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Blackburn Rovers have completed the signing of Paraguayan front-runner Roque Santa Cruz from Bayern Munich. The 25-year-old, who has put pen to paper on a four-year deal, will move to Ewood Park on 1 August in a deal which is expected to bank the German giants in the region of £3.4 million. Santa Cruz experienced an injury-plagued not nonetheless trophy-laden eight-year spell in Bavaria, but following the arrivals Italian sharpshooter Luca Toni, 2006 FIFA World Cup™ adidas Golden Shoe winner Miroslav Klose and the emerging Jan Schlaudraff his days at Bayern appeared to be numbered. Following successive top ten finishes in the Premiership, Blackburn appear to be heading in the right direction and the ambition of manager Mark Hughes proved enough to convince the 6ft 2ins forward to join the 1995 English champions. The player had not been short on interest, with FC Porto, Manchester City and Espanyol among the teams rumoured to be keen on contracting him. "He is a young player, an international with a good reputation," Hughes told Blackburn's official website. "The good thing from our point of view is that his fitness levels are fine as he has been playing for Paraguay in the Copa America." Santa Cruz will now compete for places in the Rovers attack with Jason Roberts, Matt Derbyshire, Maceo Rigters and South African ace Benni McCarthy, the second top scorer in the Premiership last season. Incidentally, his long-time Bayern team-mate and fellow South American Claudio Pizarro also swapped the German top flight for its English counterpart recently, touching down in London with Chelsea. Rapid ascent Santa Cruz came to the fore at the FIFA U-20 World Cup Nigeria 1999, where his rich cocktail of skills led Paraguay into the second stage as unexpected Group A winners above the hosts, Costa Rica and Germany. Trailing 2-0 to Uruguay in the Round of 16, the then 17-year-old scored twice to take the game into extra time. Penalties ensued and with the shootout well into sudden death, Uruguay clinched a dramatic 10-9 victory to advance. The youngster was swiftly promoted to the senior Paraguay side for the Copa America 1999 and he made the transition swimmingly, scoring three times in as many outings to help the hosts finish top of Group A on seven points. Paraguay ran into Uruguay in the quarter-finals, and once again the La Celeste emerged triumphant after a penalty shootout. Soon after, Santa Cruz swapped his hometown club Olimpia, whom he had debuted for at the age of sixteen and helped win the 1998 Paraguayan Championship, for Bayern Munich. The Asuncion native has since won five Bundesliga titles and tasted UEFA Champions League glory in 2001, although he was a non-playing substitute in their penalty shootout defeat of Valencia in the competition's final. Especially in recent seasons, however, Santa Cruz has found goals hard to come by in the red of Bayern, and he will be hoping he can address this dry spell in Lancashire. The gifted attacker has fared better at international level, and was a member of his country's squad at the 2002 and 2006 FIFA World Cups. In the recent Copa America Venezuela 2007, he netted a hat-trick in Paraguay's 5-0 win over Colombia in Group A, which took him second on their all-time leading scorers list behind Jose Cardozo. Blackburn Rovers will begin their 2007/08 league campaign away at Middlesbrough on 11 August, before Aston Villa visit Ewood Park four days later. ||||| UEFA.com works better on other browsers For the best possible experience, we recommend using Chrome Firefox or Microsoft Edge ||||| Santa Cruz seals Blackburn move Email Blackburn Rovers have confirmed they have signed Paraguay striker Roque Santa Cruz from Bayern Munich. The 25-year-old has agreed a four-year contract at Ewood Park after spending eight years with the Bundesliga club. Rovers announced Santa Cruz has joined for 'an undisclosed fee' but reports in Germany suggest the Premier League club have paid £3.5million for his services. Bayern have allowed Santa Cruz to leave following the summer arrivals of Luca Toni and Miroslav Klose, with coach Ottmar Hitzfeld recently confirming he was looking to sell the South American. Blackburn boss Mark Hughes, himself a former Bayern Munich striker, has won the race. Hughes said on Friday: 'Santa Cruz is a young player, an international with a good reputation who is playing at a top European club. 'The good thing from our point of view is that his fitness levels are fine as he has been playing in the Copa America.' Hughes is already well-off for strikers, with Benni McCarthy, Jason Roberts, Matt Derbyshire and new recruit Maceo Rigters all vying for a first-team place. In his eight years with Bayern, Santa Cruz has won the Champions League and five Bundesliga titles, as well as four German Cup triumphs and a World Club Cup winner's medal. In 155 games, he scored 31 times and will bring a wealth of European experience to Rovers too, having played 51 games in the Champions League and scoring seven goals. ||||| The Bayern players completed their final training session on Saturday ahead of the Bundesliga's... FC Bayern appeals to reason and sense of responsibility of fans: Please stay away from the stadium... FC Bayern appeals to reason and sense of responsibility of fans Please stay away from the stadium Matches behind closed doors, personnel and more - Hansi Flick’s key statements ahead of the match...... Live ticker, web radio & more How to follow the Union game live on fcbayern.com and on the App You can keep in touch with all the action in Berlin on Sunday. | Paraguayan footballer has left Bayern Munich for . Roque Santa Cruz signed a four year deal. Roque Santa Cruz became expendable after major signings by Bayern Munich. Santa Cruz became 5th choice striker after , , and . Blackburn Rovers beat Manchester City, Porto and for the signature of Roque Santa Cruz. The fee is reported to be around 3.4million. Santa Cruz experienced an injury-plagued and trophy-laden eight-year career in Munich. Santa Cruz scored 31 goals in 155 league appearances and seven goals in 51 UEFA Champions League games for Bayern Munich. He won five German titles, four German Cups and one UEFA Champions League title with Bayern Munich. Blackburn coach was quoted as saying, "Santa Cruz is a young player, an international with a good reputation who is playing at a top European club." and "The good thing from our point of view is that his fitness levels are fine as he has been playing in the Copa America." |
A huge ice shelf in the Antarctic is in the last stages of collapse and could break up within days in the latest sign of how global warming is thought to be changing the face of the planet. The enormous Wilkins ice shelf is now barely attached to land. The latest reports show that a thin sliver of ice attaching it to the Antarctic's Charcot Island is rapidly collapsing and threatening to break. The Wilkins shelf is about half the size of Scotland, or the same size as the US state of Connecticut. It is the largest slab of ice so far to disintegrate and retreat in the Antarctic. Pictures from the European Space Agency show that fresh rifts have appeared in Wilkins' 'ice bridge' to Charcot Island and that a large chunk of ice has broken away, though the shelf still remains attached to other pieces of land. ESA estimated that the loss of the ice bridge could see the northern half of Wilkins break free, representing up to 1,400 square miles of ice floating off on the ocean in a gigantic ice berg. Though the collapse of Wilkins shelf will not raise sea levels directly - as ice shelves float on the sea surface - its demise is a warning sign of potentially disastrous changes in the earth's climate. Change at Wilkins has come fast, often taking scientists by surprise with the speed of the break-up. In February last year a 164- square-mile chunk broke off. Then in May another slab of ice, this time measuring 62 square miles, fell away. The ice shelf has lost a total of 694 square miles over the past 12 months, representing some 14 per cent of its size. That shrank the vital ice bridge to just 984 yards at its narrowest location. Now that bridge too is coming under huge strains. The news comes hot on the heels of the release of a survey by British and American researchers warning of the perilous state of Antarctic ice shelves and fast melting glaciers, and laying the blame firmly on global warming. ||||| Ice shelf about to break away from Antarctic coast PARIS (AP) — A massive ice shelf anchored to the Antarctic coast by a narrow and quickly deteriorating ice bridge could break away soon, the European Space Agency warned Friday. The Paris-based agency said satellite images show the bridge that connects the Wilkins Ice Shelf to Charcot and Latady Islands "looks set to collapse." "The beginning of what appears to be the demise of the ice bridge began this week when new rifts" appeared and a large block of ice broke away, it said. The Wilkins Ice Shelf — which like the rest of Antarctic's ice sheet "was formed by thousands of years of accumulated and compacted snow" — had been stable for most of the last century before it began retreating in the 1990s, the statement said. The shelf, which was originally of Jamaica or the U.S. state of Connecticut, is located on the western side of the Antarctic Peninsula, which thrusts up from the continent toward the southern tip of South America. Originally covering about 5,000 square miles (13,000 square kilometers), the ice shelf lost 14 percent of its mass last year alone, the statement quotes a scientist Angelika Humbert of Germany's Munster University as saying. In two 2008 incidents, large chunks of the ice bridge fell away, shaving it down to just 985 yards (900 meters) across at its narrowest, the statement said. As a result, "In the past months, we have observed the ice bridge deforming and its narrowest location acting as a kind of hinge," Humbert is quoted as saying. Scientist are examining whether global warming is behind the shelf's breakup, the statement said. Average temperatures in the Antarctic Peninsula have risen by 3.8 degrees Farenheit (2.5 degrees Celsius) over the past half century, the statement said — higher than the average global rise. Copyright © 2009 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. ||||| (CNN) -- A large ice shelf is "imminently" close to breaking away from part of the Antarctic Peninsula, scientists said Friday. Scientists are investigating whether the ice breakup is caused by global climate change. Satellite images released by the European Space Agency on Friday show new cracks in the Wilkins Ice Shelf where it connects to Charcot Island, a piece of land considered part of the peninsula. The cracks are quickly expanding, the ESA said. Scientists are investigating the causes for the breakups and whether it is linked to global climate change. The Wilkins Ice Shelf -- a large mass of floating ice -- would still be connected to Latady Island, which is also part of the peninsula, and Alexander Island, which is not, said professor David Vaughan, a glaciologist at the British Antarctic Survey. The ice shelf experienced a great amount of changes last year, the ESA said. In February 2008, the shelf dropped 164 square miles (425 square kilometers) of ice. In May it lost a 62-square-mile chunk. That meant the "bridge" of ice connecting Wilkins to the islands was just 984 yards wide at its narrowest location, the ESA said. Further rifts developed in October and November, said Angelika Humbert of the Institute of Geophysics at Germany's Muenster University. "During the last year the ice shelf has lost about 1800 square kilometers (694 square miles), or about 14 percent of its size," Humbert said. Antarctica's ice sheet was formed over thousands of years by accumulated and compacted snow. Along the coast, the ice gradually floats on the sea, forming massive ledges known as ice shelves, the ESA says. Several of these ice shelves, including seven in the past 20 years, have retreated and disintegrated. The Wilkins Ice Shelf had been stable for most of the past century before it began retreating in the 1990s. "It had been there almost unchanged since the first expeditions which mapped it back in the 1930s, so it had a very long period of real stability, and it's only in the last decade that it's started to retreat," Vaughan said. Wilkins is the size of the state of Connecticut, or about half the area of Scotland. It is the largest ice shelf on the Antarctic Peninsula yet to be threatened. If the ice shelf breaks away from the peninsula, it will not cause a rise in sea level because it is already floating, scientists say. Some plants and animals may have to adapt to the collapse. The Antarctic Peninsula is the piece of the continent that stretches toward South America. All About Antarctica • Global Climate Change | Illustrated map of the Wilkins Shelf in 2008 The European Space Agency (ESA) reported on Friday that the Wilkins Shelf, an enormous Antarctic ice shelf half the size of Scotland, could break away from the continent very soon. According to reports, only a thin strip of ice connects it to the Charcot Island, and cracks are expanding rapidly. This is the largest shelf of ice so far to have disintegrated in the Antarctic. In February 2008, the shelf lost 425 square kilometres (164 square miles) of ice, followed by a loss of another 62 square miles in May 2008. "During the last year the ice shelf has lost about 1800 square kilometers (694 square miles), or about 14 percent of its size," said Angelika Humbert from the Institute of Geophysics at University of Münster in Germany. Scientists say that the shelf, if it detaches from the mainland, won't cause an increase in sea levels, as it is already floating. Most scientists believe that the incident is further evidence of global warming. Average temperatures in the Antarctic peninsula have increased by about 2.5 degrees Celsius (3.8 degrees Fahrenheit) in the past fifty years. |
Constitution Court gets Thaksin off the hook The Constitution Court today decided not to review the petition submitted by 28 senators seeking to impeach Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra on ground that the senators lacked enough evidences to back up the charges. The court voted 8 to 6 to reject the petition of the 28 senators, said Paiboon Warahapaiboon, secretary-general of the Office of the Constitution Court. Pro-democracy movements cried foul over the courts decision and vowed to campaign for the ouster of the eight judges who voted in favour of Thaksin. The court said the senators did not provide evidences and documents to prove that Thaksin used to have over 5 per cent of shares in Shin Corp before it was sale to Temasek Holdings and did not show evidences to prove how Thaksin had got involved in the sale of Shin Corp. The eight judges, who voted to reject the petition were, Phan Jantharaparn, Jumpol na Songkhla, Noppadol Hengcharoen, Manit Witthayatem, Sak Techacharn, Suthee Suthisomboon, Suwan Suwanwecho and Ura Wang-omklang. On Tuesday, the Constitution Court took delivery of the petition and the senators said on Wednesday that the court was obliged by the Constitution to go ahead with the review. The 28 senators alleged that Thaksin had an illegal conflict of interest because he still had influence over Shin Corp while making national policy. They said the premier had violated Article 209 of the Constitution and was no longer qualified to hold public office. The article stipulates that a minister must not have influence over the management of any companies. In mid 2001, the Constitution Court acquitted Thaksin of an assets-concealment charge. The prime minister escaped a five-year ban from politics by an 8-7 vote. Weng Tojitrakarn, president of the Federation for Democracy, said it was regretful and unacceptable for the court to reach a decision not to review the case. He said the Constitution Court denied responsibility to prove the allegations against Thaksin. Its unacceptable as the petition is clear. Its the duty of the court to seek evidences instead of waiting for senators to find evidences, Weng said. He said an interview by Thaksins son, Panthongtae Shinawatra, that the sale of Shin Corp was an affairs of puyai or senior people was a strong evidence that Thaksin had a decision over the sale. Weng said he had protested the court by laying black wreath at the court and his group would campaign to pressure the eight judges to resign. Sunthree Hatthisengkin, a leader of the Network of Khon Kaen People for Democracy, said she was very disappointed in the Constitution Court. The peoples section placed a lot of hope on the Constitution Court. It was unbelievable that the court would reject the case, Suntree said. This shows that the state has