Revealed: the plot to stop you reading the truth

Government approval of a new media regulator opens the door to a law that poses a dire threat to the free press and democracy, warns Mick Hume

Threats to press freedom — aren’t they more of a worry in faraway places of which we know little?

Places like Poland, where crowds protested last month against government proposals to restrict parliamentary reporting. Or Turkey, where campaigners claim almost 150 reporters and writers have been detained in a government crackdown since last year’s failed coup.

Пенсии, зарплаты, стипендии и налоги: что изменится в жизни украинцев с 1 января

Елена Романюк Воскресенье, 1 января 2017,

Новые законы касаются как рядовых граждан, так и бизнеса

С января 2017 года в нашей стране начинает действовать ряд новых законов, которые касаются жизни как рядовых украинцев, так и бизнеса. Речь идет о нововведениях в начислении заработной платы и пенсионном обеспечении, стипендиях и уплате единого взноса на общеобязательное государственное социальное страхование, акцизах, льготах и многом другом. "Апостроф" проанализировал основные из этих изменений.

Для населения

С 1 января, согласно закону "Об общеобязательном государственном пенсионном страховании" (№1058-15), в Украине запускается накопительная система выплаты пенсий. Теперь каждый украинец моложе 35 лет начнет отчислять часть своей зарплаты на будущую старость. Такие отчисления аккумулируются на индивидуальном счете, и воспользоваться ими можно будет только после выхода на пенсию. При этом на протяжении пяти лет (с 2017 по 2022 год) процент отчислений постепенно вырастет с 2% до 7%. В дальнейшем этот процент будет оставаться неизменным. За год планируется привлечь около 5 млрд грн.

U.S. judge blocks transgender, abortion-related Obamacare protections

By Steve Gorman

The federal government forms for applying for health coverage are seen at a rally held by supporters of the Affordable Care Act, widely referred to as ''Obamacare'', outside the Jackson-Hinds Comprehensive Health Center in Jackson, Mississippi, U.S. on October 4, 2013.REUTERS/Jonathan Bachman

A federal judge in Texas on Saturday issued a court order barring enforcement of an Obama administration policy seeking to extend anti-discrimination protections under the Affordable Care Act to transgender health and abortion-related services.

Uncertainty Over New Chinese Law Rattles Foreign Nonprofits

By CHRIS BUCKLEY

BEIJING — The hotline rings, but nobody answers.

A Greenpeace protest near Beijing in 2009. A new law in China is raising concern among thousands of nongovernmental organizations about their ability to continue their work in the new year. CreditDavid Gray/Reuters

China’s Ministry of Public Security opened the line last month to answer questions about the new law regulating foreign nonprofit organizations, which takes effect on Sunday.

President's New Year address

Dear fellow Ukrainians!

Not only children, but everyone, irrespective of age, believe in miracles. Especially in this festive time, which begins with St. Nicholas and ends with Epiphany. 

Especially this night, when New Year comes and fills our hearts with joy, faith and hope.

Happy New Year to all!

GRIZZLY STEPPE – Russian Malicious Cyber Activity (PDF)

This Joint Analysis Report (JAR) is the result of analytic efforts between the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) and the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI).

This document provides technical details regarding the tools and infrastructure used by the Russian civilian and military intelligence Services (RIS) to compromise and exploit networks and endpoints associated with the U.S. election, as well as a range of U.S. Government, political, and private sector entities.

The U.S. Government is referring to this malicious cyber activity by RIS as GRIZZLY STEPPE.

GRIZZLY STEPPE – Russian Malicious Cyber Activity (PDF)

Charles Taylor: A Secular Age (PDF)

What does it mean to say that we live in a secular age? Almost everyone would agree that in some sense we do: I mean the “we” who live in the West, or perhaps Northwest, or otherwise put, the North Atlantic world—although secularity extends also partially, and in different ways, beyond this world. And the judgment of secularity seems hard to resist when we compare these societies with anything else in human history: that is, with almost all other contemporary societies (e.g., Islamic countries, India, Africa), on one hand; and with the rest of human history, Atlantic or otherwise, on the other.

