Current Affairs

Current Affairs for the year 2012

2012
Sakshi

Contents
International Affairs 2012 .......................................................................................................................... 1 January ...................................................................................................................................................... 1 February .................................................................................................................................................... 1 March ........................................................................................................................................................ 2 April ........................................................................................................................................................... 3 May ........................................................................................................................................................... 4 June ........................................................................................................................................................... 4 July ............................................................................................................................................................ 6 August ..................................................................................................................................................... 12 September............................................................................................................................................... 17 October ................................................................................................................................................... 25 November ............................................................................................................................................... 34 December ................................................................................................................................................ 41 National Affairs 2012 ............................................................................................................................... 48 January .................................................................................................................................................... 48 February .................................................................................................................................................. 49 March ...................................................................................................................................................... 49 April ......................................................................................................................................................... 50 May ......................................................................................................................................................... 52 June ......................................................................................................................................................... 52 July .......................................................................................................................................................... 53 August ..................................................................................................................................................... 58 September............................................................................................................................................... 62 October ................................................................................................................................................... 74 November ............................................................................................................................................... 90 December .............................................................................................................................................. 103 Bilateral Affairs 2012 .............................................................................................................................. 113 January .................................................................................................................................................. 113 February ................................................................................................................................................ 113 March .................................................................................................................................................... 114 April ....................................................................................................................................................... 114

May ....................................................................................................................................................... 115 June ....................................................................................................................................................... 115 July ........................................................................................................................................................ 116 August ................................................................................................................................................... 118 September............................................................................................................................................. 119 October ................................................................................................................................................. 122 November ............................................................................................................................................. 124 December .............................................................................................................................................. 129 Economic Affairs 2012 ........................................................................................................................... 131 January .................................................................................................................................................. 131 February ................................................................................................................................................ 131 March .................................................................................................................................................... 133 April ....................................................................................................................................................... 135 May ....................................................................................................................................................... 136 June ....................................................................................................................................................... 137 July ........................................................................................................................................................ 138 August ................................................................................................................................................... 141 September............................................................................................................................................. 145 October ................................................................................................................................................. 151 November ............................................................................................................................................. 159 December .............................................................................................................................................. 165 Science & Technology 2012 ................................................................................................................... 171 January .................................................................................................................................................. 171 February ................................................................................................................................................ 171 March .................................................................................................................................................... 172 April ....................................................................................................................................................... 172 May ....................................................................................................................................................... 173 June ....................................................................................................................................................... 174 July ........................................................................................................................................................ 175 August ................................................................................................................................................... 178 September............................................................................................................................................. 180 October ................................................................................................................................................. 184

November ............................................................................................................................................. 190 December .............................................................................................................................................. 194 Awards 2012 .......................................................................................................................................... 199 January .................................................................................................................................................. 199 February ................................................................................................................................................ 202 March .................................................................................................................................................... 204 April ....................................................................................................................................................... 205 May ....................................................................................................................................................... 205 June ....................................................................................................................................................... 206 July ........................................................................................................................................................ 206 August ................................................................................................................................................... 207 September............................................................................................................................................. 209 October ................................................................................................................................................. 211 November ............................................................................................................................................. 217 December .............................................................................................................................................. 224 Persons 2012 .......................................................................................................................................... 228 January .................................................................................................................................................. 228 February ................................................................................................................................................ 229 March .................................................................................................................................................... 229 April ....................................................................................................................................................... 230 May ....................................................................................................................................................... 231 June ....................................................................................................................................................... 231 July ........................................................................................................................................................ 233 August ................................................................................................................................................... 239 September............................................................................................................................................. 241 October ................................................................................................................................................. 246 November ............................................................................................................................................. 251 December .............................................................................................................................................. 256 Sports 2012 ............................................................................................................................................ 261 January .................................................................................................................................................. 261 February ................................................................................................................................................ 262 March .................................................................................................................................................... 263

April ....................................................................................................................................................... 263 May ....................................................................................................................................................... 264 June ....................................................................................................................................................... 265 July ........................................................................................................................................................ 266 August ................................................................................................................................................... 268 September............................................................................................................................................. 272 October ................................................................................................................................................. 276 November ............................................................................................................................................. 280 December .............................................................................................................................................. 285

International Affairs 2012

International Affairs 2012

January
The fifth edition of the World Future Energy Summit was held in Abu Dhabi, capital of UAE from 16 to 19 January 2012. The theme of this years World Future Energy Summit was - Sustainable Energy for All. The summit discussed the need to exploit the alternative sources like solar, wind, tidal energy etc. Pakistan's Supreme Court issued a contempt of court notice to Prime Minister Yousuf Raza Gilani for failing to re-open graft cases against President Asif Ali Zardari. The Apex Court also asked the Pakistan Prime Minister to appear before it on 19 January 2012. A seven-judge bench led by Justice Nasir-ul-Mulk issued the order. UN's Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO) has recognised the efforts of the tribal community of Koraput to conserve biodiversity and develop climate resilient farm practices as a Globally Important Agricultural Heritage System (GIAHS). Mentioning this at the inauguration of the 99th Indian Science Congress, Prime Minister Manmohan Singh lauded the Koraput tribals for the achievement. He honoured Raita Maduli and Chandra Pradhan of Koraput for preserving the traditional agricultural system of the region. The recognition of the Koraput Traditional Agricultural System as a GIAHS site is expected to guarantee local and international efforts for the conservation of biodiversity and sustainable use of its genetic resources.

February
Abd-Rabbu Mansour Hadi became Yemen's new president on 26 February, formally removing autocrat Ali Abdullah Saleh from power. Iran on 15 February 2012 launched three nuclear projects including a fourth generation Ultra Centrifuge, which is capable of enriching the Uranium faster than its earlier models. The first one was at the Iranian Atomic Organization Research Center in Tehran where Iran's first home-made nuclear fuel rods were loaded into a medical reactor. This would be used for production of isotopes used in treatment of cancer patients.Iran unveiled two other projects in the Natanz plant in central Iran. Enriched uranium is a critical component for both civil nuclear power generation and nuclear weapons. President of Maldives, Mohamed Nasheed resigned on 7 February 2012 after weeks of protest, which was against his decision to sack a judge that, he had accused of favouring the opposition. Vice President Mohammed Waheed Hassan was sworn in as President, following Nasheeds resignation. It is alleged that police officers sided with anti-government demonstrators. Nasheed was elected in 2008 when Maldives held its first democratic election, following three decades of rule by autocratic leader Maumoon Abdul Gayoom Indonesia became the 157th country to adopt the Comprehensive Test Ban Treaty. Indonesia formalised ratification of the nuclear test ban treaty on 6 February 2012 at the United Nations.The Southeast Asia Nuclear Weapon-Free Zone treaty commits ASEAN's 10 member states not to develop, manufacture or otherwise acquire, possess or have control over atomic weapons. Iran on 3 February 2012 successfully launched an observation satellite called Navid into orbit above Earth. It will be placed into an orbit at an altitude between 250 and 370 kilometres. The weight of the satellite is 50kilogram and it is meant to stay in orbit for 18 months. India will provide a grant of $1.5 million to the University of Chicago to establish a Vivekananda Chair for Indian studies, as part of the initiatives to mark the 150th birth anniversary of the 19th century luminary,

International Affairs 2012

Swami Vivekananda. A Memorandum of Understanding was signed in this regard between Dean of University of Chicago (UOC) Martha Roth and Joint Secretary in the Ministry of Culture Sanjiv Mittal, in the presence of Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee. The grant is meant to honour Swami Vivekananda's life and legacy and facilitate exchange of research scholars from/to India.

March
The Arab league summit was held in Baghdad from 27 March 2012 to 29 March 2012. The three-day summit was hosted by Iraq for the first time since 1990. 22 Arab league states participated in the summit. The Baghdad summit discussed the uprising in Syria and the Iraqi debts to its neighbours. The previous Arab league summit was held in Sirte. Syria didnt participate in the Summit. It was suspended in the midst of the uprising against the Assad regime. The second Nuclear Security Summit was held in Seoul, on 26-27 March 2012. 53 heads of state and government, as well as representatives of the United Nations (UN), International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), European Union (EU) and INTERPOL, attended the 2012 summit.The first Nuclear Security Summit was held in Washington in April 2010. It was initiated by US President Barack Obama. Rebel troops in Mali ousted its President Amadou Toumani on 22 March 2012. The rebels blamed the government for failing to control an ethnic Tuareg insurgency in the Northern part of Mali. The Tuareg insurgency includes fighters who supported Mummar Gaddafi in Libya. The army leaders who staged the coup called themselves the National Committee for the Reestablishment of Democracy and the Restoration of the State (CNRDR). USA suspended military aid and other funds directed to Malis government in its response to military coup in Mali. It called for immediate restoration of constitutional rule. Syria on 27 March 2012 accepted the 19-point UN peace plan to end violence in the country. The 19-point plan was handed over by Kofi Annan to Syrian President during his recent visit to the Syria. The plan calls for a cease-fire by Syrian forces and to commit to a daily two-hour halt in fighting to allow humanitarian access and medical evacuations. It also calls for a full cease-fire to be supervised by the UN so that all parties can discuss a political solution. UN Human Rights Council in Geneva adopted a resolution about human rights violations committed by the Sri Lankan army in its war with LTTE, which concluded IN 2009. 24 countries including India voted for the resolution and 15 voted against it. However, India emphasised that resolutions of this nature should fully respect the sovereign rights of states and contribute to Sri Lankas own efforts in this regard. World Water Day is observed annually on 22 March with an objective to focus attention on the importance of freshwater as well as to advocate sustainable management of freshwater resources. In 2012, the International World Water Day is observed with the theme The World is Thirsty because we are Hungry. Vladimir Putin from United Russia Party won the Russian Presidential Election with 63.75 percent of votes on 5 March 2012.Communist leader Gennady Zyuganov came second with 17.18 percent of the votes. Putin has already served eight years as President (2000-2004 and 2004-2008) and four years as PM (2008-2012). This will be his third term as President. The UN Human Rights Council asked Syria to immediately stop the attacks on civilians by the security forces. The death toll in the ongoing violence in Syria has crossed 7500.The UNHRC is likely to approve resolution for indicting the Syrian officials who are responsible for attacks on the civilians.

International Affairs 2012

North Korea agreed to suspend its nuclear enrichment programme in return for US food aid. USA had promised North Korea 240000 tonnes of nutritional assistance. North Korea also agreed to allow UN inspectors to monitor its reactor in Yongbyon .This step was taken two months after Kim Jong-un came to power following the death of his father, Kim Jong-il. It is expected to bring peace in East Asian region and ease the tension between North Korea and South Korea. The Dubai Metro, comprising the red and green lines, has entered the Guinness Book of World Records as the longest driverless metro network in the world spanning 74.695 km. Qatar has been ranked as the world's wealthiest country in a new list compiled by the prestigious US magazine Forbes. The second and third positions were occupied by Luxemburg and Singapore. Liberia and Congo took the last positions.

