Abe offers 'eternal condolences' for Americans killed in WWII

Yahoo – AFP, Andrew Beatty, 29 April 2015

Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe arrives to address a joint meeting
of Congress at the US Capitol in Washington, DC on April 29, 2015

Washington (AFP) - Shinzo Abe became the first Japanese prime minister in history to address a joint meeting of the US Congress on Wednesday, seeking to deepen ties in the face of controversy over his views of World War II.

Speaking in English, Abe stressed the tight bonds between two nations that were forged from the embers of brutal battles like Pearl Harbor and Iwo Jima, and offered a heartfelt apology for Japan's actions.

"On behalf of Japan and the Japanese people, I offer with profound respect my eternal condolences to the souls of all American people that were lost during World War II," he said to rousing applause from US lawmakers.

Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe (L) is 

assisted by US Military Honor Guard as he 

places a wreath at the National World War II 

Memorial, April 29, 2015 in Washington, DC

(AFP Photo/Paul J. Richards)

Shortly before arriving on Capitol Hill, Abe symbolically laid a flower wreath at a memorial to that conflict, which claimed the lives of an estimated 400,000 Americans.

"The battles engraved at the memorial crossed my mind, and I reflected upon the lost dreams and lost futures of those young Americans.

"History is harsh. What is done cannot be undone. With deep repentance in my heart, I stood there in silent prayers for some time," Abe said.

But it was Japan's actions in Asia during that war that threatened to overshadow his historic address.

In Congress, Abe was faced with the presence of 87-year-old Lee Yong-Soo, one of the estimated 200,000 Asian women who were forced into sexual slavery by occupying Japanese troops.

She was invited by US lawmaker Mike Honda who is one of many that accuse Abe of downplaying any official role by the country or its military.

Abe expressed his "deep remorse" over Japan's actions toward neighboring Asian nations, but stopped short of a full apology demanded by many.

"Post war, we started out on our path bearing in mind feelings of deep remorse over the war," he told the joint meeting.

"Our actions brought suffering to the peoples in Asian countries. We must not avert our eyes from that."

That angered some in Congress, including Honda who said it was "shocking and shameful" that Abe "continues to evade his government's responsibility for the systematic atrocity that was perpetrated the Japanese Imperial Army."

These same lawmakers must grant President Barack Obama authority to ink a vast trans-Pacific trade deal that includes Japan, the United States and 10 other countries.

Abe threw his weight behind that pact, which faces opposition on the left of the political spectrum.

"We cannot overlook sweat shops or burdens on the environment," Abe said, framing the deal as more than just an economic tool.

It "goes far beyond just economic benefits. It is also about our security. Long-term, its strategic value is awesome. We should never forget that."

"We can spread our shared values around the world and have them take root: the rule of law, democracy, and freedom."

Related Article:

White House: Obama receives Abe, lauds Japan friendship

Baltimore mother praised by police for dragging son out of riots

Toya Graham was filmed attacking her 16-year-old son Michael and berating him for joining in violent street protests

The Guardian, Staff and agencies, Wednesday 29 April 2015

Toya Graham is seen slapping her 16-year-old son, Michael, and berating him

 for taking part in the Baltimore riots

A woman captured on video slapping her teenage son for taking part in the Baltimore riots, a reprimand that went viral online, won praise from the city’s police commissioner and was heralded on social media as “mum of the year”.

Toya Graham was videotaped by Baltimore television WMAR on Monday chasing a teenager, clad in a hoodie with his face covered, beating him and demanding he “take that fucking mask off”.

Graham was identified by CBS News along with her 16-year-old son, Michael.

In an interview she said she pulled her son away from the crowd because “at the end of the day, I don’t want him to be a Freddie Gray”.

“I’m a no-tolerant mother,” she said. “Everybody that knows me, know I don’t play that. He said, when ‘I seen you’, he said, ‘Ma, my instinct was to run.”’

Graham said she had seen her only son wearing a hoodie and mask amid the protesters demonstrating just hours after a funeral for Gray, a black man who died after suffering an unexplained spinal injury in police custody.

“At that point, I just lost it,” she said. “I was shocked, I was angry, because you never want to see your child out there doing that.”

Graham said she and her son watched news coverage of the riots together. And then the images of her reaction went viral. Comments started appearing on her son’s Facebook page, many in support of her, she said.

“Friends and everybody making comments and saying, ‘You know, you shouldn’t be mad at your mother, you should give her a hug,”’ Graham said.

