Latest news with #S
Zawya
8 hours ago
- Politics
- Zawya
Final step of Warrap community discussions paves way for outlawing early marriages
It was 1975 when traditional chiefs from across what has since 2011 been South Sudan came together in Western Bahr El Ghazal to realize their vision of a uniform customary law – the Quanun Wanh-alel. Half a century later, this law still serves as the basis for judging at least 90% of cases that fall under traditional law, legislation that reflects the customs of the people. Some of these rules, it seems, are no longer passing the tests of time and changing views. 'Our younger generations deserve a new legal system that reflects the modern world,' asserts Adut Akoc, a women's representative in Kuajok. She is referring to people like S., who belongs to the more than 70% of the South Sudanese population aged below 30. For fear of angry reactions, not least from her own family, she prefers to be anonymous. Last year, when S. was only 16, an influential business owner wanted her as his fourth wife. Paying a dowry of 180 cows to S.'s family, the deal was sealed. 'My father and brother love me, but it is our custom for girls to be married off early, because that is what our community has always thought is best, both for the girl and the families involved,' she explains. But S. refused to play along with the age-old script. She refused, and she was made to pay a high price. The rejected would-be husband complained to the police, who in turn put her in prison. After several months and following a visit by a formal justice court, S. was released, with her father instead being ordered to return the cattle that had been paid. While not currently being detained, the court's instruction to hand over the animals, which he no longer possesses, remains. It poses a continued threat to S. and her entire family, at least as long as customary law allows early and forced marriages to be completed. Unless the livestock is returned, the local customs may once again stipulate that any member of the offending family may be imprisoned. S., however, remains defiant. 'My dream is to finish my education and become a teacher. I don't want to be chained to the house.' The domestic nightmare scenario she paints is as real as it is common. Roda Sube, a Gender Affairs Officer serving with the United Nations Mission in South Sudan (UNMISS), has come across numerous similar incidents, including a widowed woman being forced to marry a male relative of her deceased husband, another oft-practiced custom. 'These traditional laws are often a result of social cohesion being valued higher than respecting the relatively modern concept of human rights,' says Pyry Salomo Paulasaari, a Programme Administrator for the International Organization of Migration (IOM), a UN entity that for years has been facilitating discussions with local communities on how to modernize customary rules without threatening the all-important sense of communal togetherness. 'Nobody is better placed to review the laws they must abide by than the people themselves, and they (community members) have been pushing for change,' he adds. Last month, and as fate would have it, Western Bahr El Ghazal, the very place where the archaic traditional laws were first established five decades ago, and in consultation with its former woman governor, became the first state in the country to formally adopt a modernized set of rules, one of which prohibits early and forced marriages. As for S., she has reason to be cautiously optimistic. A recent gathering of chiefs and community leaders from across her state, organized with the support of the UN peacekeeping mission and partners, paved the way for Warrap to follow the example of neighboring Western Bahr El Ghazal. Yes, as things stand, the final approval of Warrap's Ministry of Justice and its Government is the only remaining hurdle to making early and forced marriages a memory of the past. 'It is long overdue. We all need this milestone reform,' says Madhel Lang Juk, Paramount Chief and Chairperson of the state's chapter of the Council of Traditional Authority Leaders. 'Hopefully, others will soon reach the same consensus.' Distributed by APO Group on behalf of United Nations Mission in South Sudan (UNMISS).
Sky News
a day ago
- General
- Sky News
Plane with 48 people on board crashes in Russia's far east
A Russian plane carrying 48 people - including children - has crashed with no survivors, according to reports. The aircraft was flying from the city of Blagoveshchensk on the Russian- Chinese border to the remote town of Tynda, regional governor Vasily Orlov said. "All necessary forces and means have been deployed to search for the plane," Mr Orlov said on Telegram, adding all passengers and crew were killed in the crash. An error during landing in poor visibility caused the crash in the eastern part of the Amur region, TASS news agency reported. Unverified video, shot from a helicopter and posted on social media, appeared to show the plane had come down in a densely forested area. It caught fire during its descent, and no survivors were spotted during an aerial inspection of the site, TASS said, quoting a statement from the regional civil defence and fire safety centre. "According to the director of Tynda Airport, the plane caught fire upon impact, and a Mi-8 helicopter crew flying over the area reported no signs of survivors," the statement said. The Interfax news agency, citing unnamed sources in the emergency services, said there were difficult weather conditions in the area. The transport prosecutor's office in Russia's far east reported the site of the crash was 10 miles (15km) south of Tynda, adding in an online statement that the plane was trying to make a second approach during landing when contact with it was lost. Burning fuselage of the plane, which was from the Soviet era and was nearly 50 years old, was found by a rescue helicopter south of Tynda, emergency officials said, adding that rescue crews were rushing to the scene. The Antonov An-24 turboprop plane, built in 1976 according to its tail number, and operated by a privately-owned Siberia-based airline called Angara, disappeared from radar over the area, local officials said. It was believed to be a few kilometres away from its destination when it lost contact, the SHOT news agency reported. The local emergencies ministry put the number of people on board somewhat lower, at around 40, while Russia's Emergency Situations Ministry said 48 people were on board the flight. It was unclear why numbers differed. Yuliya Petina, an emergency services official, wrote on Telegram: "During the search operation, a Mi-8 helicopter belonging to Rossaviatsiya discovered the fuselage of the aircraft, which was on fire. "Rescuers continue to make their way to the scene of the accident". An investigation has been launched, authorities said.
