Author: CensorBiz

With the number of coronavirus infections continuing to rise in Turkey, the country is – like many others – anxiously awaiting a vaccine. Until one comes, many Turks are turning to an old tradition: perfume. From Istanbul, Dorian Jones reports.
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And the American people returned to the American streets, bit by bit, place by place. And in the spaces they shared, they found a world that appeared much the same but was, in many ways, different — and changing by the day.And the people were at turns uncertain, fearful, angry, determined. As they looked to their institutions to set the tone, they wondered: What would this new world be like?The choppy re-engagement of Americans with public life over the past week, with more to come as cries to “reopen the country” grow, means a return to a shared realm where institutions of all types form the shape of American life.Yet can you reopen a society — particularly a republic built on openness and public interaction — without its physical institutions at full capacity, without public spaces available for congregation?”Humans are just terrified of other humans right now. They just don’t feel confident about each other,” says Daniel Cusick, a New York architect who has worked on public spaces for three decades. “But people need a structure. They need to be told there’s something greater.”Enter the “institution,” a word with multiple personalities — some truly public, some partially public, some purely commercial. All figure in this mid-virus re-engagement. All are part of the web of public trust, and all have a tone to set.”Institution” means government buildings — post offices and courthouses and DMVs. It means town squares and public parks, churches and nursing homes and college campuses and, of course, hospitals.It can also mean skyscraper lobbies, shopping malls, hotels, big-box stores and supermarkets — the touch points of a consumer society whose open, public operation means a society is edging toward normal.Eric Martin, a Bucknell University associate professor of management who studies disaster responses, cites an established place like Katz’s, the crowded New York deli made famous in “When Harry Met Sally.” How business like that act, he says, will speak volumes.”It doesn’t change quickly. It’s been around forever. That’s what it means to be an institution. And so we allow these places a legitimacy that we might not with other places,” Martin says.”We think those are legitimate organizations. So if they’re doing it, if they’re changing, we say, ‘Oh, this is real,'” he says.Something else unites these places. In each, the woman on the next bench, the man ahead in the checkout line, the family down the pew are suddenly potential vectors — or potential victims. So we’re assessing the public realm in the way we assess a salad bar when we walk into a restaurant.That can impede a free society’s functions in ways not yet fathomed.”Democracy depends to a surprising extent on the availability of physical, public space, even in our allegedly digital world,” John R. Parkinson writes in “Democracy and Public Space: The Physical Sites of Democratic Performance.”The digital world has kept many institutions going in the United States since mid-March. It has allowed an approximation of office life to continue. It has, along with a robust supply chain, brought to our doors some of the goods we usually go and get.But those same functions, paired with unease, could work against the return to public spaces.”Technology is reshaping what it means to be in a public place,” says  John R. Stilgoe, a historian and landscape expert at Harvard who has spent his career exploring and chronicling the landscapes where Americans move around.”How do you define the ‘public realm’ when an enormous percentage of the American public spends the majority of its day in its pajamas?” Stilgoe says.Already, there are hints of what institutions and the spaces they occupy could look like. If even some come to pass, they could alter Americans’ relationship with the public realm.  — Vibrating pagers like those used at chains like Red Lobster. Already some hospitals are handing them out; instead of entering a lobby, wait in the car until you buzz.— Arrows on the ground, and other physical markers to encourage and enforce distance. Imagine sidewalks with scoring every 6 feet (2 meters) so those walking could make sure they’re the human equivalent of a few car lengths behind. Or large sculptures deployed to separate people.— New designs for eating places. McDonald’s is already prototyping a socially distanced version of its restaurant that could be a template for fast-food spaces around the world.— Checkerboard grids on the grass in parks, with people allowed to occupy one square only if those surrounding it are empty. Or time-sharing of public places: If you don’t show up for your 12:15 p.m. slot at the playground, you’re out of luck.— Churches holding services in shifts. Ballparks and movie theaters deliberately keeping seats empty, halving attendance.  