UNITED NATIONS: The UN General Assembly is expected to approve a resolution calling on Myanmar’s junta to restore the country’s democratic transition and for all countries “to prevent the flow of arms into Myanmar,” diplomats said.
The draft resolution also condemns deadly violence by security forces and calls on the junta to unconditionally release the ousted civilian leader Aung San Suu Kyi, President Win Myint “and all those who have been arbitrarily detained, charged or arrested.”
The 193-member assembly is scheduled to consider the resolution, which has more than 50 co-sponsors, on Friday afternoon and its sponsors are hoping it will be approved by consensus to send a strong message to the military of global opposition to its Feb. 1 takeover and support for a return to Myanmar’s democratic transition, though any nation can call for a vote.
The draft resulted from negotiations by a so-called Core Group including the European Union, many Western nations and the 10-member Association of Southeast Asian Nations known as ASEAN, which includes Myanmar.
A UN diplomat said there is an agreement with ASEAN to seek consensus, but what will happen with ASEAN members if there is a vote remains unclear.
The resolution’s approval would mark one of the few times that the UN’s most representative body expressed itself against a military coup and called for an arms embargo.
Canada’s UN Ambassador Bob Rae, a member of the Core Group, said Thursday that everyone has been working hard “to reach a broad consensus” on the text, and discussions were still under way on whether it would be approved by consensus or be put to a vote.
Myanmar for five decades had languished under strict military rule that led to international isolation and sanctions.
As the generals loosened their grip, culminating in Suu Kyi’s rise to leadership in 2015 elections, the international community responded by lifting most sanctions and pouring investment into the country. Her party was reelected by a landslide in November elections, but the military contends the vote was fraudulent and took over before the new Parliament was seated.
Widespread opposition to the junta’s rule began with massive nonviolent protests. After soldiers and police used deadly force to crush the peaceful demonstrations, a low-level armed insurrection has emerged in both the cities and countryside.
Last week, the UN human rights office cited credible reports that at least 860 people have been killed by security forces since Feb. 1, mostly during protests, and that more than 4,800 people — including activists, journalists and opponents of the junta — are in arbitrary detention.
Speaking of the draft resolution, Canada’s Rae said: “I think it’s a strong statement by the General Assembly about our strong opposition to what’s been happening in Myanmar, and our strong desire for a shift back to a process of attaining democracy in the country, civil and economic rights for everybody including the Rohingya.”
The draft calls on “the Myanmar armed forces to respect the will of the people as freely expressed by the results of the general election of Nov. 8, 2020. It also said the Parliament should be allowed to convene and the armed forces and other national bodies should be brought into an “inclusive civilian government that is representative of the will of the people.”
Unlike Security Council resolutions, General Assembly resolutions are not legally binding, but they do reflect global opinion and supporters of the draft believe it will have an impact.
Rae, a former Canadian special envoy to Myanmar, doesn’t believe the nation can return to its past isolation since people in Myanmar “have developed a taste for openness, for democracy, for participation, and for social and political rights,” he said. “And I don’t think the people are going to lose that taste. And I think that the answer is to do everything we can to sustain democracy.”
UN proposal seeks arms embargo and democracy in Myanmar
https://arab.news/2fcab
UN proposal seeks arms embargo and democracy in Myanmar
- Draft resolution condemns deadly violence by security forces and calls on the junta to unconditionally release those in arbitrary detention
1 dead after Russian missile hits Ukrainian apartment block
- Gov. Serhii Lysak said at least 11 other people were injured and more people could be trapped beneath the rubble of the four-story apartment block
KYIV: A Russian ballistic missile struck a residential building Tuesday in the Ukrainian city of Kryvyi Rih and at least one person was killed, local authorities said.
Gov. Serhii Lysak said at least 11 other people were injured and more people could be trapped beneath the rubble of the four-story apartment block.
Social media footage showed one side of the building had almost completely collapsed.
“Unfortunately, we are preparing for difficult news,” Mayor Oleksandr Vilkul wrote on his Telegram channel.
Minutes before his post, Ukraine’s air force alerted a “ballistic missile strike threat” for southern and central regions of Ukraine, later signaling a “high-speed” target flying in the direction of Kryvyi Rih.
The strike came as Ukraine prepared to officially celebrate Christmas for the second time on Dec. 25. President Volodymyr Zelensky signed legislation in July 2023 to bring Ukraine’s public Christmas holiday in line with the majority of other European countries, rather than the later date followed in Russia.
The shift sought to assert Ukraine’s national identity amid Russia’s full-scale invasion.
“While the rest of the world celebrates Christmas, Ukrainians continue to suffer from endless Russian attacks,” Ukraine’s human rights ombudsman, Dmytro Lubinets, wrote on social media.
