Friday 30 November 2012

Cargo plane crashes in the Republic of Congo; number of people killed still unclear

A cargo plane owned by a private company crashed Friday near the airport in Brazzaville, the capital of the Republic of Congo, killing at least three people, officials said.

There are conflicting reports as to the number of people killed ranging from at least 3 up to 30.

The Soviet-made Ilyushin-76 belonged to Trans Air Congo and appeared to be transporting merchandise, not people, said an aviation official who requested anonymity because he was not authorized to speak to the media.

The plane was coming from Congo's second-largest city, Pointe Noire, and tried to land during heavy rain, he said.

Ambulances rushed to the scene in the Makazou neighbourhood, located near the airport, but emergency workers were hampered by the lack of light in this capital, which like so many in Africa has a chronic shortage of electricity.

"At the moment, my team is having a hard time searching for survivors in order to find the victims of the crash because there is no light and also because of the rain," Congolese Red Cross head Albert Mberi said.

He said that realistically, they will only be able to launch a proper search Saturday, when the sun comes up.

Reporters at the scene fought through a wall of smoke. Despite the darkness, they could make out the smouldering remains of the plane, including what looked like the left wing of the aircraft. A little bit further on, emergency workers identified the body of the plane's Ukrainian pilot, and covered the corpse in a blanket.

Firefighters were trying to extinguish the blaze of a part of the plane that had fallen into a ravine. They were using their truck lights to try to illuminate the scene of the crash. Although the plane was carrying merchandise, emergency workers fear that there could be more people on board.

Because of the state of the road connecting Pointe Noire to Brazzaville, many traders prefer to fly the roughly 400 kilometres (250 miles).

Witnesses said rain was coming down hard at the time of the accident, according to news site G1. The plane appeared to be unable to brake and ran off the runway, destroying around 15 houses and a bar before hitting a ravine and catching on fire. Firefighters continued to search for victims two hours after the crash.

Africa has one of the worst air safety records in the world, note the AP. In June, a Boeing 727 cargo plane in Ghana slammed into a bus while attempting to land, killing all 10 people inside. A commercial jetliner crashed in Lagos, Nigeria, only days later, killing 153 people.

Friday 30 November 2012

http://www.edmontonjournal.com/news/Official+Sovietmade+cargo+plane+crashes+Republic+Congo/7634350/story.html

continue reading

The whole valley smells of death

For the inhabitants of the Ejido Jesus Carranza, the discovery of 20 skeletal remains buried in clandestine graves on private property came as no surprise. Years back, they witnessed suspicious activities, but for them denunciation (reporting to authorities) was never an option because they feared retaliation.

"Here, we would see new cars...we also saw a lot of military and police in that place," said several neighbors when they were interviewed, asking for their identities not to be revealed and for them not to be photographed.

From the start, the ejidatarios (local communal landowners) dismiss the idea that there are any townspeople among the victims; they affirm that there are no disappeared persons. At least, not there.

"We don't have anybody missing here. We were born here and we've known each other all our lives. Up there (he points towards the ranch) is where people from the outside bought (properties)," said one of the ejidatarios.

All the structures adjacent to the clandestine cemetery are abandoned. It was quiet last week for the residents of the Ejido Jesus Carranza.

"Everything was very peaceful, nothing ever happens here, the truth is that the the village had been peaceful for several months," they assured us, although they did not dismiss the idea that the relative tranquility was due to the fact that the people who were using at least two properties for safe houses and illegal graveyards had left the town.

"The military also left. We only see them on the highway," they said.

It was only last weekend that a helicopter flying over and dozens of municipal prosecutor's vehicles arriving broke the peace and told them something bad was happening.

"Then (the investigators) told us that they were looking for bodies," they stated.

The official report from state authorities states that "investigation and intelligence (work) developed during the past year" led to the discovery of the skeletal remains, all belonging to males.

Prosecutor Jorge Gonzalez Nicolas specified in a press conference that it was thanks to support of U.S. authorities that the exact location where the cadavers were buried.

Unofficial sources say that the support came from the anti-narcotics section of the U.S. Consulate General in Mexico, the same (unit) that provided information on the exact location of Jose Antonio Acosta Hernandez, "El Diego", which allowed them to make a "clean" arrest.

The information from U.S. authorities led the investigators to Ejido Jesus Carranza. On the Juarez-Porvenir highway, at kilometer marker 35, you take a right turn on an unpaved street that goes to the ranch.

Two kilometers (1.2 miles) ahead, one can see several uninhabited structures on the desert terrain. And there, among the sand dunes and the brush, can be seen the open pits dug by personnel from the office of the medical examiner (SEMEFO; Servicio Medico Forense).

A foul odor is everywhere, and also enormous piles of trash left behind by employees from the State Attorney General's Office during their three-day stay, which is how long the search and the excavations took.

This ranch, located east of Ciudad Juarez and adjacent to the San Agustin Ejido, also part of the municipality, is less than three miles from the metal fence that divides Mexico and the United States.

The excavations were conducted in a 100 yard radius, and there were graves side by side. The closest one was less than 30 yards from the swimming pool built in front of the main house.

