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Federer dad to 2nd set of twins
5/7/2014 12:33:59 AM
- Roger Federer has withdrawn from the Madrid Open
- The Swiss star's wife gave birth to twin boys Tuesday
- Federer already has twin girls
- Novak Djokovic has already pulled out of the Madrid tournament
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(CNN) -- He's done it once -- and now he's done it again.
Roger Federer welcomed another pair of twins into the world Tuesday after his wife Mirka gave birth to boys Leo and Lenny.
The Swiss star, who had earlier pulled of out the Madrid Open ahead of the impending birth, announced the news on Twitter.
Mirka and I are so incredibly happy to share that Leo and Lenny were born this evening! #TwinsAgain #Miracle
— Roger Federer (@rogerfederer) May 6, 2014 He tweeted: "Mirka and I are so incredibly happy to share that Leo and Lenny were born this evening!"
Federer and Mirka became parents to twin girls Charlene Riva and Myla Rose in July 2009.
The 32-year-old revealed on Twitter on Christmas Eve that the Swiss sweethearts were expanding their family in 2014.
But Federer would not reveal his wife's due date or whether the couple were expecting another set of twins.
He will now swap new balls for new diapers although he hopes to be back on court in the near future.
"I apologize to my fans and hope to be back in Madrid next year. I'll be training near my home, and am excited to rejoin the Tour soon."
Federer, a three-time Madrid Open winner, will be replaced in the draw by Poland's Lukasz Kubot, event organizers have announced.
The Swiss played his last match three weeks ago in the final of the Monte-Carlo Masters, where he was defeated by compatriot Stanislas Wawrinka.
Novak Djokovic has already announced he will skip the clay-court event as he seeks to recover from an arm injury.
With the French Open just three weeks away, Federer will now likely have little time for competitive practice before the year's second grand slam begins.
The world No. 4 has previously intimated he would not play in the French if meant he may miss the birth of his child.
"I've played enough tennis matches. Missing a tournament or missing a match wouldn't change anything for me," the 17-time grand slam winner told reporters last month.
Soccer star questions anti-racism plan
5/7/2014 2:00:05 PM
- John Barnes says football must change its approach to tackling racism
- The former Liverpool great had a banana thrown at him during a match in 1987
- Barcelona's Dani Alves was subjected to similar abuse recently against Villarreal
- Barnes says football must focus on education rather than sanctions
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(CNN) -- "You can be as racist as you want, as long as you keep your mouth shut," says John Barnes.
The former Liverpool great should know.
The Jamaican-born England international was subjected to racist abuse including an infamous incident 27 years ago when a fan threw a banana at him during a Merseyside derby between Liverpool and rivals Everton.
Barnes kicked the piece of fruit away. Fast forward to 2014 and Barcelona's Dani Alves was similarly taunted, though the Brazilian picked up and ate the banana that had been hurled at him by a Villarreal supporter.
According to Barnes, the fact that bananas are still been throwing at games shows football's approach to tackling discrimination is befuddled.
"The way we're trying to deal with it, in terms of getting rid of it, is wrong," Barnes, who played for England between 1983 and 1995, told CNN.
"Only through education and making people know why it's wrong to do it.
"Just by saying to people 'You're not allowed to do it' without telling them why, explaining to them why... Or fining them when they do it, so they just keep their mouth shut is not getting rid of it.
"Do we want to get rid of racism? Or do we want just not to hear it? What football is saying, by fining and banning people, is 'You can be as racist as you want, but as long as you keep your mouth shut it's fine.'
"That's not what I'm interested in."
Read: Is racism endemic in Spanish football?
One week after Alves was abused, Levante's Senegalese player Papakouli Diop claimed he heard monkey chants from Atletico Madrid supporters.
His response was to dance in front of his alleged abusers but, while he fully support Alves' actions, Barnes questioned Diop's reaction.
"I think Alves showed disdain, he showed disregard," he added. "He showed that if you're being bullied and the bullies aren't effecting you, they will stop bullying you.
"If you react to it, they will continue to do it. From a playing perspective, I think that's the right way to respond."
While praising Villarreal for acting swiftly to ban the fan who threw the banana at Alves, Barnes warned that football might be fighting a losing battle in trying to eradicate racist abuse.
"These aren't football's problems. Until we get rid of it in society, we won't get rid of it in football," added Barnes, who memorably scored a remarkable solo goal in the Maracana stadium against Brazil in a 1-0 friendly win for England in June 1984.
"From an institutional perspective, yes you ban the fan, as the club did, if you've got to close stadiums, fine players or take points off clubs, that's what you do."
Football's world governing body FIFA introduced a series of punishments after a number of high-profile racism cases in 2013.
The punishments for a first offense is a warning, fine or the club in question being forced to play games in empty stadiums.
A second offense, or one deemed "serious," could result in demotion, a deduction of points or expulsion from a tournament.
Read: Dani Alves winning racism fight
Read: Pele expects "fantastic" World Cup
Slaughter blamed on Boko Haram
5/7/2014 3:07:28 PM
- NEW: Girls in Nigeria are my sisters," Pakistani activist Malala Yousafzai says
- As efforts to free abducted girls accelerate, Boko Haram strikes out again
- Militants attack village, kill at least 150
- Nigerian authorities offer a reward for information leading to the girls' rescue
CNN anchor Isha Sesay will be live from Abuja on CNN International, Wednesday and Thursday at 5, 7, 8.30 and 9 p.m. CET.
Abuja, Nigeria (CNN) -- Details emerged Wednesday of an apparent Boko Haram attack on a Nigerian village in which at least 150 people died, the latest in a series of attacks and abductions of schoolgirls attributed to the group.
Militants dressed in military uniforms, backed by armored personnel carriers and shouting "God is great" attacked Gamboru Ngala on Monday afternoon, firing rocket-propelled grenades and tossing improvised bombs into a crowded outdoor marketplace, witnesses told CNN on Wednesday.
They then set fire to buildings where people had tried to take shelter from the violence, the witnesses said.
The fighters also attacked the police station during the 12-hour assault, initially facing stiff resistance. They eventually used explosives to blow the roof off the building, witnesses said. Fourteen police officers were found dead inside, they said.
The final death toll could be closer to 300, Nigerian Sen. Ahmed Zanna told CNN.
It's unclear what impact the attack could have on the international response to Nigeria's fight with Boko Haram, which so far has been concentrated on helping the government rescue 276 schoolgirls abducted last month by the militant group.
Nigerian authorities have blamed the group for dozens of deadly attacks in the country's north.
They offered a reward of about $310,000 on Wednesday for information leading to the rescue of the girls.
"While calling on the general public to be part of the solution to the present security challenge, the Police High Command also reassures all citizens that any information given would be treated anonymously and with utmost confidentiality," the Nigeria Police Force said in a statement.
The government also has accepted U.S. and British offers of assistance, officials with those governments said.
Members of the U.S. Congress called for action, former U.N. Secretary-General Kofi Annan called the abductions "abominable" and Malala Yousafzai, the Pakistani children's rights activist shot in the head by the Taliban, spoke out, too.
