washingtontimes--2020-12-14--Singapore approves use of Pfizer's COVID-19 vaccine

SINGAPORE ( AP ) - Singapore has approved the use of Pfizer ’ s coronavirus vaccine , and the first shipment will arrive by the end of this month , Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong said Monday .
Lee said Singapore , with a budget of over 1 billion Singapore dollars ( $ 750 million ) for vaccines , has “ placed multiple bets ” by signing advance purchase agreements with vaccine makers including Pfizer and its German partner BioNTech , Moderna Inc. and China ’ s Sinovac .
“ After studying the scientific evidence and clinical trial data , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine for pandemic use , ” Lee said in a televised speech .
“ We also expect other vaccines to arrive in coming months .
If all goes according to plan , we will have enough vaccines for everyone in Singapore ” by the third quarter of 2021 , he said .
Lee said the vaccines will be given on a voluntary basis and will be free for citizens and long-term residents .
He said he and some older Cabinet ministers will be vaccinated early as a demonstration that the vaccines are @ @ @ @ @ @ @ healthcare workers and front-line personnel , as well as the elderly and other vulnerable people , before the rest of the population , he said .
“ Now that vaccines are becoming available , we can see light at the end of the tunnel , ” Lee said .
“ The more of us are vaccinated , the harder it will be for the virus to spread , and the safer we will all be as a society , ” he said , adding that it will bolster Singapore ‘ s economic recovery @ @ @ @ @ @ @ COVID-19 vaccination said in a separate statement that the Pfizer vaccine will not be given to pregnant women , immuno-compromised persons and those under the age of 16 until more data are available .
Coronavirus cases in Singapore have declined to below 10 daily .
The city-state has recorded 58,320 cases and 29 deaths .

SINGAPORE (AP) - Singapore has approved the use of Pfizer’s coronavirus vaccine, and the first shipment will arrive by the end of this month, Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong said Monday.
Lee said Singapore, with a budget of over 1 billion Singapore dollars ($750 million) for vaccines, has “placed multiple bets” by signing advance purchase agreements with vaccine makers including Pfizer and its German partner BioNTech, Moderna Inc. and China’s Sinovac.
“After studying the scientific evidence and clinical trial data, the Health Sciences Authority has approved the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine for pandemic use,” Lee said in a televised speech.
“We also expect other vaccines to arrive in coming months. If all goes according to plan, we will have enough vaccines for everyone in Singapore” by the third quarter of 2021, he said.
Lee said the vaccines will be given on a voluntary basis and will be free for citizens and long-term residents. He said he and some older Cabinet ministers will be vaccinated early as a demonstration that the vaccines are safe.
Priority will be given to healthcare workers and front-line personnel, as well as the elderly and other vulnerable people, before the rest of the population, he said.
“Now that vaccines are becoming available, we can see light at the end of the tunnel,” Lee said.
“The more of us are vaccinated, the harder it will be for the virus to spread, and the safer we will all be as a society,” he said, adding that it will bolster Singapore’s economic recovery.
Singapore’s expert committee on COVID-19 vaccination said in a separate statement that the Pfizer vaccine will not be given to pregnant women, immuno-compromised persons and those under the age of 16 until more data are available.
Coronavirus cases in Singapore have declined to below 10 daily. The city-state has recorded 58,320 cases and 29 deaths.


washingtontimes--2020-12-14--AP Interview: Tokyo leader: Vaccines give hope for Olympics

TOKYO ( AP ) - The growing availability of coronavirus vaccines is a “ ray of hope ” for hosting the Olympics next summer , Tokyo Gov .
Yuriko Koike said Monday as Japan struggles with a new surge in infections .
As host city , Tokyo will do “ whatever it takes ” to successfully achieve the games , which were postponed for a year until next July because of the pandemic , Koike said in an interview with The Associated Press .
“ A few vaccines are now being distributed and are actually being used .
It ’ @ @ @ @ @ @ @ she said , citing the beginning of vaccinations last week in Britain and the distribution of vaccines starting this week in the United States .
“ I expect this will also become a ray of hope for the Olympics and Paralympics , ” Koike said .
Japan ’ s government has said it will secure enough vaccines to cover all citizens by next June .
Even without a mandatory lockdown , Japan survived earlier coronavirus surges better than the U.S. and most countries in Europe .
It issued non-binding stay-home and non-essential business @ @ @ @ @ @ @ still managed to slow the pace of infections .
During a second surge during the summer , Tokyo asked businesses to close early and urged residents to wear masks and follow other basic preventive measures .
“ Japanese people are very cooperative , but by now they are getting complacent about the situation after repeated similar requests , ” Koike said .
“ I ’ m worried.
” Infections have climbed higher as the central government has delayed taking stronger action to avoid further damaging the economy .
Serious COVID-19 cases are steadily @ @ @ @ @ @ @ care for other patients , experts say .
Japan has reported 179,653 cases nationwide , including 2,585 deaths , as of Sunday .
Tokyo , where the daily tally exceeded 600 last week , reported 305 new cases on Monday .
Koike said it is the central government ’ s responsibility to protect citizens ’ health and safety , but there is a perception gap between it and the Tokyo government .
“ So I do all I can to protect the health and lives of the residents in Tokyo , ” she @ @ @ @ @ @ @ s government has pushed a discount travel campaign to support the tourism industry , ignoring warnings from experts that economic and social activity should be scaled down .
On Monday , Suga finally announced a decision to halt the GoTo tourism campaign nationwide from Dec. 28 to Jan. 11 during the holiday travel season .
Suga also announced plans to compensate bars that cooperate with early-closure requests and provide special allowances for medical workers for their contribution to the fight against the coronavirus .
Recent media surveys show the public support rating for @ @ @ @ @ @ @ about 50 % from about 70 % in the three months since he took office , with many respondents citing concerns about his handling of the coronavirus .

TOKYO (AP) - The growing availability of coronavirus vaccines is a “ray of hope” for hosting the Olympics next summer, Tokyo Gov. Yuriko Koike said Monday as Japan struggles with a new surge in infections.
As host city, Tokyo will do “whatever it takes” to successfully achieve the games, which were postponed for a year until next July because of the pandemic, Koike said in an interview with The Associated Press.
“A few vaccines are now being distributed and are actually being used. It’s a ray of hope,” she said, citing the beginning of vaccinations last week in Britain and the distribution of vaccines starting this week in the United States.
“I expect this will also become a ray of hope for the Olympics and Paralympics,” Koike said.
Japan’s government has said it will secure enough vaccines to cover all citizens by next June.
Even without a mandatory lockdown, Japan survived earlier coronavirus surges better than the U.S. and most countries in Europe. It issued non-binding stay-home and non-essential business closure requests in April and May and still managed to slow the pace of infections.
During a second surge during the summer, Tokyo asked businesses to close early and urged residents to wear masks and follow other basic preventive measures.
“Japanese people are very cooperative, but by now they are getting complacent about the situation after repeated similar requests,” Koike said. “I’m worried.”
Infections have climbed higher as the central government has delayed taking stronger action to avoid further damaging the economy. Serious COVID-19 cases are steadily rising, burdening hospitals and affecting medical care for other patients, experts say.
Japan has reported 179,653 cases nationwide, including 2,585 deaths, as of Sunday. Tokyo, where the daily tally exceeded 600 last week, reported 305 new cases on Monday.
Koike said it is the central government’s responsibility to protect citizens’ health and safety, but there is a perception gap between it and the Tokyo government. “So I do all I can to protect the health and lives of the residents in Tokyo,” she said.
Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga’s government has pushed a discount travel campaign to support the tourism industry, ignoring warnings from experts that economic and social activity should be scaled down. On Monday, Suga finally announced a decision to halt the GoTo tourism campaign nationwide from Dec. 28 to Jan. 11 during the holiday travel season.
Suga also announced plans to compensate bars that cooperate with early-closure requests and provide special allowances for medical workers for their contribution to the fight against the coronavirus.
Recent media surveys show the public support rating for Suga’s government has plunged to about 50% from about 70% in the three months since he took office, with many respondents citing concerns about his handling of the coronavirus.
___
Follow Mari Yamaguchi on Twitter://www.twitter.com/mariyamaguchi


washingtontimes--2020-12-14--Biden aides hope Electoral College vote is GOP turning point

