Secret EU plan to deport 80,000 Afghans

Secret EU plan to deport 80,000 Afghans

More than 80,000 Afghans will need to be deported from Europe “in the near future” under a secret EU plan, amid warnings of a new influx as parts of the country fall back under Taliban control.
The European Commission should threaten to reduce aid that provides 40 per cent of Afghanistan's GDP unless the "difficult" Kabul government agrees to the mass removal of tens of thousands of failed asylum migrants, a leaked document suggests. It admits the threat, if carried through, could result in the collapse of the fragile state.
The Afghan elite will be rewarded with university places in Europe, under a new EU strategy to use aid and trade as “incentives” to secure deportation agreements for economic migrants from "safe" areas of Afghanistan.
The plan is revealed in a joint “non-paper” discussion document, marked EU Restricted, which was prepared by the European Commission and its foreign policy arm, the External Action Service, and sent to national ambassadors on March 3.
Record violence amid a Taliban insurgency, with 11,000 civilian casualties last year, and economic failure means there is a “high risk of further migratory flows to Europe,” it warns. There are 1.1 million internally displaced Afghans and 5.4 million sheltering in Pakistan and Iran, whose situation is "precarious without reliable long-term perspectives."
A migrant man from Afghanistan carrying a baby cries during a demonstration at the Greece-Macedonia border near the village of Idomeni, northern Greece
A man from Afghanistan carrying a baby cries during a demonstration at the Greece-Macedonia border near the village of Idomeni, northern Greece  Photo: AFP
In October, the European Union is hosting an international donor summit for Afghanistan, with the intention of raising enough aid for the period 2017-20 to keep flows at their current levels.
Jean-Claude Juncker’s officials propose using the summit as “leverage” to secure a deportation deal, noting that the EU has pledged more to Afghanistan than any other country with €1.4 billion earmarked until 2020.
“The EU should stress that to reach the objective of the Brussels Conference to raise financial commitments ‘at or near current levels’ it is critical that substantial progress has been made in the negotiations with the Afghan Government on migration by early summer, giving the member states and other donors the confidence that Afghanistan is a reliable partner able to deliver,” it says.
Under a section entitled “Afghan interests,” it says President Ghani’s government is “highly aid dependent”. “Without the continued high levels of international transfers… [it] is unlikely to prevail, as it is being faced by multiple security, economic and political challenges”.
An Afghan migrant girl holds the hand of a woman as they arrive on a beach on the Greek island of Kos
An Afghan migrant girl holds the hand of a woman as they arrive on a beach on the Greek island of Kos  Photo: AFP/Angelos Tzortzinis
Some 176,000 Afghans claimed asylum in the EU last year, with around six in ten eligible, a rate that has risen as the security situation deteriorates. They make up a quarter of refugees landing in Greece.
The paper, which was obtained by the Statewatch civil liberties website, says the EU’s co-operation with Afghanistan so far has been “difficult and uneven". Despite President Ghani’s public statements, “other members of the Government do not appear to facilitate the return of irregular migrants, while attempting to re-negotiate conditions to restrict the acceptance of returnees.”
In exchange for accepting “forced returns” of economic migrants from designated “safe areas” of the country, European universities could offer places to Afghan students and researchers under the Erasmus+ scholarship scheme, the paper says, under a section entitled: "Possible components of EU incentives package".
The document cautions, however, that “the risk that those students apply for asylum once in the EU and make their outmost not to return is however very high, as demonstrated by several cases recently.”
The CAPD development deal, which commits the EU to help in rural development, health, education and counter-drugs programs for a decade, could also be used as a bargaining chip to get a deportation agreement, the document says.
The EU will also provide training and healthcare to those who are deported.
Afghan President Ashraf Ghani (R) shakes hands with British Prime Minister David Cameron  during a press conference at the Presidential palace in Kabul
Afghan President Ashraf Ghani (R) shakes hands with British Prime Minister David Cameron during a press conference at the Presidential palace in Kabul. The Ghani government is being "difficult", the report says.   Photo: AFP/Getty Images
It admits that identifying the safe areas of Afghanistan when processing asylum claims is “not obvious, given the rising insecurity in many provinces”.
The plan also suggests using the laissez passer, a legally controversial deporting document issued by the EU to migrants who have lost or destroyed their own papers.
The EU has publicly embraced a strategy of chequebook diplomacy as it struggles to contain the biggest migrant crisis since 1945.
The proposed deal appears similar to a gambit rejected by African leaders in Malta last year, in which the EU offered €1.8 billion in aid , university places and looser conditions for holders of diplomatic passports in exchange for accepting the forcible deportation of hundreds of thousands of African economic migrants. In the end, leaders settled on a voluntary scheme of returns.
It follows a controversial deal on Friday with Turkey, which was awarded €6 billion and visa liberalisation in exchange for the near-automatic return of all asylum seekers reaching the Greek islands.
Earlier this month Theresa May won a Court of Appeal case to resume deportations to Afghanistan under a separate arrangement. Judges ruled that while several provinces are dangerous, Kabul is safe enough for returns.
Germany, a major destination for Afghan migrants, is pushing hard for its own deportation agreement.

