Kampala, Uganda | THE INDEPENDENT | Uganda Communications Communication (UCC) has accused Ugandan radio and televisions of relaying live broadcasts they say “are inciting the public, discriminating, stirring up hatred, promoting a culture of violence among viewers and are likely to create public insecurity and violence.” UCC directed broadcasters to stop …
Read More »Russia threatens to ban Facebook in 2018
Moscow, Russia | AFP | Russia’s internet watchdog on Tuesday warned Facebook it would be banned in 2018 unless it complies with a law on storing local users’ data. “The law is compulsory for all,” the head of Roskomnadzor telecoms watchdog Alexander Zharov told journalists in Moscow, quoted by Interfax news …
Read More »China disrupts WhatsApp ahead of Communist meeting
Beijing, China | AFP | Chinese authorities appear to have severely disrupted the WhatsApp messaging app in the latest step to tighten censorship as they prepare for a major Communist Party congress next month. Users in China have reported widespread disruptions in recent days to the Facebook-owned service, which previously …
Read More »Activist convicted of UK terror offence for refusing to unlock phone
London, United Kingdom | AFP | An activist with a London-based rights group was convicted of a terrorism offence on Monday for refusing to divulge the passwords for his phone and laptop computer to the police. Muhammad Rabbani, international director at the Cage advocacy group, was stopped for questioning at …
Read More »Robotic fashion: Wear your heartbeat on your sleeve
Milan, Italy | AFP | Dutch designer Anouk Wipprecht has a vision for a world in which people stop telling themselves little lies about their emotions — and she believes high-tech fashion is the key. Her creations, which combine digital technology with haute couture, play with social norms and aim to …
Read More »Kremlin says not involved in Russia-linked Facebook ads
Moscow, Russia | AFP | The Kremlin on Friday distanced itself from the controversy over Russia-linked Facebook ads which may have influenced last year’s US election, saying Moscow had nothing to do with them. “We don’t know who places ads on Facebook and how,” President Vladimir Putin’s spokesman Dmitry Peskov told …
Read More »Mercedes pumps 1 bln euros into US e-car plant
Frankfurt am Main, Germany | AFP | German luxury carmaker Mercedes-Benz said Thursday it would invest $1 billion in an Alabama factory as it prepares for electric vehicle production in the United States. “We are significantly growing our manufacturing footprint here in Alabama… We will be able to quickly ramp up …
Read More »Google likely to buy stake in Taiwan smartphone maker HTC: report
San Francisco, United States | AFP | Google is set to announce it is buying part of Taiwan-based smartphone maker HTC, the Wall Street Journal reported Wednesday. The deal for HTC’s smartphone design unit would give the US tech giant more control of its mobile handset hardware as it seeks to …
Read More »TECH: VW Polo Vivo
The car made in Kigali? Since Volkswagen announced in 2016 that it plans to set up a manufacturing plant in Rwanda, there has been anticipation regarding what the cars from the plant will be like. Of course, they will be a version of the German car maker’s famous Polo models. …
Read More »Madagascar health minister separates siamese twins
Antananarivo, Madagascar | AFP | In most countries health ministers are seen as bureaucrats more interested in paperwork than medical miracles. Not in Madagascar, where Mamy Lalatiana Andriamanarivo recently picked up a scalpel and separated conjoined siamese twins in a medical first for the Indian Ocean island nation. “Surgery was performed …
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