"The girls in Nigeria are my sisters and it is my responsibility that I speak up for my sisters," Yousafzai told CNN's "Amanpour."
"I felt that i should speak up for them and i should raise my voice for their rights," she said.
International aid taking shape
Meanwhile, U.S. officials pressed ahead with plans to provide Nigeria with law enforcement assistance and military consultations, State Department spokeswoman Jen Psaki said.
"Obviously, this is in the interest of the Nigerian government to accept every aspect of our assistance," she said. "They conveyed that they were willing to do that yesterday and it continues to be in their interest to be as cooperative as possible."
U.S. officials will establish a "coordination cell" to provide intelligence, investigations and hostage negotiation expertise, Psaki said. The cell will include U.S. military personnel.
The joint coordination cell will be established at the U.S. Embassy in the Nigerian capital, Abuja, and U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry said the work is expected to begin immediately.
The Pentagon has started planning for how it can help Nigeria, a senior U.S. military official told CNN. U.S. military assistance will likely be limited to intelligence, mission planning and hostage negotiations, several officials told CNN. It's unlikely at this point that U.S. troops would be involved in operations, the officials said.
British officials will send a small team of experts to complement the U.S. team, a spokesman for Prime Minister David Cameron said Wednesday. The spokesman didn't specify the nature of the team's expertise.
Defending the response
Nigerian President Goodluck Jonathan has come under fire after waiting three weeks to publicly acknowledge the kidnappings.
His administration, however, is defending its response -- even as details emerged Tuesday about a second mass kidnapping.
"The President and the government (are) not taking this as easy as people all over the world think," said presidential spokesman Doyin Okupe.
"We've done a lot, but we are not talking about it. We're not Americans. We're not showing people, you know, but it does not mean that we are not doing something," Okupe said Tuesday.
The presidential spokesman said helicopters and planes have searched for the girls in 250 locations. More troops, he said, are on the way.
Despite the flurry of activity, the father of two of the schoolgirls taken by Boko Haram scoffed at the Nigerian government's response.
"We have never seen any military man there," said the father, who is not being identified for fear of reprisals by the government or Boko Haram.
"Had it been military men who went into the bush to rescue our daughters, we would have seen them."
Another mass abduction
But even as the help was offered to Jonathan, new details were emerging about the abduction of at least eight girls between the ages of 12 and 15, who were snatched Sunday night from the village of Warabe.
The village is in the rural northeast, near the border with Cameroon, an area considered a stronghold for Boko Haram. U.S. officials say the group has received training from al Qaeda affiliates.
Villagers in Warabe told CNN that gunmen moved from door to door late Sunday, snatching the girls and beating anybody who tried to stop them.
The latest abductions come amid international outcry over the April 14 kidnapping of the 276 girls. According to accounts, armed members of Boko Haram overpowered security guards at an all-girls school in Chibok, yanked the girls out of bed and forced them into trucks. The convoy of trucks then disappeared into the dense forest bordering Cameroon.
Boko Haram: A bloody insurgency, a growing challenge
'Western education is sin'
Boko Haram translates to "Western education is sin" in the local Hausa language, and the group has said its aim is to impose a stricter enforcement of Sharia law across Africa's most populous nation, which is split between a majority Muslim north and a mostly Christian south.
The United States has branded Boko Haram a terror organization and has put a $7 million bounty on the group's elusive leader, Abubakar Shekau.
In recent years, the group has stepped up its attacks, bombing schools, churches and mosques.
But it is the abductions of girls that have spawned the biggest outrage, with a #BringBackOurGirls campaign that initially began on Twitter and then quickly spread with demonstrators taking to the streets over the weekend in major cities around the world to demand action.
6 reasons why the world should care
'I abducted your girls'
A man claiming to be Shekau appeared in a video announcing he would sell his victims. The video was first obtained Monday by Agence-France Presse.
"I abducted your girls. I will sell them in the market, by Allah," he said. "There is a market for selling humans. Allah says I should sell. He commands me to sell. I will sell women. I sell women."
In the United States, all 20 women serving in the Senate signed a bipartisan letter calling on Obama to take action.
"More can be done by this administration. I would like to see special forces deployed to help rescue these young girls. Some of these girls are as young as 9 years old," Republican Sen. Susan Collins of Maine told CNN. "...They're being sold into slavery, forced into marriages, required to convert. This is just horrible."
More than 450,000 people, including celebrities and lawmakers, to date have signed a change.org petition that calls upon the world to act to save the girls. The petition calls on Jonathan and the government "to ensure all schools are safe places to learn, protected from attack."
'You can never rule out surprise'
Nigerian Minister of Information Labaran Maku told CNN that despite international reaction and media reports, there have been some successes in combating Boko Haram.
But when asked about bombings in Abuja, which came the same day as the mass abduction of schoolgirls, he said: "In the case of insurgency and guerrilla warfare, you can never rule out surprise here and there."
He also declined to agree that misinformation released by the military after the April kidnapping added to the growing outrage.
First, the military said all the girls had been released or rescued. But after the girls' families began asking where their daughters were, the military retracted the statement.
"When they made that statement, it was based on a report they received," the minister said.
What's at stake in war against girls' kidnappers?
CNN Freedom Project: Ending Modern-Day Slavery
Isha Sesay and Vlad Duthiers reported from Abuja; Michael Pearson reported and wrote from Atlanta. Journalist Aminu Abubaker contributed from Kano, Nigeria. Journalist Aminu Abubakar and CNN's Chelsea J. Carter, Holly Yan and Nana Karikari-apau contributed to this report.
Village slaughter blamed on Boko Haram
5/7/2014 10:43:55 PM
- NEW: China offers satellite and intelligence assistance in the search for girls
- Boko Haram militants attacked Gamboru Ngala, killing at least 150 people
- United States and Britain are sending teams to help Nigerian forces
- Nigerian authorities offer a reward for information leading to the girls' rescue
CNN anchor Isha Sesay will be live from Abuja on CNN International, Wednesday and Thursday at 5, 7, 8.30 and 9 p.m. CET.
Abuja, Nigeria (CNN) -- Boko Haram launched a grisly attack on a Nigerian village in an area that troops had been using as a base in the search for hundreds of schoolgirls abducted by the militant group, witnesses told CNN on Wednesday.
The hourslong assault on Gamboru Ngala that left at least 150 people dead, some of whom were burned alive, is the latest in a series of brazen attacks and abductions by Boko Haram, raising concern about whether the Nigerian government can retake control of the region from the entrenched terror group.
Word of the attack follows news that President Goodluck Jonathan, who has been under fire for his handling of the mass abduction, accepted U.S., British and Chinese offers of assistance to find the schoolgirls, officials with those governments said.
It's unclear what impact the latest attack could have on the international response to Nigeria's fight with Boko Haram, which so far has concentrated on helping the government rescue 276 schoolgirls abducted on April 14.
The assault on the village came after military troops deployed to the area were called to the border area near Chad, where reports -- later determined to be false -- surfaced that the schoolgirls had been found with Boko Haram militants, witnesses and local officials said.
