Monday, September 15, 2014
Final exams for $60: Corruption at Kazakhstani Universities
Corruption in Kazakhstani universities has never been a mythical evil. In fact, it seems corruption alarmingly turned into an everyday routine.
Anti-corruption project STOPKylmys (StopCorruption) initiated by the youth wings of Zhas Otan and Nur Otan political parties has reported the results of its anonymous survey among Kazakhstani students. The executive secretary of the Zhas Otan youth wing Nurlan Sydykov reported an unofficial price list for illegal services in Kazakhstani universities, Tengrinewsreports.
“For example, in one university a student can get a pass for $65, while in another university this sum is enough to pass all final exams. To pass all final exams in average costs around $160. Passing one class costs around $30. In average, a course paper costs $70. The cheapest ones cost from $15. A thesis costs in $330. The cheapest thesis costs $165,” Sydykov said at the anti-corruption meeting.
Corruption at universities does not only concern academics, it also affects dorm and scholarship applications. In average, it costs around $80 for a student to get a dorm room. A scholarship ranges from $550 to $2750, depending on the region. An admission to a military science department would require a student to pay $2750. In Kazakhstan military conscription in compulsory. An admission to a military science department gives certain benefits for soon-to-be conscripts.
“The reasons for corruption at universities are lack of interest for education among students (20.8%), lack of control (18.3%), low salaries among faculty and staff (17.3%) and low level of professionalism (12.6%). 90% of respondents say that students see corruption as a normal thing,” Sydykov added.
INC News, 15/09/2014-via Tengrinews
For more information see:http://en.tengrinews.kz/edu/Final-exams-for-60-Corruption-at-Kazakhstani-Universities-256178/
Use of the Tengrinews English materials must be accompanied by a hyperlink to en.Tengrinews.kz
For more information see:http://en.tengrinews.kz/edu/Final-exams-for-60-Corruption-at-Kazakhstani-Universities-256178/
Use of the Tengrinews English materials must be accompanied by a hyperlink to en.Tengrinews.kz
BBC Confirms names of the two Britons killed in Thasiland
Thailand deaths: Tourists named as David Miller and Hannah Witheridge
Britons Murdered In Thai Beach Attack Named
Two British tourists found murdered on a beach on the Thai island of Koh Tao have been named.
Hannah Witheridge, 23, from Great Yarmouth, Norfolk, and David Miller, 24, from Jersey, were found semi-naked and had apparently been attacked with a hoe. Their clothes and the blood-stained hoe were found nearby, said Colonel Prachum Ruangthong from Thailand's police force. Images show Ms Witheridge's body sprawled metres from the sea in a rocky area of Sairee beach. Col Prachum said: "The man was chopped in the back and on the side of his head, while the woman was chopped in her face. It's very gruesome." The Foreign Office is investigating reports that police are hunting a British backpacker over the murders. The suspect apparently knew Mr Miller and may have fled to Bangkok.
The pair had been staying in a bungalow 100 metres from where their bodies were found and had been at a party there on Sunday night, according to Sky News sources.They did not travel to the island together, and CCTV images show they left a bar together at around 1am on Monday.Ms Witheridge was thought to have been travelling with three friends.
Investigators are probing whether there was a sexual motive for the attack and have been checking CCTV footage from nearby restaurants, hotels and shops for clues. Footage showed shocked tourists and locals gathered behind a cordon on the beach on Monday while dozens of police carried out investigations.
INC News, 15/09/2014
Sanctions Squeeze Western Oil Service Companies Out of Russia
Western service companies, a valuable source of expertise and equipment for Russian oil majors, will be forced to limit or even cancel their operations in the country as the result of a new round of sanctions imposed by the European Union and the U.S. on Moscow last week, industry experts said Monday. This could delay some of Russia's hard-to-reach oil development projects and see Western service firms lose revenue.
On Friday, following similar measures taken by the EU, the U.S. imposed sanctions on Russian hydrocarbons producers Gazprom, Gazprom Neft, LUKoil, Surgutneftegaz and Rosneft, banning Western firms from supporting their activities in exploration or production of oil from deep water, Arctic offshore or shale projects. U.S. companies have until Sept. 26 to wind down transactions with the sanctioned oil majors in these areas.
According to REnergyCO, a Canada-based consultancy that analyzes the oil and gas industry of former Soviet countries, about a quarter of all companies involved in the oil business in Russia are based in the West. Russia's Energy Ministry earlier said that in some areas, like development of unconventional or hard-to-recover reserves, the involvement of Western companies rises to as much as 70 percent.
