EU Court Of Justice To Take Up Former LTTE Rebel’s Asylum Application

June 24, 2016

The Court of Justice of the European Union will take up the asylum application of a former member of theLTTE, who sought asylum in 2009 citing that he would face torture if he returned to Sri Lanka.

Sri Lankan Tamil torture victim | File photo

At the time the former rebel arrived in UK in January 2005 he was 28, and was allowed to enter UK as a student, after which it was further extended till September 2008. However, when he requested for another extension, his request was denied and then he sought asylum in January 2009 claiming that he was a former member of the LTTE, and if he returned back to his home country, Sri Lanka he will be tortured by security forces.

According to the asylum seeker, before he arrived in the UK he was subjected to detention and torture by the Sri Lankan military as he was a member of the LTTE.

However questions have arisen as to whether this former LTTE cadre is eligible for such protection, and if there is authenticity in what he says, in relation to that if he returns back to Sri Lanka he will be tortured. At the time he entered UK he did not claim that he was subjected to such torture and made the claim only four years after staying in UK, and after his request for a third extension was denied.

The Secretary of State for the Home Department refused his application in February 2009 for asylum on the basis that he would not be at risk of further ill-treatment despite his membership of LTTE. However, the applicant appealed. However, according to the Upper Tribunal (UT) there was evidence from a psychiatrist that he was suffering severe post-traumatic stress disorder and severe depression and showed a high degree of suicidality. The UT accepted that the appellant had a genuine fear of return to Sri Lanka. It accepted that the mental health provision in Sri Lanka was insufficient. But it did not accept that he was of any continuing interest to the authorities in Sri Lanka. Therefore the UT rejected his appeal under the Qualification Directive.

In the Court of Appeal, Maurice Kay LJ rejected his appeal on the basis that “the alleged future harm would emanate not from the intentional acts or omissions of public authorities or non-state bodies, but instead from a naturally occurring illness and the lack of sufficient resources to deal with it in the receiving country”.

Subsequently, the Appellant appealed to the Supreme Court on the grounds that this is too narrow a view of the scope of the Qualification Directive and that his mental illness should not be regarded as naturally occurring because it was caused at the hands of the Sri Lankan authorities. He argued it makes no difference to his entitlement to such protection that there is no longer a risk of repetition of the ill treatment which is the cause of his current state of health.

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Galigamuwa accident-Death toll rises to six

2016-06-24
The death toll in the road accident at Ballapana in Galigamuwa on Thursday increased to six when two of the injured who had been under treatment at the Kandy General Hospital succumbed to their injuries, police said. 

Three passengers had died on the spot and another after admission to hospital immediately after the accident. A spokesman for the hospital said another, in critical condition, was under treatment.

 A group of passengers from Urapola in Nagoda who had been on a visit to Kandy were returning back home when the ill-fated van collided with a private bus. 

The victims were identified as Senanayake Mohotti Appuhamilage Atula Shantha Senanayake, T. Ramani Mangalika Peiris, S.M.A. Thisara Gihma Senanayake of one family and their relatives L.A. Chandra Irangani Lokuhetti, S.M.A Dannie Shantha Senanayake and S.W.A. Samith Lakmala Senanayke.

 Meanwhile, JMO Kegalle Hospital Dr. Ramesh Alagiyawanna expressed concern about the congestion in the mortuary that compelled him to leave the bodies of the deceased in an open space exposed to elements pending inquest. He said putrefaction of the bodies had already set in. 

The JMO further pointed out that one of the two deep freezers in the mortuary had been out of order for about an year, while the other was full with the bodies of those who died in the Aranayake landslide. (Chaminda jayalah and Rohan Kumara)

President promises maximum punishment for child exploiters 

Saturday, 25 June 2016

President Maithripala Sirisena says the maximum punishment that can be given for child exploiters is to expose them to society.

The President participating at the national ceremony held in parallel to The World Day Against Child Labour in BMICH on 22 June said that the media has a major responsibility in this regard.

As a Government which acts according to the UN charters, the government fulfils its duties with great commitment to protect and nourish the children, he said.

The President further said that to prevent child abuse the Government works in compliance with international commitments and it is also committed to eradicate poverty and strengthen the economy of the country, which is the common factor in children being exploited for labour.

Even though it is necessary to introduce new laws and regulations as well as to properly implement existing laws to save our children from child abuse, the laws alone cannot be responsible for all the occurrences, the President said pointing out that all citizens in the country should be aware of these situations.

