【一蓮托生】國際時事政治選舉集中理性討論區（二）

[Ausria] Austrian far-right to return to coalition under conservative Sebastian Kurz

Austria's conservative People's Party has agreed a coalition with the far-right Freedom Party.

The deal comes two months after a parliamentary election which the People's Party won but without an overall majority.

At just 31, the People's Party's Sebastian Kurz is set to become the world's youngest head of government.

If the coalition is ratified, Austria would become the only western European state with a governing far-right party.

The parties previously governed the country together between 2000 and 2005.

[US-Tax Reform] US tax bill: Republicans agree sweeping changes

US Republicans from both houses of Congress have revealed their joint bill for the biggest overhaul of the country's tax system in 30 years.

The plan brings the US corporate tax rate down to 21% from the current 35%.
The top individual income tax drops to 37% from 39.6%.

President Donald Trump campaigned on a pledge to cut taxes, and passing the legislation marks a significant victory. He has said he wants the bill signed into law before Christmas.

Democrats have argued that the tax cuts will favour only the rich and offer little to the middle class. The non-partisan Joint Committee on Taxation said on Friday the measures would add as much as $1.4tn (£1tn) to the $20tn national debt over 10 years.

http://www.bbc.com/news/world-us-canada-42375149

[US] Trump judicial nominee stumped on basic law questions at Senate hearing

https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2017/dec/15/trump-judicial-nominee-stumped-on-basic-law-questions-at-senate-hearing

It will go down one as of the most excruciating job interviews of all time.

A Trump federal judicial nominee was utterly stymied by a line of questioning on basic knowledge of procedural law during his Senate confirmation hearing Thursday, raising questions about the fitness of Trump’s choices for the posts.

“MUST WATCH”, tweeted Rhode Island Senator Sheldon Whitehouse. “[Senator Kennedy] asks one of [Donald Trump’s] US District Judge nominees basic questions of law & he can’t answer a single one. Hoo-boy.”

The video of the polite, yet devastating encounter, comes just as Trump managed to set a new record for the number of judicial nominees confirmed in a president’s first year. Trump had a huge structural advantage when he came into office to outpace previous regimes and his administration has quietly made the reshaping of the federal judiciary a top priority.

[South Africa] LIVE: Every region has been registered, conference will start at 2pm – Mantashe

All eyes are on Nasrec, south of Johannesburg, as the ANC gathers for its national elective conference. Keep up to date with all the news and analysis here.

https://www.news24.com/SouthAfrica/News/live-anc-elective-conference-saturday-december-16-20171216

[Taiwan] 罷免立委黃國昌失敗

黃國昌立委罷免投票結果出爐，開票數據顯示 48,370 票贊成罷免、21,762票不同意罷免，雖同意票多於不同意票，但同意罷免票仍未及 63,888 票門檻(需超過選舉人數25%)，因此罷免失敗。在本屆立委任內，都不能再對黃國昌立委進行罷免投票。（備註：最終票數仍以中選會公布為主）

https://musou.tw/focuses/1438

[Canada] Deaths of Canada billionaire Barry Sherman and wife 'suspicious'

A Canadian billionaire and his wife have been found dead at their home in Toronto in circumstances that police described as "suspicious".

The bodies of Barry Sherman and his wife Honey were found in the basement by an estate agent, reports said.

Mr Sherman was the founder and chairman of pharmaceutical giant Apotex, which sells generic medicines around the world.

He was one of Canada's richest men and a prominent philanthropist.

There was no sign of forced entry to the property, police said in a statement Friday evening. Local media reported that investigators were not searching for a suspect at this time.

http://www.bbc.com/news/world-us-canada-42375152

[North Korea] North Korea 'hacked crypto-currency exchange in South'

South Korea's spy agency believes that North Korea is behind hacking attacks on a crypto-currency exchange in the South, sources say.

At least $7m (£5.25m) in digital money was stolen in the hacks - although the money is now said to have ballooned in value to $82.7m.

The thieves also stole the personal information of some 30,000 people.

They were trading the virtual currencies Bitcoin and Ethereum on the Bithumb crypto-currency exchange.

Based on recent trading volumes, Bithumb is South Korea's biggest and one of the five largest in the world.

Analysts say North Korean hackers may have targeted crypto-currencies in order to evade the financial sanctions imposed as punishment for the North's development of nuclear weapons.

