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Update:Golden Globes Organizers Approve Changes On Diversity, Ethics

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The membership of the Hollywood Foreign Press Association, the group that hands out the annual Golden Globe awards for television and film, on Thursday approved widespread changes designed to diversify its ranks and address ethics complaints.

Steps include hiring a chief diversity officer, emphasizing recruitment of Black journalists, and widening the pool of potential applicants for the group of foreign entertainment journalists.

The organization also voted to add at least 20 new members to the current 87 this year and to expand its roster by 50% over the next 18 months.

The board of the Hollywood Foreign Press Association (HFPA) proposed the changes earlier this week and its membership approved them on Thursday.

“Today’s overwhelming vote to reform the association reaffirms our commitment to change,” HFPA President Ali Sar said in a statement.

The moves follow an investigation published in February by the Los Angeles Times that noted there were no Black people currently in the HFPA.

The newspaper also raised long-standing ethical questions over the close relationships between the HFPA and movie studios that may influence the choice of Golden Globe nominees and winners.

The controversy overshadowed the Golden Globes ceremony in February, one of the major Hollywood award shows each year leading up to the Oscars.

The new rules require that HFPA members stop accepting promotional items from film and TV studios and that the group post a public list of members with links to their work.

“We understand that the hard work starts now,” Sar said. “We remain dedicated to becoming a better organization and an example of diversity, transparency and accountability in the industry.”

FCT Education Secretariat Reiterates Commitment To Safety Of Schools, Students

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The Federal Capital Territory Administration (FCTA) Education Secretariat has reiterated the safety of school-age students in various schools across the territory.

The Director, Administration and Finance of the secretariat, Leramoh Abdulrazaq made the commitment at a news conference in Abuja.

Abdulrazaq said it was imperative to again allay the concerns of parents, guardians and stakeholders of the safety of their wards in schools operating within the FCT.

He said that the insecurity challenges across the country had been of utmost concern to the FCT authority and had continued to put all efforts and strategies together to safeguard its territory.

Abdulrazaq said that no security breach had been recorded in FCT, while debunking reports that FCT schools had been closed.

He said that in the face of emerging security challenges, the secretariat had continued to strengthen its security personnel and surveillance with strict adherence to security tips.

Abdulrazaq called on parents, guardians and stakeholders not to relent in complementing the government’s efforts and sustaining the various safety measures the FCT administration had put in place.

He assured them of their wards’ safety under the Education Secretariat custody, stressing that FCT Schools remained safe with effective and efficient learning and teaching taking place unhindered.

Broadway To Light Up Again In September When Shows Are Set To Return

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Live Broadway shows will return to the stage starting Sept. 14 after an 18-month hiatus to fight the pandemic, New York Governor Andrew Cuomo announced.

Tickets will go on sale beginning on Thursday and theaters will be allowed to fill 100% of capacity, Cuomo said. Broadway theaters are among New York’s biggest tourist attractions.

“Broadway is a major part of our state’s identity and economy, and we are thrilled that the curtains will rise again,” Cuomo said on Twitter.

Live theater is one of the last sectors to come back after the pandemic because of the challenges of social distancing for actors on stage, for crews backstage and for audiences in cramped seating in old buildings.

While New York plans to lift most pandemic restrictions in two weeks, Broadway theaters need more time for rehearsals, marketing to draw crowds and other steps.

“Restarting Broadway is a complex endeavor,” said Charlotte St. Martin, president of the Broadway League, an industry group. “Today’s green light by the governor to put our shows on sale now for the fall is vital to our success.”

Thousands of actors, dancers, musicians and backstage crew were thrown out of work when Broadway theaters closed in March 2020. Some shows, including the hit musicals “Frozen” and “Mean Girls,” have said they will not return.

Thirty-one Broadway shows were in production when the shutdown began, including hits such as “Hamilton” and “The Lion King”

Each returning show will announce its re-opening date in the coming weeks, the Broadway League said.

More than 14.8 million tickets were sold for Broadway shows in the 2018-2019 season, bringing $1.8 billion in box office receipts, according to the Broadway League. Some 63% of those going to shows were tourists, from outside the United States or outside New York.

“It’s time to get back to work, and I can’t wait to be back on stage very soon,” said Sara Bareilles, songwriter and star of the musical “Waitress.”

