Nepalinews

LONDON:  Anti-slavery activists on Wednesday welcomed Britain’s pledge to double its aid spending on global projects tackling the crime to 150 million pounds ($203 million), and boost training for police and prosecutors, yet called for greater support for victims. British Prime Minister Theresa May announced the spending – which will be funded from Britain’s overseas aid budget and support programmes in countries including Nepal and Nigeria – at a panel on modern slavery at the annual UN General Assembly. Speaking in New York late on Tuesday, May said the spending would include 20 million pounds ($27 million) for the US-based Global Fund to End Modern Slavery – a public-private partnership seeking $1.5 billion in order to combat the crime globally. “For a crime that has no respect for borders, we need a truly international response,” May said at the event, which followed the publication of the first joint effort by key anti-slavery groups to estimate the number of victims

KATHMANDU:  The results of the vote count of 24 local levels of Province No. 2 have been announced this evening, the Joint Election Operation Centre at the Election Commission said. The elections were held in 135 local levels of Province No. 2 on September 18.As per the details made available from the JEOC, Nepali Congress (NC) candidates have won in nine local levels, UML and Maoist Centre four each, Rastriya Janata Party Nepal in three levels, Federal Socialist Forum Nepal in two local levels and Nepal Loktantrik Forum candidates in two levels. Spokesperson of EC Nabaraj Dhakal said that so far results of 610 Wards have been finalised. The EC said that the vote count in all 111 local levels is going on well except in some local levels and efforts are on to continue the vote count by forging all-party consensus. Likewise, the EC said that election in Rajbiraj Municipality-15 was held in a peaceful manner Thursday. It was postponed after the demise of RJP Ward Chair candida

LONDON:  Your afternoon chocolate bar may be fuelling climate change, destroying protected forests and threatening elephants, chimpanzees and hippos in West Africa, research suggests. Well-known brands, such as Mars and Nestle, are buying through global traders cocoa that is grown illegally in dwindling national parks and reserves in Ivory Coast and Ghana, environmental group Mighty Earth said. “Every consumer of chocolate is a part of either the problem or the solution,” Etelle Higonnet, campaign director at Mighty Earth, told the Thomson Reuters Foundation. “You can choose to buy ethical chocolate. Or you’re voting with your dollar for deforestation.” Nestle did not immediately respond to requests for comment while Mars said in an email: “We take a responsible approach to sourcing cocoa and have committed to source 100 percent certified sustainable cocoa by 2020.” Both companies have committed to join the Cocoa and Forests Initiative, a major effort to end deforestation i

KATHMANDU:  Popular Nepali folk rock band, Nepathya, is all set to perform at the Olympic Hall of Seoul Olympic Park in South Korea on October 4. Famous musicians of international acclaim including Deep Purple, Judas Priest, Mariah Carey, Air Supply among others have performed in the Park.The show is being hosted on the occasion of Korea’s Chuseok Festival. Chuseok is a major harvest festival celebrated  in South Korea. As per the South Korean Embassy sources, there are more than 40,000 Nepalese working in South Korea under the EPS work scheme at present. This will be the band’s fifth appearance in the South Korean capital Seoul. “We came here for the first time in 2005 and since then Seoul has played regular host to us. Our last show was at the prestigious KBS Arena, and now we are performing at the Olympic Hall. We are glad to be raising the bar of Nepali shows there,” said Kiran Shrestha of nepa~laya, the promoters of Nepathya. “I am thankful to all our listeners livin

NEW YORK:  Leonardo DiCaprio announced Tuesday that his eco-focused foundation has given more than $20 million this year in fresh grants to more than 100 organizations around the world. From lion recovery and mangrove restoration to the defense of indigenous rights and better access to affordable solar energy, the actor announced the grants ahead of his appearance at a climate change conference at Yale University. He planned to use the appearance to urge more immediate steps to reduce the world’s reliance on fossil fuels in favor of renewable energy sources. “Our challenge is to find new ways to power our lives, employ millions of people and turn every individual into an advocate for clean air and drinkable water,” DiCaprio said in a statement. “We must demand that politicians accept climate science and make bold commitments before it is too late.” The money increases the Leonardo DiCaprio Foundation’s giving to $80 million since 1998, the organization said in a statement