dominance power over independent organisations. We have been saying all alogn that this government interfered in the works of independent organisations. Sujit Boonbonkarn, a former Constitution Court judge, said he did not undestnad why the court refused to review the case. It would have done good for both sides had the court agreed to proceed with the review as both sides would have chance to present their information. The people will understand what have happened. Without the review in the court the people will not understand the issue,Sujit said. I would not like to say that this will cause the problem to explode but since the constitutional mechanisms are blocked from being used, the people will increasingly turn to non-Parlaiment mechanisms. ||||| PARALYMPIANS RETURN HOME BAKU. Sept /AzerTAC-TNA) - An aircraft with Azerbaijani paralympians on board landed in Baku early in the morning yesterday. A lot of fans and representatives of the sport community of the country had gathered at the Heydar Aliyev International Airport to greet the athletes. The national team of Azerbaijan won in Greece two gold /Ilham Zakiyev, over 100 kg, judo and Oleg Panyutin, broad jumping/, one silver /Zinetdin Bilalov triple jumping/and one bronze /Elena Taranova, shooting/ medals. In interview to journalists, they expressed gratitude for the care and providing good training conditions to President of Azerbaijan and the National Olympic Committee Mr. Ilham Aliyev, the Ministry of Youth, Sport and Tourism, sport federations and trainers. In Athens, we were feeling constant support from our fellow-countrymen and are grateful to all of them, they said. (AzerTAC-TNA)--E002 Last Update : 2004-09-30 / 23:48:24 (GMT+7:00) ||||| BANGKOK, Feb 16 (TNA) The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC)s Secretary-General Thirachai Phuvanatnaranubala on Wednesday revealed that Panthongtae and Pinthongta, son and daughter of Prime Minster Thaksin Shinawatra, are likely to be fined for failure to report their holding of Shin Corporation Public Company Limiteds shares in a particular period. Speaking after a meeting of SEC, he said both persons had already submitted relevant international documents as instructed by SEC to affirm the transfer of Shin Corp shares in Ample Rich Investment Ltd. from Mr. Thaksin to them. Upon consideration of the information, SEC viewed both persons might do something wrong about the report on equity holding, which is subject to a fine. He said SEC would accelerate deliberating the case and forwarding it to the committee in charge of fining whose members come from the Royal Thai Police and state agencies concerned. Whether the fine would be considerable or not depends on a discretion of the committee. On other Shin deal-related cases, he said, SEC is in a process of gathering evidence. Mr. Thirachai reiterated that SEC would examine various issues, including doubts about the origin of Ample Rich in a concrete manner, and make a conclusion soon. He said the gathering of the evidence and relevant documents is expected to be complete next week. (TNA) E005 | In a move that has been greeted with dismay by some groups, Thailand's Constitutional Court has rejected a petition submitted by 28 of the country's senators. The petition levelled allegations against the Prime Minister, Thaksin Shinawatra, of having maintained influence over Shin Corporation and been involved in the decision to sell the family's remaining stake in the company to Temasek Holdings, the investment arm of the Singapore Government. The court's decision to reject the petition seeking impeachment was reached following an 8-6 vote. The submitting senators were said not to have provided evidence documenting Thaksin's interest in Shin Corp. or how he was involved in the sale. This is despite a former judge from the Constitutional Court endorsing an opinion shared by some senators and academics that the court was bound by law and precedent to review the allegations. The president of the Federation for Democracy, Weng Tojitrakarn expressed disappointment at the court's decision not to review the petition, stating that "It's the duty of the court to seek evidences". He pledged that his group would press for the resignation of the eight judges who supported the Prime Minister. Thai Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra According to Weng an interview with the Prime Minister's son, Panthongtae Shinawatra, reveals Thaksin's involvement in the sale. Panthongtae is said to have claimed the sale was a matter for "puyai", which Weng interprets as meaning Thaksin. This is not the first time that Thailand's beleaguered PM has faced judgement from the court, nor may it be the last. In 2001 the court acquitted Thaksin by an even closer 8-7 vote. The charge in that case was concealment of assets. A new petition being organised by students of Thammasat University calling for impeachment has reportedly reached 20,000 of the 50,000 required signatures. Further controversy over the PM's family's involvement in Shin Corp. was revealed in a Thai News Agency report. According to the Secretary-General of the country's Securities and Exchange Commission the PM's son and daughter may face fines for failure to report their shareholding in Shin. Other issues relating to Shin Corp. are also under investigation by the SEC with collection of evidence and documentation expected to be complete within a week. |
BEIJING, China (AP) -- A storm drenched China's southeast on Sunday after killing five people on Taiwan and prompting the evacuation of 1.4 million people on the mainland, officials said. In Vietnam, the death toll from a separate storm rose to 55. A giant wave whipped up by Typhoon Krosa hits the shore near the Nanfangaou harbor in eastern Taiwan. more photos » Krosa came ashore as a typhoon in China's Zhejiang and Fujian provinces, but weakened and was soon downgraded to a tropical storm, the official Xinhua News Agency said. It said no deaths or injuries were reported, but the storm wrecked houses and knocked out power in the port city of Wenzhou as torrential rains swept the region. More than 1.4 million people were evacuated from coastal areas, including more than 500,000 tourists who were at beach resorts for the National Day holiday week, Xinhua said. Some 75,000 fishing vessels in the two provinces were ordered back to port and trips by ferries and sightseeing boats were canceled, the agency said. Krosa -- the Cambodian word for crane -- killed five people Saturday on Taiwan as it knocked out power to 2 million homes and soaked the island, according to Taiwan's Disaster Relief Center. Two men were killed in suburban Taipei when a landslide buried their house, the center said. A man died after falling from his balcony in Hsinchu and a woman was electrocuted after falling from her motorcycle in Tainan. A man's body was also recovered from a hostel that was hit by a landslide in Ilan and another man was missing. Early Sunday, China's coast guard rescued 27 sailors from a Hong Kong freighter that suffered mechanical failure after it was hit by the storm off Wenzhou, Xinhua said. In Shanghai, where the Special Olympics is taking place, the city government canceled vacations for flood-control workers and was drafting plans to drain competition sites, the agency said. Meanwhile, the death toll from Typhoon Lekima, which hit Vietnam's central coast late Wednesday, rose to 55, with another 16 people missing, officials said Sunday. The death toll in Vietnam's worst-hit central province of Nghe An rose to 22 after eight more bodies were discovered over the past two days, said provincial disaster official Pham Hong Thuong. "Communication to many parts of the province is still cut off," Thuong said. "The death toll is likely to rise." Lekima, named after a local fruit, also damaged about 77,000 homes, the government said. E-mail to a friend Copyright 2007 The Associated Press. All rights reserved.This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. All About Taiwan • China ||||| BEIJING (Reuters) - Typhoon Krosa crashed into the Chinese coast on Sunday, forcing the evacuation of 1.4 million people, after killing five in Taiwan as it lashed the island with heavy rain and high winds. Waves are seen as Typhoon Krosa hits Taiwan in the eastern county of Hualian October 6, 2007. REUTERS/Stringer The typhoon made landfall near the borders of densely populated Zhejiang and Fujian provinces in southeast China around 0730 GMT, packing winds of up to 126 km per hour (78 kph), before weakening. Related Coverage Typhoon hits Taiwan No casualties were reported and the local flood prevention authorities later downgraded Krosa to a common tropical storm as it lost strength moving north at 20 km an hour, Xinhua news agency reported. Tug boats were struggling in strong winds to rescue a Hong Kong-registered cargo ship, with 27 crew on board, that was caught in the storm some 30 km off the coast when its engines failed. Xinhua said the Aladdin Dream, crewed by sailors from Russia, India and the Philippines, was in no danger of sinking or capsizing. Workers clear a tree that snapped as Typhoon Krosa hits Taiwan, in Taipei, October 6, 2007. REUTERS/Nicky Loh The authorities took no chances with Krosa, which means crane in Khmer. Zhejiang province alone evacuated 962,000 people from the path of the storm, including half a million holiday-makers who had flocked to the seaside for China’s week-long National Day holiday ending on Sunday. Schools, airports and motorways in some areas were closed, while 75,000 vessels were recalled to harbor. The storm dumped as much as 300 mm of rain in some places. Pedestrians cross a road as Typhoon Krosa hits Taiwan, in Taipei October 6, 2007. Taiwan warned fishing boats and people going out of town for the weekend that the strong typhoon was expected to bring heavy rains and high winds before moving on to China on Sunday. REUTERS/Nicky Loh Krosa earlier wrought havoc in Taiwan as a category 4 typhoon. A landslide killed two people in a mountainous area of the capital, Taipei, while isolated accidents caused by high winds killed another two. A traffic accident caused the fifth casualty, Taiwan’s National Fire Agency reported. Driving rain flooded homes, blocked roads and downed trees across the island, cutting power to 2.2 million homes and businesses, the agency said. Power was restored to most homes on Sunday but many flights were cancelled. Typhoons regularly hit China, Taiwan, the Philippines and Japan from August through the end of the year, gathering strength from the warm waters of the Pacific Ocean or the South China Sea before weakening over land. | Satellite image of Typhoon Krosa.Location of Zhejiang Province in the People's Republic of China. 1.4 million people have been evacuated on the mainland of China because of a deadly storm. The ''Xinhua News Agency'' reported Typhoon Krosa struck China's Zhejiang and Fujian provinces, before weakening to a tropical storm. The storm made landfall around 0730 GMT, with winds of up to 126 km/hour. Severe structural damage and power outages have been reported in the port city of Wenzhou. Among the evacuated were 500,000 tourists who were at coastal resorts for the National Day holiday. Xinhua also said that 75,000 fishing vessels have been ordered to return to their ports. Taiwan's Disaster Relief Center reported that Krosa killed at least 5 people and knocked out power to another 2 million when it made landfall as a Category 4 typhoon. |
Red shirt protesters block access to Parliament Red shirt protesters blocked access to the Parliament and threw stones at vehicles leaving the venue after Democrat Party leader Abhisit Vejjajiva won parliamentary votes to be new prime minister. They also threw stones and objects into the Parliament compound, forcing officials and reporters to cover themselves. A reporter was injured after a stone hit stone hit his nose. The stones and objects hit many vehicles, breaking their glasses and damaged them. An anti-riot police suffered head wound after an object hit his head. More police were deployed to the area. Police failed to calm them down. They had to use police with shields to push them back from the entrance of the Parliament. Then vehicles were allowed to leave the compound. The red shirt protesters were known for their supports of fugitive ex-PM Thaksin Shinawatra, now-defunct People Power Party and Pheu Thai party. Latest reports said that many red shirt protesters organised protests in many provinces of Thailand, mostly in the northeastern region, to protest the victory of Abhisit. ||||| BANGKOK, Thailand – Abhisit Vejjajiva a patrician 44-year-old with an Oxford education became Thailand's prime minister on Monday amid hopes that he can calm the political storms that have battered the country for the past three years. But untested at the pinnacle of power and said to lack decisiveness, he could face one of the roughest rides in modern Thai history. Abhisit, who heads the former opposition Democrat Party, defeated a loyalist of exiled but still powerful ex-Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra in a parliamentary vote. The parliamentary contest came in the wake of mass protests by anti-Thaksin forces that included a weeklong siege of Bangkok's airports. Now, Abhisit must try to neutralize Thaksin's supporters, who have vowed to take to the streets themselves, grapple with a dramatic economic downturn and keep intact the fragile coalition of small parties that brought him to power. "Abhisit is untested and that is both good and bad. He has a clean record. He is well-educated, eloquent and principled so the public will likely give him a chance," says Panithan Wattanayagorn, a political scientist at Bangkok's Chulalongkorn University. But Panithan said Abhisit has yet to outline a bold solution to Thailand's manifold problems. "That is his weakness and that lack of decisiveness and clear political stance could turn against him very quickly," he said. "It's going to be among Thailand's roughest premierships." Abhisit, who entered politics at the age of 27, lost his chance for the job in 2007, when the Democrats failed to win over the rural masses in general elections. From a wealthy family of Thai-Chinese origin, Abhisit was born in England and educated at Eton and Oxford, where he earned an honors degree in philosophy, politics and economics. His first name means "privilege" in Thai and his friends call him by his foreign nickname, Mark. He joined the country's oldest party, the Democrats, in 1992 and became one of the youngest ever members of Parliament. He rose in the party ranks and in popularity, especially among the educated in Bangkok who took to his clean record, polite demeanor, articulate if somewhat bland speeches and movie-star looks. Abhisit assumed the party's leadership in 2005 and a year later the Democrats boycotted elections called by Thaksin, accusing the prime minister of calling the vote to divert public attention from scandals and corruption allegations against him. Thaksin's party won, but he was toppled in a military coup later that year. However, his allies remained strong and their new People Power Party defeated Abhisit's Democrats in December 2007 elections. During the ensuing political turmoil, the Democrat Party voiced support for the main anti-government movement, the People's Alliance for Democracy, but held back from joining the sometimes-violent street demonstrations. In recent years, the party has maintained its strongholds in Bangkok and southern Thailand but made little inroads into the populous, poor northeast, where elections are normally won or lost, often through massive vote-buying. Many Thais, especially in the countryside, favor earthy, charismatic politicians. Abhisit, who counts "Myth of Sisyphus" by French existential novelist Albert Camus among his favorite books, lacks such grit. Thaksin, by contrast, used to travel through the countryside, speaking the farmers' language and listening to their hardships. "It's very difficult to imagine Abhisit in that same kind of performance with the same kind of results. He's a rather cool character. Thaksin is hot and open," said Chris Baker, a political scientist at Bangkok's Chulalongkorn University. "Of course he (Abhisit) can change. Power changes people enormously." The rural-urban divide, which in large measure led to the current crisis, was clearly evident in reactions to Abhisit's victory. "This is very bad for poor people. Abhisit was born with silver spoons and forks in his mouth. He knows nothing but wealth and privilege. How could he solve our problems?" said Chaiya Paitoonsiri, a taxi driver from the impoverished northeastern province of Maha Sarakam. But a 26-year-old office worker in Bangkok, Nutta Tangtrakulchai, said, "It's nice to have someone smart for