The Chinese government on Wednesday said it had closed down over 60,000 pornographic websites in the first 11 months of the year, state-run Xinhua news agency reported.
During a press conference, China's director of the Information Office of the State Council Wang Chen said the country had eliminated around 350 million pornographic material, as well as indecent Internet content, such as texts, images and videos.
Since December 2009, China launched a nationwide campaign to increase Internet security and remove its pornographic and vulgar content. The campaign has led to the investigation of 2,197 criminal cases and the punishment of 4,965 criminals. As a result, some 58 offenders have been sentenced to prison terms of over five years.
Thursday, December 30, 2010
U.S. revokes Venezuela amassador's visa
CARACAS, VENEZUELA (BNO NEWS) -- The Venezuelan government on Wednesday confirmed that its ambassador to the U.S. had his visa revoked by the U.S. State Department.
"I confirm. USA revoked the visa of ambassador Bernardo Alvarez," Temir Porras, Venezuela's Deputy Foreign Minister, said through his Twitter account.
Farmers' fear of cholera threatens rice harvest in Haiti – UN
UNITED NATIONS (BNO NEWS) -- Farmers in north-western Haiti are likely to lose a significant portion of their rice harvest due to reluctance to work in paddy fields they fear are contaminated by the cholera-causing bacteria, the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) said on Wednesday.
The FAO said the cholera epidemic in Haiti has claimed the lives of more than 2,700 people and infected some 130,000 others since October, adding that it is helping to carry out a hygiene awareness campaign among the farming communities.
In addition, the organization said it is working with the Haitian ministries of agriculture and health to provide hygiene information to farmers.
Gene discovery could increase value of non-food crops for industries outside agriculture
Scientists at The Samuel Roberts Noble Foundation (SRNF) have uncovered a gene responsible for controlling key growth characteristics in plants, specifically the density of plant material, which could highly benefit agriculture and increase the different uses of crops, the SRNF said Wednesday.
Denser plants have more biomass without increasing the agricultural footprint, meaning farmers and ranchers can produce more plant material from the same sized field. Plants that have increased density hold great potential to be used to produce biofuels, electricity and even advanced materials, like carbon fiber.
"This is a significant breakthrough for those developing improved plants to address pressing societal needs," said Richard Dixon, D. Phil., director of the Noble Foundation's Plant Biology Division.
Denser plants have more biomass without increasing the agricultural footprint, meaning farmers and ranchers can produce more plant material from the same sized field. Plants that have increased density hold great potential to be used to produce biofuels, electricity and even advanced materials, like carbon fiber.
"This is a significant breakthrough for those developing improved plants to address pressing societal needs," said Richard Dixon, D. Phil., director of the Noble Foundation's Plant Biology Division.
Wednesday, December 29, 2010
UK, France and Germany in bid to cap EU Budget 2014-2020
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| photo source: http://wikimediafoundation.org/wiki/File:Budget_UE_fr.jpg |
Read the letter:
18/12/2010
His Excellency Dr José Manuel Durão Barroso
President of the European Commission
Dear President Barroso
The next multiannual financial framework will come as Member States make extraordinary efforts to clean up public finances. These efforts are intended to bring down public deficits and public debt to a sustainable level in keeping with an enhanced fiscal and macroeconomic monitoring framework.
European public spending cannot be exempt from the considerable efforts made by the Member States to bring their public spending under control. The action taken in 2011 to curb annual growth in European payment appropriations should therefore be stepped up progressively over the remaining years of this financial perspective and payment appropriations should increase, at most, by no more than inflation over the next financial perspectives.
A budgetary rule should be defined for the overall level of spending incurred by the European Union over the period covered by the next multiannual financial framework, such that the level of commitment appropriations is set at a level compatible with the required stabilisation of budgetary contributions of Member States. Consistent with this, the commitment appropriations over the next multiannual financial framework should not exceed the 2013 level with a growth rate below the rate of inflation.
