French court acquits British couple of human trafficking

A British couple have been acquitted of human trafficking by a French court which rejected the accusations by their former Madagascan au pair, prosecutors said on Wednesday.

Robert and Sharon Moses went on trial in December after their former employee, Sahobilalaina Vonintsoa, accused them of making her work around the clock, confiscating her passport and preventing her from leaving their home.

The couple faced charges of human trafficking for non-existent or inadequate payment to a vulnerable or dependent person and for not declaring an employee but prosecutors said these were "not sufficiently established" and were "disproportionate with the reality of the case."

The couple's lawyer said Vonintsoa, 28, only made the accusations when the couple, who lived in southern France, refused to renew her contract after she stole money.

The complaint "allowed her to extend her residency permit after the expiry of her one-year visa," Ariane Fatovich said.
The au pair had been seeking 24,000 euros ($33,000) in compensation for unpaid wages and an additional 15,000 euros in damages.

France will beat Spain, says Bacary Sagna

FRANCE international player and Arsenal defender Bacary Sagna is confident France will beat Spain in Sunday's quarterfinal of the Euro 2012. 
Sagna was speaking at Aspetar Qatar Orthopedic and Sports Medicine Hospital in Doha, after completing a 10 days treatment.  
Missing out of the European Championship because of the injury, Sagna confirmed his sole focus is on recovering fitness so that he can once again take his place on the right-side of Arsenal’s defence. 
“It’s a huge blow to miss the championship but I wasn’t thinking about that straight away because I didn’t know it was as bad as it was.” On the chances of France in the Euro, he said, “The French team is not doing badly except for the loss to Sweden on Tuesday. 

“We are in the quarterfinals pitted against Spain. It’s going to be a difficult game but if we remain consistent as we were, France will beat Spain. We have nothing to lose.”  The 29-year-old said he was not sure when he will be fully fit to be back in action. 
                                                            
The Frenchman had broken his right fibula midway through the first half at the Emirates in an English Premier League match. The scenario couldn’t have been worse as the defender had suffered a fracture in the same place earlier in the season when he collided with the advertising hoardings at Tottenham. The injury kept him out for four months. 

Speaking about his injury, Sagna said, “I didn’t know my injury was going to be as bad as it was at the time. 

“I was injured twice last season and decided to visit Qatar. I have been here for ten days and the atmosphere has been fantastic. “I am really pleased with the quality of nursing and treatment here." 

“To be honest, I don’t know when I will be fit. I want to take my time before returning to the field so as not to make the mistake of the past, returning so quickly but unfit,” Sagna said. 

Speaking on his Arsenal experience, the team he joined in the summer of 2007 from French Ligue 1 side Auxerre. “Arsenal is a great team; it’s the most watched out team in France. 

Joining Arsenal in 2007 was a dream come true for me. We have a good coach in Arsene Wenger and a good team. Arsene is a positive person and it has helped me as a man in life situations as I find myself.”


 The Arsenal defender capped 32 times by the French national team revealed that he had tried playing for his fatherland but was turned away unceremoniously. 

“I contacted the Senegalese FA to play for the team but was not given the chance, and when the French opportunity came I grabbed it.” Sagna said he had the opportunity of playing in Qatar when he was 18 but had other options then. 


Whether Sagna will play any part in Arsenal’s pre-season in Nigeria and Far-East Asia is not sure, although given the length of time he was sidelined last time it seems unlikely.

France loans Nigeria $100 million for buses

   
PARIS France has promised it will loan Nigeria $100 million to set up a bus network in its sprawling commercial capital Lagos, the foreign ministry said on Friday during a visit by Nigeria's President Goodluck Jonathan.
 "In coordination with Nigerian authorities, the French development agency, on the ground since 2008, has made urban development one of its operational priorities in this country," a statement said.
 France said the loan would be made to the Nigerian federal government but then passed to Lagos State. It will help fund the city's new $330 million urban transport plan, which is co-financed by the World Bank.
Lagos is sub-Saharan Africa's greatest metropolis and the commercial hub of Africa's oil-exporting largest nation, but its public infrastructure struggles to cope with its vast population.
Jonathan and his finance minister former World Bank managing director Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala are on a working visit to Paris to drum up trade and investment from France, which has growing oil interests in Nigerian fields.

Nigerian women are 9th most stressed women in the world

A recent study, released by the Nielsen Company that examines the consumer and media habits of women in emerging and developed countries has found that Women in India are the most stressed, and Nigerian women placed

9th.

The Women of Tomorrow Study, which examined 6,500 women across 21 different nations from February through April 2011, released a list, in order of most stressed women:

1- India (87%)
2- Mexico (74%)
3- Russia (69%)
4- Brazil (67%)
5- Spain (66%)
6- France (65%)
7- South Africa (64%)
8- Italy (64%)
9- Nigeria (58%)


10- Turkey (56%)
11- U.K. (55%)
12- U.S.A. (53%)
13- Japan (52%)
14- Canada (52%)
15- Australia (52%)
16- China (51%)
17- Germany (47%)
18- Thailand (45%)
19- South Korea (45%)
20- Malaysia (44%)
21- Sweden (44%)