■GERMANY
People protest for privacy
Some 7,500 people demonstrated on Saturday in Berlin to express their concerns about personal data privacy as the government and private companies amass giant databases, organizers said. Called out by numerous civic organizations and political parties under the banner of “Liberty Instead of Fear!,” the protesters denounced a government database that will collect information on wages, taxes and social payments. They also protested against electronic passports, electronic health insurance cards and an accord allowing the US to access EU banking information as part of anti-terror efforts. Personal and data privacy are sensitive issues for many Germans given their experiences under Nazi and communist dictatorships. Google’s Streetview, which lets users view panoramic street scenes, ran into strong opposition in the country, where many found it too intrusive. Eventually the company allowed people to block publication of images of their residences, the only country out of more than 30 where the service is available where users have such an option.
■GERMANY
East German activist dies
Baerbel Bohley, a prominent figure in the pro-democracy movement that helped end communist rule in the former East Germany, has died. She was 65. The Robert Havemann Society — a group set up by the New Forum movement that Bohley cofounded — said she died of cancer on Saturday. Bohley, a painter who endured harassment by East Germany’s secret police, and several others set up New Forum in September 1989. The group sought greater openness in East German society and meaningful elections. East Germany opened its heavily fortified border on Nov. 9, 1989, after mounting peaceful protests helped undermine the communist government. The two Germanys were reunited in October 1990.
■KOSOVO
Serbs, Albanians fight
Serbs and ethnic Albanians clashed late on Saturday in Kosovo’s flashpoint city of Mitrovica, stoning each other over the victory of Turkey against Serbia at the World Basketball Championship, an official said. The stoning lasted around 20 minutes and “there were no casualties reported so far.” Police spokesman Besim Hoti added that local and European police reacted promptly by placing themselves between the two sides in the ethnically divided city and “putting the situation under control.” The conflict broke out as a group of youngsters from the south and ethnic Albanian majority part of the city began celebrating the victory of Turkey against Serbia in the semi-final at the World Basketball Championship in Istanbul.
■BELGIUM
Sex bishop goes into hiding
The former bishop at the center of a child sexual abuse scandal announced on Saturday that he would leave the Trappist monastery where he had been living and go into hiding to contemplate his future. The former bishop of Bruges, Roger Vangheluwe, resigned in April after admitting he abused a boy, later revealed to be his nephew. The publicity surrounding the case prompted more than 200 people to come forward in a matter of days with accounts of abuse by priests, with cases stretching back several decades. In a statement released on Saturday, Vangheluwe again admitted guilt and asked for forgiveness. He said he would reflect on his future “somewhere hidden, outside the diocese of Bruges.”
■UNITED STATES
Igor becomes hurricane
Tropical Storm Igor strengthened into a hurricane in the Atlantic Ocean on Saturday and was expected to gain power as it moved west, but posed no immediate threat to land or energy interests. The National Hurricane Center said Igor, the fourth hurricane of this year’s Atlantic season, had top sustained winds of 120kph, making it a Category 1 hurricane on the five-step Saffir-Simpson scale. Computer models projected Igor would stay in the Atlantic for the coming days and not enter the Gulf of Mexico, where oil and gas operations are clustered.
■COLOMBIA
Military to ‘redouble’ effort
President Juan Manuel Santos said on Saturday he would “redouble” the military’s offensive against leftist guerillas after an attack killed 40 police and military officers. Rebel groups have launched a string of deadly attacks in recent weeks following the inauguration of Santos, a former defense minister who has promised to keep pressure on the insurgents. “We have decided to intensify the offensive ... so that these criminals do not have time to plan their operations,” Santos said. Eight police officers were killed on Friday near the border with Ecuador in a shootout with members of the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia which tried to take over San Miguel town in Putumayo Province. Santos has rejected a rebel offer of peace talks, calling for them to first free hostages and stop recruiting minors.
