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President Michael Higgins Addresses UK Parliament

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Author Annette J Dunlea Irish Writer's avatarANNETTE J DUNLEA

President Michael D Higgins addresses both houses of parliament at Westminster

President has addressed the chamber in Westminster

“Mr. Speaker, Lord Speaker,

Prime Minister, Deputy Prime Minister,

Leader of the Opposition and distinguished guests:

I am delighted to be with you today.

A Chairde:

Tá fíor-chaoin áthas orm bheith anseo libh.

On the first day of this State Visit, I have been graciously and warmly
welcomed by
Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth at Windsor Castle, and I have come to this
place from a poignant and uplifting visit to Westminster Abbey. I am
greatly honoured to be the first President of Ireland to address you in
this distinguished Palace of Westminster.

As a former parliamentarian, honoured to have spent twenty-five years as a
member of Dáil Éireann, and a further decade serving in our Upper House,
Seanad Éireann, it constitutes a very special privilege to be speaking
today in a place…

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สดใส

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It’s Time for Africa’s Stolen Artefacts to Come Home | Think Africa Press

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It’s Time for Africa’s Stolen Artefacts to Come Home | Think Africa Press.

“In a recently-released film, The Monuments Men, in which a group of Second World War soldiers embark upon a mission to save pieces of art before they are destroyed by the Nazis, Lieutenant Frank Stokes, played by George Clooney, notes: “You can wipe out an entire generation, you can burn their homes to the ground and somehow they will still find their way back. But if you destroy their history, if you destroy their achievements, then it is as if they never existed.”

While in London to publicise the film, this basic premise was given contemporary significance as the all-star cast touched a sensitive nerve by suggesting it was time for Britain to return the so-called Elgin Marbles to Greece. Some British commentators hit out at the actors’ suggestions of repatriating the huge marble sculptures and pieces of architecture ‘acquired’ by Lord Elgin from Athens in the 19th century, while the Greek government expressed their “heartfelt thanks” for the show of solidarity…”

Illicit Financial Flows: The Elephant in the Room at the EU-Africa Summit | Think Africa Press

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Illicit Financial Flows: The Elephant in the Room at the EU-Africa Summit | Think Africa Press.

“A $35 million mansion in California, artwork totaling €18 million ($25 million), and a $33 million dollar private jet.

These sound like items purchased by the world’s wealthiest oligarchs, Hollywood actors or investment bank CEOs, right?

Well, they were actually acquired by Teodorin Obiang, the son of Equatorial Guinea’s President Teodoro Obiang. When Teodoro convenes with other leaders for this week’s EU-Africa summit, a wide range of topics will be covered, but there’s one issue in particular that should be given a loudspeaker during the talks in Brussels: illicit financial flows.

Africa and Europe have a unique financial relationship. It is one marked by illicit capital flowing out of African countries and into bank accounts in financial centres across the EU. While the younger Obiang’s official salary is less than $7,000 per month, he managed to spend more than $315 million between 2004 and 2011 on sports cars, beachfront mansions, lavish apartments, and even some Michael Jackson memorabilia. And Teodorin is just the tip of the iceberg….”

 

Come on Skippy

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After the Protests – NYTimes.com

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After the Protests – NYTimes.com.

“LAST Wednesday, more than 100,000 people showed up in Istanbul for a funeral that turned into a mass demonstration. No formal organization made the call…Protests like this one, fueled by social media and erupting into spectacular mass events, look like powerful statements of opposition against a regime. And whether these take place in Turkey, Egypt or Ukraine, pundits often speculate that the days of a ruling party or government, or at least its unpopular policies, must be numbered. Yet often these huge mobilizations of citizens inexplicably wither away without the impact on policy you might expect from their scale.
This muted effect is not because social media isn’t good at what it does, but, in a way, because it’s very good at what it does.”

Africa’s big data scene is centered on the mobile carriers

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Kevin Fitchard's avatarGigaom

Is there a big data opportunity in Africa? TA Telecom CEO and founder Amr Shady believes there’s a big one. Only 15 percent of Africans may have access to the internet on a PC, but there is a wealth of information to be mined from the mobile operators who effectively have a lock on data services on the continent, Shady said speaking at Gigaom’s Structure Data conference on Wednesday.

“To talk about big data in Africa we have to look at where the data is being is being created,” Shady said. 60 percent of internet traffic comes from mobile phones. Only a third of mobile users who generate that traffic have a mobile data connection. The rest are using basic voice and SMS services, he said.

If you sampled data from social media to try to understand consumer behavior or public opinion in Africa, you’ll most likely reach incorrect conclusions…

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Music from Senegal – Laba Sosseh

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Stan's avatarWorld Music - the Music Journey

Laba Badara Sosseh (* March 12, 1943  in Bathurst, now Banjul, Gambia; † September 20, 2007 in Dakar, Senegal) was a senegambian  salsa musician.

Here is song “Aminata ”

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