It is possible to implement ambitious European policies for our citizens if we have a stable volume of spending. This calls for a better use of available funds. The challenge for the European Union in the coming years will not be to spend more, but to spend better. This challenge can be met by improved European spending efficiency, accurate tracking of incurred commitment appropriations, seeking out where we can gain economic leverage and simplifying the financial framework.
In view of the above, we await the Commission’s package of proposals.
David Cameron, Prime Minister of the United Kingdom
Angela Merkel, Federal Chancellor of Germany
Nicolas Sarkozy, President of the French Republic
Mark Rutte, Prime Minister of the Netherlands
Mari Kiviniemi, Prime Minister of Finland
source: number10.gov.uk
Sweden to close five Embassies
The Swedish Government has decided to close Sweden's Embassies in Buenos Aires, Brussels, Hanoi, Kuala Lumpur and Luanda. "This painful decision is a consequence of the recent decision of the Riksdag to cut funding to the Government Offices by over 33 million EURO," said Minister for Foreign Affairs Carl Bildt. The five embassies will be closed during 2011.22/12/2010 source: sweden.gov.se
Russia accepts French bid to build amphibious assault ships
Paris, 24 December 2010
Dmitri Medvedev, President of the Russian Federation, today informed French President Nicolas Sarkozy that, following the international call for tender issued on 5 October 2010 to supply the Russian navy with two amphibious assault ships [LHDs or BPCs (bâtiments de projection et de commandement as they are known in French)], the Russian authorities have accepted the offer put forward by the consortium formed by the French manufacturers DCNS and STX, and Russian shipyard OSK.
UK DFID: Aid agencies to focus on value for money (23/12/2010)
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| SoS for DFID, Andrew Mitchell MP photo by DFID |
Following a detailed review of support to major charities, the British Government will provide strategic support to organisations which tackle malaria, fight child poverty, boost international transparency and other causes.
After a highly competitive process involving applications from more than 400 civil society organisations worldwide, the UK Government will support 41 agencies through Programme Partnership Arrangements.
U.S. Labor Department awards nearly $20 million to fight child labor in Bolivia, Egypt and Jordan
WASHINGTON, D.C. (BNO NEWS) -- The U.S. Labor Department on Wednesday announced it has awarded nearly $20 million in grants to combat exploitive child labor in Bolivia, Egypt and Jordan.
In order to help improve the livelihoods of families so they no longer need to rely on children's labor, the department's grants will fund projects that provide children with education and training opportunities.In addition, these projects will work with countries that have shown strong political will to address abusive child labor and tackle its root causes. They will collaborate with national partners to scale up and sustain these efforts, and will conduct rigorous evaluations of the impact of project interventions.
Denmark’s intelligence service disrupts terror attack against Mohammad cartoon newspaper
COPENHAGEN, DENMARK -- Denmark’s Security and Intelligence Service (PET) on Wednesday disrupted a terrorist attack against a local newspaper that published a cartoon of the prophet Mohammad in 2005, which angered the Muslim community.
According to Politiken newspaper, PET arrested five individuals suspected of preparing the attack against the Jyllands-Posten office building. Four people were detained in Denmark and another in Stockholm, Sweden.
PET informed that the suspected terrorists were in the process of preparing an attack against a building located on the main town hall square Rådhuspladsen in Copenhagen. The building hosts the offices of both the Jyllands-Posten and Politiken newspapers.
German airport official calls for passenger profiling
Christoph Blume, the CEO of Dusseldorf airport, on Wednesday called for introducing passenger profiling in German airports to combat terrorism, Deutsch Welle television reported.
Blume, the future President of the German Airport Association (ADV) said he want to introduce the system that would be based on age, sex and ethnicity for high-risk passengers. The profiling system would be similar to one used in Israel.
