Latest News
South Korea president apologises for martial law declaration
South Korea President Yoon Suk Yeol has apologised for declaring martial law earlier this week and has said there will not be another such order.
The embattled leader is facing potential impeachment following Tuesday night’s declaration, which was quickly overturned in the National Assembly.
In response to the president’s address, the leader of his ruling People Power Party (PPP) told reporters that it had become impossible for Yoon to continue his normal duty.
“His early resignation is inevitable,” said Han Dong-hoon.
“I am very sorry and would like to sincerely apologise to the people who were shocked,” Yoon said in his brief televised speech. “Regarding the declaration of martial law, I will not avoid any legal or political responsibility.”
It had been speculated that he would use the address to the nation – his first since declaring martial law – to resign but he did not do so, instead saying that he would delegate the work of stabilising the situation to his ruling party.
He also did not mention impeachment.
The opposition is pushing for a vote on the motion to impeach Yoon on Saturday. It needs at least eight members of Yoon’s party to vote in favour for the motion to pass with a two-thirds majority in the 300-seat parliament.
Opposition leader Lee Jae-myung said he was disappointed with President Yoon’s comments on Friday and that they would only increase the public’s sense of anger and betrayal.
Lee added that he would do his best to remove the president from office.
“The greatest risk facing South Korea right now is the very existence of the president.”
It is not only politicians who have been outraged by Yoon’s actions.
Yang Soonsil, 50, is a seafood shop owner at Namdaemun market in the South Korean capital, Seoul. She told the BBC that she had felt fear and disbelief when martial law was declared. “I have lost complete trust in him [Yoon] as a president, I don’t think he’s my president any more,” she said.
“We need to fight until the end, we can’t let him maintain his position as a president.”
At the same market was shopper Han Jungmo, who said that Yoon’s apology was not enough. “He must either step down voluntarily or be impeached, if he’s not willing to,” he said, adding that the president had broken trust with the people. “If he continues to insist on being president, then it would be a very hopeless situation because I believe for this president, this martial law is not the only misdeed he has conducted.”
South Korea was plunged into political turmoil late on Tuesday night when Yoon made the shock martial law declaration.
He cited threats from “anti-state forces” and North Korea. However, it soon became clear that his move had been spurred not by external threats but by his own domestic political troubles.
Some lawmakers jumped over barricades and fences to get past security forces in order to convene in parliament and void Yoon’s decree.
Yoon rolled back the declaration six hours later after MPs voted it down but there had been concern he would attempt to make a second decree. Some lawmakers had been staying near the National Assembly to make sure they were there ready to void it.
Before his attempt to place the country under military rule, Yoon had been beset by low popularity ratings, corruption allegations and an opposition-led legislature that reduced him to a lame-duck leader.
[BBC]
Three Sri Lankan leopard cubs that were born at the Singapore Zoo on Jan 1 have now made their public debut at the facility.
The two males and one female, born to mother Yala and father Asanka, are the first of their species yo be born at the Singapore Zoo. The last successful birth in Singapore was recorded at the Night Safari three decades ago.
The triplets, which are the pair’s first litter, are among around 80 Sri Lankan leopards in zoos worldwide.
The species is listed as vulnerable on the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) Red List, with fewer than 800 individuals estimated to remain in the wild.
Visitors can now see the triplets at the Wild Africa exhibit, said the Mandai Wildlife Group in a statement on April 16.
The cubs can be found in the exhibit with their mother daily until mid-May and, subsequently, every Wednesday, Saturday and Sunday.
Yala with her cubs in their nest box, a month after their birth on Jan 1. (Straits Times)
A leopard cub investigating a piece of meat suspended from a tree – one of the several enrichment items in the Wild Africa exhibit designed to keep the cats mentally and physically stimulated. (Straits Times)
Mandai Wildlife Group curator Anand Kumar said it took nearly three years and close collaboration across continents to bring together a compatible pair of Sri Lankan leopards.
(Straits Times)
https://www.straitstimes.com/singapore/singapore-zoos-first-sri-lankan-leopard-cubs-make-their-public-debut?ref=top-stories
The Sri Lanka Navy has seized a local multi- day fishing trawler, it’s four man crew together with a consignment suspected to be narcotics off the Southern Coast of the island.
The vessel is presently being escorted to the Dikowita fisheries harbour for further investigations and legal proceedings.
US President Donald Trump has threatened to fire Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell if he does not step aside at the end of his term in May.
The two have been embroiled in a bitter spat over Powell’s reluctance to cut the central bank’s interest rate, despite Trump’s repeated calls.
Powell’s term expires on 15 May, but he is planning to remain in post until his successor, Kevin Warsh, is confirmed by the Senate.
“Then I’ll have to fire him,” Trump told Fox Business, when asked about Powell’s plans to stay on in the job.
“I’ve held back firing him. I’ve wanted to fire him, but I hate to be controversial,” Trump said.
Thom Tillis, an influential Republican senator on the committee which oversees nominations for the Federal Reserve chair, has threatened to block Warsh’s confirmation. If Warsh is not confirmed before Powell’s term expires, he plans to stay on temporarily in the post.
“That’s what the law calls for. That’s what we’ve done on several occasions,” Powell has said.
Tillis has warned Trump he will not let Warsh’s appointment go ahead unless a criminal investigation into Powell, linked to the renovation of the Federal Reserve building, is dropped.
[BBC]
Singapore Zoo’s first Sri Lankan leopard cubs make their public debut
Sri Lanka Navy seize multi day fishing craft suspected of smuggling narcotics
‘Sent to be killed’: How Russia forces migrants to fight in Ukraine
Babar Azam 71* helps Peshawar Zalmi extend lead at top
Trump threatens to fire Fed chair Jerome Powell if he doesn’t leave in May
Royal Challengers Bengaluru top the table after bowlers help thump Lucknow Super Giants
‘Dates have the highest sugar content to fight Coronavirus’
Sunday Island 27 December – Headlines
#SundayIsland 17th December – Headlines
Sunday Island – 28th March
Sunday Island Headlines – 21 March
Sunday Island – 21st February – Headlines
-
News5 days agoCEB orders temporary shutdown of large rooftop solar systems
-
Features5 days agoFrom Royal College Platoon to National Cadet Corps: 145 years of discipline, leadership, and modern challenges
-
Business7 days agoIsraeli attack on Lebanon triggers local stock market volatility
-
Business7 days agoHNB Assurance marks 25 years with strategic transformation to ‘HNB Life’
-
Latest News4 days agoPNS TAIMUR & ASLAT arrive in Colombo
-
News6 days agoAnura Solomons passes away
-
Features5 days agoCIA’s hidden weapon in Iran
-
Latest News4 days agoPrasidh, Buttler set up comfortable win for Gujarat Titans