Panchayat elections in andhra pradesh

In contrast to the bloodshed of October's presidential polls, campaigning has been as peaceful as it has been enthusiastic ahead of Ivory Coast's election ABIDJAN - Ivory Coast was set to vote in a parliamentary ballot on Saturday in a key test of stability after presidential elections last year marked by violence. Grappling with a deep political crisis, President Alassane Ouattara has offered an olive branch to his former rival, Laurent Gbagbo, whose party has now lifted a decade-long boycott of elections. His Ivorian Popular Front (FPI) is the driving force of a centre-left coalition named Together for Democracy and Solidarity (EDS). More than 1,500 candidates are vying for the votes of roughly seven million people in a contest for the 255-seat National Assembly. In contrast to the bloodshed that marked the October 31 presidential polls, campaigning has been as peaceful as it has been enthusiastic. All the candidates have pledged support for peaceful elections and signed ... » Learn More about Ivory Coast heads into elections after political turmoil

(Reuters) - Guarded by police and soldiers, authorities in Myanmar disturbed the grave of a 19-year-old woman who became an icon of the anti-coup protest movement after she was shot dead wearing a T-shirt that read "Everything will be OK", a witness and local media said. One witness said the body of Kyal Sin, widely known as Angel, was removed on Friday, examined and returned, before the tomb was re-sealed in Myanmar's second city of Mandalay. The independent Mizzima news service reported the same. A military spokesman did not answer calls seeking comment. Reuters was unable to contact police for comment. State media on Friday questioned reports that the protester had been killed by security forces when they opened fire to disperse a demonstration on Wednesday and said the cause of death was being investigated by "rule of law bodies". Pictures provided to Reuters by a resident who visited the grave on Saturday showed cement that was still drying as well as discarded rubber ... » Learn More about Grave of slain ‘Everything will be OK’ protester disturbed in Myanmar

The country has been in turmoil since a February 1 putsch ousted civilian leader Aung San Suu Kyi from power, triggering a massive uprising from hundreds of thousands angered to be returned to military rule. Security forces have escalated an increasingly brutal crackdown on demonstrators -- killing more than 50 people since the coup -- but protesters rallied again on Saturday. From the dusty roads of northern Lashio -- where young protesters stared down police behind homemade shields -- to central Loikaw city in view of Myanmar's eastern mountains, hundreds continued to march for democracy. "Our revolution must win," chanted protesters in Loikaw, who included civil servants like teachers in their green and white uniforms. The country's vital sectors have been crippled by an ongoing "Civil Disobedience Movement" -- a campaign urging civil servants to boycott working under a military regime. The impact has been felt on every level of the country, with shuttered hospitals, ... » Learn More about Anti-coup protests continue in Myanmar as UN urged to hear ‘pleas’

(Reuters) - "Everything will be OK," read 19-year-old Angel's T-shirt as the dancer and taekwondo champion joined anti-coup protesters in Myanmar on Wednesday. But she had known it might not be OK - leaving details of her blood group, a contact number and a request to donate her body in the event of her death. Angel, also known as Kyal Sin, was killed by a shot to the head on the streets of Mandalay as she fought for a tentative democracy in which she had proudly voted for the first time last year, an election overturned by the Feb. 1 coup. Seen in pictures of her at the protest, the phrase from Angel's T-shirt quickly went viral on social media as users posted it in defiance of security forces who killed at least 18 people around Myanmar over the day. A spokesman for the junta did not respond to a request for comment on the killings. Myat Thu, who was with her at the protests, recalled a brave young woman who kicked open a water pipe so that protesters could wash tear ... » Learn More about ‘Everything will be OK’: slain Myanmar teen’s T-shirt slogan spurs defiance

(Reuters) - Myanmar security forces used tear gas and stun grenades to break up a protest in Yangon on Saturday, just hours after a United Nations special envoy called on the Security Council to take action against the ruling junta for the killings of protesters. The Southeast Asian country has been plunged in turmoil since the military overthrew and detained elected leader Aung San Suu Kyi on Feb. 1, with daily protests and strikes that have choked business and paralysed administration. Sporadic protests were staged across Myanmar on Saturday and local media reported that police fired tear gas shells and stun grenades to break up a protest in the Sanchaung district of Yangon, the country's biggest city. There were no reports of casualties. More than 50 protesters have been killed since the coup, according to the United Nations - at least 38 on Wednesday alone. Protesters demand the release of Suu Kyi and the respect of November's election, which her party won in landslide, ... » Learn More about Myanmar forces fire tear gas, stun grenades on protest as U.N. envoy calls for action

The government has decided to reduce the number of collective leave days for the Christmas and New Year celebrations, including a substitute for Idul Fitri leave. In the new arrangements, the country will enjoy a total of eight days off, namely from Dec. 24 to 27 for the Christmas holiday, Dec. 31 for the Idul Fitri substitute leave, as well as from Jan 1 to 3 for the New Year celebration. The arrangements for the upcoming holidays coincide with two weekends, meaning that the public will have two sets of long weekends in late December and early January. Previously, there were 11 days of leave in the year-end national holidays. “Therefore, there are three fewer days off [than previously planned],” Coordinating Human Development and Culture Minister Muhadjir Effendy told a press conference in Jakarta on Tuesday, as quoted by kompas.com . The three days that are no longer part of the national holiday were originally planned for Dec. 28 to 30. “The new arrangement is a ... » Learn More about Govt cuts short year-end holiday to avoid more case spikes

Containers are piled on inside lanes of Vibhavadi Rangsit Road outside the 1st Infantry Regiment in Bangkok to impede a rally against Prime Minister Prayut Chan-o-cha on Sunday. (Photo by Arnun Chonmahatrakool) Police have piled shipping containers outside the 1st Infantry Regiment in Bangkok to block pro-democracy protesters from approaching the barracks on Sunday in their latest rally against Prime Minister Prayut Chan-o-cha. The containers were laid out on the inside traffic lanes of Vibhavadi Rangsit Road where it passes the military compound ahead of a protest march from Victory Monument. The demonstrators, led by the Free Youth group, are targeting the prime minister's residence inside the barracks to air their discontent over double standards in the judiciary system after four leading activists were denied bail by the Court of Appeal on Saturday. Protest leaders cried foul after seeing protest leader Suthep Thaugsuban and seven other key members of the People's ... » Learn More about Containers piled outside barracks to block protesters

Co-leaders of the Ratsadon Group, Parit “Penguin” Chiwarak and Arnon Nampa, flash a three-finger salute during a visit to the Office of the Attorney-General in Bangkok on Feb 9. (File photo by Arnun Chonmahatrakool) The Court of Appeal has again rejected a request to temporarily release four pro-democracy protest leaders facing royal insult charges, saying there was no reason to change the previous ruling. It was the third rejection of attempts to free the foursome, who face the prospect of months behind bars before their trials start. Noraset Nanongtoom, a lawyer from Thai Lawyers for Human Rights, on Saturday posted a copy of the ruling on his Facebook page and wrote: “The Court of Appeal denied bail for the Ratsadon Group leaders — Mr Parit Chiwarak and the other co-leaders — by citing that ‘There is no reason to change the previous ruling’.” The lawyer said the application submitted to the court on Friday outlined four points that he believed supported the release of the ... » Learn More about Four protest leaders denied bail again