CAMBODIA
Opposition figure jailed
The Phnom Penh Municipal Court yesterday jailed a senior opposition figure for three years over a social media post discussing the disputed history of the fall of the genocidal Khmer Rouge regime. Thach Setha, a vice president of the opposition Candlelight Party, in January posted a video on Facebook discussing the politically sensitive history of Jan. 7, but his critical comments drew the ire of authorities accusing him of incitement ahead of the July election. The court found Thach Setha guilty of two incitement charges. He was sentenced to three years in prison and ordered to pay a US$1,000 fine, said his lawyer, Sam Sokong. The case can be appealed. In January, Thach Setha was also arrested for allegedly issuing bad checks and received an 18-month jail sentence last month. Government critics say that case was politically motivated, because he was taken into custody ahead of the national election which the ruling party won by a landslide.
UGANDA
Shooters kill tourists, guide
Gunmen killed three people, including two foreigners, in Queen Elizabeth National Park, police said on Tuesday, blaming the attack on a militia group. The trio were driving through the park when they came under attack from the Allied Democratic Forces (ADF) rebel group, which has ties to the Islamic State, police spokesman Fred Enanga said on social media platform X. “The three were killed, and their safari vehicle burnt,” Enanga said. “Our joint forces responded immediately upon receiving the information and are aggressively pursuing the suspected ADF rebels,” he said. Uganda’s wildlife authority identified the victims as a British citizen, a South African and their Ugandan guide. “We urge the public to remain patient and allow the investigative process to run its course,” it said in a statement, adding that all parks would remained open.
BRAZIL
Charge Bolsonaro: court
A congressional committee on Tuesday found that former president Jair Bolsonaro should face charges of an attempted coup for his supporters’ invasion of the presidential palace, Supreme Court and legislative headquarters in January. The committee investigating the Jan. 8 riots in the capital, Brasilia, wrapped up nearly five months of drama-filled hearings with a final report recommending that prosecutors also charge the far-right former president with attempting to overthrow the rule of law, political violence and criminal conspiracy. The report does not legally bind the prosecutor general’s office to act, but it is the latest in a raft of legal woes for Bolsonaro, 68, who is already under investigation for allegations of corruption and abuse of office.
‘GREAT OPPRTUNITY’: The Paraguayan president made the remarks following Donald Trump’s tapping of several figures with deep Latin America expertise for his Cabinet Paraguay President Santiago Pena called US president-elect Donald Trump’s incoming foreign policy team a “dream come true” as his nation stands to become more relevant in the next US administration. “It’s a great opportunity for us to advance very, very fast in the bilateral agenda on trade, security, rule of law and make Paraguay a much closer ally” to the US, Pena said in an interview in Washington ahead of Trump’s inauguration today. “One of the biggest challenges for Paraguay was that image of an island surrounded by land, a country that was isolated and not many people know about it,”
DIALOGUE: US president-elect Donald Trump on his Truth Social platform confirmed that he had spoken with Xi, saying ‘the call was a very good one’ for the US and China US president-elect Donald Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping (習近平) discussed Taiwan, trade, fentanyl and TikTok in a phone call on Friday, just days before Trump heads back to the White House with vows to impose tariffs and other measures on the US’ biggest rival. Despite that, Xi congratulated Trump on his second term and pushed for improved ties, the Chinese Ministry of Foreign Affairs said. The call came the same day that the US Supreme Court backed a law banning TikTok unless it is sold by its China-based parent company. “We both attach great importance to interaction, hope for
‘FIGHT TO THE END’: Attacking a court is ‘unprecedented’ in South Korea and those involved would likely face jail time, a South Korean political pundit said Supporters of impeached South Korean President Yoon Suk-yeol yesterday stormed a Seoul court after a judge extended the impeached leader’s detention over his ill-fated attempt to impose martial law. Tens of thousands of people had gathered outside the Seoul Western District Court on Saturday in a show of support for Yoon, who became South Korea’s first sitting head of state to be arrested in a dawn raid last week. After the court extended his detention on Saturday, the president’s supporters smashed windows and doors as they rushed inside the building. Hundreds of police officers charged into the court, arresting dozens and denouncing an
RELEASE: The move follows Washington’s removal of Havana from its list of terrorism sponsors. Most of the inmates were arrested for taking part in anti-government protests Cuba has freed 127 prisoners, including opposition leader Jose Daniel Ferrer, in a landmark deal with departing US President Joe Biden that has led to emotional reunions across the communist island. Ferrer, 54, is the most high-profile of the prisoners that Cuba began freeing on Wednesday after Biden agreed to remove the country from Washington’s list of terrorism sponsors — part of an eleventh-hour bid to cement his legacy before handing power on Monday to US president-elect Donald Trump. “Thank God we have him home,” Nelva Ortega said of her husband, Ferrer, who has been in and out of prison for the
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