A bit dystopian? Maybe. But there are warmer alternatives, too.Nan Ellin, dean of the college of architecture and planning at the University of Colorado Denver, is working with her students and the city to close some restaurant-heavy blocks to traffic so the street can be used as outdoor cafes and “the tables can be farther apart from one another.””We don’t want to lose our public ground. But we want to have a safe public ground,” says Ellin, editor of “Architecture of Fear” and author of “Good Urbanism: Six Steps to Creating Prosperous Places.” She adds: “We need little hooks to get there so people can start to be with one another again in a way that feels safe.”Architecture has always dictated behavior. In China, where controlling people is a government priority, Beijing’s avenues are lined with metal fences just high enough to keep people on sidewalks. The sprawling, segmented layout of Pakistan’s capital city was designed in part to discourage mass gatherings.But those are public spaces responding to visible threats. Retooling spaces to an invisible virus — the crux of what American institutions face today — is different.Will we wear masks in banks, where a masked man means something different? Will the DMV, the butt of a thousand long-line jokes, suddenly lack lines? Will we retreat to our cars, bypassing public space entirely in what Cusick calls “people moving from bubble to bubble, like the Jetsons “?In 1943, after a German bombing of the British Parliament, Winston Churchill advocated rebuilding the House of Commons chamber exactly as it had been. He invoked the importance of the physical institution in preserving national ideals. “We shape our buildings,” he said, “and afterwards our buildings shape us.”As isolation ebbs, a similar question confronts Americans repopulating the public places they share. How will these places reshape society — and how will trepidations about a post-isolation world shape them in turn? We can only go so far.”You cannot hold the air to yourself. The air is shared,” says Marci J. Swede, dean of the school of education and health sciences at North Central College in Illinois.”‘No man is an island’ has no more truth than when we’re talking about the air we’re breathing,” she says. “And it’s hard to be around other people when you don’t have that sense of trust.”
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An escalating war of words between the United States and China over the origins of the novel coronavirus pandemic sent European markets crashing to start the trading week. The CAC-40 in Paris is down just over 4% and the Frankfurt’s DAX index has lost 3.6% in midday trading, while London’s FTSE is just slightly lower at 0.3%.   Hong Kong’s Hang Seng index lost a staggering 4% and the KOSPI in Seoul lost 2.6%, while the index in Sydney was the sole bright spot in the region, gaining 1.4%.   The markets in Japan, China and Thailand were closed for holidays.   Investors are worried that the trade tensions between the world’s two biggest economies are about to be reignited over accusations by the Trump administration that the coronavirus first detected in the central city of Wuhan late last year originated in a biosecurity lab, despite a conclusion by the U.S. intelligence community that the COVID-19 virus “was not manmade or genetically modified.” FILE – Secretary of State Mike Pompeo holds a news conference at the State Department on March 25, 2020, in Washington.U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo on Sunday also accused Beijing of hiding the severity of the virus while stockpiling medical supplies. China has repeatedly denied the accusations. In oil futures trading, the price of benchmark U.S. West Texas Intermediate crude was $18.26 per barrel, down 7.6%, while Brent crude, the international benchmark, was   $25.80 per barrel, down 2.4%.  Oil prices have plunged as quarantine orders imposed around the world have eradicated demand and created a massive glut of supplies, even sending U.S. crude prices below $0 per barrel nearly two weeks ago.   Futures for all three major U.S. indexes were trading down around one percent.     
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Producers of in-demand goods typically see incomes rise. But U.S. hog farmers are struggling to survive even as many Americans search in vain for their favorite cuts of pork. As VOA’s Kane Farabaugh reports, the COVID-19 pandemic has hobbled meat processing, causing pain for consumers and producers alike, and prompting President Donald Trump to order federal intervention in the industry.Sorry, but your browser cannot support embedded video of this type, you can
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The U.S. Justice Department has filed a statement in support of a church that is challenging the state of Virginia’s ban on gatherings of more than ten people. The church argued in a federal lawsuit that Governor Ralph Northam’s order infringes upon constitutional rights to free expression of religion. Chincoteague, Virginia police issued a criminal citation to the church’s pastor after an early April service attended by 16 people who observed social distancing measures. The Justice Department said the state has not demonstrated it has compelling reasons to treat the church differently from non-religious businesses that are allowed to operate with more than 10 people. The department’s filing said the government must strike a balance between maintaining best public health practices and ensuring liberties. “The United States has a substantial interest in the preservation of its citizens’ fundamental right to free exercise of religion, expressly protected by the First Amendment,” the Justice Department said. In late April U.S. Attorney General William Barr threatened legal action against restrictions imposed by state and local authorities that undercut religious freedom and other constitutional rights.   In a memo, Barr directed the Justice Department’s top civil rights official and federal prosecutors around the country to be “on the lookout for state and local directives that could be violating the constitutional rights and civil liberties of individual citizens.”  