a change. He is also an economist so he should be savvy about solving the country's most important problem." ___ Associated Press writers Ambika Ahuja and Mike Casey contributed to this report. ||||| Abhisit Vejjajiva won the vote by a relatively narrow margin Thailand's opposition leader, Abhisit Vejjajiva, has been confirmed as the country's new prime minister after winning a special vote in parliament. The speaker of the lower house, Chai Chidchob, said the Democrat Party leader had beaten ex-police chief Pracha Promnok by 235 votes to 198. Mr Abhisit will become Thailand's fifth leader in a little over two years. The previous Prime Minister, Somchai Wongsawat, was forced to resign after a court ruling earlier this month. The constitutional court found his governing People Power Party (PPP) guilty of fraud during the last election a year ago, and banned it and two other parties in the governing coalition. Mr Somchai was also barred from politics. Supporters of Mr Thaksin reacted furiously to the result of the vote Profile: Abhisit Vejjajiva The parties have now regrouped under new names, but the Democrat Party won over enough defectors and unaligned MPs to win support. The BBC's Jonathan Head in Bangkok says Mr Abhisit will immediately be confronted by some formidable challenges - rebuilding economic confidence, healing deep political divisions, and making an unwieldy coalition government perform better than its recent predecessors. The country was stricken by months of political deadlock as anti-government protesters mounted a campaign to topple the PPP. The People's Alliance for Democracy (PAD) accused the party of being a proxy for Mr Thaksin, who was ousted in a coup in 2006. The protest culminated in a week-long occupation of Bangkok's main international airport which left 300,000 foreign tourists stranded. The PAD called off its action following the constitutional court ruling. ||||| Register for NYTimes.com. Breaking news and award winning multimedia New York Times newspaper articles Arts & Dining reviews Online Classifieds It's free and it only takes a minute! Member ID or E-Mail Address: Password: Forgot Your Password? Remember me on this computer. ||||| BANGKOK --Thailand's parliament elected Democrat Party leader Abhisit Vejjajiva prime minister Monday in a vote which - if Mr. Abhisit's fragile coalition holds together - could offer one of Southeast Asia's largest economies a way out of years of sometimes violent political turmoil. AFP/Getty Images Abhisit Vejjajiva smiles Monday after being elected Thailand's prime minister. Mr. Abhisit won election with 234 votes to opponent Pracha Promnok's 197 ballots, making him leader of a new coalition government with a slim majority in parliament. The vote returned a Democrat Party-led government to power for the first time in eight years. The new ruling coalition replaces a government backed by supporters of former Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra which had been in power since December 2007. Many of Mr. Abhisit's votes came from defectors from the previous ruling coalition of Thaksin loyalists. The former premier, a populist multi-millionaire, led Thailand from late 2001 until September 2006, when he was toppled in a military coup. Mr. Thaksin is currently in self-imposed exile to evade imprisonment on a corruption conviction earlier this year. Political analysts say the 44-year-old, British-educated Mr. Abhisit will have to work hard to accommodate the defectors, many of whom were elected to parliament in Mr. Thaksin's traditional rural strongholds in north and northeast Thailand. There is also the risk that voters will put Mr. Thaksin's supporters back into power when the new government calls for fresh parliamentary elections, which must take place by 2011. "The cycle of conflict could start all over again," says Thitinan Pongsudhirak, a political science professor at Bangkok's Chulalongkorn University. Thailand Seeks a Way Out As political unrest has grown in recent months, Thailand's economy has suffered. View Interactive Thailand's deep political crisis began with 2006's military coup that ousted Mr. Thaksin. After a period of military rule, democracy was restored in December 2007. But rural voters again elected a government comprised of Mr. Thaksin's followers. That outcome upset many in Thailand's urban middle class and traditional economic and social elite of business leaders, bureaucrats and military officers. Large street protests erupted in Bangkok, culminating with antigovernment protesters seizing Thailand's two main airports last month, cutting of the Bangkok's air links for a week and throwing the country's tourism and export-dependent economy into chaos. The protesters, calling themselves the People's Alliance for Democracy, said they were alarmed by Mr. Thaksin's continuing behind-the-scenes influence and the way he and his supporters allegedly manipulated one-person, one-vote politics to extend their hold on power. Led by media tycoon Sondhi Limthongkul, the protesters have called for a radical overhaul of Thailand's electoral system to place more power in the hands of appointed legislators more sympathetic to the concerns of the country's conservative bureaucratic and military establishment. Thailand's previous coalition government - comprised of Mr. Thaksin's supporters and led by his brother-in-law, Somchai Wongsawat - collapsed on Dec. 2, after Thailand's Constitutional Court banned Mr. Somchai and other key leaders from politics for five years for electoral fraud and disbanded their People Power Party. Mr. Abhisit says the Democrat Party then began approaching members of the pro-Thaksin coalition to see if they defect to a new coalition. He says many wanted to find a solution to Thailand's seemingly unbridgeable political divides and a prospective coalition began to form around the Democrats. Army chief Gen. Anupong Paochinda also played a role in the political maneuvering, putting Democrat and pro-Thaksin politicians in touch with each other. He denies pressuring pro-Thaksin legislators to switch sides, however. Some political analysts say the recent illness of 81-year-old King Bhumibol Adulyadej, which prevented him from delivering his customary birthday speech on Dec. 4, accelerated the defections. Many Thais were looking forward to King Bhumibol's remarks, in which he sometimes provides advice on political matters. The key defector to the Democrat-led coalition was Newin Chidchob, a powerful rural politician who was previously one of Mr. Thaksin's most important lieutenants. Controlling a group of about 30 members of parliament, Mr. Newin initiated talks with Democrat Party secretary-general Suthep Thuagsuban before cementing his alliance in a public meeting with Mr. Abhisit. On Dec. 9, after he was photographed shaking hands with Mr. Abhisit, Mr. Newin still referred to Mr. Thaksin as his "boss." "I still respect him. Personally, nothing has changed," Mr. Newin said. "But sometimes I have to make decisions for the public good rather than personal gain." Write to James Hookway at james.hookway@awsj.com ||||| Thailand tense on eve of crucial PM vote BANGKOK (AFP) — Thailand's opposition insisted Sunday it was headed for government on the eve of a vote for the new prime minister, despite a last-minute intervention by ousted leader Thaksin Shinawatra. Billionaire Thaksin, toppled in a 2006 military coup, weighed in from exile late Saturday, accusing the powerful army of interfering in the formation of a new government -- a claim the military swiftly denied. MPs will Monday choose Thailand's third prime minister in four months, with opposition leader Abhisit Vejjajiva on the verge of the premiership after the pro-Thaksin government was brought down by a court order and hit by defections. Abhisit's Democrat Party and Thaksin's allies engaged in fierce last-minute lobbying to win over a handful of undecided MPs. "The more (Thaksin) talks, it makes MPs feel uncomfortable. This is not about betrayal -- it is about a decision for the nation," Democrat Party secretary general Suthep Tuagsuban said on local television. "I am confident that Abhisit will receive more than half of the parliamentarians' votes and can form the government." Abhisit told reporters that he was "ready to work immediately" to tackle the kingdom's economic woes, heightened by six months of crippling protests. "If the Democrat Party has the chance to become the government, we will restore confidence within next two or three months," he said. Thaksin gave a pre-recorded video address at a Bangkok stadium to about 50,000 supporters late Saturday. "At the moment the army is interfering... Those people who interfere in forming the government must stop and withdraw," he said. Thaksin, who is living in an undisclosed foreign location to dodge graft charges, said the military was behind the defection of former ruling coalition lawmakers and four smaller parties who now back the British-born Abhisit. Army spokesman Colonel Sunsern Kaewkumnerd on Sunday denied that the military had a hand in the political horse-trading, as parties jostle to fill the power vacuum left by the dissolution of the People Power Party (PPP). "We are not interfering in politics," he told AFP. Police say they will have about 1,200 officers on duty outside parliament for the special session on Monday in case of protests by Thaksin supporters. They say the army will be called in if there are any clashes. The political manoeuvres follow six months of protests by the anti-Thaksin People's Alliance for Democracy (PAD), which peaked with a week-long blockade of Bangkok's airports beginning in late November. The turmoil left 350,000 passengers stranded and has badly hit Thailand's economy, with GDP growth forecast at just two percent next year. The PAD ended the airport siege after a court on December 2 dissolved the PPP and handed a five-year political ban to then-premier Somchai Wongsawat, who is Thaksin's brother-in-law. Thaksin's allies have regrouped in the newly formed Puea Thai (For Thais) party and insist that they can still form a government when MPs vote. "The race will be very neck and neck -- we will win by eight or ten votes," said Chalerm Yoobamrung, a Puea Thai member who was health minister under the PPP-led government. They have not officially named a prime ministerial candidate, although local media has speculated that they will nominate former police chief Pracha Promnog, head of the small Puea Pandin party. Behind Thailand's political machinations lies a growing divide between Thaksin's supporters among the poor -- especially in rural areas -- and the country's Bangkok-based establishment, who back the Democrat Party. Twice-elected Thaksin alienated elements in the palace, military and bureaucracy with his populist policies and was accused by the PAD of trying to damage Thailand's revered monarchy. The PAD claimed the support of Queen Sirikit when she attended the funeral in October of a protester killed in a clash with police in Bangkok. It also accused the last government of being Thaksin's corrupt puppet administration. ||||| Abhisit Vejjajiva says he has enough support to be the next PM Thailand's opposition Democrats say they have the support of enough members of parliament to form a government. As many as 40 MPs from the former governing party have defected to the Democrat Party and its leader, Abhisit Vejjajiva, in the last week. The courts dissolved the governing party and banned PM Somchai Wongsawat from politics over electoral fraud. A special session of parliament is expected to vote next week to elect a new prime minister. The Democrat Party will propose to parliament that Abhisit Vejjajiva becomes the next prime minister. But many of the members of the banned former governing party have formed a new party, Phuea Thai, and insist they can also form a new government. Airport blockade The power struggle at the heart of Thai politics comes after a tumultuous few months in which anti-government protesters campaigned to bring down the prime minister and the whole administration. Please turn on JavaScript. Media requires JavaScript to play. They recently blockaded Bangkok's main international airport for more than a week, leaving 300,000 foreign travellers stranded and dealing a huge blow to the tourist industry. The blockade only ended when the Constitutional Court ruled that the PPP had committed electoral fraud, and barred Prime Minister Somchai Wongsawat and other senior party members from politics. Now the battle has moved to parliament, and the Democrats, who lost to the PPP in the last general elections in December, are seizing their chance. One of the most powerful faction leaders in Thaksin's camp has gone over to the other side, taking as many as 40 MPs with him. Together with some of the smaller parties that have also switched loyalties, that gives the opposition Democrats 260 seats out of the parliament's 480, says the BBC's Jonathan Head in Bangkok. In a sign of the passions generated by the crisis, an unexploded grenade and two coffins were found outside the home of an MP, Boonjong Wongtrairat, who has defected from Phuea Thai to the Democrats, Associated Press news agency said. The Democrats, fronted by the youthful and cosmopolitan Abhisit Vejajiva now seem poised to form a government for the first time since they were defeated in a landslide election by Mr Thaksin eight years ago, says our correspondent. Bookmark with: Delicious Digg reddit Facebook StumbleUpon What are these? E-mail this to a friend Printable version ||||| Thai premier banned from politics, ruling party dissolved: court BANGKOK (AFP) — Thailand's constitutional court on Tuesday banned Prime Minister Somchai Wongsawat from politics for five years and dissolved the ruling party over a case of voting fraud. "As the court decided to dissolve the People Power Party, therefore the leader of the party and party executives must be banned from politics for five years," said Chat Chonlaworn, head of the nine-judge court panel. "The court had no other option," he said. The verdict came amid a confrontation between Somchai, the brother-in-law of ousted former premier Thaksin Shinawatra, and anti-government protesters occupying Bangkok's airports. Somchai was elected by parliament on September 17 after his predecessor, Samak Sundaravej, was forced from office last month for appearing in television cooking shows. The judge, wearing a black robe with a scarlet collar, read the order live on national television. "No matter whether you are satisfied or not with the verdict, we ask you to accept it," he said. The verdict said the party must be disbanded because PPP executives had been convicted of vote fraud after elections in December 2007. "Although some party executives had no knowledge of the election fraud, the law stipulates clearly... the party must scrutinise its executives thus the party cannot deny responsibility," Chat said. | Abhisit Vejjajiva. Thai opposition (Democrat Party) leader Abhisit Vejjajiva won a majority of votes in the House of Representatives of Thailand on Monday and will be named the 27th Prime Minister of Thailand. Abhisit, an economist, got 235 votes against 198 by former national police chief and Pheu Pandin leader Pracha Promnok, a loyalist of fugitive Prime Mininster Thaksin Shinawatra. The nation's third prime minister in four months, Abhisit, at 44, is set to become the youngest prime minister Thailand has had, and its fifth leader in a little over two years. He will lead a weak coalition government. When prime minister Samak Sundaravej was removed in 2008, Abhisit lost the National Assembly vote for Prime Minister by 163 votes to 298 for Somchai Wongsawat. Later, however, the 2 December 2008 Constitutional Court of Thailand judgment banned the three parties including the PPP, which dissolved the governing coalition. The Court also banned Somchai from politics for five years, and removed him from office. He was succeeded by a deputy. When it became clear that another government under the For Thais Party or Puea Thai (the successor of the PPP) was not a viable option, the remainder of the Chart Thai Party under Sanan Krachonprasat, the Thais United National Development Party and Neutral Democratic Party, almost all, except for the Royal People Party decided to back a Democrat led coalition thereby endorsing Abhisit as the next Prime Minister. "Abhisit gained more than half of the vote, therefore I declare that Abhisit has been voted as the new prime minister," House Speaker Chai Chidchob declared. Abhisit's election, however, differs however from its confirmation by the Parliament. In this regared. Yahoo reported that "the count in the House of Representatives was unofficial and the chamber needed to official endorse the results before Abhisit could be declared prime minister. The chamber normally has 480 members, but because of vacancies currently numbers 437. One MP died on the eve of the voting." Thaksin, who is living in an undisclosed foreign country to evade corruption charges, delivered a pre-recorded video message to about 50,000 supporters at a Bangkok stadium late Saturday. "At the moment the army is interfering... Those people who interfere in forming the government must stop and withdraw," he said. Army spokesman Colonel Sunsern Kaewkumnerd, however, dismissed his accusations. Meanwhile, Thaksin's supporters, from the now-defunct People Power Party and Pheu Thai party, consisting of at least 200 demonstrators blocked access to Thailand's parliament building. The Nation reported that red shirt protesters "barricaded all gates out of the compound, checked cars trying to leave, while some cars had windows broken with clubs or bricks, and cars carrying MPs who had voted for Mr. Abhisit were not allowed through." The turmoil results in forcing officials and reporters to cover themselves. A reporter was "injured after a stone hit stone hit his nose, while an anti-riot police suffered head wound after an object hit his head," it said. "Police failed to calm them down, and they further organised protests in many provinces of Thailand, mostly in the northeastern region," The Thai newspaper further reported. |