This attack is said to date back to February, when a Bithumb employee's home PC was targeted - though it was only discovered in June.

The hackers also demanded a further $5.5m from Bithumb in exchange for deleting traders' personal information, said reports.

http://www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-42378638

[US-Election] Kihuen will not seek reelection

https://www.politico.com/story/2017/12/16/ruben-kihuen-will-not-seek-reelection-299575

Rep. Ruben Kihuen (D-Nev.) said Saturday that he will not seek reelection after facing accusations about sexual harassment.

Kihuen has been under fire after a former campaign staffer and a Nevada lobbyist both accused Kihuen of sexual harassment while he was a Democratic candidate and during his tenure as a state legislator.

[Australia] Sydney man charged with being 'economic agent' for North Korea

[url]http://www.bbc.com/news/world-australia-42382399
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A man has been arrested in Sydney for allegedly acting as an economic agent for North Korea, Australian Federal Police (AFP) have said.

Chan Han Choi, 59, has been charged with brokering illegal exports from the country and discussing the supply of weapons of mass destruction.

Police allege he has broken both UN and Australian sanctions.

The case against Mr Chan, who has lived in Australia for more than 30 years, is the first of its kind in the country.

It is the first time anyone has been charged under the country's 1995 Weapons of Mass Destruction (Prevention of Proliferation) Act.

Police say there was evidence that Mr Chan had been in contact with "high ranking officials in North Korea".

[US] Democrat: Rumor is Trump could fire Mueller before Christmas

http://thehill.com/blogs/blog-briefing-room/365247-rep-speier-rumors-say-trump-could-fire-mueller-before-christmas

Rep. Jackie Speier (D-Calif.) said Friday that "rumors" on Capitol Hill suggest President Trump could fire special counsel Robert Mueller before Christmas, after Congress leaves Washington for the winter recess.

“The rumor on the Hill when I left yesterday was that the president was going to make a significant speech at the end of next week. And on Dec. 22, when we are out of D.C., he was going to fire Robert Mueller," Speier told California's KQED News.

Speier, a member of the House Intelligence Committee, said that Trump was trying to shut down the committee's investigation into Russian interference in the 2016 election, pointing to the lack of interviews scheduled for the new year.

The New York Times reported Friday that the committee is scheduling its final witnesses of the year to testify in New York, despite important votes coming up in Washington, D.C., and confirmed no additional witnesses are scheduled yet in 2018.

濕鳩

Lm

[US] Netflix rips net neutrality repeal: ‘This is the beginning of a longer legal battle’

http://thehill.com/policy/technology/364937-netflix-rips-net-neutrality-repeal-this-is-the-beginning-of-a-longer-legal

Netflix on Thursday ripped the Federal Communications Commission’s (FCC) decision to repeal net neutrality rules, calling it “misguided.”

“This is the beginning of a longer legal battle. Netflix stands w/ innovators, large & small, to oppose this misguided FCC order,” the company tweeted shortly after the FCC voted on the measure.

[US - Middle East] UN mulls measure rejecting US decision on Jerusalem

http://www.france24.com/en/20171216-united-nations-mulls-over-measure-rejecting-usa-decision-jerusalem

The UN Security Council is considering a draft resolution that would affirm that any change to the status of Jerusalem has no legal effect and must be rescinded, in response to the US decision to recognize the city as Israel's capital.

[Tawiwan] Chinese military transport plane flies near Taiwan

https://www.reuters.com/article/us-taiwan-china/chinese-military-transport-plane-flies-near-taiwan-idUSKBN1EB0AY?il=0

TAIPEI (Reuters) - At least one Chinese Air Force Yun-8 transport plane conducted a long-haul flight near Taiwan on Sunday, the island’s Defence Ministry said, amid simmering tensions between the two rivals.

Taiwan dispatched its aircraft and ships to “monitor and deal with” the Yun8, which returned to its base after flying through the Bashi Channel and Miyako waterway, Defense Minister Feng Shih-kuan said. It was unclear whether one plane or more made the flight.

[South Asia] Twin suicide bombers attack church in Pakistan's Quetta ahead of Christmas, killing eight

https://www.reuters.com/article/us-pakistan-attack/twin-suicide-bombers-attack-church-in-pakistans-quetta-ahead-of-christmas-killing-eight-idUSKBN1EB08E?il=0

QUETTA/ISLAMABAD (Reuters) - Two suicide bombers attacked a packed Catholic church in southwestern Pakistan on Sunday, killing at least eight people and wounding up to 45 before one of them blew himself up and police killed the other, officials said.