Bangladesh says ousted PM will face charges of ‘crimes against humanity’
- Bangladeshi court issued arrest warrants for Sheikh Hasina and her ministers in October
- In 2015, Dhaka returned Indian separatist leader under extradition treaty with Delhi
DHAKA: Ousted Bangladeshi Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina will face multiple charges of crimes against humanity, the country’s interim government said on Tuesday after sending an extradition request to India.
Hasina travelled to New Delhi in August during the student-led demonstrations that ended her 15 years in power. The initially peaceful protests, which began in early July, were met with a violent crackdown by security forces, which left hundreds dead and sparked a nationwide uprising against Hasina, forcing her to flee the country.
In October, a Bangladeshi domestic criminal tribunal issued arrest warrants for Hasina and more than 40 other people linked to the protest killings.
Bangladesh’s foreign affairs adviser, Md. Touhid Houssain, said on Monday that his country had sent a diplomatic note to India’s Foreign Ministry asking for Hasina’s return in order to begin a “judicial process.”
“We expect (India) will respond as soon as possible,” Azad Majumder, deputy press secretary of the head of Bangladesh’s interim government Muhammad Yunus, told Arab News.
There are multiple charges against Hasina, including that she bears responsibility for forced disappearances, and for ordering the killings that took place during the protests, he added.
“She will face multiple charges against her regarding crimes against humanity, and investigations are underway in this regard,” Yunus said.
India has confirmed reception of the request from Bangladesh. Bangladesh has an extradition treaty with India, which serves as a “commitment that both parties will comply with this instrument,” said Jyotirmoy Barua, a lawyer at the Bangladesh Supreme Court and a human rights activist.
In 2015, Bangladesh handed over Anup Chetia, a separatist rebel leader whose group had fought Indian rule in the northeastern state of Assam. He was arrested in 1997 for illegal entry into Bangladesh and for possession of large amounts of foreign currency.
Though Bangladesh expects that India will return Sheikh Hasina in respect of their bilateral treaty and the precedent that was set in Chetia’s case, there are concerns that New Delhi may not comply.
“India may (refer to) this clause of the treaty that Sheikh Hasina may face ‘political vengeance’ in the trial process and may not receive justice. On these grounds, India may not eventually comply with Bangladesh’s request,” Barua said.
“So, there is a fear that India may not follow the diplomatic norms here in returning Sheikh Hasina. It depends on the good judgement of Indian leadership.”
Five convicted over Amsterdam violence against Israelis
AMSTERDAM: A Dutch court on Tuesday convicted five men for their part in last month’s violence against Israeli football fans in Amsterdam that shocked the world and sparked accusations of anti-Semitism.
The Amsterdam district court found them guilty for a range of crimes from kicking fans of Maccabi Tel Aviv in the street to inciting violence in chat groups.
The heaviest sentence imposed was six months in prison, for a man identified as Sefa O. for public violence against several people.
The Maccabi Tel Aviv fans came under “hit-and-run” style attacks in the early hours of November 8 after their European League match against Amsterdam giants Ajax.
Images of the violence, which left five fans briefly hospitalized, went around the world and sparked a furious reaction in Israel including accusations of a “pogrom.”
The most serious case under consideration Tuesday was O., who prosecutors said played a “leading role” in the violence.
The court saw images of a man identified as O. kicking a person on the ground, chasing targets, and punching people in the head and the body.
The prosecutor said the beatings had “little to do with football” but added that “in this case, there was no evidence of... a terrorist intent and the violence was not motivated by anti-Semitic sentiment.”
“The violence was influenced by the situation in Gaza, not by anti-Semitism,” said the prosecutor.
The attacks followed two days of skirmishes that also saw Maccabi fans chant anti-Arab songs, vandalize a taxi and burn a Palestinian flag.
Police said they were investigating at least 45 people over the violence, including that carried out by fans of the Israeli club.
Another man identified as Umutcan A., 24, received a sentence of one month for assaulting fans and violently ripping a Maccabi scarf from one of them.
Prosecutors had called for heavier sentences against the men — of up to two years in the case of O.
The judge said that people convicted of such crimes would normally have to serve community service.
“But the court finds that, given the seriousness of the offense and the context in which it was committed, only imprisonment is appropriate,” she said.
Only one of the five men was in court to hear the verdicts, an AFP reporter saw.
A 22-year-old identified as Abushabab M., 22, faces a charge of attempted murder but his case has been postponed while he undergoes a psychiatric assessment.
He was born in the Gaza Strip and grew up in a war zone, his lawyer told the court, while M. sat sobbing as his case was being heard.
A further six suspects are set to appear at a later stage.
Three of these suspects are minors and their cases will be heard behind closed doors.
