Regional disaster officials meet in Barbados
Issues relating to the further strengthening of the regional Comprehensive Management (RCM) will be among matters discussed at the third meeting of the Technical Advisory Committee (TAC) of the Caribbean Disaster Emergency Management Agency (CDEMA) that begins in Barbados on Thursday.
The two-day meeting will also discuss a national comprehensive disaster management policy, the climate smart community disaster management programme and the mainstreaming climate change adaptation into the CDM Country Work programmes.
“TAC is part of the governance mechanism of CDEMA and provides strategic guidance on the development and implementation of the regional Comprehensive Disaster Management Programme. The meeting will see a gathering of senior officials of the national disaster management organisations of CDEMA’s 18 participating states and specialised regional organisations,” said a spokesman for the organisers.
He said the TAC will also consider the way forward on a logistics plan for the regional response mechanism and the review of 2010-2011 emergency events in CDEMA participating states. (TB/BGIS)
The two-day meeting will be addressed by the Acting Attorney General and Minister of Home Affairs, Michael Lashley.
Antigua Observer
China Said Unable to Protect Pyongyang After Nuclear Test
China's state-controlled media say Beijing will not be able to shield North Korea from the diplomatic consequences if it conducts a third nuclear test.
The warning appears Thursday in a commentary in Global Times, which is affiliated with China's ruling Communist Party. The article notes growing speculation that Pyongyang is preparing to conduct an underground nuclear test, which would be its third since 2006.
Beijing strongly opposes any such test, the article says and if North Korea goes ahead, China “will not be able to help it avoid various diplomatic results.” The U.N. Security Council has already warned it will “respond accordingly” to any further provocations by Pyongyang.
South Korea this month made available to VOA and other news organizations satellite surveillance photos showing fresh activity at the site of North Korea's two previous nuclear tests.
Suspicions that a test is imminent only grew after an attempted North Korean rocket launch ended in failure on April 13. The two previous nuclear tests followed failed missile tests and were seen as attempts to make up for the failures.
The Global Times article placed Pyongyang's nuclear ambitions in the context of recent missile tests by India and Pakistan. It said Asian countries are obsessed with improving their strategic striking capabilities and argued that the world should try to prevent them from doing so.
The article said weaker countries try to develop strategic weapons out of a fear of their stronger neighbors. It argued that the United States and its Asian allies should adopt a softer line so as not to provoke countries like North Korea.
Pakistani PM Convicted of Contempt But Spared Prison
The showdown between Pakistan's highest court and Prime Minister Yousuf Raza Gilani is over, with the court convicting Mr. Gilani of contempt.
The Supreme Court issued its verdict Thursday in Islamabad, ruling the prime minister openly defied the court's order to reopen an old corruption case against President Asif Ali Zardari. But the high court spared Mr. Gilani any time in prison, saying the sentence against him would only stand until the judges left the chamber.
Mr. Gilani could have been sent to prison for up to six months and could still be removed from office as a result of his conviction.
Thursday's guilty verdict is the latest development in what has been an ongoing battle between the court and the prime minister over the status of corruption cases dating back to the 1990s.
Prosecutors accuse President Zardari, former prime minister Benazir Bhutto and others of laundering millions of dollars through Swiss bank accounts. Ms. Bhutto, President Zardari's wife, was assassinated in 2007.
Charges against Mr. Zardari and the others were dropped after a 2007 amnesty agreement, but the court struck down the deal in 2009 and has been battling to reopen the cases ever since.
Prime Minister Gilani has refused to cooperate, arguing instead that the president has legal immunity while in office.
Japan’s ‘Shadow Shogun’ Acquitted in Fund-Raising Scandal
Influential Japanese political figure Ichiro Ozawa was acquitted Thursday on charges of violating fund raising laws, setting up a possible showdown in the country's ruling party.
The Tokyo District Court said there was no evidence that Ozawa knowingly falsified reports to hide a $5 million loan he made to his political fund-raising body to facilitate a land deal in 2004.
The ruling means the 69-year-old power broker, nicknamed the “shadow shogun” for his behind-the-scenes deal-making, could soon be re-instated into the ruling Democratic Party of Japan.
Ozawa has been a vocal critic of Prime Minister Yoshihiko Noda — also a member of the DPJ — and his controversial plan to double the sales tax to address a massive government debt.
Ozawa is widely credited with masterminding the DPJ's historic victory in 2009 over Japan's long-ruling conservative party.
