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EU bittet um Flexibilität für Verletzliche. Ausnahmeregelung für Fleischimporte GB-Nordirland verlängert. #BrusselsBureau

Le Conseil d’État adopte un nouveau dispositif destiné à favoriser la réinsertion professionnelle de certains chômeurs grâce à une aide de 4000 francs qui sera versée aux entreprises qui les engageront.

Mielőtt a 66 millió éve becsapódott aszteroida eltűntette őket a Földről, a dinoszauruszok száma már hanyatlóban volt - állapította meg egy nemzetközi kutatócsoport.

Der Bundesrats-Entscheid zur Beschaffung der US-Amerikanischen Tarnkappenjets sorgt für heftige Diskussionen. Während sich Befürworter über den modernen Flieger freuen, wollen die Gegner nun sogar eine Volksinitiative starten. Das und mehr, jetzt auf Blick TV.

Ausztria július elsejétől megszünteti a koronavírus-járvány miatt elrendelt korlátozások túlnyomó többségét - jelentette be Sebastian Kurz kancellár szerdán Bécsben.

«Ich kriege meine Revanche», sagt Stefan Küng (27). Aber: Vorerst muss der Thurgauer eine Enttäuschung verdauen.

Im Gespräch mit Blick TV-Reporter Pascal Scheiber reagieren die beiden Parlamentarier Thierry Burkart und Priska Seiler-Graf auf den Bundesrats-Entscheid zur Beschaffung der F-35-Tarnkappenjets

Der Bundesrat hat sich von der Kritik am US-Flieger F-35 nicht beirren lassen. Sie kommt von denjenigen, die auch keinen europäischen Jet wollen – sondern gar keinen.

Mehr als zwei Jahre sass Bill Cosby im Gefängnis, nachdem er verurteilt wurde, weil er eine Frau unter Drogen gesetzt und missbraucht haben soll. Nun hat das oberste Gericht das Urteil als nichtig erklärt.

Das Telekomunternehmen Salt will Insidern zufolge im Herbst an die Schweizer Börse. Dabei dürfte Salt Aktien für rund 700 Millionen Franken anbieten, grossteils aus einer Kapitalerhöhung.

A koronavírus okozta Covid-19 betegség volt tavaly az elhalálozások második leggyakoribb oka Csehországban - állapította meg a Cseh Statisztikai Hivatal (CSÚ) szerdán.

Eduard Heger szerint a Matovič elleni bizalmatlansági indítvány is a kormány szétverésére irányuló kísérlet. Úgy véli, pozíciójában tartja a pénzügyminisztert a koalíció.

Das UN-Tribunal in Den Haag hat zwei Serben wegen Kriegsverbrechen und Verbrechen gegen die Menschlichkeit im Bosnienkrieg zu jeweils 12 Jahren Haft verurteilt.

SDGs SDGs:  16 - Peace, justice and strong institutions

Summary

• In Donetsk region, the SMM recorded 90 ceasefire violations, including 47 explosions. In the previous reporting period, it recorded 394 ceasefire violations in the region.
• In Luhansk region, the Mission recorded 135 ceasefire violations, including nine explosions. In the previous reporting period, it recorded 48 ceasefire violations in the region.
• The SMM continued monitoring the disengagement areas near Stanytsia Luhanska, Zolote and Petrivske.
• The SMM facilitated and monitored adherence to localized ceasefires to enable the operation of critical civilian infrastructure.
• The Mission continued following up on the situation of civilians, including at three entry-exit checkpoints and the corresponding checkpoints of the armed formations in Luhansk region.
• The Mission observed a gathering in Kyiv related to accountability for alleged activities of foreign nationals in non-government-controlled areas of Donetsk and Luhansk regions.
• The Mission’s freedom of movement continued to be restricted, including at four checkpoints of the armed formations in southern Donetsk region and at a border crossing point outside government control near Izvaryne, Luhansk region. Its unmanned aerial vehicles (UAV) again experienced multiple instances of GPS signal interference.