Strong quake strikes off Vanuatu, no tsunami threat
A strong earthquake struck off the Vanuatu Islands on late Wednesday afternoon, seismologists said, but no tsunami warnings were issued.
The 6.6-magnitude earthquake at 5.54 p.m. local time (0654 GMT) was centered approximately 115 kilometers (70 miles) west of Isangel, a city on the Vanuatu island of Tanna. It struck about 31 kilometers (19.3 miles) deep, making it a shallow earthquake, according to the United States Geological Survey (USGS).
The agency estimated that approximately 9,000 people may have perceived 'moderate' shaking, which could result in light damage. Some 71,000 others were estimated to having perceived light shaking.
Somali pirates release German-owned ship after months
BRUSSELS (BNO NEWS) -- Somali pirates on Tuesday morning released a German-owned vessel carrying nearly two dozen crew members off Oman, the European Union Naval Force - Somalia confirmed on Wednesday.
EU Naval Force spokesman Paddy O'Kennedy said the 13,168 tonne cargo ship MV Marida Marguerite was pirated on May 8 approximately 120 nautical miles (222 kilometers) south of the port of Salalah, a city in the southern Omani province of Dhofar. It is carrying a crew of 22 - 19 Indian, 1 Ukrainian and 2 Bangladeshi.
O'Kennedy said the German-owned, Marshall Island-flagged MV Marida Marguerite was on its way to Antwerp in Belgium at the time of the hijacking and had been held hostage ever since as the pirates demanded millions in ransom.
On Sunday, the pirates were reportedly paid a ransom of $5.5 million for the release of the crew and the ship, according to ECOTERRA International, which keeps a record of pirating incidents.
Two Russian space officials sacked over satellite loss
Two Russian senior space industry officials on Wednesday were sacked over the loss of three Glonass satellites on December 5, RIA Novosti news agency reported.
Russian President Dmitry Medvedev dismissed Energia space corporation chief rocket and space systems designer Vyacheslav Filin and Roscosmos deputy head Viktor Remishevshy. Medvedev also reprimanded Anatoly Perminov, head of the Russian space agency (Roscosmos).
The sanctions were imposed after a report prepared by a state investigation commission over the December 5 incident. A Proton-M carrier rocket went off course and crashed in the Pacific Ocean and thus the three satellites were lost.
The Proton-M was equipped with a DM-3 booster which was designed and manufactured by Energia space corporation. The state commission determined that Energia miscalculated the amount of fuel needed for the DM-3 booster.
As a result, the amount of oxidant exceeded the norm by 1.5 tons and this excessive weight caused that the carrier rocket was unable to put the Glonass satellites into the calculated orbit. The report also indicated that Energia’s experts did not follow the necessary pre-launch safety procedures and failed to notice the miscalculation.
The three Glonass satellites were supposed to conclude the formation of Russia’s navigation system. Rosocosmos switched on two reserve Glonass-M satellites to compensate for the ones that were lost. Russia expects to put in orbit the another three satellites by April 2011 in order to complete its system.
The Glonass navigation system project consists in 24 satellites that will operate in a similar manner to the U.S. Global Positioning System.
European leaders disagree over China's EU investments
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| EU Industry Commissioner Antonio Tajani by ZioDave |
European Union industry commissioner Antonio Tajani warned EU Member States on Monday about the growing influence China has in some strategic sectors of the European economy and added that EU businesses should be protected from possible future takeovers by Chinese companies.
In 2010, China's direct investments in Europe increased by 12 percent, or 37 billion euros ($50 billion), while the EU invested a total of 3.8 billion euros ($5.1 billion) in China. The increment was the result of EU businesses which are expanding their investment from the manufacturing sector to services and other fields.
According to the EU statistical bureau Eurostat, from January to September, the EU exports to China reached 82.3 billion euros ($107.8 billion) which represented a 39 percent increase from 2009. In addition, EU imports from China were of 204.5 billion euros ($267.8 billion), increasing by 30 percent.