Though the scandal forced Ozawa to step down as head of the DPJ, he has retained a loyal core of supporters. His re-instatement will likely make it more difficult for Prime Minister Noda to pass his plan to double a consumer sales tax to 10 percent by 2015.
Japan's top government spokesperson, Osamu Fujimura, says he hopes Ozawa's acquittal will not hurt the bill's chances of being approved.
“Facing this decision, our response as a government is just to hope for the fastest possible passing of legislation (on raising the consumer sales tax).”
Mr. Noda says the plan is necessary to bring down the country's historic debt and pay for rising social security expenses. But Ozawa says Japan's already fragile economy cannot handle the tax increase.
Prosecutors initially decided not to prosecute Ozawa, but they changed course after a panel of ordinary citizens called for his indictment. Three former aides were convicted last year in connection with the scandal.
Panetta Welcomes Brazil as World Power; Seeks Military Cooperation
U.S. Defense Secretary Leon Panetta is calling for closer military cooperation with Brazil, hailing the rising South American nation as a true global power.
During remarks late Wednesday in Rio de Janeiro, Panetta stressed a U.S. offer to foster closer relations by selling Brazil's air force a number of advanced Super Hornet fighter aircraft. The planes employ advanced technology offered only to America's closest allies.
Panetta was speaking at Brazil's Superior War College, where he said Brazil's growing strength is good for both countries.
“This is a relationship, the United States and Brazil, a relationship between two global powers. And we welcome Brazil's growing strength. We support Brazil as a global leader, and seek closer defense cooperation because we believe that a stronger and more globally engaged Brazil will help enhance international security for all of us. With our deepening partnership, Brazil's strength is more than ever, our strength.”
Panetta said the two countries should work together in pursuit of peace and security, particularly in Africa.
With one of the world's fastest-growing economies, Brazil is being courted as an ally by various world powers.
Brazilian President Dilma Rousseff last month met with the leaders of Russia, India, China and South Africa at a summit in India of the so-called BRICS nations, where the leaders questioned the Western-backed global economic architecture based on the World Bank and International Monetary Fund.
They also called for dialogue with Syria and Iran in what was seen as a challenge to the harder-line position of the United States.
While Brazil's military spending has been relatively stable as a percentage of gross domestic product at between 1 and 2 percent, its overall GDP has soared from about $600 billion in 2000 to more than $2 trillion in 2010 according to World Bank figures.
Newt Gingrich to End US Presidential Campaign
A spokesman for Newt Gingrich says the former U.S. House speaker will officially end his campaign for the Republican presidential nomination next week.
The spokesman says Gingrich will endorse Mitt Romney, the party's presumptive nominee, when he suspends his campaign. Romney called Gingrich Wednesday, a day after Romney won five state primary elections to effectively seal the nomination.
Gingrich acknowledged that Romney is the likely nominee during a campaign appearance Wednesday in North Carolina.
“This guy's worked six years, put together a big machine, and has put together a serious campaign. I think obviously that I would be a better candidate, but the objective factor is that voters didn't think that. I also think that it's very, very important that we be unified. Nothing should stop, no conservative anywhere in America should have any doubt about the importance of defeating Barack Obama.”
Gingrich emerged as a strong contender after winning the South Carolina primary in January, but his campaign faltered after he lost the following primary in Florida. His only other primary election win was in March, in his home state of Georgia, and his campaign is over $4 million in debt.
Gingrich's spokesman says he will focus his efforts on helping Republicans retain control of the U.S. House of Representatives and seize control of the Senate. Gingrich masterminded the Republican takeover of the House in 1994.
Another former Republican presidential candidate, Texas Governor Rick Perry, announced Wednesday that he was endorsing Romney. Perry dropped out of the race after the South Carolina primary and had endorsed Gingrich for the nomination.
Meanwhile, a spokesman for President Barack Obama's campaign announced Wednesday that the president will officially begin his re-election campaign next week with rallies in Virginia and Ohio, accompanied by his wife Michelle.
Mr. Obama had no challengers for the Democratic Party nomination.
‘Behind the Music’: Brandy Breaks Down over Fatal Car Crash
Brandy opens up about the single darkest episode in her life on tonight’s episode of “Behind the Music,” which aired on April 25, at 9 p.m. EST.
“I would hear what people would say, and still to this day they know that that’s a button,” Brandy says through tears. “They know that they can call me a murderer or call me someone that killed someone. They know that is a button for me. A murderer is someone who premeditates it. I didn’t wake up that day to be involved in a fatal car crash. I didn’t plan for that. And if I could take it back, I would.”