INC News, 15/09/2014
Ukraine's Threat to Go Nuclear Is 'Hot Air'
It would take years, hundreds of millions of dollars and a willingness to become a global outcast for Ukraine to enact the possibility voiced Sunday by its defense minister of becoming a nuclear power again, military and political analysts said Monday.
"If today we cannot defend [Ukraine], if the world will not help us, we will be forced to return to creating this weapon, which will defend us against Russia," Valery Geletey told reporters at a news conference in Kiev. Geletey clarified, however, that changing Ukraine's nuclear status is not on the agenda right now.
Dmitry Rogozin, Russia's outspoken deputy prime minister in charge of the state armaments program, reacted to the suggestion with sarcasm. "I've heard the one about a monkey and a hand grenade. But this is the first time I've heard of a monkey dreaming about a nuclear one," Rogozin wrote on Twitter on Sunday night.
But is Ukraine's nuclear ambition even remotely realistic?
INC News, 15/09/2014
Aeroporto Bologna chiuso due giorni
Sospesi tutti i voli da e per l'aeroporto di Bologna per 48 ore, il 15 e 16 settembre dalle 0 alle 24 per lavori di manutenzione della pista: lo ricorda il sito web del 'Marconi'.
I lavori sono cominciati lunedì e fino al 24, a parte lunedì e martedì prossimi, si svolgono solo fra mezzanotte e le 5.45 del mattino. In quella fascia oraria, per motivi di sicurezza, eventuali voli in ritardo o non programmati non possono atterrare a Bologna e vengono dirottati su altri scali.
INC News, 15/09/2014-via ANSA AP
Nozze gay, è polemica tra prefetto e sindaco di Bologna
E' scontro sulle nozze gay a Bologna: il nuovo provvedimento in vigore nel Comune, che prevede la possibilità di trascrivere gli atti dei matrimonio gay per i residenti che si sono sposati all'estero con persone dello stesso sesso. Il prefetto di Bologna, Ennio Mario Sodano, "ha detto con parole imprecise quello che è chiaro a tutti, e cioè che questi atti non rappresentano il riconoscimento giuridico degli effetti civili del matrimonio. Se così fosse, il prefetto avrebbe buone ragioni per dichiarare nulli questi atti". Così il senatore del Pd Sergio Lo Giudice ha commentato a Bologna la notizia di una lettera del prefetto bolognese con la quale ha chiesto al sindaco Virginio Merola di annullare la direttiva del 30 giugno scorso, che ha dato il via libera da oggi alla trascrizione sui registri dello stato civile dei matrimoni di persone omosessuali contratti all'estero. "Questi atti - ha aggiunto Lo Giudice - rappresentano la presa d'atto che questi matrimoni sono accaduti. Questo, con buona pace del prefetto, non è possibile metterlo in discussione".
INC News, 15/09/2014-via ANSA AP
Cancer Doctor Admits Sex Attacks On Children
A children's cancer doctor has admitted a series of sexual assaults on patients as young as 11 in his care. Dr Myles Bradbury, who worked at Addenbrooke's Hospital in Cambridge, pleaded guilty to six counts of sexual assault and 13 counts of engaging in sexual activity with a child.
Appearing at Cambridge Crown Court, Bradbury also pleaded guilty to three counts of causing or inciting a child to engage in sexual activity, one count of voyeurism and two counts of making indecent images of a child. Prosecutor John Farmer said the offences involved 18 victims and dated back to 2009. Paediatric haematologist Bradbury was bailed and told he would have to sign the sex offenders register. He pleaded not guilty to one count of sexual activity with a child and one of sexual assault, which Judge Gareth Hawkesworth said would probably remain on file. A sentencing date was not given but the judge said Bradbury could expect a "substantial" custodial sentence.
INC News, 15/09/2014
Hurricane Odile lashes Mexico's Baja California resort
http://www.bbc.com/news/world-latin-america-29201533
Hurricane Odile has swept into the beach resorts of Mexico's Baja California peninsula, uprooting trees and confining tourists to their hotels. The storm eased from category three to two but still packed winds of up to 175km/h (110 mph). Mexican authorities have declared an alert in the area, warning of storm surges, landslides and flooding.
Hurricane Odile has swept into the beach resorts of Mexico's Baja California peninsula, uprooting trees and confining tourists to their hotels. The storm eased from category three to two but still packed winds of up to 175km/h (110 mph). Mexican authorities have declared an alert in the area, warning of storm surges, landslides and flooding.