CNN cannot independently confirm the report, and attempts Wednesday to contact Nigeria's military for comment were unsuccessful.
Indiscriminate killing
Witnesses described a well-coordinated attack that began shortly after 1:30 p.m. local time Monday at a busy outdoor market in Gamboru Ngala.
Wearing military uniforms, the militants arrived with three armored personnel carriers, they said.
They shouted "Allahu Akbar" -- "God is great" -- and opened up on the market, firing rocket-propelled grenades and tossing improvised explosive devices, witnesses said.
Some marketgoers tried to take shelter in shops only to be burned alive when the gunmen set fire to a number of the businesses, the witnesses said.
A few Nigerian soldiers who had been left behind at the village could not hold off the assault and were forced to flee, they said. Many sought safe haven in nearby Cameroon, they said.
The fighters also attacked the police station during the 12-hour assault, initially facing stiff resistance. They eventually used explosives to blow the roof off the building, witnesses said. Fourteen police officers were found dead inside, they said.
The final death toll could be closer to 300, Nigerian Sen. Ahmed Zanna told CNN.
Monday's bloody attack by Boko Haram militants, some of whom U.S. officials say have been trained by al Qaeda, follows a pattern of seeking revenge against anybody who is perceived to have provided aid to the Nigerian government.
International aid taking shape
News of the attack came as U.S. officials pressed ahead with plans to provide Nigeria with law enforcement assistance and military consultations, State Department spokeswoman Jen Psaki said.
"Obviously, this is in the interest of the Nigerian government to accept every aspect of our assistance," she told reporters during a briefing Wednesday. "They conveyed that they were willing to do that yesterday and it continues to be in their interest to be as cooperative as possible."
U.S. officials will establish a joint coordination cell at the U.S. Embassy in Abuja where the goal will be to provide intelligence, investigations and hostage negotiation expertise, Psaki said. The cell will include U.S. military personnel, who are expected to arrive in Nigeria in the coming days, she said.
The Pentagon has started planning for how it can help Nigeria, a senior U.S. military official told CNN. It's unlikely at this point that U.S. troops would be involved in operations, the officials said.
Britain is sending a small team of experts to complement the U.S. team, a spokesman for Prime Minister David Cameron said Wednesday. The spokesman didn't specify the nature of the team's expertise.
On behalf of China, Premier Li Keqiang offered satellite and intelligence services to aid in the search.
Meanwhile, Nigerian authorities offered a reward of about $310,000 on Wednesday for information leading to the rescue of the girls.
"While calling on the general public to be part of the solution to the present security challenge, the Police High Command also reassures all citizens that any information given would be treated anonymously and with utmost confidentiality," the Nigeria Police Force said in a statement.
According to accounts, armed members of Boko Haram overpowered security guards at an all-girls school in Chibok, yanked the girls out of bed and forced them into trucks. The convoy of trucks then disappeared into the dense forest bordering Cameroon.
The reward offer comes amid international outcry over the mass kidnapping in mid-April. The #BringBackOurGirls campaign initially began on Twitter. It quickly spread, with demonstrators taking to the streets over the weekend in major cities around the world to demand action.
Defending the response
Nigeria's President has been under enormous international pressure to step up efforts to rescue the girls after come after waiting three weeks to publicly acknowledge the kidnappings.
His administration, however, is defending its response -- even as details emerged this about a second mass kidnapping. At least eight girls between the ages of 12 and 15 were snatched Sunday night from the village of Warabe by Boko Haram, villagers said.
"The President and the government (are) not taking this as easy as people all over the world think," presidential spokesman Doyin Okupe said, adding that helicopters and airplanes have searched for the girls in 250 locations. More troops, he said, are on the way.
Despite the flurry of activity, the father of two of the schoolgirls taken by Boko Haram scoffed at the Nigerian government's response.
"We have never seen any military man there," said the father, who is not being identified for fear of reprisals by the government or Boko Haram.
"Had it been military men who went into the bush to rescue our daughters, we would have seen them."
Members of the U.S. Congress called for action, former U.N. Secretary-General Kofi Annan called the abductions "abominable" and Malala Yousafzai, the Pakistani children's rights activist shot in the head by the Taliban, spoke out, too.
"The girls in Nigeria are my sisters and it is my responsibility that I speak up for my sisters," Yousafzai told CNN's "Amanpour."
The U.S. first lady, Michelle Obama, was among the latest high-profile figures to take to Twitter about the girls' plight, tweeting a photo of herself holding a sign that read: #BringBackOurGirls.
"Our prayers are with the missing Nigerian girls and their families," she said in the post.
Boko Haram: A bloody insurgency, a growing challenge
'I abducted your girls'
Boko Haram translates to "Western education is sin" in the local Hausa language, and the group has said its aim is to impose a stricter enforcement of Sharia law across Africa's most populous nation, which is split between a majority Muslim north and a mostly Christian south.
The United States has branded Boko Haram a terror organization and has put a $7 million bounty on the group's elusive leader, Abubakar Shekau.
A man claiming to be Shekau appeared in a video announcing he would sell his victims. The video was first obtained Monday by Agence-France Presse.
"I abducted your girls. I will sell them in the market, by Allah," he said. "There is a market for selling humans. Allah says I should sell. He commands me to sell. I will sell women. I sell women."
More than 450,000 people, including celebrities and lawmakers, to date have signed a change.org petition that calls upon the world to act to save the girls. The petition calls on Jonathan and the government "to ensure all schools are safe places to learn, protected from attack."
CNN Freedom Project: Ending Modern-Day Slavery
Isha Sesay and Vladimir Duthiers reported from Abuja; Chelsea J. Carter reported and wrote from Atlanta. Journalist Aminu Abubaker contributed from Kano, Nigeria. Journalist Aminu Abubakar and CNN's Michael Pearson and Nana Karikari-apau contributed to this report.
U.S. climate change is 'here and now'
5/6/2014 8:26:00 PM
- NEW: President Obama says climate change happening now
- A new government report outlines how climate change already affects the country
- Administration officials "fanning out" across the country to publicize the report
- Republicans criticize proposed government steps on climate change
Washington (CNN) -- Climate change is here and will only worsen. Get used to more flooding, wildfires and drought, depending on where you live. Cities and states across America already are spending lots of money to respond.
Those are the take-home messages of a new White House report released Tuesday that is part of President Barack Obama's second-term effort to prepare the nation for the impacts of a changing climate such as rising sea levels and increasingly erratic weather.
The National Climate Assessment update said evidence of human-made climate change "continues to strengthen" and that "Americans are noticing changes all around them."
"This is not some distant problem of the future," Obama told NBC, while John Holdren, who directs the White House Office of Science and Technology Policy, said climate change "already is affecting every region of the country and key sectors of the economy."
Read the National Climate Assessment
The Obama administration wants the report to ignite awareness of the need for government and communities to respond now to climate change in the face of fierce political opposition, mostly from conservatives.
Unrelenting political opposition
A relentless campaign backed by the fossil fuel industry and its allies challenges whether climate change is real, and if so, whether human activity such as increased carbon emissions from power plants, factories and cars contributes to it.
