DAILY NEWS IN ENGLISH
Vote counting begins in Nigeriaʼs delayed presidential election Most polling stations closed at 2 p.m. local time (1300 UTC) in Nigeria on Saturday following a delayed election to pick the president of Africaʼs most populous nation and leading oil producer. Despite a promise by the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) that it had overcome logistical difficulties that forced the postponement of last weekendʼs vote, some polling stations still opened hours late. A coalition of civic groups said there were delays to the delivery of some materials and the deployment of staff. Election officials allowed those stations to remain open past the afternoon deadline. Incumbent President Muhammadu Buhari was one of the first to vote, and he emerged from the polling booth in his hometown of Daura, in the northwestern state of Katsina, to say he was confident of victory. His main challenger, Atiku Abubakar, who represents the main opposition Peopleʼs Democratic Party (PDP), voted in Yola, in the northeastern state of Adamawa.
Namibian lawmakers seek justice from Germany on genocide Between 1904 and 1908, German colonial troops stationed in what was then known as German South West Africa violently repressed attempted uprisings by the Nama and Herero ethnic groups. For many years, Namibia has been pushing Germany to accept the genocide committed against its people when it was still its colony, but the snailpace at which Germany has handled the issue has often led to frustrations among ordinary Namibians, particularly the communities that were most affected. Now a delegation of Namibian lawmakers has arrived in Berlin where it will attempt to reach an agreement with Germany based on the German parliamentʼs 1989 resolution to accept historical and political responsibility for Namibia.
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Franceʼs Marine Le Pen stokes anti-EU sentiment Marine Le Penʼs National Rally party hopes to surge in Mayʼs elections for the European Parliament
Marine Le Penʼs National Rally party hopes to surge in Mayʼs elections for the European Parliament. What role does it play as part of a broader euroskeptic boost across Europe? Elizabeth Bryant reports from Paris.
Chinaʼs peer-to-peer lenders face crisis, investors face ruin A major upheaval is underway in Chinaʼs peer-to-peer (P2P) finance sector after numerous cases of fraud and negligence. As loans helped finance cars and property, could the crisis worsen the countryʼs economic slowdown? Itʼs not a great time to be a smalltime Chinese investor. The Shanghai stock market lost 25 percent of its value last year, leaving tens of millions of retail investors nursing heavy losses. Last summer, the first cracks appeared in the countryʼs massive housing bubble, when protesters gathered outside the offices of major
developers, complaining that their new off-plan apartments had suddenly plummeted in value. To top it all off, millions of small-time investors have lost their life savings, having invested in online peer-to-peer (P2P) lending platforms — a burgeoning segment of the finance industry that imploded suddenly following allegations of widespread fraud and mismanagement. The platforms that connect lenders and borrowers — often entrepreneurs and households not able to get credit from state-run banks — first sprung up in China more than a decade ago.
Beethoven House closes ahead of composerʼs anniversary year Strolling down the Bonngasse, the street where the Beethoven House is located, one could easily overlook the humble facade were it not for the tourist groups that cluster outside. For many, treading the squeaky wooden floors that were once walked upon by Ludwig van Beethoven himself is an emotional moment, particularly when they gaze into the cordoned-off "birth room,"
empty save for a bust of Beethoven on a pedestal. From February 28, the room where the infant Beethoven is said to have entered the world — probably with a loud cry — and the house his family lived in wonʼt ever be the same. The Beethoven House is closing for several months, the permanent exhibition being given a thorough workover and the facilities expanded.
Catholic Cardinal Marx says files on child abusers ʼdestroyedʼ Germanyʼs top cardinal, Reinhard Marx, slammed the Catholic Church officials for their response tothe decadeslong pedophilia scandalat a conference called by Pope Francis in the Vatican on Saturday. "Sexual abuse of children and young people can be traced back, in no small part, to the abuse of power in the area of administration," Marx said in his address with the pope in attendance. Vatican officials were "trampling on the rights of victims" by deliberately canceling or overriding procedures for investigating child abuse, according to Marx. "It was not the perpetrators, but the victims who were regulated and pushed into silence," said Marx, who also serves asthe head of the German Bishopsʼ Conference. "The files that documented these horrible acts and could name those responsible were destroyed or not created at all."
Venezuela: Tear gas fired as aid trucks try to cross border Security forces have clashed with local residents in the Venezuelan town of Urena just over the border from the Colombian town of Cucuta, ahead of opposition leader Juan Guaidoʼs arrival on Saturday. Members of the Venezuelan National Guard fired rubber bullets and threw tear gas at locals who were throwing stones at them. The residents were trying to remove a barricade on a border bridge that was blocking humanitarian aid deliveries from the Colombian side.
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