EIB to lend 400 million Euros to Volvo
The European Investment Bank (EIB) will lend 400 million Euros to Volvo Car Corporation for research and development activities.
The loan will help finance research, development and innovation in improved fuel efficiency and lower emissions, including new tooling for the production of cleaner and safer cars. The EIB loan has a Swedish state guarantee approved by the European Commission.
source eib.org
Apple faces two lawsuits for releasing info to advertisers without user consent
Apple Inc., along with some of its mobile application developers, is facing a couple of class action lawsuits for allegedly collecting and releasing personal information of its product users to advertisers.
According to the complaint, which was filed last Thursday in a San Jose, California federal court by Jonathan Lalo of Los Angeles, several of Apple's iPhones and iPads are encoded with identifying devices that allow advertising networks to track what applications users download, how frequently they're used and for how long.
"Some apps are also selling additional information to ad networks, including users' location, age, gender, income, ethnicity, sexual orientation and political views," the suit states, explaining that the identifying device is impossible to be deactivated.
In Lalo's suit, applications named include Pandora, Paper Toss, the Weather Channel, and Discovery.com as the lawsuit seeks class-action status for Apple customers who downloaded an application to their iPhone or iPad devices between December 1, 2008 and mid-December.
In addition, a second suit - Freeman vs. Apple - was filed against Apple in which Apple, Inc. allegedly assigns an identifying number to each of its iPhones and iPads and then transmits that information along with the devices' location data to third-party advertisers.
All of this is done without the consumers' consent, the suit says, and in violation of their legal rights.
USA: Prices fell by 1,3 percent in October
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| photo By uzi978 |
While housing prices are still above their spring 2009 lows, six cities - Atlanta, Charlotte, Miami, Portland (OR), Seattle and Tampa - hit their lowest levels since home prices started to fall in 2006 and 2007, meaning that average home prices in those areas have fallen beyond the recent lows seen in most other markets in the spring of 2009.
In October, the annual growth rates moderated from their prior month's pace confirmed a clear deceleration in home price returns for the fifth consecutive month.
Twelve die when military plane crashes in central Russia
Twelve people were killed on late Tuesday evening when a large Russian Air Force aircraft crashed in central Russia, officials and local media reported.
The Antonov An-22 Cock transport aircraft deployed by the Russian Air Force crashed in the country's Krasny Oktyabr village in the Tula Region. It was on its way to Migalovo airport but radars lost its location at around 9:30 p.m. Moscow time. Around five hours later, the burning remains of the aircraft were discovered near the village.
As rescuers continue to search for evidence that will help reveal the cause of the incident, the Russian Defense Ministry earlier said that a possible equipment failure could have caused the accident. Many military transport aircraft entered service 40 or 50 years ago, and are not considered to be within modern safety aviation regulations.
The black box of the aircraft has since been found, although a recovery operation is ongoing to recover all the remains of the crew members. There were no known casualties on the ground.
Russia has seen several major aviation accidents this year. On March 22, eight people were injured when a large passenger plane crashed on approach to Domodedovo airport after a flight from Egypt. Only crew members were on board the TU-204 Aviastar-TU jet.
The Antonov An-22 Cock transport aircraft deployed by the Russian Air Force crashed in the country's Krasny Oktyabr village in the Tula Region. It was on its way to Migalovo airport but radars lost its location at around 9:30 p.m. Moscow time. Around five hours later, the burning remains of the aircraft were discovered near the village.
As rescuers continue to search for evidence that will help reveal the cause of the incident, the Russian Defense Ministry earlier said that a possible equipment failure could have caused the accident. Many military transport aircraft entered service 40 or 50 years ago, and are not considered to be within modern safety aviation regulations.
The black box of the aircraft has since been found, although a recovery operation is ongoing to recover all the remains of the crew members. There were no known casualties on the ground.