The police commissioner, Anthony Batts, praised her as “one mother who grabbed her child who had a hood on his head and she started smacking him on the head because she was so embarrassed”, the station reported.

“I wish I had more parents that took charge of their kids out there tonight,” he said.

The woman’s insistent pursuit of the boy went viral online, and it won applause from the Fox News contributor Charles Payne, who called her “mom of the year” on Twitter. His comment was marked as a favorite by hundreds of people.

Graham hopes her moment in the spotlight will also be a teachable moment.

“And by him seeing everything what’s going on I just hope, I’m not sure, but I hope that he understands the seriousness of what was going on last night,” she said.

Protesters display a flag as demonstrations continue over

 Freddie Gray’s death in Baltimore police custody. Photograph: 

JM Giordano /Guardian

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IMF's Plan B for stalled reform

Want China Times, Staff Reporter 2015-04-28

IMF vice president Zhu Min speaks at the Summer Davos Forum in
Tianjin, September 2014. (File photo/CNS)

The International Monetary Fund's plan to sidestep the United States in its reform to increase the influence of developing countries is set to make China the country with the third-largest voting power in the organization, according to Shanghai's China Business News.

IMF deputy managing director Zhu Min stated after the 2015 Spring Meetings of the World Bank Group and the IMF April 20 that the fund had already adopted a Plan B, since it can no longer wait for US congressional approval for its proposed reforms.

The reform, which is aimed at giving more voting power to emerging economies, was passed by IMF member countries in 2010, but requires Congress's approval because the plan involves funding changes.

Currently, the US has 17.9% of the total voting share and is the only member that enjoys the right to veto, while half of the voting rights are controlled by developed countries.

Under the proposal, China is set to see its voting share rise from 3.994% to 6.390%, while the US will have 16.75% and Japan will have 6.98%, according to the report.

Despite the support of President Barack Obama, the Republican-controlled Congress has been blocking the IMF reform proposal, said Ou Yongming, a researcher at Renmin University of China in Beijing.

Ou said the proposal is unlikely to be passed before a Republican wins the White House or the Democrats regain control of Congress.

According to Qiao Yide, vice chairman and secretary-general of the Shanghai Development Research Foundation, IMF chief Christine Lagarde hinted at two possible options for the so-called Plan B during a recent visit to China.

To get around the required US approval, the IMF might decide to not double the total quota — the principal source of the fund's financial resources — and just move 6% in quota share from European countries to developing countries, Qiao said.

The other option Lagarde divulged, according to Qiao, involves an ad hoc increase that will allow developing countries to see a bump in their quotas without affecting the US quota.

"The U.S. will not abandon the IMF, which is a multilateral organization. But what is worth noting is that the US will not change the status quo unless the country faces great pressure," Qiao said.

If the IMF reforms fail to go through, it will spur other countries' efforts to establish another multilateral organization outside the fund, such as the China-led Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank, Qiao added.

President Joko Widodo, center, chats with Chinese President Xi Jinping, left, as

 Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, right, looks on at the opening of the

60th Asian-African Conference in Jakarta on Wednesday. (AACC2015/Prasetyo Utomo)

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Global weapons treaty goes into force, but US yet to ratify !!

Global arms treaty enters into force on Wednesday (26 Dec 2014)

White House: Obama receives Abe, lauds Japan friendship

Barack Obama has welcomed Shinzo Abe to the White House for a rare official visit. The US president and Japanese prime minister were greeted with cheers by school children waving flags of their two countries.

Deutsche Welle, 28 April 2015

Obama is hosting Abe during a visit to showcase deeper defense ties and advance a Pacific trade pact as the two allies seek to counter China's growing power inAsia. On Tuesday, the president and first lady Michelle Obama received the Japanese prime minister and his wife, Akie Abe, in a formal ceremony on the South Lawn of the White House, complete with a gun salute and review of troops.

"Today is also a chance for Americans, especially our young people, to say thank you for all the things we love from Japan: like karate and karaoke, manga and anime, and, of course, emojis," Obama said to laughter from the crowd of schoolchildren.

Abe said he had made revitalizing the US-Japan relationship "the top priority of my foreign policy" and that it had grown "more robust than ever." The prime minister added that the TPP and the realignment of US forces in Japan remained on the agenda. The leaders planned to hold bilateral talks in the Oval Office ahead of a joint press conference and a state dinner in the evening.

