News in Brief -(24-1-2019)

Aid group warns of CAR 'catastrophe'

LONDON, Jan 23: The leader of an international aid group says Central African Republic (CAR) "is steering toward a catastrophe" unless a new round of peace talks in Sudan this week succeed. Jan Egeland, the Norwegian Refugee Council's secretary general, says repeated cycles of violence in one of the world's poorest nations "have pushed people’s resistance to breaking point." — AP

Ramaphosa signs 'transparent' party funding bill

JOHANNESBURG, Jan 23: President Cyril Ramaphosa has signed into law a bill to regulate public and private funding of political parties as South Africa heads for May elections with the fight against corruption a key issue. The political funding bill, signed on Monday, repeals a 1997 act and obligates parties to disclose all donations received to the Independent Electoral Commission of South Africa (IEC). — AFP

Mnangagwa appoints new prosecutor-general

HARARE, Jan 23: Zimbabwean President Emmerson Mnangagwa on Wednesday swore in a new Prosecutor-General (PG) to replace Ray Goba who resigned mid-2018 amid allegations of misconduct. Mnangagwa picked Kumbirai Hodzi from a list of 10 aspirants who were interviewed by the Judicial Service Commission late 2018. — Xinhua

German FM wants to improve ties with US

BERLIN, Jan 23: German Foreign Minister Heiko Maas is heading to the United States with the hope of improving relations between the two countries. Maas told reporters in Berlin Wednesday morning before his departure he would meet with US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo and that, "it's about working less against each other with the US, but organising more with each other." — AP

China bans two illegal social organisations

BEIJING, Jan 23: The Ministry of Civil Affairs (MCA) has prohibited two illegal social organizations and their affiliated bodies, according to a statement from the ministry on Wednesday. Investigation found that neither of the organizations were registered, the statement said. One of them operated and organized activities in the name of military-civilian integration, harming the seriousness and authority of the country's relevant strategy, the statement said. — Xinhua