In December 2006, the singer was involved in a fatal car accident in California resulting in the death of Awatif Aboudihaj. The Los Angeles city attorney’s office ultimately concluded that there was “insufficient evidence” to convict Brandy of misdemeanor vehicular manslaughter after a series of investigations and being hit with a $50 million lawsuit.
Brandy expands on dealing with the aftermath of the tragedy on “Behind the Music” I just wanted people to know that this wasn’t news. It’s not something that should be talked about like it’s gossip. You don’t like me? Fine. But don’t use this situation to try to hurt me, because the guilt of being involved is enough. It’s something that I’ll never truly, truly get over. Ever,” she explains
J-Hud Leaves Court to Avoid Graphic Photos of Nephew
Jennifer Hudson left a Chicago courtroom today for the second day in a row, too distraught to look at graphic photos showing the gunshot wounds that took the life of her 7-year-old nephew, Julian King.
The boy was found dead in an SUV three days after police discovered the bodies of Hudson’s mother and brother in 2008. Hudson’s former brother-in-law, William Balfour, stands accused of the triple-homicide — a crime prosecutors say was a vicious act of retribution against Hudson’s sister.
Hudson’s fiance, David Otunga, remained in the courtroom and took notes as Cook County Deputy Medical Examiner Mitra Kalekar explained that King had been shot twice in the head, The Chicago Tribune reports.
The Grammy- and Oscar-winning singer-actress was the first witness called to testify after opening statements on Monday, where she said of Balfour: “None of us wanted her to marry him. We did not like how he treated her.”
Rihanna Could ‘Give a ^***’ about Coachella Weed Pic Haters
Rihanna has used Twitter to strike back at critics of her pics from the Coachella Music Festival in which she appears to roll a marijuana blunt, using the bald head of her bodyguard as a table while she sat on his shoulders.
“Yikes. @Rihanna’s marijuana photos from Coachella spark controversy,” MTV wrote on its Twitter account on Thursday afternoon, posting shots from the singer’s Instagram feed and drawing a barbed response from Rihanna herself.
“@MTV Yikes… @rihanna ran out of ^***s to give,” she tweeted back.
MTV has since deleted its tweet, though the story remains posted.
“I’m crazy, and I don’t pretend to be anything else,” Rihanna tweeted yesterday, in response to fans concerned by the photos.
MTV
Peter Jackson unveils new Hobbit footage
Director Peter Jackson has unveiled 10 minutes of footage of The Hobbit to a mixed reaction at the CinemaCon convention in Las Vegas.
The prequel to his Oscar-winning Lord of the Rings trilogy, starring British actor Martin Freeman as Bilbo Baggins, is due out in cinemas in December.
The new film has been shot at a rate of 48 frames per second, compared with the industry standard of 24 frames.
However some attendees claimed the scenes looked like low-budget TV.
In a video introduction, Jackson told the audience that using 48 frames per second produced a smoother image.
"The movement feels more real - it's much more gentle on the eyes," he said.
The footage included scenes featuring Bilbo Baggins lost in Gollum's cave, trolls engaged in battle and Sir Ian McKellen and Orlando Bloom reprising their roles as Gandalf and Legolas.
'Too accurate'
Jackson said the new approach would take time to adjust to and some attendees agreed, branding the footage as a failure in digital technology.
The Los Angeles Times said the footage was "hyper-realistic": "An opening aerial shot of dramatic rocky mountains appeared clearer than the images in most nature documentaries.
"But the effect was different when applied to scenes with actors dressed in period costume, whose every move - and pore - was crystal clear," it added.
One projectionist told the newspaper it "looked like a made-for-TV movie".
"It was too accurate - too clear. The contrast ratio isn't there yet - everything looked either too bright or black," they said.
However the Associated Press reported the footage was "vivid, with grass blades, facial lines and soaring mountains appearing luminous and pronounced. The actors looked almost touchable, as if they were performing live on stage".
Other digital pioneers are making the same push for higher film speeds.
Avatar creator James Cameron has promised to shoot the sequel to his science-fiction blockbuster at 48 or 60 frames per second.
The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey is the first chapter in Jackson's two-part adaptation of JRR Tolkien's fantasy classic.
The two films were shot back-to-back in 3D, with the second part, The Hobbit: There and Back Again, due in cinemas in December 2013.