Junior Digest

Patna, Dec 28,2020: Senior JD(U) leader and Rajya Sabha MP RCP Singh on Sunday became new national president of the party after resignation of his predecessor and Chief Minister Nitish Kumar, taking moral responsibility for the poor performance of the party in recently held Bihar Assembly Elections.

Mr Kumar, announced his resignation from the post of national president of JD(U) in its national executive meeting and proposed the name of Mr Singh as his successor, which was accepted in the executive committee meeting.

Mr Singh has been holding the post of national General Secretary of the party looking after its organisational work. He is also leader of JD (U) in Rajya Sabha.

He was earlier an officer of Indian Administrative Service and had joined JD(U) after retirement. During his service career, he was considered a close confidant of Mr Kumar and had also served as Principal secretary to Chief Minister.

New Delhi, Dec 27,2020: The dates for the Central Board of Secondary Education (CBSE) Board examinations for class Xth and XIIth, to be held next year will be announced on December 31 at 1800 hrs.

This information was given by Union Education Minister Ramesh Pokhriyal ‘Nishank’ in a tweet on Saturday.

‘Major announcements for students & parents! I will announce the date when the exams will commence for students appearing for #CBSE board exams in 2021. Stay tuned,’ the Minister said in a tweet.

Dec 26,2020: Refuting Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s allegation that farmer unions were moving the goal posts everyday, the All-India Kisan Sangharsh Co-ordination Committee (AIKSCC) on Friday said the only demand of the farmers was an “assured”, “guaranteed” and “legalised” income by announcing Minimum Support Price for all crops.

Earlier in the day, speaking at a programme to release an instalment of ₹18,000 crore to 9 crore beneficiaries of the PM Kisan Samman Nidhi Yojana, Mr. Modi said people with a certain political ideology, instigating the farmers agitation, were moving the goal posts everyday to raise new issues not even concerned with the movement and were not allowing discussions for political reasons.

Appealing again to the farmers to not get misled, Mr. Modi, said the farmers’ movement began with concerns over the Minimum Support Price, but they were now seeking release of those accused of violence and even opposing the toll plazas. “Those firing from the shoulders of the farmers are raising different issues in their name because they don’t have any logic,” said Mr. Modi.

The Prime Minister, however, reiterated the government’s offer for talks, saying that his government was ready to talk even with their staunch political opponents, but the talks could be held only within the realm of facts, logic and issues.
Single point demand

Responding to Mr. Modi’s address, AIKSCC general-secretary Avik Saha, in a Farmers’ Bulletin, said the Prime Minister should stop confusing people and not obfuscate the movement. “The farmers have only one demand. Give them assured, guaranteed and legalised income. It can be done through announcing MSP for all crops and ensuring that all farmers across the country get it. It must be a legal guarantee,” said Mr. Saha.

He said the Prime Minister’s attempt to confuse people would not work and he should stop working for the big corporates. “If there is any change of goalpost, it is from the side of the government. We just want the right to live with dignity for ourselves and a secure future for our children,” he said.

Dec 28,2020:President Donald Trump signed a $900 billion pandemic relief package on Sunday, ending days of drama over his refusal to accept the bipartisan deal that will deliver long-sought cash to businesses and individuals and avert a federal government shutdown.

The massive bill includes $1.4 trillion to fund government agencies through September and contains other end-of-session priorities such as money for cash-starved transit systems and an increase in food stamp benefits.

Mr. Trump announced the signing in a statement on Sunday night that spoke of his frustrations with the COVID-19 relief for including only $600 checks to most Americans instead of the $2,000 that his fellow Republicans rejected. He also complained about what he considered unnecessary spending by the government at large. But Mr. Trump’s eleventh-hour objections created turmoil because lawmakers had thought he was supportive of the bill, which had been negotiated for months with White House input.

“I will sign the Omnibus and Covid package with a strong message that makes clear to Congress that wasteful items need to be removed,” Mr. Trump said in the statement.

While the President insisted he would send Congress “a redlined version” with items to be removed under the rescission process, those are merely suggestions to Congress. The bill, as signed, would not necessarily be changed.

