- The Guardian
- Issue #2050
CUBA: The deputies of the newly constituted National Assembly of People’s Power (ANPP) re-elected Miguel Diaz Canel as President of the Republic of Cuba with 97.66 per cent voting for his re-election. This is Diaz Canel’s second term as president for another five years. Diaz Canel, an electronic engineer and Master in Business Administration, held the positions of Minister for Higher Education, Vice President of the Council of Ministers and First Vice President of the Council of State before being elected President in 2018. He has also been a member of the Political Bureau of the Communist Party of Cuba since 2003. According to the Cuban constitution of 2019, the President can only hold the office for up to two consecutive terms.
UK: Anti-monarchy group Republic is planning to stage the largest protest action on the King’s coronation day, 6th May. The group’s chief executive Graham Smith, said the activists will chant “Not my King,” wear yellow T-shirts and carry yellow placards along the procession route as well as gathering for a major event in Trafalgar Square. Smith called the crowning of Charles Windsor and the Queen Consort a “pointless piece of theatre” which will cost tens of millions of pounds and be a “slap in the face” for people struggling with the cost-of-living crisis. “Anti-monarchy protests will carry one message: ‘Do you want Charles or do you want a choice?’ ” Smith said.
IRAN: Iranian navy commander Shahram Irani went on state television to report a recent confrontation between Iranian and US navies in the Gulf. “The US submarine was approaching while submerged, but the Iranian submarine Fateh detected it and carried out … manoeuvres to force it to surface as it went through the Strait (of Hormuz). It had also entered into our territorial waters but … it corrected its course after being warned,” Irani said. “This submarine was doing its best, using all its capacities, to pass in total silence and without being detected,” Irani said. The commander added that the incident will be referred to international bodies because of the border violation.
JAPAN: Japan’s plan to dump radioactive wastewater into the sea has caused great concern internationally. Long-term impact on marine life and human life was the main fear. At the recent G7 ministerial meeting Japan was hoping for a unanimous approval of its plan. But Germany’s Minister for Environment, Nature Conservation, Nuclear Safety and Consumer Protection Steffi Lemke said that she could not “welcome the release of the treated water. The Japanese government is desperate for international endorsement for its Pacific Ocean radioactive water dumping plans.” It has failed to protect its own citizens as well as nations across the wider Asia-Pacific region, said Shaun Burnie, senior nuclear specialist at Greenpeace East Asia. “Its plans are a violation of the UN Convention Law of the Sea,” he added.