In a statement coinciding with the report's publication, the White House said the findings "underscore the need for urgent action to combat the threats from climate change, protect American citizens and communities today, and build a sustainable future for our kids and grandkids."
Breaking down the report by region
John Podesta, a Democratic operative who now counsels the President, told reporters that Obama will kick off a broad campaign this week to publicize the report, while Cabinet members and other administration officials would be "fanning out" across the country to spread the word about how climate change impacts specific regions.
Republican critics immediately pounced on new report as a political tool for Obama to try to impose a regulatory agenda that would hurt the economy.
Senate Republican leader Mitch McConnell of Kentucky mocked what he described as the hypocritical stance of "liberal elites" who demand strong action on climate change while failing to reduce their own carbon footprint.
"Even if we were to enact the kind of national energy regulations the President seems to want so badly, it would be unlikely to meaningfully impact global emissions anyway unless other major industrial nations do the same thing," McConnell said in arguing against proposals to reduce industrial pollution.
He called the debate "cynical" because Obama knew that "much of the pain of imposing such regulations would be borne by our own middle class."
Changing attitudes?
To Podesta and Holdren, the reality of climate change will win out over opponents of new energy policies to combat it.
"Public awareness has been going up and will continue to go up," Holdren told reporters, predicting increased public support for government action to reduce U.S. carbon emissions and for America to take a leadership role on climate change in the international arena.
Five things you can do
Recent polling indicates most Americans believe human activities cause climate change, but also shows the issue is less important to the public than the economy and other topics.
A Gallup poll in March found that 34% of respondents think climate change, called global warming in the poll, posed a "serious threat" to their way of life, compared to 64% who responded "no." At the same time, more than 60% of respondents believed global warming was happening or would happen in their lifetime.
More than 300 experts helped produce the report over several years, updating a previous assessment published in 2009. Podesta called it "actionable science" for policymakers and the public to use in forging a way forward.
Scientists categorize the response to climate change into two strategies -- minimizing the effects by reducing the cause, which is known as mitigation, and preparing for impacts already occurring or certain to occur, which is called adaptation.
The report breaks the country down by region and identifies specific threats should climate change continue. Major concerns cited by scientists involved in creating the report include rising sea levels along America's coasts, drought in the Southwest and prolonged fire seasons.
Sea levels rising
It predicts sea levels will rise at least a foot by the end of the century and perhaps as much as four feet, depending on how much of the Greenland and Antarctic ice shelf melts.
Such an outcome could be catastrophic for millions of people living along the ocean, submerging tropical islands and encroaching on coastal areas.
Low-lying U.S. cities already experience high flooding, with Miami planning to spend hundreds of millions of dollars to address the problem, noted Jerry Melillo of Marine Biological Laboratory, who chaired the advisory committee that produced the new assessment.
The Great Plains could experience heavier droughts and heat waves with increasing frequency, while more wildfires in the West could threaten agriculture and residential communities, the report notes.
Obama's week-long focus on climate change continues Wednesday, when the White House convenes a summit focused on green building tactics. Later in the week, Obama will announce new solar power initiatives, according to Podesta.
In his first term, the President faced opposition by Republicans and some Democrats from states with major fossil fuel industries such as coal production to significant climate change legislation.
He pledged to renew his efforts on the issue in his final four years, including using executive actions that bypass Congress. Obama has introduced new regulations on vehicle emissions and created "climate hubs" that help businesses prepare for the effects of climate change.
A major upcoming issue is a proposal under consideration by the Obama administration to build the Keystone XL pipeline, which would transport tar sands oil from Canada to the Gulf of Mexico.
Environmental groups say the project would contribute to climate change because tar sands oil is dirtier than conventionally drilled crude, and importing it would maintain the country's dependence on fossil fuels. Republicans and some Democrats from oil industry states want the pipeline approved to create jobs and bolster exports from a strategic ally and U.S. neighbor.
The new assessment calls for continued mitigation steps including regulations and programs to reduce carbon emissions, as well as necessary planning and investment to deal with the known impacts.
Melillo cited some adaptation measures already underway, noting a "terrific plan for extreme heat events" by the city of Philadelphia.
"Things are starting to happen," Melillo said, adding that the continued efforts over time will "ultimately present a very positive picture" about Americans taking action on climate change.
CNN's Kevin Liptak and Tom Cohen reported from Washington, and CNN's Jethro Mullen reported from London. CNN's Paul Steinhauser contributed to this report.
Uruguay legalizes pot market
5/6/2014 6:13:17 PM
- Uruguay is the first country to regulate legal production, sale and consumption of marijuana
- New rules legalizing the marijuana market take effect Tuesday
- President Jose Mujica backed the law and says it will harm drug traffickers
- The law doesn't give foreigners the right to smoke or even buy the drug
(CNN) -- Can you imagine legally growing marijuana in your backyard? How about walking down to the corner pharmacy to buy a gram or two of ready-to-smoke pot?
Starting Tuesday, this scenario will no longer be a pot smoker's fantasy in one South American country.
Uruguay has published regulations for a new, legal marijuana market, a measure approved by lawmakers there in December.
The law and the new regulations make Uruguay the first country in the world to have a system regulating legal production, sale and consumption of the drug.
In announcing the marijuana regulations, presidential aide Diego Canepa reminded everyone that the state will control the marijuana market from beginning to end, starting with setting prices.
"The value of the gram of marijuana sold at pharmacies in the regulated market will be set by the President's office through the control agency," Canepa said.
That's right. The Uruguayan government has created an agency whose mission is to regulate the pot market, known as the Institute for the Regulation and Control of Cannabis.
The proposed price starts at 20 Uruguayan pesos per gram (about 87 cents in U.S. dollars), Canepa said.
People can grow as many as six plants at home and produce a maximum of 480 grams per year, according to the published rules. Cannabis clubs of anywhere between 15 and 45 members will be legal.
Another rule allows people to buy as much as 40 grams of marijuana per month at state-licensed pharmacies.
Julio Rey, founder of a cannabis club and a spokesman for the National Association for the Regulation of Marijuana, told CNN in December, shortly after passage, that his organization was very pleased with the legislation.
"We will take care of the tools of this law to demonstrate that we, as the public, can objectively look at this project and comply with its proposed legality," Rey said.
This isn't about creating a free-for-all system, Canepa told reporters. It's about creating rules that will refocus government efforts on prevention and taking the market from the hands of ruthless drug traffickers that only care about money.
Opinion: Finally, a nation legalizes pot
"What we now know is that we had a sustained increase in consumption during prohibition. This new reality, as we understand it, is going to change that, and it will be possible to implement better public policy to take care of those who abuse drugs," Canepa said.
For anyone considering traveling to Uruguay to smoke marijuana legally, President Jose Mujica, a big supporter of the law, says go elsewhere.
The law doesn't give foreigners the right to smoke or even buy the drug. In fact, consumers, sellers and distributors all have to be licensed by the government.
In an interview with CNN en Español in 2012, Mujica explained his reasons for promoting the legislation.