The southern African country has one of the world's worst daily death rates from coronavirus.

Illustration by Inge Snip. Credit: openDemocracy

By Khatondi Soita Wepukhulu
KAMPALA, Jun 30 2021 (IPS)

At Mulago, Uganda’s biggest public hospital, a receptionist at an HIV clinic for marginalised and ‘most at risk’ populations, including LGBT people, said that an undercover reporter’s 17-year-old gay brother could “quit” his same-sex attraction.

“Whoever wants to quit homosexuality, we connect them,” she said – to external counsellors, who have included Pastor Solomon Male, a locally known anti-gay campaigner. She also gave our undercover reporter the phone number of a man who “was once a patient here” and “was once a homosexual but isn’t anymore”.

The USAID aid agency – which says it supports LGBTQI+ inclusive development – gave the Most At Risk Populations Initiative (MARPI) that runs this clinic a $420,000 grant in 2019, ending this September. (It is unclear if any of this money went to this specific clinic.)

It is just one of several examples of health centres in Uganda where our undercover reporters caught staff providing, or providing referrals for, controversial anti-gay ‘therapies’.

Our investigation identified similar support for ‘anti-gay’ counselling activities at three hospitals in the Uganda Catholic Medical Bureau (UCMB) network. This network received more than $1m from USAID between 2019 and this April, though it is unclear whether the specific hospitals identified in this investigation received any of this money.

At one of these hospitals – Nsambya, Uganda’s biggest private health facility – staff referred our reporters to the private office of Cabrine Mukiibi, on the outskirts of Kampala, who mixed Freudian theories, biblical quotes and anti-gay insults in his diagnosis.

Mukiibi, who is also a staff counsellor at Nsambya, stated that sex without procreation “becomes evil” – before recommending what he called “exposure therapy”, telling our undercover reporter to “get a housemaid” that her supposedly gay teenage brother can “get attracted [to]’’, one who is “between 18 and 20 years of age”.

A spokesperson from the US embassy in Kampala, Anthony Kujawa, said that ‘conversion therapy’ goes against “the policy of the United States to pursue an end to violence and discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, or sex characteristics”.

In response to questions from openDemocracy, Kujawa explained that US funding for UCMB was supposed to support the capacity of Catholic health facilities involved in HIV and AIDS care. He said: “USAID does not fund or promote anti-LGBTQI+ conversion therapy and will investigate any report that a USAID funded partner is doing so.”

Rosco Kasujja, director of mental health at Makerere University’s school of psychology and head of the Uganda Clinical Psychologists Association, called openDemocracy’s findings “disturbing”. He blamed the lack of a national regulator for psychologists, which could ensure that all patients receive quality care.

“It’s really frustrating that we don’t have any power,’’ he said, in reference to his association’s voluntary and non-binding standards. “People are playing by their own rules and [we] can’t do anything about it.”

 

‘Extremely unethical’

Globally, more than 65 associations of doctors, psychologists or counsellors have condemned ‘conversion therapy’ practices, according to a 2020 report by the International Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Trans and Intersex Association (ILGA) rights group.

Three countries (Brazil, Ecuador and Malta) have banned these practices – which range from ‘talk therapy’ to physical ‘treatments’ including so-called aversion therapy, while Germany has banned them when applied to minors. Several US states have also passed bans, while the UK recently pledged to do the same nationwide.

Anal sex is illegal in Uganda, and homosexuality is heavily stigmatised. It is unclear how common ‘conversion therapy’ is, but openDemocracy teamed up with local researchers to document the experiences of 20 LGBT Ugandan survivors of such ‘treatments’.

Interviewees said such ‘therapy’ “felt like murder” and that they “suffered depression and anxiety”, drug dependence and suicidal thoughts. Mulago and a hospital in UCMB’s network were among the facilities they named as having provided the treatments.

Godiva Akullo, a feminist lawyer in Kampala, said of those providing ‘conversion’ therapies: “I think it’s extremely unethical behaviour.”