Charles Taylor: A Secular Age (PDF)

Алексей Арестович: Трамп сменит руководство Украины в 2017 году

Президент на передовій привітав українських воїнів з Новим роком і Різдвом Христовим

Naftogaz, Citi and Deutsche Bank sign loan agreement for $500 mln credit facility for gas purchase

The national JSC Naftogaz Ukrainy has signed with Citi and Deutsche Bank a loan agreement for a euro-denominated credit facility for gas purchase in the equivalent of $500 million secured by the World Bank.

The facility is secured by the World Bank's guarantee, which, in turn, is secured by the sovereign guarantee issued as part of the formation of the energy fund according to resolution No. 876 of the Cabinet of Ministers of Ukraine dated November 30 2016 on the provision of the International Bank for Reconstruction and Development with the sovereign guarantee under obligations of NJSC Naftogaz Ukrainy, the national gas company's press service reported.

California Supreme Court closes out 2016 with monumental ruling on employer’s obligations to provide rest periods

By Anthony Zaller on December 30, 2016Posted in Best Practices For California Employers, Class Actions, Employee Handbooks, Meal and Rest Breaks, New Cases, Wage & Hour Law

In Augustus v. ABM Security Services, Inc., the California Supreme Court issued a ruling on employer’s obligations to permit employees to take “off-duty” rest periods.  The Court’s ruling ends 2016 with a major ruling on issues surrounding rest periods under California law.

The plaintiffs worked as security guards for defendant ABM.  The employer required to the guards to keep their pagers and radio phones on at all times, even during rest periods, and to potentially respond to calls when needed.   The guards’ duties included when a building tenant wished to be escorted to the parking lot, a building manager had to be notified of a mechanical problem, or the occurrence of emergency situations.

Ukrainian interest – 2017. Frozen Donbas, disappointment in Europe, and surprise overseas

Yevgeny Magda

Photo from UNIAN

The Donbas conflict remains an unresolved problem, and tactical successes are not enough to ensure the positive dynamics. The strategy of Crimea and Donbas return has not been revealed to the public and expert community. European vector of Ukraine’s foreign policy received a positive evaluation only for the work in the PACE. The victory of Donald Trump stunned Ukrainian political elite, and it seems it has not yet recovered fully.

New Media Rules – ATO (Donbas) wef 01/01/17

 BY NIKOLAI HOLMOV 

For those few journalists that still attempt to cover the war in eastern Ukraine and the continuing relay an almost daily death toll, be advised that with effect from 1st January 2017, new rules apply:

“Since January 1, 2017, a new procedure of work for media representatives covering the ATO in the east of Ukraine will be implemented.

According to this procedure, media accredited to the Security Service of Ukraine will receive two types of press cards such as first and second level accreditation.

Second level accreditation press card (blue) allows working within the ATO area, except for forward positions of the Armed Forces of Ukraine. The procedure of reception of this press card is the same.

Государство Украина – устойчивая слабость или слабая устойчивость

Виктор Цыганов, для "Хвилі"

Одним из атрибутов гибридной войны, в которую оказалась втянутой Украина, является информационно-психологическая война, в которой активно используется широкий набор специально сконструированных тезисов и понятий.

Pinchuk proposes Crimea trade for Donbas peace, drawing harsh criticism

By Alyona Zhuk, Josh Kovensky

Billionaire oligarch Victor Pinchuk has supported Ukraine’s integration with Europe through his Yalta European Strategy Conference, but he’s now promoting a different line, writing in a Wall Street Journal op-ed that Ukraine should give up Crimea and medium-term hopes of European Union and NATO membership in exchange for peace in Donbas.

More Cybersecurity Changes Expected for Contractors in 2017

By Susan Cassidy and Anuj Vohra on December 29, 2016POSTED IN CYBERSECURITY, DEFENSE INDUSTRY, GOVERNMENT CONTRACTS REGULATORY COMPLIANCE

In 2016, the dangers presented by an increasingly digital world clearly were on display. A cyber-attack using an army of Internet of Things devices interfered with the operations of major commercial websites. And the Presidential Election was plagued with allegations of state-sponsored cybersecurity hacking (for which the Obama Administration just issued sanctions against the Russian government). 

