G-G Attends League of Small Nations Meeting

-- Wintworth House

The inaugural meeting of the revitalized League of Small Nations was held this past Saturday. Representatives of the Dominion of British West Florida (GG Register), Grand Duchy of Greifenberg (Paul, Grand Duke of Greifenberg), Republic of Molossia (President Baugh), and the Principality of Vikesland (Prince Christopher I) were present.

After some initial technical difficulties the meeting was called to order by His Grace Paul, Grand Duke of Griefenberg. The charter, and officers were approved in short order.

Molossia nominated the acting Secretary-General, (The Grand Duchy of Griefenberg) for Secretary-General, the nomination was seconded by the Principality of Vikesland and received unanimous consent.

Vikesland nominated Molossia as Treasurer, British West Florida seconded the motion, and Molossia was elected, again by unanimous consent.

A discussion of expulsion of members who appeared unwilling or unable to meet their obligations to the League then followed. British West Florida argued for the benefit of the doubt to be extended to those nations who had not yet made their intentions plain to the League. After much discussion it was agreed that while the league's patience is not infinite, the nations in question would be offered one more opportunity to show their ability to meet their obligations.

Discussion then turned to the Summit Conference. It was agreed that the Summit would be held in or near Saint Louis, with all member state delegations to arrive by the evening of 7 October 2010. Grand Duke Paul graciously agreed to take the lead in organizing the site and events.

The League agreed that the Treasurer would maintain the league's funds in a special account under their name and the authority of the League. A new account will be created by subsequent treasurers with remaining funds transferred from the old treasurer to the new following the transfer of the office.

The League agreed to work together on a League web page, to be ready before the Summit. Molossia graciously agreed to to continue to host the League web page, and to remain as its web master, until other arrangements could be made.

Japanese Ship Escapes in Somalia

- From Wikinews, Tuesday, March 24, 2009

A cargo ship owned by a Japanese company has escaped an attack by pirates off the coast of Somalia. The ship outran two pirate boats that opened fire on her yesterday.

The ship, owned by Mitsui O.S.K. Lines and flagged in the Cayman Islands, came under attack at around 4 p.m. Somali time (UTC+3) as gunfire came from two small priate boats. The vessel, with a crew of eighteen from the Philippines, suffered light damage to its front and windows were broken.

The Jasmine Ace was en-route from Sharjah, United Arab Emirates to Mombasa, Kenya. The 126.75m car carrier had loaded with 377 used cars in Sharjah on March 17.

The ship sped up to try and outrun the high-speed boats, and began to zig-zag as an evasive manoeuvre. The pirates chased for forty minutes but finally gave up. Nobody was injured in the attack.

Piracy is rife in Somalia. Japan sent two destroyers earlier this month to combat piracy in the region, joining an international task force. Indian cargo ship MSV Al Rafiquei was hijacked on Saturday and the ship and the sixteen Indians on board were released on Sunday. Pirates seized the crew's mobiles as well as five barrels of petrol and twenty of diesel. The crew were also assaulted up by their captors.

Anglicans Begin to Return to Parish Churches in Zimbabwe

-- Staff Writer

The Anglican Bishop of Harare has despite the presence of riot policemen at the altar has resumed Sunday Services.

Bishop Sebastian Bakare told representatives of Zimbabwe's Security Service 'If you wish to attack me, I an in your power', while conducting services last week.

After securing an affidavit from Polic Commissioner Augustine Chihurj denying any police operation to force Anglicans away from there churches Anglican priests begin encouraging their parishioners to return to their churches for worship. Tensions remain high, but emboldened by the new power-sharing government and men of the Faith like Bishop Bakare of Harare, members are beginning to return to their accustomed places of Worship.

Canadian PM Seeks to Abandon Gun Registry

-- From Wikinews, Sunday, March 22, 2009

Stephen Harper, the Prime Minister of Canada, asked hunters and fishermen to contact opposition members of parliament (MPs) to abandon the Canadian Firearms Registry.

Harper was the keynote speaker at the Ontario Federation of Anglers and Hunters conference held Saturday in Mississauga.

Harper asked those attending the rally to support the bill to abolish the registry. He said, "There are MPs in all these parties that know what we know: that law-abiding hunters and farmers are not part of the crime problem, and that you should be respected and not demonized, So I challenge you to press these MPs to follow their consciences and do what they know is right, vote to abolish the long-gun registry and fight crime instead."

"Hunters are not the ones on the streets breaking the law — they're enjoying the sport and the country," said Frank DiRocco, an avid hunter and angler from Woodbridge, Ontario.

"Instead of action on crime, we got the federal long gun registry, which became a bloated bureaucratic nightmare to responsible hunters, farmers and rural Canadians. It cost taxpayers some CA$2 billion and it hasn't done a thing to reduce gun crime." said Harper.

The Conservatives have provided amnesty for unregistered gun owners.

At this time there is no legislation set before the House of Commons. Conservative Garry Breitkreuz from Saskatchewan tabled the bill killing the long-gun registry.