Im polnischen Parlament wird die umstrittene Reform des obersten Gerichtshofes diskutiert. Die Opposition und Rechtsexperten halten die Änderungen für verfassungswidrig.
The post Polnisches Parlament debattiert über umstrittene Justizreformen appeared first on EURACTIV.de.
Noha az Európai Unió (EU) továbbra sem szakít eddig követett migrációs politikájával, több tagország politikusai nyilatkoznak annak szükségességéről. Erről beszélt a miniszterelnök belbiztonsági főtanácsadója az M1 aktuális csatorna kedd esti műsorában.
Bakondi György kiemelte: egyre többen ismerik fel az ellenőrizetlen tömeges illegális migráció veszélyeit, például azt, hogy a bevándorlás az európai társadalmakban visszafordíthatatlan folyamatokat indíthat el. A lakosság nyomására egyre több nemzeti kormánynál jelentős változás figyelhető meg a migrációs politikában – mondta a főtanácsadó, példaként említve az osztrák belügyminiszter nyilatkozatát.
Wolfgang Sobotka osztrák belügyminiszter a Bild című lapnak azt mondta, hogy a migrációs válság leküzdéséhez le kell zárni a földközi-tengeri migrációs útvonalat, vagyis fel kell számolni az Észak-Afrikából kiinduló embercsempészetet.
Bakondi György reagált arra is, hogy az ENSZ támogatását fejezte ki az EU külügyminisztereinek határozatához, amelynek értelmében az emberkereskedelem elleni harc jegyében korlátozzák a felfújható csónakok és csónakmotorok exportját Líbiába.
Fontosnak nevezte az embercsempészés elleni harcot, de úgy vélekedett, ennél határozottabb rendvédelmi intézkedésekre van szükség Európa külső határainak megvédésére.
July 18, 2017 (KHARTOUM) - Sudanese President Omer al-Bashir and the Saudi King Salman bin Abdulaziz Al Saud on Tuesday have discussed ways to enhance bilateral relations between the two countries besides recent developments in the region.
Al-Bashir arrived in Jeddah on Tuesday for the second leg of his Arab Gulf tour that also took him to the UAE.
According to the Saudi Press Agency (SPA), the two leaders “reviewed relations between the two brotherly countries and developments in the region”.
During the meeting, the two sides agreed to work together to promote cooperation to serve the common interests of the two countries.
The meeting was attended by Governor of Makkah Region Prince Khaled Al Faisal bin Abdulaziz, Advisor to the Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques Prince Khalid bin Bandar bin Abdulaziz and the Minister of State and Member of the Council of Ministers, Prince Mansour bin Mteib bin Abdul Aziz from the Saudi side.
It was also attended by the Minister of State Fadl Abdallah Fadl, Foreign Minister Ibrahim Ghandour, Minister of State, Director of the Office of President Hatim Hassan Bakhit, and Sudan's Ambassador to the Kingdom Abdel-Basit Al-Sanousi from the Sudanese side.
Last month, Saudi Arabia, Bahrain, UAE and Egypt severed ties with Qatar accusing it of supporting Islamist terrorist groups and arch-foe Iran. But Doha vehemently denies the charges.
Sudan is among the Arab states that refused to take part in the ongoing diplomatic crisis and declared its support for the Kuwaiti efforts to settle the rift.
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July 18, 2017 (KHARTOUM) - President Omer al-Bashir agreed to a Saudi request to continue positive engagement with the US administration and its official agencies for the permanent lift of economic sanctions on Khartoum, announced he Sudanese government Tuesday.
Last week, the Sudanese president decided to suspend the participation of his government in a joint committee on the permanent revocation of sanctions In response to a decision by President Donald Trump to postpone his decision on the embargo for three months.
At the time, Foreign Minister Ibrahim Ghandour minimised the decision saying it does not mean the suspension of bilateral communications between the different agencies in the two countries.
In a joint statement read by the Sudanese foreign minister at the end of his visit to Riyadh where he met with the Kind Salman and the Crown Prince Mohamed bin Salman, al-Bashir publically cancelled his previous decision and accepted that his government officials resume the bilateral meeting on the sanctions.
"In response to the request of Saudi leadership, the President agreed to continue to communicate positively with the U.S. Administration and its official agencies in the coming period, in order to ensure the permanent lift of sanctions on Sudan, in addition to removing Sudan from the U.S. list of state sponsors of terrorism and resolving all existing problems between the two countries," says the joint communiqué.
On 12 July, Washington said it needs to discuss with Khartoum the human rights situation and religious freedom in the east African country, besides its commitment to UN sanctions on South Korea.
The three matters were not part of the five-track framework negotiated between the two countries last year but the Administration was under huge pressure from 53 Congressmen and activists.
The statement further said that al-Bashir thanked the Saudi leadership for the efforts exerted to improve relations between the Sudan and the United States.
"The two sides stressed the importance of fighting terrorism and extremism and combat its financing because it represents a threat to peaceful societies around the world. They also reiterate their commitment to all international resolutions in this regard. "
The Saudi Arabia pledged in the past to support the lift of economic sanctions on Sudan.
There were reports saying that Riyadh supported the delay of permanent lift due to Khartoum refusal to cut relations with Qatar. But the Sudanese foreign ministry denied these reports.
