As many as seven journalists were victims of violence during the post-election riots. The journalists are identified as Budi Tanjung (CNN Indonesia TV), Ryan (MNC Media), Ryan Hadi (CNNIndonesia.com), Fajar (Sindo Trijaya Radio), Fadli Mubarok (Alinea.id) and Intan Bedisa and Rahajeng Mutiara (RTV).

The police and protesters allegedly forcefully held back the journalists, confiscated their devices and forced them to delete pictures and videos.

The head of the Alliance of Independent Journalists (AJI) in Jakarta, Asnil Bambani, lambasted the police and protesters.

“We condemn the violent acts against journalists and the hampering of the journalists’ work,” Asnil said through a written statement received by The Jakarta Post on Friday.

According to Asnil, their acts violated Article 18 of Law No. 40/1999 on the press, which states that those who intentionally interfere with journalists’ work are subject to two years’ imprisonment and Rp 500 million (US$34,800) in fines.

Asnil urged media owners to take responsibility by providing their journalists with safety training.

“We urge the public and the police to respect and support press freedom without intimidating and interfering with their work,” he added.

The head of the airport’s Communication and Legal Section, Arie Ahsanurrohim, told The Jakarta Post on Saturday morning that at least 15 flights had been affected by the eruption, including 10 departures and four arrivals that were cancelled, while another had to be diverted.

The cancelled flights included two Qantas Airways planes going from Denpasar to Sydney and Melbourne, four Virgin Airlines planes to Brisbane and Sydney and four Jetstar planes to Melbourne, Cairns, Darwin and Sydney.

Four Jetstar flights that were scheduled to fly to Bali from Melbourne, Cairns, Darwin and Adelaide had also been cancelled. A Jetstar flight from Adelaide to Denpasar was diverted to Darwin following the eruption.

“The airport operations remain normal. It was those Australian airlines that cancelled their flights based on their safety assessments,” Arie said.

The Transportation Ministry’s airport authority for Bali, Elfi Amir, said in a statement that a thin volcanic ash was detected 4,000 to 5,000 meters above the airport area so the air traffic control officer guided pilots to avoid the area exposed to it.

Elfi also urged all passengers to not panic, saying the airport had conducted safety assessments to guarantee flight safety.

Mt. Agung erupted on Friday night, ejected lava and causing fires in areas 3 kilometers from the peak. No fatalities were reported. The local disaster mitigation agency had immediately distributed face masks in villages that were affected by the ash.

The Volcanology and Geological Disaster Mitigation Center (PVMBG) maintained the volcano’s alert level at the third level of the system’s four tiers. The PVMBG warned everyone, both locals and tourists alike, to steer clear of the danger zone where activities are prohibited in a 4-km radius from the crater.

A ban on hiking on Mt. Agung has been in effect ever since its volcanic activity increased in 2017. Locals living along the rivers at the foot of the volcano have also been warned to watch for possible lava flow that could come on rainy days.

Fifty years later, the hotel is celebrating their fabled experiment in pacifism with a series of special events including guided tours of the couple’s room.

“We’re still talking about it 50 years later, but at the time we had no idea the impact that it would have,” Joanne Papineau, spokeswoman for the hotel, told AFP.

“After the couple left, for years we didn’t talk about the bed-in, but then John was murdered, other wars continued and people started showing up wanting to see where it all happened,” she said. “Many years later, they suddenly found meaning in what the couple had done.”

From May 26 to June 2, 1969, Lennon and Ono received journalists from around the world who interviewed the couple in bed, as well as fans and fellow artists who helped to create a chirpy ambience and send a simple message: Stop the Vietnam war.

The idea derived from sit-ins, in which protestors sit in front of or inside an establishment until their demands are met or they are arrested.

Amid this merry chaos and with limited technical means, Lennon composed and recorded his famous hymn to peace, “Give Peace a Chance.”

His entourage, which included psychedelic drug advocate Timothy Leary and writer Allen Ginsberg, not always singing in tune, provided the chorus. The song would later be remixed in a professional sound studio.

“This is certainly one of the most remarkable and influential songs of contemporary music,” Genevieve Bornesaid, host of the upcoming festivities, told a news conference on Thursday.

“This bed-in for peace was also one of the first acts of activism by artists.”

‘Lennon changed my life’

The special events at the Fairmont The Queen Elizabeth Hotel in Montreal will kick off on Saturday and continue through Lennon’s birthday on June 9.

They will include the unveiling of an exhibit of photographs taken during the bed-in, guided tours of the famous Room 1742, a “hippie” night and a concert for peace.

The Phi Foundation will also host an exhibit of the works of the widow of Lennon, the Beatles singer who was tragically gunned down outside their New York apartment in 1980.

