The euro fell on Monday after former French prime minister Alain Juppe ruled out standing in the country’s presidential elections, which investors saw as increasing the likelihood of a victory by anti-EU leader Marine Le Pen. A poll on Friday had suggested that if Juppe replaced the scandal-hit Francois Fillon …
your ad hereChina Taking Political Risks for Economic Reforms, Foreign Investments
China is responding to international criticism that it gives favorable treatment to state-owned enterprises (SOEs) while neglecting of the needs of foreign companies, and even foreign markets that buy Chinese goods. Releasing the annual work report, or budgetary proposals, in the National People’s Congress (NPC), Chinese Premier Li Keqiang signaled …
your ad hereChina’s Congress Meeting Brings Crackdown on Critics
Chinese authorities have shut down activist Ye Haiyan’s blogs and forced her to move from one city to another. Left with few options, she now produces socially conscious paintings to make a living and advocate for the rights of sex workers and people with HIV or AIDS. Using calligraphy brushes, …
your ad hereSouth Korea Special Prosecutor: President, Friend Received Bribes From Samsung
South Korea’s special prosecutor says the president and a close friend are suspected of taking bribes from Samsung. Special prosecutor Park Young-soo said in a statement Monday the bribes President Park Geun-hye and her friend Choi Soon-sill extracted from Samsung chief Lee Jae-yong are a symbol of a “chronic cycle …
your ad hereBanksy’s Art in West Bank Hotel With World’s ‘Worst View’
A Palestinian guest house packed with artwork of the elusive British graffiti artist Banksy unveiled itself Friday in the West Bank city of Bethlehem, with a sneak peek of what the owner sarcastically called the “hotel with the worst view in the world.” Wisam Salsaa, 42, said the nine-room establishment …
your ad hereTourism Boom for ASEAN Economies, Buoyed by Rising Middle Class
Asia’s tourism industry is booming, buoyed by rising incomes, low-cost air transport, and China’s growing outbound market. But analysts say the rapid expansion is also putting pressure on infrastructure and destinations amid calls to boost spending and better manage tourism ‘flows’ to ensure long term sustainability. John Koldowski, a travel …
your ad hereWHO: Environmental Pollution Kills 1.7M Children Under Five Every Year
Environmental pollution kills more than 1 in 4 children under the age of five every year – that’s 1.7 million children worldwide. The World Health Organization warns these child deaths will increase dramatically if action is not taken to reduce environmental risks. WHO examines the impact of harmful environments …
your ad hereHackers Drawn to Energy Sector’s Lack of Sensors, Controls
Oil and gas companies, including some of the most celebrated industry names in the Houston area, are facing increasingly sophisticated hackers seeking to steal trade secrets and disrupt operations, according to a newspaper investigation. A stretch of the Gulf Coast near Houston features one of the largest concentrations of refineries, …
your ad hereRussian Lawmaker Aims to Turn Hooliganism Into Sport
If there are hooligans planning to crash the 2018 World Cup football (soccer) finals in Russia, a Russian lawmaker thinks he has a solution. Parliament member Igor Lebedev has even drawn up rules for what he calls “draka” – the Russian word for “fight.” There would be 20 unarmed fighters …
your ad hereBurkina Faso Film Festival Fespaco Defies Islamist Menace
On the dusty streets of Burkina Faso’s capital Ouagadougou soldiers searched visitors to the pan-African Fespaco film festival on Thursday night after they’d emptied their pockets and passed through a metal detector. Close by a soldier manned a heavy machinegun mounted to the back of a military pick-up. Other international …
your ad hereLa Vie en Bleu Art at Strathmore
Strathmore arts and culture center in North Bethesda, Maryland, is best known for its music center. But alongside music concerts and performances the mansion is a venue for showcasing visual arts, including its annual juried exhibition. Mandana Tadayon tells us more …
your ad hereWith a New Administration, American Comedy Group Creates New Jokes
“I am the most presidential person you will ever see,” says a man in a dark suit and red tie, sounding much like President Donald Trump. He’s sporting Trump’s characteristic hairdo, but exaggerated, resembling more of the teased bouffant style popular in the 1960s. The audience at this performance in …
your ad hereChina Vows Blue Skies Despite Economic Challenges
China will work to clear its skies by increasing investment in clean energy and punishing polluters, Premier Li Keqiang said Sunday in comments aimed at mollifying public anger over chronic smog. Swathes of northern China were blanketed under toxic smog this winter, affecting more than 100 million people and forcing …
your ad hereChina Trims 2017 Growth Target, Warns Against Trade Controls
China’s top economic official trimmed its growth target and warned Sunday of dangers from global pressure for trade controls, as Beijing tries to build a consumer-driven economy and reduce reliance on exports and investment. In a speech to the national legislature, Premier Li Keqiang Li promised more steps to cut …
your ad hereCould Twitter’s New Abuse Crackdown Lead to Censorship?