Lawmakers now have breathing room to continue debating whether the relief checks should be as large as the president has demanded. The Democratic-led House supports the larger checks and is set to vote on the issue Monday, but it’s expected to be ignored by the Republican-held Senate where spending faces opposition.

Republicans and Democrats swiftly welcomed Mr. Trump’s decision to sign the bill into law.

Dec 27,2020:As the farmers’ protest against the farm laws completed almost a month at the Ghazipur border, the numbers are swelling at the Delhi-Ghaziabad border. The row of tractors behind the stage on the Delhi-Meerut expressway has suddenly become longer in the last two days. Among those who have joined in the last couple of days are peasants from Punjab.

On Saturday, farmers blocked both the carriageways on the expressway for around five hours. The traffic from Delhi was diverted via Anand Vihar. “We do it when the administration doesn’t allow our tractors to come to the protest site. Once they allowed, we opened the traffic from Delhi,” said Gurpreet Singh from Udham Singh Nagar in Uttarakhand. “At this point, the tractors have covered at least 4 km of the Meerut carriageway,” said Mr. Gurpreet, adding the protesters did not stop the vehicles of essential services.

Responding to the Prime Minister’s address to farmers on Friday, Mr. Singh said the PM’s comparison between poultry and dairy farmers and those growing food grains was misplaced. “Eggs and milk could be sold in small quantities to different buyers. I can’t keep selling a quintal of grain and I don’t have the facility to hoard,” he said.

Meanwhile, Bhartiya Kisan Union (BKU) leader Rakesh Tikait, who negotiated with the administration during the day, said, “Jab tak Bill wapsi nahin, tab tak ghar wapsi nahin (‘as long as the Acts are not repealed, we will not return home’).” He said the protest was leaderless and being run by farmers. “After many years, farmers have come together for their rights. We can’t allow it to be sabotaged,” he said.

New Delhi, Dec 28,2020: The All India Kisan Sangharsh Coordination Committee (AIKSCC) gave a call to the people, to take oath in support of the farmers on New Year.

‘AIKSCC has called for a countrywide protest on New Year by people all over the country taking a pledge to support the farmers’ struggle and demanding repeal of the three Farm Acts and the EB 2020.

‘Led by AIKSCC, the massive protest rallies are being organised on the issues of repeal of these Farm Acts, at Patna in Bihar and Thanjavur in Tamil Nadu on December 29 and in Manipur and Hyderabad on December 30,’ the AIKSCC said in a statement here on Sunday.

‘At the call of farmers organisations including AIKSCC, today, at thousands of places, farmers, workers and other sections of people assembled during the airing of ‘Mann Ki Baat’ of the PM to show their protest against his indifference to farmers and service to corporates and MNCs.

‘They clanged thalis to drown the sound of the lies of the PM. This has led to massive rise of disillusionment and frustration in the rural youth,’ the statement said.

The farmers’ organisation said the present movement gives them a sense of direction for the development of rural economy, employment generation and development of the farmers.

‘While farmers demand Government investment in agriculture infrastructure and food processing, the Government refuses to help farmers’ development and plans to spend Rs one lakh crore to help the corporates and MNCs to invest in Indian agriculture. This is the path of self-destruction, not Atmanirbharta,’ it added.

