The World in Review

1. Canada:

A police report revealed that hundreds of airline workers, with various connections to more than 60 active gangs, have used their security clearance in eight of the nation’s largest airports to smuggle drugs and people into the country.

Canada ranks last of 25 developed countries in child care, according to a study by the United Nation’s Children Fund. The report said Canada failed to meet nine out of 10 benchmark measures, which include providing subsidized care for children during their first years of life.

A Halifax teenager, accused of stabbing a man at a party in a fight between the two over how much time a frozen pizza should stay in the microwave, was sentenced to five years in prison.

2. United States:

“The number of Americans filing first-time claims for unemployment benefits surged more than forecast last week to a 26-year high, a sign companies are stepping up firings as the recession deepens…Initial jobless claims increased 58,000 to 573,000 in the week ended Dec. 6, the highest level since November 1982, from a revised 515,000 the previous week, the Labor Department...The number of workers staying on benefit rolls reached 4.429 million, also the most since 1982” (Bloomberg).

The House of Representatives approved a $14 billion government bailout plan to provide emergency loans to car giants, General Motors and Chrysler. The bill, which requires automakers to commit to drastic restructuring plans, has yet to be passed in the Senate.

The Center on Budget and Policy Priorities reported that 43 states, which have already made spending cutbacks, are facing budget shortfalls and will be unable to cover their expenses next year.

Chicago-based Tribune Co. became the first major newspaper publisher to file for Chapter 11 bankruptcy. The company, which owns the Chicago Cubs baseball franchise, and several major metropolitan newspapers around the country, including the Los Angeles Times and The Sun of Baltimore, is $13 billion in debt and has experienced a severe drop in advertising revenue, leading to its inability to meet its credit obligations. (See related news brief: “The Future of Newspaper, Magazine Industry Grows Dim”)

Democratic Illinois Gov. Rod Blagojevich and his chief of staff were arrested on federal corruption charges after they were accused of trying to sell President-elect Barack Obama’s vacated Illinois senate seat. The corruption charges came after federal investigators obtained secret recordings of the governor discussing the potential benefits that he and his wife could receive from the sale of the position.

“A daylong work stoppage during which employees were encouraged to ‘call in gay’ to express support for same-sex marriage drew spotty participation nationwide…Backers of ‘Day Without a Gay’ organized evening rallies in San Francisco, Austin, Texas, Logan, Utah, and other cities so supporters could gather to discuss the next steps. Rallies also were held earlier Wednesday in Chicago and on several college campuses in California” (FOX News).

3. United Kingdom:

The pound sterling’s value fell to a record low of 1.14 euros.

“Britain’s remaining troops in Iraq will begin withdrawing from the country in March on a timetable that will aim to leave only a small training force of 300 to 400 by June, according to Defense Ministry officials quoted by the BBC and several of Britain’s major newspapers” (The New York Times).

A television station aired a documentary titled “Right to Die?”, which showed an assisted suicide being performed.

4. Germany: Berlin-based anti-corruption organization Transparency International “interviewed 2,742 senior business executives to see which firms would pay bribes in foreign countries. Russia, China, Mexico, India, Brazil and Italy were the worst of the 22 major economies ranked in the survey” (BBC).

5. Greece: Riots raged after a 15-year-old boy was killed in a confrontation with the police. Dozens of people were injured and substantial property damage resulted from fires started by rioters.

6. Ghana: Polling stations are seeing a massive, but peaceful, turnout for the presidential and parliamentary elections. President John Kufuor is stepping down after serving the maximum two terms (BBC).

7. Zimbabwe: The collapse of the country’s infrastructure has led to a cholera outbreak that has spread to the neighboring countries of South Africa, Mozambique, Botswana and Zambia. (See news brief: “Zimbabwe’s Cholera Outbreak Spreads”)

8. Uganda: There have been reports of a mysterious disease having killed 15 people in the last two months in the Bundibugyo District (AllAfrica.com).

9. Kenya: At least 300 girls, some as young as nine, in southwestern Kenya are seeking refuge in churches to escape forced female genital mutilation. Though female circumcision is banned nationwide, it is a popular practice in certain areas, used to initiate a girl into womanhood (BBC).

10. Somalia: According to a 104-page Human Rights Watch report, all parties in Somalia’s escalating conflict—the Somali Transitional Federal Government, Ethiopian forces that intervened in Somalia to support it, and insurgent forces—“have committed widespread and serious violations of the laws of war. Frequent violations include indiscriminate attacks, killings, rape, use of civilians as human shields, and looting. Since early 2007, the escalating conflict has claimed thousands of civilian lives, displaced more than a million people, and driven out most of the population of Mogadishu, the capital. Increasing attacks on aid workers in the past year have severely limited relief operations and contributed to an emerging humanitarian crisis.”

11. Saudi Arabia: “More than two million Muslim pilgrims performed a second round of stoning walls symbolizing the devil on Tuesday, as haj pilgrimage rituals neared their end without major incident…The Jamarat Bridge in the valley of Mena outside the holy city of Mecca, where pilgrims stone the walls three times over three to four days, has been the scene of numerous stampedes, including one which killed 362 in 2006. The haj has also been marred in previous years by deadly fires, hotel collapses and police clashes with protesters” (Reuters).

12. South Korea: The worldwide economic downturn led South Korea’s central bank to record interest rate cuts, a full percentage point to 3%, more than expected.

13. Japan: The national economy, the second-largest in the world after the U.S., shrank by 0.5%, for an annualized rate of 1.8%, significantly greater than expected (BBC).

14. Papua New Guinea: Giant tidal waves battered the northern coastline’s 500-mile stretch, resulting in flooding, sweeping away homes and displacing thousands of people.

15. Australia:

“Australia’s unemployment rate has risen to 4.4%, the highest in 12 months, as the economy shed 15,600 jobs in November” (Reuters).

South Australia, the nation’s driest state, decided to purchase additional water supplies amid fears it will run out next year (BBC).

Authorities have identified more than 200 suspects in 70 countries connected with a child pornography network. Australian Federal Police charged 19 men from New South Wales, Victoria and Queensland, and seized more than 15,000 videos and 500,000 images of child abuse during a 12-month investigation (ABC).

“Australia’s early childhood services are among the worst in the developed world, according to a UNICEF report that warns of the risk of placing children in care before the age of one. Among 25 developed countries Australia ranks third last, meeting only two of 10 benchmarks considered essential to protect children in their formative early years” (Sydney Morning Herald).