'Swift and successful'

When Abe becomes the first Japanese premier to address a joint session of the US Congress on Wednesday, many expect him to urge lawmakers to advance trade-promotion authority and eventually approve the TPP. In the latest effort by the United States to shift the balance of economic power in Asia from China, US officials have enthusiastically engaged 11 nations in the region on the pact.

"We welcome the significant progress that has been made in the bilateral negotiations and reaffirm our commitment to work together to achieve a swift and successful conclusion to the broader agreement," the two governments announced in a joint "vision statement."

PM Abe & President Obama issued Joint Vision Statement, Fact Sheet on Japan-US Cooperation, Joint Statement on NPT http://t.co/Cr8FMOt6Qt
— Japan Embassy DC (@JapanEmbDC) 28 april 2015

Obama has had trouble winning over some fellow Democrats who oppose the TPP, which would cover a third of world trade, on environmental, labor and human rights grounds. Differences remain between US and Japanese officials over autos and agriculture.

Abe and Obama have had success with new defense cooperation guidelines, the first update in 18 years as Japan expands its foreign military presence. In New York on Monday, US Secretary of State John Kerry and Defense Secretary Ashton Carter met their Japanese counterparts, Fumio Kishida and Gen Nakatani, respectively, to finalize language on ways to boost their alliance through greater military cooperation.

Japan has had a host of economic and foreign relations problems lately. On Monday, Fitch cut the country's credit rating. And leaders in Asia have espressed discomfort with a shrine to Japan's World War Two dead.

mkg/bw (Reuters, AFP, dpa, AP)

The dangerous reality of corruption in the arms sector

In a new report, anti-corruption watchdog Transparency International, revealed that two-thirds of international defense companies are not doing enough to counteract 

under-the-table arms deals.

Deutsche Welle, 27 April 2015

Saudi Arabian tanks (Photo: /AFP/Getty Images)

Corruption, by definition, implies risk, but in the context of the arms sector, it has a particularly dangerous undertone. Not only does it waste public funds and threaten the reputation and financial wellbeing of individual companies, but it can also harm, and indeed claim lives.

That, however, does not prevent it from happening on a magnificent scale. According to a new Transparency International (TI) report on the quality of corporate anti-corruption programs, two-thirds of defense companies fell far short of the mark.

Of the 163 arms manufacturers in 47 countries to volunteer information for the , 107 demonstrated little evidence of schemes designed to ensure good business practice, and a further 37 failed to provide any at all.

Far from being restricted to any particular region, these companies are based all over the world, from France to Russia, Japan to Finland, Romania to Singapore, with some countries represented at both ends of the index's six-band scale. The US, by way of example, is a mixed picture.

"All four companies in the top band are American," TI researcher Leah Wawro said in reference to Bechtel, Fluor, Lockheed Martin and Raytheon. "But there are also seven US companies in the lowest band," she told DW.

On the upside

Many others US arms manufacturers feature throughout the index, painting a somewhat dubious picture of overall national business practices in the sector.

Corruption pushes up the price of global
 military spending and often hits the
taxpayer

"The lack of transparency among some big US companies," Wawro said "is concerning."

But shady arms deals are by no means confined to the far side of the Atlantic. Several European companies, including four German ones - Diehl, Rheinmetall, MTU Aero Engines, Krauss-Maffei Wegmann - performed poorly. A fifth, ThyssenKrupp, has made improvements since the first such index was published in 2012, and now ranks in the top end of the table.

It is one of 33 percent of companies to have make strides in the right direction, which Wawro says "shows that transparency in this sector is possible."

And that transparency is crucial, because corruption in the defense sector can itself prove to be a lethal weapon. An underhand procurement contract, for example, can leave soldiers in the field without the equipment they need to defend themselves and their country, and that in turn can compromise national security.

Acutely susceptible to corruption

That might read like an incentive for manufacturers to ensure good practice, but as Michael Littlewood, chief executive and co-founder of , which measures corporate responsibility and business ethics, explained, the very nature of the arms industry makes it vulnerable to corrupt players within it.

He cites the use of sales agents as one of the biggest problems on the road to transparency.

Several factors make the arms industry vulnerable

"If a company is selling all over the world but doesn't have offices in every country, they have representatives who know the market and the customer," Littlewood said. "That makes them reliant on the ethics of the agent, who might do a corrupt deal without the defense company knowing about it."

