Former Peru football chief Burga cleared of corruption charges
New York: Former Peru football chief Manuel Burga has been acquitted of corruption charges by a jury in the United States.
The 60-year-old on Tuesday was found not guilty of racketeering, just days after the same jury delivered guilty verdicts on multiple charges against two other former officials, Juan Napout of Paraguay and Jose Maria Marin of Brazil, reports Xinhua news agency.
US prosecutors have indicted dozens of Latin American football officials as part of a corruption crackdown that has reached the highest levels of world football governing body FIFA.
In October, former Guatemalan football federation head Hector Trujillo was the first person to be sentenced as part of the probe. He received an eight-month jail term after pleading guilty to wire fraud and conspiracy.
Burga, once a FIFA development executive, served as the president of the Peruvian football federation for 12 years until 2014.
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Three teenage pregnancies reported in Karnataka within six months
Bengaluru: Karnataka has reported three cases of teenage pregnancies within the past six months, with the latest incident coming to light at a private school in Channarayapatna town of Hassan district, reported by The New Indian Express on Saturday.
Experts and child rights officials have expressed serious concern over the recurring cases, pointing to gaps in child protection mechanisms within educational institutions. They have cited the absence of child protection committees in schools, lack of awareness about the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act, inadequate sex education, and parental ignorance as key factors contributing to such incidents.
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The commission’s chairman, Shashidhar Kosambe reportedly said, the main reason is not implementing the Karnataka State Child Protection Policy, 2016, in schools, especially at residential schools like those in Yadgir and Koppal where such incidents have taken place.
According to the policy, the commission must have two teachers or school officials and two outsiders who work in the interest of child rights, so that there is no prejudice whenever complaints are filed.
“It is the responsibility of the commission to monitor children and school staff. Awareness programmes on child protection policies, the POCSO Act, and sexual abuse must be conducted regularly for students and staff. Police must be informed immediately when a violation is detected. The policy and the commission must become part of the ecosystem and shouldn’t be treated as extra work,” TNIE quoted Kosambe as saying.
Psychiatry professor at ESI hospital, Rajajinagar, Dr Chandrashekar said, many adolescent girls become pregnant when they are sexually abused by their male friends. The victims undergo a lot of physical changes and mental trauma because of the way others respond. Therefore, whenever we come across a pregnant teenager, especially the victims of sexual abuse, we provide counselling to the victim as her family members.
