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Bengaluru professionals to tackle child sex abuse

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The child may dislike or seem afraid of a particular person and try to avoid spending time alone with them.

 A team of mental health professionals from Bengaluru will be travelling to all 29 state capitals to educate and train over one lakh children, parents and teachers on prevention of child sexual abuse. The project is called ‘Bhayamukth Bharath’. Speaking to media, Ashwini N V, founder-director of Muktha Foundation, which works with child sexual abuse and domestic violence victims, said, “Often, perpetrators closely watch the pattern in which parents drop off their children to school.

If the parent rushes to drop the child and doesn’t even wait around to say goodbye, perpetrators believe that it is these children who are the ‘right targets’. They believe that such parents won’t have time to listen to their children, whom, they believe, need emotional support.”

Parents are not aware of such clues. With the intent to educate them on some of the possible tactics that perpetrators could use, Muktha has launched this nationwide campaign, starting on January 1, 2019. The campaign will focus not only on parents and children, but also on teachers, NGO professionals, members of religious congregations, community members and other stakeholders too. “This is like a war on child sexual abuse,” Ashwini added.

Another professional, who is part of Muktha’s initative, said, “Instead of being ashamed of sexual abuse, we will tell people to speak out and seek the police’s help.”

US man charged with hate crime for assaulting Indian-origin woman

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A 54-year-old man has been charged with hate crime for assaulting an Indian-origin woman on a subway and hurling homophobic slurs at her.

Allasheed Allah from Manhattan’s East Harlem neighbourhood was arrested on Thursday and charged with assault as a hate crime and aggravated harassment against 20-year-old Avneet Kaur during the November 30 attack in New York City’s Queens borough, the police said.

Allah is also accused of hurling homophobic slurs at the woman before physically attacking her and leaving her with a fractured spine, NBC News reported on Friday. He faces up to 15 years in prison for the attack and will return to court on December 27.

During the incident, Allah allegedly approached the victim, who was standing with another woman, while they were riding a Manhattan-bound E train through Queens during evening rush hour.

Kaur said her friend gave her a kiss on the cheek while she was making a Snapchat. This, according to the police, made Allah angry and he flew into a rage at the sight.

The man then engaged Kaur in a verbal dispute. Threatening the women, Allah said: “Don’t do that gay s**t in front of me! Do that one more time and watch what happens!” 

The women tried to walk away, but Allah followed them. He approached Kaur from behind and punched her in the back of her head, causing her to fall to the ground and strike her head and neck on a pole before hitting the floor, the police said.

The victim was rushed to a hospital with a fractured spine.

The police, who had publicised a photo and video of the suspect earlier this week, said a tip from the public helped them apprehend Allah, who allegedly fled the scene of the crime.

“Queens County is the most diverse county in the nation. It is home to many races, nationalities and sexual orientations. Crimes motivated by bias – particularly those involving violence – will never be tolerated in this county,” said Queens District Attorney Richard A. Brown in a statement. 

IANS

Pakistan, China, Afghanistan sign MoU on anti-terrorism cooperation

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Pakistan, China and Afghanistan signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) vis-a-vis anti-terrorism cooperation during a second trilateral ministerial dialogue in Kabul on Saturday.

The MoU was signed by Pakistan’s Foreign Minister Shah Mehmood Qureshi and his Chinese as well as Afghan counterparts Wang Yi and Salahuddin Rabbani, respectively. The signing of the document was witnessed by Afghan President Ashraf Ghani.

Speaking at the trilateral dialogue, Rabbani said that collective efforts were required to address the common challenge of terrorism. “We desire to strengthen our relations with Pakistan,” he said and also appreciated the Chinese One Belt One Road initiative.

Qureshi, during a joint press conference, called for a joint strategy to eradicate terrorism from the region. He said he was visiting Kabul to bridge the trust deficit between the two countries, the Express Tribune reported.

“We all want peace and stability in Afghanistan,” the minister said, adding that Pakistan will continue to play facilitative role in Afghan reconciliation process. 

“We will do everything to support the growing momentum towards reconciliation provided others play their due role and share responsibility and create an enabling environment towards that end.”

Calling Afghanistan and Pakistan as “friends of China”, Wang said that Beijing will extend “every possible cooperation to build trust and confidence between the two countries”.