Please turn on JavaScript. Media requires JavaScript to play. Advertisement Prime Minister Gordon Brown and his Irish counterpart Brian Cowen have arrived in Northern Ireland for crucial talks on policing and justice. The impasse has led to a growing crisis, amid fears of a collapse in the political institutions at Stormont. Both men have said they are confident the outstanding issues can be resolved. Negotiating teams from the DUP and Sinn Fein have arrived at Hillsborough Castle. At this stage, the talks do not involve the other political parties. Earlier on Monday, talks between the DUP and Sinn Fein ended after less than an hour. ANALYSIS From Mark Devenport at Hillsborough Castle After a period of stability it looks now we are back to prime ministers trying to pull something out of the fire. First and Deputy First Ministers Peter Robinson and Martin McGuinness met earlier at Stormont, but one must presume did not produce a great deal. It only lasted for 35 minutes. One has to assume the message went out afterwards, particularly from Sinn Fein, that it was time for direct governmental involvement. It's entirely possible with them coming this late in the evening that they might stay overnight. We haven't been guided towards that, but we do have Gordon Brown's comments earlier that he said he was prepared to spend a substantial amount of time. Q&A: Breakthrough or breakdown? Nick Robinson: The Hatfield House mystery Sinn Fein's Martin McGuinness said he was "frustrated" with the DUP because of the lack of progress on devolving policing. DUP MP Sammy Wilson said Sinn Fein had "thrown a hissy fit" and should "pull back from the brink" as it was possible to find a solution to the impasse. "People said we could never deliver this assembly up and running again," he said. "When we believed we had got the right things in place we went out and sold it - we have persevered with it and we have had the assembly running now for three years. "So if we can get something we believe is workable that's the only criterion we will make - it's not about 'have we won or have we lost?' - if we get something workable we will sell it, and we will sell it hard because we want to see this place working." The DUP and Sinn Fein - Northern Ireland's two biggest political parties - have been arguing for months over the transfer of policing and justice powers from Westminster to Stormont. Sinn Fein want the completion of devolution to happen as soon as possible, but the DUP argue there must be unionist "community confidence" before powers are put in the hands of local politicians. The "confidence" issue causing most division is over the handling of parades. The DUP wants to scrap the Parades Commission, which puts conditions on some of the most contentious marches, but Sinn Fein has accused them of giving the Orange Order a talks veto. Brian Cowen and Gordon Brown have travelled to Hillsborough Castle Prime Minister Gordon Brown has postponed Tuesday's cabinet meeting to allow him to stay in Northern Ireland for more talks. Speaking at a news conference in Downing Street after meeting Mr Cowen, Mr Brown said: "We believe that the problems that exist in devolving policing and justice are all soluble problems. "We believe that it is right for Northern Ireland to move forward in this way now and we believe that together we can assist the completion of these talks." Irish prime minister Brian Cowen said he was confident progress would be made. He said: "We are going to Belfast to see in what way we can assist. "It is very important that we get a successful outcome to these discussions and we believe that our going there should help bring a conclusion to the devolution issues." The leaders left Downing Street to travel to Belfast just after 1500 GMT. Neither the DUP nor Sinn Fein has made any comment since the end of Monday morning's talks, but speaking before the meeting, Mr McGuinness said he planned to be "positive and constructive". The talks between the two parties, which became acrimonious last week, were considered to be critical. 'Confidence' On Monday, Mr McGuinness said: "The only agreement that is viable is an agreement between the DUP and Sinn Fein." He said that within three months of the St Andrews Agreement, his party "took a historic and monumental decision" to support the police in Northern Ireland. The leaders cannot agree over the transfer of police powers to Stormont "Three years on, we are waiting for the DUP to deliver and honour their commitments," he added. Mr McGuinness said he was "at pains" to make the assembly work, it was "his life's work" and he felt passionately about it. It should, he said, deliver for the whole community. Before heading to Hillsborough Castle, the DUP's acting first minister Arlene Foster said her party was ready to deal with the outstanding issues. She said she hoped the outcome of the talks would mean "policing and justice powers that are sustainable, and will not involve the two prime ministers coming back to Northern Ireland, with the greatest of respect to them, for quite a long time". The Ulster Unionists and the nationalist SDLP have both called for the talks to be widened out to include all the parties rather than just the DUP and Sinn Fein. Ulster Unionist leader Sir Reg Empey said: "We will not be prepared to accept a piece of paper if it was negotiated by others in our absence." SDLP assembly member Conall McDevitt said it was important for all the parties to be involved, "otherwise what we will have is old IRA men and people with the best interests of the Orange Order and maybe not of all the people of Northern Ireland, trying to come to conclusions which ultimately will only serve a very narrow section of the community". Alliance Party leader David Ford, who is thought to be a possible future justice minister, said it was "unfortunate but necessary" that the prime ministers had to intervene "because politicians here aren't grown up enough to take their own decisions". If Sinn Fein was to decide Mr McGuinness should resign, the joint nature of the roles of first and deputy first ministers would mean that Peter Robinson would also be forced out of office, collapsing the executive. Please turn on JavaScript. Media requires JavaScript to play. Advertisement Bookmark with: Delicious Digg reddit Facebook StumbleUpon What are these? E-mail this to a friend Printable version ||||| Login Enter your details below to login If you are an existing member of The Times and The Sunday Times enjoying the full benefits of thetimes.co.uk, then simply enter your Times+ login details below and press 'Enter' Enter your details to login Email address Password Keep me logged in information Keeps you logged in for a rolling 30 days or until you logout | File Photo of Brian Cowen in 2008 UK Prime Minister Gordon Brown and Brian Cowen, the current Taoiseach of the Republic of Ireland, have met in Northern Ireland for emergency talks about policing and justice. The talks follow a failed lunchtime meeting between Northern Irish politicians Peter Robinson, the leader of the Democratic Unionist Party, and Martin McGuinness, the Deputy First Minister. The meeting between Robinson—who recently stood down as First Minister temporarily due to a sexual and financial and scandal concerning his wife Iris—and McGuinness lasted less than one hour. This prompted Brown and Cowen, who had been discussing similar issues in London, to make an unscheduled trip to Ulster in an attempt to attempt to prevent the collapse of the Irish political system due to a conflict about the DUP's refusal to transfer the Irish policing and justice system from London to Belfast. On his way to the failed meeting, McGuinness said that he was "frustrated" that Sinn Féin had been stalling for time by waiting three years for the devolution of power. Sinn Féin—a political party promoting an independent Ireland—called the meeting, before it occurred, a defining moment in the crisis. The DUP says that there is insufficient public confidence for the powers to be transferred, and claims that a date for the transfer was never set. It also demands that, before any transfer attempts begin, the Parades Commission—which is responsible for the conditions of a number of contentious marches—be disbanded. Sinn Féin responds to this by accusing the DUP of giving the organisers of the parades, the loyalist Orange Order, a veto. The Orange Order organises parades and rallies in support of Ireland being a part of the United Kingdom. Brown and Cowen are both confident that the issues are resolvable. Before departing, Brown said "We believe that the problems that exist in devolving policing and justice are all soluble problems. We believe that it is right for Northern Ireland to move forward in this way now and we believe that together we can assist the completion of these talks. And while I recognise that there are difficult issues, we believe that these issues can be overcome," and Cowen said "We are going to Belfast to see in what way we can assist. It is very important that we get a successful outcome to these discussions and we believe that our going there should help bring a conclusion to the devolution issues." Negotiating teams from Sinn Féin and the DUP have arrived at Hillsborough Castle to discuss the issue. No other political parties are currently involved in the talks. DUP Member of Parliament Sammy Wilson said Sinn Féin had "thrown a hissy fit", and that they should "pull back from the brink" in order for the conflict to be resolved in a mutually beneficial manner. He also said, "People said we could never deliver this assembly up and running again. When we believed we had got the right things in place we went out and sold it - we have persevered with it and we have had the assembly running now for three years. So if we can get something we believe is workable that's the only criterion we will make - it's not about 'have we won or have we lost?' - if we get something workable we will sell it, and we will sell it hard because we want to see this place working." |
(CNN) -- China is banning free plastic bags common at shops and supermarkets and ordering customers to be charged for any they use, the government said Wednesday. Shoppers in Beijing and other Chinese cities will have to pay for using plastic bags, starting in June. The rules, which take effect June 1, come as the country tries to tackle a significant source of litter, a statement on the government's Web site said. The bags also are banned from all public transportation, including buses, trains and planes and from airports and scenic locations, the government said. Companies caught breaking the new rules face fines and possible forfeiture of goods, the government said. Shops have been instructed to mark the price of the plastic bags clearly and not fold them into the cost of other items. Environmental organizations, including Greenpeace, praised China's move, and Christopher Flavin, president of Worldwatch Institute, an independent research organization in Washington, said "China is ahead of the U.S. with this policy," AP reported. The Chinese use up to 3 billion plastic shopping bags a day. Often, the flimsy bags are used once and discarded, adding to waste in a country grappling with air and water pollution as a result of rapid economic transformation, officials said. "Our country consumes a large amount of plastic bags. While convenient for consumers, the bags also lead to a severe waste of resources and environmental pollution because of their excessive use and low rate of recycling," the statement at the Web site Gov.cn said. "The ultra-thin bags are the main source of 'white' pollution as they can easily get broken and end up as litter." The government statement added, "We should encourage people to return to carrying cloth bags, using baskets for their vegetables." More durable plastic bags still will be allowed for sale by markets and shops, The Associated Press reported. When the ban goes into effect, China will join countries such as Uganda and South Africa, the statement said. Bangladesh banned plastic bags four years ago when officials realized they blocked drains and led to flooding. Since then, customers have taken to using bags made of jute or cloth for shopping. Last year, San Francisco, California, became the first U.S. city to outlaw plastic checkout bags at supermarkets. E-mail to a friend Copyright 2008 CNN. All rights reserved.This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. Associated Press contributed to this report. All About Nature and the Environment • China ||||| China is to ban shops from handing out free plastic bags in one of its most ambitious environmental measures yet aimed at the consumer. Plastic bag ban set for London The plastic bag debate The state council, or cabinet, said the country's use of three billion plastic bags a day was putting "intolerable pressure" on the country's environment and resources, and steps had to be taken to stem their use. As well as imposing a compulsory as yet unspecified charge on plastic carrier bags, the government said it would ban ultra-thin plastic bags altogether. Both measures would come into force on June 1. "We should encourage people to return to carrying cloth bags, using baskets for their vegetables," the notice announcing the ban said. "Plastic shopping bags, due to reasons such as excessive use and inefficient recycling, have caused serious energy and resources waste and environment pollution," it added. "The super thin bags (those thinner than 0.025 mm) have especially become a main source of plastic pollution as they are easy to break and thus disposed of carelessly." With household consumption a fraction of levels found in the west, the ordinary householder's contribution to China's environmental crisis has received little attention so far. Internationally, China attracts more attention for the levels of its greenhouse emissions, which according to some estimates are the highest in the world, despite its economy still lagging America's, Japan's and Germany's according to standard models. advertisement Its murky skies are also a subject of controversy, particularly in the year Beijing, the world's most polluted capital, welcomes hundreds of thousands of visitors for the Olympic Games. But households are also accustomed to take little care of their waste. In the past, the economics of poverty dictated that everything that could be reused was, but the burgeoning middle classes no longer see so much need to take plastic bottles back to the shop for the fraction of a penny "return" value. The consequences can be seen in the growing mounds of rubbish spreading across eastern China. Plastic bags float in the rivers and in the breeze even across the deserts and mountains of the interior. Beijing alone discards 2.3 billion plastic bags a year. Britain uses an estimated 10 billion plastic bags a year, according to government figures. As part of its wide-ranging plans, finance authorities will consider tax incentives to discourage the production of plastic bags and encourage recycling, and state standards for bag production will be revised. It also announced more encouragement for firms separating bags out from waste for reprocessing. Whole towns in southern China now have pillar industries based on the cutting up of plastic bags from round the world - including Britain - and converting them into pellets to be sold back to plastic factories. Bag charges are already in place in other