April
The Supreme Court of Pakistan convicted Pakistan Prime Minister Yusuf Raja Gilani for contempt of court for refusing to reopen corruption cases against President Asif Ali Zardari. Gilani is the first Pakistan prime minister to be held guilty for contempt could have been jailed for six months but was awarded just a symbolic punishment of about 30 seconds. The Netherlands Prime Minister Mark Rutte and his Cabinet resigned on 23 April 2012 after failing to reach agreement on reducing the country's budget to meet European guidelines. Rutte tendered his resignation to Queen Beatrix, the head of state. Pakistan on 25 April 2012 successfully test-fired an upgraded version of Shaheen-1 missile. The new upgraded Shaheen-1, with its even longer striking range and nuclear carrying capability, can hit its targets in India. A passenger aero plane crash near Islamabad in Pakistan on 20 April 2012 left more than 100 people dead. The tragic incident occurred while the airliner was attempting to land during a thunderstorm. The Bhoja airliner had been flying from the southern seaport city of Karachi and burst into flames right before its landing in the Islamabad. The crash occurred near the Chaklala airbase, a military site used by the country's air force, which is adjacent to the Benazir Bhutto International Airport in Islamabad. A Powerful earthquake of 8.7 magnitude on the Richter scale hit Aceh province of Indonesia on 11 April 2012. A tsunami alert also has been given for much of the Indian Ocean. The earthquake's epicentre was at a depth of 33 km about 485 km from Indonesia's Banda Aceh, a region regularly hit by earthquakes. Myanmar's pro-democracy leader Aung San Suu Kyi on 1 April 2012 won a parliamentary seat in a historic by-election. It set the stage for her to take public office for the first time. Her party National League for Democracy (NLD) won 43 seats. It will be the main opposition force in a national parliament where the political party backed by the military has the majority. She was released in late 2010 after she had been detained under house arrest by the military. She had won the Nobel peace prize in 1991. The Syrian government announced ceasefire against rebels on 12 April 2012. There would be no military operations against rebels. But the troops will remain on alert to thwart attack by armed groups against civilians and the security forces. The ceasefire will be effective throughout Syria.

International Affairs 2012

May
Pakistan on 29 May 2012 successfully test-fired a short-range Hatf IX (Nasr) missile. The missile has a range of 60 kilometers and is capable of carrying nuclear warheads. An Egyptian court awarded former President Hosni Mubarak with life imprisonment on 2 June 2012. The former autocrat was convicted given his involvement in the murder of protesters during the uprising which dethroned him in 2011. The trial against Mubarak began in August 2011. The Union Cabinet on 17 May approved the 7.6 billion dollar TAPI (Turkmenisthan-AfghanistanPakisthan-India) gas pipeline project. The TAPI gas pipeline project originates from the central Asian nation Turkmenistan and reaches India via Afghanistan and Pakistan. It is also referred to as the peace pipeline. The TAPI gas project will have a total length of 1680 km. Of the total length 144km will be in Turkmenistan, 735km in Afghanistan, and 800km in Pakistan, bringing it to the India border. The pipeline will be entirely functional in 2018 and supply gas over the next thirty years. The pipeline would produce 90 million standard cubic metres of gas per day (mscmd). Of the total gas pumped through it, India and Pakistan will get 38 mscmd each and Afghanistan the remaining 14 mscmd. The Socialist Party leader Francois Hollande defeated the incumbent president Nicholas Sarkozy to become the 24th French President in the presidential elections held on 6 May 2012. Hollande is the second socialist president of France. The Socialist Party first won power in 1981, as Franois Mitterrand was elected President of France. Pakistan successfully test-fired Hatf III Ghaznavi missile on 10 May 2012. The missile has a range of 290 km and it can hit its target in India. The missile is capable of carrying nuclear warheads. Jordan's parliament on 9 May 2012 passed a law to encourage a multiparty political system in the country. The move is one of the major reform measures announced by Jordan King Abdullah II, as the country goes to elections before the end of 2012. The new law allows for state funding of election but bans foreign aid to the parties. Aung San Suu Kyi took the oath of office to become an official member of Myanmars parliament on 2 May 2012. Suu Kyi, a pro-democracy leader of Myanmar for the first time has held public office since launching her struggle against authoritarian rule nearly a quarter century ago.

June
Muslim Brotherhood (Freedom and Justice Party) candidate, Mohammed Morsi won the 2012 Presidential Election of Egypt on 24 June 2012. Mohammed Morsi is 60 years old. He is a trained American engineer and former lawmaker. He is the first Islamist elected as the head of an Arab state. He became the fifth president of Egypt and the first president from outside the military. The seventh G20 summit took place on 18, 19 June 2012, in the city of Los Cabos in Mexico. It is a twenty member group. the summit includes- South Africa, Canada, India, Mexico, United States, China, Japan, South Korea, Russia, Turkey, Argentina, Brazil, India, Indonesia, Saudi Arabia, European Union, France, Germany, Italy, United Kingdom, Australia. Highlights of the meeting are1. The leaders of the world's largest economies will help in boosting growth and job creation to repair the wounded global economy because of the European financial crisis.

International Affairs 2012

2. 3. 4. The Summit declaration also included investment in infrastructure in the developing countries; this decision would help in achieving global growth which was hauled due to the falling state of the world economy and the Eurozone crisis. All the Euro members of the G 20 will indulge in necessary policy measures to not only safe guard the integrity, but also stabilize the whole area. This would be done only by breaking the feedback loop between the sovereigns and the banks. The summit has also recognized the progress made by China in market-determined exchanged rates.

Owing to the debt loaded 17 nation Euro zone, India on 19 June 2012 announced a $10 Billion contribution to the already existing IMFs $430 Billion financial money. The announcement was made by Manmohan Singh in the Seventh G-20, Mexico. The amount was contributed to the International Monetary Fund (IMF) for the bailout fund that would help them ease off a little burden from the debt scenario. The seventh G 20 take took place in the Mexican resort of Los Cabos. The seventh summit was headed by Mexicos President, Felipe de Jess Caldern Hinojosa. The next G20 Summit is scheduled in 2013 with Russia as the new chair. The G20 is the premier forum for international cooperation on the most important aspects of the international economic and financial agenda. It brings together the worlds major advanced and emerging economies. The G20 includes 19 country members and the European Union, which together represent around 90% of global GDP, 80% of global trade and two-thirds of the worlds population. The G 20 started in the year 1999, but it has been regular only since 2008. Raja Parvez Ashraf, the senior Pakistan Peoples Party leader, was appointed the 17th Prime Minister of Pakistan on 22 June 2012. Ashraf was elected as the Prime Minister following the Supreme Courts verdict to debar Yousaf Raza Gilani from his office on 19 June 2012 in a contempt of court case. Before being elected as the Prime Minister of the country, he served as the federal minister for water and power, and information and technology in the cabinet headed by former Prime Minister Yousuf Raza Gilani. Previously, the Supreme Court of Pakistan on 19 June 2012 debarred Pakistan Prime Minister Yusuf Raja Gilani from his office. The court's ruling also disqualified Gilani as the member of the National Assembly, the lower house of the Majlis-e-Shoora (Parliament). Gilani was convicted for violating the article 63(1) (g) (contempt of court) of the constitution of Pakistan on 26 April 2012 by the Supreme Court. The courts verdict came following Gilanis refusal to probe cases of corruption against Pakistan President Asif Ali Zardari. The three-judge Bench of the apex Pakistani court headed by Chief Justice Iftikhar Muhammad Chaudhry held Gilani, Pakistan's longest serving Prime Minister, ineligible for the post since 26 April 2012 when the court awarded him a symbolic 30-second sentence for the contempt of court. The New Democracy Party leader Antonis Samara sworn in as the Prime Minister of Greece on 20 June 2012. Samaras's centre-right New Democracy party bagged 129 seats of 300 in the parliamentary elections held on 17 June 2012.The New Democracy Party formed the new government with the support of socialist party Pasok (with 33 seats) and the Democratic Left party (with 17 seats). The fresh elections were held in Greece following the political parties failure to reach an agreement on the results of the first election held on 6 May 2012.Greece has been passing through the severe economic crisis which started in 2008. The country which makes nearly 2 per cent of the gross economic output of the Euro zone has seriously been contemplating the option of pulling out of the group. The exit of Greece from the euro zone raises a serious question over the future of European Union as many larger European economies such as Spain, Italy, Potugal are also likely to follow in the steps of Greece. To rescue Greece out of the economic crisis the European Union and International Monetary Fund had granted a 110 billion Euro package to the country in 2010, followed by a 130 billion Euro package in 2012. Myanmar opposition leader Aung San Suu Kyi finally accepted her 1991 nobel peace prize in Oslo on 16 July after spending a total of 15 years under house arrest and said full political freedom in her country was still a long way off. "Absolute peace in our world is an unattainable goal, she said in her acceptance speech during her first trip to Europe in nearly 25 years. Suu kye, the Oxford University-educated daughter of General

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Aung San, Myanmar's assassinated independence hero, advocated caution about transformation in Myanmar, whose quasi-civilian government continues to hold political prisoners. Suu Kyi, who spent a total of 15 years under house arrest between 1989 and her release in late 2010, never left Myanmar even during brief periods of freedom after 1989, afraid the military would not let back in. Myanmar President Thein Sein declared emergency in West Myanmar on 10 June 2012. This decision took following the sectarian violence between the Buddhists and Muslims in the past week that left seven people dead and hundreds of properties ravaged in Rakhine state of west Myanmar.Conflict in troubled Rakhine state blazed after a Buddhist woman was killed in May 2012, followed by an attack on a bus carrying Muslims. The clashes began on 4 June 2012 when a violent mob attacked a bus in Taungup, Rakhine province, apparently mistakenly believing some of the passengers were responsible for the earlier rape and murder of a Buddhist woman. Rakhine state is named after the ethnic Rakhine Buddhist community, which is in the majority in the state. The state also has a sizeable Muslim population, including the Rohingya minority. The Rohingya are a Muslim ethnic group and are considered to be the refugees who have illegally entered Myanmar from neighboring Bangladesh. The Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) 2012 ended in Beijing on 7 June 2012, with member states agreeing to further cooperation in a variety of fields. Leaders and officials from the four SCO observer countries of Mongolia, Iran, Pakistan and India were also present at the summit. Leaders across the participating nations held a broader discussion over the issues like Afghanistan crisis and the Iranian nuclear programme. The member states of the SCO adopted 10 agreements on the concluding day of the summit. The agreement includes the Declaration on Building a Region with Lasting Peace and Common Prosperity, the Strategic Plan for the Medium-Term Development of the SCO, and the SCO Regulations on Political and Diplomatic Measures and Mechanism of Response to Events Jeopardizing Regional Peace, Security and Stability. The SCO also decided to grant Afghanistan observer status and accept Turkey as a dialogue partner. Chinese President Hu Jintao offered a 10 billion U.S. dollars loan to the SCO which will be used be used to promote the development of SCO members. The SCO, an intergovernmental mutual security organization, was founded in Shanghai on 15 June 2001. The group has six full time members at present namely China, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Russia, Tajikistan and Uzbekistan. The Central Asian nation Kyrgyzstan will host the 2013 summit of SCO. A Boeing MD83 aircraft crashed in Lagos, the largest Nigerian city on 3 June 2012. All the 153 people on board were killed in the worst air disaster of Nigeria. The flight was traveling from Nigerias central capital of Abuja to Lagos in the nations southwest. Nigeria with 160 million people is Africas most populous nation. Pakistan successfully test-fired the indigenously developed Hatf-VII (Babur) cruise missile on 5 June 2012. Hatf-VII is capable of carrying both nuclear and conventional warheads. The missile has a range of 700 km. Earlier on 29 May 2012 Pakistan had successfully carried out the test of indigenously developed Short Range Surface to Surface Multi Tube Missile Hatf IX (NASR) followed by the test of nuclear-capable cruise missile Hatf-VIII (Ra'ad) whose test was conducted on 31 May 2012. An Egyptian court awarded former President Hosni Mubarak with life imprisonment on 2 June 2012. The former autocrat was convicted given his involvement in the murder of protesters during the uprising which dethroned him in 2011. The trial against Mubarak began in August 2011.