Indian drinks tycoon Vijay Mallya 'flees to Britain' with nearly £1bn in unpaid loans

Flamboyant owner of Kingfisher drinks empire - dubbed India's Richard Branson - left the country earlier this month amid attempts by banks to reclaim £900m

He was once known as India’s “King of Good Times”, the fast-living, superyacht-owning heir to the Kingfisher drinks empire who was a ubiquitous presence on the country’s high-society party circuit.

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But Vijay Mallya’s descent into hard times appeared complete on Thursday amid claims he had fled India just as 17 banks owed £900m by his United Breweries company prepared a bid to seize his passport and retrieve their money.

It was confirmed earlier this week by India’s attorney-general that Mr Mallya had abruptly left India, barely pre-empting a Supreme Court petition led by the State Bank of India to bar his departure.

“He has left the country on March 2, the day we moved our application for impounding his passport,” Mukul Rohatgi told India’s supreme court. “He has tremendous assets in the UK. So in all likelihood he should be there.”

Vijay Mallya's 'Indian Empress' yacht

Vijay Mallya's 'Indian Empress' yacht  Photo: Sipa Press/REX/Shutterstock

• Rainmaker: The party comes to an end for Vijay Mallya, India’s King of the Good Times

On Thursday morning, India’s Times Now news channel reported it had spoken to residents of a Hertfordshire village who claimed to have seen the ex-billionaire on the premises of a country residence in the past few days.

India’s opposition Congress party on Thursday blamed the BJP-led government for allowing Mr Mallya to “flee”, with party vice-president Rahul Gandhi telling parliament on Thursday: “This person stole Rs. 9,000 crore [£900m]. How did he manage to run away from India?”

Mr Mallya has not denied leaving India, but in a statement sent to media on Sunday said he had not “absconded”.

“I have been most pained as being painted as an absconder. I have neither the intention nor any reason to abscond. I have been a non-resident for almost 28 years,” he wrote.

Vijay Mallya (L) and Prince Charles, Prince of Wales

Vijay Mallya (L) and Prince Charles, Prince of Wales  Photo: Dave Benett/Getty Images

The country’s Supreme Court has ordered him to appear before it in person with his passport on March 30.

Mr Mallya, 60, is well-known in India for his flamboyant lifestyle, which at one point included a fleet of 200 vintage luxury cars, a super yacht, private jet and his own Formula One racing team, Force India.

Already drawing comparisons to Richard Branson for his brash, highly diversified business empire, in 2003 he launched Kingfisher Airlines, placing his own personality at the heart of a brand intended to embody glamorous travel.

But the collapse of that venture in 2012 precipitated his decline in fortunes. The following year he sold a large chunk of his drinks empire to Diageo, which later forced him to step down as chairman in return for a payoff of over £50m.

The immediate payment to Mr Mallya of part of that sum by Diageo had prompted the bank consortium's petition earlier this month.

