Category Archives: Macau

The largest banks operating in the US market have sufficient resources to withstanda severe economic downturn and continue providing financing to American families and firms, the Federal Reserve said Thursday.

The Fed subjected 33 banks to its annual stress test exercise, to gauge whether they would be able to weather a steep global recession.

In the hypothetical crisis, financial markets plummet, commercial real estate and corporate debt markets face substantial strain, US unemployment reaches 10 percent and the economy contracts by 3.5 percent.

The results showed that banks continue to have strong capital levels, allowing them to continue lending to households and businesses during a severe recession,the Fed said.

The scenario for this years test was even bleaker than the one used last year, but the outcome was the same, showing all the banks would maintain a sufficient cushion despite total projected losses of $612 billion, according to the report.

Despite the larger post-stress decline this year capital ratios remain well above the required minimum levels throughout the projection horizon of nine quarters, the report said.

The stress tests, implemented in the wake of the 2008 global financial crisis, apply to banks with at least $100 billion in total assets, including the top tier designated as global systemically important banks.

Smaller banks are only subjected to the stress tests every two years, so the results are not directly comparable to 2021, which tested 23 institutions.

Among the banks examined in both years, there were an additional $50 billion in losses under the tougher scenario, a Fed official told reporters.

However, the official stressed that the dire case applied is only hypothetical and not a forecast.

With the results in hand, banks can announce any plans for dividend payments and share buybacks starting Monday at 2030 GMT, the official said.

The Fed ordered limits to such distributions in June 2020 as the coronavirus pandemic caused a sharp economic downturn, but relaxed the restrictions in December 2020 before removing them following last years tests.

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Major US banks can weather severe economic downturn: Fed - Macau Business

People wait to get in outside Wynn Palace, U.S. casino tycoon Steve Wynn's newest resort, during its opening in Macau, China August 22, 2016. REUTERS/Bobby Yip

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HONG KONG, June 15 (Reuters) - Macau's legislature released a final draft of a highly anticipated gaming bill on Wednesday raising the tax rate and giving officials far greater oversight into operations in the world's biggest gambling hub.

The 55-page document, released in Portuguese and Chinese on the legislature's website, comes as the government is due to formally sign a six-month licence extension for casino operators on June 23, local broadcaster TDM reported.

The moves are expected ahead of casino license expirations due this month. The extension, to Dec. 31, allows more time for a highly anticipated rebidding process in the Chinese special administrative region, the only place in China where gambling in casinos is legal.

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Macau's casino bill, which marks the biggest reform in two decades for the former Portuguese colony, will likely be approved by lawmakers this month.

The final version is similar to an initial draft first circulated in January but clarifies that casino tax on gross revenues will increase to 40% from 39%, although the chief executive has discretion to reduce it by up to 5% if operators succeed in attracting non-mainland Chinese gamblers. L4N2TY23L

Casino operators must have 5 billion patacas ($618.43 million) in cash at all times during the 10 year license period.

Macau's casino operators - Wynn Macau (1128.HK), Sands China (1928.HK), MGM China (2282.HK), Galaxy Entertainment (0027.HK) and Melco Resorts - all have sufficient liquidity with only SJM Holdings needing to beef up liquidity, according to DS Kim, analyst at JP Morgan in Hong Kong.

All operators will also need to pay 47 million patacas ($5.81 million) for the extension.

Macau's government did not immediately respond to requests for comment.

In 2019 Macau raked in $36.5 billion from its casinos, more than six times as much as the Las Vegas strip.

Since 2020 however Macau's casinos have been hurt by coronavirus travel restrictions, which have curbed visitors, and crackdowns on the opaque junket industry.

Beijing, increasingly wary of Macau's acute reliance on gambling, has not yet indicated how the licence rebidding process will be conducted.

($1 = 8.0850 patacas)

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Reporting by Farah MasterEditing by Kenneth Maxwell and Peter Graff

Our Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

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Macau finalises gaming bill ahead of casino license extension - Reuters

Global oil demand will return to pre-pandemic levels next year as Chinas consumption recovers from Covid lockdowns, the International Energy Agency said Wednesday.