The World Day Against Child Labour falls on 12 June. The theme for this year’s UN observance is ‘End child labour in supply chains – It’s everyone’s business’.

In order to achieve these objectives, many programs have been implemented through three main sectors of investigating complaints lodged at the Women and Children’s Affairs Division of the Department of Labour, implementing awareness raising program for the society and prevention of enabling environment for child labour.

The President also signed the pledge to declare Sri Lanka as a country free of child labour, which was presented to him by the Director of the International Labour Organisation for Sri Lanka and the Maldives, Donglin Li.

The launch of the program to socialise the charter through SMS, to make Sri Lanka a zone devoid of child labour, also took place on the occasion.

Minister of Labour and Trade Union Relations W.D.J. Seneviratne, Ministers Vajira Abeywardena, Ministers and MPs, including Chandrani Bandara, State Minister, Ravindra Samaraweera, Ministry secretaries including Secretary to the President, P.B. Abeykoon, the Commissioner General of Labour, Chandani Amarathunga and state officials participated in the event.

A petition to the president behalf of torture victims

Jun 24, 2016

Kandy Human rights office pointed out despite 22 years has been elapsed adopting the rights of the torture victims, only one instance of securing rights was reported from the central province. They further pointed out, for the last ten years, not a single instance of enforcing the law has been reported.

Director of Kandy Human Rights Office Rev. Nandana Manathunga said this in a workshop held in Kandy today 24th marking the international day of anti torture which is falling on the 26th of this month.

 

Not enforcing the law

A public awareness campaign was held against the absence of law urging to protect the rights of the torture victims was held today by displaying placards and a petition was signed to the president urging to enforce the law.

 

Rev. Manathunga giving his opinion at the function which held under the patronage of all religious clergies said the then government said that the police and the army were unable to implement the law despite there was a civil war in the country. However since there is no war now the law should be enforced and justice should be met for the people who was unfairly treated.

 

He said there are many cases filed by the torture victims in the Supreme Court and the president and the attorney general’s attention should focus to these in future.

 

The Rev. said there was a only a single instance reported the law was enforced in the central province, that was the Kandy courts prosecuted and imprisoned two police officers attached to the Wattegama police for seven years.

 

Rev Nandana Manathunga said there are many court cases of torture victims pending for a long time against the police and other institutions, therefore government should focus attention to expedite these proceedings. 

 

Ukrainian captain of Avant-Garde ship arrested


2016-06-24

Ukrainian captain of the controversial Avant-Garde ship was arrested by the Criminal Investigations Department (CID) in Galle last night, Police said.

 He was arrested on charges of importing illegal fire arms and keeping ammunitions in his possession illegally. 

He was remanded till July 5 by Galle Additional Magistrate Nilupuli Lankapura. (D.G. Sugathapala)

Cameron announces resignation as UK votes to leave EU

David Cameron says he will stand down as Prime Minister as the UK votes to leave the European Union, while Scotland's First Minister says a second independence referendum is "highly likely".



FRIDAY 24 JUNE 2016

Mr Cameron, who had campaigned for Remain and was re-elected only 13 months ago, said he accepted the decision of the electorate and believed a new leader should be in place by the time of the Conservative conference in October.

"I will do everything I can as Prime Minister to steady the ship over the coming weeks and months, but I don't think it would be right for me to try to be the captain that steers our country to its next destination," he said.

Mr Cameron said it was up to a new prime minister to invoke Article 50 of the Lisbon Treaty, which will kick off the two-year process of negotiating a new trade relationship with the EU.

'However painful'

But EU chiefs said the UK should implement Brexit "as soon as possible, however painful that process may be".

They added: "Any delay would unnecessarily prolong uncertainty. We have rules to deal with this in an orderly way. We stand ready to launch negotiations swiftly with the United Kingdom regarding the terms and conditions of its withdrawal from the European Union."

Britain will become the first country to leave the EU since its formation, and there are fears among other European leaders that they may also face calls for referendums.

'Find our voice in the world'

Boris Johnson, a key figure in the Leave campaign and favourite to succeed Mr Cameron, called him "one of the most extraordinary politicians of our age" and said the Brexit vote "does not mean that the United Kingdom will be in any way less united" or "less European".

But he said "there is simply no need in the 21st century to be part of a federal system of government based in Brussels that is imitated nowhere else on earth", adding: "Above all, we can find our voice in the world again. A voice that is commensurate with the fifth biggest economy on earth - powerful, liberal, humane - an extraordinary force for good in the world."

