US secret surveillance program whistleblower identified

An ex-CIA employee has identified himself as the source of leaks about secret US surveillance programs. Britain's Guardian newspaper revealed that the US National Security Agency had monitored phone and internet records.

Edward Snowden, 29, admitted Sunday he was the source behind the Guardian's disclosures.

Snowden, who works as a contract employee at the National Security Agency (NSA), revealed his identity in a video posted on the newspaper's website. The Guardian said it had published the video at his own request.

"I have no intention of hiding who I am because I know I have done nothing wrong," Snowden said.

"My sole motive is to inform the public as to that which is done in their name and that which is done against them," he added.

He said he was willing to lose everything "because I can't in good conscience allow the US government to destroy privacy, internet freedom and basic liberties for people around the world with this massive surveillance machine they're secretly building."

Snowden, a former technical assistant for the CIA, had been working for the NSA as an employee for various outside contractors including Booz Allen Hamilton. In a statement Booz Allen confirmed the 29-year-old had been an employee at the firm "for less than three months."

According to the Guardian newspaper, Snowden was working in an NSA office in Hawaii when he copied the last of the documents he planned to disclose. He is currently holed up in a hotel room in Hong Kong having fled the United States on May 20.

Snowden is quoted as saying he chose that city because "they have a spirited commitment to free speech and the right of political dissent."

Read More: http://www.dw.de/us-secret-surveillance-program-whistleblower-identified/a-16869737

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Disclosures on NSA spying alarm US lawmakers, tech companies

(Reuters) - Recent revelations about the National Security Agency's expansive data-collection efforts have underscored the power of electronic surveillance in the Internet era and renewed an historic debate over how far the government should go in spying on its own people.

A disillusioned former CIA computer technician named Edward Snowden, who had worked as a contractor at the NSA, identified himself on Sunday as the source of multiple disclosures on the government's surveillance that were published by the Guardian and the Washington Post last week.

The information included a secret court order directing Verizon Communications Inc to turn over all its calling records for a three-month period, and details about an NSA program code-named PRISM, which collected emails, chat logs and other types of data from Internet companies. These included Google Inc, Facebook Inc, Microsoft Corp, Yahoo Inc, AOL Inc and Apple Inc.

Snowden cast himself as a whistleblower alarmed about overreaching by the U.S. intelligence establishment, which was given broad powers after the September 11 attacks in 2001 and can take now take advantage of the huge growth in digital data.

President Barack Obama and congressional leaders have vigorously defended the NSA's efforts as both legal and necessary. U.S. Director of National Intelligence James Clapper took the rare step of responding in detail to stories about PRISM.

U.S. Attorney General Eric Holder's Justice Department has launched a new round of investigations into media leaks, the very issue that consumed his department for the last month and led to renewed calls for Holder's resignation.

Intelligence officials and the technology companies say PRISM is much less invasive than initially suggested by stories in the Guardian and the Post. Several people familiar with negotiations between the Silicon Valley giants and intelligence officials said the NSA could not rummage at will through company servers and that requests for data had to be about specific accounts believed to be overseas.

Still, the revelations alarmed civil liberties advocates and some lawmakers who had supported the Patriot Act, which gave intelligence agencies new powers after 9/11, and another law granting telecommunication carriers immunity for eavesdropping at the request of the government.

"This is the law, but the way the law is being interpreted has really concerned me," Democratic Senator Mark Udall said on ABC on Sunday. "It's just to me a violation of our privacy, particularly if it's done in ways that we don't know about."

Read More: http://www.reuters.com/article/2013/06/10/us-usa-security-summary-idUSBRE95902X20130610

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Two guards are killed and nine inmates escape in Mexico jailbreak

At least two guards have been killed and nine prisoners have escaped during a jailbreak in southern Mexico, officials say.

A prison warden and a prisoner were also injured when a group of men stormed the prison and opened fire.

The attack happened in the early hours of Sunday in the town of La Union, in the south-western state of Guerrero.

Correspondents say jailbreaks are common in Mexico's overcrowded prisons, which house inmates from rival gangs.

Guerrero's Public Security Secretariat said a "group of men armed with rifles and guns" stormed the building at 05:00 local time (10:00 GMT), killing the guards and freeing the inmates.