countries, as well as in Taiwan, while experiments such as the "I'm not a plastic bag" carrier bag have had their moment - except in China, where it was banned for fear of repeats of stampedes that took place in Hong Kong when they went on sale. The Chinese special economic zone of Shenzhen, which discards 1.7 billion bags a year, first suggested similar measures last year, but they met with considerable consumer opposition. Similar environmental measures have a track record of being ignored. ||||| By Guo Shipeng and Emma Graham-Harrison BEIJING (Reuters) - China launched a surprise crackdown on plastic bags on Tuesday, banning production of ultra-thin bags and forbidding its supermarkets and shops from handing out free carriers from June 1. China uses too many of the bags and fails to dispose of them properly, wasting valuable oil and littering the country, China's cabinet, the State Council, said in a notice posted on the central government Web site (www.gov.cn). "Our country consumes huge amounts of plastic bags every year. While providing convenience to consumers, they have also caused serious pollution, and waste of energy and resources, because of excessive use and inadequate recycling," it said. Worries about pollution are growing among ordinary citizens, as years of breakneck growth take their toll on the country's air and water, but the new ban may not be universally welcomed. Late last year the southern boom town of Shenzhen sparked a public controversy by unveiling draft regulations to ban free plastic bags in its shops. Shopkeepers fretted that customers might be turned away and some people accused the government of making residents shoulder the costs of environmental protection. Part of the new rules seem similar to the Shenzhen plan, stating that from June shops, supermarkets and sales outlets would be forbidden to offer free plastic bags and all carriers must be clearly marked with their prices. "We should encourage people to return to carrying cloth bags, using baskets for their vegetables," the notice said. In addition the manufacture, sale and use of bags under 0.025 mm thick is banned from the same date, with fines and confiscation of goods and profits for firms that flout the rules. The cabinet also said finance authorities should consider adjusting taxes to discourage the production and sale of plastic bags and encourage the recycling industry. Rubbish collectors were urged to separate plastic for reprocessing and cut the amount burnt or buried. The move brings China in line with a growing international trend to cut back use of plastic bags. From Ireland to Uganda and South Africa governments have experimented with heavy taxes, outright bans or eliminating the thinnest bags. In some countries where the central government has not acted communities ranging from San Francisco to a small British town have taken unilateral action to outlaw the carriers. Chinese people use up to 3 billion plastic bags a day and the country has to refine 5 million tons (37 million barrels) of crude oil every year to make plastics used for packaging, according to a report on the Web site of China Trade News (www.chinatradenews.com.cn). ||||| Questions About Your Community: Shopping Bags: Paper or Plastic or . . .? Back to Office, House & Yard | Waste Did you know plastic grocery bags consume 40% less energy to produce and generate 80% less solid waste than paper bags? Did you know plastic bags can take 1,000 years to decompose whereas paper bags take about a month to decompose? The debate over whether plastic or paper bags are better for the environment has a long history and is often rekindled each time we check out at the grocery store when we hear that familiar question: Paper or plastic? Many of us have not been able to resolve this question, but there is an alternative --read on below. There seem to be pluses and minuses on both sides of the debate. For paper bags, the life cycle stages consist of timber harvesting, pulping, paper and bag making, product use and waste disposal. For plastic (polyethylene) bags, the steps involve petroleum or natural gas extraction, ethylene manufacture, ethylene polymerization, bag processing, product use and waste disposal. In all of these steps, energy is required and wastes are generated. Some more facts about these two products may help us to answer this age-old question: Plastic bags were first introduced in 1977 and now account for four out of every five bags handed out at grocery stores. Paper sacks generate 70 percent more air and 50 times more water pollutants than plastic bags. Paper bags are made from trees, which are a renewable resource. Most plastic bags are made from polyethylene, which is made from crude oil and natural gas, nonrenewable resources. 2000 plastic bags weigh 30 pounds, 2000 paper bags weigh 280 pounds. The latter takes up a lot more landfill space. It takes 91 percent less energy to recycle a pound of plastic than it takes to recycle a pound of paper. It takes more than four times as much energy to manufacture a paper bag as it does to manufacture a plastic bag. Energy to produce the bags (in British thermal units): Safeway plastic bags: 594 BTU; Safeway paper bags: 2511 BTU. Paper is accepted in most recycling programs while the recycling rate for plastic bags is very low. Research from 2000 shows 20 percent of paper bags were recycled, while one percent of plastic bags were recycled. Current research demonstrates that paper in today's landfills does not degrade or break down at a substantially faster rate than plastic does. In fact, nothing completely degrades in modern landfills due to the lack of water, light, oxygen, and other important elements that are necessary for the degradation process to be completed. Incineration can decrease the quantity of plastic and paper bags. However, incineration causes air pollution and creates ash which has to be landfilled. So, what is the answer, paper or plastic? NEITHER! Look into purchasing reusable bags or reusing your paper or plastic bags at the store. Reusing a bag meant for just one use has a big impact. A sturdy, reusable bag needs only be used 11 times to have a lower environmental impact than using 11 disposable plastic bags. In New York City alone, one less grocery bag per person per year would reduce waste by five million pounds and save $250,000 in disposal costs. When one ton of paper bags is reused or recycled, three cubic meters of landfill space is saved and 13 - 17 trees are spared! In 1997, 955,000 tons of paper bags were used in the United States. When one ton of plastic bags is reused or recycled, the energy equivalent of 11 barrels of oil are saved. Many grocery stores now offer for sale sturdy cloth grocery bags. Some of these stores even give you a little discount (e.g., five cents per bag) if you bring your own bag. So, keep a stash of reusable bags in your pantry or if you drive to the store simply keep them in your trunk. | The People's Republic of China has banned free plastic shopping bags in a move to take effect from June 1, 2008. The decision made by the Chinese Cabinet, the State Council, is intended to reduce the amount of plastic bags used in China, currently being estimated at three billion per day. The State Council also announced that at the same time as the ban, the manufacturing, sale and even use of very thin plastic bags, which are defined as being under 0.025mm thick, will be banned. Any company that does not follow this ban can be fined. The ban of free plastic bags and complete ban on very thin bags will, the government hopes, help reduce the amount of crude oil used for plastic packaging, which is currently at five million tonnes per year according to ''Times Online''. The notice issued by the Chinese government said: “We should encourage people to return to carrying cloth bags, using baskets for their vegetables.” The People's Republic of China is not the first country to ban or restrict plastic shopping bags and the notice names Uganda and South Africa according to ''CNN''. Many supermarkets in the European Union have voluntarily adopted methods to reduce usage of plastic bags, which often also consist of charging for bags (e.g. Germany) or rewarding customer loyalty points for returning used carrier bags. Still, many of the world's leading polluting countries, including the United States of America, have not yet introduced any legislation intended to reduce the usage of plastic bags. The United States Environmental Protection Agency claimed that in 2000 only 1% of plastic bags in the United States were recycled. The People's Republic of China has attracted a lot of attention in the past for having possibly the highest greenhouse emissions in the world, disproportionate to the size of its economy, according to ''The Telegraph''. ''Times Online'' quoted a Chinese activist as saying that plastic bags are not the main problem and the government needed to make people care more about the environment. |
A child was rescued 21 hours after a crash involving two high-speed trains in eastern China killed at least 35 people and injured more than 200 others, according to reports yesterday. Xinhua news agency said the unconscious child was found in a carriage by rescuers yesterday Sunday evening. "When we found him, he could still move his hands," Xinhua quoted an unnamed firefighter as saying. China Central Television initially reported that the child was a boy, but later said it was a four-year-old girl. The child was taken to hospital but no other details were provided. The accident occurred when a bullet train travelling south from the Zhejiang provincial capital, Hangzhou, on Saturday evening lost power after a lightning strike and stalled. It was then hit from behind by the second train in Wenzhou city. The first four cars of the moving train fell about 30 metres from a viaduct to the ground below. One carriage ended up in a vertical position, leaning against the viaduct. The ministry of railways said in a statement that the first four cars of the moving train and the last two of the stalled train derailed. The second train was travelling from Beijing and both trains were destined for Fuzhou in eastern Fujian province. An official surnamed Wang said it was unclear how long the first train had stopped on the track before being struck. State broadcaster CCTV said there were more than 900 passengers on the stalled train and more than 500 passengers on the train that hit it. TThree railway officials were fired after the crash and are subject to investigation, Xinhua quoted the ministry as saying. The incident is the first derailment on China's high-speed rail network since the country launched bullet trains with a maximum speed of 155mph in 2007. China plans to eexpand its bullet train network to link f far-flung regions, as well as highlight its rising wealth and technological prowess. Last month, China launched to great fanfare the Beijing-Shanghai high-speed line, where trains travel at a maximum speed of 186mph. The speed was cut from the originally planned 217mph after questions were raised about safety. ||||| Government fires three top railway officials, as rescue efforts continue in bid to find victims of high-speed crash. Excavators have worked through the night in a bid to find survivors from the high-speed train crash [Reuters] Three of China's senior railway officials have been sacked following a high-speed train crash that left 35 people dead, state media said. The Chinese government relieved the head of the Shanghai railway bureau, his deputy and the bureau's Communist Party chief of their responsibilities on Sunday, a day after the deadly crash, in which a high-speed train smashed into a stalled train and derailed. The three will "also be subject to investigation", China's railways ministry said in a statement on its website. "As leaders ... they should take ultimate responsibility for the main cause of the accident," railways ministry spokesman Wang Yongping told reporters. The accident, which occurred on Saturday in eastern China, has raised questions about the safety of the country's fast-growing rail network. "There's been a lot of talk in the country, a lot of suspicion in China about the bullet trains and in many ways this actually really confirms a lot of people's suspicions about the safety and the technology and whether China is really ready to adopt this technology," Al Jazeera's Melissa Chan, reporting from the site of the accident in Wenzhou, said. Badly damaged cars The accident caused two carriages on one of the high-speed trains to derail. According to the official Xinhua news agency, four cars on the second train also derailed, but it did not say how serious that incident was. The first train was travelling from the Zhejiang provincial capital of Hangzhou; it struck the other train - which had been stalled after being struck by lightning - in Wenzhou city. One carriage from the first train fell about 20 to 30 metres from an elevated section of track. Pictures posted on the internet showed one badly damaged car lying on its side by the bridge and the second car leaning against the bridge after landing on its end. Vice Premier Zhang Dejiang, visiting the scene, "pledged that the investigators will find out the cause of the accident and those responsible will be seriously punished according to the law", the official Xinhua news agency reported. Rescue mission Rescuers worked all night and into the morning pulling people - alive and dead - out of the trains. "The task for us now is to clear the debris and also to check for survivors in those areas that we have not gone to," 35-year-old rescue worker Wang Jun told the Reuters news agency. "Also, we are trying to get the railway line to be operational again." While the exact number of passengers is unknown, almost 200 people have been hospitalised - 12 in critical condition. Among those killed were two foreigners, including a woman in her 20's. A flicker of good news broke earlier on Sunday when a four-year-old girl was pulled alive from the train wreck almost 21 hours after the accident had occurred. State television said that a male toddler had also been pulled alive from the wreckage. First generation trains The trains involved are "D" trains, the first generation bullet train with an average speed of about 150km per hour but not as fast as the new Beijing-Shanghai line. Xinhua said the train hit by lightning was "D3115", and that the ministry of railways confirmed that it was hit from behind by train "D301". China has spent billions of dollars and plans more massive spending to link the country with a high-speed rail network. But the former minister of railways, who oversaw much of that development, is currently under investigation and charged with corruption. The showcase high-speed line between Beijing and Shanghai has been plagued by power outages and other malfunctions since it opened on June 30. Official plans call for China's bullet train network to expand to 13,000km of track this year and 16,000km by 2020. The huge spending connected with the rail expansion also has been blamed for corruption, and Railways Minister Liu Zhijun was dismissed this spring amid an investigation into unspecified corruption allegations. No details have been released about the allegations against him, but news reports say they include kickbacks, bribes, illegal contracts and sexual liaisons. ||||| REUTERS - At least 32 people died when a high-speed train smashed into a stalled train in front of it in China’s eastern Zhejiang province on Saturday, state media said, raising new questions about the safety of the fast-growing rail network. The accident occurred on a bridge near the city of Wenzhou after the first train lost power—possibly after being hit by lightning—and a following bullet train crashed into it, the official Xinhua news agency said. State television showed one or possibly two carriages on the ground under the bridge, with another hanging above it. Several other carriages derailed. More than 100 people have been taken to hospital, Xinhua said. One train was heading from Beijing to the coastal city of Fuzhou, the other was running from Zhejiang provincial capital Hangzhou, also to Fuzhou. “The train suddenly shook violently, casting luggage all around,” Xinhua quoted survivor Liu Hongtao as saying. “Passengers cried for help but no crew responded.” State television broadcast appeals for people not involved in the rescue effort to stay away, saying they were hampering efforts to get survivors out of the wrecked carriages and to hospital. The Railway Ministry has ordered emergency safety checks on the country’s trains, Xinhua added. Users on China’s popular Twitter-like microblogging service Weibo spread appeals for people to donate blood and help look for lost relatives and friends. “I’m looking for Lu Haitian