He says it is up to manufacturers to make sure they are using decent representatives, and that legislation such as the UK's 2011 Bribery Act is a useful tool in forcing companies take responsibilities for their own choices and decisions.

The murky waters of offsets

Unlike previous TI surveys looking at anti-corruption programs in the arms sector, this one asked companies to provide information on offsets, which Littlewood describes as a "peculiarity of the defense industry."

The practice - which requires companies bidding for national arms contracts to agree to invest in other areas of the importing country's economy - lends itself to below-board dealings.

"Their bids are measured by what companies propose," the business ethics expert said. As such, a contract might be awarded on the basis of a weapons manufacturer agreeing to plough money into an unrelated sector in which the buyer, however, has a vested interest. It is very difficult to track exactly what money goes where and how aboveboard that is.

Getting clean

Besides the obvious responsibility that individual companies are expected to assume for their arms deals, TI says national governments have a vital role to play in ensuring defense becomes a corruption-free industry.

Corruption in the arms industry
also puts soldiers' lives at risk

"Purchasing governments should require, in policy if possible, all defense companies to have an ethics and anti-corruption program in place," Wawro said, adding that the same should apply in reverse, and that exporting governments should expect their national defense companies to operate on an ethical basis. They should hide nothing they don't have to.

"There tend to be high levels of secrecy in the defense sector," Wawro said. "Sometimes there are genuine national security concerns that require secrecy, but too often 'national security' can be a veil for corrupt activities."

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Loretta Lynch sworn in as US' first black female attorney general

After a months-long delay, Loretta Lynch has been sworn in as the first black female Attorney General of the United States. Lynch is known for her work on high-profile anti-terror cases.

Deutsche Welle, 27 April 2015

Loretta Lynch was sworn in as the US' 83rd attorney general on Monday, becoming the first black woman to hold the country's highest law enforcement position.

US President Barack Obama tweeted his congratulations:

Congratulations to Loretta Lynch, who was sworn in as U.S. attorney general today, the first African-American woman to hold the post.
— Barack Obama (@BarackObama) 27 april 2015

"It's about time this woman's being sworn in," Vice-President Joe Biden said in the swearing-in ceremony, referring to the long delay in the Senate for confirming Lynch's nomination to the post. The vote finally came through last Thursday, with her replacing former attorney general Eric Holder.

“It’s about time this woman is being sworn in.” —@VP Biden on our next Attorney General, Loretta Lynch: http://t.co/P8raHgemIf
— The White House (@WhiteHouse) 27 april 2015

The lawyer said she was "honored beyond words" to take over the attorney general's job. She vowed "to not just represent the law and enforce the law, but to use it to make real the promise of America - the promise of fairness, the promise of equality, of liberty and justice for all."

Referring to the recent cases of alleged police atrocities against minorities, Lynch said she was confident about restoring "trust and faith in both our laws and those who enforce them."

"She's shown resolve to prosecute and jail terrorists, mobsters and gang members. She's shown fidelity to the law and rooted out public corruption and shown determination to bring down financial fraudsters and child abusers," Biden said.

“I have absolute confidence that Loretta Lynch will exceed the high standards set for her.” -VP Biden on Loretta Lynch
— Vice President Biden (@VP) 27 april 2015

Lynch, who has served twice as US attorney for New York's Eastern District, has a history of successfully prosecuting terrorists who plotted to bomb the New York subway and the Federal Reserve Bank. The 55-year-old Harvard graduate is the daughter of a librarian mother, while her father is a minister in North Carolina.

mg/bw (AFP, AP)

President Of Indonesia : We Need To Cooperate To Advance The Nation

Jakarta Globe, aacc2015.id, Apr 24, 2015

AACC2015, Bandung – The President of the Republic of Indonesia Joko Widodo invited all representatives of the Asian and African countries to start economic cooperation in order to increase the quality of life of their people.

“The Spirit of Bandung is to advance people’s welfare. Therefore, we must cooperate,” said President Joko Widodo at the height of the commeration of the 60th Anniversary of the Asian African Conference (AAC), in Bandung, on Friday (24/4).

According to the President, the Spirit of Bandung that was agreed by the founders should be a unifier that opens every economic cooperation potential. This should be a good momentum to produce various economic agreements in order to improve people’s welfare.