July
The U.N. said around 2,00,000 Syrians have fled the embattled city of Aleppo since intense clashes between government forces and rebels began 10 days ago. The government forces turned mortars, tank and

International Affairs 2012

helicopter gunships against rebel positions on 30 July, pressing ahead with a counter-offensive to wrest back control of neighbourhoods taken by rebels in Syrias largest city and commercial hub. Romanian President Traian Basescu escaped impeachment on 30 July, when a referendum on his removal from office fell short of the 50 per cent turnout threshold, despite a resounding vote for his dismissal. His arch rival, Romanian Prime Minister Victor Ponta , who has led efforts to push Mr. Basescu from office warned he would refuse to work with Mr. Basescu, arguing that he had lost all legitimacy. The Myanmar government on 30 July insisted that the Rohingya minority group, the target of communal violence in the month of July, have no claim to Myanmar citizenship. They are not included among our more than 130 ethnic races, Myanmar Immigration Minister Thein Htay told a press conference. Since 1982, the government has classified an estimated 750,000 Rohingyas as stateless Bengali Muslims from neighbouring Bangladesh. China pledged 20 Billion Dollar Loan to Africa: In a move aimed at strengthening its economic ties with the African continent, China pledged to give 20 billion dollar loan to African countries over the next three years. The announcement about the credit line was made by the Chinese President Hu Jin Tao at the opening session of the fifth Forum on China-Africa Cooperation (FOCAC) in Beijing on 19 July 2012. China had pledged 10 billion dollar loans at the previous China-Africa summit in 2009. Chinese President while addressing the conference announced to increase Chinese assistance to Africa by building agricultural technology demonstration centres, training 30000 personnel and offering 18000 scholarships. To provide better medical amenities in the continent, China will also send 1500 medical staffs to the continent. Heads of state and representatives from 50 African countries attended the conference. Super rich have 20 trillion dollars in tax havens: A news report by tax researchers estimates the amount of black money deposited by a 'global super-rich elite' in offshore accounts is as much as 13 trillion pounds (nearly 20 trillion dollars) equivalent of the combined GDP of the US and Japan. The report by Tax Justice Network released to The Observer is said to be the 'most detailed estimates yet of the size of the offshore economy'. Revolt in Madagascar: A group of mutinous soldiers in Madagascar took over a military camp near the Indian Ocean Islands main airport on 22 July, and shot an army officer sent in to negotiate their surrender, the Defence Ministry said. Government soldiers surrounded the base and launched an attack on the mutineers by Sunday afternoon after attempts to negotiate failed, the military said. It was not immediately clear how many mutinous soldiers were holed up inside the base. The Defence Ministry said the mutiny is led by a bodyguard of former Defence Minister Noel Rakotonandrasana, who was jailed after taking part in a 2010 mutiny. US hosts 19th International AIDS Conference: The world's largest meeting on HIV/AIDS opened on 22nd July in Washington with calls to speed up the global response to the three-decade-long epidemic that killed 1.5 million people last year. The 19th International AIDS Conference drew around 25,000 people, including politicians, scientists and activists, as well as some of the estimated 34 million people living with HIV who will tell their stories. Among them is the only man who has achieved a functional cure of HIV though a bone marrow transplant, American Timothy Brown, who is scheduled to appeal for a fresh push toward a cure during the six-day conference that runs until July 27. Other high-profile appearances include Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, former president Bill Clinton, former first lady Laura Bush, singer Elton John, philanthropist Bill Gates and actress Whoopi Goldberg. Suu Kyi makes first parliament speech: Myanmar opposition leader Aung San Suu Kyi used her first speech in Parliament on 25th July, to call for laws protecting the rights of the country's ethnic minorities. The Nobel Peace Prize winner and democracy crusader won her first seat in Myanmar's Parliament in a historic April byelection that was seen as a key step in the country's transformation from military rule to fledgling democracy. Suu Kyi stood from her seat toward the back of Myanmar's Parliament to call for an end to discrimination against ethnic minorities as part of the "emergence of a genuine democratic country." "Based on the spirit of

International Affairs 2012

equality, mutual respect and understanding," she said, "I would like to urge all lawmakers to enact necessary laws or amend laws to protect the rights of ethnic nationalities." Suu Kyi's comments came in support of a motion by a ruling-party lawmaker from the ethnic Shan state on upholding ethnic minority rights. She referred to soaring poverty rates in Chin, Kachin, Shan and Rakhine states, noting that protecting minority rights required more than just maintaining ethnic languages and cultures. "The high poverty rates in ethnic states clearly indicate that development in ethnic regions is not satisfactory - and ethnic conflicts in these regions have not ceased," she said during her brief speech. Suu Kyi did not mention last month's communal violence in western Myanmar between Rakhine Buddhists and Muslim Rohingyas that left at least 78 people dead and prompted a government crackdown in the region. The Nobel Peace Prize winner has faced rare criticism from rights groups for not offering stronger support for the Rohingya, who are considered by most in Myanmar to be illegal immigrants from Bangladesh and are not one of the recognised ethnic groups of Myanmar. India bans US-sanctioned Iranian ships to enter its water: India has prohibited US-sanctioned Iranian ships from entering its water as it is hampering crude oil imports from Iran. In early July, the government had allowed crude oil import from Iran in ships arranged by Tehran after European sanctions evaporated insurance cover to domestic shippers. However, Mangalore Refinery and Petrochemicals Ltd (MRPL) and other state refiners are allowed to import oil from Iran on cost, insurance and freight (CIF ) basis -- wherein Tehran was to arrange for ships and insurance. We were to import four tankers or cargoes of about 90,000 tonne each from Iran in July. But we could only get one as the CIF approval was withdrawn, MRPL Managing Director PP Upadhya. US has sanctioned National Iranian Tanker Co and its 58 vessels -- some of which have been reflagged in other nations to put off international sanctions. Egypts President Mohamed Morsi elected fifty year old Hisham Kandil as the countrys Prime Minister. Mohamed Morsi who became the fifth President of the Republic of Egypt on 24 June 2012, is the first to have been freely elected in the country. China pledged 20 Billion Dollar Loan to Africa: In a move aimed at strengthening its economic ties with the African continent, China pledged to give 20 billion dollar loan to African countries over the next three years. The announcement about the credit line was made by the Chinese President Hu Jin Tao at the opening session of the fifth Forum on China-Africa Cooperation (FOCAC) in Beijing on 19 July 2012. China had pledged 10 billion dollar loans at the previous China-Africa summit in 2009. Chinese President while addressing the conference announced to increase Chinese assistance to Africa by building agricultural technology demonstration centres, training 30000 personnel and offering 18000 scholarships. To provide better medical amenities in the continent, China will also send 1500 medical staffs to the continent. Heads of state and representatives from 50 African countries attended the conference. Super rich have 20 trillion dollars in tax havens: A news report by tax researchers estimates the amount of black money deposited by a 'global super-rich elite' in offshore accounts is as much as 13 trillion pounds (nearly 20 trillion dollars) equivalent of the combined GDP of the US and Japan. The report by Tax Justice Network released to The Observer is said to be the 'most detailed estimates yet of the size of the offshore economy'. Revolt in Madagascar: A group of mutinous soldiers in Madagascar took over a military camp near the Indian Ocean Islands main airport on 22 July, and shot an army officer sent in to negotiate their surrender, the Defence Ministry said. Government soldiers surrounded the base and launched an attack on the mutineers by Sunday afternoon after attempts to negotiate failed, the military said. It was not immediately clear how many mutinous soldiers were holed up inside the base. The Defence Ministry said the mutiny is led by a bodyguard of former Defence Minister Noel Rakotonandrasana, who was jailed after taking part in a 2010 mutiny. US hosts 19th International AIDS Conference: The world's largest meeting on HIV/AIDS opened on 22 July in Washington with calls to speed up the global response to the three-decade-long epidemic that killed 1.5 million people last year. The 19th International AIDS

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Conference drew around 25,000 people, including politicians, scientists and activists, as well as some of the estimated 34 million people living with HIV who will tell their stories. French lawmakers vote to cut pay of President, PM: French lawmakers voted to reduce the salaries of President Francois Hollande and Prime Minister JeanMarc Ayrault by 30 percent as part of a series of budget-cutting moves. The lower house National Assembly thus endorsed one of the first decisions made by Hollande after he came to power in May, bringing his and his prime minister's monthly salaries down from 21,300 Euros ($26,100) per month to 14,910 Euros. Government ministers will also see their pay cut by 30 per cent to 9,940 Euros a month. Earlier in the day, the lawmakers backed a raft of other measures abolishing tax breaks and taxing the wealthy as the new Socialist government pursued efforts to kick start the economy with a tax-and-spend programme. The measures were part of the first budget bill presented by Hollande's government since he unseated Nicolas Sarkozy. India fares poorly in child well-being: India has slipped by 12 ranks since 1995 and is placed 112th in the global "Child Development Index" released by Save the Children, the world's leading independent NGO that works for child rights. According to the report, which analysed child well-being on three basic parameters of health, education and nutrition since 1995, India's CDI fell by three ranks from 100 to 103 between 1995 and 1999 and by another nine ranks (103 to 112) between 2005 and 2010. Out of 141 countries covered by the report, India is among the 14 whose ranks have dropped, it said. The CDI, launched in 2008 as a tool to monitor the progress in child well-being, ranks the best and worst places for children and improvements in child well-being globally. It measures the number of children in school, under five mortality rates and number of underweight children. The three indicators are aggregated by simply calculating the average score between them for each period under review, meaning that each of them has equal weighting in the index scores. According to the report, Japan is at present the best place in the world for a child, followed by Spain, Germany, Italy, France, Canada, Switzerland, UK and Norway. The US is ranked 24 in the Index, while Australia is at 16th place and China is at 29th. Somalia is at the bottom. The report also found that conditions for children have improved in 90 per cent of countries since the second half of the 1990s. Compared to that time, a child is now a third more likely to go to school and a third less likely to die before their fifth birthday Global Carbon Dioxide Emissions increased by Three Percent in 2011 According to the findings of the report Trends in global CO2 emissions, global carbon dioxide (CO2), emission increased by three percent in 2011. The three percent increase in CO2 took the total amount of CO2 in air at an all-time high of 34 billion tones. The European Commissions Joint Research Centre (JRC) and the Netherlands Environmental Assessment Agency (PBL) released the report on 19 July 2012. The United States with 17.3 tones per capita remains one of the top CO2 emitters, while, China, the worlds most populous country, average CO2 emissions increased by nine percent to 7.2 tones per capita. The 27-nation European Union emitted 7.5 tones of CO2 per person. Emissions from 34-member Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) countries account for only one third of global CO2 emissions in 2011. China (29 percent), the United States (16 percent), the European Union (11 percent), India (six percent), the Russian Federation (five percent) and Japan (four percent) were the top CO2 emitters in 2011. UN Council unable to adopt anti-Syrian regime move: The 15-member powerful UN body, the Security Council, has been unable to adopt a resolution that would have threatened sanctions on Syria, following the negative votes of China and Russia - both permanent members. The negative votes came on 9 July, amid pleas for a concerted and united action seeking an immediate halt to the ongoing violence in Syria. This is the third double-veto on the ongoing crisis in Syria. Eleven of the Council members, including India-whose nonpermanent membership ends in December--voted in favour of the resolution's text. Two others - Pakistan and South Africa - abstained. A veto by any one of the Council's five permanent members means a resolution cannot be adopted.

