BBC News:底特律破產(chǎn)計劃將削減養(yǎng)老金
Ukraine's President Viktor Yanukovych andopposition leaders have signed an agreement onending the political crisis there. Under the dealmediated by European Union foreign ministers, acaretaker government will be installed and elections will be brought forward to December. TimWilcox has more from Kiev.
After an all-night session involving three foreign ministers from Germany, France and Poland,President Yanukovych finally signed an agreement with the opposition and what a humiliatingagreement that is. It sees a reduction of his presidential powers, a return to the constitutionof 2004, and a few hours ago, the parliament here voted to release the opposition leaderYuliaTymoshenko. She has been imprisoned now for 2 years. That has to be ratified by thepresident and the speaker of the parliament. Well it is yet another clamp-down and humiliationfor president Yanukovych.
On Independence Square in central Kiev, thousands of demonstrators jeered oppositionleaders when they appeared on stage after signing the deal. A BBC correspondent there saysone group of protesters has threatened to storm government buildings if President Yanukovychdoes not resign on Saturday. The agreement has been welcomed internationally.
Italy's Prime Minister designate Matteo Renzi has named his cabinet after formally accepting themandate to lead a new government. Half of the posts have gone to women. From Rome, AlanJohnston reports.
Mr. Renzi has come to power talking of the need for rapid and sweeping reforms. And now hehas the team that he hopes will deliver all the change that he has promised. The country ismired in severe economic trouble. And nothing will be more important than the performanceof the new finance minister, Mr. Padoan. He has been a critic of the budget cuts and austeritymeasures that were imposed here in the past. Among the women appointed at the cabinet is aformer mayoress of a town in the south. She was forced to quit after coming under threatfrom a local mafia.
The city of Detroit has found a plan to rescue from bankruptcy and restructure its huge 18billion dollar debt under the plan which still needs court approval. Retired city employees couldsee their pensions cut by 30%. Beth McLeod is in Washington.
When Detroit was granted protection from its creditors in December, it marked the biggestpublic bankruptcy in the American history. The roadmap for how to tackle it has beenlong-awaited by city workers, pensioners and creditors. This plan proposes to reduce benefitsfor retired city employees. These cuts aren't as deep as some feared, but will still be contestedin the courts by those who face losses. On the other side, the city's creditors, including WallStreet banks, the plan proposes to give some of them only about 20% of the money theyclaim.
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United States says President Obama has reiterated his strong support for the protection ofhuman rights in Tibet during a meeting with exiled Tibetan spiritual leader the Dalai Lama. Mr.Obama also encouraged the resumption of direct talks between China and Tibetanrepresentatives. China had warned the US against the meeting.
The Ugandan President Yoweri Museveni says he wants to put a controversialanti-homosexuality bill on hold to give scientists a chance to investigate whetherhomosexuality is genetic or behavioral. The bill introduced in 2009 initially proposed a deathsentence for homosexual acts but was amended to prescribe jail terms instead. RichardHamilton reports.
President Museveni is trying to please a conservative local constituency while avoidingalienating Western aid donors,particularly the United States. On Sunday, President Obama saidthe bill was a step backwards for all Ugandans and warned it would complicate Kampala'srelationship with Washington. Mr. Museveni who is a devout evangelical Christian has alsosigned into law anti-pornography and dress code legislation which outlaws provocativeclothing, bans scantily-clad performance from television and monitors what people watch onthe Internet.
Two athletes at the Sochi Winter Olympics have been disqualified after failing doping tests. AGerman biathlete Evi Sachenbacher-Stehle and an Italian bobsledder William Frullani both testedpositive for a banned stimulant. They have been expelled from the Sochi Games.
New York's Mayor Bill de Blasio has been accused of hypocrisy after his convoy was caughtbreaking traffic laws days after he announced he was getting tough on motoring offences. OnTuesday, Mr. Blasio put forward plans to reduce the speed limit across the city amongst othermeasures. Two days later, journalists filmed his official vehicle speeding, ignoring stop signsand changing lanes without indicating.
That’s the latest BBC News.