Still fresh in our memory is the struggle for independence by our predecessors. At that time, all Asian and African countries experienced the impact of colonialism. The Asian African Conference fosters a spirit of togetherness that was initiated by the Spirit of Bandung, to fight colonialism.

Previously, five countries were still dreaming of gaining independence from colonialism, Sri Lanka, Myanmar, Bangladesh, India, and Indonesia. Their dream to gain independence inspired the birth of the Spirit of Bandung, the President added.

Through the AAC Commemoration, Joko Widodo invites all people of the represented countries to inflame the Spirit of Bandung in Asian and African in order to fight for peace, end poverty, and provide better welfare. (Photo: Host, Translator: Mia)

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"The Timing of the Great Shift" – Mar 21, 2009 (Kryon channelled by Lee Carroll) - (Text version)

“… Here is another one. A change in what Human nature will allow for government. "Careful, Kryon, don't talk about politics. You'll get in trouble." I won't get in trouble. I'm going to tell you to watch for leadership that cares about you. "You mean politics is going to change?" It already has. It's beginning. Watch for it. You're going to see a total phase-out of old energy dictatorships eventually. The potential is that you're going to see that before 2013. They're going to fall over, you know, because the energy of the population will not sustain an old energy leader. Remember where you heard it... in a strange, esoteric meeting with a guy in a chair pretending to channel. [Kryon being factious... Kryon humor] Then when you hear it, you'll know better, won't you? "Maybe there was something really there," you'll say. "Maybe it was real," you'll say. Perhaps you can skip all the drama of the years to come and consider that now? [Kryon humor again]

These leaders are going to fall over. You'll have a slow developing leadership coming to you all over the earth where there is a new energy of caring about the public. "That's just too much to ask for in politics, Kryon." Watch for it. That's just the beginning of this last phase. So many things are coming. The next one is related to this, for a country in survival with sickness cannot sustain a leadership of high consciousness. There is just too much opportunity for power and greed. But when a continent is healed, everything changes. .."

".. Many years ago, the prevailing thought was that nobody should consider China as a viable player on the economic stage. They were backward, filled with a system that would never be westernized, and had no wish to become joined with the rest of the world's economic systems. Look what has happened in only 30 years. Now, look at Africa differently …”

"The End of History"- Nov 20, 2010 (Kryon channeled by Lee Carroll) - (Text-Version)

" .... Africa

Let me tell you where else it's happening that you are unaware - that which is the beginning of the unity of the African states. Soon the continent will have what they never had before, and when that continent is healed and there is no AIDS and no major disease, they're going to want what you have. They're going to want houses and schools and an economy that works without corruption. They will be done with small-minded leaders who kill their populations for power in what has been called for generations "The History of Africa." Soon it will be the end of history in Africa, and a new continent will emerge.

Be aware that the strength may not come from the expected areas, for new leadership is brewing. There is so much land there and the population is so ready there, it will be one of the strongest economies on the planet within two generations plus 20 years. And it's going to happen because of a unifying idea put together by a few. These are the potentials of the planet, and the end of history as you know it.

In approximately 70 years, there will be a black man who leads this African continent into affluence and peace. He won't be a president, but rather a planner and a revolutionary economic thinker. He, and a strong woman with him, will implement the plan continent-wide. They will unite. This is the potential and this is the plan. Africa will arise out the ashes of centuries of disease and despair and create a viable economic force with workers who can create good products for the day. You think China is economically strong? China must do what it does, hobbled by the secrecy and bias of the old ways of its own history. As large as it is, it will have to eventually compete with Africa, a land of free thinkers and fast change. China will have a major competitor, one that doesn't have any cultural barriers to the advancement of the free Human spirit.. ...."

US Olympic hero Bruce Jenner hailed for coming out as transgender

Yahoo - AFP, Michael Thurston, April 25, 2015

US Olympic champion turned reality TV star Bruce Jenner was undergoing a sex
change has been rich fodder for supermarket tabloids for months (AFP Photo/Stan Honda)

Los Angeles (AFP) - US Olympic champion turned reality TV star Bruce Jenner won praise Saturday from celebrities and activists for revealing he is transitioning from male to female, ending long-running speculation he identifies as a woman.

In a highly anticipated, two-hour television interview aired Friday -- hailed by transgender rights' campaigners and his own Kardashian-linked family -- the 65-year-old said he had wrestled with his sexual identity since he was a kid.

"I've always been confused about my gender identity since I was this big," he told ABC's celebrity interviewer Diane Sawyer.

