Le Bluecar: the new car-sharing scheme that could put Paris streets ahead
October 2, 2011 No Comment
The Autolib electric car is clean, green, chic and cheap. But Parisian pedestrians need to watch – and listen – out Et voilà! From the country that gave us the Vélib – and by extension Boris Bikes – say bonjour to the electric Bluecar. Hot on the wheels of Paris’s self-service bicycle scheme comes Autolib, a car sharing idea that the city claims is a world first. By 2013 officials hope to have around 5,000 Bluecars zipping around Paris, cutting noise and air pollution and discouraging car ownership. On a sunny Sunday on the Avenue Trudaine, the family-friendly part of the 9th arrondissement, a curious crowd gather round a line of Bluecars brought in for a two-month trial. As the more adventurous sign-up for a test drive, bemused diners at a nearby cafe watch the electric cars – which are not actually blue but unpainted aluminium – nipping up and down the street. There are no complaints about fumes or noise because neither exist. If you can’t see a Bluecar you won’t know it’s there. Annick Lepetit, in charge of transport at city hall, is on hand to declare the Bluecar the future of urban motoring and praise the vision of Bertrand Delanoë, the Socialist mayor who devised both Autolib and its two-wheeled forerunner. Owning your own car, says Lepetit, is just so passé. “Private cars are expensive and people are using them less and less in cities,” she said. “We’re moving into another culture, the culture of car sharing. It’s the same principle as Velib: you use the car, leave it and that’s it. Simple.” The enthusiasm from Lepetit continued: “I’ve driven one and they’re better than good, they’re incredible. They’re ecological and economical. It’s a real revolution and I can see it being copied in other cities.” Jacques Bravo, mayor of the 9th arrondissement, takes a spin in a Bluecar and returns converted to its merits. “We had to stop and ask a pedestrian to get out the way because the car was so silent,” he said. So far, so self-congratulatory. But not everyone is convinced. “I’ve lived here for 30 years and nobody asked us if we wanted this,” said an angry local. “Is that what you call democracy?” It could be that his rant referred to billionaire industrialist Vincent Bolloré, whose company has reportedly invested €1bn in the Bluecar and is making the special batteries to power it. Bolloré is also a friend of president Nicolas Sarkozy. “This is all about friends with friends,” mutters the unhappy passerby. Morald Chibout, Bolloré’s man at the scene, shrugs and says the transport revolution, expected to make his company a handsome profit within seven years, will not be derailed by a handful of nimbys. He tells a baffled six-year-old this is the car of the future and she is the driver of tomorrow. “Do I have to come back tomorrow? I’m at school then,” she replied. Chibout says the firm has already been approached by “several other cities”. Is London one of them? He gives an enigmatic smile. He won’t say. Somehow it’s hard to see Boris Johnson, the London mayor, fitting behind the wheel of a Bluecar, or Jeremy Clarkson test-driving one. The vehicle has been described as a “bubble car”, but looks more like the Smart car’s bigger brother. For those interested in the spec, it’s worth mentioning that it was designed by the Italian firm that makes Ferraris. But that’s where the similarity ends. The Bluecar goes forwards and backwards, has four seats, a tiny boot and an automatic gearbox. Plug it in for eight hours and it will go from 0-100kpm in 6.7 seconds, with a top speed of 130kph. It’ll last for around 250km per charge. It also boasts a GPS to stop drivers getting lost – and perhaps to allow Autolib authorities to keep track of you. If you prang it, there’s a big blue button to call for assistance. This raises the alarm at a control centre and hey presto, someone comes to the rescue – in theory at least. Before hiring a car, drivers must register at Autolib’s office in central Paris or kiosks located near pickup stations. A driving licence, ID card and credit card is required, along with a returnable deposit. Users will be able to sign up for daily, weekly or annual membership and prices range from €10 to €144 for a year, depending on the length of time the car is used. What’s not to like? It’s clean, green, cheap, compact, comfortable and surprisingly nippy. But life just got a whole lot more dangerous for the long-suffering Paris pedestrian. Never mind stop, look, listen. If you get flattened by a Bluecar, you won’t have heard it coming. France Europe Carbon emissions Climate change Kim Willsher guardian.co.uk
Continue reading …Le Bluecar: the new car-sharing scheme that could put Paris streets ahead
October 2, 2011 No Comment