New Delhi , December 27,2020: The Samyukt Kisan Morcha, a joint front of almost 40 farmer organisations, wrote a letter to the Ministry of Agriculture and Farmers’ Welfare accepting the Centre’s offer for dialogue and proposed December 29 as the next date for the meeting.
The farmer unions also put forth a four-point agenda and asked that the campaign launched by the entire state machinery to defame and malign the farmers’ movement must stop.
As part of the four-point agenda, the joint front of farmer unions asked the government to adopt the modalities for the repeal of the three Central Farm Acts, and make changes in the draft Electricity Amendment Bill 2020 to protect the interests of farmers.
“Mechanisms to be adopted to make remunerative MSP recommended by the National Farmers’ Commission into a legally guaranteed entitlement for all farmers and all agricultural commodities. Amendments to be made and notified in the ‘Commission for the Air Quality Management in National Capital Region and Adjoining Areas Ordinance, 2020′ to exclude farmers from the penal provisions of the Ordinance,” farmer unions listed in the agenda for the meeting.
The farmer union’s letter came in response to the Centre’s letter sent to the farmers on December 24 inviting them for dialogue.
The farmers have been protesting since last month at the Singhu border against the Farmers’ Produce Trade and Commerce (Promotion and Facilitation) Act, 2020, the Farmers (Empowerment and Protection) Agreement on Price Assurance and Farm Services Act, 2020, and the Essential Commodities (Amendment) Act, 2020. They are demanding the repeal of the three laws.
The farmer unions have held five rounds of talks with the government and attended a meeting called by Union Home Minister Amit Shah.

The coronavirus disease (COVID-19) brings with it feelings like anxiety, stress and uncertainty — and they are felt especially strongly by children of all ages. Though all children deal with such emotions in different ways, if your child has been faced with school closures, cancelled events or separation from friends, they are going to need to feel loved and supported now more than ever.

We spoke with expert adolescent psychologist, best-selling author, monthly New York Times columnist and mother of two Dr. Lisa Damour about how you can help create a sense of normalcy at home while navigating “the new (temporary) normal.”

1. Be calm and proactive
“Parents should have a calm, proactive conversation with their children about the coronavirus disease (COVID-19), and the important role children can play in keeping themselves healthy. Let them know that it is possible that [you or your children] might start to feel symptoms at some point, which are often very similar to the common cold or flu, and that they do not need to feel unduly frightened of this possibility,” recommends Dr. Damour. “Parents should encourage their kids to let them know if they’re not feeling well, or if they are feeling worried about the virus so that the parents can be of help.”

“Adults can empathize with the fact that children are feeling understandably nervous and worried about COVID-19. Reassure your children that illness due to COVID-19 infection is generally mild, especially for children and young adults,” she says. It’s also important to remember, that many of the symptoms of COVID-19 can be treated. “From there, we can remind them that there are many effective things we can do to keep ourselves and others safe and to feel in better control of our circumstances: frequently wash our hands, don’t touch our faces and engage in physical distancing.”

“Another thing we can do is actually help them look outward. So to say to them, ‘Listen, I know you’re feeling really anxious about catching coronavirus, but part of why we’re asking you to do all these things — to wash your hands, to stay home — is that that’s also how we take care of members of our community. We think about the people around us, too.’”

2. Stick to a routine
“Children need structure. Full stop. And what we’re all having to do, very quickly, is invent entirely new structures to get every one of us through our days,” says Dr. Damour. “I would strongly recommend that parents make sure that there’s a schedule for the day — that can include playtime where a kid can get on their phone and connect with their friends, but it also should have technology-free time and time set aside to help around the house. We need to think about what we value and we need to build a structure that reflects that. It will be a great relief to our kids to have a sense of a predictable day and a sense of when they’re supposed to be working and when they get to play.”

She suggests getting your children involved too. “For children 10 and 11 or older, I would ask the child to design it. Give them a sense of the kinds of things that should be included in their day, and then work with what they create.” When it comes to younger children, “depending on who is supervising them (I realize that not every parent is going to be home to do this) structure their day so that all of the things that need to get done before anything else happen: all of their schoolwork and all of their chores. For some families, doing that at the start of the day will work best for kids. Other families may find it may work okay to start the day a little bit later after sleeping in and enjoying breakfast together as a family.” For parents who are not able to supervise their children during the day, explore with your caretaker ways to create a structure that works best.

“Support, expect and normalize that they are very sad and very frustrated about the losses they are mourning.”

3. Let your child feel their emotions
With school closures come cancelled school plays, concerts, sports matches and activities that children are deeply disappointed about missing out on because of the coronavirus disease (COVID-19). Dr. Damour’s number one piece of advice is to let them be sad. “In the scope of an adolescent’s life these are major losses. This is bigger for them than it is for us because we’re measuring it against our lifetime and experience. Support, expect and normalize that they are very sad and very frustrated about the losses they are mourning.” When in doubt, empathy and support are the way to go.