"If we legalize it, we think that we will spoil the market (for drug traffickers) because we are going to sell it for cheaper than it is sold on the black market. And we are going to have people identified," he said.
With the help of state-of-the-art technology, authorities will track every gram or marijuana sold, according to Canepa. Bags will be bar-coded. The genetic information of plants that are legally produced will be kept on file. This will allow police to determine whether illegal marijuana is being commercialized.
Governments and drug policy experts will certainly be watching closely how the Uruguayan model develops. The marijuana legislation places the South American country at the vanguard of liberal drug policies, surpassing even the Netherlands, where recreational drugs are illegal but a policy of tolerance is in place.
READ: TSA finds 81 pounds of pot in checked luggage
READ: Medical marijuana and 'the entourage effect'
Why Mandela's party is losing respect
5/7/2014 6:35:34 AM
- South Africa's fifth democratic elections are held this Wednesday - first since Nelson Mandela's death
- President Jacob Zuma is most divisive figure in South African politics today, says Justice Malala
- Malala: Several scandals have wracked his administration since he came to power in 2009
- He predicts Zuma will win power, but ANC will lose share of the vote
Editor's note: Justice Malala is a South African political commentator, newspaper columnist and talk show host. The opinions expressed in this commentary are solely those of the author.
Johannesburg (CNN) -- Sunday could not have begun any better for South Africa's ruling African National Congress, the party of Nelson Mandela. As the autumn sun rose and warmed the seats of the 95,000-seater, calabash-shaped FNB Stadium, supporters poured in from across the country.
By mid-morning the stadium was packed to the rafters. The beautiful, melodic songs used by activists through the years of struggle against apartheid until 1994 when Mandela was voted into power filled the stadium. Party activists crowed about the party's pulling power: no other political party in the country has yet managed to fill the stadium.
This was the last political rally before new South Africa's fifth democratic elections are held. All the major parties staged political rallies, but the ANC sought to present a show of force as it attempts to swat off challenges from the relentless opposition Democratic Alliance and the upstart, Left-wing Economic Freedom Fighters launched a few months ago by expelled former ANC Youth leader Julius Malema.
Then the ANC's leader, President Jacob Zuma, rose to address the packed stadium. Within half an hour of his plowing into a statistics-laden speech, nearly half the stadium seats were empty. A laborious and monotonous speaker at best, Zuma struggled through the speech, igniting only a few rounds of applause from die-hard supporters in the hour-long delivery. It was only at the end, when he burst into his election signature song Yinde Lendlela ("This Road Is Long," as opposed to his other favorite, "Give Me My Machine Gun") that some energy returned to the crowd.
The scandal-soaked Zuma -- who was booed in front of U.S. President Barack Obama, Cuba's Raul Castro and other world leaders at the same stadium on December 10 last year during the memorial service for Nelson Mandela -- has become the most divisive figure in South African politics today and the pivot around which electioneering and questions about the country's future have swung. As he spoke, a scandal about the national ombudsman's report into how he unduly benefited from the building of a $25 million palace for him at his rural KwaZulu Natal village was intensifying. A $200 million town is also being built near his home, claimed a newspaper.
Other scandals have wracked his administration since he came to power in 2009. Questions continue to be raised about his closeness to an Indian family that employs his son and wife and which landed a private jet filled with 200 wedding guests from India at a top-security military base; his evasion of more than 700 charges of fraud and corruption due to the influence of intelligence services and numerous suspect business connections by members of his family.
In all these cases, Zuma has said that he did not know and that people abused his name to gain favor.
Yet, despite the cocktail of scandals and gaffes that engulf Zuma, there is no doubt here that the ANC will win the election on Wednesday and Zuma will be returned to the presidency. According to a South African Sunday Times poll released on May 4, the ANC will get 63.9% of the vote, down from the 65.9% the party won in the 2009 general election. The opposition DA will increase its support to 23.7% while Malema's EFF party is expected to get 4.7%.
If there is so much disenchantment with Zuma, then, why is he headed for victory? History, for one. In Zuma's speech on Sunday he went through a long list of achievements by the ANC in the 20 years of democracy. It is an impressive roll call: ubiquitous access to water, electricity and health services. About 16 million people are now on social grants while there is universal access to no-fee schools. The dignity of full citizenship has been restored to blacks like me, a powerful, deep act that resonates with many. We still enjoy a free and vigorous press, despite iniquitous new legislation waiting to be enacted by Zuma that will criminalize much newsgathering.
Yet this narrative -- which the ANC has harnessed in its election slogan: "We have a good story to tell" -- is incomplete. Violent strikes over poor services are on a sharp increase, with the SA Police Services reporting a total of 569 protests in three months in South Africa's wealthiest province, Gauteng. About 122 of these turned violent.
Reports of corruption are on the increase, with Transparency International's 2013 global Corruption Perception Index showing that South Africa has dropped 17 places since Zuma came to power in 2009. South Africa is currently ranked 72 out of 175 countries.
The economy is taking a beating under Zuma, with paltry GDP growth of 1.9% last year and unemployment at 24.1% (narrowly defined) or a staggering 36% if one includes those who have given up looking for work. The EFF has found fertile ground among these disaffected youth, with an estimated 30,000 young people turning up to listen to Malema giving his final election speech on Sunday.
Justice Malala
So what happens after Wednesday? Increasingly, South Africa feels like a country caught between its past and its future. For many, the ANC represents the triumph against a heinous apartheid system. The memory of Mandela, so central to that victory, is still fresh. Leaving this party of freedom, which has enjoyed near 70% majorities in the late 1990s and early 2000s, feels like a betrayal of the struggle for freedom.
Yet, slowly, all that is changing. A 63% win by the ANC, for example, will mean that the party is experiencing its second significant decline in two successive elections. With the growing discontent about its government, it is unlikely that it will claw back these losses at the next election in 2019.
The opposition DA, for long regarded as a "white party," is swiftly transforming. Advised by Barack Obama and Bill Clinton's former pollster, Stan Greenberg, it has encouraged the emergence of credible young black leaders. The EFF, in just five months, has become a force to be reckoned with. But both parties are only likely to give the ANC a real run for its money in the 2019 and 2024 elections.
Many are hoping that the ANC will get a scare in these elections and begin to reflect on some of its failures. Among these would be assessing the damage done to the party by Zuma's scandals, and a return to some regard for the people. Indeed, speculation is rife that Zuma may be ousted should the ANC's showing in this election fall to 60%.
That is unlikely. Zuma controls about 75% of the ANC's national executive committee, and it is unlikely that his allies in that powerful body would cut him loose. Given that scenario, he will continue to inflict damage on the party of Mandela -- and on the nation's fortunes.
That would open the window for a stronger challenge from the opposition in 2019 and beyond. On the other hand, President Zuma could attempt to introduce serious economic reforms to build a proud legacy for himself. That, too, seems unlikely.
And so South Africa finds itself caught in a slow, glacial even, journey towards a multi-party future. Loyalty to its past heroes continues to hold it hostage.