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US House votes to cut USD 650 mln in military aid to Pak: In a latest jab at Pakistan by the US, the House of Representatives has unanimously voted to cut American military aid to Islamabad by USD 650 million as Republicans sought to tamp down demands for deeper reductions. The amendment to cut the aid, which was proposed by Republican Congressman Ted Poe, passed on the floor in a voice vote. Poe had demanded a USD 1. Seventh G20 Summit: The seventh G20 summit took place in the Mexican City Los Cabos on 18-19 July 2012. The summit was attended by the leaders of 20 nations including South Africa, Canada, India, Mexico, United States, China, Japan, South Korea, Russia, Turkey, Argentina, Brazil, India, Indonesia, Saudi Arabia, France, Germany, Italy, United Kingdom, and Australia. The G 20 Summit, one of the key important multilateral event, was held to discuss the prominent economic issues such as eurozone crisis, poor scenario of global economic growth and faltering international financial systems. The participant nations and world bodies also ratified the Los Cabos Action Plan for growth and employment. New HIV infections declined among children: UNAIDS UNAIDS Report 2012 released on 18 July 2012, states that, new HIV infections among children are declining at a steady rate. The report noted that about 330000 children were newly infected in 2011, which indicated a 24 percent drop in the new HIV case among children since 2009. Report asserted that nearly 60 percent of the 1.5 million pregnant women living with HIV in poor countries received effective anti-AIDS medications last year, which lowered the chances of passing on the virus to their babies. As per the report about 34.2 million people worldwide were living with the AIDS virus at the end of 2011. UNAIDS, the Joint United Nations Programme on HIV/AIDS, is an innovative partnership that leads and inspires the world in achieving universal access to HIV prevention, treatment, care and support. UNAIDS came into existence in 1994, has its headquarter in Geneva, Switzerland. Michel Sidibe is the Executive Chairman of UNAIDS. Tokyo Conference pledged to provide 16 Billion Dollar Aid to Afghanistan Hoping to stabilise Afghanistan's future after the foreign troops' exit, international donors on 8 July met in Tokyo and pledged to shell out USD 16 billion in Afghan aid. Informal sources said, the money will come with conditions to ensure it doesn't fall victim to rampant Afghan corruption and mismanagement.The Tokyo donors conference to discuss aid for Afghanistan beyond 2014, was attended by representatives from about 80 countries and international aid organizations, including the World Bank and the Asian Development Bank. A follow-up meeting is to be held in Britain in 2014. Though the US didn't mention any exact moneatry figure for their expected aid, but an American official traveling with Hillary Rodham Clinton had spoken ahead of the event, on condition of anonymity, and said USD 4 billion per year would be promised from 2012 through 2015. Japan, the secondlargest donor, says it will provide up to USD 3 billion through 2016. Germany has announced it will keep its contribution to rebuilding and development at its current level of USD 536 million a year, at least until 2016. The Asian Development Bank announced it is providing USD 1.2 billion through 2016. International Criminal Court (ICC), located at The Hague has awarded Thomas Lubanga, a Congolese warlord, 14-year imprisonment on 10 July 2012. Judges at the ICC found Thomas Lubanga guilty of recruiting and using children in his Union of Congolese Patriots militia. Lubanga had led the Union of Congolese Patriots, an ethnic militia in the violent struggle in the Ituri region and its main town of Bunia. The conflict, which began in 1999, claimed the life of about 60000 people in the country.Lubanga, who had used children as the soldiers during the violent struggle in Congo's eastern Ituri region in 2002-2003 was convicted for war crime. He is the first person to be convicted by the International Criminal Court (ICC) since it was established in 2002. He was arrested by UN peacekeepers, in March 2005. U.S. imposes more sanctions on Iran The United States unleashed a fresh wave of sanctions against Iran on 12th July, ratcheting up pressure on Tehran to take seriously concerns about its suspected nuclear weapons programme.The actions impose additional sanctions on Iran's ''nuclear and ballistic missile proliferation networks'' and identifies Iranian ''front

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companies and banks,'' the Treasury Department said.''The Treasury and State Department actions target more than 50 entities tied to Iran's procurement, petroleum, and shipping networks,'' said the Treasury.David Cohen, Treasury's under secretary for terrorism and financial intelligence, said the moves take ''direct aim at disrupting Iran's nuclear and ballistic missile programs as well as its deceptive efforts to use front companies to sell and move its oil'' The increasing pressure is designed ''to convince Iran to engage seriously and address the international community's concerns about its nuclear programme.'' Asean summit ended in failure: Days of heated diplomacy ended in failure as splits over territorial disputes with China prevented Southeast Asian nations from issuing their customary joint statement at a summit on 13th July. Foreign Ministers from the 10-member Asean bloc have this week tried to hammer out a final communique in Cambodia, which has held up progress on a draft code of conduct aimed at soothing tension in the flashpoint South China Sea. China claims sovereignty over nearly all of the resource-rich sea, which is home to vital shipping lanes, but the Philippines, Vietnam, Malaysia and Brunei, among others, have competing claims in the area.

United Nations Secretary General Ban Ki-moon released United Nations Millenium Development Goal 2012. Report on 2 July 2012. The report noted that three important targets on poverty, slums and water have already been met three years ahead of 2015, the target year. On the front of poverty, the report stated that for the first time since poverty trends began to be monitored, both the number of people living in extreme poverty and the poverty rates have fallen in every developing regionincluding sub-Saharan Africa, where rates are highest. Preliminary estimates indicate that in 2010, the share of people living on less than a 1.25 dollar a day dropped to less than half of its 1990 value. The target of providing clean drinking water to a substantial population of the world also saw a considerable achievement as the proportion of people using improved water sources rose from 76 per cent in 1990 to 89 per cent in 2010, which means more than two billion people across the world today have the access to sources of clean drinking water. In developing world the share of urban population living in slums came down to 33 per cent in 2000 from 39 per cent in 2000. The millennium development goal asserted that the developing countries have also marked considerable achievements in education as many more of the world's children are enrolled in school at the primary level, especially since 2000. Girls have benefited the most. On the front of AIDS control, the developing countries have achieved tremendous fate as at the end of 2012 nearly 6.5 million people in the developing countries were receiving the antiretroviral therapy for HIV AIDS. Pakistan to reopen NATO supply lines : Pakistan on 3rd July, decided to reopen the NATO supply lines running through its territory into Afghanistan after U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton said Washington was ''sorry for the losses suffered by the Pakistan military'' in the Salala attack of November 26. This announcement was made by Ms. Clinton from Washington on Tuesday night (Pakistan time) even as the Defence Committee of the Cabinet (DCC) was in session to discuss reopening the supply lines. She said Pakistan would continue to allow transit facilities to NATO supplies free of cost. Pakistan made the announcement well over an hour after the State Department released details of a telephonic conversation that Ms. Clinton had with her Pakistani counterpart Hina Rabbani Khar. Briefing journalists, Information Minister Qamar Zaman Kaira said the decision nailed the canard that was being spread of Pakistan holding out on the issue primarily to get a big fee from NATO for using the Ground Lines of Communication (supply lines).

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The British government on 5th July, banned the Indian Mujahideen (IM) describing it as a threat to national security and citing its alleged involvement in several terror attacks, including the Mumbai bombings. The ban, which followed a unanimous vote in the House of Commons, came as five men and a woman were arrested in London in a counter-terror swoop ahead of the Olympic Games. Police said the arrests though ''significant'' were not linked to any imminent attack. Those arrested - three brothers and a married couple were aged between 18 and 30. The BBC said some were British nationals. Announcing the ban, Home Office Minister James Brokenshire said that there was evidence that the IM had been ''engaged in indiscriminate mass casualty attacks in India.'' United Nations Human Rights Council (UNHRC), the Geneva based human rights wing of UN, on 5th July 2012, adopted a first ever resolution to protect the online human rights of global citizens. The resolution adopted by consensus, stated that citizens of the world are as much entitled to the human rights online as they are offline. The resolution noted that there can be no double standard with regard to people's right of fundamental freedom and since internet makes a major part of present world's communication process, all governments must endeavour to protect the online rights of its citizens. The landmark resolution was sponsored by Sweden and co-sponsored by over 80 countries, that includes United States, Brazil, Turkey, Nigeria, and Tunisia.

August
French prosecutors have opened a murder enquiry into Palestinian leader Yasser Arafats 2004 death near Paris, sources close to the matter told on 28 August. The probe comes after Arafats family launched legal action in France last month over claims the veteran Palestinian leader died of radioactive polonium poisoning. Arafats widow Suha and his daughter Zawra lodged a murder complaint on July 31 in the Paris suburb of Nanterre. Arafat died at a military hospital near Paris in 2004. Allegations that the Nobel Peace Prize laureate was poisoned were resurrected last month after Al-Jazeera news channel broadcast an investigation in which experts said they found high levels of polonium on his personal effects. At the time of his death, Palestinian officials alleged he had been poisoned by long-time foe Israel, but an inconclusive Palestinian investigation in 2005 ruled out poisoning, as well as cancer and AIDS. Israel has consistently denied the allegations, accusing Suha Arafat and Palestinian officials of covering up the real reasons for the former leaders death The Vienna based International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), the international agency for the monitoring of nuclear energy, on 29 August 2012 set up a special Task Force to handle inspections and other issues related to the Iran's disputed nuclear programme. IAEA is aiming at handling the sensitive Iran issue by deploying the experts and other resources under one unit. IAEA, which regularly inspects Iran's nuclear sites, has voiced growing concern over the lran's nuclear program. Tehran, however, has argued that its nuclear programme is entirely peaceful and there is no military dimension to it. Iran has been targeting of western nations for carrying out its nuclear plan. Iran has been facing tough economic sanctions imposed by US and European Union. However, Iran has been dubbed the allegations made by US and its allies as ridiculous and maintained that the country has no military ambition behind its nuclear programme. A 7.6 earthquake struck off the Philippine coast on 31 August, triggering a small tsunami that hit the eastern part of the archipelago. The U.S. Geological Survey said the quake had a depth of 34 km and hit at 8:47 pm (1247 GMT), 139 kilometers east of the city of Sulangan on Samar island. A 16-centimetre tsunami hit the eastern Philippines about two hours later, raising fears that bigger waves were imminent. But the U.S. Pacific Tsunami Warning Center shortly afterwards lifted its tsunami warnings for the Philippines and Indonesia. Warnings had also been raised for Japan, Taiwan and several Pacific islands, but they were almost immediately lifted. The 16th NAM (Non-Aligned Movement) summit was held at Tehran, Iran on 30-31 August 2012.The theme of the summit was Lasting Peace through Joint Global Governance. At the Tehran Summit, the Chairmanship of