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New Zealand reported zero new coronavirus cases Monday for the first time since the middle of March. The milestone comes a week after the country began loosening strict lockdown rules in place for a month as the government sought to stop the spread of the virus. “Clearly these are encouraging figures today, but it is just one moment in time,” said Director-General of Health Ashley Bloomfield.   “The real test is later this week when we factor in the incubation period for the virus and the time it takes for people to display symptoms which is generally five to six days after exposure,” Bloomfield added. While New Zealand has made significant progress against the virus with about 1,500 total confirmed cases and 20 deaths, it is taking a cautious approach to reversing stay-at-home measures.  Most schools are still closed, as are most shops and restaurants. Italy, one of the hardest-hit nations, began the process of reopening Monday with factory and construction workers allowed to return to their jobs.  People will also be allowed to take walks and visit relatives, while restaurants will be allowed to provide take-away service. The country has confirmed more than 210,000 cases and about 29,000 deaths. Health officials reported 174 new deaths Sunday, the lowest daily figure in about two months. Businesses also started returning to operations Monday in parts of Malaysia as Prime Minister Muhyiddin Yassin eased lockdown restrictions originally set to expire May 12. Yassin’s government is one of many across the globe considering how to balance measures meant to stop the coronavirus from spreading against the desire to get economic activity going. A man shares supplies through barbed wire fence in the coronavirus lockdown area of Selayang Baru, in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, on May 3, 2020. Malaysian Prime Minister Muhyiddin Yassin says the economy needs to be revived.Health officials have cautioned against reopening too quickly and risking a new wave of infections that reverse progress made in recent weeks in areas under lockdown. The virus has strained health care systems and forced governments to take novel approaches to increasing capacity to care for patients. In Mexico City, officials are converting areas of the Formula One racetrack into medical bays with about 200 beds along with facilities for consultations with people who are reporting COVID-19 symptoms. Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe is expected to announce his government is extending Japan’s state of emergency through the end of the month. The restrictions were due to expire Wednesday in the country that has reported about 15,000 infections and 500 deaths. A major focus for dealing with COVID-19 is the search for a vaccine, which the World Health Organization says currently involves about 90 different potential formulations in several countries. Those vaccines must be tested both for safety and to prove they are effective before doses can be manufactured for the public.  Health officials have cautioned the process could take 12 to 18 months. But U.S. President Donald Trump was more optimistic Sunday, saying he thinks there will be a vaccine by the end of this year. There are more than 3.5 million confirmed cases of COVID-19 worldwide, with nearly 250,000 deaths. 
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At a Michigan gas station, the message is obvious — at least to Arabic speakers: Be counted in the 2020 census.”Provide your community with more/additional opportunities,” the ad on the pump handle reads in Arabic. In the fine print, next to “United States Census 2020,” it adds: “To shape your future with your own hands, start here.”As state officials and nonprofit groups target hard-to-count groups like immigrants, people of color and those in poverty, many Arab Americans say the undercount is even more pronounced for them. That means one of the largest and most concentrated Arab populations outside the Middle East — those in the Detroit area — could be missing out on federal funding for education, health care, crime prevention and other programs that the census determines how to divvy up.That also includes money to help states address the fallout from the coronavirus.A 2020 census letter and a multilingual guide mailed to a U.S. resident in Fairfax, Virginia, March 12, 2020. (Photo: Diaa Bekheet)”We are trying to encourage people not just to fill it out because of all the reasons we had given before, where there’s education and health care and all of that, but also because it is essential for the federal government to know who is in Michigan at this point more than ever before,” said Rima Meroueh, director of policy and advocacy with Dearborn-based ACCESS, one of the largest Arab American advocacy nonprofits in the country.  