The couple had actually rented four adjacent rooms in the hotel (1738, 1740, 1742 and 1744) for their stay in 1969.

The rooms have since been combined into a single 1,400-square-foot suite and renovated, but in keeping with the original design. Mockups of two original hand-painted “Hair Peace” and “Bed Peace” signs adorn the windows.

Carmel Masse, a 57-year-old Canadian fan of John Lennon and the Beatles booked the suite for the night from Sunday to Monday.

“Lennon changed my life,” he told AFP. “When I saw John Lennon bearded in Montreal, with his guru side, looking like Jesus Christ, his journey intrigued me.”

Lennon’s pacifist message would further seduce and inspire him.

“To rent this suite is like saying 50 years later, ‘Thank you for making me a better person.'”

According to China’s Xinhua news agency, the eruption was recorded at 19:30 Central Indonesian Time (WITA), lasted for 4 minutes and 30 seconds, Indonesia’s Center of Volcanology and Geological Disaster Mitigation (PVMBG) said.

“The ash column could not be observed. Thundering sounds from the eruption were heard adequately strong from the monitoring post,” PVMBG said in a statement.

The eruption also threw smoldering lava and pieces of stone into the air, fell in areas around 2.5-3 km from the summit.

PVMBG said alert level on Mount Agung was set at Level III at present.

Residents, trekkers and tourists are strictly prohibited to be around the red zone areas set at 4 km away around Mount Agung summit.

Residents who reside around the downstream of rivers upstreaming in the Mount Agung are advised to remain vigilant on possible stream of hot lava or volcanic materials.

Volcanic activities of the volcano located in eastern side of the Indonesia’s resort island remained intense after the large eruption in 2017. Frequent mild eruptions have been reported in the last several months.

Bali airport has cancelled all flights following an eruption of the Mount Agung volcano that spread ash over the south of the Indonesian island.

Mount Agung eruption in November in 2017 has forced the authorities to close down the airport for several days, hampering tourism in Indonesia’s ultimate destination.

The volcanic disaster had forced over 43,000 residents in Bali’s eastern regencies to refuge in shelters. Dozens of elder refugees died in the shelters due to the ensuing eruption.

Utah judge Michael Kwan’s suspension earlier this week by the state’s supreme court says that his behavior was in violation of the judicial code of conduct and sullied the reputation of the judiciary.

“Judge Kwan’s behavior denigrates his reputation as an impartial, independent, dignified, and courteous jurist who takes no advantage of the office in which he serves,” the court said in a 19-page opinion.

As regards Kwan’s postings about Trump on Facebook and LinkedIn, the court said they “were laden with blunt, and sometimes indelicate, criticism.”

In one posting on January 20, 2017, when Trump was inaugurated president, Kwan wrote: “Welcome to governing.

“Will you dig your heels in and spend the next four years undermining our country’s reputation and standing in the world? … Will you continue to demonstrate your inability to govern and political incompetence?”

In another posting a month later, Kwan wrote: “Welcome to the beginning of the fascist takeover.”

He continued, “We need to… be diligent in questioning Congressional Republicans if they are going to be the American Reichstag and refuse to stand up for the Constitution, refuse to uphold their oath of office and enable the tyrants to consolidate their power.”

On another occasion while presiding over a hearing, Kwan got into an exchange with a defendant in which he appeared to criticize Trump’s immigration and tax policies, the court said.

The defendant told Kwan that he planned to pay all of his court fines when he got his tax returns.

“You do realize that we have a new president, and you think we are getting any money back?” Kwan told the defendant

“Prayer might be the answer,” Kwan added.

“‘Cause, he just signed an order to start building the wall and he has no money to do that, and so if you think you are going to get taxes back this year, uh-yeah, maybe, maybe not. But don’t worry, there is a tax cut for the wealthy so if you make over $500,000 you’re getting a tax cut.”

Kwan, who has served as a judge in the city of Taylorsville for the past two decades and has a history of misconduct linked to politically charged comments and his temper, has acknowledged that his behavior was unbecoming a judge.

But he described his in-court political statements as an attempt at humor and argued, unsuccessfully, that a suspension would amount to infringing on his freedom of speech.

Dr.Ko Ko Naing, a director general at the Ministry of Social Welfare, Relief and Resettlement, told The Nation on Friday that the authorities recently had a “fruitful discussion” with Filippo Grandi, UN High Commissioner for Refugees, who was in the country for a five-day visit which began on Monday.

“We have been actively cooperating with UN agencies over the past few years, and UNHCR is one of them. (On Thursday) we discussed with Grandi further plans for collaboration,” he said.