In a statement, it said that federal and state police were using helicopters to find the escaped prisoners.

It added that the whereabouts of the prison's director, Manuel Chavarria, was unknown; local media say he fled the attack.

Guerrero is one of the states most affected by fighting between organised criminal groups and by a military offensive against drug cartels that has left an estimated 70,000 people dead nationwide in the past six years.

Source: http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-latin-america-22836787

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India: Cops probing six-page letter written by Jiah Khan

MUMBAI: A six-page letter allegedly left behind by actor Jiah Khan disclosed what she went through days before her suicide. A copy of the letter, which is also in TOI's possession, is currently being scrutinized by the Juhu police.

Jiah's family has provided her handwriting samples to investigators and are trying to locate her personal diary. The note states: "No other woman will give you as much as I did or love you as much as I did. I can write that in my blood. Things were looking up for me here. But is it worth when you constantly feel the pain of heartbreak when the person you love wants to abuse you or threatens to hit you... or cheats on you by telling other girls they are beautiful ... or throws you out of their house when you have nowhere to go. You have come to them out of love or when they lie to your face or they make you chase after them in their car or disrespects their family.

You never even met my sister. I bought your sister presents. You tore my soul. I have no reason to breathe anymore," the letter says, without naming any person in particular.

It added: "You chose to be away from me on Valentine's Day. You promised me ... once we made it to one year, we would get engaged. All I wanted was you and happiness. You took both away from me. I have nothing left in this world to live for after this. I wish you had loved me like I loved you. I dreamt of our future and success. I leave this place with nothing but broken dreams and empty promises. All I want now is to go to sleep and never wake up again. I am nothing. I had everything. I felt so alone even while with you.

You made me feel alone and vulnerable. I am so much more than this." the letter said.

It goes on to state: "I didn't see any love or commitment from you. I just became increasingly scared that you would hurt me mentally or physically. If I stay here, I will crave you and miss you. So I am kissing my ten-year career and dreams goodbye." the letter said.

Jiah's sister, Kavita, had found the letter three days after the actor's death in her wallet. Kavita had been searching for some poems written by Jiah to be read out at her prayer meeting when she stumbled onto the letter.

The family now wants to make its contents public as they believe that her "career was not the reason for Jiah ending her life".

Source: http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/mumbai/Cops-probing-six-page-letter-written-by-Jiah-Khan/articleshow/20512919.cms

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Dar es Salaam: 2 Dubai businessmen accused of extortion

THREE companies dealing with mining, oil and gas exploration in Tanzania have accused two businessmen from Dubai, Mr Ali Saeed Albwardy and Mr Hasmuth Bhagwanji Masrani, of extorting money and conspiring to injure their businesses and financial positions.

Mr Albwardy, who has several investments in Tanzania and Mr Masrani, also having commercial and business interests in the country and elsewhere in the world, are alleged to have committed the conspiracy through unlawful acts and extorting monies by frivolous means from the companies.

The allegations are contained in a plaint of a commercial dispute signed by one Rajen Kilachand as chairman of the companies that has been filed at the High Court’s Commercial Division in Dar es Salaam, with Mr Masrani being joined as the defendant.

He has denied the claims in his written statement of defence (WSD). The three companies, Dodsal Hydrocarbons and Power (Tanzania) PVT Limited, Dodsal Resources and Mining Itilima Busilili (Tanzania) PVT Limited and Dodsal Resources and Mining Itingi (Tanzania) PVT Limited are the plaintiffs in the commercial dispute.

They are asking the court to give an order, among others, that the defendant should stop committing acts of extortion against the plaintiffs whether directly or indirectly. They further seek for a declaration that the defendant should be restrained from presenting himself as a director of the companies.

“The defendant in conspiracy with a few individuals including one Ali Saeed Albwardy, with ulterior motives to injure the plaintiffs businesses and financial positions by unlawful means, conspired and combined to extort moneys from the plaintiffs by frivolous means,” part of the plaint reads.

It is alleged in the plaint of the suit that pursuant to and in furtherance of the conspiracy to extortion, the two businessmen carried out some unlawful acts and means by which the three companies have allegedly suffered and been injured.

