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NZ Justice Minister resigns after failing alcohol breath test

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New Zealand’s justice minister has resigned with immediate effect, after failing an alcohol breath test in the wake of a car crash.

Kiri Allan, 39, was charged with careless driving and resisting arrest.

She is the fourth minister from Prime Minister Chris Hipkins’ cabinet to leave since March, ahead of elections due in October.

No casualties were reported from the crash, which took place in the capital Wellington on Sunday night.

Following her arrest, the former minister was detained at a police station for four hours before being released. She is due to appear in court at a later date.

Ms Allan, whom Mr Hipkins said had been suffering from “extreme emotional distress”, will remain as a member of parliament for now.

“She understood that retaining her ministerial warrant was untenable, especially for a justice minister to be charged with criminal offending,” said the prime minister in a press conference.

Ms Allan, who was also minister for regional development, conservation, and emergency management, had recently taken time off due to “personal difficulties”, only returning to work last Monday.

She confirmed her separation from her partner last month and is also facing accusations of poor working relationships with staffers.

In a statement on Monday, Ms Allan said that she had returned to parliament believing she could juggle personal challenges with her job.

“My actions yesterday show I wasn’t okay,” she said, adding that she will consider her future in politics.

Ms Allan was once seen as the darling of the Labour party. She was even tipped to succeed former prime minister Jacinda Arden, who stepped down from her role earlier this year before Mr Hipkins took over.

Her resignation is the latest development in what Mr Hipkins admitted has been a “messy” time in his own party.

Transport and immigration minister Michael Wood resigned in June over his failure to disclose a possible conflict of interest in stock ownership. A month earlier, customs minister Meka Whaitiri switched sides to join another party.

Four months ago, police minister Stuart Nash in March was also fired after it was revealed he had given confidential information to donors.

An April opinion poll predicted a close contest in the upcoming election between the centre-left Labour party and its main opposition the National party.

(BBC News)

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Bangladesh ex-PM Hasina gets 6-month prison sentence

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Bangladesh’s self-exiled former Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina has been sentenced to six months in prison for contempt of court by the country’s International Crimes Tribunal (ICT).

The three-member tribunal, headed by Justice Golam Mortuza Mozumder, handed down the verdict in Hasina’s absence on Wednesday. The sentence will take effect upon her arrest or voluntary surrender, Chief Prosecutor Muhammad Tajul Islam told reporters.

Hasina, who fled to India following a student-led uprising last August, faces several charges. This marks the first time she has received a formal sentence in any of the cases.

Shakil Akand Bulbul, a senior figure in the Awami League’s banned student wing, Chhatra League, was also sentenced to two months in the same case.

The contempt charges stem from an audio recording in which Hasina was allegedly heard saying, “There are 227 cases against me, so I now have a licence to kill 227 people.” A government forensic report later confirmed the tape’s authenticity.

The ICT was established in 2010 by Hasina’s own government to prosecute war crimes committed during the country’s 1971 independence war.

It has since been repurposed by the interim government, led by Nobel Peace Prize winner Muhammad Yunus, to pursue allegations of rights violations and corruption under Hasina’s rule.

The tribunal has issued three arrest warrants for Hasina, including charges of crimes against humanity linked to the crackdown on the student-led protests last year, which toppled her government. Her Awami League party remains banned, with ongoing trials against former officials.

Hasina’s supporters insist the cases are politically motivated, describing them as part of a broader effort to silence opposition. However, the caretaker government argues the legal process is necessary to restore public trust in the country’s institutions and ensure accountability.

(Aljazeera)

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Four dead, dozens missing after ferry sinks off Bali

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Family members wait for updates as a search for missing passengers continue, after a ferry sank off Bali, Indonesia

At least four people have died and dozens are missing after a ferry sank off Indonesia’s tourist island of Bali, rescuers said.

The boat was carrying 53 passengers and 12 crew members when it sank at 23:20 local time (15:35 GMT) on Wednesday while on its way to Bali from Banyuwangi on the eastern coast of Java island, the Surabaya office of the National Search and Rescue Agency said.

Twenty-nine survivors have been rescued, authorities say, as the search continues.

Photos published by Antara news agency showed ambulances on standby and residents waiting for updates by the roadside.

Authorities are investigating the cause of the sinking.

The ferry operator told local media that the vessel had reported engine trouble shortly before it sank.

The vessel’s route is often used by locals going between the islands of Java and Bali.

Four survivors who were found on a lifeboat were all residents of Banyuwangi, the Surabaya search and rescue team said.

Marine accidents are frequent in Indonesia, a sprawling archipelago of around 17,000 islands, where uneven enforcement of safety regulations is a longstanding concern.

An Australian woman died in March after a boat capsized off Bali with 16 people on board.

(BBC News)

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Dalai Lama confirms he will have a successor after his death

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Exiled Tibetan spiritual leader the Dalai Lama has confirmed he will have a successor, putting to rest speculation over whether the 600-year-old institution will end when he dies.

In a video message keenly-awaited by his followers, he said only the trust that he founded could appoint his successor and “no-one else has any authority to interfere in this matter”.

According to Tibetan tradition, Dalai Lamas are “reincarnated” after they die. The current Dalai Lama’s exile from Tibet after China annexed it in the 1950s has made succession a highly contentious issue.

Beijing rejected the statement, saying his successor would be from inside China and must be approved by the government.

Hundreds of followers gathered on Wednesday to hear the long-awaited announcement in the Indian town of Dharamshala where the Dalai Lama lives.

The Dalai Lama Library and Archive centre, where the video message was broadcast, resembled a sea of maroon with monks from all over the world in attendance.

“I am affirming that the institution of the Dalai Lama will continue,” the Dalai Lama’s statement said.

He reiterated that “the Gaden Phodrang Trust, the Office of His Holiness the Dalai Lama… should accordingly carry out the procedures of search and recognition in accordance with past tradition”.

Dharamshala is holding the Dalai Lama’s milestone 90th birthday celebrations which began on Monday – his birthday according to the Tibetan lunar calendar – and will conclude on 6 July, his official birthday.

Celebrations will be attended by more than 7,000 guests, including a number of Indian ministers. Hollywood actor Richard Gere, a long-time follower, is also taking part.

(BBC News)

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