Pakistan Forced Marriage Girl Made Pregnant

A 14-year-old girl became pregnant after being taken to Pakistan by her father and forced to marry a man of around 24, a High Court judge has said.

Mr Justice Holman told the court that the girl had said a gun was produced and she had been subjected to violence.

Two weeks after the ceremony, the marriage was consummated - following further "threats" - and the girl became pregnant, he added.

The teenager returned to England and her baby was born.

Detail has emerged in a written ruling following a hearing in the Family Division of the High Court in Birmingham.

Mr Justice Holman said a local authority began care proceedings in relation to the girl and her baby.

Local authority officials wanted a "declaration of non-recognition" of the marriage, but Mr Justice Holman decided the girl would have to initiate proceedings to have the marriage nullified.

"The girl has given an account of the circumstances surrounding that marriage which are, frankly, harrowing," said the judge.

"On her account ... this was a grave example of a marriage which was forced under considerable duress, involving at one stage the production of a gun and physical violence upon her.

"The marriage was consummated about two weeks later after further threats to her if she did not permit her husband, who was then aged about 24, to have sexual intercourse with her.

"As a result, while still aged 14, she became pregnant."

Mr Justice Holman said the girl's parents were Muslim and had emigrated from Pakistan to England.

He said the girl's father became a UK citizen more than 30 years ago.

The girl was not identified.

23.22 | 0 komentar | Read More

Danny Wake: Family Tribute To Hit-And-Run Boy

A three-year-old who was killed in a suspected hit-and-run was a very special boy with a "cheeky little smile", his family have said.

Danny Wake, from Darlington, was out walking with his mother and two siblings in the town when he was hit by a vehicle.

Describing him as "a loving and caring little boy", Danny's family said they did not have the words to describe how much they will miss him.

"Danny was a beautiful, loving and caring little boy, always laughing with a cheeky little smile," they said.

"He had lots of friends and was adored by his little brother Georgie.

The junction of Neasham Road and Falmer Road where Danny was hit

"We just can't find words to describe how much our very special boy will be missed by all of the family."

Police on Monday arrested a 24-year-old man on suspicion of causing death by dangerous driving and he remains in custody.

Police are appealing for witnesses to the incident which happened at a junction.

Superintendent Kevin Weir, leading the investigation for Durham Constabulary, said: "This is a tragic incident and we have set up an incident room at Bishop Auckland police station to co-ordinate our inquiries.

"Detectives from the force's major crime team and road policing unit are assisting the investigation."

23.22 | 0 komentar | Read More

Google: Rumours Over San Francisco Bay Barge

The mystery surrounding a four-storey structure being built by Google in the heart of the San Francisco Bay is generating rumours and worries.

The company has not said what the structure is, San Francisco's mayor says he does not know what it is, and government inspectors are sworn to secrecy.

At least one Coast Guard employee has had to sign a non-disclosure agreement with the internet giant, US Coast Guard spokesman Barry Bena told Reuters.

Moored in the shadow of the Bay Bridge off Treasure Island, a former military base, the nondescript barge is built with four levels of white shipping containers, and sprouts what appear to be antennas on top.

The hulking structure, half shrouded in scaffolding, has stirred intense speculation in the Bay Area since reports of its existence surfaced late last month.

Some speculate it is a store to sell Google's internet-connected glasses, while others believe it is a data storage centre.

Some reports have suggested it is meant to be a giant showroom for wealthy clients and VIPs, equipped with amenities such as a bar.

The structure is raising some environmental concerns

Deb Self, executive director of the environmental group Baykeeper, said: "At some point they're going to have to unveil what it is they're doing, and it will be sad if they have put a lot of money into something that is simply not allowable in the bay.

"We don't really want to see the bay used as a shopping mall. Unacceptable," she told the AP news agency.

Environmentalists warn that water-cooled data centres might warm the sea and harm marine life.

Google has been tight-lipped about its project, but the internet giant appears to be acting legally.

By constructing a vessel, not a building, it can conceal its purpose because it does not need permits from San Francisco, a city with copious inspection and paperwork requirements for builders.

Adding to the mystery, a second similar barge was recently spotted in Portland, Maine.

23.22 | 0 komentar | Read More

Ed Miliband Takes On The 'Wonga Economy'

The Labour leader has launched an attack on our "Wonga economy" saying payday lenders are "running riot through our communities".

Ed Miliband accused the firms of preying upon vulnerable people then intimidating them with bullying tactics when they failed to repay the loans.

He said they had created a "quiet crisis" for thousands of households saddled with debts they were unable to pay off.