"Here I am, stuck -- and I hate the word -- (a) girl stuck in a guy's body... As of now I have all the male parts and all that kind of stuff."

But asked point blank if he was a woman, Jenner said: "Yes. For all intents and purposes, I'm a woman."

Speculation that the actor, race-car enthusiast and 1976 Montreal Summer Olympics decathlon gold medalist was undergoing a sex change has been rich fodder for supermarket tabloids for months.

Supposed telltale signs, based on paparazzi photos from the streets of Los Angeles, include shaved limbs, long hair worn in a ponytail and what appears to be a sports bra under a T-shirt.

'I am not gay'

Jenner said he identifies himself as "her," but not by a specific name. The ABC interviewer used "he" and "him" throughout, without causing any apparent discomfort for the former Olympian.

He stressed the difference between gender identity and sexuality.

"I am not gay," Jenner said. "I am, as far as I know, heterosexual. I've always been with a woman, raising kids."

Just before making the long-expected announcement, Jenner symbolically let his hair down.

"Let's take the damn ponytail out," he told Sawyer, smiling.

Lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) rights group GLAAD welcomed Jenner's announcement.

"Though Jenner's journey is one that is deeply personal, it is also one that will impact and inspire countless people around the world," GLAAD head Sarah Kate Ellis said.

Singer Miley Cyrus gushed on Twitter: "I LOOOOVE LOOOVE LOOOVE Bruce Jenner!!!!!!!"

Born outside New York in October 1949, thrice-married Jenner became an American sports hero when he set a world record with his Montreal decathlon victory.

Leveraging his fame, he appeared on boxes of Wheaties, a popular American cereal known as "the breakfast of champions," then tried his hand as a movie actor, with less than stellar results.

But it was through his marriage to the former Kris Kardashian that he once again became a household name in "Keeping Up with the Kardashians" in which he appeared as the sometimes bemused stepfather of her flamboyant daughters Kourtney, Kim and Khloe.

The couple have two daughters of their own, but they obtained a divorce in December, 14 months after separating -- although he has been seen still wearing a wedding ring.

Hero once again

"Not only was I able to call him my husband for 25 years and father of my children, I am now able to call him my hero," Kris Jenner tweeted.

Jenner's 89-year-old mother Esther hailed her son's announcement, comparing her pride to that when he won at the Olympics.

"I never thought I could be more proud of you. But I'm learning I can be," she wrote.

Jenner's son Brandon tweeted simply: "Proud son," along with an Instagram picture of himself as a young boy perched on his smiling father's shoulders.

Step-daughter Kim Kardashian trumpeted:

"Love is the courage to live the truest, best version of yourself. Bruce is love. I love you Bruce. ."

Her sister Khloe wrote: "Bruzer, I'm soooo proud of you! Dads really are heros."

National Center for Transgender Equality advocacy group executive director Mara Keisling called Jenner's declaration "one of the most profound displays of bravery and courage I've seen."

Jenner, clearly relieved to have finally come clean, said: "I'm saying goodbye to people's perceptions of me and who I am.

"I'm not saying goodbye to me because this has always been me."

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"The Akashic Circle" – Jul 17, 2011 (Kryon channelled by Lee Carroll) - (Subjects: Religion, The Humanization of God, Benevolent Design, DNA, Akashic Circle, (Old) Souls, Gaia, Indigenous People, Talents, Reincarnation, Genders, Gender Switches, In “between” Gender Change, Gender Confusion, Shift of Human Consciousness, Global Unity,..... etc.)  - (Text version)

“… Gender Switching

Old souls, let me tell you something. If you are old enough, and many of you are, you have been everything. Do you hear me? All of you. You have been both genders. All of you have been what I will call between genders, and that means that all of you have had gender switches. Do you know what happens when it's time for you to switch a gender? We have discussed it before. You'll have dozens of lifetimes as the same gender. You're used to it. It's comfortable. You cannot conceive of being anything else, yet now it's time to change. It takes approximately three lifetimes for you to get used to it, and in those three lifetimes, you will have what I call "gender confusion."

