ivory Coast, the regional body said.
Togolese Minister wants meeting to stem harassment at borders
Aflao, Dec. 23, GNA - The Togolese Minister of Security and Civil Protection, Alhaji Mohamed Titikpina Atsah, has called for an immediate meeting of security authorities of Ghana and Togo to discuss ways of reducing harassments by border officials of both countries.
Mr Atsah said he had ordered Togolese security frontier personnel to stop the practice immediately, stating that from January 2011, any officer caught harassing or seeking to extort money from an individual would be disciplined.
He made this call when addressing a joint inauguration of a pedestrian border post at Beat 09 between Kodzoviakope in Lome and Aflao on Wednesday.
The new post, about a kilometre east of the main frontier, was to create a separate entry point for mainly border residents of the two countries who could shuttle between both countries using identity cards.
The measure was expected to ease congestion at the main crossing point.
Mr Atsah said the creation of the new border post re-affirmed the trust between the two countries and would facilitate trade and other economic activities between the two countries.
Mr Kosivi Degbor, Ghanaian Deputy National Security Coordinator, said entry regulations remained the same and needed to be applied and obeyed at all crossing points.
Miss Elizabeth Adjei, Director of the Ghana Immigration Service (GIS), suggested a special ID card system for border residents just as is the case between Thailand and Malaysia.
Colonel Cyril Necku (rtd), the Deputy Volta Regional Minister, advised the locals to be disciplined in the use of the post.
Mr Evans Klutse, Aflao Sector Commander of the Customs Division of the Ghana Revenue Authority, appealed to travellers not to see the security personnel as their enemies adding that the frontiers had to be guarded against infiltration by criminals.
Officials made symbolic crossing of the post and inspected its facilities.
GNA
Mr Atsah said he had ordered Togolese security frontier personnel to stop the practice immediately, stating that from January 2011, any officer caught harassing or seeking to extort money from an individual would be disciplined.
He made this call when addressing a joint inauguration of a pedestrian border post at Beat 09 between Kodzoviakope in Lome and Aflao on Wednesday.
The new post, about a kilometre east of the main frontier, was to create a separate entry point for mainly border residents of the two countries who could shuttle between both countries using identity cards.
The measure was expected to ease congestion at the main crossing point.
Mr Atsah said the creation of the new border post re-affirmed the trust between the two countries and would facilitate trade and other economic activities between the two countries.
Mr Kosivi Degbor, Ghanaian Deputy National Security Coordinator, said entry regulations remained the same and needed to be applied and obeyed at all crossing points.
Miss Elizabeth Adjei, Director of the Ghana Immigration Service (GIS), suggested a special ID card system for border residents just as is the case between Thailand and Malaysia.
Colonel Cyril Necku (rtd), the Deputy Volta Regional Minister, advised the locals to be disciplined in the use of the post.
Mr Evans Klutse, Aflao Sector Commander of the Customs Division of the Ghana Revenue Authority, appealed to travellers not to see the security personnel as their enemies adding that the frontiers had to be guarded against infiltration by criminals.
Officials made symbolic crossing of the post and inspected its facilities.
GNA
Nigeria borrows $900 million from Chinese bank
ABUJA Dec 23 (Reuters) - Nigeria has borrowed $900 million from Export-Import Bank of China (China Eximbank) to fund railway and security projects, the country's finance minister said on Thursday.
The move comes despite concerns raised by Nigeria's central bank governor over the rapid expansion of public borrowing and government spending, which is keeping inflation high in sub-Saharan Africa's second-largest economy.
Nigeria's budget deficit is expected to widen to 6.1 percent this year, it has spent billions of dollars of its windfall oil savings, and its foreign reserves have fallen 20 percent from a year ago.
Africa's most populous nation will head to the polls for presidential, parliamentary and state governorship elections next April and the government is setting in place plans to improve the poor state of the country's infrastructure.
"We have just obtained a loan of 900 million dollars from the Eximbank of China to finance two major projects, which are the Abuja to Kaduna railway project and the national public security communications project," Olusegun Aganga said.
"500 million dollars is for the rail project while 400 million is for the execution of the security communication project," he added.
