Malaysia faces crucial graft test as Najib’s first 1MDB verdict looms

Malaysia faces crucial graft test as Najib’s first 1MDB verdict loomsMalaysian former prime minister Najib Razak, fighting dozens of charges over a multi-billion-dollar graft scandal at state fund 1MDB, faces his first verdict on Tuesday in a landmark case that tests the country's efforts to stamp out corruption and could have big political implications. Najib was voted out in a historic 2018 election amid public anger over allegations that $4.5 billion was stolen in a globe-spanning scheme from 1Malaysia Development Berhad (1MDB), a fund he co-founded. For Najib, the verdict in the years-long saga, which has seen a spectacular fall from extreme opulence and a dominant position in Malaysian politics, marks a reckoning for the urbane, British-educated politician - potentially decades in jail or a partial vindication.




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Bolivia's interim president's indigenous-free cabinet heightens polarization

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* Rightwing Christian Jeanine Áñez vows to ‘pacify’ country * Disrespect for indigenous Wiphala flag stokes outrageJeanine Áñez, the opposition senator who has claimed Bolivia’s interim presidency, arrives at the government palace in La Paz. Photograph: Juan Karita/APBolivia’s controversial new interim president has unveiled a new cabinet which critics say could further increase polarization in the country still deeply split over the ousting of her predecessor, Evo Morales.To the applause of military top brass, lawmakers and senators, Jeanine Áñez vowed to “reconstruct democracy” and “pacify the country” at a late-night ceremony in the “Palacio Quemado” (Burnt Palace) presidential building.“We want to be a democratic tool of inclusion and unity,” said the 52-year-old religious conservative, sitting at a table bearing a huge open Bible and crucifix.But the transitional cabinet sworn into office on Wednesday night did not include a single indigenous person, in a country where at least 40
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