Lagos Assembly To Establish Research Legislative Institute

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Lagos State House of Assembly has expressed readiness to establish a research legislative institute of training and re-training of legislative members.

The Bill to establish the Lagos State Legislative and Research Institute passed through second reading during plenary.

The Bill, a private member Bill, was applauded by lawmakers as a Bill to aid knowledge gathering and information on legislative matters across the globe.

In his reaction, the Speaker of the House, Mudashiru Obasa, opined that the Bill would allow for efficient and effective legislation.

In his words “This Bill is viable to us and also for other legislatures in service of the Parliament and other States can share in it as the Centre will be a learning space for councils and Local Government Chairmen, promoting and deepening democracy in our State.

He maintained that the Institute will also engage international Legislative bodies like African Parliamentary Union where we can acquire more knowledge through the Centre.

In his contribution, a member representing Eti-Osa II, Gbolahan Yishawu, noted that the benefit of the Bill will include among many, the induction training of new Legislative members and a refresher course for existing members; training of Legislative staff of the House; fiscal training in the areas of lawmaking.

He said education is a lifelong learning, medium of transfer of knowledge from one generation to another and to have an Institution to formalise the sharing of knowledge across the entire scope is a welcome and noble idea and everything must be done to improve the capacity of lawmakers.

Also, the Majority Leader, Sanai Agunbiade maintained that the Bill has its numerous merits capable of promoting the activities in the State, adding that the other State Houses of Assemblies will also benefit from the Bill when passed.

Jordan Faces One Of Its Worst Droughts In History.

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The fertile area land in Ghor al-Haditha is home to many market gardens, but drought has taken a heavy toll.

Rains were massively reduced, totalling just 60 percent of normal fall, said Omar Salameh, head of communications at the water and irrigation ministry.

The area usually suffers from a lack of water, but this year is much worse. The recent rainy season, which usually runs from October to the end of April, was poor.

The salty waters of the nearby Dead Sea are dropping drastically in height too.

Experts say Jordan is now in the grip of one of the most severe droughts in its history, but many warn the worst is yet to come.

According to the environment ministry in Jordan is among the world’s most water-deficient countries, and fears that a warming planet will make the situation more severe. “The increased temperatures and lower precipitation resulting from climate change would adversely affect crops and water availability,” the ministry says, in its National Climate Change Policy.

Malawi: Refugee Camp Return Government Order Suspended

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The Malawian government has ordered thousands of long-integrated refugees to return to its sole but badly overcrowded refugee camp, in a move that many have vowed to resist.

The government gave the refugees 14 days until April 28 2021 to return to the camp or risk unspecified sanctions, prompting some refugees to seek court relief.

The country’s high court has stopped the relocation order until a judicial review is done.

The UN estimates there are around 2,000 refugees residing outside the camp at Dzaleka, about 40 kilometres north of the capital Lilongwe.

Many have lived there for years, setting up businesses in the town or marrying Malawians and having children with them.

But the government argues they pose a potential danger to national security by living among locals.

The UN refugee agency UNHCR in Malawi said the directive was in line with the country’s encampment laws, but advised the government to reconsider.

It said, according to an official communication it received from the Homeland Security ministry, the decision was also taken in the light of “security concerns in order to protect both refugees and host communities following the volatile situation in Mozambique’s Cabo Delgado area”.

According to the UNHCR With an initial capacity of between 10,000 and 14,000 refugees around 1994, the camp now houses 49,386 people and several hundred continue to arrive each month.

The deadline for refugees to return to the camp was April 28, but a last-minute court injunction gave them a brief respite.

Somalia Restores Diplomatic Ties With Kenya – State Media

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Somalia on Thursday announced the restoration of diplomatic relations with Kenya after mediation by Qatar.

The Somalia National News Agency reported that the two governments agreed to keep friendly relations on the basis of principles of mutual respect for sovereignty and territorial integrity.

It said the Presidents of both countries are grateful and thankful to the Emir of State of Qatar for his good offices in this regard pledging non-interference in each other internal affairs, equality, mutual benefit and peaceful co-existence.

On Thursday, Kenyan President Uhuru Kenyatta reportedly met with Qatar’s envoy for Counterterrorism and Mediation of Conflict Resolution Dr Mutlaq bin Majed Al-Qahtani.

Qahtani has been in the region since May 1. He was dispatched by Doha to help mediate Somalia’s crisis which has been made worse by a disagreement over elections.