Aganga said the loan was for 20 years with a 2.5 percent interest rate, although he hopes the security communications system will produce cash flow and the loan will be paid off within five to seven years.
President Goodluck Jonathan presented the 2011 budget proposal to parliament this month, proposing a cut in 2011 spending although recurrent expenditure -- the cost of running government -- remains high under the plans. [ID:nLDE6BE1LP]
Tuesday, December 21, 2010
WikiLeaks cables: Egypt 'turned down' black-market nuclear weapons deal
Cairo's ambassador to the UN claimed President Mubarak said no to offer of atomic weapons from ex-Soviet state.
Hosni Mubarak rejected offers of nuclear weapons and scientists, according to the cables.
Egypt was offered nuclear weapons, material and expertise on the black market after the collapse of the Soviet Union, according to a senior Egyptian diplomat.
President Hosni Mubarak turned down the offer, but the incident raises new questions over what nuclear sales were made by the other states or groups in the chaos of the early 1990s in Russia and the former Soviet republics.
Maged Abdelaziz, the country's ambassador to the UN, made the revelation to America's top negotiator on nuclear arms control, Rose Gottemoeller, in a conversation reported in a leaked US cable in May last year.
The subject came up in a discussion of the creation of a nuclear weapons-free zone in the Middle East, a foreign policy priority for Cairo. The US cable said: "Finally, in an apparent attempt to portray Egypt as a responsible member of the international community, Abdelaziz claimed that Egypt had been offered nuclear scientists, materials and even weapons following the collapse of the Soviet Union, but Egypt had refused all such offers."
"A/S [assistant secretary of state] Gottemoeller asked him how he knew this to be true, to which Abdelaziz replied he was in Moscow at that time and had direct personal knowledge."
Abdelaziz declined to comment on the cable, and it is unclear from the text who made the offer.
However, other evidence points towards groups of former military officers and nuclear scientists suddenly facing loss of privileges and income.
Maria Rost Rublee, an expert on the history of Egyptian nuclear programme, said she was told by three well-informed sources – a former Egyptian diplomat, military officer, and nuclear scientist - that "non-state actors" from an unnamed former Soviet republic had tried to sell fissile material and technology to Egypt.
"Mubarak refused. He was very cautious, even over nuclear energy, and cancelled plans for a programme after Chernobyl," said Rublee, the author of Nonproliferation Norms – a study of why some nations choose the path of nuclear restraint, now teaching at the University of Auckland.
She said the leaked May 2009 US cable marks the first time a Egyptian official has claimed his government was offered actual nuclear warheads and the assistance of nuclear technicians.
Olli Heinonen, former head of the safeguards division at the International Atomic Energy Agency, said: "At the time of the Soviet collapse, there were lots of people with financial difficulties.
"Some guys were looking for ways of many money and set up companies, offering nuclear material, but these were individuals making the offers, not the states."
Several kilograms of weapons-grade uranium and plutonium have been seized from smugglers in the intervening years.
Meanwhile, there have been occasional accounts of former Soviet weapons scientists hawking their expertise abroad.
The International Atomic Energy Agency has been trying to find out what a Russian-Ukrainian scientist who had carried out pioneering work on the Soviet nuclear bomb at Chelyabinsk in Siberia, was doing in Iran in the mid-90s.
The scientist, now back in Moscow, is an expert in the implosion techniques necessary for rigging up a nuclear warheads.
Meanwhile al-Qaida focused far more on the Pakistan nuclear programme as a possible source for a terrorist bomb.
Amid all the uncertainty, experts argue that if a warhead had gone astray in that critical period in the early 90s, it would probably have been detonated by now.
WikiLeaks cables: Ghanaian police 'helped drug smugglers evade security'
Guardian.co.uk
Security guards on duty at Kotoka airport in Accra, Ghana. Some unidentified airport police are corrupt, according to the US embassy cables.
African anti-narcotics operation funded with £1m from UK thwarted by corrupt officials at airport, US embassy cables say
A £1m taxpayer-funded anti-trafficking campaign to stem the flow of cocaine into the UK through Ghana's busiest airport is beset by corruption, with drugs police sabotaging expensive British-bought scanning equipment and tipping off smugglers, leaked US embassy cables reveal.