On October 31, 2011, it is alleged, Mr Albwardy, while in Dubai spread unfounded rumours and made derogatory and unqualified remarks against the three companies and the Chairman of the Dorsal Group of Companies which had the effect of tarnishing their image and all of their associate companies.

It claimed in the plaint further that on the same day in Dubai, Mr Albwardy, through one Mr Satish Seemar is reported to have made a proposal to purchase the companies dealing in mining, oils and gas business.

“The plaintiffs assert that the claims for claims of joint and equal interest in the companies was aimed at diminishing the value of the companies so that the intending purchasers could purchase the companies at diminishing in spite of substantial work in exploration and prospecting had been done,” it is stated.

According to the plaint, on November 23, 2011, the defendant through Mr Albwardy, proposed to the plaintiffs through Mr Kilachand that the defendant be paid a finder’s fees for his assistance in obtaining concession in Tanzania.

“The plaintiffs submit that a claim for equal interests in the plaintiffs on one hand and a suggestion on payment to the defendant of finder’s fees on the other is an indication of the defendant’s efforts at making extortionate claims against the plaintiffs,” the plaint of the suit further states.

Advocates Masumbuko Lamwai and Amour Hamis are appearing for the plaintiffs, while Counsel Dilip Kesaria is representing the defendant. The case which is being presided over by Judge Robert Makaramba, comes on June 13, this year, for necessary orders.

In his WSD, Mr Masrani denies each and every allegation in the plaint, including claims of conspiracy and extortion and requests the court to dismiss the case. He claims that he has no reasons to cause injury to the companies in which he is entitled to 50 per cent shares in net profits.

Mr Masrani alleges that through his own hard and initiatives, he procured several lucrative exploration and mining rights for the production and development of petroleum hydrocarbons, minerals and metal explorations and mining.

He states in his defence document that the signatory to the plaint of the suit, Mr Kilachand has been known to him for several years and had expressed his interest in the exploration and mining business in Tanzania and Uganda.

“Mr Kilachand offered to the defendant the Dodsal Group’s expertise and financial strengths for the exploration, development and production of petroleum hydrocarbons, minerals and metals in Tanzania in exchange for an equal 50 per cent share in the net profits after all expenses,” part of WSD reads.

Source: http://www.dailynews.co.tz/index.php/local-news/18399-2-dubai-businessmen-accused-of-extortion

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INDIA: Muslim marriage is a civil contract, rules high court

KOCHI: Uncoupling the institution of marriage from sacred or religious connotations conveniently used to deny women their due, the Kerala high court has ruled that Muslim marriage is primarily a civil contract to legalize sexual intercourse. In the same vein, the court held that denying a woman her conjugal rights for an extended period amounts to "cruelty''.

The ruling by a division bench comprising justices Pius C Kuriakose and PD Rajan was in response to an appeal by Sanjan S of Alappuzha against a family court's decision to grant divorce to his wife on the ground that she was denied sex by him for over three years. The profound implications of the March 21st ruling are only beginning to sink into public consciousness.

The judgment authored by Justice Rajan says, "The concept of 'marriage' among Muslims from the very beginning itself (is) regarded as a contract. Muslim marriage has been defined as a civil contract for the purpose of legalizing sexual intercourse and procreation of children. It is not a sacrament but a contract, though solemnized generally with the recitation of certain verses from the Quran. Muslim law does not prescribe any religious service essential for solemnization. Justice Krishna Iyer in 'Islamic Law in Modern India' considered the concept of Muslim marriage and stated that "in its legal connotation, Muslim marriage is essentially a contract, though marriage as a social institution is regarded solemn all over the civilized world, including the Muslims."

Sanjan got married on May 16, 1999 according to Muslim religious rites and his wife delivered a child in August 2004. After February 2004, he avoided sexual contact with his wife, despite her insistence, for more than three years. In 2006 his wife left Sanjan's home and filed for divorce in 2007 in the family court.

Upholding the family court's decision granting divorce, the high court held, "We are of the opinion that if husband refuses to (have) sex with his wife, when she demands for the same, (it) is a ground for "cruelty". As a wife, she is expecting a healthy sexual relationship with her husband for the persistence of happy and harmonious married life."