Indian Express
5 days ago
- Health
- Indian Express
Knowledge Nugget: AdFalciVax and the fight against malaria — What you must-know for UPSC Exam
Take a look at the essential events, concepts, terms, quotes, or phenomena every day and brush up your knowledge. Here's your UPSC Current Affairs Knowledge Nugget for today on AdFalciVax and malaria. The Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR) has invited the country's vaccine manufacturers to partner with it to launch and sell a malaria vaccine, AdFalciVax, that its Regional Medical Research Centre, Bhubaneshwar, has developed. In this context, let's know about this new vaccine and malaria. 1. AdFalciVax is a chimeric recombinant vaccine — a type of vaccine that uses different parts of the genes of a pathogen (in this case, Plasmodium) to create target proteins that trigger an immune response after being injected. 2. AdFalciVax uses two types of target proteins to prevent the spread of infection in two different ways. ↪ It uses the circumsporozoite protein (CSP) to prevent infection in the person who has been immunised. The CSP is produced during the sporozoite stage (when a parasite can infect a new host) and the liver stage (when a parasite enters liver cells, multiplies, and then infects red blood cells) of the parasite. 'Any immune response generated against these stages protects the immunised person from getting the infection.' Subhash Singh, project manager for development of the vaccine at the ICMR-Regional Medical Research Centre, Bhubaneswar told The Indian Express. ↪ The vaccine also uses the Pro6C protein, a fusion of parts of two different proteins — Pfs230 and Pfs48/45 — produced by Plasmodium falciparum. This protein prevents the spread of infection in the community. 3. Researchers have found that AdFalciVax provided more than 90% protection against infection in mice. The candidate vaccine has yet to undergo rigorous human trials, and the preliminary results have been obtained only through testing on animals. 4. The ICMR wants to partner with a company that can further develop its candidate vaccine, carry out human clinical trials, and scale up for commercial production. Although the ICMR will share the technology of developing AdFalciVax with the chosen company, it will continue to hold the intellectual property rights. Any intellectual property rights generated during the collaboration will be held jointly by the ICMR and the company. 5. Notably, AdFalciVax mainly targets two parts of Plasmodium falciparum, a pathogen that is the most common source of malaria in humans. In India, however, the disease is caused by Plasmodium vivax against which AdFalciVax is ineffective. To combat malaria, scientists have been working to develop a vaccine for decades but with limited success. Recently, two vaccines—RTS,S and R21—were approved for use, but their efficacy, at 75%, is quite low. That's why the announcement about ICMR's candidate vaccine has given new hope in the fight against the disease. World Malaria Day is observed every year on 25th April by the World Health Organisation to raise awareness and drive action against malaria. The theme for World Malaria Day 2025 is 'Malaria Ends With Us: Reinvest, Reimagine, Reignite.' 1. Having claimed millions of lives, malaria has been one of the deadliest diseases in human history. Currently, the disease kills about four lakh people annually, according to World Health Organization (WHO) figures. 2. Malaria is a parasitic infection transmitted by mosquitoes, typically causing symptoms such as fever, chills, night sweats, nausea, vomiting, and diarrhoea. In some cases, it can lead to severe complications such as seizures, fluid in the lungs, organ damage, and death. 3. It is most endemic in Africa — Nigeria, Congo, Tanzania, Mozambique, Niger, and Burkina Faso together account for more than half the yearly deaths. 1. India has demonstrated significant progress in reducing malaria cases and associated mortality in the country's high-endemic states, according to the findings of the World Health Organisation's (WHO) 'World Malaria Report 2024′. 2. 'India exited the HBHI [high-burden to high-impact] group officially in 2024 due to significant progress in reducing the malaria incidence and mortality observed in its high-endemic states,' the report observed. 3.'Nationwide, the number of estimated malaria cases in India decreased from 6.4 million in 2017 (the year before the HBHI's introduction) to 2 million cases in 2023 (69 per cent decrease). Similarly, the estimated malaria deaths decreased from 11,100 to 3,500 (68 per cent decrease) during the same period,' it said. 4. The HBHI refers to a targeted WHO initiative aimed at the most acutely malaria-impacted regions of the world, including several countries in Africa. Widespread resistance of malarial parasite to drugs like chloroquine has prompted attempts to develop a malarial vaccine to combat malaria. Why is it difficult to develop an effective malaria vaccine? (UPSC CSE 2010) (a) Malaria is caused by several species of Plasmodium (b) Man does not develop immunity to malaria during natural infection (c) Vaccines can be developed only against bacteria (d) Man is only an intermediate host and not the definitive host (Sources: India registers 'significant progress' in reducing malaria cases: WHO, WHO report says India reduces malaria caseload, deaths by 69% each) Subscribe to our UPSC newsletter. Stay updated with the latest UPSC articles by joining our Telegram channel – Indian Express UPSC Hub, and follow us on Instagram and X. 🚨 Click Here to read the UPSC Essentials magazine for July 2025. Share your views and suggestions in the comment box or at