Soaring oil prices and weaker economic growth will temper the growth of demand in the second half of this year, said the Paris-based agency.

But resurgent Chinese oil consumption will more than compensate for a slowdown in oil demand among the 38-nation Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development that gathers mostly developed countries, the IEA said.

China has enforced a zero-Covid policy that has led to lockdowns in Shanghai, its economic hub.

The IEA expects global oil demand to grow to 99.4 million barrels per day in 2022 higher than its previous estimates but still one million barrels lower than in 2019.

Demand is set to grow to 101.6 million barrels per day in 2023, according to the IEA, which advises developed countries on energy policy.

Supply may struggle to keep pace with demand next year, however, as major crude producer Russia faces tighter sanctions, the IEA said.

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Oil demand to return to pre-Covid level in 2023: IEA - Macau Business

Portugals minister for infrastructure and housing has said that Lisbon airport may have to turn away flights next year as tourism recovers, calling for a broad consensus on building the new airport.

This year, turning away flights not yet. Next year we will most likely reach, we hope, the best year ever, which was before the pandemic, and then we will start having problems with refusing flights again, Pedro Nuno Santos told reporters on the sidelines of the laying of the first stone of construction of 70 houses for rehousing and four commercial spaces in Lisbons Bairro Padre Cruz, alongside the mayor, Carlos Moedas, on Tuesday.

Pedro Nuno Santos, who indicated that in the coming days the government will give more information about the airport, said that the disturbances expected for next year in terms of traffic, movement and waiting times will be aggravated, as they have already been felt since May this year.

We have a problem that is structural, with an airport that is overloaded and needs an answer, he once again argued, considering it was necessary for the country to be able to achieve a broad consensus in order to ensure that every time a government or minister changes we do not move backwards.

For Pedro Nuno Santos, it is important to work on this consensus, on a good solution.

When questioned about the long queues at Lisbon airport, he stressed that the interior ministry has already presented a contingency plan, which will be fully implemented from the beginning of July and we hope that from this point of view of the queues it will help.

Carlos Moedas also reaffirmed that Lisbon needs a new airport.

We have to have that new airport. This new airport depends on a choice that is made technically and not politically. We will be on the side of the solution of building the new airport. That is the political decision: not to let another ten years go by without deciding. We have to decide, he said.

Waiting times at the arrivals area of Lisbon airport exceeded three hours on Sunday due to insufficient resources and SEF border control posts in operation, ANA, the countrys airports manager said.

The immigration and border control service (SEF) said that on Sunday there was a peak in passenger arrivals at Lisbon airport of about 3,000 travellers, which caused long delays at passport control.

SEF inspector Ana Vieira also stressed that the long queues at the airport reflect the exponential increase in tourism and an inadequate infrastructure for the number of passengers.

Quite honestly, we were not prepared for this exponential increase in tourism and passengers, and the infrastructure itself, as the interior minister has already said, is not adequate for this situation either, inspector Ana Vieira told reporters at Lisbons Humberto Delgado airport, following several reports of long queues and hours of waiting for passengers arriving in Lisbon.

In relation to the new Lisbon airport, on 8 April the institute of mobility and transport (IMT) awarded the strategic environmental assessment (SEA) to consortium COBA/Ineco, and today (Tuesday) the president of the IMT clarified in parliament that the contract has not yet been signed.

According to information released by IMT and reported by Lusa earlier this month the winning consortium, comprising the Portuguese COBA Engineering and Environmental Consultants and Ineco, 51% owned by the Spanish state, submitted a proposal worth 1,999,980 euros.

Also competing were PricewaterhouseCoopers Assessoria de Gesto and Quadrante Engenharia e Consultoria (2,295,000 euros), Leito, Galvo Teles, Soares da Silva, Ernst & Young, Over Arup & Partners, SAU, Leadin Aviation Consulting and Ramboll Iberia (2 million) and IDAD Instituto do Ambiente e Desenvolvimento, TIS PT Consultores em Transportes, Inovao e Sistemas, FUNDEC Associao para a Formao e o Desenvolvimento em Engenharia Civil e Arquitetura and Senerengivia Consultores de Engenharia (1,996,882 euros).