The Autolib electric car is clean, green, chic and cheap. But Parisian pedestrians need to watch – and listen – out Et voilà! From the country that gave us the Vélib – and by extension Boris Bikes – say bonjour to the electric Bluecar. Hot on the wheels of Paris’s self-service bicycle scheme comes Autolib, a car sharing idea that the city claims is a world first. By 2013 officials hope to have around 5,000 Bluecars zipping around Paris, cutting noise and air pollution and discouraging car ownership. On a sunny Sunday on the Avenue Trudaine, the family-friendly part of the 9th arrondissement, a curious crowd gather round a line of Bluecars brought in for a two-month trial. As the more adventurous sign-up for a test drive, bemused diners at a nearby cafe watch the electric cars – which are not actually blue but unpainted aluminium – nipping up and down the street. There are no complaints about fumes or noise because neither exist. If you can’t see a Bluecar you won’t know it’s there. Annick Lepetit, in charge of transport at city hall, is on hand to declare the Bluecar the future of urban motoring and praise the vision of Bertrand Delanoë, the Socialist mayor who devised both Autolib and its two-wheeled forerunner. Owning your own car, says Lepetit, is just so passé. “Private cars are expensive and people are using them less and less in cities,” she said. “We’re moving into another culture, the culture of car sharing. It’s the same principle as Velib: you use the car, leave it and that’s it. Simple.” The enthusiasm from Lepetit continued: “I’ve driven one and they’re better than good, they’re incredible. They’re ecological and economical. It’s a real revolution and I can see it being copied in other cities.” Jacques Bravo, mayor of the 9th arrondissement, takes a spin in a Bluecar and returns converted to its merits. “We had to stop and ask a pedestrian to get out the way because the car was so silent,” he said. So far, so self-congratulatory. But not everyone is convinced. “I’ve lived here for 30 years and nobody asked us if we wanted this,” said an angry local. “Is that what you call democracy?” It could be that his rant referred to billionaire industrialist Vincent Bolloré, whose company has reportedly invested €1bn in the Bluecar and is making the special batteries to power it. Bolloré is also a friend of president Nicolas Sarkozy. “This is all about friends with friends,” mutters the unhappy passerby. Morald Chibout, Bolloré’s man at the scene, shrugs and says the transport revolution, expected to make his company a handsome profit within seven years, will not be derailed by a handful of nimbys. He tells a baffled six-year-old this is the car of the future and she is the driver of tomorrow. “Do I have to come back tomorrow? I’m at school then,” she replied. Chibout says the firm has already been approached by “several other cities”. Is London one of them? He gives an enigmatic smile. He won’t say. Somehow it’s hard to see Boris Johnson, the London mayor, fitting behind the wheel of a Bluecar, or Jeremy Clarkson test-driving one. The vehicle has been described as a “bubble car”, but looks more like the Smart car’s bigger brother. For those interested in the spec, it’s worth mentioning that it was designed by the Italian firm that makes Ferraris. But that’s where the similarity ends. The Bluecar goes forwards and backwards, has four seats, a tiny boot and an automatic gearbox. Plug it in for eight hours and it will go from 0-100kpm in 6.7 seconds, with a top speed of 130kph. It’ll last for around 250km per charge. It also boasts a GPS to stop drivers getting lost – and perhaps to allow Autolib authorities to keep track of you. If you prang it, there’s a big blue button to call for assistance. This raises the alarm at a control centre and hey presto, someone comes to the rescue – in theory at least. Before hiring a car, drivers must register at Autolib’s office in central Paris or kiosks located near pickup stations. A driving licence, ID card and credit card is required, along with a returnable deposit. Users will be able to sign up for daily, weekly or annual membership and prices range from €10 to €144 for a year, depending on the length of time the car is used. What’s not to like? It’s clean, green, cheap, compact, comfortable and surprisingly nippy. But life just got a whole lot more dangerous for the long-suffering Paris pedestrian. Never mind stop, look, listen. If you get flattened by a Bluecar, you won’t have heard it coming. France Europe Carbon emissions Climate change Kim Willsher guardian.co.uk
Continue reading …