They have also prepared shelter for some 30,000 people. The extent of the storm's impact was still not clear before daybreak, but media in the Los Cabos area reported people being injured by flying glass and power cables, and traffic signals down throughout the city. US Marines have been placed on standby to operate emergency equipment in case of landslides.
INC News, 15/09/2014-via BBC
Afghan rape death sentences upheld
Afghanistan
An Afghan court has upheld death sentences for five men convicted of gang raping four women, in a case which has sparked national outrage. But the court commuted to life terms the death sentences of two other men found guilty of armed robbery. All seven men were convicted of armed robbery but only five were found guilty of rape. Activists say violence against women is prevalent in Afghanistan, but rarely attract this much attention. The four women were attacked in Paghman town when they were returning to Kabul after a wedding in August.
An Afghan court has upheld death sentences for five men convicted of gang raping four women, in a case which has sparked national outrage. But the court commuted to life terms the death sentences of two other men found guilty of armed robbery. All seven men were convicted of armed robbery but only five were found guilty of rape. Activists say violence against women is prevalent in Afghanistan, but rarely attract this much attention. The four women were attacked in Paghman town when they were returning to Kabul after a wedding in August.
INC News, 15/09/2014-via BBC
Strippers and Fraud: Kremlin's United Russia Sweeps Local Votes
The pro-Kremlin United Russia party swept most of 6,024 local polls conducted nationwide on Sunday amid the usual flurry of violation reports, and scandals over everything from discounted vegetables to topless activists.
United Russia won 28 of the 30 gubernatorial seats that were up for grabs, including in the city of St. Petersburg and the regions of Krasnoyarsk, Primorye and Nizhny Novgorod, the Central Election Commission said Monday. The party of power did not field a candidate in the southern Oryol region, paving the way to a Communist victory. In Kirov region, incumbent Nikita Belykh, a Kremlin-endorsed liberal, won as an independent.
United Russia also clutched the majorities in all 14 regional parliaments that were reelected on Sunday, including in Tatarstan, Volgograd region, Moscow and the newly annexed Crimean peninsula. Only United Russia and the pro-Kremlin national populists LDPR made it into the Crimean parliament.
INC News, 15/09/2014
Russia:si dimette deputata 'amica' Putin
Ha presentato le dimissioni da deputata del partito putiniano Russia Unita l'ex campionessa olimpica di ginnastica ritmica Alina Kabaieva, la presunta amante di Putin, al quale avrebbe già dato due figli, secondo i gossip (smentiti da entrambi) e la stampa Usa. Lo riferisce Interfax citando Serghiei Popov, capo della commissione preposta ai regolamenti e alle procedure parlamentari. Popov si e' limitato a spiegare la richiesta di dimissioni con il fatto che la trentenne Kabaieva cambierà lavoro.
INC News, 15/09/2014-via ANSA AP
Migranti, in tre giorni 800 vittime tra morti e dispersi
Sono 36 le persone salvate dal naufragio avvenuto davanti alle coste libiche e non 26 come annunciato in precedenza: lo precisano le autorità libiche. Erano 250 i migranti a bordo del barcone: tra loro anche molte donne. Da venerdì, si contano dunque oltre 800 tra morti e dispersi nei viaggi della disperazione nel Mediterraneo.
Tra 589 e 639 persone: è il bilancio, dell'Unhcr, delle persone morte o disperse nei cinque naufragi avvenuti nel Mediterraneo durante il week end. Lo apprende l'ANSA. Si tratta di stime, precisa l'Unhcr, non confermate, soprattutto per quanto riguarda i dispersi, perché spesso vengono forniti da testimoni - cioè gli stessi sopravvissuti - e quindi non verificabili. "E' una crisi umanitaria senza precedenti" afferma in un tweet la portavoce in Italia dell'Unhcr, Carlotta Sami.
INC News, 15/09/2014-via ANSA AP
Marche, imprenditore uccide due ex operai. La lite per soldi, poi la sparatoria
Due lavoratori stranieri. di 38 e 26 anni, hanno affrontato per strada con un piccozza Gianluca Ciferri, titolare di un’impresa edile a Molino Girola, nel Fermano. Non è chiaro se i due volessero denaro per un lavoro svolto o per altri motivi.
Russian ruble hits historic low against dollar
The Russian ruble fell on Monday to a historic low against the dollar after the West imposed fresh sanctions over Ukraine, AFP reports.
The ruble slumped to 38.04 to the dollar shortly after Moscow markets opened, at 0619 GMT. It was the first time that the ruble had weakened beyond the rate of 38 to the dollar.