Ghana president John Atta Mills even worried that his own entourage could be smuggling drugs through his presidential lounge at Accra's Kotoka airport and asked a senior UK customs official last November for help to screen them "in the privacy of his suite to avoid any surprises if they are caught carrying drugs", according to the US embassy in Accra (cable 234015).
The US embassy reported what it had been told by Roland O'Hagan, the British head of Operation Westbridge – a joint UK-Ghanaian anti-smuggling operation.
The cable said: "President Mills had expressed interest in acquiring itemisers [sensitive, portable screening devices] for the presidential suite at the airport in order to screen his entourage for drugs before boarding any departing flight."
The extraordinary request reveals the depth of the crisis in the bilateral operation to crack down on wholesale drug trafficking into the UK through an airport which has become a main transit hub for South American drug cartels channelling hard drugs into the UK and Europe after the authorities successfully blocked routes from the Caribbean.
Drugs worth £100m have been seized so far, amid growing international concern expressed in the cables that drug trafficking is becoming "institutionalised" in west Africa.
The UN has estimated that up to 60 tonnes of cocaine, worth £1.3bn, is smuggled through the region each year.
According to the cables, Ghanaian narcotics control board (Nacob) officers working in collaboration with British officials:
• actively helped traffickers, even telling them the best time to travel to avoid detection (164939)
• sabotaged sensitive drug scanners paid for by British taxpayers • channelled passengers, including pastors and bank managers and their wives, into the security-exempt VVIP lounge despite suspicions they were trafficking drugs.
Smuggling has become so blatant that on one flight last year, two traffickers vomited up drugs they had swallowed and subsequently died (234015), while parcels of cocaine were found taped under the seats of another KLM plane even before boarding (125133).
Mills had publicly pledged to crack down on trafficking into the UK via the airport and won the presidency with an anti-drugs platform.
But in June 2009 he told the US ambassador to Ghana, Donald Teitelbaum, "he knows elements of his government are already compromised and that officials at the airport tipped off drug traffickers about operations there (214460)."
Embassy contacts in both the police service and the president's office "have said they know the identities of the major barons," but "the government of Ghana does not have the political will to go after [them]", a December 2007 cable said (135389).
A UK official overseeing Westbridge had observed Nacob agents at the airport directing passengers away from flights receiving extra scrutiny, a confidential US embassy cable revealed in August 2008 (164939).
"On one occasion, [the official] returned unexpectedly to the airport at 4am to screen a flight. An arrested trafficker told the UK official that the trafficker had been told that Westbridge was not operating that night. A test by Westbridge officials of the cellphone SIM card of a trafficker found the phone numbers of senior Nacob officials."
He said two itemisers were incapacitated by sabotage, remarking "the knowledge required to remove the filters exceeded the basic knowledge of the operators". The cable concluded: "The government of Ghana does not provide the resources necessary to address the problem and, at times, does not appear to have the political will to go after the major drug barons."
Operation Westbridge began in November 2006 and the UK government has trumpeted its success.
Last year the minister responsible for drug trafficking, Alan Campbell, told a parliamentary inquiry the scheme was a "very good example" of how to tackle the cocaine trade, while the Home Office said in a written statement that "these operations meet our drugs strategy commitment to intercept drugs and drugs couriers before they reach the UK".
A different picture emerges in the cables. Kim Howells, a Labour Foreign Office minister, delivered a "stern message" to the Ghanaian government in October 2007 about its lack of co-operation and responded "testily" to a request from Ghana's interior minister for more scanning equipment, saying: "If a 'criminal' is operating equipment, it is worthless," according to the US embassy.
Three months later the embassy reported that "seizures in Accra drop to almost zero when the Westbridge team ... is back in London (135389)".
In November 2009 O'Hagan told the US embassy that Nacob believes that the airport's VVIP lounge has been a source of drugs leaving the country.
"Nacob placed two officers in the lounge to screen departing passengers, and the number of passengers using the VVIP lounge has decreased," the embassy reported O'Hagan saying late last year.
