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 IPOB Rejects Proscription Judgment

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The Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB) has rejected an Abuja Federal High Court judgment affirming its proscription as a terrorist organisation.

In a statement by IPOB’s Media and Publicity Secretary, Emma Powerful, in Awka, the Anambra State capital on Friday, the group said it was only in Nigeria that a harmless organisation could be declared as terrorist and proscribed.

While wondering why some Fulani herdsmen that had caused pains and agony to most Nigerian families were being handled with kid gloves by the Federal Government, the group insisted that nothing would stop it from its struggle for an independent state of Biafra.

The statement read in part, “It didn’t come to us as a surprise that the Federal High Court of Nigeria in Abuja on Thursday, January 18, 2018, upheld its obnoxious order proscribing the activities of IPOB, when everybody knows that the organisation is peaceful and has not killed an ant, not to talk of taking a human life.

“Acting Chief Judge, Abdu Kafarati, while delivering judgment on the application brought by IPOB, resolved that the order he made on September 20, 2017, proscribing IPOB was validly issued.

“We remain at a loss to understand how the court could have come to this conclusion in view of the fact that there is no evidence whatsoever to indicate that IPOB is an armed or violent group like some Fulani herdsmen.

“Simply put, a judge cannot be ignorant of the law and at the same time lack conscience. What Abdu Kafarati has displayed, by upholding his originally flawed judgment, is nothing short of judicial impunity, recklessness and raw wickedness.

“He failed to address all the issues before him but rather chose to be selective. The simple question which ordinary people have been asking all along is this; what activity or aspect of IPOB operations can be regarded as constituting a terrorist act?

“Can Judge Abdu Kafarati, the DSS or Attorney General’s office name one verifiable incident of breach of peace, murder, arson or rape – usually associated with Fulani herdsmen – that IPOB has ever been associated with?

“Instead of addressing these simple questions, Kafarati spent all his time outlining why tagging IPOB a terrorist organisation inside his chambers is legal. But that wasn’t the question before him for determination.

“How can you term an organisation a terrorist group when that group has not done anything remotely resembling a terrorist act?”

The group maintained that there was no recorded or verifiable instance of violence associated with IPOB, except holding public rallies.

Powerful added, “It beats common sense and human decency that an entirely peaceful organisation, agitating for their inalienable right to self-determination, guaranteed under all known laws to man, can be so cruelly and crudely labelled a terrorist group, because some persons see IPOB as an impediment in their quest to make Southern Nigeria an Islamic region.

“Under such circumstance, it will be difficult to fault President Trump’s description of Africa as a “shit-hole”.

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The Peruvian Government Has Officially Classified Transgender, Nonbinary And Intersex People As “Mentally ill”

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According to the country’s ministry of health, the controversial decision was made to ensure the country’s public health services could “guarantee full coverage of medical attention for mental health” for the trans community.

It also categorises “dual-role transvestitism,” “fetishistic transvestism,” and “other gender identity disorders” under the same bracket of mental illness.

The new law will change language in the Essential Health Insurance Plan (PEAS) to reflect the view of trans and intersex people as a mental health disorder.

Trans groups across Peru have loudly condemned the decision as a step backwards for the country’s already complex relationship with LGBTQ+ rights.

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Math Teacher Accused Of Having Sex With 2 Students And Getting Pregnant For One Tearfully Reveals The Baby Was Taken Away From Her

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The UK teacher who had a baby with an underage student while on trial for having sex with another teenage boy broke down in court after revealing her newborn baby girl had been “taken away” from her.

Manchester math teacher Rebecca Joynes, 30, sobbed to jurors over how her baby was taken “24 hours after being born” this past January — and now she only sees her for nine hours a week, Joynes told jurors on Monday, May 13, according to the Manchester Evening News.

“At the moment I have contact with her three times a week for three hours and that’s it,” she said through tears.

Joynes was arrested and released on bail on orders not to have unsupervised contact with anyone under 18 after allegedly grooming her pupil, known as Boy A in court, by buying him a $430 Gucci belt before bringing him to her apartment for unprotected sex.

She was suspended from school and eventually fired, but soon after, she began having a relationship with a 15-year-old boy, known in court as Boy B, whom she had a baby with in January.

Joynes, who has denied having sex with either boy when they were underage, told the court that when she learned of the allegations against her she had gone to the second boy in a “panic” and he deleted all of her phone’s content.

The former teacher denied having a sexual relationship with the second boy until after he turned 16 and she was already suspended from teaching.

According to her narration,

She said he had added her on Snapchat twice, which she only accepted the second time because she thought he “wanted to tell her something.”

Joynes said a friendship developed and he quickly became her “best friend” even though the boy would make flirtatious and sexualized comments toward her when he was drunk.

She told jurors that it wasn’t until after his 16th birthday that he messaged her saying “I’ve left school now” with a winky face.

After she received notice that she had been dismissed from her job, he went to her apartment, where following an emotional conversation, they had sex.

The two then entered a relationship that Joynes described as “quite toxic” telling the court how the teenager was “very controlling.”

After discovering she was pregnant, Joynes hid love notes for the boy to find around her apartment.

The notes eventually led to a piece of baby clothing that had the words “I love my daddy to the moon and back” written on it.

The court was told that she gave birth to their baby girl in January, but following an emergency court hearing, the newborn was taken away from Joynes.

Joynes has denied two counts of sexual activity with Boy A; two counts of sexual activity with Boy B; and two counts of sexual activity with Boy B while being a person in a position of trust.

Her trial is ongoing.

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First Man To Receive Pig Kidney Transplant Has Died

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The first Man to receive a genetically modified pig kidney transplant has died two months after the operation.

Massachusetts General Hospital (MGH), which carried out the procedure in March, announced Sunday, May 12, that Richard “Rick” Slayman, 62, has died.

They said there was no indication his death was a result of the transplant.

Transplants of other organs from genetically modified pigs have failed in the past, but the operation on Mr Slayman, who was suffering with end-stage kidney disease, was hailed as a historic milestone.

In addition to kidney disease, Mr Slayman also suffered from Type 2 diabetes and hypertension.

In 2018, he had a human kidney transplant, but it began to fail after five years.

Following his pig kidney transplant on March 16, his doctors confirmed he no longer needed dialysis after the new organ was said to be functioning well.

“Mr Slayman will forever be seen as a beacon of hope to countless transplant patients worldwide and we are deeply grateful for his trust and willingness to advance the field of xenotransplantation,” MGH said in a statement.

Xenotransplantation is the transplanting of living cells, tissues or organs from one species to another.

MGH said it was “deeply saddened” at his sudden death and offered condolences to his family.

Mr Slayman’s relatives said his story was an inspiration.

“Rick said that one of the reasons he underwent this procedure was to provide hope for the thousands of people who need a transplant to survive,” they said.

“Rick accomplished that goal and his hope and optimism will endure forever.

“To us, Rick was a kind-hearted man with a quick-witted sense of humour who was fiercely dedicated to his family, friends, and co-workers,” they added.

While Mr Slayman received the first pig kidney to be transplanted into a human, it is not the first pig organ to be used in a transplant procedure.

Two other patients have received pig heart transplants, but those procedures were unsuccessful as the recipients died a few weeks later.

In one case, there were signs the patient’s immune system had rejected the organ, which is a common risk in transplants.

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