WILMINGTON , Del .
( AP ) - Joe Biden ‘ s aides have a message for President Donald Trump and his supporters : It ’ s long past time to move on .
With the Electoral College set to formally elect Biden as president on Monday , his aides say they hope Republicans will consider their own long-term interests ( and the country ’ s ) , accept Trump ’ s defeat and focus their attention on fighting the coronavirus pandemic and staving off economic tumult .
Republicans , by and large , have stood by Trump as he @ @ @ @ @ @ @ rigged election , and they show no signs they ’ ll give Biden the semblance of a honeymoon period .
Biden will come to power with a narrowly divided Senate - next month ’ s runoff elections in Georgia will decide who will control the Senate - and a thinned Democratic majority in the House as Republicans picked up seats even as Trump lost .
But aides are pointing to Biden ’ s strong approval numbers , tallying a record 81 million votes and an electorate worn by the pandemic in their attempt @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Donilon , a senior adviser to Biden , said the American electorate is looking for Democrats and Republicans to get in sync .
“ The agenda that the president-elect is putting forward is very much at the forefront of what people want in their lives , ” Donilon said .
“ So , I think the case is going to be that it ’ s going to be in the interest of the country , it ’ s going to be in their own self-interest to get on board and not to get @ @ @ @ @ @ @ case for a mandate , Biden ’ s team points to the president-elect retaking Rust Belt states that helped spring Trump to the White House four years ago as well as wins in Arizona and Georgia - firsts for a Democratic presidential candidate since the 1990s .
Biden also won the popular vote by more than 7 million people , powered by strong showings with women , people of color and independents .
Aides to Biden , who is scheduled to deliver an address Monday evening after the Electoral College votes , say @ @ @ @ @ @ @ and to governing is perhaps easier said than done .
The spotlight on the Electoral College vote process is heightened this year because Trump has refused to concede the election and is pushing forward with baseless allegations of fraud .
“ We have won so many times , at this point , in so many different ways .
We ’ re just excited to keep on winning , ” said Jen O ’ Malley Dillon , Biden ‘ s deputy chief of staff , shrugging off Trump ’ s challenges .
“ ( @ @ @ @ @ @ @ as it takes on a little bit more import than maybe traditionally it does.
” Trump on Sunday continued to sow doubt about the election results and even went so far as to falsely claim that “ Swing States that have found massive VOTER FRAUD , which is all of them , CAN NOT LEGALLY CERTIFY these votes as complete & correct without committing a severely punishable crime.
” On Saturday , thousands of Trump supporters descended on Washington to air grievances about the president ’ s loss .
They skirmished with anti-Trump @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , several stabbings and injuries to police officers , in disturbances hours after the rallies .
And after losing dozens of legal challenges on the state and federal level , Trump is expected to push forward with new litigation this week .
Trump attorney Rudy Giuliani said Sunday that he expects five more lawsuits at the state level .
Meanwhile , Republican Sen. Ron Johnson of Wisconsin is set to hold a hearing Wednesday on election “ irregularities.
” Johnson on Sunday questioned why Congress wasn ’ t informed that the taxes of @ @ @ @ @ @ @ federal investigation during Trump ’ s impeachment trial last year .
The president was acquitted in a Senate trial that centered on Trump ’ s dealings with Ukraine ’ s president and on whether he abused his office by seeking an investigation into the Bidens .
Hunter Biden served on the board of directors of a Ukrainian energy company .
“ I ’ m sympathetic for keeping investigations confidential unless there ’ s an indictment , ” Johnson said on Fox News Channel ’ s “ Sunday Morning Futures.
” “ But when @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the political realm , particularly one that would have affected the impeachment trial of the sitting U.S. president in the U.S. Senate , that should have been relevant information , the fact that they had Hunter Biden ’ s computer that had all these emails back in December 2019.
” The younger Biden said in a statement last week that he just recently learned that he was under investigation .
He also said he committed no wrongdoing .
O ’ Malley Dillon downplayed the notion that the investigation could hamper Biden ’ s @ @ @ @ @ @ @ The president-elect himself has said this is not about his family or Donald Trump ’ s family , ” she said .
“ It is about the American people ’ s families .
And I think we ’ re going to continue to stay focused on the issues that are impacting their daily lives .
”

WILMINGTON, Del. (AP) - President-elect Joe Biden pointedly criticized President Donald Trump on Monday for threatening core principles of democracy even as he told Americans that their form of self-government ultimately “prevailed.”
Speaking from his longtime home of Wilmington, Delaware, on the day that electors nationwide cast votes affirming his victory, Biden was blunt in critiquing the damage done by Trump’s baseless allegations that the contest was stolen. Such arguments have been roundly rejected by judges across the political spectrum, including the justices at the Supreme Court.
Democracy, Biden said, has been “pushed, tested, threatened.” But he said it proved to be “resilient, true, and strong.”
“The flame of democracy was lit in this nation a long time ago,” Biden said. “And we now know that nothing, not even a pandemic or an abuse of power, can extinguish that flame.”
Biden and his team hope that the formal victory in the Electoral College combined with his record-setting 81 million-vote count will help the country unify and accept his presidency. But the challenge facing Biden was evident as many congressional Republicans, including some of the party’s top leaders, refused to officially accept Biden’s win. Trump, meanwhile, shows no sign of conceding.
The president-elect acknowledged an irony in the circumstances, noting that he won with the same number of electoral votes - 306 - as Trump did four years ago. Trump hailed that win as a “landslide.”
“By his own standards, these numbers represent a clear victory then, and I respectfully suggest they do so now,” Biden said.
A candidate needs to win 270 electoral votes to clinch the presidency.
The fact that Biden had to even give such a speech shortly after electors voted to make him the president - a usually routine and even mundane step - shows how extraordinary the post-election period has been, with Trump trying to thwart Biden at every turn.
Despite that, Biden struck a familiar theme of his presidential campaign, pledging to be “a president for all Americans” who will “work just as hard for those of you who didn’t vote for me as I will for those who did.”
“Now it is time to turn the page as we’ve done throughout our history,” he said. “To unite. To heal.”
He said that was the only way the country could overcome the worst health crisis in more than a century, saying that in the face of the pandemic, “we need to work together, give each other a chance and lower the temperature.”
Whether his message will have any effect remains to be seen. Top Republicans have mostly continued to back Trump and his unsubstantiated claims of a rigged election and, even once Biden takes power, are unlikely to give him any of the traditional honeymoon period.
Biden recalled that one of his jobs as vice president four years ago was to formally recognize Trump’s electoral victory in the Senate after 2016, and he said he expected the same process to occur this time - saluting the small number of GOP senators who have acknowledged his victory. But there are many other leading Republicans who have continued to side with Trump.
And after losing dozens of legal challenges on the state and federal level, Trump is expected to push forward with new litigation this week. Trump attorney Rudy Giuliani says he expects five more lawsuits at the state level.
Even after he takes the White House, Biden faces a narrowly divided Senate. Next month’s runoff elections in Georgia will decide which party controls the chamber. There’s also a thinned Democratic majority in the House as the GOP picked up seats even as Trump lost.
Meanwhile, Republican Sen. Ron Johnson of Wisconsin is set to hold a hearing Wednesday on election “irregularities.” Johnson has questioned why Congress wasn’t informed that the taxes of Biden’s son Hunter were under federal investigation during Trump’s impeachment trial last year.
The president was acquitted in a Senate trial that centered on Trump’s dealings with Ukraine’s president and on whether he abused his office by seeking an investigation into the Bidens. Hunter Biden served on the board of directors of a Ukrainian energy company.
The younger Biden said in a statement last week that he just recently learned that he was under investigation. He also said he committed no wrongdoing.
Biden’s deputy chief of staff, Jen O’Malley Dillon, downplayed the notion that the investigation could hamper Biden’s ability to pursue his agenda.
“The president-elect himself has said this is not about his family or Donald Trump’s family,” O’Malley Dillon said. “It is about the American people’s families. And I think we’re going to continue to stay focused on the issues that are impacting their daily lives.”
___
Weissert reported from Washington.


washingtontimes--2020-12-14--China confirms detention of Bloomberg news assistant

BEIJING ( AP ) - China ’ s Foreign Ministry confirmed on Monday that an assistant for the financial news service Bloomberg has been detained on suspicion of activities endangering national security .
Ministry spokesperson Wang Wenbin said Haze Fan ’ s case is currently under investigation and that her “ legitimate rights and interests have all been fully guaranteed.
” Bloomberg issued a report last week saying Fan had been out of contact since Dec. 7 and that it only received word of her detention after days of asking government departments in Beijing and the Chinese Embassy in Washington @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the association of foreign reporters in Beijing have issued statements expressing concern over Fan ’ s detention .
Wang said the EU should “ earnestly respect China ’ s judicial sovereignty and stop making irresponsible remarks.
” China only permits Chinese citizens to work as translators , researchers and assistants for foreign news organizations , not as registered journalists with the right to report independently .
Chinese media outlets are almost entirely state owned and tightly controlled , and the country has long been one of the leading jailers of journalists .
“ @ @ @ @ @ @ @ national Fan is suspected of engaging in criminal activities that endanger the national security of China , and has recently been taken under compulsory measures by the Beijing National Security Bureau according to law , ” Wang told reporters at a daily briefing .
“ The case is currently under investigation in accordance with law , ” Wang said .

BEIJING (AP) - China’s Foreign Ministry confirmed on Monday that an assistant for the financial news service Bloomberg has been detained on suspicion of activities endangering national security.
Ministry spokesperson Wang Wenbin said Haze Fan’s case is currently under investigation and that her “legitimate rights and interests have all been fully guaranteed.”
Bloomberg issued a report last week saying Fan had been out of contact since Dec. 7 and that it only received word of her detention after days of asking government departments in Beijing and the Chinese Embassy in Washington, D.C.
The European Union and the association of foreign reporters in Beijing have issued statements expressing concern over Fan’s detention. Wang said the EU should “earnestly respect China’s judicial sovereignty and stop making irresponsible remarks.”
China only permits Chinese citizens to work as translators, researchers and assistants for foreign news organizations, not as registered journalists with the right to report independently. Chinese media outlets are almost entirely state owned and tightly controlled, and the country has long been one of the leading jailers of journalists.
“As far as I know, Chinese national Fan is suspected of engaging in criminal activities that endanger the national security of China, and has recently been taken under compulsory measures by the Beijing National Security Bureau according to law,” Wang told reporters at a daily briefing.
“The case is currently under investigation in accordance with law,” Wang said.


washingtontimes--2020-12-14--Eswatini leader dies of virus amid new wave in South Africa

JOHANNESBURG ( AP ) - Eswatini prime minister Ambrose Dlamini , who had tested positive for COVID-19 , has died , the government has announced .
The 52-year-old Dlamini , who had been prime minister since 2018 , announced in November that he had tested positive for the virus and was being treated at a hospital in neighboring South Africa .
The government of Eswatini , the country formerly known as Swaziland , announced Dlamini ’ s death on Twitter .
Eswatini , a small mountain kingdom northeast of South Africa , has recorded almost 7,000 confirmed COVID-19 cases and @ @ @ @ @ @ @ a resurgence of COVID-19 and President Cyril Ramaphosa is scheduled to address the nation Monday evening on the country ’ s response to the new wave of the disease .
South Africa recorded 7,999 new infections and 170 deaths in the last 24 hours , bringing its total number of cases to 860,964 .
The country has already imposed tougher restrictions in the metropolitan area of Nelson Mandela Bay in the Eastern Cape province , which has been identified as a virus hotspot .
These restrictions include limited hours for the sale of @ @ @ @ @ @ @ four provinces of Western Cape , Eastern Cape , Kwazulu-Natal and Gauteng have been identified as key drivers of new infections .
There are concerns that new infections will increase drastically during the upcoming festive season , as South Africans traditionally travel to visit families .

