Mexico Maya begin 2012 'end of era' countdown
Indigenous Maya communities in southern Mexico have begun a year-long countdown to 21 December 2012, which will mark the end of a five-millenia cycle in the ancient Mayan calendar.
Some people have interpreted the prophecy as predicting the apocalypse.
But experts say it signifies the end of an era, not the end of the world.
Maya priests have been holding special religious ceremonies, and Mexican tourism officials are preparing for a surge in visitors to the region.
Mexico's tourism agency says it hopes to draw around 52 million visitors in 2012, with many heading to the Maya heartland in the southern states of Chiapas, Yucatan, Quintana Roo and Tabasco.
Powerful god
The Mayan civilisation, which reached its peak between 250 and 900AD, was fascinated by astronomy, mathematics and the cycles of time.
Its Long Count calendar began in 3114BC and moves forward in 394-year periods known as Baktuns.
The winter solstice in 2012 marks the end of the 13th Baktun, a date of special significance that reflects celestial alignments recognised by modern astronomers.
The idea that it could mean the end of the world - based on a Mayan text carved into a stone 1,300 years ago - has been spread on thousands of websites.
But archaeologists and Maya experts say the prophecy predicts the return to Earth of a powerful god and the start of a new era, not a global catastrophe.
They point out that other Maya prophecies refer to events far in the future.
This has not stopped the spread of millennial fears around the world.
Tourism officials are hoping that some of those who believe the end of the world is nigh will take the opportunity to visit the Maya region before it is too late.
MF Global's missing $700 million could be in UK
The bankruptcy court trustee in the MF Global case has identified $700 million in U.S. customer funds that were sent to the United Kingdom before the collapse of the commodities and futures trader.
But while the trustee said he would be trying to get the money back from the British authorities, he warned MF Global (MFGLQ) customers that getting that money will be a difficult and drawn-out process.
James Giddens, the trustee appointed to try to recover assets in the bankruptcy case said in a statement Wednesday that the funds are under the control of foreign bankruptcy trustees and administrators.
"We have been and will continue to pursue these assets vigorously, but recovery may be more uncertain and may take more time," he said.
The $700 million is included in Giddens' estimate of $1.2 billion in missing customers funds in the MF Global bankruptcy.
Executives of MF Global, including its former CEO Jon Corzine, have denied knowing what happened to the missing customer funds. To top of page
First Published: December 21, 2011: 4:25 PM ET
BofA settles unfair lending claims for $335 million
The Justice Department announced a $335 million settlement with Bank of America Wednesday over discriminatory lending practice at Countrywide Financial.
Attorney General Eric Holder said a federal probe found discrimination against at least 200,000 qualified African American and Latino borrowers from 2004 to 2008, during the height of the housing market boom. He said that minority borrowers who qualified for prime loans were steered into higher-interest-rate subprime loans.
Thomas Perez, assistant attorney general for Justice's civil rights division, said most of the victims of the discrimination were not aware that they were improperly steered to the riskier mortgages.
"They were thrilled to have gotten the loan and to have realized the American dream," Perez said. "They had no idea they could have and should have gotten a better deal. This is discrimination with a smile."
He said the discriminatory practices went to the heart of the problem with subprime mortgages and the financial market meltdown they helped set in motion. These borrowers paid on average tens of thousands of dollars more in interest and were subject to pre-payment penalties.
He said while the discriminatory loans happened across the country, about 30% of the victims were in California, where Countrywide was based. About two-thirds of the victims were Latino.
Bank of America shares close below $5
"Countrywide's actions contributed to the housing crisis, hurt entire communities, and denied families access to the American dream," Perez said.
He said that money from the settlement will go to borrowers who were identified by the probe. Details about how they will be compensated are not yet available.
Shares of Bank of America (BAC, Fortune 500), which closed below $5 for the first time since 2009 on Monday, rose about 1% to $5.21 after Wednesday's announcement.
Bank of America purchased leading mortgage lender Countrywide in 2008 for $4 billion, in a deal that made the bank the nation's No. 1 home loan lender at the time. The deal closed in July ahead of the meltdown in financial markets that fall.
Malaysia to liberalise foreign ownership of banks
Malaysia has announced plans to allow more foreign investment in the banking sector in a bid to boost economic growth.
It said the government will be more flexible in letting foreigners hold stakes in banks and will also issue banking licences to foreign firms.
Malaysia's central bank said the cap on foreign ownership will depend on the financial profile of the investor.
Foreign ownership of commercial banks in Malaysia is capped at 30% currently.
"The financial sector blueprint for the next 10 years reinforces the government's initiatives to drive Malaysia to become a fully developed nation," Prime Minister Najib Razak said.
"The financial system will have a key role in spurring new areas of growth, and facilitating our economic transformation," he added.
Malaysia has set a target of becoming a fully developed economy by 2020 and the financial sector is expected to play a key role in helping it to achieve that.
The sector is expected to grow at an annual rate of between 8% to 11% in the current decade.