The Arab American community checks many boxes that census and nonprofit officials say are hallmarks of the hardest-to-count communities: large numbers of young children, non-English speakers, recent immigrants and those who often live in multifamily or rental housing.Arabs arrived en masse to the U.S. as the auto industry ramped up and worker demand grew. By the time those jobs began to decline in more recent decades, communities with strong Middle Eastern cultural roots had been firmly established in the Detroit area. It has remained a destination for people from across the Middle East fleeing conflict, reconnecting with family or simply seeking a better life. Even those who resettle elsewhere often first make their way to Detroit and surrounding cities.Advocates have pressed ahead with “get out the count” campaigns despite restrictions designed to curb COVID-19. The pandemic has forced the Census Bureau to push back its deadline for finishing the 2020 count from the end of July to the end of October. It’s also asking Congress for permission to delay deadlines next year for giving census data to the states so they can draw new voting maps.With the changes, ACCESS is stepping up its social media effort, mirroring it to focus as much on the once-a-decade count as their offices, which had been plastered with census posters, Meroueh said.  “If you check out our social media, it’s very census-heavy,” she said.  But groups face a hurdle after the Trump administration decided not to include a category that counts people from the Middle East or North Africa as their own group. The Census Bureau recommended the so-called MENA box in 2017 after years of research and decades of advocacy.A gas pump message is obvious — at least to Arabic speakers: Be counted in the 2020 census, April 30, 2020.The decision to scrap the choice angers many Arab Americans, who say it hinders representation and needed funding. Democratic U.S. Rep. Rashida Tlaib, an Arab American representing part of Detroit and several suburbs, expressed her displeasure while questioning Census Bureau director Steven Dillingham on Capitol Hill in February.”The community did it right — they went through the process,” she said. “You’re making us invisible.”Dillingham said the form would have a write-in box, allowing people to describe their ethnicity. It falls short for Tlaib, but Matthew Jaber Stiffler, a University of Michigan lecturer and research and content manager at the Arab American National Museum, said it’s better than nothing. Advocates will have to push harder to get people counted, he said.”The onus is on community organizations, and local and state governments to get the people to complete the form, because it doesn’t say, ‘Are you Middle Eastern or North African?'” Stiffler said. “We’ll get really good data if enough people fill it out.”Even though the MENA option isn’t there, Stiffler says census officials did preparatory work for it. If someone writes “Syrian” on their form, for instance, Stiffler has been told that the census will code that within the larger MENA ancestry group.That’s precisely what Abdullah Haydar did when he filled out his census form electronically, which he said took five minutes.”I definitely filled it out as soon as I got it. I believe in representation,” said Haydar, a 44-year-old from Canton Township, Michigan, who works in LinkedIn’s software engineering department.But support for the census isn’t unanimous. Some in the Arab community have raised concerns about government questions over their citizenship status if they participate, though that is not part of the form. Many have reported extra scrutiny since the Trump administration issued a ban on travelers from several predominantly Muslim countries in 2017 — creating an overall chilling effect when it comes to interacting with the government.”They don’t trust the current administration. They don’t trust what they’re going to do with the information. And when you look at the the so-called Muslim ban that was put in, people don’t want to be on the government’s radar,” said Haydar, who assisted some elderly relatives in filling out their forms.”I just told them, ‘Look, yes, there may be abuses. There’s always a risk of that. This administration seems to be pushing boundaries. But at the end of the day, this is the basis of our system of government, for people to count,'” he said.
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Russia has seen a record rise in coronavirus infections in the past 24 hours, according to government figures reported Sunday.  The daily rise of 10,633 new cases is the highest since the beginning of the outbreak in the country and brings the total of cases to almost 135,000. On Sunday, 58 more people in Russia were reported dead, bringing the death toll from coronavirus-linked cases to 1,280. The death rate is still lower than in the United States, Italy and some other countries.Russia’s Tass news agency reports that 4.1 million coronavirus tests have been administered so far, 174,000 in the last official report issued Sunday.  Earlier in the week Russian Prime Minister Mikhail Mishustin tested positive for the coronavirus, the highest Russian official who has been diagnosed with COVID-19.Tailor Yalcine of Boulard Retouche prepares face protective masks in cotton sewn in his shop at the Daguerre district in Paris, Sunday, May 3, 2020 as a nationwide confinement continue to counter the COVID-19.Meanwhile France reports that the number of new cases is flattening and has declined in three of the hardest hit regions. The total number of new cases reported Sunday was less than 300 and the total of new deaths was 135, compared to April 7 when the number of new cases was close to 9,000 and the death toll was more than 14,000. France is one of the most affected European countries with a total of nearly 170,000 COVID-19 cases and close to 25,000 deaths. The government has extended health emergency for two more months, until the end of July.About a half of European Union countries will begin relaxing coronavirus measures starting Monday after weeks of shutdowns which have brought down their economies. Italy and Spain, Europe’s most affected countries, are among them. On Sunday, both reported the lowest daily death tolls in weeks.   