....Read More
Violence escalates along Gaza-Israel border
JERUSALEM – The Israeli air force hit seven suspected militant sites in Gaza early Tuesday and Palestinian militants sent a rocket crashing down near a kindergarten in southern Israel in a flare-up along the Israel-Gaza border.
Gaza health official Adham Abu Salmia said three Palestinians were wounded in the airstrikes. The Israeli military said a 15-year-old girl was slightly injured by shrapnel.
The airstrikes targeted a weapons-manufacturing facility and smuggling tunnels, the military said in a statement. Some of the tunnels were designed to allow militants to infiltrate Israel to carry out attacks, the statement said.
The airstrikes were in retaliation for the firing of 13 rockets and mortars at Israel this week, the military said.
Palestinians said one of the targets was a government-built dairy factory.
Gaza health official Adham Abu Salmia said three Palestinians were wounded in the airstrikes. The Israeli military said a 15-year-old girl was slightly injured by shrapnel.
The airstrikes targeted a weapons-manufacturing facility and smuggling tunnels, the military said in a statement. Some of the tunnels were designed to allow militants to infiltrate Israel to carry out attacks, the statement said.
The airstrikes were in retaliation for the firing of 13 rockets and mortars at Israel this week, the military said.
Palestinians said one of the targets was a government-built dairy factory.
Mandela son-in-law granted bail, may be extradited
JOHANNESBURG – An Interpol spokeswoman says that bail has been granted for the son-in-law of former South African president Nelson Mandela.
Isaac Amuah, a former professor at Manchester Community Technical College, turned himself in to South African police Monday, and was granted bail of $73,000. Amuah had left Connecticut 12 years ago while facing sexual assault charges. He strongly denies all charges.
Amuah is accused of sexually assaulting a 34-year-old student inside Amuah's Manchester apartment in 1993. He was given permission to travel to South Africa for the holidays in 1993 and never returned.
Amuah is married to Mandela's oldest daughter, Makaziwe, who was present at the bail hearing.
Interpol's Tummi Shai says Amuah has been very cooperative. His next court appearance is set for Feb. 11.
Isaac Amuah, a former professor at Manchester Community Technical College, turned himself in to South African police Monday, and was granted bail of $73,000. Amuah had left Connecticut 12 years ago while facing sexual assault charges. He strongly denies all charges.
Amuah is accused of sexually assaulting a 34-year-old student inside Amuah's Manchester apartment in 1993. He was given permission to travel to South Africa for the holidays in 1993 and never returned.
Amuah is married to Mandela's oldest daughter, Makaziwe, who was present at the bail hearing.
Interpol's Tummi Shai says Amuah has been very cooperative. His next court appearance is set for Feb. 11.
NY governor fined $62K over Yankees Series tickets
ALBANY, N.Y. – New York Gov. David Paterson contradicted his staff, the Yankees and common sense when he falsely claimed he always intended to pay for five tickets to the first game of the 2009 World Series at Yankee Stadium, a state commission said in assessing him a $62,125 fine.
In a report released Monday, the Commission on Public Integrity said Paterson performed no ceremonial function at the game, which still would not have entitled him to free tickets for his son and son's friend. The others were used by the governor and the two staff members. He and two of his staff paid for four of the tickets a few days later.
"The moral and ethical tone of any organization is set at the top. Unfortunately, the governor set a totally inappropriate tone by his dishonest and unethical conduct," said commission Chairman Michael Cherkasky. "Such conduct cannot be tolerated by any New York State employee, particularly our governor."
The commission said the civil penalty consists of the $2,125 value of the tickets and $60,000 for three violations of the state's public officer's law.
Paterson had said it was his duty to attend the opening series game at the new Bronx stadium. A call to his lawyer Theodore Wells Jr. was not immediately returned Monday.
There was a question whether the Democratic governor gave "intentionally false testimony" to the commission about having written an $850 check in advance for two tickets, special counsel Judith Kaye, the state's former chief judge, said in an August report.
However, Kaye said the perjury issue was "clouded" by the way Paterson's commission testimony was given, with the entries read aloud to the legally blind governor, instead of him personally examining a check that was not filled out in his own handwriting.
