A judge sentenced a couple to the maximum 14 years in prison with hard labor under Malawi's anti-gay legislation, and crowds jeered the two men as they were driven from the court house to jail Thursday.
The harsh sentence for unnatural acts and gross indecency had been expected after the same judge convicted Tiwonge Chimbalanga and Steven Monjeza earlier this week under laws dating from the colonial era. The case has drawn international condemnation and sparked a debate on human rights in this conservative southern African country.
Gay couple sentenced to maximum 14 years in Malawi
FDA urged to make public more company data
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration should make more information public, including its reasons for refusing to approve a drug or device, an agency task force recommended on Wednesday.
If adopted, the changes would shed considerable light on a review process that affects the entire drug and device industries. All of the proposals would offer the public more details on key agency decisions.
Army says it will look into claims over care at base
Five Army generals promised a thorough investigation Tuesday into complaints that National Guard troops returning from Iraq got second-class treatment at Joint Base Lewis-McChord to make way for the base’s active-duty brigades coming home from war this summer.
The Oregon National Guard troops, who served alongside I Corps soldiers, are “our own,” said Lt. Gen. Charles Jacoby, the Lewis-McChord and I Corps commander. He said officers at every level intend to see there is no difference in their care and service.
BP withholds oil spill facts — and government lets it
BP, the company in charge of the rig that exploded last month in the Gulf of Mexico, hasn't publicly divulged the results of tests on the extent of workers' exposure to evaporating oil or from the burning of crude over the gulf, even though researchers say that data is crucial in determining whether the conditions are safe.
Less Toxic Dispersants Lose Out in BP Oil Spill Cleanup
BP PLC continues to stockpile and deploy oil-dispersing chemicals manufactured by a company with which it shares close ties, even though other U.S. EPA-approved alternatives have been shown to be far less toxic and, in some cases, nearly twice as effective.
3-Part Investigative Series on Merck's Gardasil® Highlights Government Conflicts of Interest in Vaccine Development, Approval and Safety Surveillance
The Coalition for Vaccine Safety (CVS) calls for independent vaccine safety agency and Congressional hearings on government's lax record on safety issues.
A three-part investigative series on Merck's cervical cancer vaccine, Gardasil®, highlights serious conflicts of interest across agencies of the Department of Health and Human Services (DHHS) in the development, approval and safety surveillance of vaccines. The series, by Mark Blaxill, Editor-at-Large for the Internet newspaper Age of Autism and a Director of SafeMinds, was posted on the newspaper's site on May 12-13 (www.ageofautism.com/mark_blaxill). It preceded the announcement on May 14 that FDA, a DHHS agency, is allowing use of rotavirus vaccines despite their contamination with viral particles from pigs. (http://www.fda.gov/NewsEvents/Newsroom/PressAnnouncements/ucm212149.htm)
Muslim soldier: Army has not addressed harassment complaints
Two months after a Muslim soldier complained to the Pentagon about being harassed in the wake of the Fort Hood shootings, Spec. Zachari Klawonn said the Army has not followed through on its promises to address problems at the country's largest military base.
Commanders at Fort Hood, Tex., moved Klawonn, 20, off post for his safety in March after a threatening note with religious slurs was left at his barracks door. But then the military failed to provide him the standard stipend for off-post housing, Klawonn said. In recent weeks, he's had to take out two loans, borrow an additional $300 from a nonprofit group and pawn his possessions to pay the bills.
Afghan report links president's brother to illegal land grabs
Afghan military investigators have accused Ahmed Wali Karzai, U.S.-backed President Hamid Karzai's controversial half-brother, of intervening to protect powerful allies who are squatting illegally on government property in southern Afghanistan.
In response, Ahmed Wali Karzai shut down the Kandahar legislature this week by refusing to lead the provincial council until he can clear his name.
Indiana Rep. Mark Souder to Resign Amid Allegations of Affair With Staffer
Multiple senior House sources indicated that the extent of the affair with the 45-year-old staffer would have landed Souder before the House Ethics Committee.
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