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Movement for Democratic Change Condemn Torture of Protesters in Zimbabwe

Movement for Democratic Change Condemn Torture of Protesters in Zimbabwe
Stay-at-Home Orders Lead to Changes at Argentina’s Steakhouses
With Children;'s Camps Closed, US Families Face Summer in the Great Indoors
How the Fashionable Masks Face the New Coronavirus Threats

Posted: 15 May 2020 09:17 PM PDT

HARARE, LELEMUKU.COM - Rights groups in Zimbabwe have accused government security forces of abducting and torturing three female supporters of the opposition who were taking part in a protest.

The three women were allegedly abducted Wednesday after taking part in a protest demanding that the government pay those affected by the coronavirus lockdown.

Thabitha Khumalo, a spokeswoman for the Movement for Democratic Change, said the women had been "brutalized and traumatized ... for standing up for the Zimbabwean people who are suffering. We are literally slaves in our own country. This automatically means that the ZANU-PF government has no respect for the Zimbabwean people.

"We are totally, totally disgusted on these abductions and we want justice. Those that carried [out] those abductions must be brought to book, like, yesterday."

Initially, police confirmed arresting the three opposition members on charges of breaking lockdown regulations.But they later denied that, after Zimbabwe Lawyers for Human Rights asked for the women's location so the rights group could legally represent them.

In a statement issued Friday, Zimbabwe police spokesman Paul Nyathi said the three had been located about 80 kilometers north of Harare and were receiving treatment in the capital.He said he would say more once an investigation of the incident was complete.

Robert Shivambu, Amnesty International spokesman in southern Africa, said authorities must hold the perpetrators to account.

"Zimbabwe authorities must launch a full and thorough investigation into the abduction and subsequent torture of female leaders from the opposition," he said. "The three were found badly tortured after they were arrested at a roadblock in Harare on 13 May. Those suspected of criminal responsibility must be brought to justice."

Abductions and disappearances of activists are common in Zimbabwe.They were especially common during the administration of longtime President Robert Mugabe, but they have continued under Mugabe's successor and former vice president, Emmerson Mnangagwa. (VOA)

Stay-at-Home Orders Lead to Changes at Argentina’s Steakhouses

Posted: 15 May 2020 09:13 PM PDT

PARIS, LELEMUKU.COM - People no longer join long lines to get a table at Don Julio, a well-known steakhouse in Buenos Aires, Argentina

Since Argentina's government ordered people to stay at home on March 20, the restaurant has had to change. Don Julio has become a high-end butcher, with plans to sell street food.

Pablo Rivero, the owner of Don Julio, said the goal was to keep alive the feeling of a corner grill, or 'parrilla.' That idea, of a local eatery, is central to Argentine culture – much like a cafe in Paris or a pub in London.

"We are not going to lose it," Rivero said, "so it is a question of finding a way of getting through this."

Argentines have been told to stay at home unless they are considered a key worker or are buying food or essential goods.

The stay-at-home order has meant restaurants and cafes are closed, while small bakeries, grocery stores and butchers remain open.

"The idea of the butcher shop is to give people a shade of Don Julio," said Rivero. He said they would not deliver cooked meat because it was hard to keep up the quality. He added that his business is making plans to sell street food.

"This way we can engage people in something that can represent an income until activity restarts," he said.

Rivero said his 100 employees were still working during the nationwide lockdown - either in the butcher shop or helping to remodel the restaurant.

Gaston Riveira is the head of La Cabrera, another of the city's top parrillas. He said the restaurant was experiencing difficulties during the lockdown, which has been extended to at least May 24.

"We are in a difficult moment because there is no tourism and Argentines are not going out because of the quarantine," Riveira told the Reuters news agency. He added the restaurant had "transformed into a food factory" doing deliveries on a reduced menu.

The coronavirus crisis has hit international demand for Argentine beef, with many restaurants closed, from Asia to Europe. That information comes from Mario Ravettino, president of Argentina's meat exporters group.

Francisco Palazzo lives with his girlfriend in Buenos Aires. He said it was important for people to be able to get a taste of normality. Before the lockdown, the 28-year-old usually ate an 'asado' mixed grill three times a week.

Recently, Palazzo said he bought cooked meat, sausageand black pudding from a parrilla that was now doing take-out.

"It was late, and it made us want to eat an asado [barbecue] and continue with our old habits," he said. (VOA)

With Children;'s Camps Closed, US Families Face Summer in the Great Indoors

Posted: 15 May 2020 09:08 PM PDT

WASHINGTON, LELEMUKU.COM - Welcome to summer in the great indoors! Parents across the United States are learning children's summer camps will be canceled, delayed or moved online because of the coronavirus health crisis.

Public safety measures will affect how boys and girls spend their summer vacation. From New Hampshire to California, families and the camps themselves are struggling. Online campfires and "virtual" fun and games in the living room are becoming more likely.

It is a sharp blow for children — and their parents — who have spent weeks at home during school closures. Many had hoped attending summer camp would be a prize following weeks of homeschooling and social distancing.

The move is also a sharp blow to nonprofit groups that depend on the money they earn from camps.

Young people who were looking forward to working at summer camp jobs have also been affected.

"When we finally found out that schools were going to be closed for the rest of the year, I was like, 'Well, there's always summer camp.' I was really holding out for that," said Rasha Habiby of California. She had planned to send her 10-year-old daughter to her first sleep-away camp. But that is not possible anymore.

