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Procès Ćuruvija : le régime Milošević sur le banc des accusés
Serbie : le meurtre de Slavko Ćuruvija bientôt élucidé ?
Serbie : Slavko Ćuruvija, les secrets d'un meurtre d'État
Serbie : saura-t-on enfin la vérité sur les meurtres de journalistes de l'époque Milošević ?
Serbie : il y a un témoin du meurtre de Slavko Curuvija

/ Courrier des Balkans, Serbie, Médias, Défense, police et justice

De nouvelles sanctions contre la Russie devraient être imposées en réponse à son approche agressive envers l'Ukraine, selon le président polonais Andrzej Duda et ses homologues lituanien et ukrainien Gitanas Nausėda et Volodymyr Zelenskiy.

Der französische Präsident Emmanuel Macron hat sich der Forderung der Berliner Ampel-Koalition nach einem Initiativrecht für das EU-Parlament angeschlossen. Er unterstütze den Vorschlag der designierten Bundesregierung, sagte Macron am Donnerstag in Straßburg.

A képviselői mandátumáról lemondott Ján Herák – akire már négy nő elleni szexuális visszaélés gyanúja vetül – szociális ügyekkel és adminisztratív munkával tengeti a napjait az Igor Matovič által vezetett OĽANO mozgalom pozsonyi irodájában, tudta meg a JOJ tévé riportere, aki közzétette a Facebookon a vele készített telefonos interjút.

Un vent de panique souffle dans le monde face au variant Omicron, qui risque de devenir majoritaire en Europe d'ici « les tous prochains mois », selon l'agence de l'Union européenne chargée des maladies.

By Armida Salsiah Alisjahbana
BANGKOK, Thailand, Dec 3 2021 (IPS)

As the world observes the International Day of Persons with Disabilities today, we honour the leadership of persons with disabilities and their tireless efforts to build a more inclusive, accessible and sustainable world. At the same time, we resolve to work harder to ensure a society that is open and accommodating of all.

Armida Salsiah Alisjahbana

An estimated 690 million persons with disabilities, around 15 per cent of the total population, live in the Asia-Pacific region. Many of them continue to be excluded from socio-economic and political participation. Available data suggests that persons with disabilities are almost half as likely to be employed as persons without disabilities. They are also half as likely to have voted in an election and are underrepresented in government decision-making bodies. Just about 0.5 per cent of parliamentarians in the region are persons with disabilities. Women with disabilities are even less likely to be employed and hold only 0.1 per cent of national parliament positions.

One of the main reasons behind these exclusions is a lack of accessibility. Public transportation and the built environment in general — including public offices, polling stations, workplaces, markets and other essential structures — lack ramps, walkways and basic accessibility features. Accessibility, however, goes beyond the commonly thought of physical structures. Barriers to access to services and information and communication technology must also be removed, to allow for the participation of persons with diverse types of disabilities, including persons with intellectual disabilities and hearing and vision impairments.

The COVID-19 pandemic and related lockdowns has exacerbated existing inequalities. Many persons with disabilities face increased health concerns due to comorbidities and were left without access to their personal assistants and essential goods and services. As much of society moved online during lockdowns, inaccessible digital infrastructure meant persons with disabilities could not access public health information or online employment opportunities.

Despite these challenges, persons with disabilities and their organizations were among the first to respond to the immediate needs of their communities for food and supplies during lockdowns in addition to continuing their long-term work to support vulnerable groups.

ESCAP partnered with several of these organizations to support their work during the pandemic. Samarthyam, a civil society organization in India led by a woman with disabilities, has trained many men and women with disabilities to conduct accessibility audits in their home districts. With these skills, they are becoming leaders and advocates in their communities, working towards improving the accessibility of essential buildings everywhere.

Another ESCAP partner, the National Council for the Blind of Malaysia (NCBM), is working to improve digital accessibility by training a group with diverse disabilities in web access auditing, accessible e-publishing and strategic advocacy. NCBM hopes to support participants in forming a social enterprise for web auditing and accessible publishing, creating employment opportunities and enabling persons with disabilities to lead efforts to improve online accessibility.

Women and men with disabilities have been leaders and champions to break barriers to make a difference in Asia and the Pacific. Today, ESCAP launches the report “Disability at a Glance 2021: The Shaping of Disability-inclusive Employment in Asia and the Pacific.” The report highlights some innovative approaches to making employment more inclusive, as well as recommendations on how to further reduce employment gaps.

Adjusting to a post-COVID-19 world presents an opportunity for governments to reassess and implement policies to increase the inclusion of persons with disabilities in employment, decision making bodies and all aspects of society. Accessibility issues impact not only persons with disabilities but also other people in need of assistance, including older persons, pregnant women or those with injuries. Implementing policies with universal design, which creates environments and services that are useable by all people, benefits the whole of society. Governments should mainstream universal design principles into national development plans, not only in disability-specific laws and policies.

As a global leader in disability-inclusive development for over 30 years, the Asia-Pacific region has set an example by adopting the world’s first set of disability-specific development goals in the Incheon Strategy to “Make the Right Real.” Meeting the Incheon Strategy goals will require governments to intensify their efforts to reduce barriers to education, employment and political participation.