Force criticised by protesters, who claim they were deliberately led on to road before being penned in and arrested The New York police department has come under criticism for heavy-handed tactics during the Occupy Wall Street march over Brooklyn bridge, after more than 700 protesters were held for several hours. Activists, as well as commentators following the protest against inequality and corporate excess, claim the response of the city’s police force to the peaceful event was vastly out of proportion. Almost 1,000 people have been arrested in two weeks – substantially more than the number of financiers who led the world into the 2008 economic meltdown. As Salman Rushdie put it in a tweet: “The world’s economy has been wrecked by these rapacious traders. Yet it is the protesters who are jailed.” The march began on Saturday afternoon in Zuccotti Park, the Manhattan the base of the core of 200 or so OWS demonstrators. By the time it reached Brooklyn bridge it had swollen to several thousand. Accounts vary as to how about 500 protesters ended up on one lane of the road across the bridge, where they were all penned in with orange netting and arrested. Some accused the police of leading them on to the road as a sort of trap. Video clips posted on YouTube , showing a small body of officers marching on to the road ahead of the mass of demonstrators, appeared to support this view. But the NYPD rejected those claims, saying that many warnings were given by police to protesters to stay on the pedestrian walkway that runs across the bridge at a level above the road. Paul Browne, the deputy commissioner, said protesters were clearly told that if they went on to the road they would be arrested. “Some complied and took the walkway without being arrested. Others proceeded on the Brooklyn-bound vehicular roadway and were,” he said. The police version of events was supported by some protesters. Malcolm Harris, a blogger who took part in the march, tweeted that the police were wrong-footed. “The police didn’t lead us on to the bridge. They were backing the fuck up.” Other participants suggested the confluence of so many on the road was a misunderstanding. Robert Cammiso, 48, told the Associated Press: “We were supposed to go up the pedestrian roadway. There was a huge funnel, a bottleneck, and we couldn’t fit. People jumped from the walkway on to the roadway. We thought the roadway was open to us.” The NYPD was accused of over-weening behaviour towards the protesters once they were “kettled” on the bridge. Video footage showed police grappling with protesters and strong-arming them away, despite no apparent signs of violence http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a1tCYAEDl6g. The same footage shows the arrest of a young woman or girl wearing a cloth hat. Her age is not clear – she could be as young as 13 or as old as 20 – but the crowd clearly thought she was a child and chanted: “Shame, shame, shame.” Others chanted: “You can’t arrest an idea” and “Let us out, let us out.” The Battle of Brooklyn Bridge, as some dubbed it, came as protests begun in Manhattan spread across America. There were smaller but substantial demonstrations over the weekend in Los Angeles , Chicago , Boston , Denver , Washington and several other cities. In New York, most of those arrested were released early on Sunday with a citation for disorderly conduct. Brooklyn bridge was reopened by late evening, but the dramatic scenes there and the prevailing feeling that the police action was excessive are only likely to fuel the demonstrations as they carry on this week. Occupy Wall Street Protest New York United States Ed Pilkington guardian.co.uk
Continue reading …Force criticised by protesters, who claim they were deliberately led on to road before being penned in and arrested The New York police department has come under criticism for heavy-handed tactics during the Occupy Wall Street march over Brooklyn bridge, after more than 700 protesters were held for several hours. Activists, as well as commentators following the protest against inequality and corporate excess, claim the response of the city’s police force to the peaceful event was vastly out of proportion. Almost 1,000 people have been arrested in two weeks – substantially more than the number of financiers who led the world into the 2008 economic meltdown. As Salman Rushdie put it in a tweet: “The world’s economy has been wrecked by these rapacious traders. Yet it is the protesters who are jailed.” The march began on Saturday afternoon in Zuccotti Park, the Manhattan the base of the core of 200 or so OWS demonstrators. By the time it reached Brooklyn bridge it had swollen to several thousand. Accounts vary as to how about 500 protesters ended up on one lane of the road across the bridge, where they were all penned in with orange netting and arrested. Some accused the police of leading them on to the road as a sort of trap. Video clips posted on YouTube , showing a small body of officers marching on to the road ahead of the mass of demonstrators, appeared to support this view. But the NYPD rejected those claims, saying