}
WORLD & NATION
7
NOVEMBER 11, 2011
Stories by Becca Heller
Graphic by Daniel Vasiles
Police in Russia arrested local
HISTORIAN AND CEMETERY EXPERT
Anatoly Moskvin, 45, on charges
OF HAVING DUG UP NUMEROUS GRAVES
AND MAKING 29 LIFE-SIZE DOLLS
5from mummified female corpses.
In a video released by the police,
the brightly dressed dolls are shown
seated on shelves or sofas in what
appears to be Moskvin's study.
According to officials, the majority
of the remains appeared to belong
to girls and young women who had
been dressed in clothes taken from
corpses. Prior to his arrest, in a 2007
interview with Russian newspaper
Nizhegorodsky Rabochy,
Moskvin said that his
interest in cemeteries was
sparked at a young age,
and he even admitted
to having once slept in
a coffin prepared for a
funeral.
UMTTBD STATB
IHAIILAIMD
According to researchers in the U.S., new evidence
HAS emerged that INFRARED LIGHT COULD BE THE NEXT BIG
BREAKTHROUGH IN THE FIGHT AGAINST CANCER. A new Study
revealed that researchers have developed a new method
in which they attach a chemical to an antibody that targets
cancer cells; the chemical is then activated by specific waves
of infrared light, according to BBC. Due to the precision of
this potential treatment, it would theoretically have fewer
and less damaging side-effects than other current cancer
treatments such as radiation, surgery or drugs. "This
selective killing minimizes damage to normal cells," the
study stated, going on to say that the new developments
could be "a promising therapeutic and diagnostic agent for
the treatment of cancer."
The death toll in Syria has topped 3,500 during the past
SEVERAL MONTHS OF ANTI-GOVERNMENT PROTESTS, according
to the U.N. Despite a recent peace deal which was negotiated
last week, these numbers continue to rise, and, according to
the U.N., more than 60 people have been reported killed
since then. In addition to the grisly death toll, the protests
against the government of President Bashar al-Assad have
resulted in the detention and torturing of thousands of
protesters and more are being arrested each day, according
to BBC. "They think they can control Baba Amr like they did
other areas, but they are wrong," said Homs-based activist
Salim al-Homsi to the AP. "We are not afraid of them. We
will keep protesting."
On Oct. 10, millions of Thais took to the streets for the
TRADITIONAL CELEBRATION OF THE END OF THE RAINY SEASON.
According to the San Francisco Chronicle, during the annual
festival, people pay homage to a water goddess by placing
candles in small lotus-shaped boats and set them adrift in
the country's many waterways. This year, that celebration
took on new meaning, coming on the heels of a devastating
flood that killed 529 people and wiped out rice fields
and factories alike, according to the Chronicle. Some, like
Saithong Sateankamsoragai, a flower vendor in Bangkok,
saw the festival as a symbol of better things to come. "It
gives us a little bit of inspiration," she said to the Chronicle.
"It gives us hope that life will be better next year."
British PM threatens to cut aid over gay rights
By Casey Morgan
Staff Writer
African nations are in an uproar after
British Prime Minister David Cameron
recently threatened to withhold aid to over
41 states which, according to Cameron,
are violating the rights of homosexuals.
Malawi, Uganda, Nigeria and Ghana are
expected to be the first targets of the policy
change.
In an interview on BBC TV's The
Andrew Marr Show, Cameron said, "We
want to see countries that receive our aid
adhering to proper human rights, and
that includes how people treat gay and
lesbian people. ... British aid should have
more strings attached in terms of 'do you
persecute people for their faith or their
Christianity, or do you persecute people
for their sexuality?' We don't think that's
acceptable."
In July, the U.K. withheld $30 million to
Malawi after its government punished two
men for being homosexuals, jailing them
for 14 years with hard labor.
Days before Cameron's remarks.
Uganda voted to reopen debate on a bill
which would make homosexuality illegal
and, at the extreme, may include the death
penalty for gays.
The U.K. spent nearly $110 million
on bilateral aid to Uganda in 2009-
lb, according to the Department for
International Development's website.
Cameron said change would not happen
overnight, however.
"They are in a different place from us on
this issue," he said. "I think these countries
are all on a journey and it's up to us to try
and help them along on that journey."
This has sparked much anger in African
communities, as many have interpreted
this as a colonial display of power.
Ugandan presidential adviser John
Nagenda told BBC that Ugandans were
"tired of these lectures" and should not
be treated like "children." He said that
the U.K.'s "bullying mentality ... is very
wrong. ... Those who have more should
give to those who have less. It's as simple
as that."
Kwame Akuffo, a private legal
practitioner, has also criticized Cameron
over his threat to withhold U.K. aid.
Speaking on Peace FM's radio broadcast,
Akuffo said, "The British government
has an extensive relationship with Saudi
Arabia, a country that is involved in
inhumane acts that the international
community considers reprehensible, yet
they have not severed off relationship with
them because of monetary gains and also
because they sell arms to them."
He argued that every state has its own
beliefs and culture, and that to punish a
state because they think differently is a
stark display of racism.
"We have to respect ourselves," said
Akuffo. "The time has come for us Africans
to rise up and protect our rights and
dignity as a people. ... Let Africa unite
on this position for once and fight these
oppressive tendencies of the West."
The Coalition against Homophobia in
Ghana said in a statement that "cutting aid
to some selected Africa countries due to
homophobic laws will not help the LGBT
people in these countries, but will rather
stigmatize these groups and individuals.
LGBT people will be used as scapegoats
for government inability to support its
citizens and some sectors of the economy."
It is important to note that Cameron's
threat applies only to one type of bilateral
aid, and as such, would not significantly
reduce the overall amount of aid to any
one state.
"Our new approach, set out in detail in
July, means we only provide aid directly
to governments when we are satisfied that
they share our commitments to reduce
poverty, respect human rights, improve
public financial management, fight
corruption, and promote good governance
and transparency," said Helen Bower,
spokesperson for the office of the Prime
Minister.
Dr. Paa Kwesi Nduom, Ghana's
presidential candidate, sees this approach
as a blessing in disguise.
"You see, David Cameron is telling us
that we should stop begging foreigners for
survival, but we have not noticed that as a
country," he said, adding that he sees the
logic in Cameron's proposal.
"If you take money from me daily why
won't you adhere to my commands?"