Wells said then that Paterson didn't lie, and he noted Kaye's report didn't recommend bringing charges.
However, she said the evidence warranted consideration of criminal charges.
Albany County District Attorney P. David Soares said in August the case was under consideration but they would have no comment until the review was complete.
Calls to Soares' office were not immediately returned Monday
In a report released Monday, the Commission on Public Integrity said Paterson performed no ceremonial function at the game, which still would not have entitled him to free tickets for his son and son's friend. The others were used by the governor and the two staff members. He and two of his staff paid for four of the tickets a few days later.
"The moral and ethical tone of any organization is set at the top. Unfortunately, the governor set a totally inappropriate tone by his dishonest and unethical conduct," said commission Chairman Michael Cherkasky. "Such conduct cannot be tolerated by any New York State employee, particularly our governor."
The commission said the civil penalty consists of the $2,125 value of the tickets and $60,000 for three violations of the state's public officer's law.
Paterson had said it was his duty to attend the opening series game at the new Bronx stadium. A call to his lawyer Theodore Wells Jr. was not immediately returned Monday.
There was a question whether the Democratic governor gave "intentionally false testimony" to the commission about having written an $850 check in advance for two tickets, special counsel Judith Kaye, the state's former chief judge, said in an August report.
However, Kaye said the perjury issue was "clouded" by the way Paterson's commission testimony was given, with the entries read aloud to the legally blind governor, instead of him personally examining a check that was not filled out in his own handwriting.
Wells said then that Paterson didn't lie, and he noted Kaye's report didn't recommend bringing charges.
However, she said the evidence warranted consideration of criminal charges.
Albany County District Attorney P. David Soares said in August the case was under consideration but they would have no comment until the review was complete.
Calls to Soares' office were not immediately returned Monday
Sunday, December 19, 2010
More than 50 people have been killed in post-election violence in Ivory Coast amid growing reports of abductions, the UN has said.
The UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, Navi Pillay, said the deaths had occurred in the past three days. More than 200 people were also injured.
Incumbent President Laurent Gbagbo says he has won the 28 November poll.
The UN and major powers have recognised Mr Gbagbo's rival, Alassane Ouattara, as the winner.
Mr Gbagbo has demanded that all foreign peacekeepers leave the country, with the authorities claiming that UN and French troops were colluding with former rebels.
UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon on Sunday rejected the call.
Ultimatum to Gbagbo
In a statement, Ms Pillay said that "in the past three days there has been more than 50 people killed, and over 200 injured" in Ivory Coast.
More than 50 die in Ivorian post-election unrest - UN
The statement also expressed concern over "the growing evidence of massive violations of human rights" in the country.
Ms Pillay said she had received hundreds of reports of people being abducted from their homes by armed assailants.
The commissioner added that the alleged kidnappings had been "accompanied by elements of the defence and security forces or militia groups".
The UN Security Council has warned that all sides will be held accountable under international law for any attacks against civilians.
Meanwhile, the UK government has urged British nationals to leave Ivory Coast unless they have pressing reasons to stay.
The US and France have previously advised their citizens against travelling to the West African country.
The UN, the US, former colonial power France, and the African Union have all called on Mr Gbagbo to stand down.
French President Nicolas Sarkozy on Friday said he should quit by Sunday or face EU sanctions.
But Mr Gbagbo says the election was rigged by rebels who still hold the north after the civil war in 2002-03.
He was declared the winner by Ivory Coast's Constitutional Council after it annulled votes in parts of the north.
Incumbent President Laurent Gbagbo says he has won the 28 November poll.
The UN and major powers have recognised Mr Gbagbo's rival, Alassane Ouattara, as the winner.
Mr Gbagbo has demanded that all foreign peacekeepers leave the country, with the authorities claiming that UN and French troops were colluding with former rebels.
UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon on Sunday rejected the call.
Ultimatum to Gbagbo
In a statement, Ms Pillay said that "in the past three days there has been more than 50 people killed, and over 200 injured" in Ivory Coast.
More than 50 die in Ivorian post-election unrest - UN
The statement also expressed concern over "the growing evidence of massive violations of human rights" in the country.