who was in carriage 3. Please send along any clues you have!” wrote “Noodle Kung-fu”. Others, though, criticised the safety record of China’s much-hyped high-speed trains. The flagship Beijing-Shanghai high-speed rail line has been plagued by power outages, leaving passengers stranded on stuffy trains for hours at least three times since opening a month ago. “China’s high-speed trains are rubbish! They have frequent accidents and they’ve only been in service a few years,” wrote “I believe in snow.” “We should learn from Japan. They’ve been running them for years with no problems.” The government has spent billions of dollars improving the railway network of the world’s most populous country and has said it plans to spend $120 billion a year for several years on railway construction. The Beijing-Shanghai link is the latest and most feted segment of a network the government hopes will stretch over 45,000 km (28,000 miles) by the end of 2015. But the vast network has been hit by a series of scandals in addition to the safety incidents of the past few months. Three railway officials have been investigated for corruption so far this year, according to local media reports. In February, Liu Zhijun was sacked as railways minister for “serious disciplinary violations”. He had led the rail sector’s investment drive over the past decade. [ID:nTOE71O053] China’s last major train disaster was in 2008, when an express train travelling from Beijing to the eastern coastal city of Qingdao derailed and collided with another train, killing 72 and injuring 416 people. ||||| 32 dead in China train accident BEIJING (AP) A Chinese bullet train crashed into another high-speed train that had stalled after being struck by lightning Saturday in eastern China, causing four carriages to fall off a viaduct and killing at least 32 people and injuring 191 others, state media reported. The first train was traveling from the Zhejiang provincial capital of Hangzhou when it lost power in the lightning strike and was hit from behind by the second train in Wenzhou city at 8:27 p.m. the official Xinhua News Agency said. The provincial emergency office told Xinhua that at least 32 people were killed and 191 injured. Early Sunday, Chinese President Hu Jintao and Premier Wen Jiabao called for an all-out effort to rescue passengers still trapped in the wreckage hours after the collision, Xinhua said. A preliminary investigation by the Zhejiang provincial government released early Sunday showed that four coaches of the moving train fell off the viaduct, Xinhua said. The cars plunged about 65 to 100 feet from the elevated section of track, Xinhua said. Photos taken at the scene showed one badly damaged car lying on its side by the viaduct and another car leaning against the viaduct after landing on its end.. Xinhua quoted an unidentified witness as saying "rescuers have dragged many passengers out of the coach that fell on the ground." Minister of Railways Sheng Guangzu, who was heading to the accident scene, ordered an in-depth investigation of the accident. The trains involved are "D" trains, the first generation bullet train with an average speed of about 95 miles per hour and not as fast as the new Beijing-Shanghai line. Xinhua said the train hit by lightning was "D3115." It said the Ministry of Railways confirmed that it was hit from behind by train "D301." China has spent billions of dollars and plans more massive spending to link the country with a high-speed rail network. Recently, power outages and other malfunctions have plagued the showcase high-speed line between Beijing and Shanghai since it opened on June 30. Official plans call for China's bullet train network to expand to 8,000 miles of track this year and 10,000 miles by 2020. The huge spending connected with the rail expansion also has been blamed for corruption, and Railways Minister Liu Zhijun was dismissed this spring amid an investigation into unspecified corruption allegations. No details have been released about the allegations against him, but news reports say they include kickbacks, bribes, illegal contracts and sexual liaisons. Copyright 2011 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed. Brent Jones. For publication consideration in the newspaper, send comments to For more information about reprints & permissions , visit our FAQ's. To report corrections and clarifications, contact Standards Editor. For publication consideration in the newspaper, send comments to letters@usatoday.com . Include name, phone number, city and state for verification. To view our corrections, go to corrections.usatoday.com ||||| China: Bullet trains collide in Zhejiang province The Hangzhou to Wenzhou train was close to its destination it hit the other train At least 11 people have died and 89 people injured after two high-speed trains crashed into each other in eastern China, state media reports. Two train coaches fell off a bridge after derailing close to Wenzhou in Zhejiang province. Details are sketchy but Chinese media report that one of the trains came to a halt after being struck by lightning and was then hit by the second train. Rescue workers are at the scene, near Shuangyu town in Wenzhou. It is not known how many people were on the trains at the time, but Xinhua news agency says each carriage can carry 100 people. Initial reports suggested one bullet train had derailed at about 2030 (1230 GMT) - the D3115 travelling from the provincial capital Hangzhou to Wenzhou. But local television later said the first train had been forced to stop after losing power due to a lightning strike, and was then rear-ended by another train, causing two of its carriages to fall off the bridge. "D" trains are the first generation of bullet trains in China, with an average speed of just short of 100mph (160km/h). China is spending billions on constructing a high-speed rail network. Last month China inaugurated its Beijing-Shanghai high-speed rail link. The 300 km/h (190mph) train halves the journey time to under five hours. China is planning to roll out high-speed lines across the country. But the project has come under fire for its high cost - the Beijing-Shanghai line cost 215bn yuan ($33bn; £21bn). The BBC's Martin Patience in Beijing says there are also fears corruption has compromised safety in the network's construction. Send your pictures and videos to yourpics@bbc.co.uk or text them to 61124 (UK) or +44 7725 100 100 (International). If you have a large file you can upload here. Read the terms and conditions | Map showing location of Wenzhou Two high-speed bullet trains crashed close to in the province of eastern China on Saturday. At least 43 passengers were found dead and over 200 are injured, according to the China state-run news agency , with 12 in critical condition. The collision occurred on a bridge after one train was struck by lightning, forcing it to stop, and was subsequently struck by a second train around 2030 local time (1230 UTC). The trains involved were the D3115 service from to , the train that was stopped at the time of the collision, and the D301 service from Beijing to Fuzhou. As a result of the collision, two cars from the first train fell off the bridge, as well as four cars from the second train. One of the cars landed on its side, and another ended up lying vertically against the bridge. According to , a state-run broadcaster, upwards of 1,400 people were on the two trains: more than 900 on the stopped train and more than 500 on the second one. One passenger, Liu Hongtao, is reported as saying: "The train suddenly shook violently, casting luggage all around. Passengers cried for help but no crew responded." The government have said they will be launching an "urgent overhaul" of rail safety following the crash, the first derailment since the introduction of 155 miles per hour high-speed rail service in China four years ago, and three railway officials were also fired by the ministry of railways, which said the officials may be investigated. On Sunday, rescuers found a small child unconscious in the wreckage, about 21 hours after the crash, who was sent to a hospital. According to a rescue worker, the child, four years old, "could still move his hands" when he was located. == Sources == * * * * * * * |
Top House Democrat Adam Schiff Adam Bennett SchiffSchiff throws cold water on impeaching Trump Schiff says Kushner, Bannon invoked ‘bogus privileges’ in testimonies before Congress The Hill's Morning Report — Shutdown Day 14: Dems return to the White House MORE (D-Calif.) on Sunday said President Trump Donald John TrumpBiden on Trump's claim former presidents wanted to build wall: 'Come on' Trump seizes on ex-NYT editor Jill Abramson's criticism of paper GOP strategist Ed Rollins refers to Ocasio-Cortez as 'the little girl' MORE "doesn't have the power" to declare a national emergency over the border. "So that's a non-starter," the incoming House Intelligence Committee chairman told CNN's "State of the Union." Democratic Rep. Adam Schiff says that President Trump potentially invoking emergency powers to fund the border wall is “a non-starter” #CNNSOTU https://t.co/XsTsv8ndaH pic.twitter.com/WX84Agohwd — CNN Politics (@CNNPolitics) January 6, 2019 ADVERTISEMENT Trump since Friday has been threatening to declare a national emergency in order to build a wall along the southern U.S. border. "I may decide a national emergency depending on what happens over the next few days," Trump told reporters on Sunday. Senate Minority Whip Dick Durbin Richard (Dick) Joseph DurbinSenators warm to immigration deal as shutdown solution Durbin presses McConnell to take lead amid shutdown Dick Durbin: I'm running for reelection in 2020 MORE (D-Ill.) on Sunday also warned of a legal challenge if Trump bypasses Congress and declares a national emergency to have a wall built. “I can just tell you, I don’t know what he’s basing this on, but he’s faced so many lawsuits when he ignores the law and ignores tradition and precedent and just goes forward without any concern,” Durbin said on CBS’s “Face the Nation.” “He’ll face a challenge, I’m sure, if he oversteps what the law requires when it comes to his responsibility as commander in chief,” Durbin added. Sunday is the 16th day of the ongoing partial government shutdown, which resulted from a standoff between Trump's request for $5.7 billion to fund border security, including a wall or border barrier, and Democrats' refusal to fund a border wall. "We have to build the wall or we have to build the barrier," Trump said Sunday. "The barrier or the wall can be of steel instead of concrete if that works better." — Michael Burke contributed to this report, which was updated at 10:53 a.m. ||||| President Donald Trump repeated his claim that undocumented immigration poses an existential crisis for the U.S., though many observers point out that illegal border crossings have declined dramatically since the early 2000s. | AP Photo/Jacquelyn Martin White House Trump says he would consider declaring a national emergency to force border wall funding President Donald Trump said on Friday that he would consider using emergency powers to bypass Congress in building a wall on the southern border. Trump made the remarks shortly after meeting with congressional leaders to try to resolve a two-week partial government shutdown prompted by Trump’s demands for more than $5 billion for physical border barriers. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi has repeatedly said Democrats, who have the majority in the House as of Thursday, would not grant the president any additional money for the wall. Story Continued Below But Trump said he could call a national emergency and go around Congress altogether. “Absolutely, we could call a national emergency because of the security of our county,” Trump told reporters in the Rose Garden when asked if he was considering such an option. “I haven’t done it. I may do it.” Trump repeated during the news conference his common refrain that undocumented immigration poses an existential crisis for the country, and his consideration of a national emergency declaration continues in that strain. Many observers, however, have pointed out that illegal border crossings have dramatically declined since the early 2000s. COUNTDOWN TO 2020 The race for 2020 starts now. Stay in the know. Follow our presidential election coverage. Email Sign Up By signing up you agree to receive email newsletters or alerts from POLITICO. You can unsubscribe at any time. ABC News first reported before the news conference that Trump had been weighing the idea of using a national emergency to force through border wall funding. Still, Trump said he would prefer to negotiate a solution with Democrats in Congress before declaring such a drastic measure. When asked by a reporter if he would use the specter of a national emergency declaration to threaten Democrats, he said, “I never threaten anybody, but I am allowed to do it.” ||||| The partial government shutdown began on December 22 after President Trump and congressional Democrats could not agree on funding for the president's long-sought southern border wall. While Mr. Trump and congressional leaders have met periodically to try to resolve the impasse -- twice in the first week of January -- they have made no discernible progress. The president told Democratic leaders he was willing to have the government shut down for "years" over border wall funding. Nine out of 15 federal departments are closed, as well as dozens of agencies. However, several funding bills were passed and signed, so about 75 percent of government services are unaffected by the shutdown. More than 420,000 federal employees are working without pay, including agents from the FBI, ATF, DEA and CBP, as well as staff from the State Department, Coast Guard, IRS and Department of Homeland Security. Another 380,000 workers have been furloughed from departments including NASA, the State Department, the National Park Service, the Forest Service, the Transportation Department, the Department of Housing and Urban Development and the IRS. Here is what is -- and isn't -- affected by the 2018-2019 partial government shutdown so far: What is closed during the government shutdown: The Smithsonian museums and the National Gallery of Art in Washington, D.C., shut their doors on January 2. The National Zoo has closed, although animals are still being cared for by zoo workers. Many national parks have also closed, but several remain open during the shutdown, albeit without services. Sanitary conditions have rapidly deteriorated at many of the nation's parks, with restroom toilets overflowing and trash piling up. At Yellowstone, private companies that offer tours have been performing some maintenance, enabling them to continue operating throughout the winter, if necessary, The Associated Press reported. Volunteer Alexandra Degen cleans a restroom at Joshua Tree National Park on January 4, 2019 in Joshua Tree National Park, California. Volunteers with 'Friends of Joshua Tree National Park' have been cleaning bathrooms and trash at the park as the park is drastically understaffed during the partial government shutdown. Campgrounds and some roads have been closed at the park due to safety concerns. Mario Tama/Getty Images The IRS has mostly stopped working (only 12 percent of its staff are working -- without pay), and those who are working are mostly focused on security and technology, not on taxpayers' refunds. The IRS is not issuing refunds, updating tax forms or answering phone help lines during the shutdown, according to its shutdown plans. But anyone hoping that an IRS shutdown means getting a breather on their taxes will be disappointed. The agency's website says taxpayers "should file and pay their taxes as normal." Immigration courts have closed, forcing judges to indefinitely postpone hearings scheduled months in advance. There is already a backlog of over 800,000 cases. E-Verify, the government immigration system and database employers use to check and confirm that employees are eligible to work in the United States, is out of service during the shutdown. It typically takes just a few seconds for E-Verify to compare an employee's records against DHS and Social Security records. #EVerify is not available due to lapse in DHS appropriations. https://t.co/xzw4doYGww — USCIS E-Verify (@EVerify) December 22, 2018 Still open and operating during shutdown: Mail is still being delivered. Social Security checks are still going out to recipients, and Medicare and Medicaid are unaffected by the partial shutdown. Federal courts are still open and operating through January 11, by relying on court fee balances and funds that do not depend on a congressional appropriation. Should the shutdown extend beyond that date, the courts would continue to operate under the Anti-Deficiency