In an attempt to expand the sector, authorities have already granted licences to some foreign banks, including BNP Paribas and National Bank of Abu Dhabi, to operate in the country.
Analysts said that changes to the ownership rules will help boost growth even further.
"These moves, when they materialise, would definitely attract foreign investments into Malaysia," said Gundy Cahyadi, of OCBC Bank.
"This could be taken as another step towards more liberalisation, and definitely a positive twist to the country's longer term growth."
Islamic finance
One of the fastest growing areas in Malaysia's banking sector is Islamic finance. Overseas investors are currently allowed to hold up to a 70% stake in Islamic and investment banks.
The central bank said it is planning to introduce new products and also offer new Islamic banking licences to help sustain the growth momentum.
However, analysts said, despite the growing demand for Islamic finance, foreign banks may find it difficult to penetrate the market.
"Foreign institutions will want to get into the sector, but they are likely to face tough competition from the already-established domestic players, even with a level playing field," Peter Hoflich, of The Asian Banker consultancy and research group, told the BBC.
"The Malaysian banks are clear market leaders in the sector and I am not sure if the foreign banks can bring anything different to table for the clients," he added.
Iraq bombs kill at least 10 in Baghdad
A series of apparently co-ordinated explosions in the Iraqi capital, Baghdad, has killed at least 10 people and injured dozens more, say officials.
The interior ministry said 13 locations had been attacked, with two roadside bombs in Halawi district and a car bomb in Karrada district.
Such attacks remain common in Iraq despite an overall fall in violence.
The blasts come amid fears of rising sectarian tensions as the unity government faces internal divisions.
It was not immediately clear who was behind the attacks.
At least four people died in the Halawi bombs, said police.
Raghad Khalid, a teacher at a kindergarten in Karrada, said all their windows had been blown out.
"The children were scared and crying. Some parts of the car bomb are inside our building."
Smoke was seen rising over Karrada district, with ambulances rushing to the scene.
Another woman said her baby had been covered in glass.
"She is now scared in the next room. All countries are stable. Why don't we have security and stability?" said Um Hanin.
Iraq's year-old power-sharing government is in turmoil after an arrest warrant was issued for Sunni Vice-President Tariq al-Hashemi on terror charges.
The entire al-Iraqiyya group, the main Sunni bloc in parliament, is boycotting the assembly in protest. It accuses Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri Maliki, a Shia, of monopolising power.
Mr Hashemi denies the charges. He is currently in Irbil in Iraqi Kurdistan, under the protection of the regional government, but Mr Maliki has demanded that they give him up.
Blasts Kill 4 in Iraq as Political Crisis Continues
Iraqi officials say several explosions have hit the capital, Baghdad, killing at least seven people as a political crisis continues in the country following the withdrawal of U.S. troops.
Authorities said the deadly blasts Thursday hit across the city, including two roadside bombs that also wounded at least 13 other people. Television footage showed large plumes of smoke rising from a blast side in Baghdad's Karrada neighborhood.
On Wednesday, Iraqi Vice President Tariq al-Hashemi said that allegations by the Shi'ite led government that he plotted to kill other government officials are politically motivated by the prime minister, whom Hashemi says wanted to consolidate power when U.S. troops left this month.
In an interview with VOA, Hashemi says Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki controls the security and intelligence forces and does not allow other elected officials to interfere. The vice president fled to the semiautonomous Kurdish region of northern Iraq to escape a warrant for his arrest issued this week.
Hashemi, a Sunni, says the United States failed to leave behind a democratic model in Iraq, leaving the nation vulnerable to interference from its Iranian neighbors.
Earlier Wednesday, Prime Minister Maliki, at a Baghdad news conference, called on Kurdish authorities to hand over the vice president.
A spokesman for Iraq's Interior Ministry says three of Hashemi's bodyguards confessed they planted bombs targeting Iraqi government and security officials with Hashemi's backing.
The alleged plot and a call last week by Mr. Maliki for a no-confidence vote in parliament against another leading Sunni politician, Deputy Prime Minister Saleh al-Mutlaq, have heightened political tension in Iraq.
On Tuesday, U.S. Vice President Joe Biden urged Iraqi leaders to settle their political differences.
The White House said Biden telephoned Mr. Maliki and the speaker of the Council of Representatives, Osama al-Nujaifi. It said Biden stressed the urgent need for the prime minister and the leaders of other political blocs to meet and work through their differences.
Both Hashemi and Mutlaq are leaders of Iraq's mostly Sunni Iraqiya political bloc, part of the coalition government. Iraqiya's members walked out of parliament on Saturday, accusing Mr. Maliki of seizing power.
French Parliament to Vote on Armenian Genocide Bill
The French parliament is expected to approve a controversial bill Thursday making it a crime to publicly deny the killing of Armenians by troops of Turkey's former Ottoman Empire nearly a century ago.
In response, Turkey says it may recall its ambassador to France and ask the French ambassador to leave Turkey. Turkish officials say the government may also exclude French companies from public contracts.