Ms Pillay said she had received hundreds of reports of people being abducted from their homes by armed assailants.
The commissioner added that the alleged kidnappings had been "accompanied by elements of the defence and security forces or militia groups".
The UN Security Council has warned that all sides will be held accountable under international law for any attacks against civilians.
Meanwhile, the UK government has urged British nationals to leave Ivory Coast unless they have pressing reasons to stay.
The US and France have previously advised their citizens against travelling to the West African country.
The UN, the US, former colonial power France, and the African Union have all called on Mr Gbagbo to stand down.
French President Nicolas Sarkozy on Friday said he should quit by Sunday or face EU sanctions.
But Mr Gbagbo says the election was rigged by rebels who still hold the north after the civil war in 2002-03.
He was declared the winner by Ivory Coast's Constitutional Council after it annulled votes in parts of the north.
Japan defence review warns of China's military might
Japan has unveiled sweeping changes to its national defence polices, boosting its southern forces in response to neighbouring China's military rise.
It said Beijing's military build-up was of global concern. Japan shares a maritime border with China.
It will also strengthen its missile defences against the threat from a nuclear-armed North Korea.
China has responded saying it is a force for peace and development in Asia and threatens no-one.
China's Foreign Ministry said no country had the right to make irresponsible comments on China's development.
Flashpoints
The National Defence Programme Guideline has been approved by the cabinet and will shape Japan's defence policy for the next 10 years.
Japan is changing its defence policy in response to the shifting balance of power in Asia, analysts say.
Defences will be scaled down in the north, where they have been deployed since the Cold War to counter potential threats from the former Soviet Union.
The military focus will now be in the south of Japan, closer to China and remote flashpoint islands near Taiwan.
The guidelines say Japan is concerned by China's growing military spending, modernisation of its armed forces, and increased naval assertiveness in the East China and South China seas.
"These movements, coupled with the lack of transparency on China's military and security issues, the trend is a concern for the region and the international community," the new guidelines say.
Relations between Japan and China deteriorated sharply in September, after collisions between a Chinese trawler and Japanese patrol boats near a chain of disputed islands in the East China Sea.
North Korea concerns
The review paper outlines a shift in resources from the army to the air force and navy.
Japan's submarine fleet will be expanded from 16 to 22 and fighter jets upgraded, while the number of tanks will be cut by a third to 400.
North Korea's missile and nuclear programmes were also described as a "pressing and serious destabilising factor".
Pyongyang has fired missiles over Japan and staged nuclear tests in recent years
Last month it unveiled a new uranium enrichment plant to US experts, and launched an artillery attack on a South Korean island, killing four people.
In response, Japan says more Patriot interceptor batteries will be deployed across the country, and the number of warships which can shoot down missiles will be increased from four to six.
It also plans to cut the number of soldiers by 1,000 to an official headcount of 154,000.
The US has an almost 50,000-strong troop presence in Japan. The paper called the Japan-US alliance "indispensable".
The review paper added that it was necessary to reduce the burden on communities hosting US bases, including Okinawa.
Japan said it would "promote confidence and co-operation with China and Russia" while also developing ties with the EU and Nato.
Russian President Dmitry Medvedev sparked a diplomatic row with Japan earlier this year by visiting the Southern Kurils, which Japan calls the Northern Territories.
The islands, off the north coast of Japan's Hokkaido island, were seized by Soviet troops at the end of World War II, but Japan still regards them as part of its territory.
Japan has a pacifist constitution. Article Nine of the constitution, which was written under US post-war occupation in 1947, renounces the use of force by Japan in settling international disputes.
The BBC's Roland Buerk, in Tokyo, says the new strategic stance will be closely watched in Asia, where Japan's World War II aggression has been neither forgotten nor forgiven.
Armed forces - Japan - China
Submarines - 18 - 9
Destroyers - 41 - 27
Fighters - 310 - 1,320
Battle tanks - 876 - 9,840
Active personnel -237,000 - 2,255,000
Source: IHS Jane's
It said Beijing's military build-up was of global concern. Japan shares a maritime border with China.