Scottish First Minister Nicola Sturgeon said she was "absolutely determined" to keep her country in the EU, and a second independence referendum - following last year's rejection - was "highly likely".

The UK voted 52 to 48 per cent in a referendum to pull out of the EU. London, Scotland and Northern Ireland voted to stay in, but many parts of the North and Midlands and Wales opted for Brexit.

Ukip leader Nigel Farage said 23 June should be declared a bank holiday and will "go down in our history as our independence day".

He said leaving the EU had been achieved "without a single bullet being fired" and hoped the vote for Brexit would bring down the entire "failed project".

More than £100 billion was wiped off the FTSE 100 as the share index fell more than 7 per cent, and the pound crashed 8 per cent against the US dollar to its lowest level since 1985.

Austerity and immigration

Labour has been plunged into bitter recrimination as traditional supporters turned their backs on appeals from the leadership and most of the party's MPs to vote for Britain to stay in the EU.

Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn said many voters had been expressing their dscontent with austerity cuts.

Labour MP John Mann, who backed Leave, said the party was paying the price for ignoring the concerns of working-class people on issues such immigration.

"Labour has gone wrong by not being in touch with its voters, I've been saying this for the last 10 years in relation to immigration and free movement of labour," he told BBC News.

ANALYSIS: Brexit damages US's 'special relationship' with UK

Britain must negotiate its departure from world's biggest trading bloc without triggering economic catastrophe

Obama said he was "confident that the UK is committed to an orderly transition out of the EU" (AFP)

Friday 24 June 2016

Britain's vote to leave the EU was a blow to one of the US's key alliances and a setback for its influence across Europe.

But can Barack Obama leverage what remains of the "special relationship" to smooth Britain's exit and limit the damage to Western security and the global economy?

The US president travelled to London during the referendum campaign to back his friend Prime Minister David Cameron's doomed campaign against Brexit.

And on Friday Obama quickly defended the "special relationship" with the UK, a phrase coined by Winston Churchill in 1946 after the allies' World War II victory.

“The special relationship between the United States and the United Kingdom is enduring, and the United Kingdom’s membership in NATO remains a vital cornerstone of US foreign, security, and economic policy,” Obama said in a news release.

“So too is our relationship with the European Union, which has done so much to promote stability, stimulate economic growth and foster the spread of democratic values and ideals across the continent and beyond.”

Nevertheless, Washington analysts were unanimous that the shock result was a huge setback for the alliance and for US interests, and urged Obama to help fix things.

A US senior state department official anonomously told the Guardian that the vote was "not the outcome that either of our governments wanted, but it’s democracy and so we’re moving on. We have to. It’s just too important not to. The relationship’s too important, the issues that we’re working with the UK on are too vital.

“You name it: Afghanistan, Ukraine, Syria, the Asia-Pacific region. The Brits are such a key partner on so many issues that it’s just too important to allow this to derail a lot of that cooperation.”

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Stocks: Germany, France, and especially Spain hit worse than UK

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In the wake of the vote, Britain must negotiate its departure from the world's biggest trading bloc without triggering a domino effect of economic catastrophe.

Following the vote, the US stock market took a steep decline on Friday.

“Today’s events open up a whole new level of uncertainty,” Adam Patti, the chief executive of IndexIQ, told the New York Times. “It’s really a time to be very cautious.”

Some of the biggest stocks on the market, like the Dow Jones industrial average, fell 611 points and the Standard & Poor’s 500-stock index sank by 3.6 percent.

The Nasdaq fell 4.1 percent on Firday, it's biggest drop since 2011.

Moody's cut Britain's credit rating outlook to "negative" Friday, saying the vote to pull out of the European Union could hurt its economic prospects.

While retaining the country's overall rating at a high "Aa1", Moody's said after the Brexit vote that it expects the country's growth to slow, economic policy-making to suffer and the country's finances to weaken while it struggles through the details of the breakup.

"During the several years in which the UK will have to renegotiate its trade relations with the EU, Moody's expects heightened uncertainty, diminished confidence and lower spending and investment to result in weaker growth," it said.

"Over the longer term, should the UK not be able to secure a favorable alternative trade arrangement with the EU and other countries, the UK's growth prospects would be materially weaker than currently expected."

After speaking to Cameron on Friday, Obama said he was "confident that the UK is committed to an orderly transition out of the EU".

