Showing posts with label Montpelier. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Montpelier. Show all posts

Saturday, September 05, 2009

Frankreich: Morddrohung an Sarkozy – Elf Personen verhaftet

WELT ONLINE: Nach anonymen Todesdrohungen gegen Staatspräsident Nicolas Sarkozy und andere französische Politiker sind im Süden Frankreichs elf Verdächtige festgenommen worden. Die Drohbriefe mit Gewehrkugeln waren in den vergangenen Monaten aus der Nähe von Montpellier abgeschickt worden.

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Frankreichs Präsident Nicolas Sarkozy. Bild: Welt Online

Die französische Polizei hat Justizkreisen zufolge elf Personen wegen Morddrohungen an Frankreichs Präsidenten Nicolas Sarkozy verhaftet. Es handelt sich um Ladenbesitzer, Ex-Soldaten und Mitglieder eines Schützenvereins in der Nähe von Montpellier im Südwesten des Landes. Wie ein Justizsprecher bestätigte, wurden die Personen im Département Hérault im Süden des Landes aufgegriffen.

Neben Sarkozy erhielten zwei Minister, der Bürgermeister von Bordeaux und andere Mitte-Rechts-Politiker erstmals im März Briefe mit Kugeln. Seitdem tauchten sporadisch weitere Morddrohungen in den Posträumen von Politikern auf. Der letzte an Sarkozy adressierte Brief wurde im August von einem Postbeamten in Montpellier abgefangen. Bei Durchsuchungen der Wohnungen der Verdächtigen sind Polizeikreisen zufolge aber zunächst keine belastbaren Beweise sichergestellt worden. >>> Reuters/AP/AFP/fas | Freitag, 04. September 2009

Wednesday, April 08, 2009

Gay Rights Groups Celebrate Victories in Marriage Push

THE NEW YORK TIMES: MONTPELIER, Vt. — Gay-rights groups say that momentum from back-to-back victories on same-sex marriage in Vermont and Iowa could spill into other states, particularly since at least nine other legislatures are considering measures this year to allow marriage between gay couples.

The Vermont Legislature on Tuesday overrode Gov. Jim Douglas’s veto of a bill allowing gay couples to marry, mustering one more vote than needed to preserve the measure.

The step makes Vermont the first state to allow same-sex marriage through legislative action instead of a court ruling, and comes less than a week after the Iowa Supreme Court legalized same-sex marriages in that state. >>> By Abby Goodnough | Tuesday, April 7, 2009

THE INDEPENDENT: White House Invites Gay Families to Easter Egg Roll

The White House is allocating tickets for the upcoming Easter Egg Roll to gay and lesbian parents as part of the Obama administration's outreach to diverse communities.

Families say the gesture shows that the new Democratic administration values them as equal to other families. And for many, being included in the annual tradition — dating to 1878 — renews hope that they will have more support in their quest for equal rights in matters such as marriage and adoption than under the previous administration. >>> AP | Wednesday, April 8, 2009

THE NEW YORK TIMES: New Dark Age Alert! Iraq’s Newly Open Gays Face Scorn and Murder

“The people [gay men and lesbians] should be killed in the worst, most severe way of killing.” – most influential Shiite cleric, Grand Ayatollah Ali al-Sistani

BAGHDAD — The relative freedom of a newly democratic Iraq and the recent improvement in security have allowed a gay subculture to flourish here. The response has been swift and deadly.

In the past two months, the bodies of as many as 25 boys and men suspected of being gay have turned up in the huge Shiite enclave of Sadr City, the police and friends of the dead say. Most have been shot, some multiple times. Several have been found with the word “pervert” in Arabic on notes attached to their bodies, the police said.

“Three of my closest friends have been killed during the past two weeks alone,” said Basim, 23, a hairdresser. “They had been planning to go to a cafe away from Sadr City because we don’t feel safe here, but they killed them on the way. I had planned to go with them, but fortunately I didn’t.”

Basim, who preferred to be called “Basima” — the feminine version of his name — wears his hair long for Iraq. It falls to just below the ear. His ears are pierced, uncommon for Iraqi males. White makeup covers his face, a popular look for gay men in Sadr City who say they prefer light skin.

Though risky, his look is one result of the overall calm here that has allowed Iraqis to enjoy freedoms unthinkable two years ago: A growing number of women walk the streets unveiled, a few even daring to wear dresses above the knee. Families gather in parks for cookouts, and more people have begun to venture out at night.

But that has not changed the reality that Iraq remains religious, conservative — and still violent. The killers, the police say, are not just Shiite death squads, but also tribal and family members shamed by their gay relatives. (And the recent spate of violence has seemed aimed at more openly gay men, rather than homosexuality generally.)

Clerics in Sadr City have urged followers to help root out homosexuality in Iraqi society, and the police have begun their own crackdown on gay men. >>> By Timothy Williams and Tareq Maher | Reporting was contributed by Sam Dagher, Rod Nordland, Steven Lee Myers, Anwar J. Ali, Riyadh Mohammed and Campbell Robertson | Tuesday, April 7, 2009