It will also strengthen its missile defences against the threat from a nuclear-armed North Korea.
China has responded saying it is a force for peace and development in Asia and threatens no-one.
China's Foreign Ministry said no country had the right to make irresponsible comments on China's development.
Flashpoints
The National Defence Programme Guideline has been approved by the cabinet and will shape Japan's defence policy for the next 10 years.
Japan is changing its defence policy in response to the shifting balance of power in Asia, analysts say.
Defences will be scaled down in the north, where they have been deployed since the Cold War to counter potential threats from the former Soviet Union.
The military focus will now be in the south of Japan, closer to China and remote flashpoint islands near Taiwan.
The guidelines say Japan is concerned by China's growing military spending, modernisation of its armed forces, and increased naval assertiveness in the East China and South China seas.
"These movements, coupled with the lack of transparency on China's military and security issues, the trend is a concern for the region and the international community," the new guidelines say.
Relations between Japan and China deteriorated sharply in September, after collisions between a Chinese trawler and Japanese patrol boats near a chain of disputed islands in the East China Sea.
North Korea concerns
The review paper outlines a shift in resources from the army to the air force and navy.
Japan's submarine fleet will be expanded from 16 to 22 and fighter jets upgraded, while the number of tanks will be cut by a third to 400.
North Korea's missile and nuclear programmes were also described as a "pressing and serious destabilising factor".
Pyongyang has fired missiles over Japan and staged nuclear tests in recent years
Last month it unveiled a new uranium enrichment plant to US experts, and launched an artillery attack on a South Korean island, killing four people.
In response, Japan says more Patriot interceptor batteries will be deployed across the country, and the number of warships which can shoot down missiles will be increased from four to six.
It also plans to cut the number of soldiers by 1,000 to an official headcount of 154,000.
The US has an almost 50,000-strong troop presence in Japan. The paper called the Japan-US alliance "indispensable".
The review paper added that it was necessary to reduce the burden on communities hosting US bases, including Okinawa.
Japan said it would "promote confidence and co-operation with China and Russia" while also developing ties with the EU and Nato.
Russian President Dmitry Medvedev sparked a diplomatic row with Japan earlier this year by visiting the Southern Kurils, which Japan calls the Northern Territories.
The islands, off the north coast of Japan's Hokkaido island, were seized by Soviet troops at the end of World War II, but Japan still regards them as part of its territory.
Japan has a pacifist constitution. Article Nine of the constitution, which was written under US post-war occupation in 1947, renounces the use of force by Japan in settling international disputes.
The BBC's Roland Buerk, in Tokyo, says the new strategic stance will be closely watched in Asia, where Japan's World War II aggression has been neither forgotten nor forgiven.
Armed forces - Japan - China
Submarines - 18 - 9
Destroyers - 41 - 27
Fighters - 310 - 1,320
Battle tanks - 876 - 9,840
Active personnel -237,000 - 2,255,000
Source: IHS Jane's
Wikileaks: India 'tortured' Kashmir prisoners
The International Committee of the Red Cross sent evidence to US diplomats about widespread torture by Indian security forces in Kashmir, according to cables obtained by Wikileaks.
Visits to detention centres in the region in 2002-04 revealed cases of beatings, electric shocks, sexual abuse and other types of ill-treatment.
The organisation concluded that India condoned torture in the region.
There has been no comment from the US. The ICRC said it was investigating.
The chief minister of the state of Jammu and Kashmir, Omar Abdullah, told India's NDTV channel that the allegations related to a period before his government took power and that he did not condone torture.
SM Sohai, inspector general of police in Indian-administered Kashmir, said the reports were baseless "propaganda".
"I do not how the Red Cross could have accessed that information because, normally they would not have access to these kind of locations, so it's completely unfounded," he told the BBC.
"Torture doesn't happen... Where can it happen?"
Correspondents say the revelations will be embarrassing for Delhi, coming at a time of heightened sensitivity in Kashmir, which is divided between Indian and Pakistani control.
They were published by The Guardian newspaper in the UK, one of five publications - including the New York Times, France's Le Monde, El Pais in Spain and Germany's Der Spiegel - given access to the entire archive of the reports from US diplomats out in the field by Wikileaks.
