Agreement Reached On Course of Future Global Warming Talks
Delegates from 194 countries meeting in South Africa have reached a hard-fought agreement on a complex plan to fight global warming in coming decades.
Countries agreed early Sunday to a new round of talks on ways to protect the environment. The talks will also establish conditions for an extension of the Kyoto Protocol environmental agreement beyond 2012 when it is due to expire.
Representatives negotiated well past Friday's scheduled end to the debate on climate change in the port city of Durban.
Much of the debate focused on the European Union proposal to push major polluters in developed and fast-growing economies such as China and India, to accept legally binding cuts of their greenhouse gas emissions.
South African Foreign Minister Maite Nkoana-Mashabane, who chaired the conference, had warned delegates that failure to agree would be an unsustainable setback for international efforts to control greenhouse gases.
“Adopt this document as the Durban outcome. Your years, your months, your weeks, days and nights have been spent leading to this day. You have stayed here one extra day for that purpose. Let's adopt this document and make all the effort that we have put in this work count for something.”
Recent United Nations reports warned that delays in reducing greenhouse gas emissions will make it harder to prevent a catastrophic rise in average global temperature.
EU Commissioner for Climate Change Connie Hedegaard also has been urging delegates to reach a compromise deal before time runs out.
The EU says it will not renew its emission reduction pledges under the Kyoto Protocol unless all countries are committed to controlling their emissions.
The United States says it will only pledge binding cuts if all major polluters make comparable commitments. China and India say their cuts should be less than developed nations. The three countries are not bound by the Kyoto Protocol.
China Resumes Shipping on Mekong River
China says it has restored international shipping on the Mekong River, which was suspended after a deadly attack on Chinese sailors two months ago.
Chinese police Saturday started joint patrols with counterparts from Laos, Burma and Thailand to maintain security along the major transportation waterway in the region. Ten cargo vessels escorted by five joint patrol boats set sail from the Guanlei Port in China's southwestern Yunnan province in a launching ceremony Saturday morning.
The official new agency Xinhua says the patrol boats are equipped with heavy machine guns and 10-centimeter-thick protective walls, while the police officers are equipped with automatic rifles and bullet-proof life jackets.
On October 5, 13 Chinese sailors were killed on a section of the river south of China's border, known as the Golden Triangle, an area notorious as a haven for drug traffickers. The deadly attack by suspected drug traffickers raised concerns in Beijing about the safety of crews and vessels sailing south through an area rife with drug warfare and smuggling.
The Mekong River flows through China's southwestern province of Yunnan into Southeast Asia, serving as a major trade route through several countries including Burma, Laos, Cambodia, Thailand and Vietnam.
China reacted angrily to the October attack, sending patrol boats down the Mekong to retrieve stranded Chinese sailors and cargo ships and calling on diplomats from Thailand, Laos and Burma to speed up investigations.
Since then, police in Thailand have detained nine soldiers who are suspected of killing the Chinese sailors and are also thought to have links with a Burmese drug kingpin.
Congolese Government Condemns Presidential Challenger
The government in the Democratic Republic of Congo has condemned challenger Etienne Tshisekedi's self-declaration that he is president, after incumbent Joseph Kabila was named the winner of last week's election.
Information Minister Lambert Mende says Tshisekedi is acting irresponsibly and violating the constitution by trying to subvert the decision of electoral authorities.
Congo's electoral commission declared Friday that Mr. Kabila defeated Mr. Tshisekedi 49 percent to 32 percent, with other candidates trailing far behind. The announcement sparked angry protests in the country in which four people were killed.
On Saturday, the situation remained tense in several cities in Congo, with sporadic gunfire erupting in the capital, Kinshasa.
Congolese immigrants in other countries staged protests against President Kabila. In London, police arrested 143 people Saturday evening after a group of angry protesters veered from the agreed location and started obstructing traffic and causing damage to shops and property. Protests were also held in Belgium, the former colonial power of the mineral-rich African country, and in Washington.
The United Nations, United States, European Union and African Union have appealed for calm.
Mr. Tshisekedi told VOA he considers the results to be a “provocation.” He said he sees himself as the country's elected president.
Congo's ruling party said President Kabila won the election fairly and that anyone alleging fraud must use the legal system to address their concerns.
Last week's presidential and legislative polls were the second free elections in Congo since it was torn apart by several years of warfare that ended in 2003.
Election observers from the African Union and U.S.-based Carter Center reported widespread irregularities, but urged Congolese parties and politicians to pursue any challenge to the results through the courts. Electoral officials released the results three days later than originally planned, citing logistical problems.