In a speech at Battersea Power Station, Mr Miliband said that he had visited the Citizens' Advice Bureau in his Doncaster constituency and heard the stories of a number of people who had become victims of pay day loan firms.

His intervention came as representatives of the three of the biggest payday lenders - including Wonga - were facing a grilling by MPs on the Commons Business, Innovation and Skills Committee.

He had spoken to one young mother who was "down to her last nappy" when she saw an advert for a payday lender on the television. He said she had succumbed to the financial pressures to take one.

Now, he said, the "bullying and harassment" she was being subjected to by those firms was such that she had been forced to give her mobile phone to her mother because she was getting 15 calls a day.

The payday loans firm, Wonga, has 1.25 million customers

Mr Miliband responded angrily to the boss of Wonga, who has commissioned a film which tells the story of 12 people who have been happy with their payday loans, claiming he was speaking for a "silent majority" who were satisfied with the service.

He said: "Payday lenders don't speak for the silent majority. They are responsible for a quiet crisis of thousands of families trapped in unpayable debt.

"The Wonga economy is one of the worst symbols of this cost of living crisis."

He said that seven out of ten customers customers said that they regretted taking out a payday loan, with half saying they were unable to repay it.

He said the woman who ran his local Citizens' Advice Bureau had told him: "Payday lenders are running riot through this community."

However, Henry Raine, head of regulatory and public affairs at Wonga, told the Commons Business, Innovation and Skills Committee: "Wonga's business is aiming to lend to people who can pay us back, that's how we make money.

"The vast majority of people pay us back on time. We freeze interest after 60 days and 25% of people pay us back early."

Mr Raine said around 3% of loans, equating to around 40,000 of Wonga's 1.25 million customers, go to the 60-day period.

He said Wonga's record compared favourably with the rest of the loan industry, including credit card companies and banks.

Wonga has come under attack from the Archbishop of Canterbury

But Martin Lewis, the founder of MoneySavingExpert.com, said payday lenders were essentially "grooming" the next generation of borrowers and advertising should be banned from children's television channels.

He said one in three people with youngsters under the age of 10 reported that their children could repeat payday loan ad slogans.

Mr Lewis told the Commons Business, Innovation and Skills Select Committee: "I think we are in danger of grooming a new generation towards this type of borrowing. And if you think we've got problems now you wait until 10 years' time.

"Grooming is the right term. We're talking about a market that didn't exist five years ago, and you've had people in arguing that this is how people like to use it. They've created the demand, they've created the operational structure, and now they're saying it's what people want. It's deliberately contrived and controlled."

In his speech, Mr Miliband also intensified his attack on David Cameron over energy bills and the cost of living.

He challenged coalition MPs to back Labour plans for a temporary freeze on electricity and gas charge in a Commons vote on Wednesday.

Today the Government announced it had urged water companies to look closely at whether price increases were necessary and to introduce special tariffs for hard-pressed household.

The move has been seen as an attempt to seize back the initiative on the cost of living, which is becoming a key battleground ahead of the General Election.

23.22 | 0 komentar | Read More

Hacking Trial: 'Pals Gave NOTW Milly's Number'

A News Of The World executive told police the tabloid got Milly Dowler's phone number from her friends and then listened to her voicemail, a jury has heard.

Prosecutors said a story in the paper on April 14, 2002, about the missing 13-year-old, who was later found murdered, was changed between the first and second editions to remove references to a message on her voicemail.

Then-editor Rebekah Brooks was on holiday in Dubai, but was in contact with her deputy Andy Coulson between the editions, the Old Bailey was told.

The jury heard that Brooks called the paper no more than she usually would when she was away.

Former NOTW managing editor Stuart Kuttner called Surrey Police on the afternoon of April 13, 2002, to inform them of a message left by a recruitment agency on the schoolgirl's phone, the court heard.

Kuttner, who was not in court due to ill health, told officers the newspaper gained access Milly's mobile phone number and pin, and urged them to check the lead, the court heard.

Brooks arrives at the Old Bailey

Police told Kuttner the message was thought to have been left by a "professional hoaxer", a claim which was repeated on page nine of the newspaper the following day, the jury heard.

Later that Saturday, chief reporter Neville Thurlbeck also called police and confirmed that the newspaper "had access" to Milly's voicemail, had obtained the number from "sources" and that it intended to run the story the following day, the court was told.

In the newspaper's first edition, the story quoted the voicemail message left by Mondays recruitment service, which said: "We're ringing because we've got some interviews starting, can you call me back? Thank you, bye bye."