He met with Somaliland President Muse Bihi in Hargeisa before holding talks with Somali Prime Minister Mohammed Hussein Roble.

Mogadishu has accused Nairobi of interfering in its internal affairs, a charge the later denies.

Somalia cut ties with Kenya in December 15, 2020 after accusing Nairobi of interference in its internal affairs.

China Suspends Diplomatic Dialogue In Ongoing Row With Australia

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China has suspended an economic agreement with Australia, worsening an already-troubled relationship fractured by disagreements over the Covid-19 pandemic and human rights abuses.

In a statement Thursday, China’s National Development and Reform Commission said the China-Australia Strategic Economic Dialogue was pulled “based on the current attitude” of the Australian government.

The statement blamed some officials of a “Cold War mindset” and “ideological discrimination, adding that Beijing would indefinitely suspend all activities under the framework of the agreement.

Tensions between the two sides have soared since Canberra called last year for an independent probe into the origins of the coronavirus pandemic and banned telecoms giant Huawei from building Australia’s 5G network.

Meanwhile, Australia called the decision “disappointing”, with Trade Minister Dan Tehan saying the dialogue had provided an important forum for the two countries, although he said no such talks had taken place since 2017.

China — Australia’s biggest trading partner — has already imposed tariffs or disrupted more than a dozen key industries, including wine, barley and coal, decimating exports.

Canberra has previously described the avenue for talks — designed to boost trade between both sides and introduce large Chinese investors — as one of the “premier bilateral economic meetings with China”.

It called the first meeting in 2014 a chance for “closer economic ties” but relations between the two have since sunk into deep freeze.

Blinken Affirms US Support For Ukraine Amid Tensions With Russia

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US Secretary of State Antony Blinken has reaffirmed Washington’s support for Ukraine in the wake of heightened tensions with Russia, fueled by its recent troop buildup near the borders.

Blinken met with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky and reiterated the US’s commitment to Ukraine’s “sovereignty, territorial integrity and independence.

Addressing a press conference after his meeting with Zelensky the top American diplomat also underscored the importance of Ukraine’s efforts to tackle widespread corruption and carry out reforms.

By visiting so early in his tenure, before any trip to Russia, Blinken signaled that Ukraine is a high foreign-policy priority for President Joe Biden’s administration.

Ukraine has seen an increase in hostilities in the east in recent months. Ukraine’s military says 34 of its soldiers have been killed by rebel attacks this year.

Russia, which claims its soldiers are not on the ground in eastern Ukraine, fueled the tensions further this year by massing troops and conducting large-scale military exercises near the border with Ukraine.

Efforts have stalled to end the conflict in eastern Ukraine, which has killed more than 14,000 people since it broke out in 2014.

Zelensky has called for the US to try to push these efforts forward by joining negotiations within the “Normandy Format” that consists of Russia, Ukraine, Germany and France. Russia is almost certain to oppose any US involvement in the negotiations.

Former Ugandan Rebel Commander Sentenced To 25 Years

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The International Criminal Court, ICC has sentenced Ugandan former child soldier turned into rebel commander to 25 years’ imprisonment on Thursday.

Presiding Judge Bertram Schmitt said Ongwen’s own abduction as a schoolboy and history as a child soldier prevented him being sentenced to life.

Schmitt said that judges had to weigh Ongwen’s brutality and victims’ wishes for justice against his own tortured past when deciding on a sentence.

He added that Ongwen could have fled the LRA, was not always in a position of total subordination to its leader Joseph Kony and committed some of the crimes in private.

Ongwen, showed no emotion as he heard that the three-judge panel had given him a sentence five years longer than the 20 years prosecutors requested.

In February, Dominic Ongwen was convicted of 61 war crimes and crimes against humanity including murder, rape, forced marriage, forced pregnancy and using child soldiers as a commander in the shadowy Lord’s Resistance Army.

His lawyers have said they will appeal the conviction. Ongwen’s defense lawyers have always cast him as a victim of the LRA’s brutality who was traumatized after being abducted as a 9-year-old schoolboy and turned into a child soldier in the group’s insurgency.

But judges in February ruled that he committed the crimes “as a fully responsible adult, as a commander of the LRA in his mid- to late 20s.”

Ongwen is the first commander of the LRA to face justice at the global court and his convictions for gender-based crimes are significant for prosecutors keen to punish such atrocities.