But European leaders have warned that they will not give London an easy ride, fearing a smooth Brexit would encourage other European powers to jump ship.

A stormy debate, however, would further disturb markets and divide US allies in Europe, according to Tom Wright of the Brookings Institution.

"In the last few weeks, European leaders have taken a tough line and said there won't be concessions, but that may change now that the vote has happened," he said. 

"I do think the US position will almost certainly and correctly be to try to make this as smooth as possible."

Wright did not downplay the scale of the harm Brexit will do to trans-Atlantic cooperation, but said Obama could "mitigate" it by reaching out to France and Germany.

"The most important decisions will be taken in Berlin and in Paris," he told AFP in an interview.

"And if the US is going to engage these countries it will have to be at the leader level."

There is a lot of anger in Washington at what experts see as Cameron's unnecessary gamble on a referendum, but most hope the alliance will survive.

"Nothing will be served by pushing the UK away or retaliating by diminishing the alliance," Wright said.

Jeffrey Rathke, a fellow of the Center for Strategic and International Studies, told AFP that the fundamentals of the alliance remain in place.

"The reason for the special relationship is basically because we have very similar interests and very similar ways of looking at the world," he said.

"However, if Britain's influence globally decreases then the US naturally has to find ways to compensate for that," he said.

"The US will have to beef up its engagement with key European partners."

This analysis was shared by Richard Haass, president of the Council on Foreign Relations, who told reporters that Brexit was a harsh blow for the US.

"The net result will be the special relationship will be that much less special," he said.

"This essentially is a cloud without a silver lining when it comes to the UK itself, when it comes to Europe or when it comes to the United States.

"On balance, this will diminish order within Europe and arguably beyond."

Brexit shocks investors, Asian stocks prepare for steepest slump in 10 months

A man walks past an electronic board showing world stock exchange rates including Britain's, top left, at a securities firm in Tokyo, Friday. Pic: AP.

 24th June 2016

UPDATE

BLOOMBERG has reported that the Asian stock market is steeling itself for one of its biggest shake-ups in 10 months following Britain’s shock vote to quit the European Union in yesterday’s Brexit referendum.

Japan’s Topix index took a nosedive to the lowest its been since 2011, plunging 7.3 percent to 1,204.48 by the end of the day.

As of just after 4pm in Hong Kong, the MSCI Asia Pacific Index had fallen 4.1 percent to 124.69, while Australia’s S&P Index futures dropped 3.3 percent.

The Hang Seng Index, also in Hong Kong, dropped 2.9 percent, while South Korea’s Kospi fell the most since May 2012.

As the British pound wavered uncertainly in the aftermath of Brexit, central banks in Asia mobilized to avoid breakdowns in financial-market liquidity, with Japan’s Finance Minister Taro Aso emphasizing that the central banks of six major developed nations have “currency-swap lines” to provide liquidity.

The “Leave” vote has culminated in Prime Minister David Cameron’s announcement that he will resign by October. In his address in front of 10 Downing Street, he said: “I will do everything I can as Prime Minister to steady the ship over the coming weeks and months but I do not think it would be right for me to try to be the captain that steers our country to its next destination.”

Britain voted “Leave” by 52 perecent, with 1,269,501 more votes than “Remain”. The Bank of England and the European Central Bank have pledged to shield the markets in the referendum’s wake, with the ECB promising to provide extra liquidity to protect the financial world.

ORIGINAL ARTICLE

THE British pound plummeted Friday as Britain voted to leave the European Union in the Brexit referendum.

The British currency fell to a 31-year low of $1.35 hours after hitting a 2016 peak of $1.50. Some news outlets reported that the currency was on track for its biggest ever daily decline.

Reuters reported that trading was halted for 10 minutes for Japan’s Nikkei futures as equity markets plunged ahead of official confirmation of the Brexit.

Suffocated at sea

Palestinian fishermen display their catch in Gaza’s seaport in April 2016.-Ashraf AmraAPA images

Isra Saleh el-Namey-

24 June 2016

A group of Gaza fishermen were working an early morning shift when the Israeli navy opened fire.

Rajab Abu Riyala and his brother Khaled were shot during that 31 May incident. A bullet had to be removed from Rajab’s knee as a result.

They were among five fishermen arrested on two vessels by Israel. All were brought to Ashdod, a port in present-day Israel, and were detained for most of the day. Both of the vessels

were confiscated. “Every Gaza fisherman who is arrested undergoes a long and cruel process of interrogation and strip searches,” said Bashir Abu Riyala, one of the five.