As of yesterday, the investigating authorities had not yet fully identified the owner of the ranch.

Arturo Sandoval, spokesman for State Prosecutor's Office (FGE; Fiscalia General del Estado) , explains that they were working on identifying the owner through the Public Property Register.

The house was still under construction. There's broken ceiling material and insulation on the floor, and also a bar that takes up a large part of the room.

Notably, the property is situated less than nine miles from the military checkpoint that the Mexican Army operated in San Agustin for several years, and it is also near the surveillance cameras installed by the Federal Police on the Juarez-Porvenir highway.

"Here, the ones who have circulated freely are the criminals, the police, the military; for us, who live here, they would ask us for identification just to go in and out of the town," say the ejidatarios.

The FGE states that are no identified bodies at this time. There is a very extensive data bank developed by the office of medical examiner. The last time a similar project was undertaken was in 2010, when 20 skeletal remains were locates in the town of Palomas de Villa, also very close to a military base.

Friday 30 november 2012

http://www.borderlandbeat.com/2012/11/the-whole-valley-smells-of-death.html?showComment=1354228182675

continue reading

Identifying bodies only consolation now

Mohammad Raju has been racked with guilt at losing the grip on her mother's hand while trying to escape Saturday night's blaze at Tazreen Fashions in Ashulia.

They were walking downstairs from the fifth floor of the eight-storey building. At one stage the two got separated.

A sewing operator, Raju managed to escape the inferno, but his mother Rehana Begum could not.

He had thought his mother would be able to escape. "But that was my biggest mistake,” he told The Daily Star. “I at least want to see my mother's grave. If it is identified, I will go there occasionally to offer prayers and do penance."

From the burnt factory to hospitals in Ashulia, Savar and Dhaka, Raju made a long search for his mother.

He finally went to National Forensic DNA Profiling Laboratory at Dhaka Medical College yesterday to give his blood sample in the hope that his mother's grave will be found at Jurain where 53 unidentified victims of the fire were buried.

Also, a class-II schoolgirl Rumi gave her blood at the lab to check if her DNA profiles matched that of any unidentified victims. Her mother Nazma Begum has been missing since Saturday.

"She is the only child of Nazma," said Rumi's aunt Beauty Begum. "If her mother's grave can be identified, she can get compensation from the authorities."

The number of people who gave blood at the laboratory stands at three. Bakul Miah, a Kishoreganj farmer whose daughter worked at the factory, went to the lab on Wednesday.

An officer at the laboratory said it would take at least two to three months to get results of DNA tests on samples collected from the 53 bodies.

The Tazreen incident left at least 111 workers dead and more than hundred injured.

Friday 30 november 2012

http://www.thedailystar.net/newDesign/news-details.php?nid=259407

continue reading

Death Toll in China Fishing Boat Accident Climbs to 11

Eleven people have died and five remain missing after a fishing boat sank off the coast of the northeastern Chinese seaport of Dalian, maritime authorities said Thursday.

Following the latest rescue efforts, the number of people reported dead in the accident rose from nine to 11. Their identities have already been confirmed but have not been released by the authorities.

The boat with 17 people on board sank in the wee hours of Wednesday amid strong waves during an attempt to hook the boat to a larger vessel.

The bodies of nine of the fishermen were recovered Wednesday afternoon, while the other two were found Thursday.

The only survivor rescued from the boat is listed is good condition at a hospital in Liaoning province, where Dalian is located.

Authorities said the rescue operation involving a helicopter, seven maritime patrol vessels and 120 other boats was still ongoing.

Friday 30 november 2012

http://www.laht.com/article.asp?ArticleId=652268&CategoryId=12395

continue reading

'Voodoo link' as graves desecrated in Porto-Novo

More than 100 graves have been desecrated in a cemetery near Benin's capital, Porto-Novo, police say.

The grave robbers cut the heads off the bodies and also stole some internal organs.

The BBC's Vincent Nnanna in Benin says there is a suspicion the crime is linked to extreme Voodoo practices of using body parts in charms.

It is the first such incident in the West African nation, where Voodoo is an official religion, he says.

Our reporter says the desecrated graves were discovered by a mason who had forgotten his tools at the 20-acre (eight-hectare) cemetery in Dangbo near Porto-Novo.

The mason alerted the police who found that up to 100 graves had been tampered with overnight.

Relatives have been traumatised by the mutilations as most people believe in reincarnation, our reporter says. They fear their loved ones will be reincarnated with body parts missing.

Crowds who gathered outside the cemetery believe the body parts were taken by people planning to sell them for use as lucky charms, our correspondent says.

A high priest told the BBC such practices were not recognised by the mainstream Voodoo religion - and condemned the grave desecrations.

Voodoo followers - who make up some 40% of Benin's population - believe that all life is driven by spiritual forces of natural phenomena such as water, fire, earth and air, and that these should be honoured through rituals like animal sacrifices.

Friday 30 November 2012

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-africa-20550303

continue reading

Giving new life to vultures to restore a human ritual of death

Fifteen years after vultures disappeared from Mumbai's skies, the Parsi community here intends to build two aviaries at one of its most sacred sites so that the giant scavengers can once again devour human corpses.