It isn't confusion at all. It's absolutely normal, yet society often will see it as abnormal. I'm sitting here telling you you've all been through it. All of you. That's what old souls do. It's part of the system. …”

Belt and Road key to future of Africa-Asia cooperation

Want China Times, Staff Reporter 2015-04-26

Xi Jinping delivers a speech at the Asian-African Summit 2015 in Jakarta,
April 22. (Photo/Xinhua)

At the Asian-African Summit or Bandung Conference 2015 held in Jakarta, Indonesia, President Xi Jinping of China delivered a speech calling for win-win cooperation between Asian and African counties. China still has an important advantage in its huge labor-intensive industry to help Africa's developing counties develop their economies, China Securities Journal reports.

Xi said China will push for cooperation between Asian and African nations, pledging to give zero tariff treatment to 97% of categories to most developing nations which have diplomatic ties with China and will continue to offer subsidies to developing counties without any political conditions. China hopes all countries in the region can work together to on its New Silk Road Economic Belt and 21st Century Maritime Silk Road (Belt and Road) initiatives and join the Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank (AIIB), pushing for joint maintenance of regional and world peace and stability.

In 1955, representatives from 29 Asian and African countries and regions gathered in Bandung to discuss independence, peace and economic prosperity. The Bandung Conference opened a new chapter in the developing countries' struggle for national independence, economic development, social progress and a more balanced international order.

Beijing's Belt and Road initiative will explore the deeper-level cooperation potential and expand cooperation room among related countries along the routes. For developing countries, insufficient funding for infrastructure is one of the most difficult problems. The AIIB aims to make up this shortfall. So far, the AIIB has attracted 57 nations to be its founding members.

The Belt and Road will involve territory occupied by around 4.4 billion people, accounting for 63% of the world's population, with total economic output of about US$2.2 trillion, representing 30% of the world's total. The nations along the routes are mostly new and emerging economies. The Belt and Road will build on existing foundations to push for more complementary cooperation to expand regional cooperation.

China and Pakistan have jointly promoted the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor as one of the important projects in building the Belt and Road, triggering rising investments.

Due to rising worker salaries, China has gradually lost its advantage in labor costs, with a large volume of labor-industries destined to gradually move out of the nation. While Africa, which has a population of over one billion, will be the only place in the world that can receive China's huge labor-intensive industry, especially as the average per capita salary in African countries is only about one-fifth to one-tenth of China's.

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"The Recalibration of Awareness – Apr 20/21, 2012 (Kryon channeled by Lee Carroll) (Subjects: Old Energy, Recalibration Lectures, God / Creator, Religions/Spiritual systems  (Catholic Church, Priests/Nun’s, Worship, John Paul Pope, Women in the Church otherwise church will go, Current Pope won’t do it),  Middle East, Jews, Governments will change (Internet, Media, Democracies, Dictators, North Korea, Nations voted at once), Integrity (Businesses, Tobacco Companies, Bankers/ Financial Institutes, Pharmaceutical company to collapse),  Illuminati (Started in Greece, with Shipping, Financial markets, Stock markets, Pharmaceutical money (fund to build Africa, to develop)), Shift of Human Consciousness, (Old) Souls, Women, Masters to/already come back, Global Unity.... etc.) - (Text version) 

“… The Future of the Illuminati

Now, I want to tell you something that you didn't expect and something I've reported only one other time. What about all of the money that the Illuminati has? There are trillions and trillions of euro in banks, under their control, waiting. What are they going to do with it and where are they going to use it? It's still here. They're waiting.

This group is waiting for something to happen that they know is going to happen, for they see it coming as much as I do. However, I would like to tell you something that they don't expect. With awareness comes generational shift. Those in charge of this money will not always be elders. The indigos eventually will have it.

They are waiting for something to happen in Africa - the building of a new civilization, a continent that has nothing to unlearn. Once Africa is cured, once it's ready, a new civilization can be created from the ground up. Africans will be ready to learn everything about building a foundation for the most advanced civilization ever and will do it with the most modern and inventive systems available. Eventually, this new continent will even beat the economics of China.

This is the prediction and always has been, and the Illuminati's money will fund it. Did I say the Illuminati will fund it? [Kryon laugh] The Illuminati's money will fund it, but there is a difference from the past, dear ones. The ones who inherit the positions in the Illuminati will be a different consciousness. Listen, they are not suddenly going to be the ones who have the good of everyone in their hearts - hardly. They want to make money, but what they will see instead is a way to make a great deal of money through this investment. In the process, it will automatically help hundreds of thousands, and they will be at the beginning, the foundation, that builds the new Africa. The new African states of unification eventually will create a continent stronger than any of the others, and it will have one currency. The resources alone will dwarf anything in the world. ...”