Suspect in Wisconsin Christmas parade carnage was out on bail from previous case - The Straits Times

WAUKESHA, WISCONSIN (REUTERS) - The man accused of deliberately driving his car into a Christmas parade near Milwaukee, killing five people and injuring dozens, was out on bail from a domestic abuse case and was suspected in another violent altercation earlier that day, officials said on Monday (Nov 22). 

The suspect, Darrell Brooks, 39, was arrested near the scene of Sunday’s vehicular attack in Waukesha, Wisconsin, and faces five counts of first-degree homicide, Waukesha Police Chief Daniel Thompson said. 

In addition to the five people killed – ranging in age from 52 to 81 – 48 were injured, including six children who remained hospitalised in critical condition on Monday, authorities said. 

Among the victims were members of a parade group calling themselves the "Dancing Grannies," according to a statement posted on Facebook on Monday. 

Mr Thompson said the motive for the attack was still a mystery but that it was clear the suspect had acted intentionally. 

"He drove right through the barricades and the officers," Mr Thompson told a briefing, adding authorities had ruled out terrorism as a motive.

Waukesha County District Attorney Sue Opper said the suspect acted alone. 

Police were not pursuing Brooks when he plowed into the parade, but one officer fired shots to try to stop the sport utility vehicle, the police chief said. 

"Minutes after the incident occurred, I responded to the scene," Mr Thompson said. "And what I saw out of chaos and tragedy was heroes - first responders in the community coming together and working together on triaging victims."

The FBI was assisting local police in their investigation. 

Brooks has a criminal history and was last released from custody on Nov 11 after posting US$1,000 (S$1,364) cash bond, an amount the Milwaukee County District Attorney’s Office said was "inappropriately low in light of the nature of the recent charges" against him. 

Brooks had been charged on Nov 5 with obstructing an officer, battery, reckless endangerment, disorderly conduct and felony bail jumping in a domestic abuse case, prosecutors and state court records show. 

Around the time of Sunday’s carnage, police also had received a complaint of a domestic disturbance involving Brooks and a knife but were unable to respond because they were preoccupied with the parade, Mr Thompson said. 

"Was there an initial complaint of a knife being involved?  Yes," he said. "Do we know if there actually was one there? We don’t."

The chief said investigators had no information suggesting Brooks, a resident of Milwaukee, knew anyone in the parade.

Abandoned items remain strewn along a street in Waukesha after the Christmas parade, on Nov 22, 2021. PHOTO: NYTIMES

'Still totally shocked'

Police identified the five dead as Ms Virginia Sorenson, 79; Ms LeAnna Owen, 71; Ms Tamara Durand, 52; Ms Jane Kulich, 52; and Mr Wilhelm Hospel, 81. 

On Monday morning, a pink hat, a lone shoe and candy lay strewn across the main thoroughfare in Waukesha. 

Dozens of orange evidence circles were painted on the street and most shops were closed in the city’s downtown district.

A woman tied a bouquet of flowers to a street post as police officers blocked intersections along the main road. 

"It was terrifying," said Waukesha resident Brian Hoffman, 33, who was present as the vehicle rammed through parade attendees. "I saw children who were ran over... I am still totally shocked."

The Children's Wisconsin hospital officials said at a briefing they treated 18 children, including six who remained in critical condition and three in serious condition on Monday. The rest were in fair condition or released. The hospital made no mention of any fatalities.

A message posted on Monday by the Milwaukee Dancing Grannies Facebook page paid tribute to those who lost their lives as "the glue... (that) held us together." 

"Those who died were extremely passionate Grannies. Their eyes gleamed.....(with the) joy of being a Grannie. They were the glue....(that) held us together," read the message posted on the Milwaukee Dancing Grannies Facebook page. "Our hearts are heavy at this most difficult time."

Schools will remain closed on Monday and additional counsellors will be available for students, the district superintendent of schools said.

Waukesha authorities said a fund for the affected families had been set up.

US President Joe Biden said his administration was monitoring the situation in Waukesha "very closely." "The entire community is struggling, struggling to cope with these horrific acts of violence," Biden told reporters on Monday.

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2021-11-22 20:44:38Z
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Singapore health minister says return to strict COVID-19 curbs a last resort - Reuters

SINGAPORE, Nov 22 (Reuters) - A return to stricter COVID-19 curbs in Singapore will be a "last resort", Health Minister Ong Ye Kung said on Monday, as the city-state partially eased limits on social gatherings and dining out under its calibrated reopening approach.

Ong also said the international travel and tourism hub would continue to open "travel lanes" with more countries for vaccinated visitors.

Singapore is gradually granting small groups of vaccinated people increased liberties, resuming in-person business events and permitting quarantine-free travel from select countries as it ramps up its vaccine booster programme.