 

Unregulated therapy

In Kampala, openDemocracy undercover reporters visited three hospitals in the aid-funded UCMB network, looking for ‘treatment’ for same-sex attraction, and were referred to providers of such therapy either within the health facilities or externally.

At Kisubi Hospital’s “youth-friendly” clinic, a counsellor offered a session for 50,000 Ugandan shillings ($14), saying a “17 [year-old] is still a small child we can modify”.

At Lubaga Hospital, Matthias Ssetuba introduced himself as the facility’s “mental health focal person”. He claimed that homosexuality is caused by factors ranging from peer pressure to the internet, and also said that it can be “changed”.

“It is a mental health issue,” he added, “because once you start having sex with the same sex, much as those whites are saying ‘it’s normal’, in our society it’s abnormal. And anything to do with abnormality has something to do with mental health.”

He stressed that a person “has to accept” that they need help “in converting”.

In an email to openDemocracy afterwards, Ssettuba said it was the first time he’d had “such a case at the hospital”, which “has never aided any anti-LGBT conversion therapy”.

“We would only wish to support those who might want to do so at their own will,” he said. He did not reply to further questions about his statements to our undercover reporters.

Homosexuality, said Cabrine Mukiibi (the counsellor referred by Nsambya Hospital) is often caused by “unresolved competition” between a child and a same-sex parent for the attention of an opposite-sex parent during their development’s “phallic stage”.

He wore a label on his coat saying “clinical psychologist” when he met our reporters. He has also been quoted in local media as a “clinical psychologist”.

He said he had just finished (but not yet been awarded) a master’s degree in clinical psychology at Uganda Martyrs University, which is affiliated to the Catholic Church. But this degree is not listed on the university’s website, and Uganda’s higher education regulator told openDemocracy the university is not accredited to offer this programme.

Nsambya Hospital’s director Peter Sekweyama told openDemocracy that Mukiibi is “just offering counselling”, and that he is “trained in something like humanities”.

Kasujja, head of the psychologists’ association, said hospitals have a responsibility to ensure their staff are qualified – but warned that without national regulation of counsellors and psychologists, “there is going to be lots of abuse, […] lots of harm.”

No one from Kisubi Hospital responded to openDemocracy’s requests for comment. UCMB and the HIV clinic at Mulago Hospital also did not respond.

The US embassy in Kampala did not say if USAID funding to UCMB has been renewed.

Noah Mirembe, a human rights lawyer and trans man in Kampala, said that Ugandans who have been harmed by ‘conversion therapy’ practices and are interested in legal redress should contact the Taala Foundation (an organisation he co-directs) for support.

* Additional reporting by Nnanda Kizito Sseruwagi

 

This story was originally published by openDemocracy

La délibération de l'examen du Certificat d'Etude Primaire (Cep) 2021 a été faite dans l'après-midi de ce mercredi 30 juin 2021 à Porto-Novo. 82,67% des candidats sont déclarés admissibles cette année contre 84,66 en 2020. Ce qui correspond à 194 341 admis sur 235 086 inscrits et ayant effectivement composé.
Selon le classement par département, le Littoral est 1er avec 91,50 % et l"Atacora ferme la marche avec 71,73%.
Les résultats peuvent être consultés en ligne sur le site eresultats.bj

Classement par département

1er Littoral : 91,50%

2ème Atlantique : 86, 17%

3ème Borgou : 84,17%

4ème Zou : 84, 03%

5ème Collines : 83,75%

6ème Donga : 81, 79%

7ème Mono : 81,24%

8ème Plateau : 80,80%

9ème Couffo : 80,61%

10 ème Ouémé : 80,39 %

11ème Alibori : 72,63%

12ème Atacora : 71,73 %
M. M.

Le Conseil des Ministres s'est réuni mercredi 30 juin 2021, sous la présidence de Patrice Talon, Président de la République. Plusieurs décrets ont été adoptés au cours de cette séance hebdomadaire.