At ESCAP, we know that achieving an inclusive and sustainable post-COVID-19 world will only be possible with increased leadership and participation of persons with disabilities. To build back better — and fairer — we will continue to strengthen partnerships with all stakeholders so together we can “Make the Right Real” for all persons with disabilities.

Armida Salsiah Alisjahbana is Under-Secretary-General of the United Nations and Executive Secretary of ESCAP

 

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Die designierte Bundesaußenministerin Annalena Baerbock (Grüne) holt nach Informationen der Nachrichtenagentur AFP die Grünen-Abgeordneten Tobias Lindner und Katja Keul als Staatsminister ins Auswärtige Amt.

Im Flüchtlingskonflikt mit Belarus hat die EU in enger Absprache mit den USA, Kanada und Großbritannien neue Sanktionen in Kraft gesetzt. Im Amtsblatt der EU wurde am Donnerstag eine Liste mit insgesamt 28 Verantwortlichen sowie Organisationen aus Belarus veröffentlicht.

Les Etats-Unis, le Royaume-Uni, l'Union européenne (UE) et le Canada ont annoncé jeudi (2 décembre) de nouvelles sanctions économiques contre la Biélorussie, accusé de « violations répétées des droits humains » et d'organiser le passage de migrants vers l'UE.

The view from Brussels policymakers is clear: the electric vehicle revolution is firmly underway. But a EURACTIV investigation reveals serious barriers to electric vehicle acceptance across eastern and southern Europe.

Átadta az ügyészségnek a nyomozás iratait a Budapesti Rendőr-főkapitányság (BRFK) annak a kínai férfinak az ügyében, aki megszurkálta betegtársát a Honvédkórház Covid 2-es intenzív osztályán. A megtámadott 54 éves nő négy nap múlva életét vesztette.

A rendőrségi honlapra feltett közlemény szerint az ügyben védekezésre képtelen személy sérelmére elkövetett emberölés és más bűncselekmények miatt folytattak nyomozást.

A megalapozott gyanú szerint férfi egy kötszerollóval és egy érfogó ollóval szurkálta halálra mélyaltatásban fekvő betegtársát idén március 13-án egy fővárosi kórház Covid intenzív osztályán. A 38 éves kínai állampolgár előzőleg egy másik beteget ütött és fojtogatott, majd az őt megfékezni próbáló kórházi személyzetre is rátámadt. A zavart férfit végül a biztonsági őrök fegyverezték le, majd a rendőrök előállították.

A közfeladatot ellátó személy sérelmére, több ember sérelmére, védekezésre képtelen személy sérelmére elkövetett emberölés bűntett kísérlete, valamint súlyos testi sértés kísérlet elkövetésével gyanúsított férfi az eljárás során nem tett vallomást. Az igazságügyi elmeszakértők megállapították, hogy a gyanúsított kóros elmeállapotban szenved, illetve szenvedett a bűncselekmény elkövetésekor is. A bíróság elrendelte a férfi kényszergyógykezelését.

A BRFK az ügy iratait november 30-án megküldte az ügyészségre.

The post Befejeződött a nyomozás a betegtársát összeszurkáló férfi ügyében appeared first on .

By Jennie Lyn Reyes
BANGKOK, Thailand, Dec 3 2021 (IPS)

Almost two years into the COVID-19 pandemic, many countries in the developing world continue to grapple with basic issues such as securing sufficient vaccines and providing essential medical care for their sick. Many economies are in recovery mode as governments scramble to resuscitate them with recovery packages and build back better plans.

In this mix, COVID-19 did not dent Big Tobacco’s profits as it exploited the pandemic and persuaded governments to treat cigarettes as “essential,” accept its charity, obtain perks such as tax breaks and treat new tobacco products more favorably. These were the main findings of the 2021 Asian Tobacco Industry Interference Index.

Although many countries in Asia, a target for Big Tobacco to grow its business, already reject tobacco industry gift-giving, health and non-health frontliners fell prey to its corporate social responsibility activities at the height of the pandemic. The industry doled out emergency medical equipment, hospital supplies, and cash and food provisions in areas under lockdowns.

As many governments limited the movement of non-essential tobacco to mitigate the spread of COVID-19, the governments of Bangladesh and the Philippines caved in to industry pressure and exempted the manufacture and sale of tobacco products.

In Bangladesh, British American Tobacco and Japan Tobacco International received special permission from business-friendly departments to continue purchasing tobacco leaf, manufacturing, and distributing finished goods while the country was under a nationwide lockdown.

The Philippines classified tobacco as non-essential and restricted its transport and delivery in areas under lockdown in March 2020, but eventually lifted the restrictions and announced that the tobacco industry could fully operate in areas under general community quarantine.

The Asian index shows that although nearly all countries included in the report are Parties to the global health treaty, the WHO Framework Convention on Tobacco Control (FCTC), many governments still deem the tobacco industry’s business as fiscally beneficial even at the expense of public health.

In Thailand, the date of repealing the ineffective two-tier cigarette tax rate was also extended for another year, while in India, Korea, Malaysia, and Nepal, no tax increase was announced for 2021.