Officials on Thursday signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) on collaboration in disaster management and humanitarian works with Grandi. The agreement, signing in Nay Pyi Taw, will strengthen Myanmar’s ties with the UN refugee agency, allowing UNHCR’s assistance in the event of disasters.

“We will ensure to prioritise security and stability of the conflicted areas while undertaking humanitarian works in disaster-hit regions,” he said.

According to the agreement, UNHCR will have to notify the ministry of any challenges it is facing on the ground so both parties can work together to address them.

“This MoU means an additional three years cooperation with UNHCR. We hope to collaborate more in welcoming Myanmar migrant workers back home as well as providing humanitarian assistance to internally displaced persons (IDPs),” he said.

Prior to the signing, Grandi met with State Counsellor Aung San Suu Kyi on Thursday, and discussed the extension of the MoU signed between Myanmar, UNDP and UNHCR in June 2018, implementation of the community-based Quick Impact Projects (QIPs), the voluntary return of verified Myanmar nationals from the temporary camps along the Myanmar-Thailand border, and provision of assistance by UNHCR for ensuring peace and development in Myanmar.

In the first two days of his trip, Grandi visited communities in Rakhine State including Muslim refugees in Khaung Doke Khar camp in Sittwe, and the northern townships and met with regional authorities.

In Maungdaw township, in the northern part of Rakhine State, Grandi travelled to a number of villages to hear Rakhine, Rohingya and other communities tell of their challenges, needs and hopes. They also said that projects in their villages – such as water reservoirs, school rehabilitation, road improvements, provision of bicycles and skills training – are already making a difference in their lives.

While driving in northern Rakhine, Grandi saw stretches of empty land once occupied by Rohingya villages now covered by overgrown vegetation. Few signs remain of the houses and markets that once dotted the landscape, the statement said.

In Buthidaung, at a Buddhist monastery hosting Rakhine people recently displaced, representatives told Grandi of their wish to return to their homes as soon as possible. They asked for security to be reestablished, unexploded ordinances cleared and strongly appealed for peace.

The Rakhine State Government currently estimates that around 29,000 people, mostly from the Rakhine community, are displaced in seven townships in Rakhine state due to this conflict.

Grandi also met with a group of Rakhine villagers in Maungdaw township, once a cluster of five villages surrounded by farms and fish ponds, with a large Rohingya population who are now refugees in Bangladesh. They expressed concerns about the impact on the local economy and labour shortages following the departure of their Muslim neighbours.

As the first visit by the UN refugee chief to Myanmar since August 2017, Grandi’s trip comes on the heels of the High Commissioner’s mission to Rohingya refugee camps in Bangladesh at the end of April. More than 900,000 stateless Rohingya refugees currently live in crowded settlements in Cox’s Bazar, of whom an estimated 741,000 fled from Myanmar since August 2017, according to UNHCR.

“In the course of his stay in Myanmar, Grandi will follow up on a range of issues raised by refugees from Myanmar and will discuss Myanmar’s efforts to find comprehensive and durable solutions to the crisis in Rakhine State,” UNHCR said in a statement.

Prior to his visit to Myanmar, Grandi visited refugee camps in Bangladesh in late April. There, he stressed that key moves and progress must be made by Myanmar authorities.

“The Myanmar side must address the issue of Rohingya rights,” he said. “That includes freedom of movement, access to jobs and services, and a path to citizenship.”

“The students lost their life both because of the fire and jumping out of the building,” Deepak Sapthaley, a fire official in the western city of Surat, told AFP.

Ten of them died from the jump and five from the fire, with up to 20 being treated in hospital, he said. The images showed blazing orange flames and black smoke billowing out of the building.

Sapthaley added that 50 or 60 people were inside the coaching institute on the top floor of the building when the blaze began. The cause was not yet known.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi, who comes from Gujarat state where the fire broke out, said on Twitter: “Extremely anguished by the fire tragedy in Surat.

“My thoughts are with bereaved families. May the injured recover quickly. Have asked the Gujarat Government and local authorities to provide all possible assistance to those affected.”

Local officials said that the fire had spread quickly because of the material used in the roof.

The fire started Friday afternoon when the classes were packed, mostly with teenagers, and the officials were still trying to control the blaze.

Local media reports said that the toll could still rise further as many students were undergoing treatment at local hospitals.

    “The students lost their life both because of the fire and jumping out of the building,” Deepak Sapthaley, a fire official in the western city of Surat, told AFP.

Ten of them died from the jump and five from the fire, with up to 20 being treated in hospital, he said. The images showed blazing orange flames and black smoke billowing out of the building.

Sapthaley added that 50 or 60 people were inside the coaching institute on the top floor of the building when the blaze began. The cause was not yet known.