Александр Лукашенко одобрил проект договора о Таможенном кодексе ЕвРазЭС

Президент Белоруссии Александр Лукашенко своим указом одобрил проект договора о Таможенном кодексе Евразийского экономического союза (ЕврАзЭС). Соответствующий документ опубликован на правовом портале республики. «Уполномочить Государственный таможенный комитет на проведение переговоров по проекту договора, разрешив при необходимости вносить в него изменения и дополнения, не имеющие принципиального характера»,— говорится в указе. Помимо этого президент Белоруссии поручил подписать договор при достижении договоренности в пределах одобренного проекта.

French workers win legal right to avoid checking work email out-of-hours

From 1 January, workers have ‘right to disconnect’ as France seeks to establish agreements that afford work flexibility but avoid burnout

The ‘right to disconnect’ measure is intended to tackle a 24/7 work culture that has led to a surge in usually unpaid overtime. Photograph: Getty Images/PhotoAlto

From Sunday, French companies will be required to guarantee their employees a “right to disconnect” from technology as the country seeks to tackle the modern-day scourge of compulsive out-of-hours email checking.

12 Asian Geopolitical Trends and Events From 2016 That'll Matter in 2017

By Ankit Panda

Here’s wishing the Asia-Pacific a happy and prosperous new year. Watch these issues in the coming year.

Well, good news everyone — we made it through 2016. It’s somewhat cliched at this point to note that the year marked many-a-global-turning-point, especially with the surge of populist politics worldwide, from the election of Donald Trump to the U.S. presidency, to the successful referendum in the United Kingdom on the country’s departure from the European Union, to the ascent of Rodrigo Duterte in the Philippines. In the Asia-Pacific, the year neither represented a catastrophic decline into instability, but several trends do presage a difficult 2017 ahead for the region. Without further ado, here’s a brief retrospective at several events that occurred in 2016 and trends that kicked off that will bear heavily on stability and instability in the year ahead.

Cabinet allows opening fire on Ukraine's air border violators in peace time

Ukraine's Cabinet of Ministers on Wednesday amended the rules for aircraft alert forces of the Armed Forces of Ukraine in peacetime in resolution No. 1012 and allowed the military to open fire on the aircraft after the intent-to-fire message. 

The corresponding decision was published by the government's press service on Thursday evening.

CASHLESS SOCIETY AND DE-DOLLARIZATION IN UKRAINE. WHAT IS MISSING FROM PRESENT DISCUSSIONS? (PDF)

Marko Skreb, Canada-IMF Capacity Building Project

Kostiantyn Khvedchuk,  National Bank of Ukraine

The National Bank of Ukraine stepped on the track to a cashless economy aiming at reforming the financial system, improvement of the transmission mechanism, and reduction of the underground economy and corruption. A substantial part of money in the Ukrainian economy is estimated to be foreign cash in circulation. This article underlines the importance of considering it while conducting monetary policy. Negative consequences of high dollarization and proliferation of cash are emphasized. We discuss measures that are helpful in decreasing usage of cash in general and foreign cash in particular.

CASHLESS SOCIETY AND DE-DOLLARIZATION IN UKRAINE. WHAT IS MISSING FROM PRESENT DISCUSSIONS? (PDF)

President signed the Law on Amendments to the Tax Code on the Improvement of the Investment Climate in Ukraine

In the course of the meeting with Chairman of the Verkhovna Rada Committee for Tax and Customs Policy Nina Yuzhanina and Minister of Finance of Ukraine Oleksandr Danyliuk, President Petro Poroshenko signed the Law on Amendments to the Tax Code on the Improvement of the Investment Climate in Ukraine.

“I would like to congratulate you on the completion of an extremely important process, which started with large-scale consultations with the public, huge work that involved business circles and civil activists,” Petro Poroshenko said.