that many warnings were given by police to protesters to stay on the pedestrian walkway that runs across the bridge at a level above the road. Paul Browne, the deputy commissioner, said protesters were clearly told that if they went on to the road they would be arrested. “Some complied and took the walkway without being arrested. Others proceeded on the Brooklyn-bound vehicular roadway and were,” he said. The police version of events was supported by some protesters. Malcolm Harris, a blogger who took part in the march, tweeted that the police were wrong-footed. “The police didn’t lead us on to the bridge. They were backing the fuck up.” Other participants suggested the confluence of so many on the road was a misunderstanding. Robert Cammiso, 48, told the Associated Press: “We were supposed to go up the pedestrian roadway. There was a huge funnel, a bottleneck, and we couldn’t fit. People jumped from the walkway on to the roadway. We thought the roadway was open to us.” The NYPD was accused of over-weening behaviour towards the protesters once they were “kettled” on the bridge. Video footage showed police grappling with protesters and strong-arming them away, despite no apparent signs of violence http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a1tCYAEDl6g. The same footage shows the arrest of a young woman or girl wearing a cloth hat. Her age is not clear – she could be as young as 13 or as old as 20 – but the crowd clearly thought she was a child and chanted: “Shame, shame, shame.” Others chanted: “You can’t arrest an idea” and “Let us out, let us out.” The Battle of Brooklyn Bridge, as some dubbed it, came as protests begun in Manhattan spread across America. There were smaller but substantial demonstrations over the weekend in Los Angeles , Chicago , Boston , Denver , Washington and several other cities. In New York, most of those arrested were released early on Sunday with a citation for disorderly conduct. Brooklyn bridge was reopened by late evening, but the dramatic scenes there and the prevailing feeling that the police action was excessive are only likely to fuel the demonstrations as they carry on this week. Occupy Wall Street Protest New York United States Ed Pilkington guardian.co.uk
Continue reading …Apparently there was a tea party convention in Illinois called TeaCon , which attracted very serious and sensible conservatives like Glenn Beck, Dana Loesch and the always, very serious Andrew Breitbart. Guess who else was on the bill? Rep. Joe Walsh, the deadbeat dad. It takes a very bad family man understand about the virtues of supporting the family values party I suppose. A judge ruled that he has to explain why he’s 100,000 behind in child support. A Chicago judge issued a preliminary ruling Wednesday against U.S. Rep. Joe Walsh (R-Ill.) in his child-support dispute with his ex-wife, ordering the Tea Party favorite to explain why he appears to be $100,000 behind in child-support payments.Cook County Circuit Judge Raul Vega also wanted to know why Walsh wasn’t in court Wednesday — the McHenry Republican’s ex-wife, Laura Walsh, was there — and initially said he expected him to show up for the next hearing… read on Anyway, with the class and dignity that only Breitbart can bring to any event, he spews obscenities at Janeane Garofalo in this video and is just a vile in the next. Little Green Footballs: Here’s one of the star speakers at TeaBagCon this weekend, Andrew Breitbart, spewing obscenities at his enemies. He calls Janeane Garofalo “Hollywood’s sympathy f*ck,” to a wildly cheering audience of conservatives. — He follows up this classless rant by telling union leaders James Hoffa and Richard Trumka; “F*ck you,” again to wild cheers and applause. Meanwhile, we learn that one of the event’s main organizers, Chicago Tea Party Patriots Director Steve Stevlic, was arrested last September for soliciting a prostitute . Teabag family values, proudly on display. UPDATE at 10/1/11 11:02:00 am And the scandal is getting even more interesting. Breitbart’s own far right blogger Warner Todd Huston notes that TeaCon organizer Steve Stevlic, whose whereabouts are currently unknown, may also have been playing some funny games with the Chicago Tea Party’s money . You can click over to LGF and watch the other video. He’s a very angry person. But I’m sure the Beltway media will still take him seriously because they love conservative street performers and the rodeo clowns they produce going back to Jack Abramoff. Bill O’Reilly always pulls a sliver of a video during his Fox show to make sure his audience hears profanities or what he decides is vulgar language or inappropriate behavior from some lefty every chance he gets. Being part of the fair and balanced network I hope he’d give these videos a chance with his crowd. It would be the only fair thing to do.