JOHANNESBURG (AP) - South African President Cyril Ramaphosa has announced the closure of many of the country’s beaches throughout the festive season to fight a resurgence of new COVID-19 infections.
All beaches will be closed from Dec. 16 until January in the Eastern Cape province and the Garden Route tourist area in the Western Cape province. In Kwazulu-Natal province, beaches will be closed on public holidays including Christmas and New Year’s Day.
Ramaphosa said there are concerns that new infections in the country’s second wave of the virus are increasing rapidly and may overwhelm some hospitals.
“If we do not do things differently this festive season, we will greet the New Year not with joy, but with sorrow,” said Ramaphosa in a televised address to the nation on Monday night. “Many of our friends, relatives, and co-workers will be infected, some of them will get severely ill and some, tragically, will die.”
New infections have been blamed on people’s failure to wear masks and practice social distancing, while large gatherings, especially parties, have been identified as superspreader events.
Ramaphosa also announced an extended nighttime curfew and increased restrictions on the sales of alcohol, which will now only be sold from Monday through Thursday between 10 a.m. and 6 p.m. He extended a nighttime curfew from 11 p.m. until 4 a.m. and restaurants and bars must close at 10 p.m.
South Africa has recorded 7,999 new infections and 170 deaths in the last 24 hours, bringing the cumulative number of confirmed cases since the virus outbreak to 860,964.
The upcoming holiday season poses a risk of more infections as many people travel across provinces for vacations and visiting their families, said Ramaphosa.
He said his government wants to contain the virus without imposing restrictions that may hurt the economy.
More than 2 million people lost their jobs during the country’s earlier hard lockdown in April and May, according to the country’s statistics authority, StatsSA.
According to Ramaphosa, the country expects to receive its first delivery of a COVID-19 vaccine that should cover 10% of the country’s 60 million population in the early part of 2021.
In neighboring Eswatini, Prime Minister Ambrose Dlamini, who had tested positive for COVID-19, has died, the kingdom’s government has announced.
The 52-year-old Dlamini, who had been prime minister since 2018, announced in November that he had tested positive for the virus and was being treated at a hospital in neighboring South Africa.
The government of Eswatini, the country formerly known as Swaziland, announced Dlamini’s death on Twitter.
Eswatini, a small mountain kingdom northeast of South Africa, has recorded almost 7,000 confirmed COVID-19 cases and 127 deaths.


washingtontimes--2020-12-14--China caps salaries in bid for 'sustainable" soccer growth

BEIJING ( AP ) - The Chinese Football Association is capping salaries for domestic and foreign players in its top-flight Super League in what it describes as a bid to maintain “ sustainable growth ” over the long term .
Also under the new rules issued Monday , all professional teams will be barred from showing the names of corporate sponsors on their playing shirts or provide any information on the jerseys other than the club name and its home city or province .
All but one of the 16 teams in the league uses its sponsor as part of @ @ @ @ @ @ @ expected to be implemented before the start of the 2021 season .
Chinese soccer authorities are attempting to improve the quality of play in the domestic competition while cutting down the influence of owners and sponsors seeking publicity without committing to develop the sport .
High salaries offered to Chinese and foreign talent are seen as a major drain on the finances of clubs that draw less from ticket sales and marketing strategies employed by clubs in Europe and Japan .
For the 2021-2023 seasons , salaries for Chinese players can not exceed @ @ @ @ @ @ @ and top salaries for foreign players will be capped at 3 million euros ( $ 3.6 million ) , the CFA said in a statement .
Media reports said some Chinese players may have their pay slashed by as much as half .
Clubs will be allowed to spend no more than 10 million euros ( $ 12 million ) on foreign players and all outside income earned by players must be declared to the association , the statement said .
That will make it difficult for some clubs to retain all their @ @ @ @ @ @ @ ’ s highest salaries .
Brazilian midfielder Oscar left Chelsea after four years in the English Premier League to join Shanghai SIPG in 2017 in one of the high-profile transfers that highlighted the growing influence of the Chinese league around that time .
He is reported to be earning 450,000 euros ( $ 545,000 ) a week .
The CFA said it was seeking to “ resolutely block money football and an investment bubble while ensuring the health and sustainable development of our teams and our league.
” China is a sporting power @ @ @ @ @ @ @ perennial underperformer in men ’ s soccer , having only qualified once for the World Cup .
Chinese President Xi Jinping has promoted a national program of building China into a world football power through the expansion of youth training programs , but the Super League ’ s reliance on high-profile foreign players and the lack of overseas experience among national team players are seen as slowing that progress .
The CFA ’ s new restrictions come at the end of a season truncated by the COVID-19 pandemic and the absence of Chinese @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the Asian Champions League .

BEIJING (AP) - The Chinese Football Association is capping salaries for domestic and foreign players in its top-flight Super League in what it describes as a bid to maintain “sustainable growth” over the long term.
Also under the new rules issued Monday, all professional teams will be barred from showing the names of corporate sponsors on their playing shirts or provide any information on the jerseys other than the club name and its home city or province. All but one of the 16 teams in the league uses its sponsor as part of its official name. The changes are expected to be implemented before the start of the 2021 season.
Chinese soccer authorities are attempting to improve the quality of play in the domestic competition while cutting down the influence of owners and sponsors seeking publicity without committing to develop the sport.
High salaries offered to Chinese and foreign talent are seen as a major drain on the finances of clubs that draw less from ticket sales and marketing strategies employed by clubs in Europe and Japan.
For the 2021-2023 seasons, salaries for Chinese players cannot exceed 5 million yuan ($765,000) and top salaries for foreign players will be capped at 3 million euros ($3.6 million), the CFA said in a statement. Media reports said some Chinese players may have their pay slashed by as much as half.
Clubs will be allowed to spend no more than 10 million euros ($12 million) on foreign players and all outside income earned by players must be declared to the association, the statement said.
That will make it difficult for some clubs to retain all their star imports, who command the league’s highest salaries.
Brazilian midfielder Oscar left Chelsea after four years in the English Premier League to join Shanghai SIPG in 2017 in one of the high-profile transfers that highlighted the growing influence of the Chinese league around that time. He is reported to be earning 450,000 euros ($545,000) a week.
The CFA said it was seeking to “resolutely block money football and an investment bubble while ensuring the health and sustainable development of our teams and our league.”
China is a sporting power in summer Olympic sports, but a perennial underperformer in men’s soccer, having only qualified once for the World Cup.
Chinese President Xi Jinping has promoted a national program of building China into a world football power through the expansion of youth training programs, but the Super League’s reliance on high-profile foreign players and the lack of overseas experience among national team players are seen as slowing that progress.
The CFA’s new restrictions come at the end of a season truncated by the COVID-19 pandemic and the absence of Chinese teams from the eastern conference final in the Asian Champions League.
___
More AP soccer: https://apnews.com/Soccer and https://twitter.com/AP_Sports
.


washingtontimes--2020-12-14--1 dead, dozens wounded in tribal clashes in southern Tunisia

TUNIS , Tunisia ( AP ) - A man was killed and dozens of people wounded , two seriously , in tribal clashes on Sunday that broke out over a land dispute in southern Tunisia , according to a hospital in the town of Medenine .
The inhabitants of the governorates of Medenine and Kebiliwere were fighting over the ownership of an area called Aïn Sekhouna , which is located between the two and boasts a hot spring in the middle of the desert .
The governorates are close to the Libyan and Algerian borders .
According to the official @ @ @ @ @ @ @ by military units used tear gas to disperse those involved , many of whom were armed with sticks and shotguns .
The security forces union reported 83 wounded who were transferred to nearby hospitals using ambulances from surrounding areas .
TAP reported that four security officers were injured in the clashes and a security vehicle ransacked .
Prime Minister Hichem Mechichi gave instructions to the ministers of the interior and of defense to hold a crisis meeting in the hope of finding a solution to the dispute “ by legal means .
”

TUNIS, Tunisia (AP) - A man was killed and dozens of people wounded, two seriously, in tribal clashes on Sunday that broke out over a land dispute in southern Tunisia, according to a hospital in the town of Medenine.
The inhabitants of the governorates of Medenine and Kebiliwere were fighting over the ownership of an area called Aïn Sekhouna, which is located between the two and boasts a hot spring in the middle of the desert. The governorates are close to the Libyan and Algerian borders.
According to the official TAP news agency, security forces backed by military units used tear gas to disperse those involved, many of whom were armed with sticks and shotguns.
The security forces union reported 83 wounded who were transferred to nearby hospitals using ambulances from surrounding areas. TAP reported that four security officers were injured in the clashes and a security vehicle ransacked.
Prime Minister Hichem Mechichi gave instructions to the ministers of the interior and of defense to hold a crisis meeting in the hope of finding a solution to the dispute “by legal means.”


washingtontimes--2020-12-14--China's Alibaba, Tencent unit fined under anti-monopoly law

HONG KONG ( AP ) — China ’ s market regulator on Monday said it fined Alibaba Group and a Tencent Holdings-backed company for failing to seek approval before proceeding with some acquisitions .
It also is launching a review of a merger of two online streaming platforms in the latest tightening of controls over the internet sector .
In a statement , China ’ s State Administration for Market Regulation said Monday that it fined Alibaba 500,000 yuan ( $ 76,500 ) for increasing its stake in department store company Intime Retail Group to 73.79 % in 2017 without @ @ @ @ @ @ @ online publisher and e-book company spun off by Tencent , was fined the same amount for also not seeking approval for its acquisition of New Classics Media .
Separately , Shenzhen Hive Box , backed by Chinese courier firm SF Express , was censured over its acquisition of China Post Smart Logistics .
China ’ s market regulator is also reviewing the merger of two major Chinese game streaming platforms , DouYu International Holdings and Huya Inc. Tencent , the world ’ s largest gaming company that owns stakes in both firms , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ controlled 67.5 % of voting shares in the merged business .
The moves come amid stepped up scrutiny of monopolistic behavior by internet companies .
Last month , China released draft regulations to clamp down on anti-competitive practices in the industry , such as signing exclusive agreements with merchants and the use of subsidies to squeeze out competitors .
“ We hope that operators realize that the anti-monopoly law applies to all entities , ” the regulator said in a separate statement .
“ Platform companies are not outside the anti-monopoly law .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ anti-monopoly laws and regulations and maintain fair market competition , ” it said .
Stock prices for Alibaba and Tencent both fell about 2.6 % on Monday .
Alibaba had acquired InTime Retail as it sought to combine e-commerce and offline retail , while China Literature bought New Classics Media to expand its content offerings .
Both companies did not immediately respond to requests for comment .
China ’ s tightening control of internet companies mirrors a similar focus on technology companies in the U.S. , where lawmakers and regulators are probing companies @ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
Earlier this month , the Federal Trade Commission accused Facebook of buying up its rivals to quash them and wipe out competition .
The FTC called for Facebook ’ s acquisitions of WhatsApp and Instagram to be unwound .