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"I feel it's important to do it this way, because it minimizes the chance of us having to backpedal too frequently," Ong told Reuters in an interview on Monday for the upcoming Reuters Next conference.

"You can't rule out having to throttle back sometimes, but it should always be a last resort, because it's extremely frustrating for people."

Singapore has vacillated between tightening and easing restrictions for its population of 5.45 million in recent months as, like many countries, it was hit by a fresh wave of infections fuelled by the Delta variant.

Ong said it was too difficult to put a timeframe on when Singapore would reach a "new normal", but he hoped the country's high vaccination rates and the current roll-out of booster shots meant it would continue to ease restrictions.

"I hope that whatever liberty that we now gradually, progressively can return back to the people, we can keep them for next year, even as a new wave arrives," said Ong.

Singapore was one of several so-called COVID-zero countries that enforced some of the world's strictest measures to keep infections and deaths from the pandemic - at around 252,200 and 662, respectively - relatively low.

This year, it switched to a strategy of living with the virus as endemic. Around 94% of those eligible have been vaccinated, while 23% of the total population has received a booster shot.

Among its latest easing measures, limits on social gatherings and dining out were eased from two to five people, still restrictive compared to many other countries.

Authorities have also tightened measures against unvaccinated people, effectively barring them from dining out or entering malls and will begin to charge them for COVID-19 treatment if they refused a vaccine by choice.

TRAVEL HUB

Singapore has been expanding quarantine free travel from more than a dozen countries, including Britain, France, Germany, Australia, Canada and the United States via so-called vaccinated "travel lanes."

It will start these lanes with Malaysia and India at the end of the month. The lanes allow fully vaccinated people to enter the island without quarantining if they pass their COVID-19 tests.

"It is important for us to establish this, as such a small outwardly oriented country, we need to connect with the world," said Ong. "For the foreseeable future, I think vaccinated travel lanes will be the norm."

To watch the Reuters Next conference please register here https://reutersevents.com/events/next/

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Reporting by Aradhana Aravindan in Singapore; editing by Jane Wardell

Our Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

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2021-11-22 06:32:00Z
CBMifmh0dHBzOi8vd3d3LnJldXRlcnMuY29tL3dvcmxkL2FzaWEtcGFjaWZpYy9zaW5nYXBvcmUtaGVhbHRoLW1pbmlzdGVyLXNheXMtcmV0dXJuLXN0cmljdC1jb3ZpZC0xOS1jdXJicy1sYXN0LXJlc29ydC0yMDIxLTExLTIyL9IBAA

Chinese tennis star Peng says she is safe in video call with IOC president - CNA

The event's official WeChat page showed photos of her at the tournament. Peng, 35, was the world No 1 doubles player in 2014, the first Chinese player to achieve a top ranking, after winning the doubles titles at Wimbledon in 2013 and the French Open in 2014.

On Saturday night, Peng visited a popular restaurant in downtown Beijing, according to a video posted by Hu that a restaurant manager confirmed to Reuters on Sunday.

Seven people including Peng were at the Sichuanese restaurant, said the manager, Zhou Hongmei, adding that they ate in a private room and were joined by the restaurant's owner.

"It was crowded at the restaurant as usual," Zhou said, showing a bill that included noodles and bamboo shoots. "They didn't have much. I think they mostly chatted."

A spokesperson for the Women's Tennis Association (WTA), which has threatened to pull tournaments out of China, had said earlier that the photos and video were "insufficient" and did not address the WTA's concerns.

The International Tennis Federation (ITF) said it would continue to seek confirmation from Peng that she was safe.

Chinese state media outlet CGTN on Wednesday released what it said was an email Peng had sent to the WTA's chairman denying she had been sexually assaulted.

WTA chairman Steve Simon said he had a hard time believing that Peng herself had written the email.

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2021-11-21 22:47:00Z
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Australian fruit farmers face harvest headache, Australia/NZ News & Top Stories - The Straits Times

NASHDALE, AUSTRALIA (AFP) - In near-perfect conditions, thanks to abundant rain and healthy trees, Australian fruit grower Michael Cunial's cherry orchard looks set to yield a bumper crop. He has just one problem: the harvest.

Like many farmers in Australia, during harvests, he relies on seasonal workers, many of whom have been shut out of the country since its international borders closed in March 2020 to halt the spread of the coronavirus pandemic.

Even if he can find workers for the cherry harvest, he may have to pay them more than he has in previous years.

In common with most Australian fruit growers, Mr Cunial has paid seasonal workers for what they can pick. But the system has left many workers earning less than the minimum wage, so the rules may be about to change.