Continue reading …Apparently there was a tea party convention in Illinois called TeaCon , which attracted very serious and sensible conservatives like Glenn Beck, Dana Loesch and the always, very serious Andrew Breitbart. Guess who else was on the bill? Rep. Joe Walsh, the deadbeat dad. It takes a very bad family man understand about the virtues of supporting the family values party I suppose. A judge ruled that he has to explain why he’s 100,000 behind in child support. A Chicago judge issued a preliminary ruling Wednesday against U.S. Rep. Joe Walsh (R-Ill.) in his child-support dispute with his ex-wife, ordering the Tea Party favorite to explain why he appears to be $100,000 behind in child-support payments.Cook County Circuit Judge Raul Vega also wanted to know why Walsh wasn’t in court Wednesday — the McHenry Republican’s ex-wife, Laura Walsh, was there — and initially said he expected him to show up for the next hearing… read on Anyway, with the class and dignity that only Breitbart can bring to any event, he spews obscenities at Janeane Garofalo in this video and is just a vile in the next. Little Green Footballs: Here’s one of the star speakers at TeaBagCon this weekend, Andrew Breitbart, spewing obscenities at his enemies. He calls Janeane Garofalo “Hollywood’s sympathy f*ck,” to a wildly cheering audience of conservatives. — He follows up this classless rant by telling union leaders James Hoffa and Richard Trumka; “F*ck you,” again to wild cheers and applause. Meanwhile, we learn that one of the event’s main organizers, Chicago Tea Party Patriots Director Steve Stevlic, was arrested last September for soliciting a prostitute . Teabag family values, proudly on display. UPDATE at 10/1/11 11:02:00 am And the scandal is getting even more interesting. Breitbart’s own far right blogger Warner Todd Huston notes that TeaCon organizer Steve Stevlic, whose whereabouts are currently unknown, may also have been playing some funny games with the Chicago Tea Party’s money . You can click over to LGF and watch the other video. He’s a very angry person. But I’m sure the Beltway media will still take him seriously because they love conservative street performers and the rodeo clowns they produce going back to Jack Abramoff. Bill O’Reilly always pulls a sliver of a video during his Fox show to make sure his audience hears profanities or what he decides is vulgar language or inappropriate behavior from some lefty every chance he gets. Being part of the fair and balanced network I hope he’d give these videos a chance with his crowd. It would be the only fair thing to do.
Continue reading …
Family of Meredith Kercher will be in court to hear outcome of appeal by US student and her former Italian boyfriend Amanda Knox and her former Italian boyfriend will make a last attempt to persuade the court hearing their appeals that they had nothing to do with the murder of Knox’s ex-flatmate, the British student, Meredith Kercher tomorrow. Members of the victim’s family will fly into Perugia for the keenly awaited outcome, but were expected to arrive too late to hear the final pleas of Kercher’s convicted killers. Their presence, just feet away from the relatives of the two appellants, will add an extra layer of tension to a case already brimming with drama and expectation. The Kerchers’ legal representatives at the appeal have unequivocally aligned themselves with the prosecution’s case that Knox slashed the British student’s throat as she was held immobile by Knox’s then boyfriend, Raffaele Sollecito, and Rudy Guede, a smalltime drugs trafficker from the Ivory Coast. But the family’s lawyer, Francesco Maresca, told the Guardian: “Just as they respected the verdict at the trial, so they will respect the outcome of the appeal.” Knox attended mass on Saturday in the prison near Perugia where she has been held for almost four years since her arrest. The prison chaplain, Father Saulo Scarabattoli, said she had played the guitar during the service, as she did every weekend. “You can imagine how she is,” he said. “But Amanda evinces great strength and hope.” In June, two independent court-appointed experts dismissed as unreliable key forensic evidence against the University of Washington student and her former lover. Since then, a widespread expectation has built up in the US that their appeals will be upheld. In Italy, public opinion – once largely hostile to Knox, seen as an angel-faced killer – has become significantly more divided. One of the country’s most widely read magazines, Oggi, has campaigned to draw attention to the weaknesses in the prosecution case. And an MP for Silvio Berlusconi’s party, Rocco Girlanda, who visited her on Saturday, has become