Bashir, a cousin of Rajab and Khaled, questioned why Israel behaves as if fishermen are a security threat. “The way they harass us cannot be tolerated,” he said. “Each time they arrest fishermen, they fail to get the information they are looking for. We do not know anything. All we want is to fish freely and safely.”

Bashir thinks it is unlikely that the vessel will be returned to them.

Due to the confiscation, he and his cousins are now out of work.

The fishermen were within three nautical miles of the Gaza coast, a zone in which Israel theoretically allows fishing to take place.

Israel has repeatedly attacked fishermen working within those limits.

The limits have also been s

ubject to a number of changes.

Boost to economy?
In April, it was reported that fishing would be permitted within nine nautical miles off certain parts of the Gaza coast. Citing Israeli officials, The New York Times suggested that Israel was allowing fishermen to work in a wider area as part of efforts to boost Gaza’s economy.

Any benefits to Gaza’s population would have been short-lived.

Israeli authorities subsequently stated they were reimposing a limit of six nautical miles for the entire Gaza Strip.

That limit is considerably less than the 20-mile zone established for Gaza’s fishermen under the Oslo accords, whi

er Baker and his son Khader were fishing near Gaza’s coastline when Israeli forces shot at them repeatedly.

Khader was wounded in the arm and the two men were taken to Ashdod. After being shackled and forced to take off their clothes, the father and son were subjected to an aggressive interrogation.

“Even though we were fishing within three miles of the coast, the Israelis accused us of fishing in a dangerous and prohibited area,” Maher told The Electronic Intifada. “Simply, they do not want us to fish. 

They want the sea for themselves.”

The Bakers’ vessel has still not been returned to them. Since the incident occurred, they have been trying to scrape together enough money to buy a new one.

“I have just spent my whole day running from the union [for Palestinian fishermen] to charities, to the UN, looking for some kind of financial support,” said Khader.

The Palestinian Centre for Human Rights recorded 139 incidents in which Gaza’s fishermen were shot at by Israeli naval forces during 2015. Twenty-four fishermen were wounded.

There were also six incidents in which boats were shelled and chased.

More than 70 fishermen were arrested last year and 22 vessels were confiscated.

These incidents are part of the economic warfare Israel wages against Gaza’s fishermen.

Deprived of coast

The nine-year blockade of Gaza means that motors, spare parts and fiberglass — all essential for maintaining and repairing vessels — are scarce. Fuel is often unaffordable.

Muflih Abu Riyala, a member of the Palestinian Fishermen’s Syndicate, said that Gaza has suffered from equipment shortages for so long that fishermen “have gotten used to it.”

“Israeli procedures are suffocating the fishing industry,” he said. “Catches have fallen dramatically. Why are we deprived of fishing off our own coast?”

Before Israel imposed its siege, Gaza fishermen could catch as much as 4,500 tons per year, some of which was exported to the occupied West Bank. Catches since the imposition of the siege have fallen below 1,500 tons per year, according to Abu Riyala.

Forcing fishermen to operate within such strict limits has depleted many fish stocks in the waters next to the coast.

Amer al-Qaran, a fisherman from the Deir al-Balah area of central Gaza, works with his three sons for at least 15 hours a day.

The best time of day to fish is the early morning, he said. Yet because of Israeli restrictions, the most he can expect to catch in a six-hour morning shift is around 7 kilograms of fish. “That is sometimes not enough to cover the amount of fuel my boat uses during a shift,” he said.

“Sometimes I spend long hours at sea without catching any fish,” he said. “I am afraid that I will come under Israeli fire if I advance another mile.”

Isra Saleh el-Namey is a journalist from Gaza.

Thanks to This Startup, Mongolia’s Nomads Can Finally Get Their Mail

BY REID STANDISH

Delivering the mail in rural Mongolia is no easy feat. About 30 percent of the population is still nomadic and the country is among the world’s least densely populated. Many Mongolians are forced to collect their mail from a post office box, often far from their homes, while others have no access to deliveries at all. For the packages that do make their way across the steppe, postmen have to rely on local knowledge to navigate the vast swathes of the country that lack actual roads.

A London-based startup is hoping to change all that — one three-word combination at a time.