"The system of a piece rate tends to make sense," the fruit grower said at his 50ha farm, Curinya Orchards, in Nashdale - about four hours' drive from Sydney. "If you want to have a go, you can actually make really good money. And if you're hopeless, you don't."

Mr Cunial said he expects "really big" cherries this year, which will probably be ready for harvest in early- to mid-December.

He hires about 50 seasonal workers for the annual harvest and pays them piece rate.

But the system has been condemned by the Fair Work Commission, Australia's industrial relations tribunal.

Below minimum wage

Ruling on a complaint by the Australian Workers Union, it said seasonal farm workers should get the minimum hourly wage of A$25.41 (S$25.03).

"The totality of the evidence presents a picture of significant underpayment of pieceworkers in the horticulture industry when compared with the minimum award hourly rate," the commission found.

Farming federations, which oppose the finding, have until Nov 26 to appeal.

According to a 2018 study of more than 8,000 horticultural farms by the Fair Work Ombudsman, 56 per cent of them underpaid a proportion of their workers.

Working hard is not always enough.

Victor, a young Frenchman who preferred not to be identified by his full name to protect his employment prospects, had to work 88 days in farming to be allowed to stay a second year - a condition of the working holiday visa.

"I have worked in the vineyards. I had to wrap the branches around wire. We were paid 11 cents a branch. I was among the top 10 per cent and I still only got A$9 an hour, less than half the minimum wage," he said.

A worker inspecting cherries at a cherry farm located in the rural New South Wales state town of Nashdal on Nov 11, 2021. PHOTO: AFP

Mr Cedric Gestin, another French worker who is in his third year in Australia, says he has always preferred farms that pay by the hour.

After three years working full-time in Mr Cunial's cherry orchard, Mr Remy Genet manages the seasonal workers.

"I have got guys who can fill 60 lugs (fruit crates), earn A$700 in a day, and others who can only fill nine lugs in the same field. The difference is the motivation," he said.

"Of course, there are farms where even the good ones never earn enough money because there is not enough fruit or the farm is badly run. But where some people can make money, everyone can make money."

'Keep an eye on them'

Mr Cunial says he is concerned about the prospect of laying off workers who do not pick enough if there is a switch to hourly pay.

"We are going to have to keep an eye on them. And within maybe half a day, we're going to have to let people go if this decision comes to fruition," he said.

"Cherries have got a window of about five days to a week, if you're lucky, before you need to get them off a tree. So if you don't have the pickers, they could just end up going bad on the tree."

Mr Cunial has another challenge: he is finding it hard to recruit since the borders closed.

The number of young people in Australia on working holiday visas dropped from nearly 120,000 in December 2019 to 39,000 in 2020.

The labour shortage is coinciding with an expected record farming production, forecast to be worth A$73 billion across all crops in the 2021-2022 season - up 7 per cent from the previous year.

To lure seasonal workers to his farm, Mr Cunial raised his rates last year by 5 per cent to 10 per cent.

This year, he may have to go further.

"We probably would consider a loyalty bonus," he said, which would offer up to 10 per cent more for workers who stay for the season.

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2021-11-21 07:28:53Z
CAIiEOA4yjLZQAPfKuLEfYveIMYqGQgEKhAIACoHCAow_7X3CjCh49YCMMa2pwU

Peng Shuai appears at China tennis event, WTA still concerned - The Straits Times

SHANGHAI (REUTERS) - Chinese tennis star Peng Shuai, whose whereabouts have been a matter of international concern for weeks, attended a tennis tournament in Beijing on Sunday (Nov 21), according to official photos published by the tournament organised by China Open.

Ms Peng can be seen among guests at the Fila Kids Junior Tennis Challenger, dressed in a dark blue jacket and white trousers, according to the pictures published on the event's official page on WeChat.

The former doubles world number had not been seen or heard from publicly since she said on Chinese social media on Nov 2 that former vice-premier Zhang Gaoli had coerced her into sex and they later had an on-off consensual relationship.

Neither Mr Zhang nor the Chinese government have commented on her allegation.

Ms Peng's social media post was quickly deleted and the topic has been blocked from discussion on China's heavily censored Internet.

World tennis bodies have expressed concern, with the Women's Tennis Association threatening to pull tournaments out of China.

The United States and Britain have called for evidence of Ms Peng's whereabouts and safety.

Britain's Foreign Office said in a statement on Saturday: "The Chinese authorities should urgently provide verifiable evidence of her safety and whereabouts.

"Everyone should be allowed to speak out without fear of repercussions. All reports of sexual assault, anywhere in the world, should be investigated."

The photographs and video footage of Ms Peng that emerged on Sunday remain "insufficient" and do not address the WTA’s concerns, a spokesperson for the group told Reuters by email. 