Act, in support of Article III powers. However, staffing could be reduced. TSA agents are considered essential. However, by the 14th day of the shutdown, TSA had seen an increase in sick calls since the shutdown started, although that had not negatively impacted the agency's ability to screen airline passengers, CBS News' Kris Van Cleave reported. As of January 5, major airlines and airports were unaware of any issues or delays at checkpoints. Special counsel Robert Mueller's Russia investigation will continue because it does not depend on a congressional appropriation for its funding. USDA services related to law enforcement and "the protection of life and property," and those that are "financed through available funding" -- such as a mandatory appropriation or user fees -- will continue. So, meat, poultry and eggs will continue to be inspected, as will grain and other agriculture commodities. Nutrition benefits like SNAP will be available through January. Other nutrition assistance programs may operate with any state and local funding resources that are available, but no other federal funds will be provided during the shutdown. Child nutrition programs, like School Lunc and School Breakfast will keep operating into February. Forest Service law enforcement and emergency response efforts will continue. U.S. Citizen and Immigration Services, which deals with naturalization and citizenship, has been uninterrupted because its operations are funded by user fees. Veterans are still receiving their benefits because the Veterans Affairs Department was among those funded through September 2019. Passport services will still be offered during the shutdown. Passports can be renewed by mail or in person at passport agencies, post offices, libraries and other facilities, and processing times are expected to remain unchanged. Unintended consequences Pay raises for top officials, including Vice President Mike Pence, were reportedly set to go into effect on Saturday. But federal agencies were told in a memo issued Friday from the acting director of the Office of Personnel Management to hold off enacting the raises during the shutdown, according to The Associated Press. The raises -- an additional $10,000 a year -- were set to go into effect because a pay freeze for top federal officials was reportedly due to expire Saturday, January 5. The scheduled raises appeared to be an unintended consequence of the government shutdown, The Associated Press reported. | United States Donald Trump said on Friday he can and may declare a national , which he said would allow him to act without approval from Congress and allocate funding for the construction of a wall along the country's border with Mexico. The US government is currently because the president and Congress could not agree on a national budget. The President insists that the budget include funding for the wall, which was one of his campaign promises, but Congress has not passed his proposed budget. File photo of Donald Trump, 2011. Trump said on Friday "I can do it call a national emergency if I want. I may do it." Trump also said that he would prefer to agree a solution with the opposition. He also said, "I never threaten anybody." He also claimed that the wall was a crucial part of America's border security. The , Mike Pence, said on Friday the United States is "in the midst of a crisis on our southern border." Nancy Pelosi, the Speaker of the House, said on Friday "We are committed to keeping our border safe. We can do that best when government is open. We made that clear to the president." The , , said on Friday "We made a plea to the president once again: don't hold hundreds of thousands of federal workers hostage" and "So we told the president we needed the government open. He resisted." and incoming chair of the both yesterday questioned the President's power to do as he proposed. Schiff called it "a non-starter". Durbin said "I can just tell you, I don't know what he's basing this on, but he's faced so many lawsuits when he ignores the law and ignores tradition and precedent and just goes forward without any concern". President Trump claims he would be okay if the impasse over the shutdown went on for "years." This lockdown started on December 22, last year. Some museums, the , and immigration courts have shut, with some people working in still-open services without pay. The website advises citizens to continue paying their federal taxes. Some services are still open, including medical services and . Federal courts are relying on non-government sources, like court fees, for funding. == Sources == * * * * CAT:Politics and conflictsCAT:Donald TrumpCAT:Nancy Pelosi |
Let's unite on Skype this International Women’s Day International Women's Day is a reminder to celebrate women's achievements and strive for change. With Skype's Meet Now, you can connect with the women that inspire you with just one click. Meet some of our female colleagues in Skype who inspire us. ||||| Skype apologises for losing half of daily call traffic Around 20 million people a day use the Skype internet calls service Millions of people around the globe have been hit by an outage at the popular internet phone service Skype. Users as far afield as Japan, Europe and the US have all reported problems. The company which prides itself on providing relatively reliable service last suffered a major outage in 2007. "We take outages like this really seriously and apologise for the inconvenience users are having," Tony Bates, Skype chief executive officer told BBC News. "Right now it looks like clients are coming on and offline and sometimes they are crashing in the middle of calls. We are deep in the middle of investigating the cause of the problem and have teams working hard to remedy the situation," Mr Bates said. On Skype's Twitter account, the company said their "engineers and site operations team are working non-stop to get things back to normal". The news blog ReadWriteWeb said they have monitored complaints from users who reported that they are unable to log into the service and that the programme is crashing across all platforms, whether on their mobile device or PC. Mr Bates did not rule in or rule out the possibility of a malicious attack and said "all avenues" were being explored. He estimated that as a result of the outage, Skype has lost around 10 million calls. Mr Bates told the BBC that normal call volume for the time of day would be 20m. Om Malik, an industry commentator and editor of the Gigaom.com website, is not impressed. "Skype is one of the key applications of the modern web," he said. "It is already a hit with consumers, and over the past few years it has become part of the economic fabric for startups and small businesses around the world. I am not sure we can comprehend the productivity cost of this outage. "The outage comes at a time when Skype is starting to ask larger corporations for their business. If I am a big business, I would be extremely cautious about adopting Skype for business, especially in light of this current outage," added Mr Malik. ||||| Skype experiences service outage Internet calling service Skype has experienced a service outage, though it was not immediately clear how many of its millions of users were affected. The company said that it was fixing the problem and it expected service would return within several hours. Skype tweeted on its Twitter feed that some users might have trouble signing in to its service and that it was looking into the cause. Two hours later, Skype said its engineers and site operations team were working to fix a problem, and about half an hour later the company linked to a blog post about the outage and thanked users for "continued patience while we return things to normal". On Skype's blog, head blogger Peter Parkes said that the problem was due to many of what Skype calls "supernodes" going offline because of a problem affecting some versions of Skype's software. Skype's operations depend on the connections between users' computers and telephones. "Supernodes" are computers that the company said are like phone directories: when Skype cannot quickly find people that a user is trying to contact, it will look for one of these computers to find them. "As Skype relies on being able to maintain contact with supernodes, it may appear offline for some of you," Mr Parkes said. Mr Parkes said Skype is building "mega-supernodes" to fix the problem, but that it could take a few hours before service returns and even longer before some features - such as group video calling - start working again. Skype's software offers a range of free services, including the ability to make voice or video calls and send instant messages to other Skype users. Users pay for services such as making calls from a PC to a landline or mobile phone. Copyright © 2010 The Press Association. All rights reserved. ||||| Thanks for your continued patience while we get everyone back online – sorry especially to those of you who are still waiting ||||| Some of you may have problems signing in to Skype – we’re investigating, and we’re sorry for the disruption to your conversations | Skype, an Internet phone service, has apologised after millions of people around the globe found the program had gone down. The outage, which occurred on Wednesday, reportedly affected the United States, Europe and Japan, and lasted several hours. The company wrote on Twitter on Thursday morning that, more than twelve hours after the outage, some users were still experiencing problems. Skype logo. The chief executive of Skype, , said his company took the technical issues "really seriously," and apologised to users. "Right now it looks like clients are coming on and offline and sometimes they are crashing in the middle of calls. We are deep in the middle of investigating the cause of the problem and have teams working hard to remedy the situation," he said. In a blog post, Skype stated that, "we’re sincerely sorry for this disruption - like you, all of us at Skype rely on Skype every day. We understand just how important Skype is to your friendships, family, and work, and so are particularly aware of the impact of rare problems like this." Industry expert said the outage would be of concern for Skype. "Skype is one of the key applications of the modern web," he said. "It is already a hit with consumers, and over the past few years it has become part of the economic fabric for start-ups and small businesses around the world. I am not sure we can comprehend the productivity cost of this outage. The outage comes at a time when Skype is starting to ask larger corporations for their business." Malik added: "If I am a big business, I would be extremely cautious about adopting Skype for business, especially in light of this current outage." Bates said he did not know what had caused the outage, but, speaking to the BBC, he said "all avenues" would be investigated. Reports suggest the program did not work on any system, including computers and mobile devices. "Some of you may have problems signing in to Skype – we’re investigating, and we’re sorry for the disruption to your conversations," the company wrote on Twitter when the outage began. 20 million people use the service every day. == Sources == * * * * * |
Articles 27.02.2007 Microsoft to Acquire Medstory Microsoft looks forward to enter health care market. One of its goals is a search engine that will provide useful medical information. This is why the company decided to buy Medstory Inc., the developer of Web-search technology that searches useful information on health. Microsoft did not disclose any details on Medstory acquisition. Microsoft first thought about involving into health market when on-line health ventures started gaining traffic and receiving investments. One of Medstory's investors, Esther Dyson, stated that Microsoft acquired some of the most progressive technologies in the fast developing medical search field. Medstory's founder and chief executive, Dr. Alain T. Rapparot, outlined that he was impressed by the attention Microsoft pays to "intelligent search" in health care. He also hopes that the software corporation will boost the spread of technology developed by Medstory. Dr. Alain Rappaport will soon join Microsoft's team to become general manager of health search. Microsoft's vice president for health strategy, Peter Neupert, stated that the acquisition of Medstory Inc. was the first step for the company to enter the health market. In 2006, before purchasing Medstory, Microsoft bought a software system for clinical health called Azyxxi. The software is used to search medical history of a certain person. It works with many sources and then quickly displays scanned documents, X-rays and ultrasound images of particular patient. Mr. Neupert said that in the long-run the goal of health strategy is to link to the search engines personal information of patients, including: age, sex, drug regimes and family history. According to Microsoft's vice president for health strategy, the company will succeed in case the search results will be tailored individually, finding treatments and drug interactions, as well as medical journal articles of interest. On October, 2006, Microsoft cited a study, made by the Pew Internet & American Life project. The study showed that about 8 million people in the U.S. use Internet on a daily basis to search for health information. It seems that health search engines are a new power that is not only about profit but will also be of use to Internet users. ||||| Microsoft has agreed to acquire a company that operates a search engine for health information, one of the most popular search topics online. Microsoft expects that the acquisition of privately held Medstory will improve its health-search offerings and anchor a “broader consumer health strategy,” the company said in a statement released Monday at the Healthcare Information and Management Systems Society conference in New Orleans. Microsoft rival Google has tuned its Web search engine to recognize health-related queries and give users various options to refine their results by clicking on links for topics like treatment, tests, symptoms and causes. About 113 million adults in the U.S., equivalent to 80 percent of U.S. Internet users, have searched for health information online, according to a Pew Internet & American Life Project study published in October 2006. People often seek information about diseases, treatments, diets, nutrition, fitness, medicines, doctors, hospitals and insurance, that study found. About 8 million U.S. adults searched online for health information on a typical day in August of last year, which is about the same level of popularity online as topics like paying bills, reading blogs and looking up phone numbers or addresses, Pew found. More than two-thirds of people (66 percent) begin their health-related research at a search engine, while 27 percent start at a health Web site. Monday’s statement didn’t say when the deal is expected to close, nor whether the company plans to integrate Medstory’s technology with Windows Live Search, Microsoft’s search engine. Microsoft didn’t immediately return a call seeking comment. Medstory, in Foster City, Calif., will become part of the recently created Health Solutions Group at Microsoft. Financial terms of the acquisition weren’t disclosed. 1 Comments on this story Email this story to a friend Print | The Microsoft Logo Microsoft decided to buy a health information search engine called Medstory. This is the company's first step towards an involvement in the health market. The software that Medstory develops involves artificial intelligence techniques which are applied to both medical and health information stored in medical journals, as well as government documents. No additional information on the Medstory purchase was disclosed. According to Peter Neupert, vice president for health strategy at Microsoft, the acquisition of Medstory represents the first step in assembling technologies which can serve well for the consumer experience in health care. In 2006 Microsoft bought Azyxxi, which is a clinical health care service system. It searches and displays information about the patient from many sources. The information might be provided by: scanned documents, X-rays and even ultrasound images. Microsoft decided to make its move into the health care system at a time when many websites, that provide various information on health, started to significantly raise their traffic and receive investments. The industry analyst and Medstory investor, Esther Dyson, mentioned that the technology provided by Medstory is not just a search engine, it also represents an ontology engine. He also outlined the fact that Microsoft has acquired "some of the best deep technology" in the fast growing field of medical search engines. |