How to find an AIDS cure for all
5/7/2014 7:48:37 AM
- Kenneth Cole, Michel Sidibé: Today, we still don't have a cure for AIDS
- Cole, Sidibé: We can end one of the greatest public health crises in history
- They say that we have to intensify our efforts on HIV cure research
- Cole, Sidibé: The goal of an AIDS-free generation is within our reach
Editor's note: Kenneth Cole is CEO of Kenneth Cole Productions and chairman of the Board of amfAR, The Foundation for AIDS Research. Michel Sidibé is executive director of the Joint United Nations Programme on HIV/AIDS, or UNAIDS, and under-secretary-general of the United Nations. The opinions expressed in this commentary are solely those of the authors.
(CNN) -- Thirty years ago around this time of the year, scientists announced that the probable cause of AIDS had been found. Human immunodeficiency virus, or HIV, would subsequently enter our lexicon and become synonymous -- no matter where you lived -- with death. Since then, more than 75 million people have acquired HIV and nearly 35.6 million have died of AIDS-related illnesses. With no cure in sight, it seemed that ending this epidemic would be a Sisyphean task.
But investments in AIDS research, prevention and treatment have yielded tremendous dividends. As a result, we have before us the opportunity to end one of the greatest public health crises in history.
More people than ever are receiving life-saving antiretroviral therapy, and are living healthier, longer lives. There have been historic declines in AIDS-related deaths worldwide. From 1996 to 2012, antiretroviral therapy averted 6.6 million AIDS-related deaths, including 5.5 million in developing countries. The annual number of new HIV infections has also dropped by 33% since 2001. In 26 countries, the rate of new HIV infections among young people (ages 15-24) decreased by 50% since 2001. For the first time, we have the ability to end the transmission from mother to child and to keep mothers alive.
Merely a decade ago, few believed they would see a cure in their lifetimes. However, several people who have been cured have helped shine a light on how a cure for all could be found. The case of a Berlin patient, the first person to be cured of HIV, was reported in 2008 and represented a watershed moment in HIV research and a proof of principle that a cure was possible. Last year, researchers documented the case of the first child to be functionally cured of HIV.
Yet despite these promising developments, the epidemic is far from over. We are one year away from the target date for achieving universal access to HIV prevention, treatment and care set forth in the United Nations 2011 Political Declaration on AIDS, and we have a lot of work to do to meet that goal. Of the 35.3 million people living with HIV, nearly two out of three living in developing countries are not on HIV treatment, either because they do not have access or do not know their HIV status.
Scaling up access to HIV treatment remains an essential prerequisite for ending AIDS. In addition to saving lives, it has proven to be highly effective at preventing HIV transmission because treatment reduces the chance the virus can spread by 96%. We must also improve our health systems to support the scale-up of core interventions that we know work, including expanded access to HIV prevention and treatment, prevention of mother-to-child transmission of HIV, harm reduction, and voluntary medical male circumcision.
Effective outreach to those most at risk—and most in need—is also critical. Key populations, including sex workers, men who have sex with men, transgender individuals, people who inject drugs, young girls and women often face substantial barriers to obtaining prevention, treatment and care services. As a result, efforts to reduce HIV transmission among vulnerable populations remain insufficient.
Moving forward, research on a cure and vaccine remains essential and must be a priority. The quest for a safe and effective vaccine to prevent HIV has seen hopeful signs of progress. Recently, an experimental vaccine "cleared" HIV in monkeys infected with the virus. Broadly neutralizing antibodies that protect against a wide range of strains of HIV have been discovered. Experts are following up the RV144 trial in Thailand, the first vaccine to show a modest protective effect in humans, in order to understand why some people were more protected than others and how to make the protective effect last longer.
HIV cure research has gained momentum and picked up speed. The first organization to aggressively pursue cure-focused HIV research, amfAR, The Foundation for AIDS Research, has intensified its cure research program and set a goal to find a broadly applicable cure for HIV by 2020 with its "Countdown to a Cure for AIDS" initiative.
The foundation plans to invest $100 million in cure research over the next six years. And on World AIDS Day last December, President Obama announced $100 million in reprioritized funding over the next three years to launch a new HIV Cure Initiative at the National Institutes of Health. The scientific obstacles to a cure have been illuminated, and with a vigorous research effort and sufficient investment, these challenges can be overcome.
While we now have the tools to begin to end the HIV epidemic, achieving an AIDS-free generation is threatened by a considerable gap between available resources and the amounts needed to scale up high-impact interventions. Investing now in these interventions will not only accelerate progress in reducing AIDS-related deaths and new HIV infections, but it will also lower the long-term cost of the HIV response. Strong, continuous U.S. leadership at this critical moment is key.
Innovative financing options and strategies need to be explored to ensure that the global HIV response is sustained. UNAIDS supports many countries in developing HIV investment cases, which enable countries to estimate future resource gaps, identify new sources of domestic financing to help close the gaps, and agree on ways to enhance the efficiency and impact of spending. More than 30 countries are now planning to develop their own investment cases by the end of this year.
Lastly, we must eliminate stigma, discrimination and punitive laws and practices that continue to undermine efforts to provide critical services to prevent and treat HIV, especially among vulnerable populations. We're seeing a growing conservatism in a growing number of regions and countries.
State-sanctioned homophobia in many countries remains a formidable barrier to the implementation and uptake of HIV programs. More than 80 countries criminalize homosexual behavior. The anti-homosexuality laws that have gone into effect in India, Nigeria, Russia and Uganda, for example, could impede their national responses to HIV. Studies have clearly shown that criminalizing same-sex sexual behavior poses an immense structural barrier to HIV prevention.
We all are stakeholders in the opportunity before us now. Addressing the unfinished business of ending the pandemic will require the cooperation and full commitment of national government leadership, scientists, civil society, and people living with HIV. But through continued and strengthened solidarity, we will be able to rise above the challenges that remain ahead to ultimately achieve the goal of an AIDS-free generation.
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Being a good mom can get you fired
5/7/2014 9:24:12 AM
- Ellen Bravo: In 2014, you can get fired for having to leave work to take care of your child
- Bravo: You can lose your job if you're pregnant and need extra bathroom breaks
- She says smaller companies don't have to hold your job when you take parental leave
- Bravo: We need paid sick days, fairness for pregnant workers, expanded family leave
Editor's note: Ellen Bravo is executive director of Family Values @ Work Consortium, a nonpartisan, nonprofit network of 21 state and local coalitions working toward policies such as paid sick days and family leave insurance.
(CNN) -- I say, "good mother."
You say, "warm, loving, patient, generous, protecting, wise, how on Earth does she do it" and a whole lot more.
The one word that might not pop up in this free association? "Fired."
And yet in the United States of America in 2014, being a good mother can cost you your job.
Ask Rhiannon Broschard of Chicago, who was "separated" from her employer after public schools closed because it was so cold, it was dangerous for kids to be outside. Broschard knew that she couldn't leave her special-needs son home alone and called in to say she couldn't come into work. Her manager was sympathetic. But the next day, a company representative phoned to let her know she'd been fired for "abusing" their attendance policy. Others had come in; why hadn't she?