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On 19 - 21 July, the Informal EPSCO Meeting takes place at the Tallinn Creative Hub (Kultuurikatel). The main theme of the meeting on Wednesday 19 July is work-life balance, focusing on new forms of work, different family types and men's participation in sharing care responsibilities. On Thursday 20 July and Friday 21 July, the main topics are digital innovation in health, including free movement of data and alcohol policy in the EU.
July 18, 2017 (KWAJOK) – A least 18 people were killed and more than 30 wounded in clashes involving the Apuk and Aguok communities of South Sudan's Gogrial state, an official disclosed.
“Some of our people are now moving to the side of the former Western Bahr el Ghazal and Northern Bahr el Ghazal states for fear of their lives,” said the state information minister, Ariech Mayar Ariech.
Ariech, however, said tension remained high as some group of youth suspected to be from the Aguok community attacked the Apuk, burning down villages and forcing residents to flee their homes.
“We need the intervention of many troops to have the state special forces that are now at the places of the clashes,” he added.
Tonj state governor, Akech Tong Aleu and his Gogrial state counterpart, Gregory Deng Kuac have reportedly camped in Gogrial state as they try to persuade the youth to stop fighting.
South Sudan President Salva Kiir on Tuesday convened an emergency meeting of the national security committee, a day after a state of emergency was declared in parts of the country.
The meeting followed the communal clashes in four states. The state of emergency covered parts of Aweil East, Wau, Gogrial and Jonglei states.
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July 18, 2017 (JUBA) – South Sudan has reported an outbreak of fall armyworm pest in its Equatoria region, including Magwi, Yei and Juba, Northern Bahr el Gazal and in parts of Jonglei states.
Fall armyworm is reportedly a new pest in Africa, preferring maize plants, but feeds on sorghum, millet and vegetables, among others.
However, as maize and sorghum are staple foods in the war-torn nation, there are fears the emergence of the deadly crop pest is likely to put an increasing number of people at risk of hunger.
“It is nearly impossible to eliminate this pest from South Sudan – now that it is here, it will stay. Following its initial detection in Magwi Country, it is spread to nearly all areas of the country at an alarming rate,” said Serge Tissot, the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) representative in South Sudan.
“Given FAO's experience with the pest in other countries in Africa, we can say this could be a significant blow to prospects of agricultural recovery,” he added.
In the wake of the outbreak of the pest, FAO in close partnership with the Ministry of Agriculture and Food Security are continuing with assessment of fall armyworm infestation across the country.
“The results of these assessments will give a more accurate picture of where the pest is found, and extent of crop yield losses incurred in the affected areas,” said Tissot, adding “It is likely that it will spread both geographically and in intensity unless farmers learn to manage it.”
The fall armyworm arrival is an additional challenge for South Sudan which currently faces an unprecedented food crisis. More than 80% of the population depends on agriculture for their livelihoods.
“Experiences that have been shared in three regional technical meetings on fall armyworm convened by FAO point out difficulties that farmers are facing in controlling the pest,” said Lawrence Kedi, a FAO Agriculture officer.
“The range of options available for immediate response are limited as the knowledge of control interventions are low, and costs are high, leaving them out of reach for the majority of farmers in South Sudan,” he added.
The fall armyworm pest, experts say, has developed resistance to several pesticides and this reportedly calls for more coordinated research on the pest to understand how it adapts to the local environments and training of farmers in how to manage it.
South Sudan has a wealth of untapped agricultural resources. With 30 million hectares of arable land across six agro-ecological zones, the East African nation is capable of producing an array of agricultural products, from cereals to oil seeds, horticulture, and specialty products such as Shea butter and Gum Arabic.
However, despite the huge agricultural potential it possessed, only about 5% of the country's land is cultivated. Moreover, South Sudan also offers abundant water resources in the Nile basin, and forestry assets are plentiful, with tens of thousands of hectares of teak and other high-value hardwoods available for sustainable harvesting.
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July 18, 2017 (KAMPALA) – South Sudan government has admitted that it blocked access to the Paris-based Sudan Tribune website over its “hostile” news coverage.
“If they [Sudan Tribune website] have been disseminating hostile messages towards us then we have the authority to close them,” information minister Michael Makuei Lueth told Bloomberg Tuesday.
“So many countries have been closing down, even giving total blackout to such media houses which create hostility,” he added.
Multiple sources, however, confirmed that two other news websites were inaccessible on Monday after authorities directed internet providers to block them.
However, the Sudan Tribune and other banned websites remain reachable for our readers in South Sudan when they use Tor Browser or install applications like Fire Onion, Orfox and Tor nado on their smartphones.
The move comes barely two weeks after authorities arrested the head of the state-owned television, Adil Faris Mayat after the station failed to broadcast President Salva Kiir's Independence Day speech.
Meanwhile, Reporters Without Borders (RSF) called for the immediate release of Mayat, who has reportedly been held incommunicado since 10 July.
“We call for this journalist's immediate release,” said Cléa Kahn-Sriber, the head of RSF's Africa desk, adding “Frequent arbitrary measures of this kind by the security services and the accompanying impunity are killing media freedom in South Sudan and are holding back a return to peace and national reconciliation.”
After South Sudan obtained independence in 2011, a civil war broke out in 2013 and the ensuing political and security crisis has not spared the media. News outlets have been suspended, newspaper issues have been seized, and journalists have been detained arbitrarily, tortured, harassed, forced to censor themselves or forced to flee abroad.
The war-torn East African nation has fallen 20 places in RSF's World Press Freedom Index since 2015 and is now ranked 145th out of 180 countries.
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