China will also assist in establishing connectivity projects including a rail line between Peshawar, Kabul and Kandahar, he said, adding that Beijing “desires to make Afghanistan a part of the China Pakistan Economic Corridor”.

“We support an Afghan-led and Afghan-owned peace process,” Wang said.

This was the second meeting of the three foreign ministers after their kick-off meeting in Beijing last year. 

IANS

Congress sabotaging India’s security preparedness: Javadekar

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 The Congress is trying to sabotage the country’s security preparedness by raking up the Rafale deal issue, despite the Supreme Court ruling that there was no need for a probe, Union Minister for Information and Broadcasting Prakash Javadekar said here on Saturday.

Javadekar, who is here to participate in the 31st annual convocation ceremony of the Goa University, said that the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) was willing to have a discussion on the Rafale fighter aircraft purchase in Parliament, but blamed the Congress for demanding a joint parliamentary committee probe without discussion.

“This is nothing but sabotage of our security preparedness. We have already said that Rahul Gandhi owes an apology to the nation, to the defence forces and Lok Sabha also,” Javadekar told the media on the sidelines of the convocation ceremony.

“The Supreme Court has clearly exposed the falsehood of Congress and also gave a clean chit to the deal by saying that no further enquiry was needed. Still if the Congress persists with the issue, the only conclusion is that it wants to stop the deal which will weaken the security preparedness of the country,” the Union Minister said, adding that the Congress had delayed the purchase of the fighter jets for seven years and was now blocking the efforts of the National Democratic Alliance government.

IANS

Indian student found dead in Dubai apartment

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 A 22-year-old Dubai-based Indian student and musician has been found dead in his apartment in Al Garhoud area, the police said.

Himanshu Sharma, who was found dead on Wednesday, was a final year architecture student at the Manipal Academy of Higher Education (MAHE)in Dubai. He was a guitarist in local band Metal Head and had played in bands like Slaves of Conspiracy and Nutmeg, the Khaleej Times reported on Thursday.

In a statement to the daily, a MAHE spokesperson said: “The university has been informed by the police of the tragic death of Himanshu Sharma… It’s a moment of shock for all of us at the university. We are awaiting further information on the same.”

Long-haired and sporting a beard, Sharma — known as Shaggy to his friends — was described by them as a hardcore rock artist with a kind heart.

Speaking about his friend, fellow rock artist Gaurav Manna said that Sharma was well loved in Dubai by everyone, “not just those in the metal scene”.

Another friend, Vinod Verma, said: “He had great talent and immense potential both as a musician and architecture student. I am very saddened by this news.”

Police officials sent Sharma’s body to the forensic medicine department and the report showed no irregularity in the guitarist’s death, the report said.

IANS

Don’t make farm loan waivers part of poll promises: Rajan

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 Eschew loan waivers that divert resources from much needed investment in India, says a report prepared by 13 noted economists, including former RBI Governor Raghuram Rajan, which was released here on Friday.

Releasing the report titled “An Economic Strategy for India”, Rajan said that farm loan waivers should not form part of election promises and that he has written to the Election Commission to put a bar on such a practice, which inhibits investment in the farm sector, as well as putting pressure on the finances of the concerned states. 

“I have said forever, even written a letter to the Election Commissioner saying they should be taken off the table. I mean, certainly there is reason to think about farm distress. But, the question of whether the flows to farmers is best affected by waiving loans, after all, there is only a subset of farmers who get those loans,” he said. 

“It’s no surprise to you that there is fair amount of agricultural distress which we have seen being highlighted by farmers, and also political parties are responding with variety of measures such as loan waivers.

“So, it often goes to the best connected rather than those most poorly off. Second, it obviously creates enormous problems for the fiscal of the state once those waivers are done. And I think, unfortunately, it inhibits investment down the line,” he said. 

“We need to create the environment in which they (farmers) can be a vibrant force and I would say more resources are definitely needed. Whether loan waivers are the best? I think it’s highly questionable,” he added. 

Rajan, who is currently teaching in the US, also said an all-party agreement to eschew farm loan waivers would be in the interest of the nation. 

The report, which outlines the challenges facing the economy, says that the country’s economic history is full of instances which demonstrate that protecting macroeconomic stability is essential for strong and sustainable growth.