HONG KONG (AP) — China’s market regulator on Monday said it fined Alibaba Group and a Tencent Holdings-backed company for failing to seek approval before proceeding with some acquisitions.
It also is launching a review of a merger of two online streaming platforms in the latest tightening of controls over the internet sector.
In a statement, China’s State Administration for Market Regulation said Monday that it fined Alibaba 500,000 yuan ($76,500) for increasing its stake in department store company Intime Retail Group to 73.79% in 2017 without seeking approval.
China Literature, an online publisher and e-book company spun off by Tencent, was fined the same amount for also not seeking approval for its acquisition of New Classics Media. Separately, Shenzhen Hive Box, backed by Chinese courier firm SF Express, was censured over its acquisition of China Post Smart Logistics.
China’s market regulator is also reviewing the merger of two major Chinese game streaming platforms, DouYu International Holdings and Huya Inc. Tencent, the world’s largest gaming company that owns stakes in both firms, is leading the deal and would have controlled 67.5% of voting shares in the merged business.
The moves come amid stepped up scrutiny of monopolistic behavior by internet companies. Last month, China released draft regulations to clamp down on anti-competitive practices in the industry, such as signing exclusive agreements with merchants and the use of subsidies to squeeze out competitors.
“We hope that operators realize that the anti-monopoly law applies to all entities,” the regulator said in a separate statement.
“Platform companies are not outside the anti-monopoly law. Internet platform companies should strictly abide by anti-monopoly laws and regulations and maintain fair market competition,” it said.
Stock prices for Alibaba and Tencent both fell about 2.6% on Monday.
Alibaba had acquired InTime Retail as it sought to combine e-commerce and offline retail, while China Literature bought New Classics Media to expand its content offerings.
Both companies did not immediately respond to requests for comment.
China’s tightening control of internet companies mirrors a similar focus on technology companies in the U.S., where lawmakers and regulators are probing companies like Facebook and Google over anti-competitive practices. Earlier this month, the Federal Trade Commission accused Facebook of buying up its rivals to quash them and wipe out competition. The FTC called for Facebook’s acquisitions of WhatsApp and Instagram to be unwound.


washingtontimes--2020-12-14--US Embassy says Sudan no longer on list of terror sponsors

CAIRO ( AP ) — The U.S. Embassy in Khartoum said Monday that President Donald Trump ’ s administration has removed Sudan from the U.S. list of state sponsors of terrorism , a move that could help the African country get international loans to revive its battered economy and end its pariah status .
The U.S. Embassy in Khartoum said in a Facebook post that the removal of Sudan was effective as of Monday , and that a notification to that effect , signed by U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo , would be published in the Federal Register .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ has lapsed .
The designation of Sudan as a state sponsor of terrorism dates back to the 1990s , when Sudan briefly hosted al Qaeda leader Osama bin Laden and other wanted militants .
Sudan was also believed to have served as a pipeline for Iran to supply weapons to Palestinian militants in the Gaza Strip .
Delisting Sudan is also a key incentive for the government in Khartoum to normalize relations with Israel .
The two countries have agreed to have full diplomatic ties , making Sudan the third Arab state — @ @ @ @ @ @ @ — to move to normalize relations with Israel this year .
After Sudan , Morocco also established diplomatic ties with Israel .
Sudan is on a fragile transition to democracy following an uprising that led to the military ’ s ouster of former autocratic President Omar al-Bashir in April 2019 .
The county is now ruled by a joint military and civilian government that seeks better ties with Washington and the West .
In October , Trump announced that he would remove Sudan from the list if it follows through on its pledge @ @ @ @ @ @ @ terror victims and their families .
Sudan has agreed to pay compensation for victims of the 1998 bombings of the U.S. Embassies in Kenya and Tanzania , attacks carried out by al-Qaida while bin Laden was living in Sudan .
According to the October announcement , once the compensation money was deposited , Trump was to sign an order removing Sudan from the terrorism list on which it has languished under heavy American sanctions for 27 years .
Since Trump ’ s announcement , the Sudanese government also inked an agreement with the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ compensation claims being filed against the African country in U.S. courts .
That deal restores in U.S. courts what is known as sovereign immunity to the Sudanese government .
It would however enter into force after U.S. Congress passes legislation needed to implement the agreement .
Khartoum has said the $ 335 million in compensation money would be held in an escrow account until then .

CAIRO (AP) — The U.S. Embassy in Khartoum said Monday that President Donald Trump’s administration has removed Sudan from the U.S. list of state sponsors of terrorism, a move that could help the African country get international loans to revive its battered economy and end its pariah status.
The U.S. Embassy in Khartoum said in a Facebook post that the removal of Sudan was effective as of Monday, and that a notification to that effect, signed by U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo, would be published in the Federal Register. It said the 45-day congressional notification period has lapsed.
The designation of Sudan as a state sponsor of terrorism dates back to the 1990s, when Sudan briefly hosted al Qaeda leader Osama bin Laden and other wanted militants. Sudan was also believed to have served as a pipeline for Iran to supply weapons to Palestinian militants in the Gaza Strip.
Delisting Sudan is also a key incentive for the government in Khartoum to normalize relations with Israel. The two countries have agreed to have full diplomatic ties, making Sudan the third Arab state — after the United Arab Emirates and Bahrain — to move to normalize relations with Israel this year. After Sudan, Morocco also established diplomatic ties with Israel.
Sudan is on a fragile transition to democracy following an uprising that led to the military’s ouster of former autocratic President Omar al-Bashir in April 2019. The county is now ruled by a joint military and civilian government that seeks better ties with Washington and the West.
In October, Trump announced that he would remove Sudan from the list if it follows through on its pledge to pay $335 million to American terror victims and their families. Sudan has agreed to pay compensation for victims of the 1998 bombings of the U.S. Embassies in Kenya and Tanzania, attacks carried out by al-Qaida while bin Laden was living in Sudan.
According to the October announcement, once the compensation money was deposited, Trump was to sign an order removing Sudan from the terrorism list on which it has languished under heavy American sanctions for 27 years.
Since Trump’s announcement, the Sudanese government also inked an agreement with the U.S. that could effectively stop any future compensation claims being filed against the African country in U.S. courts.
That deal restores in U.S. courts what is known as sovereign immunity to the Sudanese government. It would however enter into force after U.S. Congress passes legislation needed to implement the agreement. Khartoum has said the $335 million in compensation money would be held in an escrow account until then.


washingtontimes--2020-12-14--EU chief negotiator still sees hope to clinch EU-UK deal

BRUSSELS ( AP ) - European Union chief negotiator Michel Barnier said Monday he still firmly believes that a post-Brexit trade agreement is possible , and whittled down the major outstanding disputes to be settled ahead of the New Year to just two .
Britain , meanwhile , said the negotiations now taking place in Brussels could continue for some time yet and indicated it was not planning to pull the plug on the talks as long as progress was possible .
Barnier said the nine-month negotiations had come down to finding some agreements on fair-competition rules and fishing rights @ @ @ @ @ @ @ legal mechanisms for resolving future disputes .
“ Two conditions are not met yet , ” he said as he entered a meeting to brief the EU ’ s 27 nations on progress in the talks .
He is expected to continue negotiations with his U.K. counterpart , David Frost , later on Monday .
“ This deal , it is still possible , ” he added .
In Britain , Business Secretary Alok Sharma said “ the fact that we ’ re continuing to have these discussion shows that there is an @ @ @ @ @ @ @ ” “ Our intention is not to walk away .
We will continue to talk as long as there is the possibility of reaching a deal , ” he said .
Both sides are teetering on the brink of a no-deal Brexit departure , but have committed to a final push ahead of Jan. 1 , when a transitional period following Britain ’ s Jan. 31 departure from the bloc is to end .
On Sunday , British Prime Minister Boris Johnson and EU Commission President Ursula von der Leyen ditched a self-imposed @ @ @ @ @ @ @ extra mile ” to clinch a post-Brexit trade agreement that would avert New Year ’ s chaos and costs for cross-border commerce .
With traffic jams already hampering access to cross-Channel ports like Dover in England and Calais in northern France , the time pressure should start to have an impact , specifically on London , said Fabian Zuleeg , head of the EPC think tank .
“ We are seeing the lorries queuing .
We are seeing that there are difficulties with some of supply chains .
We ’ re seeing also @ @ @ @ @ @ @ being in a high degree of uncertainty with only a few days to go.
” Zuleeg said .
Barnier is willing to accept British trade with no tariffs or quotas , but only if the U.K respects the rules and regulations that have made the EU ’ s single market of 450 million consumers so successful .
“ Free and fair competition , fair and free , equitable and open , the two go together , ” Barnier said .
Johnson , however , says he does not want British business to be @ @ @ @ @ @ @ if those restrictions would have to be progressively adapted to higher mainland standards in the future .
On fisheries , Barnier demanded “ an agreement that guarantees a reciprocal , I insist , reciprocal access to markets and waters.
” EU fishermen are keen to keep working in British waters and the U.K. seafood industry is extremely dependent on exports into the 27-nation bloc .
Johnson has made fisheries and U.K. control over its waters a key demand in the long saga of Britain ’ s departure from the EU .
It has @ @ @ @ @ @ @ to leave the EU and - in the words of the Brexiteers ’ slogan - “ take back control ” of the U.K. ’ s borders and laws .
Johnson said over the weekend the “ most likely ” outcome was that the two sides wouldn ’ t reach a deal and would trade on World Trade Organization terms , with the tariffs and barriers that would bring .
But after Barnier briefed the ambassadors of the EU nations , one EU diplomat said there might be a narrow path to an agreement @ @ @ @ @ @ @ remaining hurdles in the next few days.
” The official spoke on condition of anonymity because the talks were still ongoing .
Follow all AP stories on the Brexit trade talks at https : //apnews.com/Brexit

