Missing students prompt mass protests
The disappearance of 43 Mexican students has led to mass protests in Mexico City. Relatives and friends leading the protests have been demanding government action to find the 43 missing. The students, all training to be teachers, went missing after attending a protest in Iguala. An official explanation, released by members of a drug cartel, stated that they were responsible for students’ murders, but many are unconvinced. The mayor of Iguala had been arrested and faces accusations of having ordered police to confront the students on Sept. 26, the day of their disappearance. In the past decade, more than 27,000 have disappeared in Mexico.
Many killed in DRC violence
Machete- and axe-wielding attackers massacred at least 50 people in the east region of the Democratic Republic of Congo. The massacre happened near the Ugandan border, close to the town of Beni where army and UN troops are stationed. Witnesses said that the attackers wore uniforms and were posing as soldiers. The exact number of deceased is unknown, but one woman who managed to escape said she counted at least 50 bodies. Only nine bodies have been retrieved, but the dead are spread out and searches are still ongoing. Government officials said that a Ugandan Islamist rebel group, the Allied Democratic Forces, led the attack.
Fraternities suspended at U of V
The University of Virginia will shut down all fraternal organizations and social activities until Jan. 9, 2015, which marks the beginning of UVA’s new semester. The suspension of fraternities came into effect so that students and faculty could address the issues of sexual assault and sexual violence on campus. UVA put the suspension in place after a Nov. 19 article in Rolling Stone magazine described an alleged sexual assault that occurred on campus in detail. The article detailed the sexual assault of a first-year woman by seven men who belonged to a fraternity in 2012. It is unsure what exactly the suspension entails, as school officials were not immediately available for comment.
Madagascar plague kills 40
An outbreak of the plague in Madagascar has killed 40 people and infected 80 others, according to the World Health Organization. Humans usually develop the bubonic form of the plague after being bitten by infected fleas carried by rodents. High levels of resistance among fleas to insecticide have worsened the situation in Madagascar. 2 per cent of the cases in Madagascar are a more dangerous strain of the disease and have spread from person to person through coughing. There have been two confirmed cases in the capital and one death in the capital, leading to a fear that there will be a rapid spread of the disease in the city because of its high population density.
India tea workers kill owner
Workers at a tea plantation in eastern India have killed the owner over a pay dispute. He died after being beaten up and stabbed by a crowd during negotiations. BBC News reports that many workers on tea plantations in India are malnourished and not paid well. In this case, the owner had started negotiations as an attempt to pacify angry workers who had allegedly not been paid for two or three months. There have been reports of several attacks on tea executives by workers in recent years.
Allison O’Reilly
Ferguson jury’s call sparks protests
Protesters took to the streets of Ferguson, Missouri on Monday following a grand jury’s decision not to indict police officer Darren Wilson in the fatal August shooting of unarmed black teenager Michael Brown. St. Louis prosecutor Bob McCulloch said the 12-person jury worked “tirelessly to examine and re-examine” testimony from evidence and witnesses. The decision led to violence and looting Monday night which continued into Tuesday. The demonstrations were met with firm police force, which included deployment of 2,200 National Guard troops into the area. The unrest came despite pleas from U.S. President Barack Obama for demonstrations to remain peaceful.