4. Check in with them about what they’re hearing
There is a lot of misinformation circulating about the coronavirus disease (COVID-19). “Find out what your child is hearing or what they think is true. It’s not enough to just tell your child accurate facts, because if they have picked up something that is inaccurate, if you don’t find out what they are thinking and directly address the misunderstanding, they may combine the new information you give them with the old information they have. Find out what your child already knows and start from there in terms of getting them on the right track.”

If they have questions you can’t answer, instead of guessing, use it as an opportunity to explore the answers together. Use websites of trusted organizations like UNICEF and the World Health Organization for sources of information.

Many children are facing bullying and abuse at school or online around the coronavirus disease (COVID-19). It’s important your children know that you’re always there for them should they experience bullying. “Activating bystanders is the best way to address any kind of bullying,” says Dr. Damour. “Kids who are targeted should not be expected to confront bullies; rather we should encourage them to turn to friends or adults for help and support.”

5. Create welcome distractions
When it comes to processing difficult emotions, “take your cues from your child, and really think a lot about balancing talking about feelings with finding distractions, and allow distractions when kids need relief from feeling very upset.” Have a family game night every few days or cook meals together. Dr. Damour is using dinner time to connect with her daughters. “We’ve decided that we are going to have a dinner team every night. We mix it up in pairs, so we rotate who is in charge of making dinner for the family.”

With teens and their screens, allow for some leeway, but not a free-for-all. Dr. Damour advises to be up front with your teenager and say that you understand they have more time on their hands, but that it’s not going to be a good idea to have unfettered access to screens or social media. “Ask your teen, ‘how should we handle this? Come up with a structure and show me the structure that you’re thinking about, and then I’ll let you know what I think.’”

6. Monitor your own behaviour
“Parents of course are anxious too and our kids will take emotional cues from us,” explains Dr. Damour. “I would ask parents to do what they can to manage their anxiety in their own time and to not overshare their fears with their children. That may mean containing emotions, which may be hard at times, especially if they’re feeling those emotions pretty intensely.”

Children rely on their parents to provide a sense of safety and security. “[It’s important that] we remember that they are the passengers in this and we are driving the car. And so even if we’re feeling anxious, we can’t let that get in the way of them feeling like safe passengers.”

www.unicef.org/coronavirus

Dec 27,2020:China will overtake the United States to become the world’s biggest economy in 2028, five years earlier than previously estimated due to the contrasting recoveries of the two countries from the COVID-19 pandemic, a think-tank said.

“For some time, an overarching theme of global economics has been the economic and soft power struggle between the United States and China,” the Centre for Economics and Business Research said in an annual report published on Saturday.
“The COVID-19 pandemic and corresponding economic fallout have certainly tipped this rivalry in China’s favour.”

The CEBR said China’s “skilful management of the pandemic”, with its strict early lockdown, and hits to long-term growth in the West meant China’s relative economic performance had improved.

China looked set for the average economic growth of 5.7 percent a year from 2021-25 before slowing to 4.5 percent a year from 2026-30.

While the United States was likely to have a strong post-pandemic rebound in 2021, its growth would slow to 1.9 percent a year between 2022 and 2024, and then to 1.6 percent after that.
Japan would remain the world’s third-biggest economy, in dollar terms, until the early 2030s when it would be overtaken by India, pushing Germany down from fourth to fifth.

The United Kingdom, currently the fifth-biggest economy by the CEBR’s measure, would slip to sixth place from 2024.

However, despite a hit in 2021 from its exit from the European Union’s single market, the British gross domestic product (GDP) in dollars was forecast to be 23 percent higher than France’s by 2035, helped by the UK’s lead in the increasingly important digital economy.

Europe accounted for 19 percent of output in the top 10 global economies in 2020 but that will fall to 12 percent by 2035, or lower if there is an acrimonious split between the EU and the UK, the CEBR said.

It also said the pandemic’s impact on the global economy was likely to show up in higher inflation, not slower growth.