Habiby and her husband have demanding jobs. But they chose to keep their children away from her parents to avoid possibly spreading the virus. Now, she said the couple may be forced to ask her parents to watch the children during work hours.

An estimated 20 million American children attend one or more summer camps each year. Their camp fees fuel an $18-billion industry that employs over a million seasonal workers. That information comes from the American Camp Association, which represents more than 3,100 camps.

The association has asked independent health experts to make suggestions for camps. Many camps still hope to open, said Tom Rosenberg, the group's president. Camps are awaiting guidance from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention as well as state and local health officials, he added.

"Most camps are not asking if they're going to open but how they're going to open," Rosenberg said.

Camp Walt Whitman offers a seven-week overnight camp in the White Mountains of New Hampshire. Camp officials sent parents a letter with three proposals: canceling all activities, postponing them or going forward with social distancing and other safety measures. Officials will decide after May 20, director Jed Dorfman said.

For smaller camps, cancelations could lead to financial ruin. Many nonprofits use the money that camps raise for their budgets and to pay for service contracts.

Organizers of some canceled camps have urged parents to donate all or part of this year's camp fees or put the money toward next year's camp.

That led to problems for Galileo Learning, a camp near San Francisco, California. It canceled its camp this summer and credited families for next year.

That angered some parents. The company then asked parents whether they would like all or part of their money returned or whether they would like a credit for future use. In a statement, Galileo said it had stopped paying or dismissed more than 80 percent of its year-round workers.

Other camps are racing to move online.

Interlochen Arts Camp usually has 2,800 young people from 50 countries attend its summer program in Michigan. But this year the camp will move to virtual programs. The camp will be shorter than usual, president Trey Devey said.

The changes are proving difficult for many Americans, including young people.

Delia Graham was looking forward to spending six weeks at Willowbrook Arts Camp, where she has been going since age 5. Now, 10 years later, she is old enough to work as a half-day counselor at the camp near Portland, Oregon.

Graham and her five camp friends have talked in a FaceTime group meeting about what might happen before getting the bad news, she said.

"I didn't think it would get so bad, that it would last this long," she said of the coronavirus pandemic. "I really miss my friends." (VOA)

How the Fashionable Masks Face the New Coronavirus Threats

Posted: 15 May 2020 03:04 PM PDT

WASHINGTON, LELEMUKU.COM - Many people around the world now wear masks, covers for their nose and mouth, when they go out in public. You see masks on people walking their dogs, buyingfood, riding bicycles and working at their jobs.

In many places the masks are required by law as a measure to prevent the spread of COVID-19. But commercial masks are in short supply. Most people agree that those rare objects should go to health care professionals and others on the so-called front lines of the fight againstcoronavirus.

So, mask-making has gotten more personal for the rest of us and more creative in design, as a result. It seems masks are becoming the fashion statement of 2020.

The online news media site Insider recently published photos of 17 of the most creative masks it found around the world. Many of the mask makers are artists, but not all. The photos include a knitted piece of pink and red from Icelandic-based cloth artist, Ýrúrarí. It is a large mask made to look like a big mouth with a long pink tongue hanging out.

The report also shows a smart design from leather worker Anissa Mekrabech of France. She created a mask with see-through material over the mouth. It permitspeople who read lips, because they can not hear, to continue to communicate during the pandemic

Some of the masks among the photos are beautiful. Some artists made masks covered in shiny, colorful jewels or mirror-like material. Another uses paint to create bright pictures on paper masks. A few of the masks are made of plastic and other waste material found on the street. One clothing designer even made a special mask to go with wedding clothes.

We might be covering our faces and mouths for quite a while. And not just for COVID-19. There are lots of possible viruses ahead. And there is air pollution and toxic dust, allergies and bad smells. So, are masks our fashion forward look?

Fashion bible Vogue seems to think it might. On May 5, it published 92 Cloth Masks To Shop Now. Writer Sarah Spelling notes that that mask cover a large part of the face. So, she writes, it is not surprising people are looking for masks that look good. And the story directs readers how and where to buy them.

And, in Lithuania this week, Reuters reported on a special fashion show held in the capital, Vilnius. There were no live models or crowds around a runway. Instead, the city celebrated creative face covers in photographs on 21 huge signs around town. The billboards show men, women and children wearing masks as part of a so-called "Mask Fashion Week."

Those shown in the photos include local artists, musicians, and other townspeople chosen at random. Even the mayor of the city is captured on a Mask Fashion Week sign.

Members of a local Facebook group called Mask Your Fashionchose the masks for the signs. Designer Julija Janus established the group to share new designs for masks and advice on how to make them at home.

"A mask is a good way to display your creativity, to express yourself. And it's a good activity to do when you're sitting at home with the kids", said Janus.

Masks can also be used, or not used, to make political or cultural statements. President Trump does not wear one, so far. He has said he does not think a mask would send the right message when he meets with world leaders. He also suggested his wearing one might cause unease among the American public.

But some people have criticizedhis lack of mask use in public. They argue the decision belittles the seriousness of the pandemic. And last month, Trump's vice-president Mike Pence was denounced by many for not wearing a mask when he visited with a COVID-19 patient at the Mayo Clinic, a famous medical center in the American state of Minnesota.

Pence later said he should have worn a mask at Mayo. And he put on a mask two days after for a visit to an American automobile factory. (VOA)