Le Conseil a adopté les décrets portant attributions, organisation et fonctionnement du ministère du Développement et de la Coordination de l'Action gouvernementale ; modification des statuts de la Société nationale de mécanisation agricole, puis nomination des membres de son Conseil d'administration ainsi que des commissaires aux comptes près ladite Société. A cela s'ajoutent l'approbation des statuts de l'Agence de Développement de l'Enseignement technique, et nomination des membres du Conseil d'administration de même que des commissaires aux comptes près ladite Agence.
Le Conseil a aussi adopté le décret portant nomination des membres du Conseil d'administration de la Société des Infrastructures Routières du Bénin (SIRB SA).

A.A.A

Le gouvernement béninois a pris ce mercredi 30 juin 2021 en Conseil des ministres plusieurs décisions dont la création de l'Agence de Développement de l'Enseignement technique (ADET).

L'ADET est créée dans le cadre de la mise en œuvre de la Stratégie nationale de l'Enseignement et la Formation techniques et professionnels (ETFP). Selon le Conseil des ministres, il aura pour objectif global de : coordonner la réalisation des études, la mise en place d'infrastructures et des équipements de formation adéquats ; conduire l'élaboration des programmes de formation adaptés aux besoins du marché du travail, la formation des enseignants/formateurs de qualité. L'objectif est également d'accompagner l'institutionnalisation d'une gouvernance du secteur de l'Enseignement et la Formation techniques et professionnels pouvant permettre d'assurer une formation de qualité aux jeunes béninois, garantissant ainsi leur employabilité.

L'ADET aura pour mission, la coordination, la mise en œuvre, la supervision et le suivi de l'ensemble des projets et programmes relatifs à cette Stratégie nationale quelle que soit leur source de financement. Elle sera, entre autres, chargée de : planifier, programmer, réaliser des études, assurer la maîtrise d'ouvrage pour la mise en œuvre de la Stratégie nationale ; gérer ou superviser tous les travaux, opérations ou projets se rattachant directement ou indirectement à sa mission ; assurer l'interface entre les partenaires techniques et financiers des différents programmes et les différents départements ministériels.

L'Agence sera également chargée de participer à la mobilisation de financements auprès des partenaires techniques et financiers ; proposer et organiser la mise en œuvre des actions nécessaires à l'animation des partenariats avec toutes les parties prenantes dans le cadre de la mise en œuvre de la Stratégie et faire l'analyse coût-efficacité des activités des projets et proposer des mécanismes pour une utilisation rationnelle des ressources.

Le Conseil a marqué son accord pour faire de cette agence un établissement public doté de la personnalité morale et de l'autonomie financière. Elle sera placée sous la tutelle de la présidence de la République.

A.A.A

Event Video 
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On June 30th, IPI in partnership with The Elders, cohosted a virtual interactive discussion on “Reimagining Multilateralism Today: Strengthening Preparedness and Response to Address Global Crises.”

The transnational nature of the COVID-19 pandemic has underscored the need for a reinvigoration of multilateral cooperation now more than ever. In the wake of the United Nations’ 75th anniversary, many have questions about how the multilateral system is changing and how it must adapt to meet future challenges.

In the past year, the UN system has been called upon to address both the unprecedented health challenge of a global pandemic and its compounding effects, from rising inequality to widening geopolitical divisions. As momentum for action grows, the international community must decide how to best empower multilateral institutions to lead global responses to present crises and those of the future. With the world at a historic inflection point, there is an opportunity to challenge assumptions and consider new and innovative approaches to international cooperation.

International cooperation will be essential for ensuring a sustainable and equitable recovery from the COVID-19 pandemic and for tackling the existential peace and security threats from future pandemics and climate change, among other global threats, which the world must confront together.

This discussion focused on ways to create a stronger, more nimble multilateral system now in order to meet today’s challenges, as well as those in the coming decades.

Speakers:
Zeid Ra’ad Al Hussein, IPI President and Member of The Elders
Mary Robinson, Former President of Ireland and Chair of The Elders

Moderator:
James Bays, Diplomatic Editor at Al Jazeera