By the second edition the text of the message had been edited out, while the third edition focused on "outrage" at the possibility that it had been a hoax, the court heard.

Surrey Police had earlier obtained an order which allowed them to access a voicemail message left on Milly's phone on April 13.

Prosecutor Mark Bryant Heron told the jury that someone could be heard saying: "Hello Milly, it's just we want you home soon, bye," followed by noise in the background.

One of those to give evidence was Surrey Police press officer Sarah McGregor who said the paper made no secret of the fact it had hacked the 13 year old's phone.

Ms McGregor told the court that senior officers were aware of the hack but none of them said to her they felt it ought to be investigated.

When Ms McGregor was asked whether she thought the hack was something that should have been investigated she replied: "I'm not a detective".

Brooks, Coulson and Kuttner all deny conspiring with others to hack phones between October 3, 2000, and August 9, 2006.

Thurlbeck has already admitted phone hacking.

23.22 | 0 komentar | Read More

Dublin: Picture Of Girl Found In Street Released

Police have released a picture of an unidentified teenage girl who was found wandering the centre of Dublin nearly a month ago.

The girl, who could be as young as 14, was found in a dazed state in the Irish capital on October 10, but has yet to speak to the police.

Interpol has been called in to try to identify the girl, who may be from Eastern Europe.

She is described as 5ft 6in tall, of slim build, with long blonde hair. She was found wearing a purple hooded top, tight dark coloured jeans, flat black shoes and a grey woollen jumper.

It is believed her clothes were bought in major retailers in Ireland, but detectives could not determine when they were purchased.

The girl also has a brace, but paediatric orthodontists contacted in Ireland were unable to shed any light on her identity through their records.

Police said a major investigation was under way into the circumstances surrounding the discovery of the girl.

The probe has so far involved more than 2,000 man hours and more than 115 lines of enquiry.

It is thought the unidentified girl may be from eastern Europe

These include door-to-door enquires, vehicle and pedestrian checks in the area where the girl was discovered, and the seizure and viewing of CCTV from the city centre.

Police have also shown her picture to specialised child interviewers throughout the country.

"As a result of these enquiries 15 possible names were provided to investigators. These were fully checked but unfortunately her identity remains unknown as present," a police statement said.

Officers sought High Court approval to release the picture of the girl, who is under an interim care order, after their enquiries drew a blank.

The statement added: "Gardaí are appealing to anyone who may recognise the girl from the photo. Do you recognise this girl?

"Did you have any interactions with her? Did you pass her in a distressed state in the city centre in and around October 10?

"Any information is vital to the investigation and the welfare of the child. Any information passed to us will of course be treated in the strictest of confidence."

:: Anyone with information is asked to contact the team in Dublin on +353 1 666 8100 or by email at storestreetappeal@garda.ie.

23.22 | 0 komentar | Read More

Ai Weiwei Sends Empty Chair To Film Festival

Dissident artist Ai Weiwei has sent a defiant message to the Chinese authorities at the Stockholm Film Festival - but in spirit only.

The 56-year-old avant-garde artist, who is not allowed to leave China but is on the festival jury, was represented by an empty chair made by him and shipped from Beijing.

"I feel sorry I can't come. That's why I have designed and sent something symbolic," he said in a pre-recorded video message broadcast at a press conference.

"I hope it can give some kind of statement on the way authorities can limit freedom of speech, can limit basic human rights for artists to travel or participate in cultural activities - very ruthlessly and with no explanation."

"I'm still living under a kind of soft detention. My passport is still in the authorities' hands."

Ai's fellow festival jury members with his chair. Pic: Carla Orrego Veliz

His Ming Dynasty-style chair sat between the other jury members in front of a cinema screen bearing the burly artist's bearded and somewhat haggard image.

The chair had one quirky addition: a curved bar preventing anyone from sitting on it.

The festival has marked his absence with a protest outside China's embassy in Stockholm and by selling "Ai Weiwei - Wish You Were Here" T-shirts.

Ai, known as much for his human rights activism as his art, was detained for 81 days in 2011 during a roundup of activists, accused of massive tax fraud.

He was one of many government critics who were jailed, detained or disappeared into police custody in early 2011.

Since his release, he has been prevented from leaving the country.

Ai Weiwei's chair takes pride of place. Pic: Carla Orrego Veliz

In his video message he said film was a powerful way to communicate and expose corruption.

"In the Internet age especially documentary films have made a great appearance in talking about issues, discussing truths, and also revealing secrets about those in power ... especially when the power is not elected by the people."

Festival director Git Scheynius said Ai has the courage to stand up for "freedom" which is the theme of this year's festival in Stockholm.