The gunmen wearing explosives-filled vests stormed the church in Quetta city when Sunday services had just opened, exploding a suicide vest and shooting at the Christian worshippers, said Sarfraz Bugti, the home minister of Baluchistan province.

[Europe] Italy's ruling PD party slips further in polls, newspaper reports


[url]https://www.reuters.com/article/us-italy-poll/italys-ruling-pd-party-slips-further-in-polls-newspaper-reports-idUSKBN1EB0D8?utm_campaign=trueAnthem%3A+Trending+Content&utm_content=5a365d7004d3017351f079f5&utm_medium=trueAnthem&utm_source=facebook
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MILAN (Reuters) - Italy’s ruling Democratic Party (PD) has lost further ground over its rivals after political infighting and fallout from a banking scandal, an opinion poll showed on Sunday.

The poll comes just weeks before parliament is expected to be dissolved before elections early next year.

The PD share of the vote fell 1 percent, from eight days ago, to 23.4 percent, its lowest level in five years, according to the Ipsos poll in the newspaper Corriere della Sera.

Support for the PD, headed by former Prime Minister Matteo Renzi, has fallen steadily in recent months, with the group damaged by deep schisms and personality clashes.

The party has also come under fire over allegations cabinet undersecretary Maria Elena Boschi took steps to try to save Banca Etruria, a local bank based in her home town of Arezzo. Boschi has repeatedly denied exerting any political pressure in deciding the future of Banca Etruria.

The Ipsos poll said growing support from smaller allies had raised the center-left bloc’s share of the vote to 26.2 percent, as of Dec. 14, from 24.8 percent. That was well short of the 36 percent polled by the center-right bloc led by former prime minister Silvio Berlusconi. It was also behind the 28.2 percent share of the 5-Star anti-establishment party.

The 5-Star Movement is predicted to emerge as the largest single party in the next parliament, but it has repeatedly ruled out joining any coalition.

Italy has just introduced a new electoral system that is expected to handicap 5-Star, favoring instead mainstream political blocs.

[India] India: Rahul Gandhi replaces Sonia Gandhi as Congress Party leader

http://www.dw.com/en/india-rahul-gandhi-replaces-sonia-gandhi-as-congress-party-leader/a-41741503

He has followed in the footsteps of many members of the Nehru-Gandhi family dynasty. But the 47-year-old has so far failed to help his party win at the ballot box.

India's opposition Congress Party elected Rahul Gandhi as its new president on Monday. He is the latest member of the famed Nehru-Gandhi family dynasty to rule the center-left party that has struggled to win elections in recent years.

"The entire Indian National Congress family would like to convey our best wishes to incoming President Rahul Gandhi, and wish him a successful tenure as he continues to lead from the front," the party wrote on its official Twitter page.

[South America] Chile election: conservative Piñera elected president

http://www.bbc.com/news/world-latin-america-42388019

A conservative billionaire and former president, Sebastián Piñera, has won Chile's presidential election run-off.

His left-wing opponent Alejandro Guillier has conceded victory and congratulated the former president on his win.

With more than 98% counted, Mr Piñera already has over 54% of the vote.

It is a marked move to the right for the country, which is currently led by socialist President Michelle Bachelet. She had backed Mr Guillier.

About 14 million were eligible to vote in the ballot, including Chileans living abroad for the first time.

However, voter turnout was low. It had been thought that a high turntout would favour Mr Guillier.

[France] Macron criticised for marking 40th birthday at opulent chateau


Macron, who turns 40 on Thursday, is spending the weekend with his wife Brigitte and extended family at the chateau of Chambord in France's Loire Valley, the French daily La Nouvelle Republique reported.

With its fairy tale facade, elaborately turreted roofline and vast grounds, Chambord is probably the valley's best-known Renaissance chateau, located about 200 kilometres (125 miles) southwest of Paris.

The Elysee Palace said Macron and his wife were using private funds to pay for their stay.

But the choice of venue was still criticised from some French politicians.

Commissioned nearly 500 years ago by King Francois I (1494-1547), the immense chateau remains the largest of the Loire grand estates, boasting 365 chimneys and a 5,500-hectare (21-square mile) estate.

