News headlines in May 2011, page 29

Cuba hopes to revive its sugar industry as part of the recently announced economic changes and take advantage of good international prices for what was once the Caribbean island’s main export.

'Women in LDCs bear the brunt of economic and social hardships,' said Wubitu Hailu, managing director of an Ethiopian NGO, Kulich Youth Reproductive Health and Development Organisation. The failure to provide access to basic services like clean water and electricity is a major factor preventing women from realising their full potential.

Fukushima marks the end of the era of atomic energy illusions and the beginning of the post-nuclear age, writes Ignacio Ramonet, editor of "Le Monde diplomatique en espanol".

It's noon at Jean-Félix Tchicaya Primary in Pointe Noire, the economic capital of Congo. Students are settling into their chairs, but not to resume their lessons. They are waiting eagerly for the hot meal that's served in the classroom each day, their plates already laid out on their desks.

Organisations that receive grants for democratic assistance are largely dependent on the international donor community for financial support, according to the findings of a survey presented at a seminar hosted by the UN Democracy Fund (UNDEF).

The 15-member UN Security Council has a key role in promoting genuine accountability for serious violations of human rights, Valerie Amos, Under-Secretary-General for Humanitarian affairs and Emergency Relief Coordinator, told delegates Tuesday.

The Democratic Alliance (DA) election posters, which feature party leader Helen Zille, Cape Town mayoral candidate Patricia de Lille and party spokeswoman Lindiwe Mazibuko, does not necessarily mean that a vote for the party is a vote for women, analysts say.

The new Burmese government’s request to chair the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) by 2014 has given its neighbours a political headache they have decided to put off dealing with till later this year.

The Cuban government refuted reports by dissident groups that claimed that Juan Wilfredo Soto died as a result of a beating by police. The authorities stated that he died from 'acute pancreatitis.'

Following the February ouster of Egypt’s longstanding President Hosni Mubarak, calls have been circulating in Egypt and throughout the region for a ‘Third Intifada’ to begin May 15.