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/asia/india/12189864/Indian-drinks-tycoon-Vijay-Mallya-flees-to-Britain-with-nearly-1bn-in-unpaid-loans.html

Solar eclipse sweeps across Asia: see the incredible images as thousands flock to Indonesia for spectacle

People gazed at the sky in wonder and cheered while others knelt in prayer as a total eclipse of the sun unfolded over Indonesia on Wednesday, briefly plunging cities into darkness and startling wildlife.

The rare astronomical phenomenon was witnessed along a narrow path that stretched across 12 Indonesian provinces encompassing three time zones and about 40 million people. A partial eclipse was visible in other parts of the Indonesian archipelago, a swath of Asia and in northern Australia.

Thousands of eclipse-chasers flocked to Indonesia from abroad and the government, which has been the promoting the event for more than a year, forecast a substantial tourism boost. Some tour groups chartered ships to view the eclipse, which began in the Indian Ocean and ended in the Pacific, at sea. A dozen Americans joined a commercial flight from Anchorage, Alaska to Honolulu because its flight path would rendezvous with an eclipse sweet spot north of Hawaii.

A total solar eclipse is seen in Luwuk, Central Sulawesi, Indonesia.

Thousands of men, women and children gathered in Sigi Biromaru, a hilltop town of Indonesia's Central Sulawesi province, shouted and clapped as the sun transformed into a dark orb for more than two minutes. Hundreds of others prayed at nearby mosques.

"The sun totally disappeared. How amazing this sunny morning suddenly changed to dark," said Junaz Amir, a Sigi resident who witnessed the eclipse with his family using special glasses that protect eyes.

In Ternate, one of the last cities in the eclipse's path, some residents said they were viewing it by looking at the reflected image in bowls of water. Experts say the total eclipse can be viewed with the naked eye but specific filters should be used during its partial phases to avoid permanent damage to the retina.

A partial solar eclipse is seen over the Independence Monument in Phnom Penh, Cambodia.

Most eclipses are partial but when the moon is close enough to the Earth,the sun is completely eclipsed by the moon's shadow and only a spectacular ring of rays known as the corona is visible.

The last time a total eclipse occurred over Indonesia was in 1988. Unfounded fears and misinformation caused panic, with people papering windows and keeping children indoors.

Cloudy skies in parts of Indonesia dampened the spectacle for some. In Palembang, a Sumatran city of more than 1.4 million, thousands of residents from mothers carrying infants to old men gathered at its landmark Ampera bridge from well before dawn. But the total eclipse was only briefly visible if at all.

"Too bad we cannot see when the total solar eclipse occurred, but the dark atmosphere when it happened made us feel happy," said Palembang resident Martha Sembiring.

People gather as watch the total solar eclipse in Palembang city in Palembang, South Sumatra province, Indonesia.

There was also disappointment for a group of six eclipse chasers who travelled from Canada and the U.S. to Kalimantan.

"Unfortunately we got nothing because we had rain showers and solid cloud," said optometrist Ralph Chou who was hoping to see his 19th total solar eclipse.

Mr Chou, a Canadian who helped develop the international standards for eclipse filters, said there were still impressive effects of light and darkness and birds appeared confused and disorientated by dark falling again after dawn.

The previous total solar eclipse was in March last year and was best viewed on Norway's Svalbard islands near the North Pole. The next total eclipse will occur in August 2017 and be visible over a slice of North America.

Indian village bans girls from using mobile phones in flirting crackdown

Unmarried women have been banned from using mobile phones by the elders of an Indian village who fear that flirtatious texting and endless phone calls could lead to a breakdown of society.

Teenage girls and young women who are caught owning or even speaking on mobile phones in Suraj, Gujarat will face a 2,100 rupee (£20) fine. Informers who catch them in the act will be financially rewarded.

“Young girls get misguided. It can break families and ruin relationships,” Raikarnji Thakor, a community leader, told the Hindustan Times. He added that the ban was “the villagers’ idea”.

Use of smartphones across India has shot up in recent years, with more than 200 million users expected by the end of 2016, surpassing the US.

The freedom afforded to teenagers to swap messages, photographs and videos with members of the opposite sex using services such as WhatsApp has caused concern in highly conservative, rural places such as Suraj.

There were also worries among the villagers over the cost of their daughters’ mobile internet bills.

