Remittances from non-resident Pakistanis set to hit $7bn mark

" The inflow of remittances into Pakistan from non-resident Pakistanis in 2008-09 is set to surpass the mark of $7 billion for the first time in the country’s history. In FY [fiscal year] 2008 the inflow of remittances amounted to 6.45 billion dollars while the finance...

Audit body: Bonus to dancing inmates illegal

"CEBU CITY -- Illegal bonuses to prisoners and the unregulated use of government phones were among the alleged lapses that state auditors found in the Cebu Provincial Government’s transactions last year. The Commission on Audit (COA), in its annual report released...

Ethiopia's ex-ruler Mengistu sentenced to death

Mengistu Haile Mariam, Ethiopia's former ruler, has been sentenced to death in absentia by the country's Supreme Court."It overturned on appeal last year's ruling by the High Court sentencing Mengistu and 18 of his most senior aides to life in prison. The judge said he had...

NHS is facing £4.5bn compensation bill over babies damaged at birth by hospi...

"The NHS is facing £4.5bn in compensation claims over alleged blunders by midwives and doctors that have left babies suffering severe brain damage, The Observer can reveal. The huge sum is detailed in confidential data from the NHS Litigation Authority, which handles most of...

Puff, Puff, Past: Eradicating Moroccan Cannabis

"Morocco, which has slashed cannabis cultivation by nearly half over the past four years, hopes to eradicate the main remaining area of cultivation in the northern Rif mountains by opening up the region and introducing substitute crops. The eradication programme encourages...