Turkey rejects the use of genocide to describe the deaths of up to 500,000 Armenians during the first World War. Armenia says up to 1.5 million of its citizens were killed.
Turkish officials say the bill represents French President Nicolas Sarkaozy's attempt at gaining support from France's 400,000 Armenians in his bid for reelection 2012.
Turkey's ruling and opposition parties have issued a joint declaration, denouncing the French legislation as a ” grave, unacceptable and historic mistake.”
On Wednesday, several dozen people opposing the proposed measure demonstrated outside the French embassy in Turkey's capital, Ankara.
Under the bill, anyone who publicly denies the 1915 genocide faces up in a year in jail and a $58,000 fine.
HRW: 24 Killed in DRC Since Kabila Election Victory
An international rights group says Congolese security forces have killed at least 24 people since President Joseph Kabila was announced the winner of an election that international observers have deemed seriously flawed.
Human Rights Watch Thursday said the victims include opposition activists as well as people simply gathered on the street or in their homes. The report said security forces have been firing on small crowds in an apparent attempt to prevent protests.
Human Rights Watch's Anneke Van Woudenberg says these “bloody tactics” further undermine the election. She says they give the impression that the government will do “whatever it takes” to retain power.
President Kabila was inaugurated Tuesday, pledging to unify his country. But opposition leader Etienne Tshisekedi has rejected the results as fraudulent and has declared himself president, saying he will take office Friday.
The U.S. said Tuesday it is “deeply disappointed” by Congo's decision to uphold the election results without fully evaluating widespread reports of irregularities.
A statement by Secretary of State Hillary Clinton said the election was seriously flawed and lacked transparency.
Mr. Kabila has suggested that Mr. Tshisekedi use the appeals system to challenge the results.
The presidential and legislative polls were only the second free elections in Congo since it was torn apart by several years of warfare that ended in 2003.
Mr. Kabila first became president after his father's assassination in 2001, and later won office following a U.N.-sponsored vote in 2006.
US General Suggests Longer Term Military Presence in Afghanistan
The commander of U.S. forces in Afghanistan has signaled that the United States could maintain a military presence in that country beyond the scheduled withdrawal of American troops in 2014.
In an interview published in Thursday’s edition of the New York Times, General John Allen said negotiations with the government of Afghan President Hamid Karzai will almost certainly cover “what a post-2014 force would look like.” This, he said, probably would involve “some number of advisers, trainers and intelligence specialists” for a period of time beyond 2014.
The U.S. ambassador to Afghanistan, Ryan Crocker, recently was quoted as saying the United States would, after 2014, continue to provide assistance to the country’s economic and security sectors. But the general is the highest-ranking American military official to suggest the possibility of a longer term U.S. military involvement in Afghanistan.
A spokesperson for Afghanistan’s defense ministry told reporters Wednesday that the country is making progress in training its forces and that the number of Afghan National Army troops now stands at 180,000. He said the goal of the expansion is 240,000, a force he said would be able to take control of internal and external security across the country after 2014.
NATO forces already have begun handing over security responsibility to Afghan forces ahead of the 2014 withdrawal.
The Polish contingent of the NATO coalition force on Wednesday suffered the highest number of deaths in the decades-long war. Five Polish soldiers were killed by a roadside bomb in eastern Ghazani province.
Poland, which has more than 2,500 troops stationed in Afghanistan, is said to have lost 36 soldiers.
Governor’s Christmas Message
H.E Governor Damian Ric Todd has released his Christmas Message, which reads:
I find it hard to believe that it is nearly a hundred days since I first came to the Turks and Caicos Islands. It is a pleasure to live here and an honour to be the Governor. As we approach Christmas, I can say that my first Christmas here is certainly different from the one I spent in Warsaw, Poland just last year. There the snow was white rather than the sand.
My arrival on 10th September was just after the completion of the new constitution and British Ministers announcement that elections will be held by the end of next year if the eight milestones were met. These milestones offer us a way forward and a vision of what a better governed TCI can be like. I also believe that we are able to achieve them and to move to elections by the end of next year. I know that many people across the islands very much want this.
Christmas is a time of joy. It also marks the end of advent; a period of waiting, and it offers hope for the future. It is a moment to look back as well as forward. As we look at 2011 we can say it has been a difficult year for many people on TCI. There have been over the last few months essential but painful change. I believe that as we look forward to 2012 there are genuine reasons for hope and optimism. These include rising government revenues, starting to reprioritise spending towards schools and primary health care, economic growth, new investment and increasing tourism. Who would have thought at this time last year that we would be able to welcome over a million visitors to TCI in 2011?
We face many challenges in 2012. I believe that the people of TCI can overcome these challenges. These islands have been blessed. They are rich in nature, and rich in people. I hope that we can all work together in 2012 for the greater good of the Turks and Caicos Islands. As the book of Psalms puts it: “Trust in the Lord and do good”.
Finally I would like to wish each of you and your families a merry and enjoyable Christmas and a happy and successful 2012.