    Prime Minister Narendra Modi, who comes from Gujarat state where the fire broke out, said on Twitter: “Extremely anguished by the fire tragedy in Surat.

“My thoughts are with bereaved families. May the injured recover quickly. Have asked the Gujarat Government and local authorities to provide all possible assistance to those affected.”

Local officials said that the fire had spread quickly because of the material used in the roof.

– Britain votes to leave –

In a June 23, 2016 referendum Britons choose to leave the 28-nation EU by a narrow 52 percent to 48 percent. Conservative prime minister David Cameron, who led the campaign to remain in the EU, resigns.

– May becomes prime minister –

May, the remain-backing interior minister, becomes prime minister on July 13. On January 17, 2017 she sets out her Brexit strategy, saying Britain will leave Europe’s single market to allow it to control EU immigration.

“No deal for Britain is better than a bad deal,” she insists.

– Exit process triggered –

On March 13, 2017 Britain’s parliament approves a bill empowering May to trigger the EU process for leaving the union.

With a letter to the EU Council formally announcing Britain’s intention to leave, the government starts a two-year timetable for withdrawal by March 29, 2019.

– Lost majority –

To strengthen her hand in Brexit negotiations, May calls a snap election for June 8, 2017. Her Conservatives lose their parliamentary majority and are forced to strike a deal for support from Northern Ireland’s Democratic Unionist Party.

– Top ministers quit –

On July 6, 2018 May wins agreement from her warring cabinet to pursue “a UK-EU free trade area” and strong alignment with the EU after Brexit.

Two days later Eurosceptic Brexit minister David Davis quits, saying May is giving “too much away too easily”. Foreign minister Boris Johnson follows suit on July 9.

– Draft deal agreed –

On November 13 British and EU negotiators reach a draft divorce agreement, which May’s cabinet backs the following day after heated debate.

But four ministers, including new Brexit secretary Dominic Raab, resign. EU leaders approve the accord on November 25. “This is the only deal possible,” insists European Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker.

May faces a furious backlash from her own party. On December 12 Conservative MPs hold a no-confidence vote but she survives, winning by 200 to 117.

– British MPs reject deal –

In the first parliament vote on the deal on January 15, 2019, MPs are 432 to 202 against — the worst defeat for a government in modern British political history.

It is rejected again on March 12. Main opposition Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn calls a vote of no confidence in the government on January 16.

It survives by 325 to 306 votes, as May’s Conservatives rally round.

– Brexit delay –

With Britain making no headway in finalising its departure deal, the EU on March 21 agrees to a delay but says Britain must outline a plan by April 12 or face a no-deal Brexit.

– May’s resignation pledge –

In a dramatic meeting with fellow Conservatives on March 27, May promises to resign if her main leadership rivals support her deal and help it over the line.

Parliament still rejects the deal on March 29 for the third time.

May reaches out to the Labour Party for a compromise deal to get the Brexit deal through parliament.

She gives the go-ahead for Britain to take part in European Parliament elections on May 23.

 – Six-month delay –

EU leaders agree on April 11 to delay Brexit by up to six months. In early May Conservatives lose hundreds of seats at local elections.

On May 17 the Labour opposition pulls out of talks on a compromise.

– May resigns – 

In last-gasp effort to get a deal through parliament, May promises on May 21 to give lawmakers a vote on whether to hold a second Brexit referendum. It prompts a furious reaction among Conservatives.

May announces on May 24 she will step down as Conservative leader on June 7, making way for the election of a new prime minister.

The EU says her resignation changes nothing in the Brexit talks.

A Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation statement issued on Thursday said the visit comes at the invitation of UN under-secretary-general and Unescap executive secretary Armida Salsiah Alisjahbana.

Hun Sen will be accompanied by Senior Minister Ly Thuch, president of the National Committee for Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific, Minister of Women’s Affairs Ing Kantha Phavi and other senior government officials, said the release.

Government spokesman Phay Siphan on Thursday told The Post that though he is aware of the premier’s visit to Thailand, he was not aware of the details of the convention’s agenda.

“The Ministry of Foreign Affairs [and International Cooperation] might know more about the topic than me,” he told The Post.

Ministry spokesman Ket Sophann told The Post that Unescap’s invitation was a sign of the UN’s recognition of the Kingdom’s accomplishments in social and economic development.

Hun Sen is set to deliver a keynote address during the convention’s opening session, which will focus on Cambodia’s experiences in socio-economic development, and how it has helped raise people living standards considerably, Sophann said.

“During the convention, the prime minister will emphasise key issues regarding Cambodia’s developments which help reduce poverty and increase people’s living standards.”

“For more detailed information, you’ll have to wait for [the prime minister] to deliver his speech,” he said.