Human Rights Watch said 18 people were killed in violence leading up to the polls.
Yemen Swears In National Unity Govt.
Yemen's national unity government was sworn in in the capital, Sana'a, Saturday as part of a deal for the country's embattled president to step down after nearly a year of anti-government protests that have killed hundreds.
The new 35-member Cabinet is headed by veteran opposition politician Mohammed Basindwa. The ministerial posts are equally divided between President Saleh's party and the opposition with the aim of steering Yemen toward presidential elections scheduled for February. Saleh loyalists will run the ministries of defense, foreign affairs and oil, while the opposition will head the ministries of interior, finance and information.
During the ceremony, Vice President Abd al-Rabuh Mansur Hadi urged the Cabinet to forget their political differences and focus on major issues. The state-run SABA news agency quoted Mr. Hadi as saying the government's first task was to create an “atmosphere” where reconciliation could take place.
The United Nations Secretary General Ban Ki-moon welcomed the swearing in of Yemen's new government. He urged all sides “to work toward the full implementation of an inclusive Yemeni-led transition process, giving all Yemenis a true stake in the country's future.”
Yemen is also home to al-Qaida in the Arabian peninsula and the new government is tasked with ridding Yemen of al-Qaida-linked militants who are attempting to gain a stronghold in the country's south. Military officials said Saturday clashes in the southern Abyan province between government troops and suspected militants killed two soldiers and 11 militants.
US Ambassador: Afghan Attacks Unlikely to Spur Sectarian War
U.S. ambassador to Afghanistan Ryan Crocker said Saturday it was unlikely that this week's deadly attacks on Shi'ites in Afghanistan would spark a cycle of sectarian violence in the country.
The veteran diplomat said that, based on the reaction of the Shi'ite leaders who have called for calm, he did not see the attacks turning into a sectarian conflict.
Two blasts, one in Kabul and another in the northern city of Mazar-e-Sharif, killed at least 59 people Tuesday on Ashura, the holiest day of the Shi'ite Muslim calendar.
Crocker said the attacks had been orchestrated by militants outside of Afghanistan, but that he could not authoritatively say the Kabul bombing was carried out by the outlawed Pakistan-based Lashkar-e-Jhangvi group, even though it has claimed responsibility.
In violence Saturday, a bomb planted on a bicycle killed two people, including a member of Afghanistan's peace council, and wounded 16 others in northern Kunduz province. In the south, a roadside bomb killed three civilians in Kandahar province.
General John Allen, commander of NATO-led coalition forces, joined Afghan President Hamid Karzai in condemning Saturday's attacks. A NATO statement said “innocent individuals, to include children, were again killed and injured at the hands of insurgents.” The statement said that “these insurgents who bring violence against Afghan families are enemies of peace and must be held responsible for their grievous actions.”
Also Saturday, combined Afghan and coalition security forces captured several Taliban and Haqqani leaders and multiple insurgents across the country. A NATO statement said that during the operations, security forces safely destroyed a bomb making factory in central Wardak province, and seized multiple caches of weapons in northern Sar-e-Pul and eastern Paktika provinces.
Kim Kardashian Heads to Haiti for Charity
As the end of the year draws near, Kim Kardashian is stepping back from the drama in her personal life to spend some time giving back in Haiti.
Kardashian is in the earthquake-ravaged country with the charity group We Advance, along with her mom, Kris Jenner, and Prime Suspect star Maria Bello, who co-founded the organization.
"She connected with Mario Bello and is there with Maria's foundation and also with her mom," a source close to Kardashian tells PEOPLE. "Her intention was always to take the end of the year to focus on some of the other things that are important to her and this trip was one."
Kardashian, who is going through a bitter divorce from Kris Humphries, made the trip in part to support the group, whose Web site says it's "a movement to advance the health, safety, and well being of women throughout Haiti."
Says the source: "[Kim's] father instilled in her and her siblings that every little bit counts and she always tries to do as much as she can – whether it's privately or whether it's something that she can use her platform for – to help."
PEOPLE
'Playboy' moves up release of Lindsay Lohan issue
Grab your wallets and head to a seedy bookstore several miles away from home: In a move not entirely unexpected — since its cover girl’s entire nude photo spread has leaked onto the Web — Playboy has decided to release its January-February issue featuring Lindsay Lohan early. Though Playboy intended for its cover to be revealed on The Ellen DeGeneres Show Dec. 15, the image found its way onto the Internet on Thursday. Then, one day later, Lohan’s entire spread hit the Web. Hugh Hefner tweeted today, “Because of the interest & the Internet leak, we’re releasing the Lindsay Lohan issue early.”
