Politics

Wednesday, May 7th 2014 - 00:11 UTC
Vatican admits having defrocked 848 priests over ten years for sex abuse

For the first time, the Vatican has revealed a statistical picture of the internal fallout from the church's sex abuse epidemic. According to the Vatican's U.N. Ambassador Archbishop Silvano Tomasi, the Pope defrocked 848 priests over the past 10 years, and doled out lesser punishments to another 2,572 accused of molesting children. That includes punishments handed down by John Paul II, Benedict XVI, and Francis.
Tuesday, May 6th 2014 - 22:52 UTC
Why hasn't the U.S. gone after Gazprom?

By John C.K. Daly - Amidst the deepening war of words over Moscow's annexation of Crimea, U.S. President Barack Obama on April 28 added more Russian individuals and companies to a sanctions list that already included influential members of Russian President Vladimir Putin's inner circle and Bank Rossiya, which has close ties to the Russian leadership.
Tuesday, May 6th 2014 - 21:22 UTC
Three women become the first females to serve in a Royal Navy submarine

Three women have become the first females to serve in the Royal Navy Submarine Service: they are pioneering lieutenants Maxine Stiles, Alex Olsson and Penny Thackray, reports UK defense news.
Tuesday, May 6th 2014 - 07:55 UTC
Mujica says Obama has 'his hands and feet tied' so that 'he can't do a thing'

Less than a week before meeting with Barack Obama in Washington, Uruguayan president Jose Mujica described his peer as a 'progressive leader who has his feet and hands tied” and described the fact he made it to the White House, a complete surprise, 'almost unconceivable'.
Tuesday, May 6th 2014 - 07:44 UTC
Time to end “war on drugs” and the “one-size-fits-all approach” says academic report

Global efforts to thwart the drugs trade have failed and the time has come for a radical rethink, according to a group of Nobel-prize winning economists, a former US secretary of state, the deputy prime minister of Britain and others.
Tuesday, May 6th 2014 - 06:32 UTC
India, Brazil and South Africa want Argentina to join the BRICS club

India, Brazil and South Africa are interested in having Argentina join the BRICS group of emerging economies which also includes Russia and China, according to Indian ambassador in Buenos Aires Amarenda Khatua in an interview with Clarin.
Tuesday, May 6th 2014 - 06:06 UTC
Liberal International calls on Spain to end coercion campaign against Gibraltar

The Congress of Liberal International, meeting in the Netherlands, has called on the Spanish Government to end the campaign of coercion and economic sanctions against Gibraltar and urged Madrid to return to the Trilateral Forum for Dialogue.
Tuesday, May 6th 2014 - 05:58 UTC
UN calls on Vatican to change the 'climate of impunity' on child sexual abuse

A UN committee on torture grilled on Monday the Vatican on the Catholic Church's child sexual abuse crisis, urging a permanent investigation system to end a “climate of impunity” prevailing for decades.
Monday, May 5th 2014 - 21:29 UTC
Malvinas Islands British occupation a 'latent threat' for Uruguay's defense policy

The Uruguayan government considers the British occupation of the Malvinas Islands as a 'latent threat' according to a work-paper with basic points of the country's defense policy and which is to be made public this week, some excerpts of which were advanced by the pro-government daily La Republica.
Monday, May 5th 2014 - 07:24 UTC
Varela wins Panama election, defeats Martinelli's incumbent candidate

Panama’s Electoral Committee declared opposition candidate Juan Carlos Varela as the winner of Sunday's election and the country's next president: he captured 39% of the vote with more than 80% of ballots counted. In Panama there is no run-off and no re-election so president Ricardo Martinelli nominated his successor and completed the ticket with his wife, Marta Linares de Martinelli.