British Prime Minister Boris Johnson, the only head of state to have had COVID-19, is expected to announce a plan to reopen his country next week after declaring that the number of new cases is flattening in the country. Britain has had close to 187,000 COVID cases and the coronavirus has killed close to 29,000.Sweden also announced a drop in new infections. The European country has raised eyebrows with its liberal coronavirus policy, keeping its schools and restaurants open throughout the outbreak. On Sunday it said that one infected person on average passes the infection to less than one person, which means the pandemic is in decline.  Sweden has had more than 22,000 cases and nearly 2,700 deaths, which is more than double the numbers of Denmark and Norway put together.European leaders have announced plans to establish an international organization to  fight the coronavirus. The group wants to raise $8 billion in an online pledging campaign to finance finding a COVID-19 vaccine and treatment.  A man wearing a protective gear mourns next to the body of his father who died from the coronavirus disease (COVID-19), at a graveyard in New Delhi, India, May 2, 2020.Another campaign is seeking to raise funds to stop the spread of coronavirus in India. International stars including Mick Jagger, Will Smith, Kate Bosworth and Jack Black joined Bollywood celebrities in the 4-hour-long “iFor India” concert livestreamed Sunday on Facebook to help COVID-19 relief in the second most populous Asian country. India reported a daily record of 2,600 new cases on Saturday, despite tough shutdown measures. The country now has more than 42,500 COVID-19 cases with close to 1,400 deaths, despite the government’s tough restrictions aimed at stopping the outbreak.The number of new cases grew sharply in Bangladesh in the past 24 hours, with 665 new cases reported on Sunday.China, the continent’s most populous country, where the virus was first recorded in December, reported only two new cases since Saturday.  Monsignor Kieran Harrington, Vicar for Communications for the Diocese of Brooklyn, prays over the body of the Rev. Jorge Ortiz-Garay in the Brooklyn borough of New York as they prepare to transport his body to JFK International Airport, May 3, 2020.The United States has about 1,200.000 cases, with close to 69,000 deaths so far.  On Friday, the country saw the highest number of coronavirus-related deaths – 2909 within 24 hours, according to the World Health Organization. It also recorded 34,000 new cases, the highest daily total since April 24. More than 1,000 deaths were reported in the past 24 hours.  In South America, Brazil and Peru are experiencing a spike in new cases.Close to 3.5 million cases of COVID-19 and about nearly 250,000 resulting deaths have been confirmed and reported around the world.
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Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer on Sunday said gun-toting protesters who demonstrated inside the state Capitol in opposition to some of her moves to battle the coronavirus “depicted some of the worst racism” and “awful parts” of U.S. history.  Whitmer made the assertion on CNN, before the release of the latest number of deaths in Michigan related to the coronavirus. Officials say the 29 new deaths, which increased the number to 4,049, was one of the lowest daily increases since the pandemic began in Michigan.  Confirmed cases in Michigan rose by 547, bringing the total to 43,754.Sorry, but your browser cannot support embedded video of this type, you can
download this video to view it offline. Embed” />CopyPeople Walk, Gather, Protest as Coronavirus Lockdowns EaseDuring the CNN appearance, Whitmer said the protests  featured “Confederate Flags, and nooses,” as well as swastikas. Members of the Michigan Liberty Militia protested the state’s stay-at-home orders this week, some with weapons and tactical gear and their faces partially covered.  “Some of the outrageousness of what happened at our capitol depicted some of the worst racism and awful parts of our history in this country,” she said.Some went to the Senate gallery, where a senator said armed men shouted at her. Whitmer said the protest wasn’t representative of Michigan and that she’s going to listen to facts and science to decide how to handle the pandemic.”Whether you agree with me or not, I’m working to protect your life if you live in the state of Michigan,” she said. “I am going to continue to do my job regardless of what tweets come out or what polls come out or what people think makes sense.”Michigan’s Republican-controlled Legislature has questioned Whitmer’s authority to extend stay-at-home orders amid the coronavirus pandemic. But the governor used an executive order to extend a state of emergency declaration and has directed most businesses statewide to remain closed.
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Should the NHL restart its 2019-20 season, players on Canadian teams who have been out of the country likely would need to quarantine before they can rejoin their teammates, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said Sunday.”I think it’s a question we’ll have to look into,” Trudeau said in a press briefing. “Certainly at a strict minimum, anyone who arrives from another country will have to follow all the rules of quarantine in an extremely strict manner, but we’re not there yet in our discussions with the NHL.”