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NAM was passed on from Egypt to Iran. The NAM meeting in Tehran was held in three phases: preparatory senior officials meeting on 26-27 August, ministerial level meeting on 28-29 August, and the summit on 30-31 August. Venezuela was selected the host for the 17th NAM Summit in 2015 and two nations, namely Azerbaijan Republic and Fiji, were accepted as the new members of the organization. The NAM was founded in the former Yugoslavia in 1961. It represents almost two-thirds of the UN members and about 55 percent of the world population. A commission of enquiry has concluded on 30 August, that the former Maldivian President, Mohamed Nasheed, was not ousted in a coup. The Commission of National Inquiry (CoNI) was set up by the Maldivian government to probe if the events of February 7 constituted a coup. On that day, President Mohamed Nasheed had stepped down and Vice-President Mohamed Waheed assumed office as per the Constitution. The commission, in a report released on 30 August, concluded that there was no illegal coercion or intimidation nor any coup dtat. The Commission has received no evidence supporting or to substantiate these allegations. The commission, co-chaired by a Singapore judge and which included two international observers, said: A coup detat required a positive action against President Nasheed. Non-action and inaction cannot constitute a coup dtat. Moreover, the Constitution does not call for loyalty of anyone to the President. It calls for loyalty to the Constitution. Iran, India and Afghanistan discussed options for investment in the Chabahar Port, located in southeast Iran. In a crucial trilateral meeting held on 26 August 2012 ahead of the Non-Aligned Movement (NAM) summit, the three nations agreed to set up a joint working group to spur trade and transit through the Iranian port of Chabahar. Foreign Secretary Ranjan Mathai held dialogues with deputy foreign ministers of Iran and Afghanistan in Tehran to explore ways to expand trade and transit cooperation, including investment, among the three countries, starting with the Chabahar Port. In a joint statement released after trilateral dialogue the three countries committed to meet within next three months at Chabahar to take the discussions forward. In another significant development Indian External Affairs Minister SM Krishna held bilateral dialogues with his Iranian counterpart Ali Akbar Salehi on 27 August 2012. The two leaders discussed issues related to trade and economy during the meeting. The two nations hoped to take their economic ties to a new level through increased cooperation in the economic sector. Iran is hosting the 16th Nan-Aligned Movement Summit in capital Tehran from 26 August to 31 August 2012.Both the nations agreed to set up an Indian cultural centre in Tehran. India also discussed the issue of global governance confronting the developing world. Russia became the 156th member of the World Trade Organization on 21 August, following nearly two decades of negotiations. Russia was one of the world's last major economies to join the Geneva-based institution, having previously expressed concerns about the potential influx of Western goods and services. As part of its membership, Russia has agreed to lower import tariffs to less than 8 percent from a current average of around 10 percent. As part of the agreement, Russia has also made commitments to open trade in several sectors, including the banking, automotive and insurance industries. Some analysts expect this will be to the benefit of Russian consumers by making it cheaper for them to purchase imported products while allowing them to save more and invest back into the local economy. Russia joins the South Pacific island nation of Vanuatu, which will become the WTO s 157th member on 21 August. Pascal Lamy is the present Director-General of WTO. Meles Zenawi (57), Ethiopias Prime Minister since 1995, died on 20 August, in a hospital in Brussels. Sources said, Deputy Prime Minister Hailemariam Desalegn would head a transitional government while the ruling party chooses Mr. Meles successor, adding that the Constitution allowed his government to appoint a successor without holding elections. Mr. Meless Ethiopian Peoples Revolutionary Democratic Front seized power in 1991 following the collapse of the dictatorship of Colonel Mengistu Haile Mariam. He headed the transitional government and won elections in 1995, 2000, 2005 and most recently in 2010, in a landslide election whose validity was questioned by Western observers and human rights groups. Mr. Meles is credited with resurrecting the ruined economy he inherited in 1991. In the last seven years, the economy has grown by an average 11 per cent annually due to investments in agriculture and infrastructure. Adis Ababa is the capital for Ethiopia.

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Miss China , Wenxia Yu, was crowned the 62nd Miss World with Miss Wales Sophie Elizabeth Moulds as the 1st runner-up and Miss Australia Jessica Michele Kahawaty as the 2nd runner-up. This event was held at Ordos, in China on 18 august.Miss India Vanya Mishra stood at sixth place. While Vanyamishra got the coveted titles of Miss World Beauty with a Purpose and also went on to win the Multimedia Award at the Miss World pageant. Miss china was also awarded Miss Talent 2012, Miss World 2012 Beach Beauty was Miss Wales. While South Sudan took away the Miss World 2012 Top Model award.Finally, Miss World Sports Woman 2012 was awarded to Miss Sweden. Myanmar abolished direct media censorship on 20 August, the latest dramatic reform by its quasi-civilian regime, but journalists face other formidable restrictions including a ban on private daily newspapers and a pervasive culture of self-censorship. Under the new rules, journalists no longer have to submit reports to state censors before publication, ending a practice strictly enforced during nearly half a century of military rule that ended in March last year. Previously, every song, book, cartoon, news report and planned piece of art required approval by teams of censors rooting out political messages and criticisms of one of Asias most repressive governments. Privately run daily newspapers are still not permitted, leaving a monopoly to state-run papers Anti-Japanese protests rocked Chinese cities on 19 August, as nationalists from Japan landed on an East China Sea island at the heart of a territorial dispute between the two nations. In several Chinese cities, thousands took to the streets shouted slogans agaist Japans claim over the islands. Tokyo and Beijing have been feuding for decades over the island chain, known as the Senkaku in Japan and the Diaoyu in China, near potentially huge maritime gas fields. On 19 August, 10 Japanese made an unauthorised landing on Uotsuri island, the largest in a small archipelago known in Japan as the Senkaku Islands and in China as the Diaoyu Islands. Of the 10 who visited the island, five were conservative local assembly members. The Organization of Islamic Cooperation suspended Syria on 16 August , citing President Bashar al-Assad's suppression of the Syrian revolt, but there was little support for direct military involvement in Syria at a summit of Muslim leaders in Mecca.Summit host Saudi Arabia has led Arab efforts to isolate Syria diplomatically. China's commerce ministry announced on 14 August, China will develop two economic zones in North Korea. Both sides met in Beijing to discuss the setting up of Rason Economic and Trade Zone and Hwanggumphyong and Wihwa Islands Economic Zone.Sources said , a joint mechanism will be set up to train personnel, for compiling plans and regulations, customs clearance and telecom links . Noted Indian-American journalist and author Fareed Zakaria(48) has been suspended by his employers CNN and Time magazine after he admitted to plagiarism and apologized for the ethical lapse. Mr Zakaria, was suspended by CNN and Time magazine after he admitted that he had plagiarised portions of an article he wrote on gun control for Time, from the New Yorker magazine. He issued an apology saying he had made a terrible mistake and his lifting a paragraph from the article by Harvard University professor of American history Jill Lepore was an ethical lapse. Mr Zakaria, a Yale and Harvard graduate, had written the column on gun control that appeared in the August 20 issue of Time magazine. Born on 20 January 1964 in Mumbai, Maharashtra, Fareed Zakaria obtained his Bachelors degree in Arts from Yale University. Later he received Doctorate in Political Science from Harvard University in 1993. In a career spanning more than two decades in journalism, Zakaria worked with numerous global media organizations such as News Week, Time, CNN. In a high intensity political act, Ecuador on 16 August, granted asylum to WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange, ignoring a threat from the British government to strip it of its diplomatic status and storm its embassy in London to arrest Mr. Assange for breaching his bail conditions. He has been holed up at the embassy since seeking refuge there in June to avoid extradition to Sweden over allegations of sexual assault. British Foreign Secretary William Hague made clear that Mr. Assange would not be given safe passage out of the country and indicated that the diplomatic stand-off could drag on for some considerable time. Ecuadors Foreign Minister Ricardo Patino said the decision to grant asylum to Mr. Assange was prompted by a concern for Mr. Assanges human rights as his government believed that his fears of political persecution were legitimate. Mr. Assange fears that if extradited

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to Sweden he could be handed to the American government that wants to prosecute him for publishing secret official documents. Britain said it was disappointed by the decision and stressed its obligation to extradite Mr. Assange to Sweden pointing out that he had exhausted all legal options in Britain. The United Nations on 17 August, has announced that Algerian diplomat Lakhdar Brahimi will replace Kofi Annan as peace envoy to Syria. The 78- year-old Brahimi has worked in several high-profile positions at the UN, gaining a reputation as a tough, independent negotiator as envoy to Afghanistan, Iraq and Haiti. He helped negotiate the end of Lebanons civil war. Mr. Brahimi is a member of the Elders, a group of former world leaders working for global peace. Mr. Annan announced his resignation earlier this month after failing to achieve a temporary ceasefire during six- month tenure. The Security Council announced on 16 august, it would end the UN military observer mission in Syria Russia will build a string of naval bases along its northern coast as it prepares to claim a vast swath of the energy-rich Arctic. Security Council chief Nikolay Patrushev said on 7 August, that a list of naval infrastructure hubs along the Northern Sea Route has been drawn up to serve as resupply bases for Russian warships and border guard vessels. By 2020, Russia is to deploy a combined-arms force of naval, border and coastal guard units to protect its economic and political interests in the Arctic.President Vladimir Putin last month said that Russia would build dozens of warships by 2020 to better protect its natural resources in the Arctic. Russia, which is entitled to a 200-mile Exclusive Economic Zone in the Arctic, plans to submit next year its claim for a 150-mile additional territory on the grounds that the seabed is continuation of its continental shelf. This claim is disputed by other Arctic powers Norway, the United States, Canada and Denmark.Russia also plans to open year-round navigation along the Northern Sea Route, which stretches for 5,600 km along Russias Arctic coast from Murmansk in the Barents Sea to the Bering Strait in the Far East. At least six persons were killed and several injured, on 5 August, by a gunmen, at the Sikh Temple of Wisconsin, a Gurdwara, in what appeared to be a hate crime in Oak Creek, a quiet suburb of Milwaukee. Reports also quoted an unnamed member of the Sikh community as saying a Sikh priest visiting from New Delhi was said to have been shot at. One police officer was injured in an exchange of fire. India said its embassy in Washington was in touch with the U.S. National Security Council on the tragic incident. Indian Ambassador Nirupama Rao said an official was rushed to the site to ascertain the situation. Taiwan proposed for a peace proposal on 5 August aimed at easing mounting tensions in a territorial dispute over an island chain in the East China Sea also claimed by China and Japan. The proposal, put forth by President Ma Ying-jeou, came after Japanese Defence Minister Satoshi Morimoto warned recently, Tokyo could send troops to the island chain. Sudan and South Sudan have come into an agreement in Adis ababa on 5 August, on a deal over oil, resolving a key part of a bitter dispute that brought the rivals to the brink of all-out war earlier this year. African Union mediator Thabo Mbeki said that the parties have agreed on all of the financial arrangements regarding oil. Landlocked South Sudan said it had agreed to pay a pipeline transit fee of $9.48 per oil barrel to transport its crude through Sudan, a significant drop from Sudans initial demands of up to $36 a barrel in fees. In addition, South Sudan agreed to make a "one-off payment" to Khartoum of some $3 billion to cover the massive financial gap created by the South's independence last year, a fractious divorce that left a raft of issues unresolved. Mutrif Siddiq, a Sudanese delegate to the talks in the Ethiopian capital, said the deal was "reasonable", although it did not meet the expectations of either side. U.S. President Barack Obama welcomed the deal, saying it opened the door to better prosperity for both countries. He also praised the mediation efforts of the African Union led by Thabo Mbeki, a former South African president. The US government on 2 August 2012 announced to impose some fresh sanctions on Iran. These sanctions, imposed under Comprehensive Iran Sanctions, Accountability, and Divestment Act of 2010 (CISADA), put punitive regulation on those who continued to maintain ties with Iran.Under the sanction Bank of Kunlun in China and Elaf Islamic Bank in Iraq faced cut off from transactions with US institutions. The two banks were punished for