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Portugal: Lisbon airport may have to refuse flights next year - minister - Macau Business

At the peak of their success, K-pop megastars BTS made an emotional announcement to fans: they were taking a break from the supergroup to focus on their solo careers.

The bombshell announcement late Tuesday night sent shockwaves through the septets global fanbase, and caused the share price of their label HYBE to plunge, even as it pushed back, saying the bandmates would still work together.

AFP takes a look back at the bands record-setting run to global superstardom:

On June 13, 2013, BTS debuts as a seven-member boy band.

The members J-Hope, Jimin, Jin, Jungkook, RM, Suga and V are selected through a combination of recruitment and auditions, andundergo intensive training before the groups launch.

Already stars in their native South Korea, the band sets their sights on the worlds largest music market: the United States.

They become the first K-pop act to perform on the televised American Music Awards.

In a vivid illustration of the bands growing appeal, BTS becomes the first K-pop group to top the US album charts.

In May 2018, the band led the Billboard 200 which rank albums via sales, downloads and streams with their album Love yourself: Tear.

As their cultural clout grows, BTS are invited to speak at the United Nations. They use the platform to tell young people to be themselves.

Addressing a packed hall at the launch of a UNICEF youth campaign, group leader RM urges youth to just speak yourself regardless of their race, gender or identity.

The band sets another record, becoming the first Korean act to top Britains album chart with Map of the soul: Persona.

The milestone comes ahead of the groups two sold-out shows at Londons famed Wembley Stadium.

After topping charts in the US and Britain, BTS takes their first long-term break since their debut, citing a need to recharge and refresh.

But the band is back within weeks, with a tour that included a show in Saudi Arabia.

In September 2020, BTS becomes the first South Korean act to dominate the top US singles chart, with their English-language hit Dynamite going to number one on the Billboard Hot 100.

The achievement comes hours after BTS beat American musical heavyweights including Lady Gaga, Ariana Grande and Taylor Swift to score the Best Pop award at MTV Video Music Awards.

The group goes on to top the US singles chart repeatedly with other songs including Butter and Permission to Dance.

BTS become the first Koreans to receive a Grammy nomination.

The group is nominated for best performance by a pop duo or group for its English-language hit Dynamite, but fails to win.

BTS is nominated again in 2021, but after being disappointed, Suga says: Im thankful there are still barriers and challenges we can try to work to overcome.

BTS becomes the first Asian group to win Artist of the Year at the American Music Awards, the worlds largest fan-voted awards show.

The septet also scoops awards for Favourite Pop Duo or Group and Favourite Pop Song for their hit Butter at the glitzy ceremony is Los Angeles.

The win marks the bands ninth AMA.

In December 2021, HYBE announces that BTS will take a second official extended period of rest in order to recharge and seek fresh inspiration.

The band are quickly performing again, with a sold-out series of concerts in Seoul in March 2022, their first post-pandemic performances in their native land.

In June 2022, BTS visits the White House for a meeting with US President Joe Biden.

The group uses the trip to call out growing anti-Asian hate crimes in the United States.

BTS announce theyre taking a break from the group to focus on their solo careers in an emotional video appearance.

Speaking to fans in a YouTube video marking the bands ninth anniversary, the members say they are exhausted and need time apart.

Their label HYBE pushes back, saying BTS will be doing team and individual projects simultaneously.

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Nine years at the top: the unstoppable rise of BTS - Macau Business

Strong market demand and business incubation drives connected vehicle security solutions

HONG KONG SAR Media OutReach 15 June 2022 Connected cars provide plenty to entice threat actors, with more than 400 million predicted to be on the roads globally by 2025. Trend Micro Incorporated (TYO: 4704; TSE: 4704), a global cybersecurity leader, today announced VicOne, dedicated security for the electric vehicles and connected cars of today and tomorrow.

This innovation is the latest addition to Trend Micros long history of incubating successful business ideas to bring the best security offerings to market.

At Trend Micro, we are driven by the desire to secure the connected world. As we focus on this mission, it is imperative that we free ourselves to explore the various new business models that fit the new supply chain, said Eva Chen, CEO, and co-founder of Trend Micro. With VicOne, we anticipated an urgent OEM need for enhanced automotive cybersecurity. Built with the best of Trend Micro innovation, it will offer tremendous value to the industry.

