Churches in Germany have re-started the ancient tradition of providing sanctuary to those in trouble with the law; specifically, asylum-seekers. They have done so in protest against new EU rules which they say make it hard for genuine refugees to claim political asylum. The new rules require asylum-seekers to claim asylum in the first EU country they enter, but when one Shi’a Muslim Afghan family (who fled Taliban persecution, and threats to “marry off” their daughter as soon as she turned 13) attempted to claim asylum in Greece, they were merely encouraged to move on to another EU country. Having narrowly escaped deportation on a couple of occasions, they ended up in a church in northern Frankfurt, where they must stay for six months after which the new EU rules no longer apply and they can legally seek asylum in Germany. An estimated 411 people are currently staying in 222 German churches of various denominations, funded entirely by donations.
A British policy advisor has developed an index of the world’s “best” countries, as judged by the contribution that country makes to the rest of the planet. Countries are ranked on 35 factors, and the ranks are summed to produce the overall index. The number of refugees that a country accepts is one of the 35 factors. The factors exclude moral judgments, thus avoiding major controversy; while some might be mildly controversial, the reasons for including them are obvious (for example, involvement with the United Nations affects 3 or 4 factors – while some may question the UN’s effectiveness or specific policies, most would consider its overall goals worthwhile). According to these rankings, the world’s “best” country is Ireland. Ireland scored very highly on making investments abroad; consumption of Fairtrade goods; charitable giving; UN treaties signed; press freedom; pharmaceutical exports; and humanitarian aid. The top 10 countries also included all four Scandinavian countries; the UK (which was 7th, scoring especially well on “science and technology”, but poorly on its involvement with the UN); the Netherlands, Belgium, Switzerland and New Zealand. The highest-scoring non-“First World” countries were Costa Rica, Chile, Kenya, and Guatemala, all falling between 20th and 30th on the list; the lowest scoring large countries were Indonesia, China and Pakistan, all falling below 100th place. The full list can be found at www.goodcountry.org
The Government’s plans to compel universities to tackle extremism, which might have led to Christian Unions being required to submit names of speakers/talks for approval weeks in advance, have been first scaled back and then abandoned. They were scaled back (by making the guidance more precise) because of protests from religious groups but were then abandoned completely because the Liberal Democrats voted against them for being too restrictive on free speech. The new law now places no duties on universities to combat extremism, but does still place some requirements on schools and other establishments.
The private prosecution brought against the two doctors who were caught in an undercover operation agreeing to sex selective abortions is to be dropped. The prosecution was brought because the Crown Prosecution Service originally decided that it was not in the public interest to prosecute the two doctors, despite what appeared to be an obvious breach of the Abortion Act. The rules surrounding private prosecutions are that, when they reach a certain stage, the CPS subjects it to the same tests that it uses for public prosecutions; once again, the CPS have decided that this prosecution is not in the public interest. This follows a recent Parliamentary vote against making sex-selective abortions unquestionably illegal.
Christians in Pakistan and India are suffering violent persecution, with the police being part of the problem rather than the solution. In India, where numerous churches have recently been burned, Christians (peacefully) marched through the streets of Delhi demanding that police investigate the incidents; instead, police arrested hundreds of marchers, including nuns and priests, and are accused of “roughing up” some of them. However, police have arrested some men following the gang-rape of a 71 year old nun who tried to prevent a group of 7 or 8 men robbing her convent school north east of Calcutta (following mass sit-down street protests and the emergence of CCTV showing the robbers). And in Pakistan, a 20 year old Christian who was arrested by police, in an attempt to obtain evidence of a crime allegedly committed by his mother, was apparently tortured to death – his dead body was dumped outside his mother’s door the following day—and 15 people (11 Christians and 4 Muslims) have been killed in two suicide bombings against churches in Lahore.
The man from Detroit whose 21-mile walk to and from work every day recently hit the headlines has received so many donations from crowd-funding that he now has a new car and also a new apartment. On the downside, he also has extortionists and a lawsuit against him; he moved house because people in his old neighbourhood started threatening him for money, and his ex-landlady (and ex-girlfriend) now wants $50,000 to repair the apartment he used to rent. He has apparently taken out a restraining order against her and has not disclosed the location of his new apartment.
In technology news, researchers at Michigan State University have invented a type of glass which is both fully transparent and also works as a photovoltaic cell (solar panel). It works because the solar energy that it gathers is taken from the non-visible infra-red and ultra-violet spectra.
And finally, Peak District confectionery company Swizzels Matlow has published a job opening for a part-time sweet taster – to be paid in sweets. Successful applicants will win a year’s supply of sweets; be invited to taste all the company’s current products; and be involved in future product development. Despite the fact that the application form appears to have a secondary purpose of gathering names for marketing purposes, a large number of applicants for this “dream job” is expected.
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