Wikileaks website says it has obtained more than 250,000 cables passed between the US State Department and hundreds of American diplomatic outposts - but it has so far only published a small sample of those messages.
The site's founder, Julian Assange, was on Thursday freed on bail in London, where he is fighting extradition to Sweden over sex assault allegations made by two women. He denies any wrongdoing.
Electric shocks
The torture allegations come at a time of heightened tensions in Kashmir, with massive public protests and numerous curfews in recent months.
The ICRC told diplomats they had made 177 visits to detention centres and met 1,491 detainees, a cable published in the UK Guardian newspaper said.
Ill-treatment was reported in 852 cases, the ICRC said.
A total of 171 said they were beaten and 681 subjected to one or more of six forms of torture:
Electric shocks
Suspension from ceiling
Crushing of leg muscles
Legs split 180 degrees
Water torture
Sexual abuse
Nonetheless the situation was "much better than it was in the 1990s", officials said.
There were no longer cases of security forces indiscriminately raiding villages and detaining their inhabitants, they added.
ICRC spokesman Alexis Heeb said the organisation was looking into the matter, but would not comment on the contents of the diplomatic correspondence as that was an internal communication between the US embassy in New Delhi and Washington.
The latest batch of documents to be released by Wikileaks is made up of diplomatic messages sent from US embassies around the world.
The website released 77,000 secret US files on the Afghan conflict in July, and 400,000 documents about the Iraq war in October.
Washington has strongly criticised Wikileaks for publishing classified diplomatic cables and military reports.
Visits to detention centres in the region in 2002-04 revealed cases of beatings, electric shocks, sexual abuse and other types of ill-treatment.
The organisation concluded that India condoned torture in the region.
There has been no comment from the US. The ICRC said it was investigating.
The chief minister of the state of Jammu and Kashmir, Omar Abdullah, told India's NDTV channel that the allegations related to a period before his government took power and that he did not condone torture.
SM Sohai, inspector general of police in Indian-administered Kashmir, said the reports were baseless "propaganda".
"I do not how the Red Cross could have accessed that information because, normally they would not have access to these kind of locations, so it's completely unfounded," he told the BBC.
"Torture doesn't happen... Where can it happen?"
Correspondents say the revelations will be embarrassing for Delhi, coming at a time of heightened sensitivity in Kashmir, which is divided between Indian and Pakistani control.
They were published by The Guardian newspaper in the UK, one of five publications - including the New York Times, France's Le Monde, El Pais in Spain and Germany's Der Spiegel - given access to the entire archive of the reports from US diplomats out in the field by Wikileaks.
Wikileaks website says it has obtained more than 250,000 cables passed between the US State Department and hundreds of American diplomatic outposts - but it has so far only published a small sample of those messages.
The site's founder, Julian Assange, was on Thursday freed on bail in London, where he is fighting extradition to Sweden over sex assault allegations made by two women. He denies any wrongdoing.
Electric shocks
The torture allegations come at a time of heightened tensions in Kashmir, with massive public protests and numerous curfews in recent months.
The ICRC told diplomats they had made 177 visits to detention centres and met 1,491 detainees, a cable published in the UK Guardian newspaper said.
Ill-treatment was reported in 852 cases, the ICRC said.
A total of 171 said they were beaten and 681 subjected to one or more of six forms of torture:
Electric shocks
Suspension from ceiling
Crushing of leg muscles
Legs split 180 degrees
Water torture
Sexual abuse
Nonetheless the situation was "much better than it was in the 1990s", officials said.
There were no longer cases of security forces indiscriminately raiding villages and detaining their inhabitants, they added.
ICRC spokesman Alexis Heeb said the organisation was looking into the matter, but would not comment on the contents of the diplomatic correspondence as that was an internal communication between the US embassy in New Delhi and Washington.
The latest batch of documents to be released by Wikileaks is made up of diplomatic messages sent from US embassies around the world.
The website released 77,000 secret US files on the Afghan conflict in July, and 400,000 documents about the Iraq war in October.
Washington has strongly criticised Wikileaks for publishing classified diplomatic cables and military reports.
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