Electric vehicles are increasingly exposed to remote digital threats across a range of new attack scenarios. Original Equipment Manufacturers (OEMs) and suppliers must urgently build comprehensive cybersecurity protections into their ecosystem to comply with the new United Nations regulation, WP.29 (UN R155).

Vehicle security operations centers (SOCs) are a vital step for carmakers looking to comply with regulatory measures by offering enhanced threat detection and response for software-defined vehicles. VicOnes security operations center integrates Microsoft Azure IoT services to collect telemetrics and other important security information from connected automobiles and uses Azure data services to analyze security threats and breaches.

Cybersecurity is an integral part of the electric vehicle (EV) ecosystem. Microsoft provides a comprehensive and open platform service with a zero-trust mindset, said Soren Lau, General Manager of Asia and EMEA, IoT Partner Solutions at Microsoft. We look forward to working with Trend Micro and VicOne to enable end-to-end security solutions for telematics and EVs through Microsoft Cloud and AI features within Azure IoT services.

Gartner also suggests the automotive industry should partner with cybersecurity experts who can assess and propose a broad range of countermeasures. Be future-oriented and avoid doing the minimum to mitigate all threats listed by the regulation doing so will lead you to continually playing catch-up to keep pace with cybercriminals[1].

As part of these efforts, Trend Micro has formed a strategic partnership with MIH Consortium, an open EV platform alliance led by Foxconn, and has recently joined the Scalable Open Architecture for Embedded Edge (SOAFEE) initiative, which aims to provide a cloud-native architecture for the development of software-defined vehicles. These moves cement Trend Micros position at the heart of vehicle supply chains, as industry stakeholders invest more time and resources into cybersecurity compliance.

The software-defined vehicle is the future of the global automotive industry and a driving force in accelerating the development of innovative automotive technology applications, said Dipti Vachani, SVP and GM, Automotive and IoT Line of Business, Arm. By joining other leaders across the automotive industry as a new member of SOAFEE, VicOne is bringing important expertise in security standards to help ensure a safer future for the automotive industry.

VicOne will offer end-to-end security solutions for the automotive ecosystem, including the enablement of security by design, risk management, as well as threat detection and response. The combined power of a vehicle SOC, security over-the-air, in-vehicle security, penetration testing-as-a-service, and automotive vulnerability management will help analysts see more and respond faster to incidents.

To find out more about VicOne, please visit: https://www.vicone.com/

Designed to support large-scale connected car deployments, VicOne supports the cybersecurity of a vehicle throughout its life cycle. Leveraging over 30 years of cybersecurity experience from Trend Micro and the expertise of more than 10,000 independent researchers through the Zero Day Initiative, VicOnes cybersecurity solutions will use the latest technologies like machine learning, behavior monitoring, and detection and response to help secure connected cars. https://www.vicone.com/en

Trend Micro, a global cybersecurity leader, helps make the world safe for exchanging digital information. Fueled by decades of security expertise, global threat research, and continuous innovation, Trend Micros cybersecurity platform protects hundreds of thousands of organizations and millions of individuals across clouds, networks, devices, and endpoints. As a leader in cloud and enterprise cybersecurity, the platform delivers a powerful range of advanced threat defense techniques optimized for environments like AWS, Microsoft, and Google, and central visibility for better, faster detection and response. With 7,000 employees across 65 countries, Trend Micro enables organizations to simplify and secure their connected world. http://www.trendmicro.com.hk

#TrendMicro

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Trend Micro Innovations Shape the Automotive Cybersecurity Industry - Macau Business

For the first time, Colombia will have a black woman vice president, as voters decide Sunday between a pair of rival candidates aiming to make history in the South American nation.

Colombians head to the polls for a run-off to choose their new president, either leftist former guerrilla Gustavo Petro or eccentric millionaire construction mogul Rodolfo Hernandez.

Both men have named a woman running mate with African roots.

Environmentalist Francia Marquez, 40, is running alongside Petro, with Hernandez having chosen conservative academic Marelen Castillo, 53.