"I think most people listening to him think 'wow, this is someone who is not afraid of anything' - his courage is just wonderful," she said, adding that she hoped it would make the Chinese authorities think.

The festival runs until November 17 but it is unclear whether Ai will be able to see the films he is due to judge.

23.22 | 0 komentar | Read More

David Beckham Helps Launch Sky Academy

David Beckham has helped unveil the Sky Academy, which aims to create opportunities for one million young people by 2020.

The academy will work to support up-and-coming talent and inspire under-25s across Britain and Ireland through a range of initiatives, such as providing role models from television, sport and the arts.

Beckham, as Sky Academy ambassador, is heading up a team of top athletes, including Jessica Ennis-Hill, Darren Campbell and dancer Ashley Banjo, for the project.

"Mentors and role models have always been important to me," said Beckham.

Ennis-Hill is a Sky Sports Living For Sport ambassador

"When I was young, they helped me to believe in myself and gave me the confidence to follow my dreams. That's what Sky Academy will do and I'm excited to be a part of it."

The football star joined chief executive Jeremy Darroch for the unveiling at the Sky Studios in West London, where the academy will be based.

Mr Darroch said: "Building skills and nurturing talent are vital not just for business success, but for society as a whole.

"A generation has been born since Sky's launch and, as we look ahead to our 25th anniversary next year, we want to use our position as a successful company to support young people across Britain and Ireland.

"Sky Academy will create exciting opportunities to inspire young people and help them build skills and experience.

"We'll use our strengths as a leading media and technology company and work with inspirational role models to get people involved and make a lasting impact."

The academy includes a skills studio, where young people will learn to use state-of-the-art technology by going behind the scenes at Sky.

It will also incorporate Sky Sports Living for Sport, a schools-based initiative that for 10 years has been using sports stars and skills teaching to help motivate young people and increase their confidence.

The academy will also offer a range of scholarships for emerging talents in the sporting and creative fields.

:: For more information, go to www.sky.com/academy

23.22 | 0 komentar | Read More

Plebgate Police Officers Appear Before MPs

Two police officers are appearing in front of MPs over giving "misleading evidence" over the Plebgate inquiry.

In a statement Detective Sergeant Stuart Hinton said he regretted the distress that the incident had caused the former Chief Whip Andrew Mitchell and his family.

His colleague Sergeant Chris Jones said he "could not apologise for something I've not done" but also said he regretted the distress the matter had caused Mr Mitchell.

Repeatedly pressed on the matter by Home Affairs Select Committee Chairman Keith Vaz, Sgt Jones insisted he did not wish to apologise.

Sgt Jones then went on to disclose, under questioning, that 13 complaints of misconduct had been made against him during his 28-and-a-half-year career.

In two of those cases, action had to be taken. The first was a "use of force" case in which Sgt Jones had pushed someone in the back, "resulting in an injury to his mouth".

In the second case involved "performance of duties" and occurred when Sgt Jones was asked to secure some CCTV footage. He said that he had failed to check he had the correct footage and when it was checked it had turned out to be wrong.

More follows...

23.22 | 0 komentar | Read More

Germany Challenges UK Over Spying Claims

Germany's foreign minister has invited the British ambassador to respond to reports of spying from the UK embassy.

The Independent newspaper has suggested that Britain was operating a "covert listening station" in the German capital.

It claimed that "hi-tech equipment housed on the embassy roof" was being used.

The newspaper said it based its claims on documents leaked by whistleblower Edward Snowden, along with aerial photographs and "information about past spying activities in Germany".

An embassy spokeswoman confirmed that Simon McDonald attended a meeting at the German foreign ministry but would not give any more details.

A statement from the German foreign ministry also confirmed the meeting.

It said: "At the instigation of Foreign Minister (Guido) Westerwelle, the British ambassador was asked to come for a talk at the Foreign Ministry.

"The director of the European department asked for an explanation of current reports in British media and indicated that tapping communications from a diplomatic mission would be a violation of international law."

The Independent claimed that leaked documents from the US National Security Agency show that Britain is operating "a network of electronic spy posts from diplomatic buildings around the world, which intercept date in host nations".

It also reported that the US last week shut down a similar "nest" on the the roof of its own embassy in Berlin in a bid to heal relations with Germany.

The atmosphere between the two countries has grown tense since claims that US intelligence had bugged the mobile phone of German Chancellor Angela Merkel.

The Chancellor recently sent a number of senior officials to Washington DC to ask for an explanation over the claims.

23.22 | 0 komentar | Read More