Elections chief says Maldives run-off on track

MALÉ, November 9, 2013 (AFP) – The Maldives’ presidential run-off will be held Sunday, but with a five-hour delay, the chief elections commissioner announced as the second-placed candidate asked for more time to prepare.The court has begun hearing the case.Ibrahim says he wants more time to tell his supporters which of the two candidates they […]

Political chaos as Maldives Supreme Court suspends run-off vote

MALÉ, November 10, 2013 (AFP) – Presidential elections in the Maldives were thrown into disarray on Sunday after the Supreme Court suspended a run-off vote, denying former president Mohamed Nasheed the chance to return to power 21 months after he was ousted. Despite growing international concerns over the Indian Ocean atoll nation’s failure to elect […]

Troubled Maldives holds make-or-break vote

MALÉ, November 9, 2013 (AFP) – Voting got underway in the Maldives Saturday in its third bid to choose a president and end unrest sparked by the toppling of their first freely-elected leader 21 months ago.“God willing, we will win this election in one round,” he said at a rally in the capital Male. Nearly […]

Crisis-hit Maldives to vote again with democracy in doubt

COLOMBO, November 7, 2013 (AFP) – The Maldives faces a final chance to avoid a constitutional crisis and secure its five-year democracy this weekend when it makes a third attempt to hold a long-delayed presidential election.He held a meeting with all three candidates on Wednesday, with a statement saying it was “a very crucial period” […]

Fears

COLOMBO, November 4, 2013 (AFP) – A media rights group Monday expressed fears for the safety of journalists in Sri Lanka after Colombo grilled two Australian activists and seized computer data before kicking them out.The Free Media Movement (FMM) said it expected a crackdown by the authorities following last week’s questioning of the two International […]

India mission to Mars blasts off successfully

NEW DELHI, November 5, 2013 (AFP) – India’s first mission to Mars blasted off on Tuesday as the country aims to become the only Asian nation to reach the Red Planet with a programme showcasing its low-cost space technology.A study of data from Curiosity published in September found the rover had detected only trace elements […]

More Equal

LONDON, November 3, 2013 (AFP) – Britain is scrapping a plan to force visitors from six “high-risk” countries to pay a cash bond of £3,000 (US ,800, 3,500 euros), the interior ministry said on Sunday.Nick Clegg, leader of the Liberal Democrats, told BBC television in September that he was “absolutely not interested in a bond […]

Expelled

COLOMBO, November 1, 2013 (AFP) – Sri Lankan authorities on Friday wiped all the data from the computer of an Australian media rights activist as she and a colleague were kicked out of the country, a local rights group said.Jacqui Park and fellow Australian Jean Worthington were packed onto a plane that flew out of […]

Vast Antarctic sanctuary plans blocked by China, Russia

SYDNEY, November 1, 2013 (AFP) – Plans to create two vast ocean sanctuaries in Antarctica to protect the pristine wilderness failed Friday for a third time with Russia and China blocking the bids, delegates at multi-nation talks said.The proposals for two huge Marine Protected Areas were on the table at the Commission for the Conservation […]

Detained

COLOMBO, October 30, 2013 (AFP) – Immigration authorities raided a meeting of journalists in Sri Lanka’s capital Wednesday and detained an Australian activist on a charge of working without a visa, a local rights group said.The International Federation of Journalists (IFJ) representative for the Asia-Pacific region, Jacqui Park, was taken into custody by immigration officials, […]

‘s top carmaker Maruti posts rise in profits

NEW DELHI, October 28, 2013 (AFP) – India’s top carmaker Maruti Suzuki Monday posted a nearly threefold jump in its quarterly net profit compared to the same period last year when production was hit by a labour dispute.Net profit was 6.70 billion rupees (9 million) for the three months ending September 30, compared with 2.27 […]

” discovered in remote Australia

SYDNEY, October 28, 2013 (AFP) – An expedition to a remote part of northern Australia has uncovered three new vertebrate species isolated for millions of years, with scientists Monday calling the area a “lost world”.buy cymbalta Canada buy cymbalta Tim Laman, a National Geographic photographer and Harvard University researcher who joined Hoskin on the expedition, […]

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