New Indian Express
18-07-2025
- Health
- New Indian Express
RMRC Bhubaneswar develops advanced malaria vaccine, ready for tech transfer
BHUBANESWAR: In a significant breakthrough, a team of researchers led by the Regional Medical Research Centre (RMRC), Bhubaneswar, has developed a novel and advanced malaria vaccine that can prevent Plasmodium falciparum infection in humans and community transmission. The new recombinant, chimeric multi-stage vaccine code-named AdFalciVax has been designed to protect against the deadliest malaria parasite in humans. It is now ready for technology transfer to manufacturers for production, clinical trials and its commercialisation. Currently, two malaria vaccines are available and cost in a range of `250 to `830 per dose. The efficacy rate is between 33 per cent and 67 per cent. Unlike existing WHO-recommended vaccines RTS,S/AS01 (Mosquirix) and R21/Matrix-M, AdFalciVax offers dual-stage protection and is cost-effective. Scientist-D at RMRC Dr Susheel Singh said the new vaccine can prevent human infection and interrupt transmission in the community. 'AdFalciVax uses a full-length PfCSP, a major protein found in Pf, for broader protection and includes a novel fusion of Pfs230 and Pfs48/45 proteins to produce strong antibodies that stop the transmission,' he said. What makes AdFalciVax stand out among the existing vaccines is its exceptional pharmaceutical stability. The formulation remains potent for over nine months at room temperature, eliminating the need for costly cold chain logistics, which continue to be a major bottleneck in vaccine distribution across remote and resource-limited regions. According to the researchers, the vaccine has been developed with the help of cutting-edge protein engineering using Lactococcus lactis, a safe bacterial host. The pre-clinical validation of the technology has been conducted by RMRC in collaboration with National Institute of Malaria Research (NIMR) and National Institute of Immunology (NII), New Delhi. RMRC director Dr Sanghamitra Pati said, 'The vaccine's efficacy was sustained for over four months post-boost, which translates to over a decade of protection in humans.' Meanwhile, Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR), New Delhi has invited expressions of interest from the eligible organisations, companies and manufacturers for transfer of technology and commercialisation.
Yahoo
11-07-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Jaffa resident turns Iranian missile attack rubble into profit
While families wait to return to their homes, destroyed in the Iranian missile attack, some have seized an opportunity for quick income amid the devastation. A Jaffa resident has been collecting aluminum scraps from the wreckage of buildings that were destroyed by Iranian missiles to sell them to turn a profit, he told Walla on Thursday. There are many families still waiting to return to their homes, destroyed in the Iranian missile attack. S., a resident of Jaffa, walks through the wreckage, collecting aluminum scraps and selling them to traders, earning thousands of shekels a day. "I look like a laborer, wearing an orange vest, and no one asks questions," he says. As the country heals its wounds and evacuees await grants and compensation, some have already moved on to the next stage. In dozens of streets affected inBat Yam, Rishon Lezion, and Tel Aviv, where houses have been reduced to piles of concrete and dust—S. roams daily, collecting anything made of aluminum: windows, doors, frames. "The money is just lying on the ground," he says. "I sell the aluminum for 4.5 shekels per kilogram. On a good day, I earn 2,000 shekels; on a weak day, 500. I finish collecting, traders come, weigh what I've gathered, and pay me on the spot. It's a good, respectable daily wage." When asked about the law, S. explains that he sets clear boundaries for himself. "If I know who it belongs to, I ask. If they don't give it to me, I move on. But if there's no address, no tenant, nothing, I take it. Simple as that," he says. According to him, he's not the only one collecting: "Others are doing it too, but what's annoying is that there are stingy Israelis who prefer to collect on their own and sell it, instead of giving it to me." When asked whether he's referring to residents who've experienced the destruction firsthand and are now forced to wander between hotels and absorption centers, S. doesn't hesitate. "Yes, but so what? They're covered, they'll get money from the state or whoever needs to pay them. I found treasure here. Its not a crime—just a good way to make a living."
