News headlines in April 2009, page 26

Malaysia’s controversial Najib Razak, who became the country’s sixth prime minister on Apr. 3, has launched a charm offensive to win the hearts and minds of a people disillusioned by numerous scandals and political skullduggery.

Suwicha Thakhor’s nightmare in a Thai jail is set to continue after a court delivered a harsh verdict this week that contained an unequivocal message – the Internet in this country is being policed with the aim of limiting free expression.

A new film on undocumented migrants has sparked heated discussion among the public and lawmakers here.

Moldavians are heading for general elections this Sunday. After a campaign marred with illegalities, the incumbent Communist Party is confident of winning most seats in the national parliament.

Turkey's ruling party won the local elections last week, but the reduced majority comes as indicator that its popularity may be in decline.

As NATO prepares to celebrate its 60th year, Europe's somewhat fractured Afghanistan policy, which will feature large in discussions at the organisation's anniversary summit this weekend, needs to improve significantly if it is to gain any credibility in the region, say policy experts in Brussels.

A Venezuelan court sentenced three former police chiefs and three rank-and-file officers Friday to the maximum possible sentence in Venezuela, 30 years, for killing demonstrators ahead of the Apr. 11, 2002 coup in which President Hugo Chávez was briefly overthrown.

Teachers and students marched in protest against a new education law passed by the Chilean parliament nearly three years after the so-called 'penguin revolution,' named for the uniforms of the secondary school students who led it.

European Union officials are seeking evidence to support claims that fruit and vegetables from Israeli settlements in the Palestinian territories are being exported under false pretence.

It seemed like a lot of money at the time. The leaders of the group of eight richest countries, the G8, met in Gleneagles in Scotland and announced 50 billion dollars in new aid, half of that for Africa and half for the rest of the world.