Ïîïóëÿðíûå ñîîáùåíèÿ

вторник

TOKYO (AP) — Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe formally announced Tuesday an outline of his long-awaited growth strategy, a slew of reforms meant to revitalize the economy and restore its global competitiveness.

The plan, approved by the Cabinet earlier in the day, includes dozens of proposed changes to labor regulations, government pension fund investments, corporate governance and tax policies that Abe says are needed to spur corporate investment and innovation.

"We have revved up our growth strategy," Abe told a news conference. "We must do our utmost to ensure this recovery plan reaches all parts of the country."

Abe earlier announced several preliminary version of the growth strategy — dubbed his "third arrow" — he promised along with his first two arrows of monetary and fiscal policies — that have helped drive Japan's recovery since he took office in late 2012.

Economists have questioned whether the more than 200 measures proposed will actually take effect, or have the desired impact, given resistance to change in Japan's business world and bureaucracy.

Investors have pushed share prices up in recent weeks after they languished earlier in the year, in anticipation of the beefed up growth plan. On Tuesday, the benchmark Nikkei stock index edged up 0.1 percent.

Among the most important of the reform measures is a cut to the corporate tax, to below 30 percent from the current level of over 35 percent, promised for next year.

To counter labor shortages due to the aging population and low birthrate, it also includes measures to promote greater gender equality and greater use of foreign labor and robots. It also calls for looser restrictions on white-collar overtime.

BOSTON (AP) — Former New England Patriots player Aaron Hernandez is due in court for a hearing in a Boston case accusing him of the 2012 drive-by slayings of two men.

Hernandez has pleaded not guilty to killing Daniel de Abreu and Safiro Furtado after a casual nightclub encounter. He is due in court Tuesday.

Prosecutors say one of the men accidentally bumped Hernandez, spilling his drink. They say Hernandez went to another club, then drove around until he found the men and pulled alongside their car at a red light. Prosecutors say he fatally shot them and wounded a third.

Hernandez's lawyers say he looks forward to proving his innocence.

He also has pleaded not guilty to killing Odin Lloyd, found shot at an industrial park in North Attleborough in 2013.

MIAMI (AP) — Two people are dead and multiple people are wounded following a shooting in Miami's Liberty City neighborhood early Tuesday, police said.

Miami police spokeswoman Frederica Burden said the shooting happened in the street and police were trying to determine how many were injured.

"It's very early in our investigation," she said. "I'm not sure how it occurred. We're investigating it now. I don't know if they were all outside standing, some in a car, some not in a car. I don't know that yet."

Some victims walked into the hospital on their own, Burden said. "We have some that were driven by friends and some that were actually transported by fire and rescue," she said.

Miami Fire Rescue Lt. Ignatius Carroll told reporters a large crowd was at the scene when rescue units arrived. He described an "emotional scene outside with family members crowding around."

There was no word on a motive in the shooting, the conditions of the injured or possible arrests.

CAIRO (AP) — Egyptian President Abdel-Fattah el-Sissi said Tuesday he will not interfere in court rulings, a day after three Al-Jazeera journalists were sentenced to seven years in prison in a verdict that prompted an international outcry.

The ruling, on terrorism-related charges, stunned their families and brought a landslide of condemnation and calls for el-Sissi to intervene.

According to Egypt's constitution, the president has the right to issue a pardon or commute the sentences. U.S., Australian and other officials have urged el-Sissi to use this right to immediately release the journalists.

Rights groups have described the trial as a politically motivated sham reflecting the tense relations between Egypt and the Qatar-owned station. Qatar has been a strong supporter of Islamists in the region and in particular Egypt's former president, Mohammed Morsi, overthrown by the military last summer.

Sounding a defiant tone, however, el-Sissi said he had always said he will not interfere in judicial affairs, and would respect the courts' independence.

He said he called the justice minister late Monday to repeat that sentiment, despite what he described as debate over the rulings against the journalists.

"I told him one word: We will not interfere in judicial matters because the Egyptian judiciary is an independent and exalted judiciary," he told a military graduation ceremony in a nationally televised speech.

He also urged people to stop commenting or criticizing court rulings.

Repeating it again, he said: "We will not interfere in court verdicts."

El-Sissi said to ensure respect for state institutions, there should be no interference in their affairs.

"If we desire (strong) state institutions we must respect court rulings and not comment on them even if others don't understand these rulings," he said.

El-Sissi's comments came at the end of a speech mostly devoted to economic affairs.

Prosecutors had accused the three — Australian Peter Greste, Canadian-Egyptian Mohamed Fahmy and Egyptian Baher Mohammed — of promoting or belonging to the Muslim Brotherhood, to which Morsi belonged, and of falsifying their coverage of protests by his supporters to hurt Egypt's security and make it appear the country is sliding into civil war. The government has branded the Brotherhood a terrorist organization.

The journalists have been detained since late December.

Blog Archive