Whichever one replaces outgoing Vice President Marta Lucia Ramirez the first woman to hold the position will break new ground as the first person of African descent named to the post.

In political, symbolic and cultural terms it is very important because Colombia is a country with a lot of racism, Cristina Echeverri, an analyst from the National University, told AFP.

Just over nine percent of Colombias 50 million people identify as black but few, especially women, manage to reach positions of power.

There is only one black person in the current cabinet and just two out of almost 300 members of Congress.

Marquez was born into a poor family in the southwestern department of Cauca a region ravaged by violence linked to armed groups battling over drug trafficking and illegal mining resources.

A single mother at just 16, she fled her native region following threats and went to work as a maid while studying law.

But she returned home to take part in local politics and can often be seen frequenting public squares in her African print clothing, defending the marginalized.

Marquez has made headlines with her feminist, environmentalist and leftist speeches, but she has also made enemies.

She survived an attack in 2019, when gunmen tried to kill her due to her defense of the regions water resources in the face of encroachment by mining companies.

The year before that she was awarded the prestigious Goldman environmental prize.

Us nobodies, those whose humanity is not recognized, those whose rights are not recognized in this country, were standing up to change history, to occupy politics, Marquez told AFP in March.

In that months left-wing primaries, Marquez finished second behind Petro, who duly named her his running mate.

She represents the environment, the ethnic, the racial, the youth, the feminist and is thus oxygenating traditional politics, said Echeverri.

But her rise has awakened an underlying bigotry, with the Racial Discrimination Observatory at Los Andes University recording more than 1,000 racial attacks against Marquez since April.

The daughter of a black dressmaker and a civil servant, Castillo was born in a poor neighborhood of Cali.

She studied biology, chemistry and industrial engineering before taking a doctorate at Nova Southeastern University in Florida.

A month ago, maverick outsider Hernandez still had not announced who his running mate would be.

When the 77-year-old businessman advertized he was looking for an Afro-descendent woman from the Pacific coast, university director Castillo sent her CV.

Us perfect strangers are the most numerous, she quipped.

Although she identifies as being of African descent, mother-of-two Castillo says she has never faced racial discrimination and avoids the topic in interviews.

Shes had her work cut out on the campaign trail mitigating the damage done by Hernandezs gaffes, such as when he said women ideally should bring up children and take care of the home.

I will be the face that will support women, said Castillo, who is Catholic.

She has also embraced the anti-corruption message trumpeted by Hernandez, who has his own legal troubles.

Hernandez is under investigation for an allegedly irregular contract signed while he was mayor of Bucaramanga from 2016 to 2019.

Unknown a month ago, Castillo could realistically find herself promoted to the presidency if Hernandez wins but is then stripped of his position for corruption.

Whoever the new vice president is, though, she will have a critical and pertinent role in the exercise of power, said Diego Lucumi, an expert in racial issues at the Los Andes university.

That in itself is a big step for black women in Colombia.

by Lina VANEGAS

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The two black women bidding to make VP history in Colombia - Macau Business

Spains second heatwave in less than a month dragged on Wednesday for a fifth day, with temperatures expected to top 40 degrees Celsius in parts of the country as the mass of hot air pushed into France.

Almost all of Spain was affected, with nine of the countrys 17 regions on orange alert, the second highest level possible, Spains meteorological agency AEMET said.

Temperatures were set to hit 41 degrees Celsius (105.8 degrees Fahrenheit) in Badajoz in the southwest, 40 in Seville in the south and 39 in Madrid, sizzling conditions more common in mid-summer than the first half of June.

The heatwave has produced temperatures between 7C and 12C higher than the average for this time of the year since it started on Saturday, said AEMET spokesman Ruben del Campo.

This is a very unusual situation. These temperatures are not normal in mid-June, he added.

Scientists say heat waves have become more likely due to climate change. As global temperatures rise over time, heat waves are predicted to become more frequent and intense and last longer, and their impacts more widespread.

The authorities urged residents to drink plenty of water, reduce physical activity and stay in cool places as much as possible.

The head of the regional government of Andalusia, in the hard-hit south, said the scorching temperatures were a sign that climate change is an absolute reality.

In Andalusia, the effects are very rough, he added.

