■ NIGERIA
Man arrested for child abuse
Police have arrested a man who said in a television documentary he had killed 110 children he believed to be possessed by evil spirits, officials said on Wednesday. Rights campaigners say fraudulent pastors or “witchdoctors” convince parents that their children are possessed and will bring misfortune, such as divorce or disease, so as to extort money to perform exorcisms. Some accused children fall into the hands of child trafficking networks after being handed over by their parents. “We are working on the orders of the state governor to arrest all those involved in all forms of child abuse and trafficking,” said Aniekan Umanah, Akwa Ibom State’s commissioner for information. “I am not denying that I am a witchdoctor, but what I killed are witches in my patients with herbs, not children,” Ulup-Aya said while in detention.
■CHINA
Bird’s Nest trinkets on sale
Beijing has started selling souvenir sets of left-over grass and steel from its famed Bird’s Nest Olympic Stadium for 2,900 yuan (US$420) each, local media reported yesterday. The packs include grass cut on the night of the Games’ closing ceremony, preserved in a clear box, and model Olympic torches made of steel that was not used in the construction of the stadium, the Beijing News said. There are 10,000 souvenir sets available for sale at the Bird’s Nest, as well as at Beijing department stores and online. The Bird’s Nest, which seats 91,000 people, became the symbol of the August Games, attracting worldwide attention for its striking design of interlocking steel girders.
■CHINA
Environmental pacts inked
Beijing and Washington were scheduled to sign two agreements yesterday on cooperation in projects promoting energy conservation and water quality. The US Trade and Development Agency and National Development and Reform Commission and the countries’ Export-Import Bank were to agree on partnerships in energy efficiency investments, a document obtained by Bloomberg News in Beijing said. The nations were also to sign a second accord to provide funding and resources toward water quality projects in China.
■AUSTRIA
Thief pays up, 25 years late
An anonymous thief has offered 1,400 euros (US$1,770) in damages to the former owner of a moped the thief stole 25 years ago. Police in Bregenz said they had received an anonymous letter and 1,400 euros in cash from a person asking them to deliver it “to the victim, in a penitent bid to make amends.” “In 1983, I stole a moped from outside the Metro cinema,” the letter said. “I wasn’t aware at the time of the psychological and material consequences of such a crime,” it added, requesting the police “to kindly find the details of the victim of this crime in their files.” If this was not possible, the money should go to local social services, added the letter, which arrived in the police station mailbox on Tuesday morning.
■FRANCE
Doctors leave miracles biz
An international panel of doctors panel appointed by the Roman Catholic Church says it’s getting out of the business of judging if pilgrims to the French shrine of Lourdes may have benefited from miracle healing. The panel decided last weekend that it will still acknowledge cases of “remarkable” healing, but leave it up to the church to decide whether they make the cut as miracles.
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