In Indonesia, the government eased the tobacco excise tax scheme by extending the payment deadline, which allowed the industry to sell at old market prices, deprived the government of additional revenues, and sustained rather than discouraged tobacco use.

In Japan, where cigarette tax rates are already low, heated tobacco products introduced by Big Tobacco are taxed significantly lower. Similarly, in the Philippines, the excise tax rate on electronic smoking products is substantially lower than that for cigarettes.

The index quantifies industry meddling in 19 Asian countries and ranks governments according to their efforts in shielding public policies. While a few countries show marginal progress, many showed deterioration in addressing tobacco industry influence, primarily due to the industry’s more aggressive tactics that capitalized on the COVID-19 situation.

Key findings:

• Protective measures in tobacco control are still needed. Eight (8) countries are still unprotected from tobacco industry influence, while other countries still have room to strengthen enforcement of their protective measures.
• Tobacco industry continued rebuilding its image through CSR activities. The tobacco industry targets socio-economically vulnerable groups as CSR beneficiaries to disassociate its corporate image from its toxic products and irresponsible business practices. Brunei, Lao PDR, Maldives, Mongolia, Myanmar, Nepal, and Thailand have banned these activities as fake charities.
• Tobacco industry enjoyed government benefits such as waived duties, tax breaks, and subsidies. These deprived government of potential revenues for pandemic response or social services.
• Even when most social events and physical gatherings were banned, many government officials interacted unnecessarily with the tobacco industry.
• There is a systemic lack of transparency in disclosing government interactions with the tobacco industry. None of the countries have a registry to publicly disclose the tobacco industry’s affiliate organizations, individuals, or lobbyists acting on its behalf.

There is hope as some governments move to protect public policy from undue influence of the tobacco industry, such as India, whose Ministry of Health and Family Welfare adopted a code of conduct for its officials when interacting with the tobacco industry.

Cambodia’s Ministry of Education also introduced tobacco-free policies in educational facilities and banned any sponsorship or collaboration with the tobacco industry.

Although COVID-19 figures have now surpassed 250 million infections and 5 million deaths globally, tobacco continues to kill 8 million people annually. As the pandemic lingers, Big Tobacco continues to expand its business simultaneously.

Philip Morris International reported pre-tax earnings of almost $11 billion for 2020, while British American Tobacco reported revenues of about $12 billion, primarily from cigarette sales. These figures are far more than the health budgets of poor countries and what they spend on tackling the pandemic.

Governments must strengthen their efforts to protect public health policy in the spirit of anti-corruption and good governance, as civil society continues to do its part to monitor, expose, and de-normalize this harmful industry and its products.

Jennie Lyn Reyes is the author of the 2021 Asian Tobacco Industry Interference Index and the Monitoring and Evaluation Manager of SEATCA

About SEATCA
SEATCA is a multi-sectoral non-governmental alliance promoting health and saving lives by assisting ASEAN countries to accelerate and effectively implement the tobacco control measures contained in the WHO FCTC. Acknowledged by governments, academic institutions, and civil society for its advancement of tobacco control in Southeast Asia, the WHO bestowed on SEATCA the World No Tobacco Day Award in 2004 and the WHO Director-General’s Special Recognition Award in 2014.

 

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Un groupe de 67 membres de l'OMC, dont les Etats-Unis, la Chine et l'UE, participant à des négociations visant à faciliter le commerce des services, ont conclu jeudi 2 décembre un accord, mettant un terme à quatre années de discussions.

Az Európai Uniónak azon kell dolgoznia, hogy jobban bevonja a polgárokat az Európa jövőjéről szóló konferenciába (CoFoE) – mutatott rá a külügyminisztérium a pénteken a TASR hírügynökséghez eljuttatott állásfoglalásában.

The Greek socialist party is holding on 5 December its primaries to elect its next leader. The outcome of the vote will likely determine the next coalition government in Greece whether it will lean to the left or the right.

L’épidémiologiste préconise la 3e dose pour tous, des tests gratuits et une meilleure utilisation des médicaments.

Today, Friday, Belgian governments are meeting again in order to decide on new Covid measures in order to stop the spreading of the virus as numbers are spiking. This time the concertation committee is gathering on the request of the Flemish minister-president Jan Jambon who suggested to close down all indoor events, including all concerts and theatre productions. The closing of schools is also on the agenda.

In today's edition of the Capitals, find out more about the Polish, Lithuanian and Ukrainian presidents calling for sanctions to be imposed against Russia, Angela Merkel's 16-year-reign as German chancellor coming to an end on Thursday, and so much more.

The Albanian health ministry has authorised COVID-19 vaccine booster shots for all adults starting Thursday, EURACTIV’s partner Exit.al reports. Those who are fully vaccinated and wish to receive a booster shot must wait at least six months from their last dose to...

Kosovo was not informed or invited to join talks on the ‘Open Balkan’ initiative, Foreign Minister Donika Gervalla said at the parliamentary committee on foreign affairs. Initially branded “Mini-Schengen”, the initiative aims to facilitate the movement of peoples and goods between Serbia,...