 
He continued: “We recognize that it’s a possibility, but it depends on an enormous amount of things, and I don’t want to speculate on this until there’s more discussion.”
 
The season was halted on March 12, one day after the NBA suspended play when Rudy Gobert of the Utah Jazz was diagnosed with the coronavirus. At least eight NHL players have been diagnosed with COVID-19 — five of them from the Ottawa Senators.
 
The NHL is hoping to finish the 2019-20 season and award the Stanley Cup, while deputy commissioner Bill Daly said in a radio interview on Friday that Edmonton is among the cities under consideration should the league decide to use centralized locations for games. Toronto is another city reportedly in consideration to be a “hockey pod.”
 
Daly also said frequent testing for COVID-19 would be required for play to resume, provided that ample tests are available and that the general public would not be deprived of tests.
 
“We’re going to need to have access to testing, and we’re going to make it a point that we’re not accessing testing, even in a private way, if testing availability is an issue in the community,” Daly told 630 CHED in Edmonton. “We will not test asymptomatic players ahead of symptomatic people who are unable to get tested. It’s just something we will not do.” 
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Journalists in Somalia routinely face many difficulties but this year, under the stress of the spread of COVID-19, they say feel even more threatened by intimidation and arrest by what they call hostile leaders. Cautiously celebrating World Press Freedom Day, a number of Somali journalists and journalists’ rights activists shared their experiences with the VOA Somali service. “Somalia has always been a hostile environment for journalists but this year the situation was extreme as authorities stepped up their intimidation of journalists and specially this time when our country faces the spread of the novel coronavirus,” said Mohamed Ibrahim Moalimu, secretary general of the Federation of Somali Journalists.   Moalimu says three journalists were arbitrarily detained in different parts of Somalia. Two of them were accused of various crimes, and a local radio station was barred from broadcasting in a local dialect since mid-April 2020.   FILE – Somali journalists are seen during a stake-out on the outskirts of Mogadishu, Somalia, July 25, 2019.“Facing jail and threats in a time of pandemic, when journalists are struggling with changing roles and behaviors to maintain their service to the public interest is not acceptable,” said Moalimu.   Journalists in Somalia say they go to extreme lengths to report on sensitive and controversial issues in the public interest.    Luqman Mohamed Farah is a journalist who works with Bulsho TV, a private outlet based in Hargeisa Somaliland.    “Authorities are not friendly with the media and they do not provide the information journalists need and that forces some journalists to report stories from non-government sources and because of that they face arrests and intimidations,” said Farah. Burhan Diini Farah, the director of Kulmiye radio, a private VOA affiliate radio station based in Mogadishu says getting information from the authorities has been a challenge. “Nowadays, the government’s top leaders do not hold press conferences, where they can take questions. they pre-record videos and audio messages and distribute via government media. So, it is a kind of indirectly normalizing a government censorship,” Farah said. Somali government authorities often deny such accusations and instead accuse journalists of impartiality and providing misinformation. “I categorically deny that government security agencies arrest journalists for reasons relating to stifling them and silencing them and I can tell you that there are ongoing efforts to train and develop journalists to give the journalists an environment where journalists can work freely without fear”  said Somalia’s director of the Ministry of Information, Abduraham Yusuf (Al-dala).FILE – Somalia’s President Mohamed Abdullahi Farmajo addresses lawmakers in the capital Mogadishu, Feb. 8, 2017.Somali President Mohamed Abdullah Farmajo tweeted “Congrats to Somali journalists on World Press Freedom Day. Journalism is noble profession & Penal Code of 1964 will be reformed to ensure it is not used against journos. My administration fully supports the de-criminalization of journalism & free expression through legal reform.” The penal code, which came into force in 1964, includes a number of vague and overly broad crimes, including criminal defamation, offending the honor and prestige of the head of state,  insulting a public officer or institution and contempt against the nation, state or flag. Somalia is categorized as one of the most dangerous countries in the world for journalists, as they face threats from authorities, armed private individuals, and the al-Shabab terrorist group. In its latest World Press Freedom Index, Reporters Without Borders ranked Somalia 163 out of 180 nations. “Pressure on journalists can come from many quarters, especially as much of the country is controlled by non-state entities or by autonomous regional governments that either do not or only barely recognize the central government’s authority,” Reporters Without Borders said. Some journalists leave the country and prefer live in exile.  Abdulkadir Omar Abdulle is one of them. In July 2012 two suspected al-Shabab gunmen shot him in the leg and the chest He was working as Universal Somali TV anchor at the time but went on to work and live in Nairobi Kenya. “That was a painful and shocking experience and still it rings in my ears and hurts my heart.” Abdulle told VOA Somali. “They fired about seven bullets at me, two of them hit me in the stomach and one in the leg, thanks to Allah I survived, but still I live with the trauma.” After few years, Abdulle went back to Mogadishu to continue his profession, but again received threatening phone calls about the way he talked about the attack.  This led him to return to Nairobi. Khadar Akulle, Khadar Hared and Hassan Kafi have contributed this report.  