The company is called What3Words and they’ve developed an app that records GPS coordinates to nine-square-meter plots and simplifies them into a three-word combinations to mark a specific location a map. The Mongol Post, the country’s national mail service, announced in May that it would be switching to the system, which is set to come into effect on August 1. The change is viewed as an efficient and cost-effective way to improve Mongolia’s postal problems in rural areas and in the capital Ulaanbaatar, where many streets don’t have names and many residents live in makeshift housing without a designated address.


Putting in a sophisticated new street addressing system is a major endeavor that can require millions of dollars worth of investment and decades to put in place. In adopting What3Words’ three-word technique, Mongolian officials are hoping to save time and money by going completely digital, Giles Rhys Jones, marketing director at What3Words, told Foreign Policy.

“They saw this as a way to leapfrog into the new era of addressing,” said Jones.

The basis of the new system is that a trio of words is easier to remember than a series of numbers that make up GPS coordinates, with each unique word combination corresponding to a specific 9-square-meter spot on the map. This universal addressing system works by breaking the world into 57 trillion squares and assigning each one a three-word combination.

For instance, Ulaanbaatar’s Chinggis Khaan International Airport becomesloans.lives.breached; or Paris’ Eiffel Tower becomes prices.slippery.trapsusing What3Words system.

The combinations are randomly assigned and have been refined to avoid homophones or offensive terms, with short terms reserved for the most populated areas of the world. Moreover, the app can be used without a cellular or data connection on a mobile phone, making it ideal for Mongolia and other rural areas. The plan is for What3words to be integrated across Mongol Post’s internal systems, with postal workers using the new form of addressing to navigate directly to the square, wherever it may be, and find the customer’s front door.

The company hopes Mongolia will be just the start. What3Words is also currently being used by NGOs in Tanzania to track cholera outbreaks and provide malaria drugs to difficult to reach communities.

Moreover, residents in the Rocinha favela in Rio de Janeiro, one of the world’s largest slums,started using What3Words’ system in 2015 to deliver packages within the densely populated area.


Two men use the What3Words app to find an address in Mongolia. 

Successful pilots could be good news for the roughly four billion people in the world that have no address for mailing purposes, leaving them unable to establish a legal identity, according to the U.N. Development Program. Rapid economic growth in the developing world could send those numbers higher, with the swelling populations of major cities increasing the number of people living in informal settlements.

In Mongolia, the change from referring to locations with house numbers and street names to word combinations could have a big impact beyond people receiving their mail, it could also improve the lives of many Mongolians.

“We’re trying to democratize addressing. Whether you live in a house, a tent, or an R.V., you now have a way to describe where you live,” Jones said. “An address allows you to vote, open a bank account, and access government services. Without one you’re invisible.”

Beyond connecting residents to the wider world, the creation of a national addressing system is vital for allowing governments to collect taxes efficiently and for helping businesses target new markets, according to the U.N.’s Universal Postal Union.

And while Mongolians are trailblazers in using What3Words’ system for state-run mail delivery, many organizations have found other uses for the British startup, including navigation apps, courier companies, and even the United Nations, which used the company’s system to develop a free to use rapid response disaster relief app.

Photo credit: PAULA BRONSTEIN/Getty Images; What3Words

Pentagon officials: Repeal of ban on transgender service members coming within weeks

An aerial photograph shows the Pentagon complex. (AP Photo/Charles Dharapak, File)

By Dan Lamothe June 24 at 4:40 PM

The Defense Department is expected to repeal its ban on transgender service members within weeks, Pentagon officials said Friday, putting to rest a long and complicated debate that has stretched out for a year.

Specifics of the repeal are still under review, but the expectation among officials working on the issue is that the announcement will come by the end of next month, and possibly sooner, the officials said. They spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss internal Pentagon deliberations.

“Nothing has been set in stone on this,” one official said on when the repeal will happen. Another official said it could occur as soon as next week. USA Today reported Friday that the repeal will take place July 1.

[Plan to allow open transgender military service tripped up by internal resistance]

The decision will put to rest a year of deliberations and mounting frustration among advocates for the ban’s repeal. Defense Secretary Ashton B. Carter said last July that he was establishing a working group to research transgender military service and gave it six months to carry out its mission, but the process has dragged out for close to a year.

The Pentagon’s existing policy considers transgender people to be sexual deviants, allowing the military to discharge them. The services — and later, Carter — decided last year to move that discharge authority to higher levels in the military, making it more difficult to force out transgender troops. But the lack of a new policy has created complicated situations for them and their commanders, including what to do with gender-specific uniforms, grooming rules and bathroom usage.

