GUINEA-BISSAU STOPS VACCINE STUDY FUNDED BY TRUMP ADMINISTRATION. (PHOTO).

Image
 Guinea-Bissau stops vaccine study funded by Trump administration Guinea-Bissau's foreign minister has said his government has stopped a study funded by the Trump administration aiming to evaluate side effects of the life-saving hepatitis B vaccine, including any links to autism. The West African country, one of the region's poorest, has high rates of hepatitis B, and the prospective study had drawn an outcry from scientists and international health bodies because only half the newborns in the trial would get the vaccine at birth. World Health Organization Director-General Tedros Ghebreyesus said it was not ethical. Guinea-Bissau last month suspended the trial pending an ethical review. Critics had said it was being used to test theories linking vaccines to autism, long promoted by U.S. Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr but contradicted by scientific evidence. Foreign Minister Joao Bernardo Vieira said in an interview on Tuesday that the study had been closed, citing concer...

SOUTH AFRICA REJECTS U. S. CRITICISM OVER EXPROPRIATION LAW. (PHOTO).


 South Africa rejects US criticism over Expropriation Law


South Africa has dismissed criticism from the US president regarding its recently enacted land reform legislation, TRT Afrika reported.


The US president, in a social media post on Sunday, threatened to cut off funding to South Africa due to the country's land expropriation law, which he claimed unfairly treats certain classes of people.


South Africa says its newly signed expropriation act, which allows it to take ownership of land from private property owners, was common practice across the globe, after U.S. President Donald Trump said he would cut off funding to South Africa, citing land confiscations.


Trump said, "South Africa is confiscating land and treating certain classes of people VERY BADLY," Trump said in a Truth Social post. "I will be cutting off all future funding to South Africa until a full investigation of this situation has been completed!"


Controversial bill


The South African government countered by stating that the expropriation of land is a legitimate exercise of sovereign right under international law.


"We trust President Trump's advisors will make use of the investigative period to attain a thorough understanding of South Africa's policies within the framework of a constitutional democracy," South Africa's foreign ministry statement said.


The United Nations Conference on Trade and Development also cites that “states have a sovereign right under international law to take property held by nationals or aliens through nationalisation or expropriation for economic, political, social, or other reasons.”


The South African government emphasised that the new expropriation law aligns with the country's constitution, which recognises expropriation as an “essential mechanism for the state to acquire someone’s property for a public purpose or in the public interest, subject to just and equitable compensation being paid.”


Apartheid-era


The government further stated that the legislation replaces the apartheid-era Expropriation Act of 1975 and aims to redress historical injustices related to land ownership in the country.


The Ministry of Foreign Affairs urged the former US president's advisors to conduct thorough research on South Africa's policies within the framework of its constitutional democracy.


"This approach will promote a well-informed viewpoint that values and recognises our nation's dedication to democratic ideals and governance. It may become clear that our expropriation act is not exceptional, as many countries have similar legislation," the government statement added.

Comments

Popular posts from this blog

INNOSON GIVES OUT BRAND NEW IVM G5 AND SALARY FOR LIFE TO THE MAN WHO PROPHESIED ABOUT HIS VEHICLE MANUFACTURING IN 1979.(PHOTO).

SHAKIRA COVERS WOMEN'S HEALTH MAGAZINE,APRIL ISSUE.

TINUBU ANNOUNCES ARRIVAL OF 4 U.S ATTACK HELICOPTERS. (PHOTO).