an important advocate of her cause. But what little evidence there is suggests most Italians believe Knox and Sollecito were involved in Kercher’s murder. In a viewers’ poll conducted by Sky Italia after the prosecution wound up its case, only 27% of respondents thought the couple were innocent. If that balance of sentiment is reflected among the six lay judges who will help to reach Monday’s decision, it could tell against Knox and her former boyfriend, even if the two professional judges are convinced of their innocence. The court president, Claudio Pratillo Hellman, has two votes to cast; the other full-time judge, Massimo Zanetti, one. But the lay judges also have a vote each, and can therefore decide the outcome. According to a local paper, Corriere dell’Umbria, clandestine bookmakers – betting is a state monopoly in Italy – were so uncertain of the outcome many were refusing to take bets. Those who did were offering identical odds of 2 to 1 on both a conviction and an acquittal. The shortest odds – evens – were on a reduction of the appellants’ sentences. Whether that would allow Knox and Sollecito to walk free would depend on how much was lopped off their sentences and the amount of remission they were granted. In any event, both the prosecution and defence can opt for a final appeal to the court of cassation in Rome, though it normally rules only on points of law. Knox, who arrived in Italy less than a month before the killing, was sentenced to 26 years at the trial two years ago. Sollecito, who had known Knox for just six days, was given a 25-year sentence. Their lawyers have argued Kercher was killed by Guede alone during a break-in. They have poured scorn on the prosecutors’ theory of a sex game that got out of hand and highlighted the fact that the prosecutors have failed to come up with a motive for the killing. Amanda Knox Meredith Kercher Italy Europe United States John Hooper guardian.co.uk
Continue reading …Family of Meredith Kercher will be in court to hear outcome of appeal by US student and her former Italian boyfriend Amanda Knox and her former Italian boyfriend will make a last attempt to persuade the court hearing their appeals that they had nothing to do with the murder of Knox’s ex-flatmate, the British student, Meredith Kercher tomorrow. Members of the victim’s family will fly into Perugia for the keenly awaited outcome, but were expected to arrive too late to hear the final pleas of Kercher’s convicted killers. Their presence, just feet away from the relatives of the two appellants, will add an extra layer of tension to a case already brimming with drama and expectation. The Kerchers’ legal representatives at the appeal have unequivocally aligned themselves with the prosecution’s case that Knox slashed the British student’s throat as she was held immobile by Knox’s then boyfriend, Raffaele Sollecito, and Rudy Guede, a smalltime drugs trafficker from the Ivory Coast. But the family’s lawyer, Francesco Maresca, told the Guardian: “Just as they respected the verdict at the trial, so they will respect the outcome of the appeal.” Knox attended mass on Saturday in the prison near Perugia where she has been held for almost four years since her arrest. The prison chaplain, Father Saulo Scarabattoli, said she had played the guitar during the service, as she did every weekend. “You can imagine how she is,” he said. “But Amanda evinces great strength and hope.” In June, two independent court-appointed experts dismissed as unreliable key forensic evidence against the University of Washington student and her former lover. Since then, a widespread expectation has built up in the US that their appeals will be upheld. In Italy, public opinion – once largely hostile to Knox, seen as an angel-faced killer – has become significantly more divided. One of the country’s most widely read magazines, Oggi, has campaigned to draw attention to the weaknesses in the prosecution case. And an MP for Silvio Berlusconi’s party, Rocco Girlanda, who visited her on Saturday, has become an important advocate of her cause. But what little evidence there is suggests most Italians believe Knox and Sollecito were involved in Kercher’s murder. In a viewers’ poll conducted by Sky Italia after the prosecution wound up its case, only 27% of respondents thought the couple were innocent. If that balance of sentiment is reflected among the six lay judges who will help to reach Monday’s decision, it could tell against Knox and her former boyfriend, even if the two professional judges are convinced of their innocence. The court president, Claudio Pratillo Hellman, has two votes to cast; the other full-time judge, Massimo Zanetti, one. But the lay judges