“We see an economic cycle with rising interest rates in the mid-2020s,” it said, posing a challenge for governments which have borrowed massively to fund their response to the COVID-19 crisis.

“But the underlying trends that have been accelerated by this point to a greener and more tech-based world as we move into the 2030s.”

New Delhi, Dec 26,2020: Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Friday squarely blamed those with political agenda for the deadlock in the Centre’s talks with protesting farmers and asserted that his government is willing to hold dialogues with all, including those staunchly opposed to it, as long as talks are based on farm issues, facts and logic.

In a blistering speech targeting Opposition after transferring an installment of Rs 2,000 each to over nine crore farmers, Modi said when the agitation began farmers had some genuine demands like guaranteed minimum support price but people with political motives then took over and began making unrelated demands like the release of those accused of violence and making highways toll-free.

While putting up a strong defence of the three farm laws, enacted in September, he said farmers in overwhelming numbers across the country have welcomed the three Acts and listed their benefits as well during his interaction.

His government is approaching dialogues with protesting farmers with an open heart, Modi said, claiming that the parties rejected by the electorate are pushing their political agenda by misleading farmers and using their shoulders to fire at the government as they lack any logical argument against these laws.

Defeated in elections, these parties are now indulging in event management for selfies and are appearing on television for publicity, he said.

“Our decision can be tested on logic and facts. If there is any shortcomings, it should be highlighted. It is a democracy. We are not claiming that God has given us all knowledge,” he added.

Farm reforms became necessary because poor farmers, who are over 80 per cent, were getting poorer during rules of earlier governments, he said.

He cited the BJP’s victory in panchayat elections in several states, in which farmers were the main voters and including in areas surrounding protest sites, to argue that these reforms have received support from cultivators.

Though the government is making humble efforts to resume the dialogue, some are not letting talks happen due to political reasons and are misleading the farmers, Modi said.

Ankara [Turkey], December 26,2020: Turkey is in favour of normalising relations with Israel, but its Palestine policy is unacceptable for Ankara, President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said Friday.
In 2018, Turkey expelled the Israeli ambassador over protests in the Gaza Strip, which resulted in the deaths of about 60 Palestinians. Israel responded in kind and the two countries did not have envoys until Ankara appointed a new ambassador earlier in the month.
“There are issues, if not for them we would have totally different [relations] with Israel. Palestine is our red line, we will not accept it. As a matter of fact, we wholeheartedly wish for our relations with Israel to improve,” Erdogan told journalists.

The Israel-Palestine peace process has long been stalled, as both sides refused to compromise on issues important to them. One of the main goals of the Palestinian side is to restore the border between Israel and Palestine to where it was before the 1967 Six-Day War, with a possible territorial exchange. The Palestinians are hoping to create their state on the West Bank and in the Gaza Strip, with East Jerusalem as its capital.
Israel, on the other hand, is hostile to the idea of restoring the pre-1967 borders and is even more hostile to the idea of sharing Jerusalem, which they consider their historical and undivided capital. The lack of common ground between the two sides has been undermining prospects of Israel’s chances to normalize ties with its neighbours in the region.
In September, the United Arab Emirates and Israel signed a deal to normalize relations and establish diplomatic ties between the two sides. Later, Bahrain and Sudan followed suit. Nevertheless, the Palestinian issue remains central for all Arab states, including Iraq, which said in August that its laws prohibit the normalisation of relations with Israel.

Dec 27,2020:The 24-member cabinet, announced last week, sworn in during a ceremony in Riyadh where Yemen’s President Hadi is living.

Yemen’s President Abd-Rabbu Mansour Hadi has sworn in a new government that was formed thanks to a power-sharing deal brokered by Saudi Arabia last year.

The 24-member cabinet, announced last week, was sworn in during a ceremony held on Saturday in the Saudi capital, Riyadh, where Hadi is living.

The new government, headed by Prime Minister Maeen Abdul Malik, represents Yemen’s northern and southern areas with equal numbers of members from each region.