Russia has seen several major aviation accidents this year. On March 22, eight people were injured when a large passenger plane crashed on approach to Domodedovo airport after a flight from Egypt. Only crew members were on board the TU-204 Aviastar-TU jet.
China completes main parts for first homegrown large passenger jet
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| by DearEdward |
The C919 will be a single-aisle jet that will have a capacity of 168 passengers and will be China's first homegrown large passenger plane. The aircraft is being built by the Commercial Aircraft Corporation of China (COMAC).
Toledo Pact approves pension reform proposal to Zapatero
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| photo by Chesi - Fotos CC |
The Toledo Pact on Wednesday approved by 36 votes against two its pension recommendations to the Spanish government to be implemented in the system reform, El Pais newspaper reported.
The Toledo Commission approved a report in which it is stated that raising the age for retirement is not needed, in contrast with the proposal from President Zapatero who insists in setting the retirement age at 67.
The document includes 21 points that can be implemented in Zapatero’s pension reform. The report will be now discussed in the Spanish Congress on January 25. However, some politicians believe that the government will not implement this recommendations as the bill will be presented on January 28 and it might have been written by this moment.
Catherine Ashton's statement on the second prosecution of Mikhail Khodorkovskii and Platon Lebedev
"The High Representative has taken note of today's verdict by the Khamovinicheskii Court in Moscow in the second prosecution of Mikhail Khodorkovskii and Platon Lebedev. The European Union will continue to follow developments very closely, including the forthcoming announcement of the sentence.As emphasised at the recent Summit that took place on 7 December in Brussels, the EU expects Russia to respect its international commitments in the field of human rights and the rule of law."
source: consilium.europa.eu
Mozilla says 'minimal risk' after leaving addons database on public server
MOUNTAIN VIEW, CALIFORNIA (BNO NEWS) -- Mozilla on Tuesday admitted to have accidentally left a partial database of addons.mozilla.org user accounts on its public server earlier this month. Mozilla was notified by a security researcher about the incident on December 17, reporting the issue via its web bounty program. However, the company said the incident has a "minimal risk."
"We were able to account for every download of the database," Chris Lyon, Director of Infrastructure Security, said. "This issue posed minimal risk to users, however as a precaution we felt we should disclose this issue to people affected and err on the side of disclosure."
The database included 44,000 inactive accounts using older, md5-based password hashes, Mozilla explained, saying that they erased all the md5-passwords, rendering the accounts disabled.
Lyon explained that all current addons.mozilla.org accounts use a more secure SHA-512 password hash with per-user salts. SHA-512 and per user salts has been the standard storage method of password hashes for all active users since April 9th, 2009.
"It is important to note that current addons.mozilla.org users and accounts are not at risk. Additionally, this incident did not impact any of Mozilla's infrastructure," Lyon added. "This information was also sent to impacted users by email on December 27th."
New EU standards for common mobile phone charger
The European Commission on Wednesday welcomed the European Union harmonized standards for manufacturing mobile phones compatible with a new common charger.
The new standards were unveiled by the European Standardization Bodies CEN-CENELEC after a mandate from the European Commission which initiated a process towards a global common mobile phone charger.
"I am very happy that the European Standardization Bodies have met our request to develop within a short space of time the technical standards necessary for a common mobile phone charger based on the work done by industry," said European Commission Vice-President Antonio Tajani.
In June 2009, the Commission and 14 mobile phone producers agreed in a Memorandum of Understanding to harmonize chargers for data-enabled mobile phones sold in the EU. The chargers will be compatible on the basis of the Micro-USB connector.
The companies that signed the MoU were Apple, Emblaze Mobile, Huawei Technologies, LGE, Motorola Mobility, NEC, Nokia, Qualcomm, Research In Motion (RIM), Samsung, Sony Ericsson, TCT Mobile (ALCATEL), Texas Instruments and Atmel.
The harmonization is needed as incompatibility of chargers is both an inconvenience for users and an environmental problem. As users replace their current mobile phones, usually a new charger is needed which provokes the disposal of the old one.