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facilitating transactions worth millions of dollars on behalf of sanctioned Iranian banks. Experts say that the new sanctions categorically target the Iranian energy and petrochemical sectors. Earlier this year India, China and a host of other nations had opposed US dictate to cut down their oil imports from Iran. US and European Union have come down heavily on Irans nuclear programme seeking all possible diplomatic methods to stop the belligerent nation to carry on its nuclear programme. Though the heavy sanctions imposed by the US and EU over Iran have not yielded them the desired result as Iran has thus far not gave up its plan to build nuclear armaments. In Sudan, the ruling National Transitional Council (NTC) handed over power to the newly elected National Assembly on 8 August 2012 in a ceremony in Tripoli. NTC Chairman, Mustafa Abdel Jalil passed on the responsibility to the oldest member of the new two hundred member assembly, Mohammed Ali Salim. The new assembly will appoint a new interim Prime Minister to form the government and a sixty-member panel to draft the new constitution of Libya. The ceremony marked the first peaceful government transition of the country post Gadhafi seized power in Libya. Pakistans Supreme Court on 8 August 2012 ordered the Prime Minister Raja Pervez Ashraf to appear before judges for he failed to write Swiss authorities to reopen corruption cases against the president Asif Ali Zardari. The court asked the PM to appear before judges on 27 August 2012 to explain his actions.Earlier on 3 August 2012 the Supreme Court had nullified a legislation that sought to protect elected legislators from contempt charges. It was believed that the legislation was meant to prevent court from disqualifying current Prime Minister from the office under contempt charges.Earlier,the Supreme Court of Pakistan had removed Yousuf Raza Gilani from his post on 19 June 2012 after he failed to follow courts order to write a letter to Swiss authorities asking them to reopen corruption case against President Asif Ali Zardari. Somalias Constituent Assembly on 1 August , endorsed a draft constitution billed as a key step to ending decades of civil war during. The Horn of Africa countrys outgoing government hailed the end of an eight-year interim period. Prime Minister Abdiweli Mohamed Ali expressed happy and announced that Somalia has from now, left the transitional period. The special assembly chosen by traditional elders in a U.N.-backed process took eight days to debate and vote on the new Constitution, as the graft-riddled government approaches the end of its mandate on August 20.Key steps in the fragile political process remain, including a new Parliament to be selected by traditional elders, with that Parliament to subsequently elect a new President. An outbreak of the deadly Ebola virus has killed at least 13 people in Uganda. The outbreak began in late June. Ebola is spread by close personal contact, and kills up to 90 percent of those infected. There is no vaccine for the virus. Symptoms include sudden onset of fever, weakness, headache, vomiting and impaired kidneys. The 193 member U.N. General Assembly on 3 August, overwhelmingly adopted a Saudi-drafted resolution on Syria that expressed grave concern at the escalating violence but India was among the 31 nations that abstained. The General Assembly passed the resolution that denounced Syrias crackdown on its people and demanded that the country lockdown its chemical and biological weapons. The resolution also deplored the failure of the Security Council to agree on measures to ensure the compliance of Syrian authorities with its decisions. The resolution got 133 votes in favour, while 12 countries voted against. Thirty-one countries, including India, abstained. The former UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan quit as international peace envoy to Syria on 3 August, complaining that his initiative to end the bloodshed there never received the support it deserved. As Syria's government deployed fighter jets against rebels armed with tanks around the commercial capital Aleppo, the outgoing UN-Arab League envoy voiced regret at the "increasing militarisation" of the nearly 17-month conflict. Bangladesh has ordered three international charities to stop providing aid to Rohingya refugees who cross the border to flee violence in Myanmar. France's Doctors without Borders (MSF) and Action Against Hunger (ACF) as well as Britain's Muslim Aid UK have been told to suspend their services in the Cox's Bazaar district bordering Myanmar.

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September
The Bangladesh Parliament has passed the Hindu marriage registration law on 18 september, aiming to provide legal and social protection to Hindu women from marriage-related cheating.The law, first of its kind, has kept the provision of marriage registration optional. Sources said, the government framed the act in the absence of any such regulation.The Hindu Marriage Registration Bill-2012 authorises government authorities to appoint a Hindu Marriage Registrar at every ward and upzilla across the country. The registrar will not register marriage of a woman below 18 years of age and a man under 21 years. Sixteen agreements have been signed on 17 september, mostly focusing on infrastructure development in Sri Lanka, during the current visit of Chinese leader Wu Bangguo to Colombo, including USD 760 million aid to help the island nation. Sources said,the agreements signed, ranged from visa exemption and marine development to economic and technology cooperation with expanded investment and increase imports from Sri Lanka. Wu, a second ranking Communist Party leader after President Hu Jintao is the highest Chinese official to visit Colombo after the end of ethnic war between Sri Lankan army and LTTE. The Sino-Sri Lankan bilateral trade volume reached $3. 14 billion in 2011, registering an increase of 49.8 percent year-on-year.China also remains involved in almost all the large-scale projects under construction in Sri Lanka. Afghanistan banned all Pakistani newspapers from entering the country on 21 september, to block the Taliban from influencing public opinion. The order, issued by the Ministry of Interior, adds to the mounting tension between the countries. The Ministry said the newspapers were a conduit for Taliban propaganda and the news is not based in reality and it is creating concerns for our countrymen in the eastern provinces of Afghanistan. Also, the newspapers are a propaganda resource of the Taliban spokesmen. Pakistan on 17 september, successfully test-fired the nuclear-capable Babur cruise missile with a range of 700 km that could hit targets deep inside India, with the military saying the launch had consolidated and strengthened the country's deterrence capability. As protests against the incendiary film against Islam and Prophet Mohammad swirl around large parts of the globe, the head of the Lebanese Hizbollah, Hassan Nasrallah on 17 september, has called for criminalising defamation of religions under international law.The Hizbollah chiefs speech seemed intended to provide a focus to surging protests in several countries after a trailer of the controversial film, made in the United States, surfaced on the internet.In Indonesias capital Jakarta, hundreds of protesters targeted the police with stones and petrol bombs. The American flag was also torched amid anti-U.S. sloganeering. Heavy protests have also rocked parts of Philippines, Pakistan and Yemen. Some of Japans most well-known companies closed their factories and stores across China on 17 september, as the country braced for the biggest anti-Japanese protests in years as tensions over disputed islands continued to escalate.Authorities have warned Japanese businesses to suspend operations, with tens of thousands of Chinese expected to take to the streets, which also marks the sensitive 81st anniversary of the Japanese occupation of China.Japanese companies, including Honda, Panasonic, Canon, Nissan and clothing retailer Uniqlo, said they would close their factories and stores for a few days.While protests in Beijing and Shanghai for the most part remained orderly amid a massive police presence, violence was reported in a number of cities, where Japanese restaurants were trashed, department stores ransacked and Japanese-branded cars torched by mobs.Tensions between the two countries flared last week after Japan announced it would purchase three of the Diaoyu or Senkaku Islands from the family recognised by Tokyo as the owner. Beijing retaliated by dispatching six maritime surveillance vessels to patrol off the islands territorial waters. Ending the uncertainty about the political roadmap,on 19 september, Nepals major political forces have agreed to go in for fresh elections for a Constituent Assembly (CA). The previous CA failed to deliver a Constitution, owing to differences on state restructuring among political parties. Its term ended on May 27.On 19 september, the four major political forces Unified Communist Party of Nepal (Maoist), Nepali Congress

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(NC), Communist Party of Nepal (Unified Marxist Leninist), and United Democratic Madhesi Front (UDMF) discussed ways to resolve the political impasse. One option was to revive the CA, while the second was to hold elections. Emerging from the talks, UML chairman and former Prime Minister Jhalanath Khanal, said that they were not in a situation to agree on contentious constitutional issues. So the possibility of reinstating the CA for a short while to promulgate the constitution is not there anymore and they have decided to go for fresh elections. New Nuclear Safety Agency launched in Japan: Japan launched a new Nuclear Safety Agency on 18 September 2012. The formation of this five-member Nuclear Regulation Authority was done after the country was hit by Tsunami in the year 2011 resulting in major breakdown and leakage of the Nuclear Power Plants in the tsunami-stricken-area of Fukushima Dai-Ichi Plant. Headed by the nuclear Physicist, Shunichi Tanaka, this agency is responsible for reviewing of the nuclear policies of the country. Before the incident, Japan relied on nuclear power for at least one-third of its energy requirements but now its planning to increase it to a level of 50 percent of its total energy requirements. The framed policies framed aims to phase out the issues related to nuclear power of the country for next three decades. Mongolia is nuclear weapons-free: Mongolia, jammed between nuclear arms giants Russia and China, secured a unique pledge from the major powers not to breach its self-declared nuclear weapons-free zone. The UN ambassadors for Britain, China, France, Russia and the United States the five permanent members of the UN Security Council and original nuclear weapons powers signed a declaration. Mongolia declared itself free of nuclear weapons 20 years ago but, because it is landlocked between Russia and China, could not join a regional bloc free of weapons. India's super-rich population dropped 18% in 2011: Survey Asia-Pacific had more number of super-rich than any other region for the first time last year, but the Richie-rich population in India witnessed a decline of 18 per cent amid sagging economic situation, says a survey. The population of high net worth individuals (HNWIs) -- those with investable wealth of USD 1 million or more -in Asia-Pacific has surpassed any other region in 2011, but their aggregate wealth declined marginally, according to a Capgemini and RBC Wealth Management report.The HNWI population in Asia-Pacific hit 3.37 million, surpassing North America for the first time and passing Europe for the second straight year, said the Asia-Pacific Wealth report.The report focused on 10 core markets: Australia, China, Hong Kong, India, Indonesia, Japan, Singapore, South Korea, Thailand, and Taiwan. It said HNWI population did contract in several Asia-Pacific markets last year, most notably India and Hong Kong. Interestingly, India and Hong Kong had led the growth in the prior two years. Noda to remain Japan's premier : Japan's Prime Minister Yoshihiko Noda on 22 September, easily defeated his three challengers in the party presidential elections, and thus retaining his post as the country's premier. Noda defeated Japan's former internal affairs minister Kazuhiro Haraguchi and former agriculture ministers Hirotaka Akamatsu and Michihiko Kano. He won 818 in the ballot in which the four candidates fought for the majority of 1231 votes, the Kyodo news agency reported. Forbes released the Annual Ranking List of 400 richest Americans : Forbes on 19 September 2012 released the list of 400 richest Americans. Bill Gates with his total net worth of $ 66 billion managed to remain at the top position for 19th year in a row. Warren Buffet of Berkshire Hathaway with net asset of $ 46 billion was at second position in the list. Larry Ellison of Oracle remained at third position with net asset of $ 41 billion. Some of the known names in the list include: 1. Jeff Bezos, at No. 11, with estimated net worth of $23.2 billion 2. Steve Ballmer at 19th position with net asset of $15.9 billion 3. Paul Allen grabbed 20th position with net asset of $15 billion 4. Mark Zuckerberg of facebook, slipped from his previous years 11th position to 36th position with net asset of $17.5 billion

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5. 6. 7. James Jannard secured 150th position with his net asset of $2.8 billion Craig McCaw was placed at number 311 in the list with his net asset of $1.5 billion Bruce Nordstrom remained at. 360th position with net asset of $1.2 billion