The euro also rose against the ruble upon the opening of the markets to 49.25 rubles, still less than its rate in March when it climbed to be worth more than 50 rubles in reaction to Russia's annexation of Crimea.
Washington and the European Union on Friday imposed tough new sanctions targeting banks and major energy and defence firms including Russia's energy giant Gazprom, while promising to scale back or cancel the measures if Russia sticks by the ceasefire in east Ukraine.
INC News, 15/09/2014-via Tengrinews
For more information see:http://en.tengrinews.kz/markets/Russian-ruble-hits-historic-low-against-dollar-256160/
Use of the Tengrinews English materials must be accompanied by a hyperlink to en.Tengrinews.kz
For more information see:http://en.tengrinews.kz/markets/Russian-ruble-hits-historic-low-against-dollar-256160/
Use of the Tengrinews English materials must be accompanied by a hyperlink to en.Tengrinews.kz
Another earthquake shakes Almaty
Another earthquake shook Almaty city tonight.
The tremors were registered 248km south-east of Almaty on the territory of Kyrgyzstan.
The 5-magnitude earthquake was registered at the depth of 10km.
The 5-magnitude earthquake was registered at the depth of 10km.
INC News, 15/09/2014
Typhoon Kalmaegi approaching South China Sea
China's top observatory on Sunday evening issued a yellow alert for tropical storm as Typhoon Kalmaegi was approaching the South China Sea.
China has a four-tier color-coded warning system for severe weather, with red being the most serious, followed by orange, yellow and blue.
Typhoon Kalmaegi is forecast to reach the eastern waters of the South China Sea on Monday morning when the scale is expected to weaken to 35-40 meters per second, said the National Meteorological Center (NMC).
The storm will then move westward to Guangdong Province and the eastern part of Hainan Province when its intensity is expected be strengthened to 45-50 meters per second.
Kalmaegi will affect the southern and southeastern coast from Sunday evening to Monday evening, said the NMC.
INC News, 15/09/2014
L'INFANZIA CANCELLATA DALLA CRISI
Crescono, aumentano, vivono al Nord come a Sud, formano un esercito senza nome che pochi notano, di cui poco si sa. Sono i bambini poveri e l'unica cosa certa è che in due anni sono raddoppiati: su un totale di circa 10 milioni, erano 723mila nel 2011, sono saliti a 1 milione 434mila nel 2013. E dal 2012 al 2013 sono cresciuti di oltre il 30 per cento.
Con queste parole inizia l'inchiesta svolta dai colleghi di "Repubblica", inchiesta che vi invitiamo a vedere cliccando sul link qui sopra ndicato con "Poverta' minorile".
Ve lo segnaliamo perche' venga messo in luce quello che ancora nessuno vuole accettare e che colpisce sempre di piu' la popolazione a rischio italiana: i vecchi e i giovani.\
Vada ai colleghi di "Repubblica" il nostro sostegno per l' inchiesta svolta e presentata in modo lodevole.
INC News, 15/09/2014
BREAKING NEWS - BREAKING NEWS - BREAKING NEWS
British Tourists Found Dead On Thailand Beach
The naked bodies of two British tourists who had apparently been attacked with a hoe have been found on a beach, police have said. The pair were found with head wounds on Koh Tao, an island in Surat Thani province known for its diving sites and stunning beaches.
The victims' clothes and a hoe with blood stains were found nearby, Colonel Prachum Ruangthong from Thailand's police force said. Police suspect the victims - a 23-year-old woman from Norfolk and 24-year-old man from the Channel Islands - were killed with the hoe, leaving deep wounds on their heads.
Russia's First Arctic Oil Rig Will Keep Pumping Despite Sanctions
Gazprom Neft, the oil arm of Russian state gas company Gazprom, will stick to its production plans at its Prirazlomnoye oil field in the Arctic despite being put under Western sanctions, First Deputy CEO Vadim Yakovlev said.
"At the moment, we don't think that this will affect our long-term plans," he told reporters at the platform, located some 60 km [40 miles] away from the shore in the Pechora Sea.
The oil field is Russia's first offshore Arctic field — a key source for future hydrocarbon production growth in Russia, now the world's biggest oil producing nation. Yakovlev said the field should reach plateau oil production of 5.5 million tons (110,000 barrels per day) by 2021, after which it would produce more than 4 million tons a year for around three years. The field plans to produce 300,000 tons of oil this year, which will be shipped by tankers to Europe. The first tanker left this spring and the second is now being loaded to be sent off soon.