The US and British embassies in Beijing did not immediately respond to Reuters requests for comment on Ms Peng’s Sunday appearance in the Chinese capital. 

The issue of Ms Peng’s safety and whereabouts has emerged as China prepares to host the Winter Olympics in Beijing in February amid calls from global rights groups and others for a boycott over its human rights record. 

Mr Hu Xijin, the editor of state-backed newspaper Global Times, tweeted Ms Peng’s appearance at the tournament earlier on Sunday. 

The Global Times is published by the People’s Daily, the official newspaper of China’s ruling Communist Party. 

Videos posted by Mr Hu and a Global Times reporter showed her smiling, waving and signing autographs for children.  

Peng Shuai showed up at the opening ceremony of a teenager tennis match final in Beijing on Sunday morning. Global Times photo reporter Cui Meng captured her at scene. pic.twitter.com/7wlBcTMgGy

— Hu Xijin 胡锡进 (@HuXijin_GT) November 21, 2021

The 37-second video Mr Hu posted appears to show Ms Peng standing in a row of people being introduced to the audience.

An announcer says, "Two-time Grand Slam champion, former world number one in woman’s doubles - Peng Shuai!"

She waves, smiling, and acknowledges applause. 

Video shot by my colleague Cui Meng at the National Tennis Center showing Peng Shuai signing signature on large-sized tennis balls at the opening ceremony of Junior Tennis Challenger Final, a way of inspiring more kids to play tennis as hobby and may also as career pic.twitter.com/Sbyj5V5a7Y

— Qingqing_Chen (@qingqingparis) November 21, 2021

Global Times chief reporter Chen Qingqing posted a 31-second video, apparently from the same event.

Ms Peng appears to sign oversized tennis balls for children and pose with them for pictures. 

Reuters was not able to independently verify the authenticity of the images, which were both credited to Global Times staffer Cui Meng. 

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2021-11-21 02:40:24Z
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Corals and cable cars: Vietnam tourist island Phu Quoc reopens with big dreams - CNA

FLOOD OF PLASTIC

Ahead of Saturday's reopening, staff at Vinpearl resort - where the arrivals are staying - swept beaches, arranged cutlery on tables and laid out sunbeds. Others busied themselves painting delicate flowers on conical hats.

"When we heard visitors were coming back, I was just so excited," said duty manager Ngo Thi Bich Thuong.

Before the pandemic in 2019, around 5 million people, including half a million foreigners - mostly from China, South Korea, Japan and Russia - holidayed on Phu Quoc.

Vingroup - the enormously powerful conglomerate behind the new complex - is pushing to make the island "a new international destination on the world tourist map".

To cater for the tourist boom, 40,000 hotel rooms have been built and planned, vice chairman of the Vietnam Tourism Advisory Board Ken Atkinson told AFP - "that's more hotel keys than they have in Sydney, Australia".

Globally popular vacation spots such as Thailand's Phuket have given Vietnam something to aim for.

Atkinson took a group of senior Vietnamese government officials there in 2005 - but while Phuket's vibrant international tourist scene took years to build up, "Vietnam has a tendency of wanting to do everything all at once", he noted.

"Unfortunately I don't think there was enough attention given to what would be in the long-term benefit of the island," he added.

Phu Quoc is a UNESCO biosphere reserve - surrounding waters are stuffed with coral reefs, and its beaches were once nesting spots for hawksbill and green turtles.

But no nesting has taken place in recent years, the United Nations body said in their last assessment in 2018.

The World Wide Fund for Nature (WWF) has warned of "an almost unimaginable flood of plastic" that chokes rivers, canals and sea life.

Around 160 tonnes of trash - almost enough to fill 16 trucks - is generated every day, according to WWF, which says that the island's waste management is not fit to cope with the tourism explosion.

"More and more tourists are very conscious of the environment. They don't want to be going to places where beaches are littered or where effluent is going into the sea," Atkinson warned.

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2021-11-20 09:13:04Z
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Tennis Star's Claims Strike at Heart of Chinese Political Power - Bloomberg

President Xi Jinping sent shockwaves through China in 2014 when he took down a former member of the Communist Party’s most powerful body. Now, a tennis star’s allegations against another top retired official threaten to undermine his authority and tarnish the nation’s image. 

The disappearance of former women’s doubles No. 1 Peng Shuai, who earlier this month accused ex-Vice Premier Zhang Gaoli of pressuring her to have sex, has prompted outrage by some of the world’s best-known athletes. Serena Williams has called for an investigation. Novak Djokovic has expressed shock. And the Women’s Tennis Association has threatened to suspend operations in China, at the cost of potentially hundreds of millions of dollars in business. 

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2021-11-19 10:42:52Z
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