It's hard to see how being a good mother and safeguarding your child's well-being gets characterized as abuse.
Or consider Brenda in Milwaukee, who lost her job after giving birth. Her employer has fewer than 50 employees and wasn't covered by the Family and Medical Leave Act, which would have guaranteed Brenda unpaid, job protected leave for up to 12 weeks to care for her newborn. Although the Pregnancy Discrimination Act says employers can't fire someone for being pregnant, it doesn't require them to hold a job while a mother recovers from the delivery unless they do so for other disability-related absences. Treating everyone badly -- as they did at Brenda's workplace -- is often perfectly legal.
Ellen Bravo
In fact, nearly one in four workers (PDF) told researchers they'd been fired or threatened with firing after taking time to care for themselves or a loved one.
As Amy Crosby will remind you, many pregnant women wind up jobless because their employer refuses to make a simple accommodation when they're pregnant. In Crosby's case, that meant less heavy lifting in her job as a cleaner at a hospital in Tallahassee, Florida. For others, it has meant a stool to sit on or a few extra bathroom breaks.
"Homeless" or "broke" also don't come to the top of the list when we're thinking about characteristics of a good mother. But many moms like Shelby Ramirez of Denver find themselves unable to pay the bills after even a few weeks without income because they're caring for a child or parent, or both.
A lot of words rush to my mind when I hear about situations like these: "outrageous, antifamily, bad for the economy, how have they gotten away with it or so long," to name a few.
The mothers who've lost a job have their own powerful descriptions of that experience. Broschard said it "made me feel disposable, that they didn't value any of the time I put into the company." Crosby said the lack of consideration made her feel "hopeless."
Their experiences have propelled many mothers like Broschard, Crosby and Ramirez to get involved with a movement to win new workplace rules. They have seen or heard about good employers that have these policies, not just because it's the right thing to do but because it's good for the bottom line. They lead to better individual and public health and greater financial security for families, businesses and the nation.
But these women also understand that not all companies have good policies, so there must be laws that create minimum protections for everyone. Now they're fighting for state or national legislation requiring paid sick days, fairness for pregnant workers, expanded access to family and medical leave, and a shared fund to make it affordable.
Their activism has brought these women a new vocabulary they want to pass on to other mothers.
"They probably think just like how I did: We're (in) a low-paid job, and who's going to listen?" Crosby said. "I want them to know that they have to stand up and make a change."
Broschard told me she's sharing her story "so all the other moms going through similar situations, struggling, going to school, single, not having enough money, (know) you're not alone. We all struggle, but we're struggling to make a better life for our children."
"I want (my son) to know that I didn't do anything wrong in this situation. I want him to know there are lots of people like Mommy. I want him to know I'm strong and he can follow in my footsteps."
That's what being a good mother is.
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America cannot keep the peace alone
5/7/2014 8:31:36 AM
- A GOP delegation, fresh back from Asia trip, looks at U.S. standing in region
- Asia's continued economic growth is not certain, these lawmakers say
- They fear that China will use its economic and military power to coerce neighbors
- They argue U.S. carrier fleet overdue for upgrades that administration hasn't budgeted
Editor's note: Rep. Eric Cantor, R-Virginia, is House majority leader. Rep. Paul Ryan, R-Wisconsin, is chairman of the House Budget Committee. Rep. Pat Meehan, R-Pennsylvania, is chairman of the House Cybersecurity, Infrastructure Protections and Security Technologies Subcommittee. Rep. Mac Thornberry, R-Texas, is vice chairman of the House Armed Services Committee. Rep. Kay Granger, R-Texas, is chairwoman of the House State and Foreign Operations Appropriations Subcommittee. Rep. Kristi Noem, R-South Dakota, serves on the House Armed Services Committee. Rep. Aaron Schock, R-Illinois, serves on the House Ways and Means Committee. Rep. Paul Cook, R-California, serves on the House Armed Services Committee. The opinions expressed in this commentary are solely those of the authors.
(CNN) -- The United States is a Pacific power. Not only do millions of Americans live in states that border or are firmly rooted in the Pacific, more than 300,000 military service members and civilians who support them are stationed throughout the Pacific.
Countless American businesses and farmers also rely on access to this expanding market that has become an engine of global economic growth. In addition to reflecting our values, our foreign policy must reflect the fact that our prosperity and security is intimately linked with that of the Asia-Pacific.
Having just returned from this critical region, we heard directly from senior U.S. military commanders, along with key leaders in Japan and South Korea, about the desire for bolstering alliances that have been the cornerstone of stability in Asia. We also met senior Chinese officials in Beijing and U.S. business leaders in Shanghai about potential opportunities and challenges accompanying China's dramatic rise.
Asia's continued economic growth is not certain, and the region is threatened by a despotic and volatile North Korean regime armed with nuclear weapons. Many nations are concerned that China will use its growing economic and military power to coerce its neighbors.
Our allies and adversaries alike have seen how America failed to enforce its "red line" in Syria, and they are questioning whether we have the resolve to respond decisively to challenges in Asia.
Our partners are watching America's response to Russia's invasion of Ukraine. They fear allowing an assault on Ukraine's territorial integrity to stand will invite challenges to the established international order and fuel already tense maritime territorial disputes that threaten stability in Asia.
For decades, America has deterred threats to peace in Asia, and these partners worry America lacks the commitment and capabilities to back threats with action.
America cannot lead in the region if it is thousands of miles away. The indispensable symbol of American strength and leadership is the U.S. carrier fleet. Protecting key international shipping lanes -- vital to our own economic stability -- has long been a central mission of the U.S. Navy. But it is a mission that requires the forward basing of significant American naval resources, most importantly aircraft carriers such as the USS George Washington.
We were honored to board the George Washington at its forward port facility in Japan and visit its crew. This aircraft carrier is due for a midlife overhaul, but the administration's proposed budget doesn't include funding for this much-needed service, putting the future of it and the 11-carrier fleet in jeopardy.
Our military commanders were clear about the need for the unique power projection capabilities provided by our aircraft carrier fleet. These commanders know our allies and adversaries alike are watching to see if America allows its military superiority to wither, and struggle every day to reassure their counterparts throughout the region.
America cannot keep the peace alone -- nor have we. Our allies have welcomed American military forces on their soil for decades, allowing the United States to project military power far from our shores and enhancing our security here at home. We are encouraged by the desire of these allies to contribute more to regional security, but much work is needed to help them bolster their defenses, encourage greater coordination among them and reassure our allies and adversaries of our enduring commitment to Asia.
The sheer economic dynamism of Asia is impressive, and more than half of the world's population lives there. It is important for America's economy that billions of Asian consumers are able to purchase our goods, services and agricultural products more easily. This is why we support the Trans-Pacific Partnership, which is needed not only to facilitate greater trade across the Pacific but also to establish the economic rules of the road firmly for the 21st century. A trade agreement based on mutually beneficial terms will promote real economic growth and real jobs here at home.
We saw in China the stunning scope of economic growth that has lifted millions out of poverty and bolstered our own economic fortunes. But we were also struck by the absence of political and religious freedom in China.