INC News, 15/09/2014
Russia to Create Anti-Crisis Fund to Help Sanctioned Companies
Russia will create a multi-billion dollar anti-crisis fund in 2015 of money destined for the pension fund and some left over in this year's budget to help companies hit by sanctions, Finance Minister Anton Siluanov was quoted as saying Monday. Several waves of Western sanctions against Moscow for its involvement in the Ukraine crisis have limited access to foreign capital for Russia's largest banks and key oil companies.
Some companies have asked the government for help, including the country's top-oil producer Rosneft which said it would need 1.5 trillion rubles ($39.70 billion) in aid. Siluanov was quoted as saying by Russian news agencies that the decision to stop transferring money to the pension fund would hand the budget an extra 309 billion rubles ($8.18 billion).
He said not all of that sum would go into the anti-crisis fund, but that it would also receive at least 100 billion rubles of money left over in this year's budget.
INC News, 15/09/2014
Russian Opposition TV Dozhd Producer Attacked Outside Moscow Home
The head producer of the Dozhd independent television channel has been hospitalized with concussion and a facial fracture after unidentified assailants attacked her outside her home in central Moscow. Ksenia Batanova was hit in the face "more than 10 times" before losing consciousness, after which her two attackers made off with her cell phone and earrings, Dozhd reported on its website Sunday.
Police are investigating the attack, a spokesperson for the Moscow branch of the Interior Ministry told the TASS news agency. An unidentified law-enforcement official added that investigators thought robbery was the most likely motive of the Friday night attack and that any connection with Batanova's work appeared unlikely.
INC News, 15/09/2014Hurricane Odile lashes western Mexico coast
Residents on the western coast of Mexico have narrowly escaped the worst of Hurricane Odile, which was downgraded as it made landfall on Sunday. Gusty winds still whipped palm trees and strong waves lashed the resort area of Los Cabos at the southern tip of the Baja California peninsula.
The 1,200 kilometre-long strip of land separates the Pacific Ocean and the Gulf of California from mainland Mexico. As local residents protected windows from the force of the winds, many headed for temporary shelters while tourists stayed in their hotels.
INC News, 15/09/2014
Migrant boat sinks off Libyan coast
A boat packed with up to 250 African migrants trying to reach Europe has sunk off the Libyan coast.
Only 26 people have been rescued the rest are feared drowned.
Migrants have been streaming out of North Africa in rickety boats in ever increasing numbers. So far in 2014 more than 100,000 have reached Italian shores.
Air France grounded as pilots begin one-week strike
passengers face delays and disruption as pilots begin a one-week strike over company plans to cut costs in order to combat the dominance of Easy Jet and Ryan Air.
The industrial action will cost Air France dear with estimates running at between 10 and 15 million euros a day.
Travelers just want to reach their destination: “I was told earlier that the captain is on strike, so that’s why it’s been cancelled. And I thought that something was up when I saw that my flight wasn’t on the departures board. So I just have to hope that I can get back to Vienna in time to be at work,” said one of the stranded.
Hollande calls for “global’ response to Islamic State
French President Francois Hollande says the threat from Islamic State militants in Iraq and Syria is global and that the response must be global.
Speaking at the start of a conference in Paris to tackle the insurgency, he called for a co-ordinated response, which is likely to see an intensification of airstrikes.
Cade e muore durante controllo di polizia
Un uomo, sembra di nazionalità nigeriana, è morto a Firenze precipitando dal terzo piano di un palazzo, mentre al piano di sotto era in corso un controllo da parte della polizia, chiamata a causa di schiamazzi in un appartamento. Secondo le prime ipotesi, l'uomo avrebbe cercato di sfuggire al controllo salendo al piano superiore ed è precipitato da una porta-finestra del pianerottolo in un cortile interno. Inutili i tentativi di rianimarlo.
INC News, 15/09/2014-via ANSA AP
Quindicenne precipita dal quinto piano a scuola
Uno studente di 15 anni è ricoverato in gravissime condizioni all'ospedale Papa Giovanni XXIII di Bergamo: questa mattina, attorno alle 8, è stato trovato a terra nel cortile del liceo scientifico Lussana di Bergamo. A dare l'allarme i suoi compagni.
Potrebbe essersi gettato dal quinto piano della sua scuola lo studente ricoverato in gravissime condizioni a Bergamo.
INC News, 15/09/2014-via ANSA AP
BREAKING NEW - BREAKING NEWS - BREAKING NEWS
Affonda barcone a largo della Libia. 250 a bordo,
in maggioranza donne. Salvi solo 26
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