According to him, the draft law has been considered by the Government. The National Council of Reforms has made serious efforts to finally produce a draft law on the amendments to the Tax Code aimed to improve the investment climate.

NSDC considers the issue of cybersecurity and protection of critical infrastructure

Over the past two months, about 6.5 thousand planned cyberattacks have been detected in the objects of 5 institutions and 31 state information resources,” Petro Poroshenko said at the NSDC session dedicated to the basic principles of the information security, first of all threats to cybersecurity and their neutralization, as well as urgent measures on the protection of critical infrastructure of Ukraine.

Odessa Port Side shuts down

BY NIKOLAI HOLMOV 

Having twice failed to privatise the Odessa Port Side plant during 2016, and with debts mounting to creditors such as Naftogaz, the decision has been taken to temporarily, or perhaps better stated indefinitely, close the plant down with effect from 30th December.

Death sentence in Belarus

Statement by the Spokesperson on a death sentence in Belarus

Yet another death sentence was handed down this week in Belarus, to Mr Kiryl Kazachok.

This sentence, which follows the execution of four persons earlier this year, goes against the commitments made by Belarusian authorities to consider the introduction of a moratorium on the death penalty. 

The European Union opposes capital punishment in all cases. It fails to act as a deterrent to crime and represents an unacceptable denial of human dignity. We call on Belarus, the only country in Europe still applying capital punishment, to join a global moratorium on the death penalty as a first step towards its abolition. 

Can your employer force you to get a flu shot?

By Mary Fetzer

As the new year begins, we find ourselves in the peak of flu season, which tends to start around late October and run strong through February. The flu can be nasty, as anyone who’s suffered through its aches, fever, and fatigue can attest. Small wonder it’s a major cause of employee absences, which are 32 percent higher in the United States during the flu season than the rest of the year.

Obama’s Russian Hacking Retaliation Is Biggest “Since the Cold War”

• ANDY GREENBERG

CHIP SOMODEVILLA/GETTY IMAGES

SINCE US INTELLIGENCE agencies in October identified the Russian government as the source of hacker attacks that breached the Democratic party organizations and leaked private email conversations, President’s Obama’s White House has been searching for an appropriate response. Now, the administration has finally shot back, deporting Russian officials and calling out the individuals and organizations responsible for that hacking, in a set of measures never before seen in America’s digital diplomacy.

The six-lane Arroyo Seco Parkway in 1940

Los Angeles Public Library

Governor Culbert Olson dedicates California's first freeway, the Arroyo Seco Parkway (renamed the Pasadena Freeway in 1954), built with funding from the Works Progress Administration, the Public Works Administration, and over $500,000 from the PRA, as well as State and local agencies. 

4 Ways Technology Is Changing Contracts

Gabrielle Orum Hernandez, Legaltech News

Automation and machine language are driving changes to traditional contract work.

Shutterstock.com

The contract hasn't seen much formatting change in recent history, but advancements in automation, natural language processing and data handling technology are driving an evolution to the way it's handled. Here are four ways technology has entered traditional contract work that could change its basic structure:

When your phone uses you

Your smartphone has two jobs.

On one hand, it was hired by you to accomplish certain tasks. In the scheme of things, it's a screaming bargain and a miracle.

But most of the time, your phone works for corporations, assorted acquaintances and large social networks. They've hired it to put you to work for them. You're not the customer, you're the product. Your attention and your anxiety is getting sold, cheap.

When your phone grabs your attention, when it makes you feel inadequate, when it pushes you to catch up, to consume and to fret, it's not working for you, is it?

On demand doesn't mean you do things when the device demands.

Original

President signs law on improving the investment climate in Ukraine

The main innovation of the law:

1) start-ups are exempt for three years from any state tax inspections if they have turnover of less than 3 million hryvnia;

2) tax inspection at the district level will turn from the control and inspection bodies in advisory tax authorities;

3) tax office control functions remain at the regional level;

4) to administer the income tax, value added tax, the single social contribution, income tax for individuals - the radically different tax and investment climate will create in Ukraine.

