News headlines in 2008, page 16

Rebels are being blamed for the slow progress of talks seeking to end fighting in the eastern region of the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC).

A proposed constitutional amendment introduced in the Mexican Congress to reinstate the death penalty stands virtually no chance of approval. But it has generated a broad public debate that is expected to grow more heated.

The rise in modern-day piracy, mostly off the coasts of Somalia and in the Gulf of Aden, is triggering a strong collective response from the United Nations.

Polluting industries have received an early Christmas gift from European Union leaders who have agreed to weaken their proposals for fighting climate change in order to protect short-term commercial gains.

Activists from more than 1,000 human rights groups and other civil society organisations who followed the live Internet transmission of this week’s United Nations Human Rights Council’s review of the situation in this country at a university auditorium in the Colombian capital shared the sensation that their voices had finally been heard.

For a president who had little to do but pardon turkeys on Thanksgiving and throw the switch on the national Christmas tree, little to look forward to but packing his bags and evacuating the White House, and less positive accomplishments to look back on than most presidents, this year's World AIDS Day was clearly a high point. And Pastor Rick Warren was there to share the spotlight with him.

Nearly 1,000 scientists and representatives of indigenous peoples from 16 countries have braved a major winter storm to share their findings and concerns about the rapidly warming Arctic region at the International Arctic Change conference in Quebec City.

The main issue in Iran's June 2009 presidential election is certain to be the country's economic woes, but both candidates will be linking the economy to the issue of relations between Iran and the West, according to Iranian politicians and political analysts.

Communities in 10 southern provinces of the Dominican Republic are feeling the benefits from the collective activities of small growers of organic coffee. Women participate in the production and sale of the coffee, and their sons and daughters are pursuing studies in order to improve the sector's productivity.

A court in Sierra Leone has overturned treason convictions for 11 men. It is the first successful appeal against a death penalty in that country, opening the possibility of an eventual end to capital punishment there.