It includes five members of the separatist Southern Transitional Council (STC) as part of a bid to end a power struggle between Hadi loyalists and the secessionists.

The formation of the government was part of the Saudi Arabia-backed Riyadh Agreement, signed between the Yemeni government and the STC in November 2019 to seek an end to military clashes between forces of both parties.

President Hadi called on the new government to act as a team and prioritise addressing the impoverished country’s economic woes.

“You are coming from different blocs and geographical areas, but let your main concern be first and foremost the country and its citizens,” Hadi told the members of the government.

“We are in a new stage and depend on you to act as one team,” he added, according to Yemen’s state news agency Saba.

Yemen has been mired in conflict since a Saudi Arabia-led coalition intervened there in March 2015 to restore the government removed from power in the capital Sanaa by the Houthi rebel movement in late 2014.

The STC, formed in 2017, is backed by the United Arab Emirates, while Hadi’s government is backed by Saudi Arabia. Both are part of a Saudi Arabia-led coalition.

According to the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA), the conflict in Yemen has so far claimed the lives of 233,000 people.

The conflict has also pushed the impoverished Arab country to the brink of famine and devastated its health facilities.

Earlier this month, the International Rescue Committee (IRC) said Yemen is the country most at risk of a humanitarian catastrophe in 2021, marking the third year running the war-ravaged nation earned the grim recognition.

According to the UN, 80 percent of Yemen’s 30 million people need some form of aid or protection. About 13.5 million Yemenis currently face acute food insecurity, including 16,500 people living in famine-like conditions, UN data shows.

New Delhi, Dec 28,2020: Union Home Minister Amit Shah on Sunday said that North Eastern States once known for separatism and insurgency but in last six and half years many insurgent groups in these States have given up arms to join the mainstream of the country and the violence in these States have gone down substantially.

Inaugurated several development projects at Imphal on the last leg of his two day tour of Assam and Manipur, he further said under the leadership of Prime Minister Narendra Modi and State Chief Minister N Biren Singh have steered Manipur out of bandhs and blockades on the path of development.

“Modi ji is committed to the development of the entire North-East and the trust of the people here will never be compromised, Mr Shah said, adding that CM Singh has done remarkable work in the last years.

Noting that there has not been a single shutdown in the last three years, the Home Minister said that it proved that people flourish under the rule of the Bharatiya Janata Party and the Chief Minister has led Manipur on the path of development under the leadership of the Prime Minister, and has given a new identity to Manipur.

“Today many important projects are being started in a single day, including a Medical College at Churachandpur, Indian Institute of Information Technology (IIIT) and Information Technology Special Economic Zone (IT-SEZ) at Mantripukhri will serve as a benchmark for the entire North East which will connect the youth of Manipur with the world, the State Police Headquarters and Smart City Integrated Center at Imphal will help in advancing Smart Governance, Mr Shah added.

After the creation of IT-SEZ, the GDP of Manipur will increase by Rs 4,600 crore annually and there will be employment generation for 44,000 people. With the establishment of the medical college, the youth of Manipur will come out as doctors and the health system of the state will be strengthened, he further added.

Referring to the impetus given to the NE States, the Home Minister said that this region has never received such attention earlier and PM Modi has specially visited the North-East more than 40 times in the last six-and-a-half years, and has visited all the states, indicating his priority towards this region.

He also said that the Prime Minister granted Manipur the Inner Line Permit, which is the biggest achievement of the Central Government since the state of Manipur came into being.

Referring to the Thoubal Multipurpose Project, Mr Amit Shah said ‘the scheme was launched in 2004 during Atal ji’s time, but nothing happened till 2014 and the project remained on paper. In 2016, Modi ji restarted it by giving Rs. 462 crore and today this project that will irrigate 35,104 hectares is on the verge of completion’.

Shri Shah said earlier projects were abandoned after performing ground-breaking ceremonies and work is now being done under the leadership of Modi ji, to inaugurate all projects whose foundation stones were laid by previous governments.

The Union Home Minister said that earlier only six percent people in the state had access to drinking water, but under the Jal Jeevan Mission, tapped water supply has reached 33 percent households in the last three years from six percent.

