News headlines in January 2011, page 4

The world's northern freezer is on rapid defrost as large volumes of warm water are pouring into the Arctic Ocean, speeding the melt of sea ice, according to a new study.

The digital revolution is turning people into producers, as well as consumers, of media content. But this new reality has yet to be fully assimilated, and journalists face questions and uncertainties about their social role, their duties and also their rights.

The cultivation of coffee beans for fair trade has turned the fortunes of this historical cash crop around in some poor rural areas on the slopes of Mount Elgon in eastern Uganda.

Tear-gas and smoke wafted through the air of the Egyptian capital on Friday as police moved swiftly to disperse anti-government demonstrations throughout the city.

Billions of dollars are being made by investors in a speculative 'food bubble' that's created record food prices, starving millions and destabilising countries, experts now conclude.

Twitter was an early casualty. Then Facebook access became spotty. But when the Internet itself went down, Egyptian pro-democracy activists knew their protests were having an effect.

A dissident group in Cuba described the human rights situation in the country as 'very unfavourable,' although it recognised that the number of people prosecuted or imprisoned for 'political motivations' has gone down in the last 12 months.

A week after Vietnam’s ruling Communist Party ended its pivotal congress of the country’s political elite, there is little evidence in the state-controlled media of a possible return to the openness that once saw high-profile corruption scandals exposed in print here.

Noncedo Pulana lacks many things, but she is certainly not short of confidence as she prepares to stand for election as Khayelitsha ward councillor. She feels her long years as an activist in the sprawling township have prepared her to do a better job.

A government initiative aimed at rooting out deep-seated corruption in Russia has hit a number of stumbling blocks since its implementation. According to experts, the initiative, adopted by Russian President Dmitry Medvedev at the beginning of his term, has been unsuccessful in combating the pervasive issue of corruption, particularly in regional administrations and offices, in this eastern European country.