International
S.Africa presses WTO for Covid vaccine patents waiver
AFP
South African President Cyril Ramaphosa on Tuesday asked the World Trade Organization to suspend intellectual property rights for Covid-19 vaccines to bridge the huge gap in vaccination rates worldwide.
India and South Africa last year brought forward the intellectual property waiver proposal before the WTO but there has been no consensus.
Proponents argue the temporary removal of IP rights will boost production in developing countries and address the dramatic inequity in access.
But there is fierce opposition from pharmaceutical giants and their host countries, which insist patents are not the main roadblocks to scaling up production and warn the move could hamper innovation.
“The world is at this moment experiencing the debilitating effects of inequality in the patterns of global production,” Ramaphosa told a WTO round table by video link on the pandemic and trade-related issues.
“It is said that less than three percent of adults are fully vaccinated in most low income countries, compared to almost 60 percent in high income countries. This gross inequality is both unjust and counterproductive,” said Ramaphosa, whose country is the worst hit by coronavirus in Africa both in terms of infections and deaths.
“Passing a time-bound targeted TRIPS waiver as proposed by South Africa and India — and now supported by many countries around the world — is urgent if we are to save millions of lives.”
TRIPS is a comprehensive WTO agreement on Trade-Related Aspects of Intellectual Property Rights which is used to resolve trade disputes over IP.
Pressure is mounting for an accord ahead of the 12th ministerial conference of the WTO, which runs from November 30 to December 3 in Geneva.
WTO chief Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala said the yawning chasm in vaccination rates between the haves and the have nots was “devastating for the lives and livelihoods of Africans” and “morally unacceptable”.
She added: “That is why it is so important to deliver results at the WTO in the weeks remaining before our 12 ministerial conference.”
International
Judge declares Donald Trump not guilty in Stormy Daniels case
Judge Juan Merchan acquitted U.S. President-elect Donald Trump in the case involving former porn actress Stormy Daniels.
“At this moment, I am issuing this verdict to cover all 34 charges,” Merchan stated. The judge also wished Trump good luck in his second term as president.
Trump will now become the first criminal president.
Merchan declined to impose any punishment. This decision strengthens Trump’s acquittal and clears the way for his return to the White House without the threat of prison or a fine.
“Never before has this court faced such a unique and remarkable set of circumstances,” Judge Merchan said.
International
Canada imposes sanctions on 14 venezuelan officials for human rights violations
Canada imposed sanctions on 14 high-ranking officials of the Venezuelan “regime” this Friday, including prominent members of the Military Counterintelligence Directorate (DGCIM), for their involvement in human rights violations in Venezuela.
Among those sanctioned are DGCIM prosecutors Dinorah Yoselin Bustamante Puerta and Farik Karin Salcedo Mora; the director of criminal investigations at the agency, Asdrubal José Brito Hernandez, as well as its former deputy director, Rafael Ramón Blanco Marrero.
The sanctions also target several members of the Bolivarian National Guard: its general commander, Elio Ramón Estrada Paredes; the commander of the capital region, Johan Alexander Hernández Lárez, and lieutenant colonel, Alexander Enrique Granko Arteaga.
Other individuals sanctioned include the director of the Bolivarian National Intelligence Service (SEBIN), Alexis José Rodríguez Cabello, and his deputy director, Miguel Antonio Muñoz Palacios; Brigadier General of the Bolivarian National Police, Rubén Darío Santiago Servigna, and Domingo Antonio Hernández Lárez, commander of the Bolivarian National Armed Forces.
International
María Corina Machado urges Edmundo González Urrutia not to return to Venezuela for his safety
Venezuelan opposition leader María Corina Machado said on Friday that she asked Edmundo González Urrutia, former candidate of the Democratic Unitary Platform (PUD), not to return to Venezuela to avoid putting himself at risk.
In a video message, Machado explained that the opposition evaluated the situation and concluded that González Urrutia would be in danger if he tried to enter Venezuela as he had planned.
González Urrutia, who claims to have won the July 28 elections with the support of more than 85% of the official voting records, had announced that he would return to Venezuela on January 10 to assume the presidency.
Earlier, Nicolás Maduro, who was declared the winner of those elections, took the oath of office for a third term.
Judge declares Donald Trump not guilty in Stormy Daniels case
Canada imposes sanctions on 14 venezuelan officials for human rights violations
María Corina Machado urges Edmundo González Urrutia not to return to Venezuela for his safety
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