How early? The issue — originally schedule to hit stands much later this month — will hit stands next week. And, based on his Twitter, Hefner seems to be enthusiastic about the leak (“Hefner” and “leak” should never go together in the same sentence, am I right?): “Lindsay Lohan was the top search name on the Internet yesterday. Her issue goes on sale late next week. Hot. Hot. Hot.” So does Hef think Lohan is hot enough to fuel Playboy sales despite the leak? Or did he just burn his tongue on some split pea soup mid-tweet?
It’s hard to imagine — now that the images have been seen by anyone with a computer — that fans and detractors alike will race to grab a copy of Lohan’s Playboy. But it’s plausible that the issue would outsell others from this year — after all, this would be a valuable exhibit in the train-wreck museum. (Sitting alongside hankies from sobbing Bachelor contestants and this mind-bending outfit.)
EW
Kartel alleged accomplice strips naked to avoid ID parade
An alleged accomplice of Dancehall Entertainer Vybz Kartel, who has been charged in connection with the death of a man, has been stripping himself naked in a Jamaican cell in order to avoid ID parades.
RJR News reported that police have been experiencing difficulties in getting the man to scheduled parades because he has been stripping himself naked in his cell whenever he was collected to face such parades. The man remained in custody and has not been charged.
The police has also charged a another accomplice of Kartel on Wednesday in the alleged murder, bringing the number to five.
When Kartel and his co-accused appeared in court last week they were remanded.
The case is to be mentioned on December 19.
New Buju Banton single released
On Wednesday, Complex.com and Boomshots.com premiered Buju Banton's 'Set Up The Mic', the debut single from the crucial new compilation album, Certified Boomshots Vol. 1.
Recorded three years ago on the Rapid Burst rhythm for Young Blood Records, Set Up The Mic started out as an on-the-spot freestyle while Buju Banton waited for the engineer to fix the levels at the start of a studio session. The engineer happened to press record, and the sounds captured that day were refreshingly raw, a glimpse of the champion deejay spitting lyrics off the head as if he were toasting around a sound system, a rare treat for Buju's fans, who have been missing the voice of the Gargamel.
baddest Buju tracks
"I always told people I have a song that I think is one of the baddest Buju tracks, but he was just freestyling," said producer Mr G in a release sent to THE WEEKEND STAR.
"The thing about this song, it's got a happy, playful kinda energy. The world will appreciate and love hearing Buju again, banging as the great Buju Banton. Although it's a freestyle, if I don't tell people it's a freestyle, they would never know it," he added.
21st Hapilos Distribution is proud to release the debut single from the highly anticipated new compilation album, Certified Boomshots Vol. 1. This is the first of a series of compilations officially endorsed by Boomshots. From multi-platinum hit-makers to the freshest new sounds of the Kingston streets, and classic roots rock reggae, Certified Boomshots hits you with the raw uncut.
The official Boomshots release party will be on December 21. Certified Boomshots is the freshest new compilation of dancehall and reggae tracks on the market, representing all the best of what the music has to offer on a worldwide level.
The first of many compilations to come, Vol. 1 features blazing tracks from the hottest producers in reggae today such as Stephen 'Di Genius' McGregor, Don Corleone, ZJ Chrome, Troyton, Cashflow, Chimney Records and Markus Myrie, Buju Banton's son, who is carrying on the family legacy as a young producer on the rise.
Markus Records produced the breakout hit, Whine Me, by Blak Ryno. The album's classic throwback is Penitentiary, by the late, great Gregory Isaacs
Gaza Slim to be charged or released
Dancehall entertainer Gaza Slim, otherwise called Vanessa Bling, is to be charged or released from police custody by 4 p.m. today.
The order was made by Senior Resident Magistrate Judith Pusey after Pierre Rogers, the entertainer's attorney, filed a habeas corpus application in court.
On Monday, the artiste turned herself in to the Constant Spring police after she was named as a person of interest.
She is accused of making a false report to the police and is to be investigated for attempting to pervert the course of justice and conspiracy to pervert the course of justice
It is alleged that she went to the police on October 29 to report that she had been robbed by Clive 'Lizard' Williams, one of the men whose murder fellow entertainer Vybz Kartel has been charged with.
The police believe this was in an attempt to prove that Williams was not dead.
Investigators claim they have a cellular phone with a text message proving she fabricated the story.
Gaza Slim, whose real name is Vanessa Saddler, was scheduled to face a question and answer session on Tuesday but the matter was rescheduled for another day.
When THE WEEKEND STAR contacted the Constant Spring Police Station on Wednesday, we were informed that the artiste would be questioned later this week.