MADRID:  Lionel Messi struck four goals as Barcelona romped to a 6-1 win over Eibar to extend their lead at the top of La Liga on Tuesday and maintain their 100 percent record. The Argentine was at his brilliant best as he lethally picked off the demoralised Basques, opening the scoring with a penalty in the 21st minute after Nelson Semedo was brought down by Alex Galvez.With Barca leading 3-1, Messi struck three more times to help the Catalans reach 15 points from five games, five clear of second-placed Sevilla, having played one match more. Valencia moved up to third after romping to a 5-0 win over bottom side Malaga with Simone Zaza netting a hat-trick. Barcelona manager Ernesto Valverde made several changes, resting striker Luis Suarez and left back Jordi Alba while picking Gerard Deulofeu in place of the injured Ousmane Dembele. The French winger is out for nearly four months with a ruptured hamstring and Barca paid tribute to him with a t-shirt reading ‘Courage Ousman

LONDON:  An unbeaten century from Jonny Bairstow helped England stroll to a seven-wicket victory over West Indies in the opening match of their one-day series at Old Trafford on Tuesday. With England set a modest target of 205 in a match reduced to 42 overs per side because of a weather-delayed start, the outcome was never in doubt, and the main question was if Bairstow had time to reach three figures for the first time in ODIs having made three test centuries. The 27-year-old Bairstow got there in the 31st over when he made three runs and a few balls later Ben Stokes sealed victory by launching Ashley Nurse over the boundary rope for six. “It’s been a long time coming, I made by debut so long ago. It’s been a rollercoaster in ODIs, but hopefully it’s a stepping block for things to come,” Bairstow, who has struggled to nail down a place in England’s one-day side, said. “I opened for Yorkshire at the start of the year and it’s gone from there. I like to hope my game lend

LONDON:  Leicester City grabbed second-half goals through Shinji Okazaki and record signing Islam Slimani to earn a 2-0 victory over Liverpool in the League Cup third round on Tuesday. A night of wholesale changes for the 11 Premier League sides in action produced one upset with top flight Stoke City losing 2-0 at second-tier Bristol City. Former England manager Roy Hodgson enjoyed his first victory in charge of Crystal Palace as the Premier League’s bottom club defeated Huddersfield Town 1-0 at Selhurst Park. West Ham United and Swansea City also progressed with wins over second-tier Bolton Wanderers and Reading respectively. Liverpool’s Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain was given his first start by manager Juergen Klopp following hismove from Arsenal, while Phillipe Coutinho was also in the lineup at the King Power Stadium where the visitors dominated play before the interval. Eight-times League Cup winners Liverpool failed to take their chances though and Leicester woke up i

BERLIN:  Colombia midfielder James Rodriguez celebrated his first Bundesliga start for Bayern Munich in style by inspiring them to a 3-0 win at Schalke 04 on Tuesday. James, on loan from Real Madrid, scored the second goal and cleverly set up the third, having also played a part in winning the penalty which got Bayern off the mark. Robert Lewandowski fired Bayern ahead from the spot in the 25th minute after James got to the byline and produced a cross which was handled by Naldo. Four minutes later, James got free in the Schalke box and tucked his shot past Ralf Faehrmann for Bayern’s second. Not content with that, he cut inside two defenders and dinked the ball over the Schalke defence for Arturo Vidal to add the third in the 75th minute. Bayern’s win put them on 12 points from five games and took them top, at least until Wednesday. Augsburg continued their impressive start when a fourth-minute goal from Michael Gregoritsch gave them a 1-0 win over last season’s run

The number of countries with whom Nepal enjoys trade surplus is on the decline. As of mid-August, the country had trade surplus with 18 countries out of 94, with whom the country has trade relations. The number of countries with which Nepal had trade surplus stood at 30 in the first month of the last fiscal 2016-17. As per the trade statistics of the first month of this fiscal unveiled by the Department of Customs (DoC), the country had trade surplus with the United States, United Kingdom, Czech Republic, Norway, Romania, Namibia, Portugal, Uruguay, Morocco, Yemen, Bolivia, Chile, Dominica, Azerbaijan, New Caledonia, Tajikistan, Iceland and Lithuania. Nepal exports handicraft products, carpets, garments, pashmina, jewellery, among others, to the aforementioned countries. Though advanced economies like the United States and European countries have extended zero tariff facility for Nepali products as the products manufactured in least developed countries, the country has not be

LONDON:  Unemployment is the biggest risk for businesses globally, according to a World Economic Forum survey of business leaders published on Wednesday. The company executives put unemployment or underemployment as the top risk over the next 10 years, followed by fiscal crises and the failure of national governance, data from the WEF’s Executive Opinion Survey showed.The survey of 12,411 executives across 136 countries provides a backdrop for the World Economic Forum’s Global Risks report published shortly before its annual January meeting in Davos, Switzerland, according to a spokesman for insurance broker Marsh. Marsh is part of Marsh & McLennan ( MMC.N ), which published the data together with Zurich Insurance ( ZURN.S ). “Geopolitical risks and events have led to uncertainties which raise questions about how to manage resilience in uncertain times,” said John Scott, chief risk officer, commercial insurance, at Zurich. For businesses in the North America, East Asia an