3G network at Mt Everest base : Mountaineers attempting to scale the world's highest peak Mount Everest from Tibet will now be able to make video calls with their mobile phones as the largest Chinese mobile company has established its station at a 5,200-meter-high base camp. "A just-finished week-long trial of the No 2 China Mobile 3G base station at the camp has found to be working well, providing a stable network service, according to a statement," said the mobile operator. Norways Prime Minister Jens Stoltenberg appointed a 29-year-old, Hadia Tajik, a Muslim woman of Pakistani origin, as the new Culture Minister. Hadia Tajik is the first Muslim and youngest Minister ever in Norwegian political history. Ms. Tajik, who has degrees in law and journalism and has been a career politician in Norways Labour Party, was appointed in a Cabinet reshuffle. Ms. Tajik has already declared that cultural diversity should become more integral to the life of her fellow citizens. She said her programme would focus on how this reflected on Norwegian society as a whole. Conservative elements in Norway believe that a very rapid influx of foreigners and foreign cultures has destabilised the steady and stable pattern of Norways essentially Christian society. Last year, Anders Breivik randomly shot 69 people at a summer camp organised by the Workers' Youth League (AUF) of the Labour Party after blowing up a Norweigan state building. During his trial, Breivik reasoned that multi-cultural policies were harming Norway, adding that he considered Islam his enemy. A Jerusalem court on 24 September, handed the former Israeli Prime Minister, Ehud Olmert, a $19,000 fine for graft. He just escaped the jail term. Olmert was mayor of Jerusalem from 1993 to 2003, after which he served as a Cabinet Minister, holding the trade and industry portfolio as well as several others, before becoming Premier in 2006.He led the centre-right Kadima party into government, but resigned from the premiership in September 2008 after police recommended that he be indicted in several graft cases. The three-day-long 9th World Hindi Conference concluded in Johannesburg on 25 September. India's Minister of State for External Affairs Preneet Kaur felicitated several Hindi scholars, writers and laureates, who had gathered from different parts of the world for their contribution towards the language. Kaur jointly inaugurated the conference on September 22 and South Africa's Finance Minister Pravin Gordhan.While addressing the conference, Kaur expressed gratitude for the huge success of the conference. Kaur also highlighted on the need to promote Hindi across the globe. With an estimated 200 million speakers worldwide, Hindi is among the most extensively spoken languages in the world. China commissioned its first aircraft carrier on 25 September, The unveiling of the 300 meter-long Liaoning, a refurbished and upgraded version of the Soviet carrier Varyag which China purchased from Ukraine, came after years of sea trials and tests to fit the carrier with weapons and engines. The Liaoning was commissioned by the Peoples Liberation Army Navy (PLAN) in the port city of Dalian, the capital of the northeastern province after which the carrier is named. Defence analysts were quoted as saying by state media that the Liaoning was, however, not yet close to being put into active service with China needing to train pilots. Sources said the carrier would continue to serve for scientific research purposes besides military training.The commissioning of the Liaoning makes China the tenth nation to have an aircraft carrier. The development comes amid rising strains between China and Japan over the disputed Diaoyu or Senkaku islands in East China Sea. Nakoula Basseley Nakoula, the person behind a provocative anti-Islam film, the trailer of which led to violence in parts of Asia and North Africa has been arrested on 28 September. However, his detainment was

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not related with that film. The California-based man who is said to have made Innocence of Muslims, apparently an Egyptian Coptic Christian was declared a flight risk and detained by a federal Judge Suzanne Segal. Officials said that, Primary among the charges Nakoula faces was violation of probation from a 2010 cheque fraud conviction. Following the trailer being uploaded on YouTube, violent protests broke out in parts of North Africa, including Cairo, Egypt and Benghazi, Libya. In particular, an assault by heavily-armed gunmen targeting the U.S. Consulate in Benghazi led to the death of Chris Stevens, the U.S. Ambassador. The U.S. court has ordered Nakoula to remain in prison without bond until another judge can hold a hearing to determine if he broke the terms of his probation. The Presidents of Sudan and South Sudan - Omar Hassan Al-Bashir and Salva Kiir Mayardit signed agreements to implement a demilitarised zone that paves the way for resumption of oil exports after a five-day summit in Addis Ababa, the Ethiopian capital. Sudans President Omar Hassan Al-Bashir said, this agreement stands as a living model for the ability of the Sudanese and African people to resolve their issues and problems through dialogue and negotiations. The resumption of oil trade is imperative for both as they rebuild their cash-starved economies after the 2011 secession of the South granted it control of most of the oil reserves but gave Sudan control of the pipelines. The centerpiece of the agreements is a 20-km wide demilitarized zone, to be monitored and patrolled by international forces, which will serve as a buffer as the neighbours demarcate an acceptable international border. Last year, tensions along the 1,800-km border sparked an armed conflict. The Presidents also signed agreements to address post-secession issues, including institutional frameworks for cross-border cooperation, central banking and the status of citizens in one country working and residing in the other. While the two countries were unable to resolve the status of Abyei, a disputed territory, the region serves as the traditional grazing grounds for the Misseriya tribes allied to the North, but is home to a settled population of the Ngok Dinka people who consider themselves South Sudanese. French President Francois Hollande met Chancellor Angela Merkel in the southwestern German city of Ludwigsburg to celebrate an anniversary of their countries reconciliation following the end of World War II. The leaders of France and Germany have both stressed Europe must deepen its political and economic integration to ensure peace and continuous prosperity across the continent. Europes 17-nation currency zone is experiencing a deep crisis, Mr. Hollande said, therefore urging Germany and other nations to help create instruments that make us stronger, the budgetary union, the banking union, the social union, a political union. Ms. Merkel said both countries will and must work together closely to strengthen Europe to weather those new challenges. Putin advocates multiple reserve currencies Russias President Vladimir Putin has called for creating a system of multiple reserve currencies to strengthen global financial stability and reduce dependence on the U.S. dollar. If we are to slash the excessive number of derivatives, enhance discipline and stabilise global finances, we should promote multiple reserve currencies, Mr. Putin said at a summit of the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) forum in Vladivostok on 8 Septemebr. He slammed the position of the U.S. dollar as the single reserve currency of the world. If there is only one global reserve currency, the issuing country will always be tempted to use it in its selfish interests, which in the long run harms the issuer and violates the fundamental principles of the functioning of the world financial system. He said the rouble has the potential of becoming a regional reserve currency in the former Soviet Union. Rouble can claim for the role of reserve currency . The rouble is used more and more frequently in the settlements in the former Soviet republics. Russia in recent years has also signed agreements with India and China to use national currencies in bilateral trade deals. At their summit in New Delhi in March, the BRICS group of Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa signed two accords to promote intra-BRICS trade in local currencies. Finland facing ageing problem more than other EU countries: Finland, one of the most developed models of Europe, faces a challenge to meet the needs of its ageing population while ensuring its long-term fiscal sustainability. Finland has one of the most rapidly ageing populations in Europe and the world. By 2030, Finland is projected to have 26 per cent of its population over 65 years of age. This is a figure that the UK, for example, is not due to reach until 2051, a recent study said. After

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95 years of independence, the standard of living in Finland has risen considerably and in consequence brought the mortality rate down year by year. While the statistical life expectancies of men and women born in Finland towards the late 1910s were 43 years and 49 years, the respective life expectancies have today risen to 76 years for men and 83 years for women. The phenomenon faced by many European countries is being keenly debated in the country like Finland whose economic model based on the exports has been more than successful.The policy makers and the stakeholders have already turned to the solution of the problem in Finland where the retirement age is 63 years with lots of welfare mechanism in the place. The rate of mortality among children under the age of 12 months has also declined enormously in nine decades. When Finland gained independence, one child in ten in the country died in their first year of life, whereas today the infant mortality rate is under 0.5 per cent. Although the growth in life expectancy is not among the very highest in the world in Finland, the country's infant mortality rate is one of the lowest in the world. The Internatioanl Monetary Fund (IMF) has also warned this Nordic country to mitigate expected rises in health and long-term care costs associated with population ageing. "Finland should also tighten the way benefits are paid to the elderly and unemployed until early retirement, as well as increasing the legal minimum and maximum retirement ages," the IMF said. Hassan Sheikh Mohamud Elected Somalia's New President : Members of the recently sworn-in Somali Parliament voted on 10 September, to elect Hassan Sheikh Mohamud as the country's new President in a secret ballot held at a police academy in capital Mogadishu, marking completion of the country's political transition process. Mohamud defeated incumbent Sheikh Sharif Sheikh Ahmed in a 190-79 vote in a run-off. The outgoing President later conceded defeat in a televised national address, saying that he was "satisfied" with the results of the "just elections."The run-off was forced after none of the candidates managed to secure the required two-thirds majority in the first round of voting. Nevertheless, 18 candidates were eliminated in the first round itself. Although outgoing Prime Minister Abdiweli Mohamed Ali and moderate Islamist Abdulkadir Osoble qualified for the second round, they pulled out of the race after coming third and fourth respectively in the first round. Mohamud is an academic as well as a civic activist who has worked for several national and international aid and development organizations in recent years, including the UNICEF. The English as well as Somali-speaking President-elect is the Chairman of the Peace and Development Party, which he founded in 2011. Cambridge loses top spot to MIT in world university rankings: America's prestigious Massachusetts Institute of Technology has grabbed the top slot from UK's Cambridge University in a list of world university rankings for 2011-2012. However, UK universities have taken four of the six top slots in a global university "league table" by QS World University Rankings. With MIT leading the list, Cambridge fell to No. 2 spot and Harvard University ranked third in list of rankings. "The rise of MIT coincides with a global shift in emphasis toward science and technology," QS head of research Ben Sowter said, adding "MIT perfects a blueprint that is now being followed by a new wave of cutting-edge tech-focused institutions, especially in Asia." University College, London (UCL), Oxford and Imperial took fourth, fifth and sixth places respectively. Seventh place was awarded to Yale University. followed by University of Chicago, Princeton University and the tenth position to California Institute of Technology. Sowter warned higher fees and new visa rules could see UK universities struggle next year. Students trying to get ahead of a trebling in fees for English undergraduates had produced a surge in applications to start university in autumn 2011, Sowter told. Chris Stevens, U.S. ambassador to Libya killed in rocket attack The ambassador of the United States to Libya, Christopher Stevens, has been killed dulring an armed mob attack in Benghazi on the 11th anniversary of the 9/11 attacks, raising fresh questions about the merits of Washingtons policy of regime change in West Asia that followed these strikes. Mr. Stevens is the second U.S. ambassador to be killed during an outstation posting since the death of Adolph Dubs in 1979 during his tenure in Afghanistan. Reuters said three other members of the embassy staff were killed on 11 September night, as a result of a rocket attack in Benghazi. India has highest child mortality rate in the world: With almost 19,000 children under five years of age dying every day across the world, India tops the list of