■UNITED STATES
Governor mulls expo bid
California Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger said during a visit yesterday to the Shanghai Expo that his state would bid to host the 2020 World Expo in Silicon Valley. “As the hub of innovation, Silicon Valley is the most natural place to hold the expo, which will promote the international exchange of ideas, create jobs and increase revenues in our state,” Schwarzenegger said. A formal hosting application will be submitted next year, with a decision expected in 2012. The governor is traveling with a delegation of nearly 100 leaders from sectors including technology, tourism and entertainment. He vowed before the trip to act as a “salesman-in-chief” for California in a bid to better tap growing Asian markets like China.
■UNITED STATES
‘Jaws’ crowned burrito king
Competitive eater Joey Chestnut is now king of the burrito. Chestnut, also known as “Jaws,” downed 47 burritos in 10 minutes at the New Mexico State Fair in Albuquerque on Saturday, beating the previous record of 33, for a cash prize of US$1,500. The burritos in the Garcia’s World Burrito Eating Championship were stuffed with beef, beans and the state’s famous green chili. The event is sanctioned by the Major League Eating International Federation of Competitive Eating, the world body that oversees all international professional eating contests.
■BRAZIL
Workers saved from slavery
Authorities say they have rescued nearly 100 workers who were allegedly living in slave-like conditions in sugarcane fields in the country’s southeast. The official Agencia Brasil news service says the workers in Rio de Janeiro state were not registered and did not have access to drinking water, protective gear or appropriate eating facilities. The news service’s report on Friday said 50 other workers at a strawberry farm in Minas Gerais state were also rescued from the same conditions. The employers will be fined.
‘SHARP COMPETITION’: Australia is to partner with US-based Lockheed Martin to make guided multiple launch rocket systems, an Australian defense official said Australia is to ramp up missile manufacturing under a plan unveiled yesterday by a top defense official, who said bolstering weapons stockpiles would help keep would-be foes at bay. Australian Minister for Defence Industry Pat Conroy said the nation would establish a homegrown industry to produce long-range guided missiles and other much-needed munitions. “Why do we need more missiles? Strategic competition between the United States and China is a primary feature of Australia’s security environment,” Conroy said in a speech. “That competition is at its sharpest in our region, the Indo-Pacific.” Australia is to partner with US-based weapons giant Lockheed Martin to make
BEYOND WASHINGTON: Although historically the US has been the partner of choice for military exercises, Jakarta has been trying to diversify its partners, an analyst said Indonesia’s first joint military drills with Russia this week signal that new Indonesian President Prabowo Subianto would seek a bigger role for Jakarta on the world stage as part of a significant foreign policy shift, analysts said. Indonesia has long maintained a neutral foreign policy and refuses to take sides in the Russia-Ukraine conflict or US-China rivalry, but Prabowo has called for stronger ties with Moscow despite Western pressure on Jakarta. “It is part of a broader agenda to elevate ties with whomever it may be, regardless of their geopolitical bloc, as long as there is a benefit for Indonesia,” said Pieter
TIGHT CAMPAIGN: Although Harris got a boost from an Iowa poll, neither candidate had a margin greater than three points in any of the US’ seven battleground states US Vice President Kamala Harris made a surprise appearance on Saturday Night Live (SNL) in the final days before the election, as she and former US president and Republican presidential nominees make a frantic last push to win over voters in a historically close campaign. The first lines Harris spoke as she sat across from Maya Rudolph, their outfits identical, was drowned out by cheers from the audience. “It is nice to see you Kamala,” Harris told Rudolph with a broad grin she kept throughout the sketch. “And I’m just here to remind you, you got this.” In sync, the two said supporters
Pets are not forgotten during Mexico’s Day of the Dead celebrations, when even Fido and Tiger get a place at the altars Mexican families set up to honor their deceased loved ones, complete with flowers, candles and photographs. Although the human dead usually get their favorite food or drink placed on altars, the nature of pet food can make things a little different. The holiday has roots in Mexican pre-Hispanic customs, as does the reverence for animals. The small, hairless dogs that Mexicans kept before the Spanish conquest were believed to help guide their owners to the afterlife, and were sometimes given