Twitter introduced new safety measures this week meant to crack down on online harassment and protect people from viewing offensive material, but some free-speech advocates are concerned the changes could lead to censorship of unpopular ideas. The social media company announced Wednesday that it would start hiding potentially menacing tweets, …
your ad hereDoctors Alarmed by Post-antibiotic Future
Unless new antibiotics are developed quickly, people will once again die from common infections. The World Health Organization has issued an urgent call for scientists to develop these new drugs, and for governments to fund the research. Dr. Trish Perl, chief of infectious diseases at University of Texas Southwestern Medical …
your ad hereFormer President Bush Honors Veterans With ‘Portraits of Courage’
Since leaving the White House in 2009, former President George W. Bush has transformed his post-presidential perch into an easel for artwork, which helps him raise awareness and funds to ease soldiers’ transition to civilian life, and to treat the wounds of war. VOA’s Kane Farabaugh reports. …
your ad hereSave the Elephants: Beehive Fences Help Protect Small-scale Farms from Crop Raids
It may seem odd that the world’s largest land mammal would be afraid of bees, but Kenya-based research and conservation group Save the Elephants has used the elephants’ fear of being stung around the eyes, mouth and trunk to deter them from crop-raiding. It is doing this through “beehive fences,” …
your ad hereAboriginal Trans-women to Debut at Sydney’s Gay Mardi Gras
A group of Aboriginal transgender women have traveled more than 3,000 kilometers to take part in Sydney’s world-famous Gay and Lesbian Mardi Gras. They have spent decades fighting for recognition within the indigenous community on the remote Tiwi Islands. About 30 transgender women from the islands off the coast of …
your ad herePrize-winning Author Paula Fox Dies at 93
Paula Fox, a prize-winning author who created high art out of imagined chaos in such novels as Poor George and Desperate Characters and out of the real-life upheavals in her memoir Borrowed Finery, has died at age 93. Her daughter, Linda Carroll, told The Associated Press that Fox died …
your ad hereNature Plays Starring Role in Florida Everglades
National parks traveler Mikah Meyer says visiting Everglades National Park in southern Florida was like stepping back in time. Time standing still “It’s this huge section of [protected] land … it takes up the entire southwestern corner of Florida and essentially before human interaction, everything south of Orlando looked …
your ad hereDoctors Alarmed by a Post-Antibiotic Future
Unless new antibiotics are developed quickly, people will once again die from common infections. The World Health Organization on Feb. 27 issued an urgent call for scientists to develop these new drugs, and for governments to fund the research. VOA’s Carol Pearson reports. …
your ad hereGalleries Worldwide Showcase Artists at New York’s Armory Show
Art lovers from around the world descend on New York City every March for several art fairs. One of the longest running and most popular fairs is the Armory Show, which hosts more than 200 galleries from 30 countries. For visitors, who are expected to reach 65,000 this year, the …
your ad hereHarvesting Power from Slow-Flowing Rivers
Scientists and engineers are constantly looking for more efficient ways to harvest energy from sustainable sources, such as the sun, wind, ocean waves and river flows. Researchers from Brown University have teamed up with a company from Rhode Island to build an innovative power generator suitable for slow-flowing rivers and …
your ad hereMiriam Colon, US Theater, Film and TV Pioneer Dies
Miriam Colon, a pioneering actress in U.S. Latino New York theater who starred in films alongside Marlon Brando and Al Pacino, died Friday. Her husband, Fred Valle, told The Associated Press that Colon died early Friday in a New York hospital because of complications from a pulmonary infection. She …
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