Angolan president to step down after nearly four decades
On March 11, José Eduardo dos Santos, president of Angola, announced to the leaders of his party, the Popular Movement for the Liberation of Angola, that he would step down in 2018, 37 years after he came into power. In his announcement, dos Santos spoke against mismanagement, which pro-democracy groups have identified as one of the effects of extended executive terms. Since dos Santos entered office in 1979, other countries have criticized Angola for human rights violations; the country ranks among the worst for deaths of children under 5, and some list Angola as one of the most corrupt nations. In 2001, dos Santos said he would not run for re-election but did not follow through. For more information, visit nytimes.com.
World’s oldest living man is 112-year-old Holocaust survivor
Guinness World Records confirmed that Holocaust survivor Israel Kristal, 112, is the oldest living man in the world. In an interview with Guinness, Kristal said, “I don’t know the secret for long life. I believe that everything is determined from above and we shall never know the reasons why. There have been smarter, stronger and better looking men than me who are no longer alive.” Kristal, born in 1903, lived in Russian-occupied Poland and survived World War I. Once World War II began, Germans forced Kristal and his family into a Jewish ghetto and later sent them to Auschwitz. Kristal was the only one to survive. In 1950, Kristal moved to Israel with his second family and started a candy business. The oldest living person is Susannah Mushatt Jones, 115, who lives in Brooklyn, New York. For more information, visit nbcnews.com.
UN adopts resolution amid sex abuse allegations
The United Nations Security Council approved its first resolution to address the issue of sexual abuse by U.N. peacekeepers. According to the U.N., there were 69 allegations of sexual abuse and exploitation by peacekeepers in 2015 and 25 allegations since the beginning of this year. The resolution, drafted by the U.S., calls for reform and repatriation of military or police units “where there is credible evidence of widespread or systemic sexual exploitation and abuse.” The U.S. said it wanted the Security Council to send the message that it will crack down on sexual abuse. U.S. Ambassador Samantha Power said, “To the victims of sexual exploitation and abuse by peacekeepers, we pledge that we will do better. We will do better to ensure that the blue helmets that we send as your protectors will not become perpetrators.” For more information, visit washingtonpost.com.
Honduras implements ‘Avalanche’ operation to combat gangs, extortion
Authorities in Honduras have started an operation called “Avalanche” to combat gangs and extortion, seizing 137 bank accounts, a dozen houses, 188 vehicles and a hospital in the city of San Pedro Sula from chiefs of the Mara Salvatrucha gang, according to police. The value of the confiscated assets so far totals $9 million; police believe most or all of it has come from the extortion of shop owners and public transportation companies. In addition, police have arrested 12 gang leaders and associates. Jorge Lanza, manager of a transport company, said, “This operation ‘Avalanche’ should be made permanent, not just for a week or two.” Police and military protection on public transportation is infrequent, according to Lanza, and in 2015, gang members killed more than 80 people in assaults on buses after owners of thecompanies refused to pay a “war tax” of $45 per bus. “Avalanche,” which began in February, will continue indefinitely. For more information, visit news.yahoo.com.
Sierra Leone president blocks abortion bill
President Ernest Bai Koroma refused to sign a bill legalizing abortion in Sierra Leone a second time, saying it should be put to a general vote. Members of Parliament unanimously passed the bill in December, but the president refused to sign it after religious leaders protested it. MPs returned the unaltered bill to Koroma last month, and he refused to sign it. The bill would allow women to get an abortion up to 12 weeks into their pregnancies. In addition, in cases of rape, incest and fetal impairment, women would be allowed to get an abortion up to 24 weeks into their pregnancies. Abortion is illegal in all cases in Sierra Leone. The World Health Organization estimates that the country has the world’s highest maternal mortality rate at 1,360 deaths per 100,000 live births, as of last year. A letter to Koroma from several human rights groups, including Human Rights Watch, Amnesty International and five Sierra Leonean organizations, said that unsafe abortions contribute to maternal deaths in Sierra Leone. For more information, visit bbc.com.