BRUSSELS (AP) - European Union chief negotiator Michel Barnier said Monday he still firmly believes that a post-Brexit trade agreement is possible, and whittled down the major outstanding disputes to be settled ahead of the New Year to just two.
Britain, meanwhile, said the negotiations now taking place in Brussels could continue for some time yet and indicated it was not planning to pull the plug on the talks as long as progress was possible.
Barnier said the nine-month negotiations had come down to finding some agreements on fair-competition rules and fishing rights, no longer mentioning the issue of legal mechanisms for resolving future disputes.
“Two conditions are not met yet,” he said as he entered a meeting to brief the EU’s 27 nations on progress in the talks. He is expected to continue negotiations with his U.K. counterpart, David Frost, later on Monday.
“This deal, it is still possible,” he added.
In Britain, Business Secretary Alok Sharma said “the fact that we’re continuing to have these discussion shows that there is an opportunity to try and make some progress.”
“Our intention is not to walk away. We will continue to talk as long as there is the possibility of reaching a deal,” he said.
Both sides are teetering on the brink of a no-deal Brexit departure, but have committed to a final push ahead of Jan. 1, when a transitional period following Britain’s Jan. 31 departure from the bloc is to end.
On Sunday, British Prime Minister Boris Johnson and EU Commission President Ursula von der Leyen ditched a self-imposed deadline and promised to “go the extra mile” to clinch a post-Brexit trade agreement that would avert New Year’s chaos and costs for cross-border commerce.
With traffic jams already hampering access to cross-Channel ports like Dover in England and Calais in northern France, the time pressure should start to have an impact, specifically on London, said Fabian Zuleeg, head of the EPC think tank.
“We are seeing the lorries queuing. We are seeing that there are difficulties with some of supply chains. We’re seeing also that business is extremely unhappy about still being in a high degree of uncertainty with only a few days to go.” Zuleeg said.
Barnier is willing to accept British trade with no tariffs or quotas, but only if the U.K respects the rules and regulations that have made the EU’s single market of 450 million consumers so successful.
“Free and fair competition, fair and free, equitable and open, the two go together,” Barnier said.
Johnson, however, says he does not want British business to be hemmed in by EU restrictions, especially if those restrictions would have to be progressively adapted to higher mainland standards in the future.
On fisheries, Barnier demanded “an agreement that guarantees a reciprocal, I insist, reciprocal access to markets and waters.” EU fishermen are keen to keep working in British waters and the U.K. seafood industry is extremely dependent on exports into the 27-nation bloc.
Johnson has made fisheries and U.K. control over its waters a key demand in the long saga of Britain’s departure from the EU. It has been four-and-a-half years since Britons voted narrowly to leave the EU and - in the words of the Brexiteers’ slogan - “take back control” of the U.K.’s borders and laws.
Johnson said over the weekend the “most likely” outcome was that the two sides wouldn’t reach a deal and would trade on World Trade Organization terms, with the tariffs and barriers that would bring.
But after Barnier briefed the ambassadors of the EU nations, one EU diplomat said there might be a narrow path to an agreement visible “if negotiators can clear the remaining hurdles in the next few days.” The official spoke on condition of anonymity because the talks were still ongoing.
___
Kelvin Chan contributed from London, Mark Carlson from Brussels
___
Follow all AP stories on the Brexit trade talks at https://apnews.com/Brexit
J


washingtontimes--2020-12-14--India arrests top TV executive over alleged ratings fraud

SRINAGAR , India ( AP ) - Indian police have arrested the chief executive officer of a media group that owns a polarizing television news channel on charges of rigging the ratings system , a major component in determining what a channel can charge advertisers .
Police arrested Vikas Khanchandani , the chief executive of ARG Outlier Media , on Sunday at his home in Mumbai , India ’ s financial capital , Republic TV , which is owned by ARG , announced during a broadcast .
Republic TV , which broadcasts in English and Hindi , aggressively supports Prime @ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
Republic TV denounced the arrest .
“ I know he will go in and come out with his head held high , ” the news channel ’ s co-founder , Arnab Goswami , said of Khanchandani on his firebrand nightly show .
The arrest is part of a police investigation that began in October into some TV channels in the western state of Maharashtra , of which Mumbai is the capital , over accusations that they rig the ratings system .
Khanchandani had also been questioned by police earlier .
Experts say @ @ @ @ @ @ @ between Republic TV and the local administration in Maharashtra , where the coalition of governing parties resisted efforts by Modi ’ s party to form an alliance in the state .
Last month , police arrested Goswami at his Mumbai home and charged him with abetting suicide in connection with the 2018 deaths of an interior designer and the designer ’ s mother .
Multiple senior leaders of Modi ’ s Hindu-nationalist Bharatiya Janata Party and ministers were quick to condemn Goswami ’ s arrest .
The Supreme Court later intervened and granted @ @ @ @ @ @ @ imprisonment .
Goswami has also been charged in two other cases with inciting communal tensions and promoting hatred between religious groups .
He has denied all the charges .
India has one of the world ’ s most vibrant and competitive media environments , with more than 850 news channels broadcasting in multiple languages .
But over the years , the industry has faced a crisis of credibility .
Television debates among its commentators have become increasingly strident and shrill .
Many powerful television news anchors , known to support Modi and his @ @ @ @ @ @ @ and chaotic debates in which shouting , screaming and name-calling have become staples .
Republic TV recently ran exhaustive coverage of the Mumbai police and accused them of mishandling an investigation into the death of Sushant Singh Rajput , a popular actor .
Stories about the actor ’ s death sidelined other critical issues , such as India ’ s stalling economy , the government ’ s coronavirus response and growing hostilities with China over a border dispute .
The result was a surge in ratings for some TV channels , including Republic @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the allegations of falsely bolstering its ratings data .
However , the alleged ratings fraud has led to some Indian advertisers taking never-before-seen measures .
Automobile giant Bajaj Auto and Parle Products , India ’ s biggest biscuit maker , recently said they were pulling advertising from news channels that endorsed toxicity and hate mongering .
The companies did not name the channels , but the move was widely cheered on Indian social media .
It urged the Indian government “ to immediately set up an independent and neutral national agency to investigate @ @ @ @ @ @ @ journalists , executives , and owners of media companies , in order to prevent selective harassment by the State Authority and to ensure the Freedom of Press .
”

SRINAGAR, India (AP) - Indian police have arrested the chief executive officer of a media group that owns a polarizing television news channel on charges of rigging the ratings system, a major component in determining what a channel can charge advertisers.
Police arrested Vikas Khanchandani, the chief executive of ARG Outlier Media, on Sunday at his home in Mumbai, India’s financial capital, Republic TV, which is owned by ARG, announced during a broadcast. Republic TV, which broadcasts in English and Hindi, aggressively supports Prime Minister Narendra Modi and his nationalist policies.
Republic TV denounced the arrest. “I know he will go in and come out with his head held high,” the news channel’s co-founder, Arnab Goswami, said of Khanchandani on his firebrand nightly show.
The arrest is part of a police investigation that began in October into some TV channels in the western state of Maharashtra, of which Mumbai is the capital, over accusations that they rig the ratings system.
Khanchandani had also been questioned by police earlier.
Experts say the arrests are part of a feud between Republic TV and the local administration in Maharashtra, where the coalition of governing parties resisted efforts by Modi’s party to form an alliance in the state.
Last month, police arrested Goswami at his Mumbai home and charged him with abetting suicide in connection with the 2018 deaths of an interior designer and the designer’s mother.
Multiple senior leaders of Modi’s Hindu-nationalist Bharatiya Janata Party and ministers were quick to condemn Goswami’s arrest. The Supreme Court later intervened and granted him bail after a week’s imprisonment.
Goswami has also been charged in two other cases with inciting communal tensions and promoting hatred between religious groups. He has denied all the charges.
India has one of the world’s most vibrant and competitive media environments, with more than 850 news channels broadcasting in multiple languages. But over the years, the industry has faced a crisis of credibility. Television debates among its commentators have become increasingly strident and shrill.
Many powerful television news anchors, known to support Modi and his right-leaning administration, often indulge in rancorous and chaotic debates in which shouting, screaming and name-calling have become staples.
Republic TV recently ran exhaustive coverage of the Mumbai police and accused them of mishandling an investigation into the death of Sushant Singh Rajput, a popular actor. Stories about the actor’s death sidelined other critical issues, such as India’s stalling economy, the government’s coronavirus response and growing hostilities with China over a border dispute.
The result was a surge in ratings for some TV channels, including Republic TV.
Republic TV has consistently denied the allegations of falsely bolstering its ratings data. However, the alleged ratings fraud has led to some Indian advertisers taking never-before-seen measures.
Automobile giant Bajaj Auto and Parle Products, India’s biggest biscuit maker, recently said they were pulling advertising from news channels that endorsed toxicity and hate mongering. The companies did not name the channels, but the move was widely cheered on Indian social media.
India’s News Broadcasters’ Federation in a statement late Sunday called the arrest “highly disturbing.”
It urged the Indian government “to immediately set up an independent and neutral national agency to investigate into any allegations of professional misconduct by journalists, executives, and owners of media companies, in order to prevent selective harassment by the State Authority and to ensure the Freedom of Press.”