Sanjan's counsel at the high court, K Ramakumar, contended that the alleged cruelty of denying conjugal relations is not pleaded and proved in this case. There is no allegation that the matrimonial relationship was broken irretrievably, he argued. Advocate PK Ibrahim, who appeared for the wife, opposed this, arguing that the totality of the pleading and evidence show that the marriage was irretrievably broken and that the emotional bond between the couple is extinct.

While deciding the case, the high court cited section 2 of Dissolution of Muslim Marriage Act, 1939, which states various grounds for divorce. According to section 2, divorce can be granted if "the husband has failed to perform, without reasonable cause, his marital obligations for a period of three years."

Source: http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/india/Muslim-marriage-is-a-civil-contract-rules-high-court/articleshow/20500887.cms

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China Nobel laureate Liu Xiaobo's brother-in-law jailed

A court in China has sentenced the brother-in-law of imprisoned Nobel Peace Prize winner Liu Xiaobo to 11 years in jail on fraud charges.

The lawyer defending Liu Hui said the jail term was out of all proportion to the alleged offence.

He said it should have been treated as a civil dispute, not a criminal matter.

Liu Xiaobo was already in jail when he won the Nobel prize in 2010 for campaigning for peaceful democratic change in China.

Since then his wife, Liu Xia - sister of Liu Hui - has been held under strict house arrest in what she says is an official vendetta against his family.

The BBC's John Sudworth, in Shanghai, says this latest sentencing of a close family member is being seen as further political persecution.

It comes at the same time as China's President Xi Jinping is in America for talks with President Obama, a summit at which the US side says the issue of human rights is being raised.

'Simply persecution'

The court in Huairou, north-east of Beijing, convicted Liu Hui, a manager in a property company, of defrauding a man of 3m yuan ($490,000; £315,000) along with a colleague.

"As Liu Hui's defence attorney I definitely do not approve of this verdict, because we see this fundamentally as a civil issue, and it fundamentally does not constitute criminal fraud," lawyer Mo Shaoping told reporters.

He said Liu Hui maintained his innocence.

A tearful Liu Xia accused the authorities of persecuting her family.

"I absolutely cannot accept this. This is simply persecution," she said before being driven away from the court.

"This is completely an illegal verdict."

She said she had "completely lost hope" in the government, adding: "I can't even leave my house."

Police pulled journalists away from the car as Liu Xia was driven off.

Liu Xiaobo, who won the prize despite fierce Chinese opposition, was jailed in 2009 for helping to draft a manifesto - Charter 08 - calling for political change.

He is currently serving 11 years in jail for inciting the subversion of state power.

Liu Xia, also a known activist, has been living in her Beijing apartment with no internet or phone access and limited weekly visits with family.

She had been allowed to leave her apartment to attend the court hearing.

Source: http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-asia-china-22831369

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Tanzania: Augustino Ramadhani, Ex-CJ: My hands were tied

Dar es Salaam. Former Chief Justice Augustino Ramadhani, who in 2010 led a panel of seven judges to disallow private candidates to contest elections, now says he is in full support of the arrangement.

The former CJ then had to contend with a wave of criticism from lawyers over the decision, which they widely believe was politically motivated.

The Constitutional Review Commission (CRC), for which the former CJ is vice-chairman, has released the first draft Constitution proposing, among other things, allowing independent candidates to contest grassroots and presidential elections.

Former CJ Ramadhani told The Citizen on Sunday that the decision he made along with colleagues in 2010 was not based on a personal opinion, but completely legal and technical.

“I was not against the idea of independent candidates then and even now. In fact, I support the system completely. Our hands in that court were tied to decide as per Constitution and arguments that arose from the parties,” said the former CJ.

Justice Ramadhani said that the main argument for siding with the Attorney General, who was representing the government, to oppose the proposed new system, was that the Court of Appeal does not have the jurisdiction to amend provisions of the Constitution which barred independent candidacy.

The only body with powers to amend the Constitution is the Parliament, he said.

“The panel that I headed in 2010 put things very clearly, the court did not have legal powers to say independent candidates are allowed. We said the issue had to be settled by the Parliament, which has legal powers to amend the Constitution,” he explained.

