Sir Elton condemns Russia’s anti-gay law – Morocco scrapes off an ugly relic of the past – India gets one of the man-eating tigers on the prowl – And more in your CareerSpot World News Briefs.

Elton John is blasting Russia’s idiotic law banning homosexual propaganda, saying that Russia is giving cover to violent extremists and legitimizing homophobia.  He says that people he spoke with during his December concert tour in Russia relayed “stories of verbal and physical abuse – at work, in bars and restaurants or in the street – since the legislation came into force last June”.

Morocco’s parliament has unanimously scrapped a law that allowed rapists of underage girls to avoid prosecution by marrying their victims.  Article 475 was a holdover from colonial days.  But activists were determined to make it go away after a 16-year old girl committed suicide after being forced to marry her much-older rapist.  The same activists say there is still a long way to go towards achieving gender equality and ending exploitation of children.

Anti-government protesters are continuing to blockade streets in Bangkok, despite the government’s emergency declaration.  Meanwhile, a leading “red shirt” pro-government activist has been wounded in the leg and shoulder in a shooting near his home in the north – That’s Thailand’s poor area whose electoral clout is resented by the royalist and upper class protesters, who want the Democratically-elected government to be replaced by an appointed council of “good people”.

Hunters killed a Tiger blamed for the deaths of at least three people in India’s southern Tamil Nadu region.  Six cages with traps were set up in the area where it was believed to be roaming, but she eluded capture – A sharpshooter finished the job.  Further north, another team of hunters is tracking yet another beast that killed and ate seven people in Uttar Pradesh. 

Argentina President Cristina Fernandez made her first public speech in six weeks, laying to rest questions about her health status.  In a televised address, she announced a plan to address rampant youth unemployment.  Cristina had an operation on 8 October to remove a blood clot from her brain, got back to work a month later, but had not spoken in public since 10 December.  Now her detractors can stop whinging and get back to work.

Oh, yuck.  Bolivian President Evo Morales says his country will build its first nuclear reactor.  Iran, France, and Argentina each have volunteered to help with the development of the project.  Evo says Bolivia cannot be excluded from nuclear technology, which he says belongs to all of humankind.  Anyone want my share of it?  After Chernobyl and Fukushima, I really don’t want it anymore.

French police questioned controversial comic Dieudonne M’Bala M’Bala after bailiffs said someone fired on them with rubber bullets at his house.  A weapon was found during a search of Dieudonne’s property, but he says he wasn’t even home when it happened.  The comedian owes thousands of Euros in unpaid fines for his routines, deemed anti-Semitic by authorities.