World in review
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November 30, 2009 • Esther Smith, Reporter
Filed under 2009-2010
The Honduran ousted president, Manuel Zelaya, continues to call for his reinstatement to office before an election due at the end of November. The odds are stacked against him, as the head of the country’s Congress explicitly stated that it would not vote on whether or not to reinstate Mr. Zelaya until December.
In South America, Brazil’s Supreme Court decided that accused murderer Cesare Battisti could be extradited to Italy. Regardless of this possibility, final decisions rest with President Luiz Inacio Lula de Silva, who has been sympathetic to the refugee.
The Cuban based, American run, Guantanamo Bay prison continues to contain accused terrorists. Contrary to prior promises, President Barack Obama admitted that the detention camp would not be closed by January 2010.
President Obama paid his first visit to China, speaking with the premier and prime minister, Hu Jintao and Wen Jiabao, respectively. His first visit to China produced limited press information, but statements from the premier and president revealed anticipated cooperation regarding trade and climate change.
Shortly before visiting China, President Obama toured Japan–calculably stressing the importance of healthy relations between Japan and the United States. The President also corresponded and spoke with leaders of the Association of South-East Asian Nations (SEAN)–including Myanmar’s prime minister, Thein Sein. The interaction was regarded as the “highest level American contact with the Burmese junta since the 1960’s.”
In Afghanistan, Hamid Karzai was inaugurated as the re-elected president–in lieu of a controversially flawed election in August.
Equally as controversial, the International Atomic Energy Agency released a new report that accuses Iran of disguising a uranium-enrichment plant as a stand-alone civilian site.
A Somali young woman accused of adultery was stoned to death in front of 200 people; this is the second recording of such a punishment in an area controlled by an Islamic group named the Shabab.
After years of waiting, Kenyans were relieved to hear that reviews and amendments to the constitution were under consideration. These would include a distribution and balance of power from the president to the prime minister.
Recent parliamentary sessions in the Congo suggest that President Joseph Kabila intends to call for a special constitutional amendment that would either increase the presidential term limits from five to seven, or eliminate the need for them at all.
Its African neighbor, and usually plagued victim, Sierra Leone, experienced unusual success in fighting corruption within the hierarchy of its government.
Sigmar Gabriel was elected as the new leader of the German opposition Social Democratic Party–the seventh chairman in the last eleven years. Germany’s fellow country of Britain continued to disclaim the Labour Party’s attempts to solve social, political, and economic crises.
Greek government statistics confused civilians and officials alike when they revealed that the forecast for this year’s budged deficit more than doubled from 6% to 12.7% of the country’s GDP.
—World in review is compiled from headlines from The Economist.