NIAMEY ,Dec 27,2020: Niger votes in an election on Sunday that is expected to lead to the first transfer of power between two democratically elected presidents in a country reeling from Islamist violence.

Former interior minister Mohamed Bazoum, the ruling party’s candidate, is the overwhelming favourite to succeed President Mahamadou Issoufou, who is stepping down after two five-year terms leading the largely desert country of 23 million.

Bazoum, 60, has promised continuity with Issoufou’s policies, while also vowing to clean up pervasive corruption.

“If I am lucky enough to win this election, you will have chosen someone who is ready from day one,” he said in a campaign video.

Niger faces twin security crises. It has suffered repeated attacks near its western borders with Mali and Burkina Faso from militants linked to al Qaeda and Islamic State. Near its southeastern border with Nigeria it faces attacks from Boko Haram. Hundreds of soldiers and civilians have been killed in the last year alone.

The economic situation is also critical. More than 40% of the population lives in extreme poverty, and the COVID-19 pandemic has slowed growth to a crawl, compounding the effects of climate change and low prices for top export uranium.

Bazoum faces 29 other candidates, who will hope to force a second round by denying him an outright majority of the vote.

Hama Amadou, who finished runner-up in the last election, was barred from running because of a criminal conviction, leaving the opposition without an obvious figurehead.

But last week, Amadou’s party called on its supporters to turn out for Mahamane Ousmame, who was president from 1993-1996.

“After my candidate was disqualified, I didn’t have the motivation to come out and vote,” said Ali Hamma, an Amadou supporter. “But with the new instructions, I am going to vote.”

A peaceful transfer of power would be a milestone for Niger, which has experienced four coups since gaining independence from France in 1960.

It would also stand in stark contrast to Ivory Coast and Guinea, whose presidents this year used constitutional changes to extend their tenures to three terms, raising fears of a democratic backslide in West Africa.

ROME ,Dec27,2020: Archaeologists in Pompeii, the city buried in a volcanic eruption in 79 AD, have made the extraordinary find of a frescoed hot food and drinks shop that served up the ancient equivalent of street food to Roman passersby.

Known as a termopolium, Latin for hot drinks counter, the shop was discovered in the archaeological park’s Regio V site, which is not yet open the public, and unveiled on Saturday.

Traces of nearly 2,000-year-old food were found in some of the deep terra cotta jars containing hot food which the shop keeper lowered into a counter with circular holes.

The front of the counter was decorated with brightly coloured frescoes, some depicting animals that were part of the ingredients in the food sold, such as a chicken and two ducks hanging upside down.

“This is an extraordinary find. It’s the first time we are excavating an entire termopolium,” said Massimo Ossana, director of the Pompeii archaeological park.

Archaeologists also found a decorated bronze drinking bowl known as a patera, ceramic jars used for cooking stews and soups, wine flasks and amphora.

Pompeii, 23 km (14 miles) southeast of Naples, was home to about 13,000 people when it was buried under ash, pumice pebbles and dust as it endured the force of an eruption equivalent to many atomic bombs.

“Our preliminary analyses shows that the figures drawn on the front of the counter, represent, at least in part, the food and drink that were sold there,” said Valeria Amoretti, a site anthropologist.

Amoretti said traces of pork, fish, snails and beef had been found in the containers, a discovery she called a “testimony to the great variety of animal products used to prepare dishes”.

About two-thirds of the 66-hectare (165-acre) ancient town has been uncovered. The ruins were not discovered until the 16th century and organised excavations began about 1750.
A rare documentation of Greco-Roman life, Pompeii is one of Italy’s most popular attractions and a UNESCO World Heritage Site.

Dec 27,2020:Aid organisations urge for a solution as migrants stranded by Croatian border face cold with no facilities or heating.

Hundreds of migrants have been stranded in a squalid, burned-out tent camp in Bosnia and Herzegovina as heavy snow fell in the country and winter temperatures suddenly dropped.