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Venezuelan officials said Sunday they foiled an attack by boats through the port city of La Guaira. Interior Minister Nestor Reverol said the would-be attackers, whom he referred to as “mercenary terrorists”, came from neighboring Colombia and were quickly repelled by Venezuelan forces. “They tried to carry out an invasion by sea, a group of terrorist mercenaries from Colombia, in order to commit terrorist acts in the country, murdering leaders of the revolutionary government,” Reverol said in a televised address Sunday. He said there were “some casualties” but did not specify how many attackers there were, who they were, or what weapons and boats they used. President Nicolas Maduro’s government frequently accuses political adversaries of trying to overthrow his government. Socialist critics have dismissed the accusations as an excuse to detain Maduro’s opponents. Maduro has overseen a six-year economic crisis in Venezuela. More than fifty countries, including the United States, have indicated their support for opposition leader Juan Guaido after a disputed election in 2018, but Maduro maintains control of the country’s military.  
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European leaders are establishing an international medical organization to mount a united battle against the coronavirus.In their announcement in The Independent, a British newspaper, they said they are following in the footsteps of “Louis Pasteur, one of the world’s greatest scientists and a mastermind behind vaccines and breakthroughs which have saved millions of lives spanning three centuries.”“Our aim is simple,” the group said, about its goal of raising $8 billion Monday in an online pledging campaign to finance finding a COVID-19 vaccine and treatment.The leaders listed as being responsible for The Independent article are: Giuseppe Conte, prime minister of Italy; Emmanuel Macron, president of France; Angela Merkel, chancellor of Germany; Charles Michel, president of the European Council; Erna Solberg, prime minister of Norway; and Ursula von der Leyen, president of the European Commission.“We will all put our own pledges on the table and we are glad to be joined by partners from the world over,” they said. “We support the WHO and we are delighted to join forces with experienced organizations such as the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation and the Wellcome Trust.”U.S. President Donald Trump has suspended payments to the World Health Organization, saying that WHO did not act swiftly enough in alerting the world about the deadly virus.The European leaders said, “Every single euro or dollar that we raise together will be channeled primarily through recognized global health organizations such as CEPI, Gavi, the Vaccines Alliance, the Global Fund and Unitaid into developing and deploying as quickly as possible, for as many as possible the diagnostics, treatments and vaccines that will help the world overcome the pandemic.”“If we can develop a vaccine that is produced by the world, for the whole world, this will be a unique global public good of the 21st century,” the alliance said. “Together with our partners, we commit to making it available, accessible and affordable to all.”There are more than 3.4 million global cases of COVID-19 worldwide, and nearly 244,000 deaths.
