Seven Jailed in Fake Medicine Crackdown in West Africa
A court in Benin has jailed seven senior staff of pharmaceutical companies on charges of selling illicit medicines.
The case sets a precedent in the fight against fake medicines in West Africa.
Medicines are considered fake when they lack a crucial ingredient or contain lower levels of it than claimed. They are sold in packaging which is often identical to the real thing.
The seven men work for wholesalers importing all kinds of medicines - ranging from painkillers to anti-malarials for sale in Benin and the region.
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United States and Libya Sign Cultural Property Protection Agreement
They were jailed for four years and fined a total of 100 million CFA Francs ($190,000; £136,000). Two other defendants were given six-month jail sentences.
Cotonou is one West Africa's biggest ports. In the past year, Benin's police have staged many raids on fake drug stores.
The country wants to shed its image as a crossroads for counterfeit goods.
Alex Duval Smith
Tillerson Fired By Trump 'during Africa Tour'
Office of the Spokesperson
Under Secretary of State for Public Diplomacy and Public Affairs I. Steven Goldstein and Libyan Ministry of Foreign Affairs Under Secretary for Political Affairs Lutfi Almughrabi will sign a landmark bilateral Memorandum of Understanding on cultural property protection on February 23, 2018 at 2:00 p.m. at the U.S. Department of State.
As part of the ongoing cooperation between the United States and Libya’s Government of National Accord, the United States will impose import restrictions on categories of archaeological material representing Libya’s cultural heritage dating from 12,000 B.C. through 1750 A.D. and Ottoman ethnological material from Libya dating from 1551 to 1911 A.D. Restrictions are intended to reduce the incentive for pillage and trafficking and are among the many ways the United States is combatting the financing of terrorism and disrupting the global market in illegal antiquities. These restrictions continue similar restrictions implemented by the U.S. government on an emergency basis on December 5, 2017.
The cultural property agreement negotiated by the State Department under the U.S. law implementing the 1970 UNESCO Convention on the Means of Prohibiting and Preventing the Illicit Import, Export and Transfer of Ownership of Cultural Property underscores the United States’ commitment to our relationship with Libya, as well as our global commitment to cultural heritage protection and preservation. The United States now has similar bilateral agreements with 17 countries around the world, as well as emergency import restrictions on cultural property from Iraq and Syria. President Trump has sacked his Secretary of State, Rex Tillerson, who had just returned from an official state tour of five African nations this morning.
He'll be replaced by the CIA director, Mike Pompeo.
In a tweet on Tuesday, Mr Trump thanked Mr Tillerson for "his service" as he put it.
Reporters for US media outlets, including the Washington Post and CNN, say Mr Tillerson was actually fired on Friday - the day he visited Djibouti and Kenya.
He then cancelled some of his activities in Kenya the following day, saying he felt unwell.
The other three countries he visited on his tour were Ethiopia, Nigeria and Chad.
On Monday, Mr Tillerson said he agreed with Britain's assessment that Russia was likely to be responsible for the poisoning in Britain of a Russian double agent and that those involved must be punished.
But his words weren't matched by the White House. Earlier Mr Trump and Mr Tillerson has several public disagreements, specifically over how to deal with North Korea.
In one instance, Mr Tillerson pointedly refused to deny calling his boss a moron.
Source:bbcnews.com
For further information, please contact eca-press@state.gov.
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