Temperatures are expected to ease over the weekend. The extreme weather, which arrived on a wave of hot air from north Africa, is headed for southwest France.

National forecaster Meteo France has warned temperatures could peak above 40C in the south-west between Thursday and Saturday, with the entire country set to experience a hotter-than-usual spell.

Spain also grappled with a heatwave at the end of May, with temperatures up to 15C above the seasonal average.

Last month was Spains hottest May since the beginning of the century.

bur-ds/CHZ/jm

Agence France-Presse

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Spain bakes on fifth day of early heatwave - Macau Business

Hundreds of people rallied outside Turkeys highest administrative court on Tuesday as it examines a case hoping to overturnthe countrys withdrawal from an international treaty protecting womens rights.

Feminist groups, human rights campaigners and representatives of bar associations across Turkey again called for the withdrawal from theIstanbul Convention to be scrapped.

President Recep Tayyip Erdogan pulled Turkey out of the Convention last year. Social conservatives in the country claim it promotes homosexuality and threatens traditional family values.

There have been many legal attempts to cancel the withdrawal, and groups including political parties and NGOs have taken the case to Ankaras Council of State.

Outside, demonstrators shouted: We dont give up because we are right! and The Istanbul Convention gives life to women! as they paraded purple banners, the colour of the feminist movement in Turkey.

Turkeys withdrawal from the Convention is contrary to basic human rights and democracy. We are telling the Council of State this today, said Yelda Kocak, a lawyerand member of the Womens Platform for Equality group.

The Istanbul Convention requires countries to set up laws aimed at preventing and prosecuting violence against women.

Campaigners believe the withdrawal has left women in Turkey more vulnerable to violence.

The We Will Stop Femicide Platform said 166 women have been killed in Turkey so far this year, the majority by family members. There were 423 such killings last year.

The Council of State hearing was still under way on Tuesday afternoon.

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Rally in Turkey as groups fight for women's rights in court - Macau Business

The Gambia is suspending state employees accused of rights violations during ex-dictator Yahya Jammehs regime, including senior members of the countrys security forces, a justice ministry spokesperson said Tuesday.

The move marks a significant step forward in the countrys transitional justice process.

The ministry has written to the employers of those concerned to notify them of their suspension, spokesman Kimbeng Tah told AFP Tuesday.

It expects confirmation of the suspensions in the coming days, he said.

The commander of the police forces Anti-Crime Unit, Gorgui Mboob, and the Drug Law Enforcement Agencys director of operations, Ebrima Jim Drammeh, are among those named.

A truth commission that investigated alleged crimes committed by the state under the now-exiled leaders 22-year rule accused dozens of current and former state personnel of a litany of abuses.

Members of the police, the army, the intelligence services and the prison services were among those accused of offences including torture, sexual violence and extrajudicial killings.

The move is one of the first concrete actions taken to implement the truth commissions recommendations.

Reed Brody, a lawyer with the International Commission of Jurists who works with Jammehs victims, welcomed the news.

Its a tangible, concrete step by the government, he said.

On May 25, the government accepted all but two of the 265 recommendations made in the commissions final report, tabled late last year.

Those included recommendations to prosecute Jammeh himself for a swathe of crimes, from raping a beauty queen to using death squads.

He is also accused of ordering the murder of the AFP journalist Deyda Hydara and administering bogus HIV treatment programmes.

Jammeh is living in exile in Equatorial Guinea, which has no extradition treaty with The Gambia.

Victims groups have urged authorities to do more to extradite the ex-president for prosecution.

Government spokesman Ebrima Sankareh last week told AFP that authorities had hired foreign and Gambian lawyers to outline next steps for a trial, which could begin by the end of the year.

The government has already said it will prosecute all 70 alleged perpetrators named in the Truth, Reconciliation and Reparations Commissions twice-delayed report.

That includes former vice president Isatou Njie-Saidy and members of the so-called Junglers hit squad.

The authorities have also begun working on a reparations bill.

Jammeh was forced into exile in early 2017 after his shock electoral defeat to current President Adama Barrow and a six-week crisis that led to military intervention by other West African states.

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Gambia moves to suspend officials accused of rights violations - Macau Business