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countries with the highest number of 15.55 lakh such deaths in 2011, according to a UN agency. The 'Child Mortality Estimates Report 2012' released by Unicef in New York has said that in 2011, around 50 per cent of global under-five deaths occurred in just five countries of India, Nigeria, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Pakistan and China. Incidentally, India's toll is higher than the deaths in Nigeria, Democratic Republic of Congo and Pakistan put together. China reported 2.49 lakh deaths of under-5 kids last year, followed by 1.94 lakh by Ethiopia and 1.34 lakh each by Indonesia and Bangladesh. Uganda with 1.31 lakh such deaths and Afghanistan with 1.28 lakh deaths held the ninth and 10th position in the list of 10 top countries reporting under-five children deaths. Singapore with a mortality rate of 2.6 has the lowest under-five deaths, while Slovenia and Sweden followed it with a mortality of 2.8. Globally, the five leading causes of deaths among children under five include pneumonia (18 per cent); pre-term birth complications (14 per cent); diarrhea (11 per cent); intrapartum-related complications (9 per cent) and malaria (7 per cent). Besides, more than a third of child deaths are attributable to under nutrition globally, the report states. Consumer cybercrime cost India $8bn in a year : Software security services provider Norton on 12 September, said consumer cybercrime has cost the country around Rs 42,000 crore in the past 12 months, impacting 42 million people. Releasing the findings of its annual cybercrime report, it is estimated that over 42 million people fell victim to cybercrime in the past 12 months in the country, incurring around $8 billion in direct financial losses. In terms of cost, this is a full 18% increase. Against this, the global loss has been pegged at $110 billion. The study further notes that as many as 66 percent of online adults have been a victim of cybercrime in their lifetime in the country. During the past 12 months, as many as 56% of adults who go online here have experienced cybercrime that is over 1,15,000 victims per day, 80 victims per minute and over one every second. The study is based on the findings of self-reported experiences of over 13,000 adults across 24 countries, Norton by Symantec said in a statement. Egypt: Ex-PM Ahmed Nazif jailed for corruption: Ahmed Nazif was the first Mubarak-era official to be prosecuted after last year's uprising A court in Cairo has sentenced Egypt's former Prime Minister Ahmed Nazif to three years in prison for corruption on 13 September. Nazif, who was Prime Minister from 2004 until last year's uprising, has also been ordered to pay a fine of nine million Egyptian pounds (900,000). Last year he was given a one-year suspended sentence after he was charged for unlawful gains in a business deal. Nazif is one of several Mubarak-era senior officials on trial. He was arrested months after leaving his job in January 2011, shortly before President Hosni Mubarak stood down. About a dozen former Egyptian officials, including Mubarak and his two sons, have been charged either with conspiring to kill protesters or with various crimes related to corruption. Hassan Sheikh Mohamud the newly elected president of Somalia survived assassination : After two days of his being appointed in the office, the Somalian President Hassan Sheikh Mohamud survived an assassination attempted by the Shebab a group Islamic rebels from Al-Qaeda, on 13 September 2012. At the time when the two bomb blasts happened the president was meeting the Kenyas Foreign Minister in Mogadishu hotel. In this attack by the multiple suicide bombers the president remained unharmed. The report presented by Ali Houmed, spokesman for the African Union Mission in Somalia (Amisom) claimed three deaths that iclude two Somali Troops and a Ugandan soldier. Putin loses popularity by 20 per cent: The number of Russians, who approve of President Vladimir Putin, has declined by 20 per cent over the past decade, with fewer people seeing him as a hero, according to a latest poll conducted by the national polling centre VTSIOM . The national polling centre's report shows how public attitude towards Mr Putin has changed over time, starting from 2002 when 79 per cent of respondents thought the new President was making a "mostly favourable" impression on them. That number has dwindled to 59 per cent as of 2012, while the number of those who disapprove of Mr Putin rose from 8 per cent to 22 per cent. At the same time, popular support for his actions as President slid from 75 per cent in 2002 to 59 per cent in 2012, while those who do not support his policies increased from 9 per cent to 23 per cent. VTSIOM General Director Valery Fyodorov said it would be more relevant to compare Mr Putin's popularity ratings with the most recent election-related results rather than with figures from a decade ago.That was a totally different time, and a great deal has changed since then. Putin

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has changed, and the country and the people too," he said.The latest poll, held among 1,600 respondents in Russia's 46 regions on August 24-25, has a margin of error below 3.4 per cent. Delhi, Mumbai world's cheapest cities: Survey Oslo is the most expensive city in the world, ahead of Zurich and Tokyo, but the well-paid residents of the Swiss financial hub enjoy the greatest purchasing power, according to a study released on Friday. The cheapest places to live were Delhi and Mumbai. The annual survey of 72 cities by Swiss bank UBS found its own hometown had the world's highest average wages and the biggest purchasing power. The study examined the price of a basket of 122 goods and services, adjusted for currency fluctuations. The cost of living index was calculated by dividing the price of goods by the weighted net hourly wage in 15 sectors. "In Tokyo it takes nine minutes of work to earn enough to buy a Big Mac, while in Nairobi it takes 84 minutes," it said. Zurich residents must work 13 minutes for the hamburger, but other goods were relatively cheaper than in Tokyo, putting the Swiss city top of the purchasing power index. "Workers in Zurich can buy an iPhone after 22 hours work; in Manila, by contrast, it takes around 20 times longer," UBS said. Workers had to toil 42 minutes in Istanbul and 29 minutes in Shanghai for a Big Mac, while in New York and Hong Kong just 10 minutes were required. The cheapest places to live were Delhi and Mumbai. New York was the sixth most expensive, Moscow came in at number 40 and Shanghai at 49. The survey also looked at working hours and found the shortest were in Paris, Lyon and Copenhagen. Workers in Asia, Africa, the Middle East and South America toil the longest, at over 2,000 hours per year, it found. New York bans large sodas in eateries, theatres: New York became the first city in the US to ban the sale of large sodas and sugary beverages in restaurants, a move that mayor Michael Bloomberg said will help combat the "obesity epidemic" that kills 6,000 New Yorkers every year and is destroying the health of Americans. The New York City Board of Health voted 8-0 on 13 September, in favour of limiting the size of sugary beverages sold in restaurants, mobile food carts, delis and at movie theatres, stadiums and arenas. The new regulation will go into effect next March, giving establishments six months to comply with new rules. Sixth MekongGanga Cooperation meeting was held in New Delhi from 3-4 September 2012. Foreign Ministers meet was held on September 4 2012.The Mekong-Ganga Cooperation (MGC) was established on November 10, 2000 in Vientiane, Lao Peoples Democratic Republic with a purpose of cooperation amongst India and the five Mekong region countries - Cambodia, Lao Peoples Democratic Republic, Myanmar, Vietnam and Thailand. It was basically established to emphasize on four areas of cooperation, which are tourism, culture, education, and transportation linkage, in order to build strong foundation for future trade and investment cooperation among the region. This is the first time that the Mekong Ganga Cooperation meeting was hosted by India. China and the U.S. appeared unable to bridge differences over the South China Sea issue and Syria but pledged to work together to build trust as Secretary of State Hillary Clinton concluded a day of meetings with the Chinese leadership in Beijing on 5 September. Clinton, who met President Hu Jintao, Premier Wen Jiabao and Foreign Minister Yang Jiechi reiterated her calls for China to push forward talks on a Code of Conduct for the South China Sea before Novembers East Asia Summit. Chinese officials, however, did not commit to a timeline and rebutted U.S. concerns about its interests in the region by stressing that freedom of navigation in the contested waters had been fully guaranteed. The two countries also appeared unable to bridge differences on Syria. Ms. Clinton said pointedly that it was no secret that we have been disappointed by Russia and Chinas actions blocking tougher U.N. Security Council resolutions. Six years after Nepals Maoists entered open politics and signed a peace treaty, the United States has finally lifted its terrorist tag for the countrys ruling party. It also revoked its status as a terrorist organisation from the Terrorist Exclusion List (TEL) under the Immigration and Nationality Act. The U.S State Department said it had concluded that Maoists were no longer engaged in terrorist activity that threatens the security of U.S. nationals or U.S. foreign policy. Informal meetings between U.S. diplomats and Maoist

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International Affairs 2012

leaders began in 2007. After the party emerged victorious in the elections of 2008, the U.S. Ambassador formally met party chairman Pushpa Kamal Dahal Prachanda. The U.S State Department has finally designated the fearsome Haqqani Network terror outfit in Afghanistan a Foreign Terrorist Organisation. In a rare instance of overwhelming and unanimous support in Congress leading to mounting pressure on the Obama White House to pin the FTO blacklist-label on the Haqqani group, Secretary of State Hillary Clinton was given 30 days in early August to finalise her decision on the designation question. The network is said to have been behind string of deadly attacks in Kabul and elsewhere, most prominently including a bombing of the Indian embassy and an assault on the U.S. embassy using rockets. The group has also been linked to an attack on Kabuls elite Serena and Intercontinental hotels and several kidnappings. On 7 September, she reported back to Congress that the network meets the statutory criteria of the Immigration and Nationality Act (INA) for designation as an FTO. This action meets the requirements of the Haqqani Network Terrorist Designation Act of 2012. She added that she also intended to designate the organisation as a Specially Designated Global Terrorist entity under an Executive Order. The long-pending visa agreement to ease travel was inked between India and Pakistan, in Islamabad on 8 September. The agreement was signed by External Affairs Minister S.M. Krishna and Interior Minister Rehman Malik after the conclusion of the Foreign Minister-level engagement at the end of the second round of the resumed dialogue process. The new visa regime the first major overhaul since 1974 in particular eases travel restrictions for businessmen and introduces a new category of group tourism. Besides, persons aged above 65 will be issued visa on arrival. The regime also mandates a time frame for issuing visas. From the earlier indefinite time taken to issue a visa, the two missions have now been tied down to a 45-day period for deciding on an application. Another significant decision taken by the Foreign Ministers pertained to the crossLine of Control (LoC) confidence-building measures (CBMs). The cross-LoC travel will be expanded to include visits for tourism and pilgrimage. Such visits to designated sites will initially be from the Chakoti-Uri and Rawalakot-Poonch crossing points.Both sides also agreed to extend assistance to valid entry permit-holders to cross the LoC in emergency situations on crossing as well as non-crossing days. Swiss most competitive nation, India 59th: WEF survey Switzerland ranked as the world's most competitive economy for the fourth year running, while the United States continued a four-year slide down the table, the World Economic Forum (WEF) said in its annual survey on 5th September. The study by the WEF, best known for running the annual meeting of world business leaders at the ski resort of Davos, ranks 144 countries by examining 113 indicators culled from official data sources and a poll of 15,000 executives who opine on the country where they do business. Switzerland piped Singapore to the top spot thanks to strong scores in areas such as innovation, labour market efficiency and effective public institutions. The United States fell from fifth spot to seventh because of political and economic problems that detracted from its status as a global powerhouse of innovation, the study said. The lowest ranked EU country was Greece, at 96th. But it was rock bottom - 144th out of 144 - for its macroeconomic environment. Qatar moved up three places to 11th but may need to reduce its vulnerability to commodity price fluctuations if it is going to break into a top 10 dominated by northern European countries, the report said. Four of the five BRICS nations fell in the rankings, with only Brazil climbing, up five places from last year to 48th. China still led the group. Its 29th place ranking was down from 26th in 2011 but still 30 places ahead of India, which has lost 10 places since peaking at 49 in 2009. Russia was 67th, down one place from 2011, with a sharp improvement in the macroeconomic environment offset by weak public institutions, which were ranked 11th worst. French unemployment rises again to 10.2 per cent: The national statistics agency says unemployment in France rose again in the second quarter, reaching 10.2 per cent. Insee said on 6th September that youth unemployment is also creeping up and was 23.5 per cent for the quarter that ended June 30. Earlier this week, the government said that the number of people out of work had passed three million, a symbolic threshold but one that has focused new attention on Frances unemployment rate. French unemployment has been climbing steadily since last year after dropping for a few quarters. It is now higher than at any time since 1999.

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