washingtontimes--2020-12-14--Families marry off daughters to ease finances amid COVID-19

KOIDU , Sierra Leone ( AP ) - The man first caught a glimpse of Marie Kamara as she ran with her friends past his house near the village primary school .
Soon after , he proposed to the fifth-grader .
“ I ’ m going to school now .
I don ’ t want to get married and stay in the house , ” she told him .
But the pressures of a pandemic on this remote corner of Sierra Leone were greater than the wishes of a schoolgirl .
Nearby mining operations had slowed with the global economy @ @ @ @ @ @ @ ’ s tailoring shop .
The family needed money .
Her suitor was a poor miner in his mid-20s , but his parents could provide rice for Marie ’ s four sisters and access to a watering hole .
They could pay cash .
Before long , Marie was seated on a floor mat in a new dress as his family presented hers with 500,000 leones ( $ 50 ) inside a calabash bowl along with the traditional kola nut .
“ The day they paid for me was on a Friday and @ @ @ @ @ @ @ stay , ” she says flatly , adding that at least now she will eat twice a day .
Many countries had made progress against traditional and transactional marriages of girls in recent decades , but COVID-19 ’ s economic havoc has caused significant backsliding : The United Nations estimates that hardships resulting from COVID-19 will drive 13 million more girls to marry before the age of 18 .
Though most such marriages take place in secret , Save the Children estimates that this year alone , nearly half a million more girls @ @ @ @ @ @ @ married off worldwide , most in Africa and Asia .
One aid organization said staffers in a remote corner of Sierra Leone overheard a relative offering up a girl as young as 8 for marriage earlier this year .
When chastised , the grandmother later denied doing so .
In most cases , needy parents receive a dowry for their daughter , such as a bit of land or livestock that can provide income , or cash and a promise to take over financial responsibility for the young bride .
The girl , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ chores of her husband ’ s family and often farm work .
This story was produced with the support of the Pulitzer Center on Crisis Reporting .
As the coronavirus spread quickly around the world , so too did financial hardship .
India ’ s harsh lockdown to contain the virus in late March caused millions of impoverished migrants to lose their jobs .
With schools closed and pressure on household finances mounting , marrying off young girls has become a more viable option for reducing expenses .
The ChildLine India counted 5,214 @ @ @ @ @ @ @ between March and June 2020 across India .
This is a vast undercount , the organization says , as the majority of cases are not reported .
Intervention is only sometimes effective at preventing the marriages , even where they are illegal .
Child protection authorities in Bangladesh said they received an 8:30 p.m. call back in June warning that a child marriage was to take place within the hour .
As soon as the officials arrived the groom and his family ran away .
The family said they were desperate because the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the COVID-19 crisis , but promised not to go ahead with the wedding .
Then they simply waited for officials to leave and held the ceremony at two in the morning .
In Sierra Leone , the rate of marriage under 18 had dropped from 56 % in 2006 to 39 % in 2017 - a major achievement in the eyes of child protection activists .
Since the pandemic started , though , most marriages don ’ t even include a ceremony at the local mosque or church : Parents simply accept suitors @ @ @ @ @ @ @ to the groom ’ s home , traditional leaders say .
The willingness to sacrifice a daughter underscores the hard lives many young girls have in this part of Africa .
They are largely seen as household help as children , sent out to gather firewood or water at sunrise , and often the last to eat at mealtime , until they are sent to join their husbands to perform the same chores and more .
Kadiatu Mansaray , now 15 , can ’ t be sure just how much money was offered @ @ @ @ @ @ @ mother : She was crying too hard at the ceremony to see straight .
“ I was not ready to get married .
I wanted to learn something first , ” she says .
The divorce came as swiftly as the marriage .
A month after leaving her husband , Kadiatu ’ s left eye is still blackened from his last beating .
Her offense , he said , was sharing their limited food with others .
On rare occasions , some teenagers manage to escape early marriage with the help of supportive @ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
Naomi Mondeh was just 15 and had only finished the fifth grade when her parents said that they could no longer afford her schooling .
A man from neighboring Liberia working in the timber trade offered the cash-strapped family a 50-kilogram bag of rice for her .
“ They said : ‘ Naomi , you know our situation now .
We do not have anything .
And there is a man who wants to marry you and help you , ’ ” she recalled .
“ They told me that if I @ @ @ @ @ @ @ care of me anymore.
” Naomi didn ’ t know his age , or the fact he already had one wife .
After marrying , her husband often would leave her alone with no money for food .
In November she managed to escape by motorcycle taxi to Koidu , the largest nearby town , where an aunt was willing to take her in .
Her parents said she can stay for now while they try to work things out .
Naomi is resolute , though , that she is done with her @ @ @ @ @ @ @ will make me to return to him again because there will be more suffering for me , ” she said .
“ I will stand firm to not go back.
” Associated Press writers Biswajeet Banerjee in Lucknow , India and Julhas Alam in Dhaka , Bangladesh contributed to this report

