Zimbabwean Archbishop Calls for Mugabe's Ouster

MAIL AND GUARDIAN, Oct. 21 — A Zimbabwean archbishop has called for President Robert Mugabe to be sent into exile, reported the South African Mail and Guardian.

Archbishop Pius Ncube said he fears 200,000 Zimbabweans could die by early next year because of food shortages caused by Mugabe's Operation Murambatsvina, the widely condemned slum demolition program which has left thousands of Zimbabweans in destitution.

“Let the man get banished if you don't want Zimbabweans to die,” said Ncube, who predicted that thousands will die by February unless there is dramatic change in the situation within Zimbabwe. “The amount of suffering is beyond imagination. Mugabe is the kind of character that even if 50% of Zimbabweans died, he would not care. We are dealing here with a force of evil that is beyond your imagination.”

‘Babies for Sale’ on Chinese eBay

BBC NEWS, Oct. 20 — Chinese police are investigating a report of attempted baby trafficking on an internet auction site, according to the BBC News.

The advertisement was reportedly placed on eBay's Chinese website, Eachnet. According to Eachnet, the advertisement was registered in Shanghai on Oct. 16.

Boys were advertised for $3,450 while girls were offered for $1,603, Eachnet manager Tang Lei told the China Daily. The offer could have been a hoax, but it comes as baby trafficking is seen as an increasing problem in China. The seller, under the user name Chuangxinzhe Yongyuan (innovator forever), said the babies would be available within 100 days of their birth. The seller said the service was being provided for the benefit of China's millions of infertile couples.

Although no deals were struck, more than 50 people browsed the listing before it was removed, including one who left an inquiry.

Sunday Should Remain a Day of Rest, Group Says

SWISSINFO, Oct. 24 — An ecumenical committee has come out against Sunday shopping in train stations and airports, the subject of a nationwide vote on Nov. 27, the Swiss news service reported.

Catholics and Protestants alike say the measure, if approved, would sound the death knell for family life, and would pave the way for extending opening hours across the country. Under the changes, shops in major railway stations and airports with sales of more than $15.5 million would be allowed to open on Sunday.

Wolfgang Bürgstein, general secretary of the Catholic Church's advisory commission, Justitia et Pax, said that Sunday workers were the big losers in the equation.

“Those who have to work more will be missed by their families and by church, religious and social communities,” he said at a news conference.

The ecumenical committee's president, Peter Oberholzer, said, “First they introduced working on Sundays in shops located in rail stations; now there are plans in the pipeline for making the whole of Switzerland a train station.”

Church plans $6.8 Million Quake Relief Package

NEWKERALA.COM, Oct. 26 — The Catholic Church in India is working on a $6.8 million comprehensive relief and rehabilitation project and arranging for 1,260 special tents for earthquake-hit villages in Jammu and Kashmir, the Indian website NewKerala.com reported.

The Catholic Bishops Conference of India also has adopted 12 villages in the state through its social arm, Caritas India. The organization has been actively involved in relief and rehabilitation in seven villages in Uri and five in Baramulla, devastated after the Oct. 8 quake that killed 1,400 people in India and more than 50,000 in Pakistan.

Varghese Mattamana, assistant executive director of Caritas India, said the comprehensive project “would include construction and renovation of houses and three years of continuous support for education, health and livelihood for the 12 villages the army has already adopted for us.”

“What we are planning is a sustained support,” he added. “We will continue to work there for at least three years to provide them good education and health centers along with livelihood.”