Original

Leo Rojas - El Condor Pasa

Кабинет Министров Украины разрешил сбивать вражеские самолеты в украинском воздушном пространстве

Правительство разрешило военным сбивать самолеты, которые нарушают государственные границы Украины или совершают террористические действия.

Кабинет министров принял постановление №1012, которое уточняет возложенные на Вооруженные силы задачи по обеспечению неприкосновенности воздушного пространства Украины, сообщает пресс-служба Кабмина.

В документе, датированном 28 декабря, говорится об «уничтожении воздушных судов вооруженных формирований других государств, которые нарушили государственную границу Украины и применяют оружие и/или проводят десантирование личного состава, боевой техники, в том числе уничтожение беспилотных воздушных судов, нарушивших государственную границу Украины или применяются в воздушном пространстве Украины с целью осуществления террористического акта, ведения разведки, постановки помех, обеспечения незаконных вооруженных формирований». 

Issuance of Amended Executive Order 13694; Cyber-Related Sanctions Designations

Today, the President issued an Executive Order Taking Additional Steps To Address The National Emergency With Respect To Significant Malicious Cyber-Enabled Activities.  

This amends Executive Order 13694, “Blocking the Property of Certain Persons Engaging in Significant Malicious Cyber-Enabled Activities.”  E.O. 13694 authorized the imposition of sanctions on individuals and entities determined to be responsible for or complicit in malicious cyber-enabled activities that result in enumerated harms that are reasonably likely to result in, or have materially contributed to, a significant threat to the national security, foreign policy, or economic health or financial stability of the United States.  The authority has been amended to also allow for the imposition of sanctions on individuals and entities determined to be responsible for tampering, altering, or causing the misappropriation of information with the purpose or effect of interfering with or undermining election processes or institutions.  Five entities and four individuals are identified in the Annex of the amended Executive Order and will be added to OFAC’s list of Specially Designated Nationals and Blocked Persons (SDN List).  OFAC today is designating an additional two individuals who also will be added to the SDN List.

Specially Designated Nationals List Update

The following individual has been added to OFAC's SDN List:  

Obama Said to Ready Sanctions on Russian Officials for Hacking

Alan Katz

The Obama administration will announce sanctions against Russian officials and state institutions in retaliation for hacking Democratic Party e-mails in an attempt to interfere with the 2016 presidential election, according to people familiar with the process.

The measures, set to be announced Thursday, target officials in Vladimir Putin’s government, including some tied to the GRU, Russia’s military intelligence agency. The GRU has been linked by private cybersecurity companies to the hacking of the computer networks of the Democratic National Committee and party officials. The U.S. move would hit some Russian state institutions and cyber companies associated with them, one of the people said.

Blockchain And Privacy: Transparency And Innovation Pose Challenges for Data Protection

By Anaïs Galpin and Charles Morgan on December 28th, 2016Posted in FinTech, Privacy

A blockchain is a peer network of nodes that use a distributed ledger that can be used to track transactions involving value including money, votes, property, etc. The most well-known application of blockchain technology is bitcoin. Transactions on a blockchain are not regulated by any central counterparty: the individuals involved in a given transaction provide their information (including personal information), a record is created that can be verified by nodes in the network. In this sense, the users forming the community act as their own regulators.

Ради національної безпеки і оборони України: запровадження обмежувальних економічних та інших заходів (санкцій)

Через триваючу гібридну агресію РФ проти України Рада національної безпеки і оборони України запровадила додаткові санкції проти фізичних і юридичних осіб держави-агресора.

29 грудня відбулося засідання Ради національної безпеки і оборони України, на якому були розглянуті питання запровадження обмежувальних економічних та інших заходів (санкцій), забезпечення кібербезпеки, захисту критичної інфраструктури, ухвалення Доктрини інформаційної безпеки, Державної програми розвитку ЗСУ на період до 2020 року, а також змін до військово-адміністративного поділу території України.