KOIDU, Sierra Leone (AP) - The man first caught a glimpse of Marie Kamara as she ran with her friends past his house near the village primary school. Soon after, he proposed to the fifth-grader.
“I’m going to school now. I don’t want to get married and stay in the house,” she told him.
But the pressures of a global pandemic on this remote corner of Sierra Leone were greater than the wishes of a schoolgirl. Nearby mining operations had slowed with the global economy. Business fell off at her stepfather’s tailoring shop, where outfits he had sewn now gathered dust. The family needed money.
Her suitor was a small-scale miner in his mid-20s, but his parents could provide rice for Marie’s four younger sisters and access to their watering hole. They could pay cash.
Before long, Marie was seated on a floor mat in a new dress as his family presented hers with 500,000 leones ($50) inside a calabash bowl along with the traditional kola nut.
“The day they paid for me was on a Friday and then I went to his house to stay,” she says flatly, adding that at least now she gets to eat something twice a day.
Many countries had made progress against such traditional and transactional marriages of girls in recent decades, but COVID-19’s economic havoc has caused significant backsliding: The United Nations estimates that hardships resulting from COVID-19 will drive 13 million more girls to marry before the age of 18.
Though most such marriages take place in secret, Save the Children estimates that this year alone, nearly half a million more girls under 18 are at risk of being married off worldwide, most in Africa and Asia, but also in the Middle East. One aid organization said staffers in a remote corner of Sierra Leone overheard a relative offering up a girl as young as 8 for marriage earlier this year. When chastised, the grandmother later denied doing so.
In most cases, needy parents receive a dowry for their daughter - a bit of land or livestock that can provide income, or cash and a promise to take over financial responsibility for the young bride. The girl, in turn, takes on the household chores of her husband’s family and often farm work too.
_____
This story was produced with the support of the Pulitzer Center on Crisis Reporting.
______
In pre-pandemic Jordan, only about 10% of girls were married before the age of 18, a much lower percentage than in Africa or South Asia. The number, though, was greater among Palestinian and Syrian refugees there and they are ever more vulnerable, according to the Girls Not Brides organization.
“Sadly, we have seen an increase in child marriage in refugee camps since the beginning of the pandemic as families struggle to cope,” said Tanya Chapuisat, the UNICEF representative for Jordan.
India’s harsh lockdown to contain the virus in late March caused millions of impoverished migrants to lose their jobs in cities and many journeyed back to the towns and villages they had left in search of work.
With schools closed and pressure on household finances mounting, marrying off young girls has become a more viable option for reducing expenses.
The ChildLine India recorded 5,214 early marriages in just four months of lockdown between March and June 2020 across India, considered to be a vast undercount as the majority of cases are not reported, the organization says.
In one instance, a 13-year-old girl in Uttar Pradesh notified police that her unemployed father intended to forcibly marry her, said officer Narendra Nath Srivastava. The marriage was averted but not before he took 50,000 rupees (about $675) from the boy’s family.
“As the money transaction had taken place, the father was arrested because we feared that the poor girl could have been pushed to child trafficking,” the police officer said.
Similarly, in Pakistan’s southern Sindh province, child protection services reported 17 child marriages that were stopped or later dissolved in the first 10 months of the year.
“It’s a small number compared to reality. We know that,” said Fauzia Masoom, director of Sindh Child Protection Authority.
Intervention is only sometimes effective at preventing the marriages, even where they are illegal. In many countries the legal age to marry is 19, often there are loopholes for parental consent that are used in cases of economic need and early pregnancy to blunt social stigma.
Child protection authorities in Bangladesh said they received an 8:30 p.m. call back in June warning that a child marriage was to take place within the hour.
The girl’s family thought they could use the lockdown to marry off their daughter in secret. As soon as the officials arrived, however, the groom and his family ran away.
Authorities counseled the girl’s family on the consequences of early marriage for their daughter - an end to her education and likely a pregnancy before she is ready. The family said they were desperate because the father was out of work due to the COVID-19 crisis, but promised not to have her marry before she becomes an adult.
Then they simply waited for officials to leave and held the wedding at two in the morning.
—
In Sierra Leone, the rate of marriage under 18 had dropped from 56% in 2006 to 39% in 2017 - a major achievement in the eyes of child protection activists. Then COVID-19 hit, schools closed in March and child marriages accelerated as many village girls who had been attending classes in nearby towns returned home to their parents.
It wasn’t clear when or even if school ever would resume and many parents feared their idle daughters would get pregnant out of wedlock, said Isata Dumbaya, who manages reproductive and maternal health for Partners in Health Sierra Leone.
“When you marry, your father is no longer responsible for feeding you, for paying your fees or doing anything else for you,” she said. “And if you come from a house with a lot of other children, indeed, this is one less person (to feed).”
The willingness to sacrifice a daughter in periods of economic hardship underscores the lives many young girls have in this part of Africa. They are largely seen as household help as children, sent out to gather firewood or water at sunrise, and often the last to be fed at mealtime, until they join their future husbands to perform the same chores and more.
Many of the girls’ mothers were themselves married off as teenagers, said Dumbaya, and see early marriage as normal. “They do not see it as harming their children,” she said.
It’s a mindset that Sierra Leone’s first lady, Fatima Maada Bio, knows first hand and has been working to change with her “Hands Off Our Girls” campaign since her husband took office in 2018.
Bio managed to escape to the United Kingdom as a teenager after learning her father intended to marry her off to someone. A cousin told her father the pair were headed upcountry. Instead, Bio was taken to the airport without his knowledge and did not marry the man chosen for her.
She has made it her life’s work to help other underage girls: “Early marriage in all forms is legalized rape,” she told The Associated Press in a recent interview.
Sex with underage girls is illegal in Sierra Leone, but it is rarely enforced. Police say cases aren’t reported because the families already have agreed to the marriage whether the brides have or not.
While the billboards with the first lady’s image and “Marriage is My Choice; Education is My Right” still line the roadsides, COVID-19 precautions mean the campaign has had to scale back many of its outreach efforts. That means fewer face-to-face meetings with Sierra Leone’s traditional leaders who are known as paramount chiefs, some of whom govern swaths of the country so remote they lack an FM radio signal let alone internet.
“Unfortunately when you can’t congregate, you are limited,” she said. “Not everybody here is conversant with technology where you can say, ‘Let’s have a Zoom meeting.’ And even if you have a community meeting, how many people can log in?”
As a result of the lack of contact and scrutiny, Sierra Leone’s first lady acknowledges that she does not have a complete picture of the rising rate of child marriages.
“I believe that a whole lot of girls would have gone through early marriage silently because movements were restricted and we can’t reach them,” she said.
___
Sierra Leone closed its borders before the country had registered its first COVID-19 case. As a result, the country has seen only 2,434 confirmed cases and 74 deaths. Only 76 of those cases were confirmed in Kono district, but the economic toll here has brought many families already living on the edge to a breaking point.
Underage marriages are now on the rise across ethnic groups and religions, according to interviews with school officials, traditional leaders and the health workers who treat the young and pregnant.
The men are always older, though most child brides don’t even know their husbands’ ages. Some don’t even know their own in a country where few have birth certificates. The schoolgirl Marie thought she might be 16, though most of her classmates are 12.
Gladys Katingor, a midwife in Koidu, has seen girls as young as 13 come in pregnant, some with husbands old enough to be their grandfathers. The nurses here say some of the youngest ones only develop breasts with their pregnancies.
Most of the time since COVID-19 there is not even a marriage ceremony at the local mosque or church: Parents simply accept suitors’ proposals and then deliver their daughters to the groom’s home, paramount chiefs say.
And even when the marriage turns violent, the girl is pressured to stay.
Kadiatu Mansaray, now 15, says her widowed mother pushed her into marriage during the pandemic because of financial hardship and because the teenager’s prospects for a husband already were considered limited as she had gotten pregnant once before at 12. She can’t be sure just how much money was offered as a bride price: She was crying too hard at the ceremony to see straight.
“I was not ready to get married. I wanted to learn something first,” she says.
The man had met her while she was washing clothes in a nearby brook in this forested corner near the border with Guinea. The divorce came as swiftly as the marriage.
A month after leaving her husband, Kadiatu’s left eye is still blackened from his last beating. Her offense, he said, was sharing their limited food with others.
“He told me: ‘We don’t have money to buy food. I asked you not to give food to others and you did anyway.’”
Now she’s back in the village with her mother, walking to the closest village of Kombayendeh on market days to sell oranges.
Early marriages were happening so often in this part of Sierra Leone that traditional leaders in the Lei chiefdom instituted a new bylaw imposing a 500,000 ($50) fine on anyone having sex with a minor, even if the man is married to the child. Yet local leaders in Kombayendeh can’t recall a single fine being issued.
On rare occasions, some teenagers manage to escape early marriage with the help of supportive relatives but that assistance is often temporary.
Naomi Mondeh was just 15 and had only finished the fifth grade when her parents said that they could no longer afford her schooling. A man from neighboring Liberia working in the timber trade offered the cash-strapped family a 50-kilogram bag of rice.
“They came and told me that someone wants my hand in marriage, and they said: ‘Naomi, you know our situation now. We do not have anything. And there is a man who wants to marry you and help you,’” she recalled. “They told me that if I reject him, they would not take care of me anymore.”
Naomi didn’t know his age, or that he already had one wife. Soon she was competing for attention and money with another woman. Her husband often would leave her alone with no money for food. Only through the generosity of neighbors could she eat during his long absences.
She complained bitterly to her parents, but her fate was sealed.
“They said: ‘Your husband already married you, so you must be patient.’ But I told them that I can’t be patient with this kind of marriage, this type of forced marriage that you put me into, I can’t be patient with it.”
Even amidst the rainy season when roads turn to sludge, isolating her village from the rest of the world, Naomi was able to escape in November by motorcycle taxi to Koidu, the largest nearby town, where an aunt was willing to take her in.
Only now her parents know where she is. They have told her she can stay while they try to work things out. Naomi is resolute, though, that she is done with her husband and is learning how to become a seamstress.
“There is nothing that will make me to return to him again because there will be more suffering for me. I will stand firm to not go back.”
___
Since many rural areas in Sierra Leone do not have secondary schools, teenage girls often move in with relatives or friends in distant towns to continue their education. Mariama Conteh, who estimates her age at 17 but seems much younger, had left her remote village near the border with Guinea to live with an aunt in Koidu and attend school. Then in April a 28-year-old man in their compound expressed interest in her.
It took a month for Mariama to say yes over her aunt’s threats to send her back to her village, where her father is struggling to feed two wives and 10 other children and her mother would be embarrassed by her return.
“The people in the village would mock us,” she says. “It would be shameful for me and my mom.”
She bursts into uncontrollable sobs when she thinks of the future she once hoped for. Her older sister was able to go on to senior secondary school before she was married, something now completely out of reach for Mariama.
“It is what it is,” she says, now 7 months pregnant and soon to put a baby on her back instead of a schoolbag. “It has happened.”
Mariama’s husband senses her unhappiness but is enthusiastic about the pregnancy and hopes the baby will be a boy. So does Mariama.
If she has a daughter, one thing is certain, she says: “I will not give my child to anybody. I will take care of her.”
___
Associated Press writers Kathy Gannon in Islamabad, Pakistan; Biswajeet Banerjee in Lucknow, India; Julhas Alam in Dhaka, Bangladesh; and Omar Akour in Amman, Jordan contributed to this report.


washingtontimes--2020-12-14--‘Dark Knight,’ ‘Grease’ added to National Film Registry

LOS ANGELES ( AP ) - This year ’ s inductees into the National Film Registry include a record number of female directors and filmmakers of color as well as a new crop of movies ranging from a silent short film thriller , classic musicals and an acclaimed Batman film .
The Library of Congress announced Monday that films including “ The Dark Knight , ” “ Suspense , ” musicals “ Grease ” and “ The Blues Brothers ” along with Sidney Poitier ’ s Oscar-winning performance in “ Lilies of the Field ” are among the 25 movies @ @ @ @ @ @ @ national library said this year ’ s selections include a record nine films directed by women and filmmakers of color .
“ With the inclusion of diverse filmmakers , we are not trying to set records but rather to set the record straight by spotlighting the astonishing contributions women and people of color have made to American cinema , despite facing often-overwhelming hurdles , ” Carla Hayden , the Librarian of Congress , said in a statement .
Hayden and film historian Jacqueline Stewart will discuss the new selections in a television special @ @ @ @ @ @ @ 8 p.m. EST .
The library has selected movies for preservation because of their cultural , historic and artist importance since the registry began in 1988 .
This year ’ s picks bring the total number of films in the registry to 800 .
Music was featured in this year ’ s selection including the film adaptation of Broadway musicals “ Cabin in the Sky ” in 1943 and “ Grease , ” which starred John Travolta and Olivia Newton-John in 1978 .
“ The Blue Brothers ” director John Landis called the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ a “ delightful surprise.
” “ The film is the result of Dan Aykroyd and John Belushi ’ s genuine passion for rhythm and blues and our mutual love for these great African American artists and the city of Chicago , ” said Landis , who has two projects in the registry including “ Animal House ” and Michael Jackson ’ s “ Thriller.
” The library chose a few more memorable titles such as Kathryn Bigelow ’ s “ The Hurt Locker , ” the animated film “ Shrek ” and “ @ @ @ @ @ @ @ movie based on Amy Tan ’ s bestselling book that told the saga of two generations of Asian American women .
The 2010 documentary “ Freedom Riders , ” also making its way into the registry , told an inspiring story about civil rights activists who fought against racial segregation on buses and trains in the 1960s .
Christopher Nolan ’ s 2008 Batman film “ The Dark Knight ” was a blockbuster and the top public vote-getter .
The other films directed by women include Lois Weber ’ s “ Suspense , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Bread , ” Aloha Wanderwell ’ s “ With Car and Camera Around the World , ” Ida Lupino ’ s “ Outrage , ” Kathleen Collins ’ “ Losing Ground , ” Julie Dash ’ s “ Illusions , ” Lourdes Portillo ’ s “ The Devil Never Sleeps ” and “ Mauna Kea : Temple Under Siege ” by Joan Lander .
Additional films on the list include “ Kid Auto Races at Venice ” ( 1914 ) , “ The Battle of the Century ” ( 1927 ) , “ @ @ @ @ @ @ @ ( 1955 ) , “ A Clockwork Orange ” ( 1971 ) , “ Sweet Sweetback ’ s Baadasssss Song ” ( 1971 ) , “ Wattstax ” ( 1973 ) , “ Buena Vista Social Club ” ( 1999 ) and “ The Ground ” ( 1993-2001 ) .

