HARARE: Zimbabwe President Emmerson Mnangagwa has landed back in Harare, state television said Tuesday, after cutting short a foreign tour over nationwide protests that were met with a brutal security crackdown. Police and soldiers launched a large-scale operation against suspected protestors, activists and organisers of the strike last week, which was triggered by a sharp rise in fuel prices. At least 12 people were killed and 78 treated for gunshot injuries, according to the Zimbabwe Human Rights NGO Forum, which recorded more than 240 incidents of assault and torture. About 700 people have been arrested. “I am happy that the country is quiet. Our people should concentrate on their work,“ Mnangagwa said after landing late on Monday night. “There are channels of communication. We want Zimbabwe developed.” The High Court in Harare ruled Monday that government had no powers to order the shutdown of the internet which was imposed as protests swept across the … [Read more...] about Mnangagwa returns to Zimbabwe after protest crackdown
News SC acquits 3 drug suspects over failure in handling seized narcotics
MANILA - The Supreme Court has acquitted 3 drug suspects because of failure of the prosecution to explain non-compliance with the chain of custody requirements in handling seized illegal drugs. In a decision dated January 17, 2019, the SC Third Division acquitted Emmanuel Oliva, accused of selling and possessing illegal drugs, as well as Bernardo Barangot and Mark Angelo Manalastas, both accused of illegal drug possession. The tribunal said the prosecution failed to explain why the police conducted an inventory of the seized illegal drugs without the presence of a representative from the media or the Department of Justice. Police caught Oliva in a buy-bust operation in Makati City on January 23, 2015 selling 0.06 gram of shabu for P500 to an operative. Another sachet with 0.1 gram of shabu was also recovered in his possession. Barangot and Manalastas were also arrested for having 0.05 and 0.03 gram of shabu each in their possession. All substances tested positive for shabu but … [Read more...] about News SC acquits 3 drug suspects over failure in handling seized narcotics
News Red Cross sounds alarm over use of ‘killer robots’ in future wars
NAIROBI - Countries must agree strict rules on "killer robots" - autonomous weapons which can assassinate without human involvement, a top Red Cross official has said, amid growing ethical concerns over their use in future wars. Semi-autonomous weapons systems from drones to tanks have for decades been used to eliminate targets in modern day warfare - but they all have human control behind them. With rapid advancements in artificial intelligence, there are fears among humanitarians over its use to develop machines which can independently make the decision about who to kill. Yves Daccord, director-general of the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC), said this would be a critical issue in the coming years as it raised ethical questions on delegating lethal decisions to machines and accountability. "We will have weapons which fly without being remotely managed by a human and have enough intelligence to locate a target and decide whether it is the right person to take out," … [Read more...] about News Red Cross sounds alarm over use of ‘killer robots’ in future wars
News Sombero asks SC to halt Sandigan proceedings on BI bribery scandal cases
MANILA - Retired police official Wally Sombero has asked the Supreme Court to stop the proceedings at the Sandiganbayan 6th Division where he is facing plunder, graft, direct bribery and giving and receiving gifts cases in connection with the P50 million bribery scandal that rocked the Bureau of Immigration in 2016. Sombero is a co-accused of former BI deputy commissioners Ex-BI men sued for plunder, graft over P50-M extortion try Sombero: I'm being persecuted for exposing corruption In the urgent motion to resolve application for Temporary Restraining Order filed before the Supreme Court on January 7, 2019, Sombero’s counsel Laurence Hector Arroyo said that unless immediately restrained, the Sandiganbayan will proceed trial “on the merits harboring egregious misconceptions” about the cases. A copy of the urgent motion was sent by Arroyo to the Sandiganbayan on January 15, 2019. Among the issues pointed out by Arroyo are the supposed participation of Sombero … [Read more...] about News Sombero asks SC to halt Sandigan proceedings on BI bribery scandal cases
Second quake, with magnitude 6.6, hits Indonesia’s Sumbawa
JAKARTA: An earthquake of magnitude 6.6 struck south of the Indonesian town of Raba, off the central island of Sumbawa, the United States Geological Survey (USGS) said, the second quake to hit the area on Tuesday (Jan 22).There was no immediate tsunami warning or reports of damage or casualties from the quake, which hit at a depth of 36km, at a distance of about 230km south of Raba in the east of the island, which forms part of West Nusa Tenggara province.The quake followed one which measured 6-magnitude that struck in the same area, hitting at a depth of 25km about 219km south of Raba.The USGS had first put the earlier quake magnitude at 6.1. The Hawaii-based Pacific Tsunami Warning Center said on its website there was no current warning in effect.Indonesia is a disaster-prone archipelago that straddles the seismically active Pacific "Ring of Fire". It suffered its deadliest year in more than a decade in 2018 as a series of earthquakes and tsunamis … [Read more...] about Second quake, with magnitude 6.6, hits Indonesia’s Sumbawa