At an emotionally charged news conference the morning after the riots, Amsterdam mayor Femke Halsema said the city had been “deeply damaged” by “hateful anti-Semitic rioters.”
However, Halsema later said she regretted the parallel she had drawn between the violence and “memories of pogroms,” saying this word had been used as propaganda.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu described the violence at the time as a “premeditated anti-Semitic attack.”
Noche Buena: How Filipinos celebrate Christmas Eve with a traditional family feast
- Noche Buena is the dinner that follows the last evening mass of the Christmas season
- In Philippines’ Pampanga province, some Christmas celebrations take place from Dec. 24 to Jan. 2
MANILA: For many Filipinos, the time-honored traditions of Noche Buena, or Christmas Eve, is the most awaited part of this holiday season, when dinner tables across the country are filled with a hearty selection of traditional dishes.
Noche Buena, which is Spanish for “the good night,” is the dinner that follows the last evening mass of the season, known as misa de gallo or simbang gabi.
The multi-generational feast features staples like queso de bola, a ball-shaped Edam cheese wrapped in red wax coating, or lechon, the popular roasted pig dish that often gets the spotlight in most Filipino festivities.
But it is the classic hot chocolate that Noelle Lejano looks forward to the most, as her grandmother makes it extra special and only at this time of the year.
“Hot chocolate holds a deeper sentimental value because my lola (grandmother) makes it only once a year, every Noche Buena. It’s the best hot chocolate I’ve ever had, and it makes the celebration feel extra special and nostalgic,” the 24-year-old writer and brand strategist from Manila told Arab News.
Her family mixes it up between classic and more modern fare for the occasion, from the tried-and-tested favorite Christmas ham to a charcuterie board that she makes with her mother.
“These dishes aren’t just food — they’re traditions that bring us together and make the holiday feel like home,” Lejano said.
“Noche Buena is a highlight, especially with everyone gathering together and making the rounds to greet and hug each other as the clock strikes midnight. To pass the time before midnight, we play games, which keep the energy alive and the laughter flowing.”
Noche Buena is also celebrated in Latin America, reflecting a unique mix of Catholic traditions, indigenous folk practices, and more recent American influences, the late food historian Doreen Fernandez wrote in her 1994 book “Tikim: Essays on Filipino Food and Culture.”
For people in Pampanga province, about 80 km north of Manila, the deep-seated Catholic and Spanish influences are reflected in their culinary fare.
In Gerald Gloton’s household, Noche Buena is a time to indulge in their provincial roots, which includes serving sopas, or Filipino chicken soup, from the morning of the 24th all the way into Christmas morning.
They also serve an array of other beloved dishes, such as the ube halaya, a rich purple jam made from boiled and mashed ube and thickened with milk, rice cakes, and menudo, a stewed pork and tomato dish.
“We gather for sumptuous meals, exchange gifts, and attend Mass to celebrate the birth of Christ, reinforcing our shared faith and family values,” Gloton said.
The celebration of Noche Buena, which comes after Midnight Mass, has been “customary and required” for food anthropologist and writer Ruston Banal, who was raised in a devout Catholic household and is also from Pampanga.
“It’s significant because, in my situation, it marks the moment when the entire family gets together. Some of my siblings are already employed elsewhere, but they still make an effort to honor this custom by coming home,” he said.
In his hometown of Guagua, Christmas is an extended celebration that begins from Dec. 24 all the way to Jan. 2, where celebrations are centered on food.
“It’s all about the food; some of my relatives even spend a lot of money to prepare a lavish feast for other relatives who visit us,” he said.
Every year, the occasion turns into “a quiet competition among family members,” as they try to make the greatest dishes, ranging from bringhe, a local version of the Spanish paella made with sticky rice, chicken, sausage, vegetables and coconut milk, to kaldereta, a hearty tomato and liver stew made with leghorn chicken with carrots, potatoes, and bell peppers.
“Food is an extension of themselves,” Banal said. “(They cook like) a person in love, giving it their all.”
Russian court jails US citizen Spector for 15 years in espionage case, RIA says
- Spector in his first court case had pleaded guilty to helping bribe an assistant to an ex-Russian deputy prime minister
MOSCOW: A Russian court has sentenced US citizen Eugene Spector to 15 years in jail for espionage, Russia’s RIA state news agency reported on Tuesday.
Currently serving a 3-1/2-year sentence in Russia for bribery, Spector, who was born in Russia and then moved to the US, was charged last August with espionage.
Before his 2021 arrest, he served as chairman of the board of Medpolymerprom Group, a company specializing in cancer-curing drugs, state media has said.
Spector in his first court case had pleaded guilty to helping bribe an assistant to an ex-Russian deputy prime minister.
