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/ 16 February 2004
Asia’s bird flu crisis showed no sign of easing on Monday as new outbreaks of the disease that has left 20 people dead were reported across the region. Thailand, which on Saturday confidently predicted it would have eradicated the disease by the end of the month, saw its campaign to wipe out bird flu suffer a setback with nine new outbreaks.
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/ 16 February 2004
Health workers in Burkina Faso have called for a more open discussion of issues related to sexuality and abortion. This follows the release of a report by the Demographic Research and Study Unit, which found that up to 8 000 illegal abortions take place each year in the country’s capital, Ouagadougou.
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/ 16 February 2004
The South African Budget to be presented by Finance Minister Trevor Manuel on Wednesday is expected to be in the region of R363-billion according to the projections in the Budget Review of 2003. Education spending is expected to remain the largest category of expenditure.
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/ 16 February 2004
Russian President Vladimir Putin vowed on Monday to bring to justice those responsible for a weekend water park tragedy that killed at least 28 people as rescuers called off their search in the freezing snow. Putin demanded that ”the guilty be punished” after the water park’s glass roof collapsed on Saturday.
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/ 16 February 2004
A child was killed and two others were wounded on Monday when an explosion ripped through a primary school in a Shiite Muslim district of the Iraqi capital, a senior police officer said. The explosion shook the school in the Kadhamiyah neighborhood, but it was not clear what caused the blast.
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/ 16 February 2004
Scientists in Germany on Monday launched the country’s first test of an HIV vaccine, a yearlong programme that will involve up to 50 volunteers and is backed by the New York-based International Aids Vaccine Initiative. An estimated 30 HIV vaccine tests are already under way worldwide.
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/ 16 February 2004
As South Africa’s airport baggage handler and ramp workers’ strike headed for its second month, the South African Transport and Allied Workers Union (Satawu) said on Monday it will intensify its labour action. Satawu is planning to march on Transnet’s offices on Thursday in solidarity with the strikers.
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/ 16 February 2004
Two Boeremag treason trial accused claimed in the Pretoria High Court on Monday that police spy Johan (JC) Smit was behind a plot to have them killed. Counsel for Adriaan van Wyk said a statement made by Smit in an unrelated murder investigation proved that Smit wanted Van Wyk dead.
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/ 16 February 2004
Britain’s Treasury chief called on Monday for extra funding to tackle poverty and disease in developing countries, ahead of a globalisation conference to be addressed by the president of the World Bank and the rock star Bono.
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/ 16 February 2004
Two political minnows announced on Monday their coming together to contest the general elections, united in their ”fight against moral decay and godless government”. The New Labour Party and the Christian Democratic Party signed their cooperation agreement on Sunday evening, following months of negotiations.