It also has boasts the largest enclosed forest park in Europe, a long-time favourite for presidential hunts.

The chateau, which attracts some two million visitors each year, has been listed as a regional UNESCO World Heritage cultural site.

Macron, a media darling during his campaign, has seen his image as a monarchical or even "pharaonic" leader climb from the night of his election, which featured a theatrical production at the foot of the Louvre pyramid in Paris.

[Austria] 歐洲觀點 Europinions: 奧地利偏右新聯合政府

https://www.facebook.com/EUROPEopinions/photos/a.690822137682793.1073741828.690584027706604/1496673537097645/?type=3&theater

率領《人民黨》贏得今年國會大選的庫爾茲(Kurz)表示，內閣中財政、經濟、教育、歐盟、文化及法政事務將由人民黨管轄。而現任外交部長的庫爾茲，即將接任總理，即將滿三十一歲的他，將成為歐洲最年輕的政府首長。

《自由黨》黨魁施特拉赫(Strache)即將出任新政府副總理在日前的記者會大轉彎，公開表示，將會繼續支持歐盟，並持續對歐盟持批判態度。極右自由黨成員在新內閣中將負責內政、體育、衛福、公共設施和國防工作，並推選無黨籍的中東專家Karin Kneissl出任外交部長。

她的政治立場多年來與左派較近，也以推廣開放性多元社會為名。在難民潮中，她成為敘利亞難民的寄養家庭，因為多年的中東經驗，Kneissl對於歐洲難民政策提出許多強烈的質疑和批判，引起了奧地利極右派的注目，自由黨也因此曾力邀她參選奧地利總統，遭到Kneissl的拒絕。

這次Kneissl接受極右派人士的邀請，入駐內閣，將Kneissl推到外交部長地位的自由黨，以極端排外、排歐政策著名。而以高度國際觀、親歐著名的新外交部長在種種利益衝突下，將為奧地利的外交帶來什麼樣的震盪？就讓我們持續關注。

[Middle East] Turkey's President Erdogan says he will open an embassy in East Jerusalem

http://www.euronews.com/2017/12/18/turkey-s-president-erdogan-says-he-will-open-an-embassy-in-east-jerusalem?

President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan said Turkey wants to open an embassy in East Jerusalem, following a decision by the Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) to recognize East Jerusalem as the capital of the Palestinian state.

The Muslim nation summit was a response to U.S. President Donald Trump's December 6 decision to recognise Jerusalem as Israel's capital.

His move broke with decades of U.S. policy and international consensus that the city's status must be left to Israeli-Palestinian peace negotiations.

[UK] Bristol refugee murder review accuses police of institutional racism


An independent review has found evidence of institutional racism in the way a police force and a local authority dealt with a disabled Iranian refugee who was murdered by a misguided vigilante who believed he was a paedophile.

The review said Avon and Somerset police and Bristol city council had wrongly perceived Bijan Ebrahimi as a troublemaker rather than a victim and sided with his abusers.

Lawyers for Ebrahimi’s family emphasised the significance of the finding of institutional racism against a police force, the most explicit since the publication in 1999 of Sir William Macpherson’s landmark report on the racist murder of Stephen Lawrence – and the first of its kind against a local authority.

The review, which was ordered by the Safer Bristol executive board, said police and council displayed a “distinct lack of understanding” of Ebrahimi’s plight and thus “unwitting prejudice against him”.

It concluded that more account should have been taken of Ebrahimi’s isolation and vulnerability and that there was “evidence of discriminatory behaviour and institutional racism on the part of Bristol city council and Avon and Somerset constabulary”.

[Africa] South Africa's ANC party leadership vote: Counting under way

http://www.bbc.com/news/world-africa-42382393

Votes are being counted in a leadership election for South Africa's ruling African National Congress (ANC), currently run by President Jacob Zuma.

About 5,000 delegates cast their votes in a bitterly fought race between Deputy President Cyril Ramaphosa and ex-minister Nkosazana Dlamini-Zuma.

Emotions have run high, with delegates shouting each other down as they raised objections over voting rules.

The ANC has governed South Africa since it attained democracy 23 years ago.

The eventual winner will be in a strong position to become national president after elections in 2019.

But the leadership battle has caused fierce political infighting, raising fears the party may split before then.