LOS ANGELES (AP) - This year’s inductees into the National Film Registry include a record number of female directors and filmmakers of color as well as a new crop of movies ranging from a silent short film thriller, classic musicals and an acclaimed Batman film.
The Library of Congress announced Monday that films including “The Dark Knight,” “Suspense,” musicals “Grease” and “The Blues Brothers” along with Sidney Poitier’s Oscar-winning performance in “Lilies of the Field” are among the 25 movies tapped for preservation this year.
The national library said this year’s selections include a record nine films directed by women and filmmakers of color.
“With the inclusion of diverse filmmakers, we are not trying to set records but rather to set the record straight by spotlighting the astonishing contributions women and people of color have made to American cinema, despite facing often-overwhelming hurdles,” Carla Hayden, the Librarian of Congress, said in a statement.
Hayden and film historian Jacqueline Stewart will discuss the new selections in a television special on Turner Classic Movies on Tuesday at 8 p.m. EST.
The library has selected movies for preservation because of their cultural, historic and artist importance since the registry began in 1988. This year’s picks bring the total number of films in the registry to 800.
Music was featured in this year’s selection including the film adaptation of Broadway musicals “Cabin in the Sky” in 1943 and “Grease,” which starred John Travolta and Olivia Newton-John in 1978.
“The Blue Brothers” director John Landis called the film’s selection into the registry a “delightful surprise.”
“The film is the result of Dan Aykroyd and John Belushi’s genuine passion for rhythm and blues and our mutual love for these great African American artists and the city of Chicago,” said Landis, who has two projects in the registry including “Animal House” and Michael Jackson’s “Thriller.”
The library chose a few more memorable titles such as Kathryn Bigelow’s “The Hurt Locker,” the animated film “Shrek” and “The Joy Luck Club,” a movie based on Amy Tan’s bestselling book that told the saga of two generations of Asian American women. The 2010 documentary “Freedom Riders,” also making its way into the registry, told an inspiring story about civil rights activists who fought against racial segregation on buses and trains in the 1960s.
Christopher Nolan’s 2008 Batman film “The Dark Knight” was a blockbuster and the top public vote-getter.
The other films directed by women include Lois Weber’s “Suspense,” Ida May Park’s “Bread,” Aloha Wanderwell’s “With Car and Camera Around the World,” Ida Lupino’s “Outrage,” Kathleen Collins’ “Losing Ground,” Julie Dash’s “Illusions,” Lourdes Portillo’s “The Devil Never Sleeps” and “Mauna Kea: Temple Under Siege” by Joan Lander.
Additional films on the list include “Kid Auto Races at Venice” (1914), “The Battle of the Century” (1927), “The Man with the Golden Arm” (1955), “A Clockwork Orange” (1971), “Sweet Sweetback’s Baadasssss Song” (1971), “Wattstax” (1973), “Buena Vista Social Club” (1999) and “The Ground” (1993-2001).
___
Follow AP Entertainment Writer Jonathan Landrum Jr. on Twitter: http://twitter.com/MrLandrum31


washingtontimes--2020-12-14--Germany's heath chief urges EU to approve vaccine faster

BERLIN ( AP ) — Germany ’ s health minister expressed impatience Monday that the European Union was still waiting for its regulatory agency to approve a coronavirus vaccine , while other officials urged Germans to forgo Christmas shopping two days before a new hard lockdown will close schools and shut most stories .
Chancellor Angela Merkel and the governors of Germany ’ s 16 states agreed Sunday to step up the country ’ s lockdown measures beginning Wednesday and running to Jan. 10 to stop the exponential rise of COVID-19 cases .
Merkel said existing restrictions imposed in November @ @ @ @ @ @ @ new infections .
Germany has been hitting records of new daily infections and virus deaths in recent weeks .
Health Minister Jens Spahn said in a series of tweets that Germany , which has built up more than 400 vaccination centers and has activated about 10,000 doctors and medical staff to start mass vaccinations as early as Tuesday , was hamstrung by the lack of regulatory approval .
The vaccine developed by Germany ’ s BioNTech and American drugmaker Pfizer has been authorized for use in Britain , the United States , Canada @ @ @ @ @ @ @ s still waiting for approval by the European Medicines Agency , or EMA , and can therefore not be used in Germany yet .
The EMA has a Dec. 29 meeting on vaccines but Spahn said the agency ’ s assessment and approval of the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine should “ take place as quickly as possible.
” “ This is also about the trust of the citizens in the European Union ’ s capacity to act , ” Spahn wrote .
“ Every day that we can start sooner with the vaccinations lessens the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ most vulnerable.
” Spahn had previously said that going through EMA approval was the right path .
In recent weeks , hospitals across the country have repeatedly warned that they were reaching their limits in caring for COVID-19 patients and that staffing on intensive care units was becoming a problem .
On Monday , 4,552 COVID-19 patients were being treated in ICU units , 52 % of them on respirators .
On Monday , Germany ’ s central disease control center reported 16,362 new confirmed cases - about 4,000 more than a week @ @ @ @ @ @ @ 188 new deaths , bringing the overall death toll to 21,975 .
The country ’ s president , Frank-Walter Steinmeier , appealed to Germans on Monday to support and adhere to the new lockdown measures .
“ The virus still has a tight grip on us , ” Steinmeier said .
“ The situation is bitterly serious : thousands of death cases in one week and an infection scenario that threatens to spin out of control - there is no way we can avoid drastic measures.
” “ I wish and I hope @ @ @ @ @ @ @ really need , like groceries , ” Economy Minister Peter Altmaier said .
“ The faster we get these infections under control , the better it is for everyone.
” In some states , including Saxony in eastern Germany and North Rhine-Westphalia in the west , schools already are closed or mandatory school attendance lifted so parents can keep their children at home .
Starting Wednesday , schools nationwide will be closed or will switch to home schooling ; most non-food stores will be shuttered , as will businesses such as hairdressers that @ @ @ @ @ @ @ open .
Restaurant takeout will still be permitted , but no eating or drinking can take place on site .
With the exception of Christmas , the number of people allowed to meet indoors will remain restricted to five , not including children under 14 .
The sale of fireworks traditionally used to celebrate New Year ’ s will also be banned , as will public outdoor gatherings on New Year ’ s Eve .
Top officials were also appealing to Christians to stay home and watch the traditional Christmas Mass online this @ @ @ @ @ @ @ of Saxony , which has been especially hard hit by the resurgence of the virus , told that German news agency dpa that this Christmas , for the first time in his life , he won ’ t be attending midnight Mass .
“ I don ’ t need it for my belief and I think it is right if all of us hold off during this sensitive time , ” Kretschmer said .
“ Joseph and Mary were also on their own on the Holy Night.
” This story corrects the quote @ @ @ @ @ @ @ and Mary ” instead of “ Jesus and Mary .
”

BERLIN (AP) — Germany’s health minister expressed impatience Monday that the European Union was still waiting for its regulatory agency to approve a coronavirus vaccine, while other officials urged Germans to forgo Christmas shopping two days before a new hard lockdown will close schools and shut most stories.
Chancellor Angela Merkel and the governors of Germany’s 16 states agreed Sunday to step up the country’s lockdown measures beginning Wednesday and running to Jan. 10 to stop the exponential rise of COVID-19 cases. Merkel said existing restrictions imposed in November failed to significantly reduce the number of new infections. Germany has been hitting records of new daily infections and virus deaths in recent weeks.
Health Minister Jens Spahn said in a series of tweets that Germany, which has built up more than 400 vaccination centers and has activated about 10,000 doctors and medical staff to start mass vaccinations as early as Tuesday, was hamstrung by the lack of regulatory approval.
The vaccine developed by Germany’s BioNTech and American drugmaker Pfizer has been authorized for use in Britain, the United States, Canada and other countries, but it’s still waiting for approval by the European Medicines Agency, or EMA, and can therefore not be used in Germany yet.
The EMA has a Dec. 29 meeting on vaccines but Spahn said the agency’s assessment and approval of the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine should “take place as quickly as possible.”
“This is also about the trust of the citizens in the European Union’s capacity to act,” Spahn wrote. “Every day that we can start sooner with the vaccinations lessens the suffering and protects those who are the most vulnerable.”
Spahn had previously said that going through EMA approval was the right path.
In recent weeks, hospitals across the country have repeatedly warned that they were reaching their limits in caring for COVID-19 patients and that staffing on intensive care units was becoming a problem. On Monday, 4,552 COVID-19 patients were being treated in ICU units, 52% of them on respirators.
On Monday, Germany’s central disease control center reported 16,362 new confirmed cases - about 4,000 more than a week before. The Robert Koch Institute reported 188 new deaths, bringing the overall death toll to 21,975.
The country’s president, Frank-Walter Steinmeier, appealed to Germans on Monday to support and adhere to the new lockdown measures.
“The virus still has a tight grip on us,” Steinmeier said. “The situation is bitterly serious: thousands of death cases in one week and an infection scenario that threatens to spin out of control - there is no way we can avoid drastic measures.”
Others urged Germans to avoid last-minute panic buying.
“I wish and I hope that people will only buy what they really need, like groceries,” Economy Minister Peter Altmaier said. “The faster we get these infections under control, the better it is for everyone.”
In some states, including Saxony in eastern Germany and North Rhine-Westphalia in the west, schools already are closed or mandatory school attendance lifted so parents can keep their children at home.
Starting Wednesday, schools nationwide will be closed or will switch to home schooling; most non-food stores will be shuttered, as will businesses such as hairdressers that have so far been allowed to remain open. Restaurant takeout will still be permitted, but no eating or drinking can take place on site.
With the exception of Christmas, the number of people allowed to meet indoors will remain restricted to five, not including children under 14. The sale of fireworks traditionally used to celebrate New Year’s will also be banned, as will public outdoor gatherings on New Year’s Eve.
Top officials were also appealing to Christians to stay home and watch the traditional Christmas Mass online this year.
Michael Kretschmer, the governor of Saxony, which has been especially hard hit by the resurgence of the virus, told that German news agency dpa that this Christmas, for the first time in his life, he won’t be attending midnight Mass.
“I don’t need it for my belief and I think it is right if all of us hold off during this sensitive time,” Kretschmer said. “Joseph and Mary were also on their own on the Holy Night.”
___
This story corrects the quote in the final paragraph to “Joseph and Mary” instead of “Jesus and Mary.”