“Why do girls need cell phones? Internet is a waste of time and money for a middle-class community like us,” said Devshi Vankar, Suraj’s sarpanch, or village head. “Girls should utilise their time for study and other works.”

Mr Vankar told the newspaper that the “entire population” welcomed the decision, and hoped to spread the initiative beyond the village of Suraj , which lies just 40 miles from Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s hometown of Vadnagar.

It comes in the week that Mr Modi has been touring farming communities with promises to expand his “Digital India” drive for greater internet connectivity to rural areas across the country.

The mobile ban was introduced at a village meeting originally called to discuss the community’s growing alcohol abuse problem.

Gujarat has officially been a dry state since 1961, but the home-brewing and consumption of “country liquor” - or spirits - is rife, particularly among men.

The meeting then turned to other social problems, and the decision was taken to bring in the mobile phone diktat from February 12.

Nepalese children cross river by cable in 'world’s most dangerous school run

Nepalese children cross river by cable in 'world’s most dangerous school run'

Nepalese children cross river by cable in 'world’s most dangerous school run'
Nepal has announced plans to replace perilous cable crossings with suspension bridges following tragedy

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Schoolgirls cross Trishuli River via a rope-bridge each day
Schoolgirls cross Trishuli River via a rope-bridge each day  Photo: Manish Duwadi / Barcroft India
Philip Sherwell By Philip Sherwell, Asia Editor11:39AM GMT 19 Feb 2016
Nepal is an adventure holiday destination for many tourists. But for locals in remote areas, hauling themselves across fast-flowing rivers by cable ropeways and wire bridges is a daily fact of life.
For children, it has been called the world’s most dangerous school run. People use the cables to haul themselves over the churning waters to reach work, go shopping and meet relatives.
In the Benighat district of central Nepal, there are many such cables strung across the Trishuli river. The cables are lifelines for villagers but concern has also mounted about their dangers after a 2010 tragedy in which five fell to their deaths.
K P Oli, the prime minister, recently announced a two-year plan to replace these perilous cable crossings with 366 suspension bridges in the surrounding area.
In Dhaing village, some children use just a loop of cable to slide across the river to reach their school on the other bank.
Residents of Dhaing village use a wooden trolley suspended via a cable to cross Trishuli River
Residents of Dhaing village use a wooden trolley suspended via a cable to cross Trishuli River  Photo: Manish Duwadi / Barcroft India
Other “commuters” use flimsy wooden crates and baskets to propel themselves or their possessions across the river by a pulley system.
Versions of the cable crossings, known locally as tuin, have used by Nepalese to cross rivers for several generations.
The country’s rugged mountainous terrain and scattered settlements mean that construction of bridges and roads is often extremely expensive and challenging.
Schoolgirls in a rush to cross Trishuli River on their way to school
Schoolgirls in a rush to cross Trishuli River on their way to school   Photo: Manish Duwadi / Barcroft India
But pressure for footbridges to be erected has been grown since a 2010 tragedy when five people died when the basket carrying them plunged into the Trishuli. Several others have suffered injuries, including lost fingers, as they have operated the cables.
Some of the high wires have been improved recently with the addition of supporting pillars or by upgrading the boxes.
A government investigation committee has outlined the dangers of cable crossings for children and identified locations for suspension footbridges.
A girl being helped by a local after she crossed Trishuli River using a rope-bridge
A girl being helped by a local after she crossed Trishuli River using a rope-bridge  Photo: Manish Duwadi / Barcroft India
But only one has been built so far and many villagers still opt for the shorter rope bridge routes.
"When the river is flooded, I try to avoid it and take the suspension bridge,” Shreyasa Kumar, a villager, told Barcroft News. “It’s a longer route, but safe.
"My family is scared, because five people lost their lives in an accident that occurred in late 2010. I have children. If something happens to me they will be orphaned."
The first of these opened in January 2016, connecting the nearby villages of Manthali and Gimdi.
Locals hang precariously to a cable while crossing Trishuli River
Locals hang precariously to a cable while crossing Trishuli River  Photo: Manish Duwadi / Barcroft India