While in Shanghai, we learned of the plight of a Catholic bishop under house arrest for refusing to be subservient to the Communist Party. And we visited a synagogue that by government edict is only open on High Holy Days, just a few times a year. We believe that with economic freedom there should also be political freedom, and we call upon the Chinese government to respect the universal human rights of its own citizens.
America has a bright future in Asia, but only if we seize it.
Our trip coincided with President Barack Obama's visit to the region. Both Republicans and Democrats delivered similar messages about the importance of our alliances in Asia and our commitment to the region. Now we must back our words with actions.
Unless the United States reinvests in its military, strengthens its alliances and displays strong leadership, we will see increased threats, greater risk of instability and economic turbulence in a region of pivotal importance to America's future.
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Is Mandela's party losing its grip?
5/7/2014 6:01:09 AM
- South Africa's fifth democratic elections are held this Wednesday - first since Nelson Mandela's death
- President Jacob Zuma is most divisive figure in South African politics today, says Justice Malala
- Malala: Several scandals have wracked his administration since he came to power in 2009
- He predicts Zuma will win power, but ANC will lose share of the vote
Editor's note: Justice Malala is a South African political commentator, newspaper columnist and talk show host. The opinions expressed in this commentary are solely those of the author.
Johannesburg (CNN) -- Sunday could not have begun any better for South Africa's ruling African National Congress, the party of Nelson Mandela. As the autumn sun rose and warmed the seats of the 95,000-seater, calabash-shaped FNB Stadium, supporters poured in from across the country.
By mid-morning the stadium was packed to the rafters. The beautiful, melodic songs used by activists through the years of struggle against apartheid until 1994 when Mandela was voted into power filled the stadium. Party activists crowed about the party's pulling power: no other political party in the country has yet managed to fill the stadium.
This was the last political rally before new South Africa's fifth democratic elections are held. All the major parties staged political rallies, but the ANC sought to present a show of force as it attempts to swat off challenges from the relentless opposition Democratic Alliance and the upstart, Left-wing Economic Freedom Fighters launched a few months ago by expelled former ANC Youth leader Julius Malema.
Then the ANC's leader, President Jacob Zuma, rose to address the packed stadium. Within half an hour of his plowing into a statistics-laden speech, nearly half the stadium seats were empty. A laborious and monotonous speaker at best, Zuma struggled through the speech, igniting only a few rounds of applause from die-hard supporters in the hour-long delivery. It was only at the end, when he burst into his election signature song Yinde Lendlela ("This Road Is Long," as opposed to his other favorite, "Give Me My Machine Gun") that some energy returned to the crowd.
The scandal-soaked Zuma -- who was booed in front of U.S. President Barack Obama, Cuba's Raul Castro and other world leaders at the same stadium on December 10 last year during the memorial service for Nelson Mandela -- has become the most divisive figure in South African politics today and the pivot around which electioneering and questions about the country's future have swung. As he spoke, a scandal about the national ombudsman's report into how he unduly benefited from the building of a $25 million palace for him at his rural KwaZulu Natal village was intensifying. A $200 million town is also being built near his home, claimed a newspaper.
Other scandals have wracked his administration since he came to power in 2009. Questions continue to be raised about his closeness to an Indian family that employs his son and wife and which landed a private jet filled with 200 wedding guests from India at a top-security military base; his evasion of more than 700 charges of fraud and corruption due to the influence of intelligence services and numerous suspect business connections by members of his family.
In all these cases, Zuma has said that he did not know and that people abused his name to gain favor.
Yet, despite the cocktail of scandals and gaffes that engulf Zuma, there is no doubt here that the ANC will win the election on Wednesday and Zuma will be returned to the presidency. According to a South African Sunday Times poll released on May 4, the ANC will get 63.9% of the vote, down from the 65.9% the party won in the 2009 general election. The opposition DA will increase its support to 23.7% while Malema's EFF party is expected to get 4.7%.
If there is so much disenchantment with Zuma, then, why is he headed for victory? History, for one. In Zuma's speech on Sunday he went through a long list of achievements by the ANC in the 20 years of democracy. It is an impressive roll call: ubiquitous access to water, electricity and health services. About 16 million people are now on social grants while there is universal access to no-fee schools. The dignity of full citizenship has been restored to blacks like me, a powerful, deep act that resonates with many. We still enjoy a free and vigorous press, despite iniquitous new legislation waiting to be enacted by Zuma that will criminalize much newsgathering.
Yet this narrative -- which the ANC has harnessed in its election slogan: "We have a good story to tell" -- is incomplete. Violent strikes over poor services are on a sharp increase, with the SA Police Services reporting a total of 569 protests in three months in South Africa's wealthiest province, Gauteng. About 122 of these turned violent.
Reports of corruption are on the increase, with Transparency International's 2013 global Corruption Perception Index showing that South Africa has dropped 17 places since Zuma came to power in 2009. South Africa is currently ranked 72 out of 175 countries.
The economy is taking a beating under Zuma, with paltry GDP growth of 1.9% last year and unemployment at 24.1% (narrowly defined) or a staggering 36% if one includes those who have given up looking for work. The EFF has found fertile ground among these disaffected youth, with an estimated 30,000 young people turning up to listen to Malema giving his final election speech on Sunday.
Justice Malala
So what happens after Wednesday? Increasingly, South Africa feels like a country caught between its past and its future. For many, the ANC represents the triumph against a heinous apartheid system. The memory of Mandela, so central to that victory, is still fresh. Leaving this party of freedom, which has enjoyed near 70% majorities in the late 1990s and early 2000s, feels like a betrayal of the struggle for freedom.
Yet, slowly, all that is changing. A 63% win by the ANC, for example, will mean that the party is experiencing its second significant decline in two successive elections. With the growing discontent about its government, it is unlikely that it will claw back these losses at the next election in 2019.
The opposition DA, for long regarded as a "white party," is swiftly transforming. Advised by Barack Obama and Bill Clinton's former pollster, Stan Greenberg, it has encouraged the emergence of credible young black leaders. The EFF, in just five months, has become a force to be reckoned with. But both parties are only likely to give the ANC a real run for its money in the 2019 and 2024 elections.
Many are hoping that the ANC will get a scare in these elections and begin to reflect on some of its failures. Among these would be assessing the damage done to the party by Zuma's scandals, and a return to some regard for the people. Indeed, speculation is rife that Zuma may be ousted should the ANC's showing in this election fall to 60%.
That is unlikely. Zuma controls about 75% of the ANC's national executive committee, and it is unlikely that his allies in that powerful body would cut him loose. Given that scenario, he will continue to inflict damage on the party of Mandela -- and on the nation's fortunes.
That would open the window for a stronger challenge from the opposition in 2019 and beyond. On the other hand, President Zuma could attempt to introduce serious economic reforms to build a proud legacy for himself. That, too, seems unlikely.
And so South Africa finds itself caught in a slow, glacial even, journey towards a multi-party future. Loyalty to its past heroes continues to hold it hostage.
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