China

U.S.-born panda gives birth to twins

Hua Mei, the giant panda born five years ago at the San Diego Zoo, has given birth to twins in her ancestral China, another hopeful sign for binational efforts to revive the endangered species, zoo officials said Wednesday.

Mother and cubs were reportedly in good shape at the Woolong Giant Panda Protection Research Center in Sichuan Province. The cubs, roughly the size of sticks of butter, weigh about 4 ounces each.

Hua Mei was transferred to Woolong in February.

At Woolong, 11 of 12 females have become pregnant this year, officials said. Just this week, Leilei gave birth and then a few hours later another panda, known only as No. 20, also gave birth, according to the official Xinhua News Agency. Another cub, born last week to Eryatou, died despite efforts to save its life with traditional Chinese herbal medicines.

Mexico City

President’s speech met by protests, heckling

Acknowledging the frustration of thousands of protesters, President Vicente Fox spent much of his fourth state-of-the-nation speech Wednesday urging Mexicans to not give up on democracy, saying its “inherent problems are not cause for discouragement.”

For the second year in a row, Fox acknowledged his government had fallen short of its goals. He promised to create jobs and clean up government, especially rampant crime and kidnappings. But many Mexicans likely remained unconvinced.

Before he could start his speech, Fox had to wait as congressional members shouted insults and held up signs reading: “Another lie!” He was disrupted repeatedly by hecklers.

Some 200,000 non-emergency health care workers walked off the job Wednesday and thousands of other union members, from teachers to telephone workers, tried to encircle Congress in an unsuccessful attempt to keep Fox from giving his speech.

Kenya

Police investigate child trafficking

Investigators are looking at Kenya’s main maternity hospital, police said Wednesday, following allegations that some parents were told their newborns had died but the babies were really stolen by an international child trafficking ring.

Five people, including the wife of a London-based Kenyan preacher, were released on bail Wednesday after pleading innocent to charges involving two infants. Self-proclaimed archbishop Gilbert Deya had claimed the two were among children born as the result of miracles he performed on infertile women.

One of the babies was stolen in February from Nairobi’s Pumwani Maternity Hospital and “it is the center of our investigations,” said police spokesman Jaspher Ombati.

Since the five suspects were detained last month, many couples have come forward seeking to claim the 20 children found with the suspects, saying their children disappeared from the hospital, Ombati told The Associated Press. DNA tests found that at least 17 of the children were not related to the adults arrested, authorities said.

London

Margaret Thatcher posts bail for son

Former Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher has posted bail for her son Mark, who is accused of involvement in a coup plot in Equatorial Guinea, an aide to Lady Thatcher said Wednesday.

Sir Mark Thatcher was under house arrest at his residence in Cape Town, South Africa, pending the posting of a bond set at $300,000.

Equatorial Guinea wants to question him and his alleged co-conspirators on charges of plotting to overthrow Teodoro Obiang, the president of the tiny but oil-rich African nation.

Thatcher’s lawyer says he’s innocent and will cooperate with investigators.