"The common charger will make life easier for consumers, reduce waste and benefit businesses. It is a true win-win situation," added Tajani who is also Commissioner for Industry and Entrepreneurship.
The mandate to the European Standardization organizations was issued on December 2009. It requested the development of European standards for a common charger that allow interoperability of phones from different brands.
The standards also take into account safety risks and electro-magnetic emissions in order to ensure that common chargers have sufficient immunity to external interference. The first common chargers are expected to reach the EU market in the first quarter of 2011.
ECB increases its capital
The European Central Bank (ECB) has decided to increase its subscribed capital by €5 billion, from €5.76 billion to €10.76 billion, with effect from 29 December 2010. This decision was taken by the Governing Council of the ECB in accordance with the Statute of the European System of Central Banks and the ECB, as well as the Council Regulation No 1009/2000 of 8 May 2000 that foresees an increase in the capital of the ECB by up to this amount. This decision resulted from an assessment of the adequacy of statutory capital conducted in 2009. The capital increase was deemed appropriate in view of increased volatility in foreign exchange rates, interest rates and gold prices as well as credit risk. As the maximum size of the ECB’s provisions and reserves is equal to the level of its paid-up capital, this decision will allow the Governing Council to augment the provision by an amount equivalent to the capital increase, starting with the allocation of part of this year’s profits. From a longer-term perspective, the increase in capital – the first general one in 12 years – is also motivated by the need to provide an adequate capital base in a financial system that has grown considerably.
Court of Justice of the European Union: Judgment in Case C-208/09 Ilonka Sayn-Wittgenstein v Landeshauptmann von Wien
Find the relevant document here
For more information visit the CURIA website
EPP condemns evacuation and sealing-off of church at Rizokarpaso village
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| Wilfried Martens |
The Turkish Cypriot police ordered the evacuation of the church and demanded that the priest would strip of his clerical clothing. The church was then sealed-off. Following this disturbing incident, the President of the European People's Party (EPP), Wilfried Martens, made the following statement:
"On behalf of the EPP, I condemn this unprecedented act by the Turkish Cypriot police, which violates basic human rights and religious freedoms. I call upon all those responsible to ensure that this is not repeated. The EPP will closely monitor the situation."
source: epp.eu
Estonia adopts the euro
Estonians will start using the euro on 1 January 2011. Good advance planning and public information should make for a smooth changeover from the kroon.Recent publicity campaigns have aimed to prevent confusion about the conversion rate - so that shoppers know how much they are spending and don't fall prey to dishonest traders.
In November, Estonians received leaflets with practical details and two handy reference cards - one with a kroon-euro conversion chart and the other explaining the anti-forgery features on the banknotes.
From 1 December, coin starter kits have been available from banks, so the public can get a feeling for the currency.
Meanwhile, back in August, retailers, financial institutions and local governments were invited to sign up to a fair pricing agreement, pledging them not to increase their prices without good cause after the changeover.
For the first two weeks of the changeover, Estonian kroons and euros will circulate alongside each other, after which the euro will become the sole legal tender. To help consumers, retailers began displaying prices in both currencies on 1 July 2010, and must continue to until 20 June 2011.
Government's Consumer Protection Board will monitor businesses and prices, and will make public any information about major violations of the rules.
Estonia joined the EU in 2004 and has fervently pursued economic reform, earning itself the nickname "Baltic tiger". The economy is highly flexible and, while not immune to the crisis, has shown its ability to operate and adjust under a fixed exchange rate for close to two decades.
But euro adoption is not the end of the road. As the 17th eurozone member, Estonia will be required to pursue policies on debt and budget deficits that support economic growth, job creation and a stable inflation rate.
Other recent additions to the euro area include Slovenia, which joined in 2007, Cyprus and Malta in 2008 and Slovakia in 2009.
source: www.europa.eu
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