“Every time macro stability has been traded off to boost growth, the economy has been pushed towards a crisis, the consequences of which have undermined the very growth that was the initial policy focus,” it says. 

Rajan said although India has had 7 per cent growth, the economy is not clearly creating enough jobs, citing the example of how 25 million people had applied for 90,000 railway jobs. 

“So many applicants… 250 per job and these are not priced jobs. These are actually low level jobs. So, it does suggest enormous demand for jobs,” he said. 

He pointed out that growth is not benefiting all sectors and all people, while inequality is increasing. 

“We should ask the question that is this growth path viable and clearly more needs to be done on macro stability, on fiscal deficit, there are proposals in the paper that how we can do that,” the former central bank Governor said. 

He said there had been no improvement in the fiscal deficit of the Centre and the states in the last five years. 

“In terms of public sectors borrowing, it is still as big as it was and that is source of concern especially as states budgets are going out of balance. We see trade deficit is large even after taking out the effect of borrowing,” he said. 

“We absolutely need to enhance growth beyond 7 per cent… with a lot of back and forth on what the true growth numbers are, whatever they are, they are not enough,” he said, making a reference to the recent controversy regarding the back series GDP data released by the government. 

IANS

Google not to offer controversial face recognition technology

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  At a time when pressure is mounting on tech companies to utilise facial recognition technology with care to avoid its misuse, Google has said it will not offer the controversial technology for now.

Toeing Microsoft’s line which has asked governments across the world to regulate this technology, Google said facial recognition merits careful consideration. 

“Like many technologies with multiple uses, facial recognition merits careful consideration to ensure its use is aligned with our principles and values, and avoids abuse and harmful outcomes,” Kent Walker, Senior Vice President of Global Affairs at Google, said in a blog post on Friday. 

“We continue to work with many organisations to identify and address these challenges, and unlike some other companies, Google Cloud has chosen not to offer general-purpose facial recognition APIs before working through important technology and policy questions,” informed Walker.

Earlier this month, Microsoft President Brad Smith said that given the potential for abuse of the fast advancing facial recognition technology, governments across the world need to start adopting laws to regulate this technology in 2019.

“Unless we act, we risk waking up five years from now to find that facial recognition services have spread in ways that exacerbate societal issues,” warned Smith in a blog post.

“The time for action has arrived,” he said, adding that the industry must also exercise restraint while using this technology.

Microsoft is one of several companies playing a leading role in developing facial recognition technology. 

The company, Smith said, would start adopting new principles to manage the issues surrounding facial recognition technology in the first quarter of 2019.

According to Walker, Google has long been committed to the responsible development of AI. 

“These principles guide our decisions on what types of features to build and research to pursue. As one example, facial recognition technology has benefits in areas like new assistive technologies and tools to help find missing persons, with more promising applications on the horizon,” he added. 

IANS

Statue of ‘racist’ Gandhi removed from Ghana university campus

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A petition for the statue’s removal cited Gandhi’s writings calling Indians ‘infinitely superior’ to black Africans.

Professors began a petition for the statue's removal shortly after it was installed in 2016 [Mantse Aryeequaye/Al Jazeera]

A statue of Indian independence leader Mahatma Gandhi has been removed from Ghana’s most prestigious university following complaints that he was racist against the black Africans.

The statue, installed at the University of Ghana in capital Accra, was removed in the middle of the night earlier this week after protests from students and faculty.

India’s former president Pranab Mukherjee had unveiled the statue two years ago as a symbol of ties between the two nations.READ MORE

Ghana: Call to remove Gandhi statue over ‘racist views’

But professors at the university soon began a petition calling for its removal. They cited passages written by Gandhi depicting Indians as “infinitely superior” to black Africans and using the racist pejorative “kaffirs” to describe them.

One of Gandhi’s writings cited in the petition read: “Ours is one continual struggle against a degradation sought to be inflicted upon us by the Europeans, who desire to degrade us to the level of the raw Kaffir whose occupation is hunting, and whose sole ambition is to collect a certain number of cattle to buy a wife with and, then, pass his life in indolence and nakedness.”

The online protest was one of a number on university campuses in Africa and beyond about the enduring symbols of the continent’s colonial past.