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Air force planes flew over major Indian cities and helicopters showered flower petals on hospitals as a tribute to healthcare workers on the front lines of the fight against the coronavirus pandemic even as India witnessed its highest single-day jump in infections and shut down for another two weeks.Confined to their homes, people craned their necks from balconies and stood on rooftops to catch sight of the fighter jets as they flew low over a dozen deserted cities, from Srinagar in the Himalayas to Thiruvanathapuram in the south, Sunday morning.As helicopters dropped petals on hospitals in cities including New Delhi, Mumbai and Bengaluru, some health workers stood outside — a brief moment of respite from the grueling fight to contain the infection.Military bands played outside some hospitals and the navy plans to light up ships anchored along the coast in the evening.The armed forces called it a tribute to doctors, nurses, sanitation workers, police, home guards, delivery boys and the media.“We wholeheartedly appreciate the gesture by the army, navy and air force, the armed forces,” said Srinivas Rajkumar, the general secretary of the Resident Doctor’s Association of the country’s premier government hospital, All India Institute of Medical Sciences, in New Delhi. “But the government should also pay attention to shortcomings in preparedness which will decide the final outcome of the battle against COVID-19,” he told local media.Indian Air Force (IAF) Sukhoi Su-30MKI fighter jets perform to show gratitude towards the frontline healthworkers fighting the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) outbreak, in Gandhinagar, May 3, 2020. The tribute by the armed forces came as Indians prepared to spend another two weeks at home — India’s 40-day shutdown that was due to end Sunday has been extended until May 17.India’s battle against the coronavirus pandemic is centered largely in its big cities, where most of the nearly 40,000 cases have been reported.On Saturday the number of infections rose by 2,644 — the highest in one day — while 83 people died, also the highest in a single day, taking the country’s death toll to over 1,300.A man wearing a protective gear mourns next to the body of his father who died from the coronavirus disease (COVID-19), at a graveyard in New Delhi, India, May 2, 2020.Indian health authorities say its stringent six-week lockdown has helped in containing the number of infections in the crowded country of 1.3 billion to levels far below those seen in several Western countries.Public health experts say that may be true, but say that due to low testing, the actual spread of the disease may not be accurately reflected in the numbers.“There is nothing to cheer about. We have to expect that the avalanche is hitting us,” warned Jacob John, former professor of virology at the Christian Medical College in Tamil Nadu.“The doubling time for coronavirus cases in India is exactly the same as countries like Italy had early on. So we are just like any other country,” he said.The government is easing some restrictions starting Monday in areas where the coronavirus is not rampant by allowing some shops and offices to reopen and industries to restart. 
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A riot broke out Saturday at a prison in the city of Manaus in Brazil’s Amazon state, as inmates protested the suspension of all visits to prevent the spread of the coronavirus.The inmates at the Puraquequara facility held prison guards hostage for more than five hours before authorities brought the situation under control and freed the guards, the state’s public security secretary said in a statement.While inmates took to the roof of the facility, people outside the penitentiary were holding signs in Portuguese reading “Peace, Peace. They just want to be treated with respect” and “They’re already paying for their offenses.”A group of family members, some wearing masks, held a sign saying “Social reintegration? In these conditions it’s not possible.”Relatives said visits at the Puraquequara prison were suspended in mid-March. Rumors that the coronavirus had begun to spread there have been circulating on social media for weeks.Brazil has reported at least 92,000 cases of COVID-19 infections as of Saturday. About 6,500 people have succumbed to the virus.
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Even as some U.S. states prepare to reopen, doctors and scientists say coronavirus cases will continue to rise. But it appears the holiday spirit is helping some people get through the pandemic despite those holidays being many months away. Angelina Bagdasaryan has the story, narrated by Anna Rice.
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Iran on Saturday denounced recent U.S. allegations that it was providing covert aid to help Venezuela overcome gas shortages as “baseless” without directly addressing them.  Secretary of State Mike Pompeo last week said “multiple aircraft” belonging to Iran’s Mahan Air had transferred “unknown support” to Venezuela’s government. He called for a halt to the flights and for other countries to bar overflights by Mahan Air.  The Associated Press reported last month that Mahan Air was delivering key chemical components used for producing gasoline to help revive an aging refinery in the South American country, which is in the grip of a severe economic crisis.Venezuela has been suffering from widespread gasoline shortages despite having the world’s largest oil reserves.Both Iran and Venezuela are under heavy U.S. sanctions, and have had close relations for the last two decades.Iran’s Foreign Ministry tweeted that the “baseless comments were made in order to prepare the ground for mounting U.S. pressure on the Venezuelan government.”Another statement said the U.S. intended to “obstruct the Venezuelan government’s plan for reviving the country’s refineries.” The statements did not directly address the allegations or elaborate on the nature of the cooperation between the two countries.The Trump administration is pursuing a “maximum pressure” campaign aimed at ousting Venezuela’s socialist president, Nicolas Maduro, and considers opposition leader Juan Guaido as the nation’s legitimate leader. The U.S. and a coalition of nearly 60 nations say Maduro clings to power following a 2018 election that critics consider a sham because the most popular opposition politicians were banned from running.The Trump administration imposed heavy sanctions on Iran after withdrawing from Tehran’s 2015 nuclear deal with world powers.
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