Woman fearing mutilation has asylum NEW YORK (AP) - A woman who fled Africa two years ago to avoid genital mutilation has been awarded political asylum. The Board of Immigration Appeals granted the petition of Adelaide Abankwah on the ground that she had good reason to fear genital cutting if she returned to her native Ghana. Abankwah, 29, is the second woman to win asylum in the United States because of the threat of genital mutilation, which millions of African girls and women undergo each year. Abankwah was arrested for trying to enter the country with false immigration papers when she arrived at Kennedy International Airport on March 29, 1997. See full story <http://www.infobeat.com/stories/cgi/story.cgi?id=2560761685-6a7> Great Lakes water moratorium backed WASHINGTON (AP) - The United States and Canada should impose a six-month moratorium on sale of Great Lakes water while a study is completed on whether there is enough to export, a U.S.-Canadian commission recommended Wednesday. The International Joint Commission, which helps the two nations manage their border waters, said a moratorium should extend both to bulk removal of surface water and new removals of groundwater from the Great Lakes basin. Commission experts are halfway through a yearlong study of issues related to water diversion and sales, and issued an interim report Wednesday. See full story <http://www.infobeat.com/stories/cgi/story.cgi?id=2560763898-238> Annual Pa. pigeon shoot canceled HARRISBURG, Pa. (AP) - A pigeon shoot that animal-rights activists have protested for years has been canceled by organizers who cited a recent Pennsylvania Supreme Court ruling that allows activists to try to stop it. Robert Tobash of the Labor Day Committee Inc., which has sponsored the fund-raising event for 65 years, said Tuesday he does not want activists dictating how he runs the Hegins pigeon shoot. Each Labor Day since 1933, thousands of birds have been released at Hegins Community Park in Schuylkill County as targets for as many as 200 people who pay to shoot. Last year's fee was $75. See full story <http://www.infobeat.com/stories/cgi/story.cgi?id=2560760146-7e9>