‘Victory for black dignity’

The Gandhi statue on the university’s Legon campus in Accra appeared to have been removed overnight on Tuesday, students and lecturers told AFP news agency.

The head of language, literature and drama at the Institute of African Studies, Obadele Kambon, said the removal was an issue of “self-respect”.

“If we show that we have no respect for ourselves and look down on our own heroes and praise others who had no respect for us, then there is an issue,” he said.READ MORE

Gandhi: 125 years since whites-only train incident

“If we indeed don’t show any self-respect for our heroes, how can the world respect us? This is a victory for black dignity and self-respect. The campaign has paid off.”

Adelaide Twum, a student, said the move was “long overdue”.

“I’m so excited. This has nothing to do with diplomatic ties,” she added.

Another student, Benjamin Mensah, said, “It’s a massive win for all Ghanaians because it was constantly reminding us of how inferior we are.”

The university authorities refused to comment. An official at Ghana’s foreign affairs ministry said it was “an internal decision by the university”.

Ghana’s former government had said the statue would be relocated “to avoid the controversy … becoming a distraction from our strong ties of friendship” with India.

Campaigners in Malawi are currently trying to stop a statue of Gandhi going up in the capital, Blantyre, arguing that he used racial slurs against black people.

Though Gandhi is more commonly remembered for his non-violent resistance to British colonial rule in his native India, his legacy in Africa is mixed.

Born in 1869, Gandhi lived and worked as a lawyer in South Africa from 1893 to 1915 before he left for India to continue his anti-colonialism struggle.

Sri Lanka’s disputed PM Rajapaksa resigns amid crisis

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 Sri Lanka’s disputed Prime Minister Mahinda Rajapaksa resigned on Saturday, seven weeks after he was appointed in a surprise move that sparked a political crisis in the island nation.

The former strongman signed his resignation letter, surrounded by his party members at his official residence in the capital, television footage showed. 

Rajapaksa’s resignation is likely to bring to an end a nearly two-month-long power struggle and will pave way for a new government to be established under President Maithripala Sirisena.

Sri Lanka plunged into political turmoil when Sirisena abruptly sacked Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe on October 26 and replaced him with former President Rajapaksa. 

Wickremesinghe is now expected to return to office on Sunday. “The President has agreed to swear in Ranil Wickremesinghe as Prime Minister tomorrow at 10 am,” his United National Party’s spokesman Harin Fernando told the BBC.

Fernando said this would end the political deadlock, remarking that the the country and its economy had suffered “huge damage” since the crisis began 50 days ago.

Rajapaksa’s son, Namal, said his father had quit to ensure national stability.

IANS

MNF takes office in Mizoram after a decade

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The Mizo National Front (MNF) government led by Chief Minister Zoramthanga on Saturday assumed office in Mizoram, ending the Congress’ 10-year rule in the state.

Governor Kummanam Rajasekharan administered the oath of office and secrecy to Zoramthanga and his 11 Council of Ministers at a ceremony at the Raj Bhavan here.

Zoramthanga, 74, took office as the Chief Minister for the third time. Earlier he headed the state from 1998-2003 and 2003-2008.

Outgoing Chief Minister Lal Thanhawla, Meghalaya Chief Minister Conrad K. Sangma, Asom Gana Parishad (AGP) leader and former Assam Chief Minister Prafulla Kumar Mahanta, leaders of various political parties and senior civil and security officials were present in the ceremony.

“The Chief Minister would distribute the portfolios among the ministers soon after a cabinet meeting,” an official of the Chief Minister’s secretariat told the media.

The MNF in the November 28 Assembly polls secured 26 seats, five more than an absolute majority in the 40-member Assembly, ousting the Congress from power in its last bastion in northeast India.

The MNF had got only five seats in the 2013 Assembly polls, while the Congress had won 34. This time, the Congress got only five seats.

The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) for the first time made its entry into the Mizoram Assembly, winning the lone Tuichawng seat.

State Congress chief and outgoing Chief Minister Lal Thanhawla lost in both Champhai South and Serchhip constituencies. 

Zoramthanga won the Aizawl East-I seat for the fifth term.

The MNF is a constituent of the BJP-led North East Democratic Alliance (NEDA). 

However, both the BJP and MNF fielded candidates separately in 40 and 39 seats, respectively.

IANS


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