BEIJING:  China believes that the Venezuelan government and people can resolve their problems within a legal framework and maintain national stability, Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi told his Venezuelan counterpart at the United Nations. At least 125 people have been killed in four months of protests against President Nicolás Maduro’s government, which has resisted calls to bring forward the presidential election and instead set up a pro-Maduro legislative superbody called a Constituent Assembly that has overruled the country’s opposition-led Congress.        U.S. President Donald Trump said on Monday he wanted democracy restored soon in Venezuela and warned that the United States might take additional measures to apply pressure on the oil-producing nation. China, a good friend of Venezuela’s, has brushed off widespread condemnation from the United States, Europe and others about the situation in the country. Wang told Venezuelan Foreign Affairs Minister Jorge Arreaza on Tu

SEOUL/TOKYO:  US President Donald Trump’s speech to the United Nations, where he warned he would “totally destroy” North Korea if threatened, reinforced the need for Pyongyang to realize it must give up its nuclear weapons, South Korea said on Wednesday. In a hard-edged speech to the United Nations General Assembly on Tuesday, Trump mocked North Korean leader Kim Jong Un as a “rocket man” for his repeated ballistic missile tests.“We view the speech as portraying a firm and specific stance on the key issues regarding keeping peace and safety that the international community and the United Nations are faced with,” the office of South Korean President Moon Jae-in said in a statement on Wednesday. “It clearly showed how seriously the United States government views North Korea’s nuclear program as the president spent an unusual amount of time discussing the issue,” the presidential Blue House’s statement said. Trump’s speech “reaffirmed that North Korea should be made to realize d

UNITED NATIONS:  Qatar’s Emir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad al-Thani on Tuesday renewed a call for “unconditional dialogue” to end a crisis pitting Qatar against four Arab states while US President Donald Trump said he expected the dispute to be resolved quickly. Speaking from the podium of the 193-member United Nations General Assembly, Sheikh Tamim renewed the call “for an unconditional dialogue based on mutual respect for sovereignty”. Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, Egypt and Bahrain cut diplomatic and trade links with Qatar on June 5, suspending air and shipping routes with the world’s biggest exporter of liquefied natural gas, which is home to the region’s biggest US military base. The nations say Doha supports regional foe Iran and Islamists, charges Qatar’s leaders deny. Kuwait has been trying to mediate and the United States has taken an increasingly robust role in trying to end the crisis, but as yet to no avail. Trump and Sheikh Tamim later held a meeting in

MEXICO CITY:  Police, firefighters and ordinary Mexicans dug frantically through the rubble of collapsed schools, homes and apartment buildings early Wednesday, looking for survivors of Mexico’s deadliest earthquake in decades as the number of confirmed fatalities stood at 217. Adding poignancy and a touch of the surreal, Tuesday’s magnitude-7.1 quake struck on the 32nd anniversary of the 1985 earthquake that killed thousands. Just hours earlier, people around Mexico had held earthquake drills to mark the date. One of the most desperate rescue efforts was at a primary and secondary school in southern Mexico City, where a wing of the three-story building collapsed into a massive pancake of concrete slabs. Journalists saw rescuers pull at least two small bodies from the rubble, covered in sheets. Volunteer rescue worker Dr. Pedro Serrano managed to crawl into the crevices of the tottering pile of rubble that had been Escuela Enrique Rebsamen. He made it into a classroom, bu

NAWALPARASI:  CPN-UML Chairman and the main opposition party leader KP Shaprma Oli has accused the judiciary system of failing to enlighten democracy in Nepal. He said so while addressing a rally in Gaindakot of Nawalparasi district today.Former PM Oli urged the Judiciary system is failing to provide justices, however requested the independent judiciary to maintain its integrity. “I prey to Goddess Durga to give eternal power to the justices to maintain the dignity and integrity of independent judiciary system of Nepal,” Oli stressed. “Court gives verdict in favour of tearing of ballot papers, rules against the favour of innocent police officer, however UML is observing the situation and will always warns of such actions,” Oli shared. He also accused the current ruling government of meddling in unnecessary things rather than engaging in the development of Nation. “This is the right time to lead the nation towards development and economic prosperity, however, the governmen