Source: http://www.thecitizen.co.tz/News/-/1840392/1876752/-/evp8wwz/-/index.html

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Dar es Salaam: ICC verdict greeted with jubilation

THE government has termed as “justice done on Tanzania” the decision by the International Criminal Court (ICC) to turn down a petition by Legal and Human Rights Centre (LHRC) that wanted the court to investigate the country for alleged extra judicial killings and violation of citizen rights.

The government Sunday’s position comes two days after the ICC rejected the appeal by LHRC filed in September last year, asking The Hague-based institution to consider opening investigation into crimes against humanity and other human rights violations perpetuated by security forces.

The Minister of State in the President’s Office (Social Relations and Co-ordination) Mr Stephen Wassira said in an interview yesterday that he couln’t blame them for petitioning their country at ICC because it is their right to do so but it would be prudent they respect that decision by ICC because just as it was their right to win the day, so it is to lose the petition.

“ICC had done its job as an independent organ that stands for justice. Genocide is a very serious matter and I don’t believe Tanzania has reached such levels,” he added. According to him, countries with such acts are known in Africa, because genocide is the deliberate and systematic destruction, in whole or in part, of an ethnic, racial, caste, religious, or national group.

Mr Wassira said LHRC was unnecessarily ashaming and demonizing Tanzania before international community. “I am not saying we have no problem, there are criminal acts. Until now, as a country, we, as a country, have never repealed a law that calls for hanging for those convicted of taking away someone’s life,” he added.

The Minister said there are killings which are associated with beliefs in witchcraft like the albino killings, which are bad and the government has been working to contain them including trying the suspects. He added that aside from albino killings, there have also been cases of violence where people lose their lives and the elderly being killed in rural areas, but the government has been taking stern measures against culprits.

In the letter written to ICC, the LHRC petition had accused the government of complicity and condoning killings by security forces, claiming that at least 237 innocent people have been killed since 2003. But on Wednesday, the Head of Information and Evidence Unit of the Office of the Prosecutor at ICC, Mr M.P. Dillon, wrote to LHRC announcing the decision not to open the case.

According to Mr Dillon, the matters raised by the LHRC and evidence available did not meet the threshold for launching local investigations. The claims against Tanzania, he added, did not fall within the court’s jurisdiction as they do not meet the definition of genocide, crimes against humanity or war crimes as defined in Articles 6 to 8 of the Rome Statute.

In a letter to Dr Helen Kijo- Bisimba who is LHRC Executive Director, Mr Dillon said the prosecutor has determined that there is no basis at this time to proceed with the accusation. “However, the information you have submitted will be maintained in our archives, and the decision not to proceed may be reconsidered in the light of new facts or information,” said Mr Dillon.

The ICC official advised the petitioner to pursue justice with national authorities within Tanzania or raise the same concerns with other appropriate international authorities.

Source: http://www.dailynews.co.tz/index.php/local-news/18418-icc-verdict-greeted-with-jubilation

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Trayvon Martin murder case goes to trial in Florida

(Reuters) - Jury selection begins on Monday in the murder trial of George Zimmerman, who shot and killed unarmed black teenager Trayvon Martin in 2012 and then famously walked free for 44 days, triggering nationwide protests and calls for his arrest.

Lawyers estimate the long-awaited trial will last four to eight weeks. Much of that time is expected to be spent picking a six-person jury that can be open-minded despite extensive publicity about some of the explosive issues, including racial profiling and self-defense, surrounding the case.

"They're going to have a tough time picking a jury. At this point who doesn't know who Trayvon Martin is and who George Zimmerman is," said David Weinstein, a former state prosecutor and criminal defense lawyer.

Zimmerman, a 29-year-old former neighborhood watch volunteer, faces up to life in prison if convicted as charged of second-degree murder.

More than 200 journalists have signed up to cover the trial and a tight blanket of security will be enforced by federal, state and local police in and around the courthouse in this town near Orlando in central Florida.

Even spectators in barricaded "public assembly zones" on the courthouse lawn will be subject to search. Four seats inside the courtroom will be rotated among local pastors who will monitor the trial and be ready to help calm any racial tensions.

The trial is being heralded as either a defining moment in the annals of civil rights, or an anti-climactic resolution of another senseless killing in gun-happy Florida.

Source: http://www.reuters.com/article/2013/06/09/us-usa-florida-shooting-idUSBRE95804Z20130609

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