also have a vote each, and can therefore decide the outcome. According to a local paper, Corriere dell’Umbria, clandestine bookmakers – betting is a state monopoly in Italy – were so uncertain of the outcome many were refusing to take bets. Those who did were offering identical odds of 2 to 1 on both a conviction and an acquittal. The shortest odds – evens – were on a reduction of the appellants’ sentences. Whether that would allow Knox and Sollecito to walk free would depend on how much was lopped off their sentences and the amount of remission they were granted. In any event, both the prosecution and defence can opt for a final appeal to the court of cassation in Rome, though it normally rules only on points of law. Knox, who arrived in Italy less than a month before the killing, was sentenced to 26 years at the trial two years ago. Sollecito, who had known Knox for just six days, was given a 25-year sentence. Their lawyers have argued Kercher was killed by Guede alone during a break-in. They have poured scorn on the prosecutors’ theory of a sex game that got out of hand and highlighted the fact that the prosecutors have failed to come up with a motive for the killing. Amanda Knox Meredith Kercher Italy Europe United States John Hooper guardian.co.uk
Continue reading …Family of Meredith Kercher will be in court to hear outcome of appeal by US student and her former Italian boyfriend Amanda Knox and her former Italian boyfriend will make a last attempt to persuade the court hearing their appeals that they had nothing to do with the murder of Knox’s ex-flatmate, the British student, Meredith Kercher tomorrow. Members of the victim’s family will fly into Perugia for the keenly awaited outcome, but were expected to arrive too late to hear the final pleas of Kercher’s convicted killers. Their presence, just feet away from the relatives of the two appellants, will add an extra layer of tension to a case already brimming with drama and expectation. The Kerchers’ legal representatives at the appeal have unequivocally aligned themselves with the prosecution’s case that Knox slashed the British student’s throat as she was held immobile by Knox’s then boyfriend, Raffaele Sollecito, and Rudy Guede, a smalltime drugs trafficker from the Ivory Coast. But the family’s lawyer, Francesco Maresca, told the Guardian: “Just as they respected the verdict at the trial, so they will respect the outcome of the appeal.” Knox attended mass on Saturday in the prison near Perugia where she has been held for almost four years since her arrest. The prison chaplain, Father Saulo Scarabattoli, said she had played the guitar during the service, as she did every weekend. “You can imagine how she is,” he said. “But Amanda evinces great strength and hope.” In June, two independent court-appointed experts dismissed as unreliable key forensic evidence against the University of Washington student and her former lover. Since then, a widespread expectation has built up in the US that their appeals will be upheld. In Italy, public opinion – once largely hostile to Knox, seen as an angel-faced killer – has become significantly more divided. One of the country’s most widely read magazines, Oggi, has campaigned to draw attention to the weaknesses in the prosecution case. And an MP for Silvio Berlusconi’s party, Rocco Girlanda, who visited her on Saturday, has become an important advocate of her cause. But what little evidence there is suggests most Italians believe Knox and Sollecito were involved in Kercher’s murder. In a viewers’ poll conducted by Sky Italia after the prosecution wound up its case, only 27% of respondents thought the couple were innocent. If that balance of sentiment is reflected among the six lay judges who will help to reach Monday’s decision, it could tell against Knox and her former boyfriend, even if the two professional judges are convinced of their innocence. The court president, Claudio Pratillo Hellman, has two votes to cast; the other full-time judge, Massimo Zanetti, one. But the lay judges also have a vote each, and can therefore decide the outcome. According to a local paper, Corriere dell’Umbria, clandestine bookmakers – betting is a state monopoly in Italy – were so uncertain of the outcome many were refusing to take bets. Those who did were offering identical odds of 2 to 1 on both a conviction and an acquittal. The shortest odds – evens – were on a reduction of the appellants’ sentences. Whether that would allow Knox and Sollecito to walk free would depend on how much was lopped off their sentences and the amount of remission they were granted. In any event, both the prosecution and defence can opt for a final appeal to the court of cassation in Rome, though it normally rules only on points of law. Knox, who arrived in Italy less than a month before the killing, was sentenced to 26 years at the trial two years ago. Sollecito, who had known Knox for just six days, was given a 25-year sentence. Their lawyers have argued Kercher was killed by Guede alone during a break-in. They have poured scorn on the prosecutors’ theory of a sex game that got out of hand and highlighted the fact that the prosecutors have failed to come up with a motive for the killing. Amanda Knox Meredith Kercher Italy Europe United States John Hooper guardian.co.uk