In May, the Pentagon’s new acting Pentagon personnel chief, Peter Levine, said that it would likely take “months, but not large numbers of months” more to finalize details. He acknowledged then that there was a lack of consensus on how to proceed and said that “obviously there are different views” from service officials.

“We’re going to work through that . . . and we’re going to do it expeditiously so that we can do it in this administration,” Levine said. “But it’s important that we not only do it, but do it right.”

Carter addressed the issue May 12 at the Air Force Academy and said he expected the working group to wrap up soon. But he drew the ire of some favoring a repeal of the ban by saying the issue was “complicated,” even while predicting a change was coming.

“I’m confident we’re going to get to the right place in this, as in so many other things we have to work through,” Carter said at the time. “What you have to keep in mind is it’s the… the quality and readiness of the force that matters. That’s the goal, so keep that in front of us.”

News of the decision was quickly praised Friday by transgender service members and groups supporting the ban’s repeal. Air Force Staff Sgt. Logan Ireland, a transgender airman, said Friday that he and his fellow transgender service members do not want to be granted exceptions to existing policy and want to abide by the same rules as everyone else in the military.

“We don’t want any gray areas,” he said on what should be allowed. “Just afford us the same opportunities as the genders as which we wish to be seen.”

Aaron Belkin, who has worked with the Pentagon on the issue as director of the Palm Center, said in a statement that it is “heartening” to hear that the Defense Department appears poised to lift the ban.
“​If that day arrives, successful implementation will depend on whether leadership sends clear signals of support, and whether​ new policy follows medical consensus and applies the same rules to everyone.”​
Ashley Broadway-Mack, the president of the American Military Partner Association, which represents lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender families, said that transgender service members and their families are now “breathing a huge sigh of relief.”

“We are eagerly anticipating the details of this historic announcement, and we are incredibly grateful for the leadership Secretary Carter has shown in getting us to this critically important point for our military families,” she said.

Venezuela dialogue could open way for international help - U.S. diplomat

Venezuela's President Nicolas Maduro attends a meeting with U.S. diplomat Thomas Shannon at Miraflores Palace in Caracas, Venezuela June 22, 2016.REUTERS/CARLOS GARCIA RAWLINS

 BY LESLEY WROUGHTON- Sat Jun 25, 2016

Dialogue between the Venezuelan government and opposition could provide a platform from which they could request help from the international community, U.S. Under Secretary of State for Political Affairs Tom Shannon said on Friday.

Shannon held talks with Venezuelan officials, including President Nicolas Maduro and opposition figures, in Caracas this week amid a punishing economic crisis in the South American nation. A date had not been set for another round of talks, he said.

During the visit, Shannon also met with former Spanish Prime Minister Jose Luis Rodriguez Zapatero. He, along with former presidents Martin Torrijos of Panama and Leonel Fernandez of the Dominican Republic, are trying to facilitate talks between the government and the opposition.

Given the diametrically opposed views of each side in Venezuela, internationally mediated talks outside Caracas could help address their differences, Shannon said.

"The hope (is) that this can be used not only to address political differences but also to create a platform from which both the government and the opposition can ask for help from the international community to address some of the very significant crises that Venezuela faces now," Shannon told reporters.

"It is up to the two parties to determine whether or not the facilitators are the right ones. Our view is that they are at this point," he added.

Shannon did not specify what type of help Venezuela could ask for.

His three-day visit comes amid increasing concern among Venezuela's neighbours about the situation in the South American OPEC nation.

Once among Latin America's most prosperous nations, Venezuela has plunged into unrest and a harsh economic slowdown. Long lines for food and medicines have led to protests and opposition calls for a recall referendum to remove Maduro.

Despite protests from Venezuela's Foreign Minister Delcy Rodriguez, a majority of member states from the 34-nation Organisation of American States (OAS) on Thursday backed a move by OAS chief, Luis Almagro, to "invoke" the organisation's democratic charter on Venezuela.

While the move could eventually lead to Venezuela's suspension, there is currently little appetite within the regional bloc to suspend Venezuela, with all member states favouring dialogue as a first step.

Shannon said Venezuela felt "uncomfortable" with the OAS process, adding: "They don't like being called out."

"My hope is that we will have a follow up date in the very near future," he added.

(Additional reporting by Arshad Mohammed.; Editing by David Gregorio and Andrew Hay)