NEWS OF THE DAY
From Around the World
_1 Korea tension:
South Korea’s government says that it will press charges against two activist groups that have been floating antiPyongyang leaflets and bottles filled with rice to North Korea. Any action against the groups is likely to trigger a debate over freedom of expression in South Korea, and whether President Moon Jaein’s liberal government is sacrificing democratic principles to keep alive his ambitions for interKorean engagement. The announcement by Seoul’s Unification Ministry came a day after North Korea said it was cutting off all communication channels with South Korea over its inability to prevent North Korean defectors and other activists from flying the leaflets across the border.
_2 Buying citizenship:
Cyprus says it is introducing tougher antimoney laundering checks in its “golden passports” program, under which it gives citizenship to foreigners who invest large sums in the east Mediterranean country. Interior Minister Nicos Nouris said Wednesday that the government is following through on a pledge to beef up eligibility criteria in the investment program, which has brought in billions in revenue since its introduction following a 2013 financial crisis. He said the antimoney laundering rules will be used to bolster the vetting of prospective investors.
_3 Tainted wine:
Four people died and 10 others were hospitalized in Cambodia after drinking rice wine that police believe was adulterated with a toxic substance. The people were stricken Tuesday and Wednesday in the northwestern province of Banteay Meanchey after drinking the bottled beverage, which consisted of wine mixed with traditional medicine, police said. Dangerous alcoholic drinks that are cheap but powerful are a perennial problem in Cambodia’s poor rural areas, and several accidental poisonings are reported each year. Often the alcohol is not distilled properly and contains methanol, which can kill even in small amounts. In May 2018, 14 people died and more than 200 others were sickened after drinking rice wine containing methanol.
_4 Boko Haram attack:
Suspected members of the Islamic extremist group Boko Haram have killed at least 69 people in Nigeria’s northeast, residents said Wednesday. Many others were wounded. Tuesday’s attack in Foduma Kolomaiya village in the Gubio area of Borno state likely was in retaliation for the death of two Boko Haram members “whom the villagers managed to kill when the insurgents attempted to attack them about two months ago,” said Rabiu Isa, a member of a local defense force. Boko Haram members often force villagers to pay illegal taxes by taking their livestock. Boko Haram’s more than decadelong insurgency has left thousands dead and displaced tens of thousands. Insurgents recently have been mounting roadblocks, screening travelers and kidnapping people in northern Borno state.
_5 Ethiopia election:
Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed will serve an extra year or more in office after lawmakers voted Wednesday to extend their mandates and hold the national election nine to 12 months after health authorities determine it’s safe. Some in the opposition have objected to delaying the vote for the coronavirus as no one knows when the pandemic will end or whether the government will seek further postponements. The election will be the first chance for Africa’s second most populous country to weigh in on Abiy’s dramatic political reforms since he took office in 2018. He was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize last year but has faced growing intercommunal violence, demands by some ethnic groups or regions for more autonomy and allegations of new abuses by security forces.