Continue reading …
Conditions for remaining residents deteriorating in city still held by Gaddafi loyalists, says doctor Residents trapped in fighting for the Libyan coastal city of Sirte have run out of basic medical supplies and are resorting to drinking contaminated water to survive as conditions deteriorate, a Libyan doctor who was in the city at the weekend said. Dr Siraj Assouri, who was travelling from Sirte to nearby Misrata, said: “The conditions have been getting worse and worse. There is no medicine for heart disease or blood pressure or baby milk or nappies. There is very little water that is drinkable. The water is contaminated with waste oil. Our forces are close to the centre but there are other areas still under the control of Gaddafi loyalists where they have been putting up a very strong fight. They still control 40% of the city.” His comments came as a ceasefire announced by the new government’s forces brought a lull in the fighting and allowed hundreds of residents of the city, whose population is normally around 100,000, to leave via queues at checkpoints. The two-day truce is expected to be followed by an all-out attack on the positions still held by pro-Gaddafi loyalists in an attempt to bring the country’s war to a final conclusion. Residents, many of them supporters of the country’s former leader, confirmed the bleak account of life inside Sirte. Some blamed continuing Nato air raids on Sirte for causing civilian casualties. “The revolutionaries camping at the frontline of Sirte have given residents two days to leave the city, which will allow for the evacuation of large numbers of civilians,” said the National Transitional Council leader, Mustafa Abdel Jalil. The truce was declared by Libya’s new transitional authority, which says it had ordered a halt in operations to allow civilians to flee before it launched a final assault. The depiction of conditions in Sirte follows a warning at the weekend by an International Red Cross team of a humanitarian crisis. The team was able to deliver body bags and war wounded kits but was not able to enter the main hospital itself on Saturday – despite negotiating a safe passage from both sides – because of fighting that flared up. According to the Red Cross, some 10,000 people have fled Sirte. “The hospital is facing a huge influx of patients, medical supplies are running out and there is a desperate need for oxygen. On top of that, the water reservoir has been damaged,” the ICRC said in a statement. The rapidly deteriorating situation follows several weeks of fighting, with anti-Gaddafi fighters now holding positions about three miles from the city centre, according to commander Mustafa al-Rubaie. Last week, the Libyan defence ministry announced that Sirte’s port, airport and military base were all under its control. Rubaie added that fighters had seized control of Sirte’s first residential district and a hotel where Gaddafi’s snipers were based. “There is heavy fighting going on in the streets of Sirte right now,” he said. “The enemy is besieged from the south, east and west but it’s still in possession of highly sophisticated weapons and a large amount of ammunition.” But Rubaie said Gaddafi forces were in control of strategic positions inside the city, including high-rise buildings where snipers are positioned, making the revolutionary forces’ advance slow and hard.”The plan is that the eastern and western forces will meet in the middle of Sirte,” Rubaie said. “When we reach this point, we will celebrate the liberation of Sirte.” Capture of the city – as well as another loyalist stronghold Bani Walid — has become an increasingly urgent priority for Libya’s new rulers who have vowed not to push ahead with plans for new interim cabinet and elections until the country is fully liberated. Concerns have been growing that slow progress against the last holdouts is contributing to increasing frustration among ordinary Libyans and the vacuum of power as different factions and individuals have jostled for influence. Libya Middle East Africa Peter Beaumont guardian.co.uk
Continue reading …