Migrants at the Lipa camp in northwest Bosnia wrapped themselves in blankets and sleeping bags on Saturday to protect against the biting winds in the region, which borders European Union member Croatia.

A fire earlier this week destroyed much of the camp near the town of Bihac that already was harshly criticised by international officials and aid groups as being inadequate for housing refugees and migrants.

Despite the fire, Bosnian authorities have failed to find new accommodations for the migrants at Lipa, leaving nearly 1,000 people stuck in the cold, with no facilities or heat, eating only meagre food parcels provided by aid groups.

“Snow has fallen, sub-zero temperatures, no heating, nothing,” the International Organization for Migration’s chief of mission in Bosnia, Peter Van Der Auweraert, tweeted.

“This is not how anyone should live. We need political bravery and action now.”

A joint statement issued on Saturday by multiple aid organisations including the Danish Refugee Council, the United Nations Refugee Agency and the UN Migration urged authorities to find an alternative solution immediately.

“The structures still existing at the location are unsafe and at risk of collapsing, as snowfalls continue. With no heating at the site, frostbite, hypothermia and other severe health problems are already being reported by those stranded at the location,” the statement said.

“It is up to the authorities to provide minimum protection for those stranded outside reception centres in deteriorating winter conditions. This includes those stranded at the Lipa location but also the estimated 2,000 others, forced to try and survive in abandoned buildings and make-shift camps.

“Failing to act with the utmost urgency will put lives at risk.”
‘We will die, so please help us’

Bosnia has become a bottleneck for thousands of migrants hoping to reach Western Europe.

Most are stuck in Bosnia’s northwest Krajina region as other areas in the ethnically divided nation have refused to accept them.

The EU has warned Bosnia that thousands of migrants face a freezing winter without shelter, and it has urged the country’s bickering politicians to set aside their differences and take action.

On Saturday, migrants crowded at the camp to receive water and food provided by Bosnia’s Red Cross as police sought to maintain order. Some migrants wore face shields to protect them from coronavirus.

“We are living like animals. Even animals are living better than us!” said a man from Pakistan who identified himself only by his first name, Kasim.
“If they [do] not help us, we will die, so please help us.”
Plans to relocate the migrants temporarily to a closed facility in central Bihac have prompted protests by residents.

Left without a solution, migrants put down cardboard on the floor and set up improvised barriers for privacy inside the only standing tent at the Lipa camp.

Some people held their wet feet above the small fires that migrants lit outside to warm up, while others wrapped up tight in blankets for warmth. Many migrants were wearing sneakers despite the snow.

To get to Croatia, migrants often use routes over a mountainous area along the border and have accused Croatian authorities of violent pushbacks.

Human rights groups have documented violations by Croatian authorities over the years, including severe beatings and sexual assault of migrants and refugees. Women and minors have not been spared from the violence.

Dec 28,2020:Bangladesh is set to move a second batch of Rohingya refugees to the remote island of Bhasan Char in the Bay of Bengal this month, officials say, despite calls by rights groups not to carry out further relocations.

About 1,000 Rohingya refugees, members of a Muslim minority who fled neighbouring Myanmar to escape violence, will be moved to the flood-prone island in the next few days after Bangladesh relocated more than 1,600 earlier this month, two officials with the direct knowledge of the matter said on Sunday.

“They will be moved to Chittagong first and then to Bhasan Char, depending on the high tide,” one of the officials said.

The officials declined to be named as the issue had not been made public.

Mohammed Shamsud Douza, the deputy Bangladesh government official in charge of refugees, said the relocation was voluntary.

“They will not be sent against their will.”
The UN has said it has not been allowed to carry out a technical and safety assessment of Bhasan Char in the Bay of Bengal and was not involved in the transfer of refugees there.

Bangladesh says it is transferring only people who are willing to go and the move will ease chronic overcrowding in the Cox’s Bazar camps that are home to more than one million Rohingya.

But refugees and humanitarian workers say some of the Rohingya have been coerced into going to the island, which emerged from the sea only 20 years ago.

Several attempts at repatriation of Rohingya to Myanmar have failed after the refugees said they were too fearful of further violence to return.