Construction is scheduled to begin as soon as April, said Dinshaw Rus Mehta, chairman of the Bombay Parsi Punchayet. If all goes as planned, he said, vultures may again consume the Parsi dead by January 2014.

"Without the vultures, more and more Parsis are choosing to be cremated," Mr. Mehta said. "I have to bring back the vultures so the system is working again, especially during the monsoon."

The plan is the result of six years of negotiations between Parsi leaders and the Indian government to revive a centuries-old practice that seeks to protect the ancient elements — air, earth, fire and water — from being polluted by either burial or cremation. And along the way, both sides hope the effort will contribute to the revival of two species of vulture that are nearing extinction. The government would provide the initial population of birds.

The cost of building the aviaries and maintaining the vultures is estimated at $5 million spread over 15 years, much less expensive than it would have been without the ready supply of food.

"Most vulture aviaries have to spend huge sums to buy meat, but for us that's free because the vultures will be feeding on human bodies — on us," Mr. Mehta said.

Like the vultures on which they once relied, Parsis are disappearing. Their religion, Zoroastrianism, once dominated Iran but was largely displaced by Islam. In the 10th century, a large group of Zoroastrians fled persecution in Iran and settled in India. Fewer than 70,000 remain, most of them concentrated in Mumbai, formerly known as Bombay, where they collectively own prime real estate that was purchased centuries ago.

Among the most valuable of these holdings are 54 acres of trees and winding pathways on Malabar Hill, one of Mumbai's most exclusive neighborhoods. Tucked into these acres are three Towers of Silence where Parsis have for centuries disposed of their dead.

The stone towers are open-air auditoriums containing three concentric rings of marble slabs — an outer ring for dead men, middle ring for deceased women and inner ring for dead children. For centuries, bodies left on the slabs were consumed within hours by neighborhood vultures, with the bones left in a central catchment to leach into the soil.

Modernity has impinged on this ancient practice in many ways. That includes the construction of nearby skyscrapers where non-Parsis could watch the grisly scenes unfold. But by far the greatest threat has been the ecological disaster visited in recent years on vultures.

India once had as many as 400 million vultures, a vast population that thrived because the nation has one of the largest livestock populations in the world but forbids cattle slaughter. When cows died, they were immediately set upon by flocks of vultures that left behind skin for leather merchants and bones for bone collectors. As recently as the 1980s, even the smallest villages often had thousands of vulture residents.

But then came diclofenac, a common painkiller widely used in hospitals to lessen the pain of the dying. Marketed under names like Voltaren, it is similar to the medicines found in Advil and Aleve; in 1993 its use in India was approved in cattle. Soon after, vultures began dying in huge numbers because the drug causes them to suffer irreversible kidney failure.

Diclofenac's veterinarian use has since been banned, which may finally be having an effect. A recent study found that for the first time since the drug's introduction, India's vulture population did not decline over the past year.

Still, the numbers for three species have shrunk to only a few thousand, a tiny fraction of their former levels. With so few vultures left, the Parsi community set up mirrors around the Towers of Silence to create something akin to solar ovens to accelerate decomposition. But the mirrors are ineffective during monsoon months. So an increasing number of Parsis are opting for cremation, a practice many Parsi priests believe is an abomination since fire is sacred and corpses unclean.

Desperate to maintain one of their most important rituals, Parsi leaders have created detailed plans to build the aviaries near the Towers of Silence, each housing 76 vultures. Parsi leaders say they are waiting for formal approval from community members, doctors and priests before beginning construction, approvals they expect to receive over the next several weeks.

But Homi B. Dhalla, president of the World Zarathushti Cultural Foundation, has promised to fight the plans. He helped to develop the tower solar collectors and said they were working well. And he is worried that once the government provides vultures for Parsi aviaries, bureaucrats will try to seize the land.

"Why endanger our property?" Dr. Dhalla asked. "Who is going to fight the government?"

Another concern is whether Parsis can be persuaded to stop using diclofenac. Nearly all of the roughly 800 bodies brought annually to the towers come from two Parsi hospitals, and doctors and family would have to certify that the deceased had not been given diclofenac in the three days before death. There is no simple test to detect the drug, and if vultures in the aviaries die from diclofenac poisoning after eating Parsi corpses the government has promised to end the effort.

Parsi medical leaders were cautious in their comments about the vulture program. "As a hospital," said Dr. SK Dhingra, superintendent of BD Petit Parsee General Hospital, "we cannot tell our patients, 'You can do this, or you can do that.'"

Khurshed Dastoor, one of five Parsi high priests, said that he was not sure members would adhere to a diclofenac ban.

"For 10 years, I have been trying to educate the community to turn off their cellphones before they go inside our most sacred fire temples, and I have failed," he said. "And now we think the community will give up diclofenac in a couple of months?"

Other Parsi leaders, however, said they were pushing ahead because of the importance of restoring the tradition.

"We must hope for the best," Mr. Mehta said.

Friday 30 November 2012

http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/home/environment/flora-fauna/Giving-new-life-to-vultures-to-restore-a-human-ritual-of-death/articleshow/17430441.cms

continue reading