Here is some international news in brief.
Posted at 7:14 a.m.
French President Emmanuel Macron concludes his visit to the Mayotte archipelago, devastated by the cyclone, on Friday Desireby a crisis meeting. An altercation broke out between elected representatives of the Taiwanese Parliament, who notably splashed each other with water, while the opposition tries to pass controversial bills.
Macron concludes his visit to the devastated Mayotte archipelago with a crisis meeting
French President Emmanuel Macron must conclude his visit to the Mayotte archipelago, devastated by the cyclone, on Friday Desireby a crisis meeting, after having been confronted since the day before with the deep distress of residents divided between exasperation and dejection.
On Friday morning, Mr. Macron first went to locations far from Mamoudzou, the capital of France’s poorest department, where relief, water, electricity and food are slow to arrive.
In Tsingoni, a landlocked town in the west of Grande-Terre, the main island of the Indian Ocean archipelago, he was questioned about the shortages. “We want water, water,” residents implored him.
“We sent the military force to clear the roads”, “everything will be distributed”, assured the French president, recognizing that it was necessary to “better informed”, because the absence of information “creates anxiety” . For the restoration of telephone lines, “it will take time”, but “we will install satellite systems”, he promised.
According to provisional figures, 31 deaths and some 2,500 injuries were officially recorded after the passage of this devastating cyclone. “It is likely that there are many more victims,” acknowledged Mr. Macron, recalling that a mission had been launched to verify the number of deaths.
Around a hundred medical evacuations have also been carried out since December 16, according to the Interior Ministry.
In Mozambique, the cyclone Desire – which struck this southern African country on Sunday – left at least 73 dead.
Célia Lebur in Mayotte with Francesco Fontemaggi, Agence France-Presse
Brawl in Taiwanese Parliament over bills accused of “harming” democracy
An altercation broke out on Friday between elected representatives of the Taiwanese Parliament, who notably doused themselves with water, while the opposition tries to pass controversial bills which, according to their detractors, risk “harming the democratic system” of the island .
Many elected officials from President Lai Ching-te’s Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) have occupied the gallery of the main chamber of Parliament since Thursday evening, erecting a barricade of chairs to block the entrance.
They were trying to prevent the adoption of amendments proposed by the opposition, which would make it more difficult for voters to recall elected officials considered unfit to hold office.
“Parliamentary dictatorship!” “, shouted some DPP elected officials to criticize the opposition Kuomintang party (KMT) in favor of closer relations with Beijing, and its ally the Taiwanese People’s Party (PPT), who are trying to pass the bills.
“At a time when Taiwan’s democracy is being violated and damaged, we must stand up and take action,” the ruling party said in a statement.
Han Kuo-yu, the current speaker of Parliament from the KMT, was ousted in 2020 from his post as mayor of the city of Kaohsiung following the failure of his presidential bid.
Thousands of people gathered outside Parliament on Friday to protest the bills, chanting “resend the harmful amendments” and “defend Taiwan.”
At the start of the year, reform projects extending the powers of Parliament triggered fights between elected officials and massive demonstrations.
Their critics fear that these laws will weaken Taiwan’s democracy in the face of the influence of China, which claims the island as part of its territory.
Agence France-Presse
Xi Jinping encourages casino capital Macau to change model
Chinese President Xi Jinping presided over the inauguration of the new leader of Macau on Friday and called on the territory to “diversify” its economy, on the occasion of the 25th anniversary of the handover of the former Portuguese colony to China.
Since 1999, the former Portuguese trading post has been radically transformed to become the casino capital of the world and a popular destination for Chinese tourists and gamblers.
Under the leadership of Beijing, the Macau authorities are now seeking to encourage the development of financial services, new technologies and Chinese medicine as new drivers of development.
Chinese President Xi Jinping insisted during the inauguration ceremony on the need to diversify economic activity, specifying that Macau must “improve industrial development planning, strengthen supportive public policies and investments to develop new industries competitive on an international scale.
The territory is considered by the Chinese president as an exemplary model of his principle “One country, two systems”, in contrast with its neighbor Hong Kong, shaken by pro-democracy demonstrations until the imposition by Beijing of a law on national security in 2020.
Xi Jinping touted the successes of Macau, whose GDP per capita is among the highest in the world.
“Macao’s splendid achievements since its return to the motherland prove to the world that ‘One Country, Two Systems’ has a clear systemic advantage and strong vitality,” Xi Jinping said.
Holmes Chan, Agence France-Presse
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