In Brief

Drunks try to open plane door HANOI – Two inebriated passengers who tried to open an exit door during take-off forced a Vietnam Airlines flight to return to the gate, local news reported yesterday.

The men apparently mistook the emergency exit door for the toilet on the flight last on Sunday, according to Tien Phong (Pioneer), newspaper. When the door would not open, the men shouted at the cabin attendants to let them in to use the bathroom.Staff barred the emergency doors while the plane taxied back to the gate.The two men, who were later identified as Mai Xuan Huy and Hoang Trong, were removed from the plane by airport security officers.Sunday’s Flight VN2366 from Ho Chi Minh City to Hanoi was delayed by one hour because of the incident.Last year Vietnam Airlines was forced to cancel several flights after passengers joked that their carry-on luggage contained bombs or grenades.In nearly every case, the passengers were inebriated.* Moz needs time to register voters The Mozambique national electoral body (STAE) says the country will need more than three months to register voters ahead of the 2008 parliamentary and 2009 general elections.Mario Ernesto, STAE operations director, told Radio Mozambique yesterday that the registration exercise would be carried out this year ahead of the provincial elections that would elect a provincial parliament.”We need a minor the elections,” he said.Ernesto said the electoral body would carry out electoral ward demarcation this year and all this would be done electronically.The last elections which were held in Mozambique in 2004 were marred by allegations of irregularities.Analysts said the digitalisation process would help “eliminate claims of fraud” as voter details and the voting process would be electronically available to monitors and interested parties.Nampa-Sapa-dpaWhen the door would not open, the men shouted at the cabin attendants to let them in to use the bathroom.Staff barred the emergency doors while the plane taxied back to the gate.The two men, who were later identified as Mai Xuan Huy and Hoang Trong, were removed from the plane by airport security officers.Sunday’s Flight VN2366 from Ho Chi Minh City to Hanoi was delayed by one hour because of the incident.Last year Vietnam Airlines was forced to cancel several flights after passengers joked that their carry-on luggage contained bombs or grenades.In nearly every case, the passengers were inebriated. * Moz needs time to register voters The Mozambique national electoral body (STAE) says the country will need more than three months to register voters ahead of the 2008 parliamentary and 2009 general elections.Mario Ernesto, STAE operations director, told Radio Mozambique yesterday that the registration exercise would be carried out this year ahead of the provincial elections that would elect a provincial parliament.”We need a minor the elections,” he said.Ernesto said the electoral body would carry out electoral ward demarcation this year and all this would be done electronically.The last elections which were held in Mozambique in 2004 were marred by allegations of irregularities.Analysts said the digitalisation process would help “eliminate claims of fraud” as voter details and the voting process would be electronically available to monitors and interested parties.Nampa-Sapa-dpa