Zimbabwe’s back-to-school program is failing to take off with most teachers refusing to return to class because of low pay and concerns about COVID-19. Teachers want a 500 percent salary increase to get out of poverty and say authorities must provide adequate personal protective equipment (PPE) during the pandemic. Zimbabwe authorities say PPE is adequate and are threatening to replace teachers who refuse to return to schools
Hong Kong police made at least 87 arrests on Oct. 1, as thousands of protesters took to the streets in defiance of a police ban on a protest march in support of 12 activists detained by the China Coast Guard as they tried to flee to democratic Taiwan. Among the arrestees was a man who was surrounded by riot police as he was smoking a cigarette on the street. In an incident filmed by the media, the man was later shoved to the ground, his glasses flying off his face. The man, who gave only the nickname Kelvin, spoke to RFA’s Cantonese Service about his experiences in police custody
Dead fish, crabs, and even seals have been washing up on the shores of the Kamchatka Peninsula in Russia’s Far East, with locals and surfers reporting health issues. Official tests showed the concentration of petroleum products in the water to be four times acceptable levels. Some experts have speculated that rocket fuel from military test and storage sites could be to blame for the ecological disaster
The group listed a set of demands, including the legalization of same-sex “partnerships,” an end to discrimination against LGBT Russians and investigations into the reported kidnappings and killings of LGBT members in the ultraconservative republic of Chechnya. The group also called for the repeal of Russia’s controversial law banning homosexual “propaganda” toward minors.
Even though businesses are reopening around the world, the pandemic is still a reality. Many offices are taking people’s temperature before they are allowed inside. In some industries handheld thermometers may not be efficient enough
The First Public School in the central Georgian town of Khashuri has set up an outdoor classroom to help deal with the COVID-19 pandemic. Classes take turns learning outside, allowing cleaners to disinfect their indoor classrooms throughout the school day
Residents of the village of Tazakend in Azerbaijan cleaned up the rubble after shelling by Armenian forces damaged businesses and homes. There were reportedly some 50 shell strikes overnight on October 6 after a lull in the fighting the previous day
Since anti-government protests began in Belarus, the number of people who have been the victims of retaliation for publicly coming out against the government of longtime leader Alexander Lukashenko is uncountable
Education secretary Kevin Yeung told journalists that the teacher had designed his own teaching materials for two classes last March dealing with the topic of independence for the city — a topic banned by Beijing — and the banned pro-independence Hong Kong National Party
To be sure, the scale of the fighting and Turkey’s support have given Baku greater confidence to resist what it has long seen as Moscow’s self-serving conflict management. But what else lies behind Russia’s low-profile response?