GMANews.TV - Monday, December 15 MANILA, Philippines - The Philippine Coast Guard (PCG) on Monday formed a Special Board of Marine Inquiry (SBMI) to investigate the sea tragedy that killed more than 20 people off Cagayan province Sunday night. Radio dzBB's Carlo Mateo reported that Coast Guard commandant Vice Admiral Wilfredo Tamayo ordered PCG Northern Luzon commander Capt. Adelo Ibañez to head the SBMI. In particular, Tamayo instructed the SBMI to look into the possibility that the ship was overloaded when it capsized off Cagayan province, noting that the total number of passengers at the time it capsized exceeded the vessel's capacity. Tamayo noted that the franchise of the ill-fated M/B Maejan showed it was authorized to carry only 40 passengers and 10 crewmembers. As of 8:30 a.m. Monday, 28 people were confirmed dead, 46 were rescued, while 22 others remain missing. - GMANews.TV Recommend this article ||||| The wooden-hulled ferry, Maejan, was approaching its destination in Aparri town in Cagayan province after an eight-hour journey from Calayan islands in the Luzon Strait when it overturned near the mouth of the Cagayan River on Sunday evening, said Senior Inspector Alex de los Santos. He said passengers jumped into the cold water after strong waves broke the ferry's bamboo outrigger, causing it to bob wildly. "They panicked and grabbed anything like water containers that will keep them afloat then jumped off the boat," de los Santos told The Associated Press by telephone. He said most of the 46 survivors swam to shore in Aparri, about half a mile (kilometer) away, where police and villagers found them shivering close to midnight. The dead — including a 1-year-old boy and a town councillor — were taken to funeral parlors, where relatives gathered to identify them. He said no one recognized the dead boy. "There were no relatives. Most probably his parents perished with him." De los Santos said coast guard and navy vessels joined the search for 33 people still missing, but bad weather was hampering the effort. Coast guard chief Vice Adm. Wilfredo Tamayo said criminal charges will be filed against the owner and surviving crew members of the 28-ton Maejan, which was authorized to carry only 50 people. Hours before the ferry capsized, three children fell into the sea as the vessel was lashed by huge waves, Calayan Mayor Joseph Llopis said. Two of the children were plucked alive, but it was not clear if they survived the final capsizing, said Llopis, who lost 10 of his relatives in the disaster. The accident was especially tragic because many of the passengers from his town of 17,000 people were traveling to Aparri to buy food and other goods ahead of Christmas, Llopis said. "There'll be no festive mood," Mr Llopis said. "Many of the dead were breadwinners." Last month, a cargo ship sank in rough seas north of Cagayan, and passing vessels plucked 16 of 20 people from shark-infested waters. Weeks earlier, separate storms capsized two passenger boats in the central Philippines, drowning more than 50 people. Sea accidents are common in the Philippine archipelago because of tropical storms, badly maintained boats and weak enforcement of safety regulations. In December 1987, the ferry Dona Paz sank after colliding with a fuel tanker, killing more than 4,341 people in the world's worst peacetime maritime disaster. The state weather bureau over the weekend warned of an approaching storm from the Pacific with winds of up to 60 miles (95 kilometers) per hour. Tropical Storm Dolphin could become a typhoon before getting closer to the eastern Philippines in the next few days, according to forecasts. Ferr ||||| A wooden ferry carrying about 100 passengers has sunk in the Philippines, with at least 22 people drowned and about another 30 missing. The ferry Maejan was approaching Aparri in Cagayan province in the north of the country when its bamboo outrigger broke in heavy seas off Ballesteros. Passengers panicked and some leapt into the sea, creating instability on the vessel, which then capsized. Police said many survivors swam ashore and were found shivering on land. "They panicked and grabbed anything like water container that will keep them afloat then jumped off the boat," Senior Inspector Alex de los Santos told the Associated Press news agency. Among the bodies recovered late on Sunday was that of an unidentified one-year-old boy. "There were no relatives. Most probably his parents perished with him," said Mr de los Santos. Maritime accidents are common in the Philippine archipelago due to tropical weather, badly maintained passenger boats and weak enforcement of safety regulations. Hundreds of people were killed in June, when a 23,000-tonne ferry - Princess of the Stars - capsized during a typhoon off the central island of Sibuyan. Only 57 passengers and crew of the 850 people aboard survived the accident, making it the worst maritime disaster in the Philippines for 20 years. ||||| POLICE REPORT: Ferry capsizes in Cagayan, drowning 23 Vessel owner among casualties, official says TUGUEGARAO CITY -- (UPDATE 2) At least 23 people drowned and 15 others were reported missing after a passenger boat capsized off waters in Aparri, Cagayan, on Sunday night, police said. Senior Inspector Alex de los Santos, police chief of Ballesteros town and the rescue team leader, said 43 others were rescued after the boat sank at about 4:30 p.m. Sunday along Barangay (village) Linao. Reports from the police regional office 2 said the M/B Mae Jan left Calayan Island for Appari when it capsized at 8:30 p.m. due to strong waves. De los Santos said the boat, which was carrying at least 80 people, came from the Calayan Islands and was approaching the mouth of the Cagayan River on its way to the Aparri port when the vessel was battered by strong waves. De los Santos identified 11 of the fatalities as Amy Arellano, Wilfredo Agatao, Angel Suarez, Kristine Cangas, Eva Llopis, Leonardo Llopis, Ofelia Balmes, Paz Escalante, Karen Fadero, Angela Tabo, Abella Arellano. Their bodies and that of 11 other victims were taken to funeral parlors in Aparri for identification. Police said some passengers survived by clinging to floating driftwood. Several of them wore life jackets. The owner of the vessel, Arellano, was among the casualties in the incident, De los Santos told INQUIRER.net. De los Santos also said that there was a possibility that the boat was overloaded, saying that there was also livestock on board. He added that the captain of the vessel, who has not been identified, was alive and refused to talk to police, possibly because of “trauma” experienced after the incident. De los Santos said bad weather was hampering search and rescue operations for the missing. De los Santos described weather conditions there as “bad,” with strong winds and cloudy skies but no rains. Rescue teams are still conducting rescue operations for the remaining missing, he said. Last month, a cargo ship sank in rough seas north of Cagayan, and passing vessels plucked 16 of 20 people from shark-infested waters. Weeks earlier, separate storms capsized two passenger boats in the central Philippines, drowning more than 50 people. Sea accidents are common in the Philippine archipelago because of tropical storms, badly maintained boats and weak enforcement of safety regulations. In December 1987, the ferry Doña Paz sank after colliding with a fuel tanker, killing more than 4,341 people in the world's worst peacetime maritime disaster. The state weather bureau over the weekend warned of an approaching storm from the Pacific with winds of up to 60 miles (95 kilometers) per hour. Tropical Storm “Ulysses” (international codename: Dolphin) could become a typhoon before getting closer to the eastern Philippines in the next few days, according to forecasts. ||||| Cagayan sea tragedy death toll hits 23; 33 still missing SOPHIA DEDACE, GMANews.TV 12/15/2008 | 10:16 AM 12/15/2008 | 10:16 AM (Updated 6:23 p.m.) MANILA, Philippines – The death toll from the capsizing of a cargo-passenger vessel off Cagayan province over the weekend has been pegged at 23, an Associated Press report said on Monday. The same report said that 33 others are still missing after the wooden-hulled Maejan, traveling from Calayan islands in the Luzon Strait, encountered strong waves and currents Sunday evening. This contradicted an earlier Philippine Coast Guard report which said that the death toll from the capsizing of a cargo-passenger vessel off Cagayan province over the weekend was at 28. In that statement, the PCG said that as of 8:30 a.m. Monday, 22 others remain missing after big waves caused the M/B Maejan to capsize off Ballesteros town in Cagayan, while 46 survivors have been secured. Senior Superintendent Moro Lazo, Cagayan police director, said six more bodies have been recovered as of 9:30 a.m. Monday bringing to 28 the recovered fatalities. “Rescue operations started at around 10:30 pm, we notified our stations in Aparri and Ballesteros and elements from the 1st and 2nd Police Provincial Mobile Group to and immediately conduct rescue operations based on reports of Mayor (Joseph) Llopis of Calayan," Lazo said. The PCG said search and rescue operations “using available vessels in the locality" continue while PCG's Northern Luzon district’s Action Center has advised passing seacraft to assist in the ongoing search and rescue efforts. “PCG commandant Vice Admiral Wilfredo Tamayo directed the immediate dispatch of SAR-003 and MCS-3005 vessels and the PCG Islander for aerial surveillance," the statement read. The PCG is also coordinating with the Philippine Navy and Philippine Air Force for assistance in the search and rescue operations. In an interview on dzBB radio earlier, Ballesteros police chief Senior Inspector Alex de los Santos identified 13 of the fatalities as: • Amy Arellano; • SB Winifredo Agarpao; • Angel Suarez; • Cristine Cangas; • Eva Llopis; • Ofelio Padero-Palmes; • Paz Escalaante; • Azela Tambao; • Adena Tan-Arellano; • Ralaine Allado; • Leonardo Llopis; • Marilou Menor; and • Bella Llopis. The PCG statement said Amy Arellano - who was among the fatalities - was the identified owner of the ill-fated vessel. The statement said M/B Maejan left Calayan Island about 9:30 a.m. Sunday “but failed to enter the port of Aparri due to big waves and strong current until it was dragged and capsized at vicinity more ore less 50 meters from the shoreline of Pallog village" in Ballesteros town. Reports indicated that M/B Maejan was carrying 96 passengers when it capsized. - GMANews.TV, AP ||||| MANILA (Reuters) - At least 23 people drowned and 26 were missing after a motorboat capsized in high seas off the northern Philippines, officials said on Monday. Nearly 50 people survived the accident, coast guard commander Wilfredo Tamayo told reporters, adding some were rescued by fishermen from northern Cagayan province. The boat had left Calayan island at 9:30 a.m. [0130 GMT] on Sunday, but failed to reach Aparri town in Cagayan province, around 400 km north of Manila, as expected at noon. “It was because of strong currents between Calayan and Aparri,” Melchito Castro, regional director of the government’s disaster coordinating body told reporters. Coast guard, navy and air force troops have been dispatched to help in the search and rescue operation, Castro said. Gale warnings were dispatched to coastal towns prior to the ferry sinking, Castro said, as tropical storm Dolphin entered Philippine territory. The typhoon, currently centred off southeastern Catanduanes, is forecast to move slowly northwest, but not expected to hit land, the weather bureau said. | Philippine maritime disaster. At least 28 people drowned and were confirmed dead, 46 were rescued, while 34 others remain missing on Sunday, after an overcrowded passenger capsized off waters in , a town of 17,000 people, the police reported. 'M/B Mae Jan', a wooden-hulled , was carrying 102 passengers, after an eight-hour voyage from in the for when it capsized less than 300 meters (984 feet) from its destination, at 8:30 p.m. Its broke due to strong waves, as it reached the mouth of the ('Bannag' Rio Grande de Cagayan, 'Ilog ng Kagayan'), along Linao, about 50 meters from the shoreline of Pallog village. Divers from the combined teams of the and helped in the rescue operations. 11 of the fatalities, including the vessel owner, Arellano, and her daughter were identified. The police said "there was a possibility that the boat was overloaded," saying that "there was also livestock on board." Due to "trauma," the ferry's captain refused to talk to police. The Pinacanauan River, seen just below the , is one of the major tributaries of the Cagayan River. Meanwhile, the (PCG) formed a Special Board of Marine Inquiry (SBMI) to investigate the sea tragedy. It ordered the "immediate dispatch of SAR-003 and MCS-3005 vessels and the PCG Islander for aerial surveillance." PCG noted the possible overloading of the vessel since the boat's franchise authorized it to carry only 40 passengers and 10 crew members. In November, a sank in rough seas north of Cagayan, and passing vessels rescued 16 of 20 passengers. Weeks earlier, separate storms sank two passenger vessels in the central Philippines, drowning more than 50 people. Prior to the ferry sinking, the had issued to , of approaching tropical storm "Ulysses" (international codename: Dolphin) from the Pacific with winds of up to 60 miles (95 kilometers) per hour, centered off southeastern , eastern Philippines. |
Multi-National Corps – Iraq Public Affairs Office, Camp Victory APO AE 09342 FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE RELEASE No. 20080331-09 March 31, 2008 Iraqi Army, MND-B Soldiers kill 7, detain 4 criminals Multi-National Division – Baghdad PAO BAGHDAD – Iraqi Army and Multi-National Division – Baghdad Soldiers engaged and killed 7 criminals in separate engagements March 30. At approximately 12:10 p.m., Soldiers from 4th Brigade Combat Team, 10th Mountain Division, were conducting a route clearing operation when the vehicle they were traveling in was struck by an improvised explosive device in eastern Baghdad. After the IED strike, Soldiers were attacked by small-arms fire as they secured the damaged vehicles and prepared to move. Soldiers returned fire and killed five criminals. No Soldiers were injured. Two other vehicles were also struck by IEDs within ten minutes of the first strike. At approximately 6:45 p.m., Iraqi Army soldiers from 7th Brigade, 1st Iraqi Army Division were attacked by small-arms fire in southeastern Baghdad. The Soldiers retuned fire and killed two criminals and detained four others. -30- FOR QUERIES, CONTACT MULTI-NATIONAL DIVISION - BAGHDAD PUBLIC AFFAIRS AT: This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it OR BY PHONE AT: COMMERCIAL (914) 822-8174 OR IRAQNA 011-964-890-192-4674. ||||| ISF, CF Kill 8 Criminals, Detain 2 Others in Pursuit to Secure Streets of Baghda ISF, CF Kill 8 Criminals, Detain 2 Others in Pursuit to Secure Streets of Baghda Multi-National Division - Baghdad PAO BAGHDAD, Iraq - Multi-National Division - Baghdad Soldiers killed eight criminals and detained two in separate incidents in Baghdad March 30. At 6 a.m., Soldiers from 2nd BCT, 101st Airborne Division, were at a checkpoint in the Kadamiyah district when they reported receiving small-arms fire coming from the north. The Soldiers were approached by criminals on foot, and an aerial weapons team was called in to fire on the criminals. The aerial strike killed three criminals and injured one criminal. At 7 a.m., Soldiers from 4th BCT, 10th Mountain Division, detained a criminal in the Karkh district based on suspicion of being highly involved with smuggling explosively formed penetrators and with ties to the fighting in Basra. At 11:15 a.m., Soldiers from 4th BCT, 10th Mtn. Div. engaged and killed a criminal who was emplacing an improvised explosive device in New Baghdad. At approximately noon, Soldiers from 1st BN., 2nd Stryker Cav. Regt. reported encountering a complex attack involving small-arms fire and attacks from rocket-propelled grenades while patrolling in eastern Baghdad. The Soldiers engaged and killed three criminals. At 1 p.m., Soldiers from 22nd Bn., 6th Iraqi Army Div. arrested an Iraqi man after he was searched at a security checkpoint in Kadamiyah. The man was found to be carrying a large amount of illegal ammunition. At 3:40 p.m., Soldiers from 4th BCT, 10th Mtn. Div. reported receiving five mortar rounds at Joint Security Station al-Khansa in New Baghdad. The Soldiers fired three rounds to counter the attack, then a sniper from the unit engaged and killed one of the criminals. The Soldiers requested an air strike, which destroyed the criminals' mortar tube. "We will be relentless in our pursuit of those breaking the law," said Lt. Col. Steve Stover, MND-B spokesman. "If these criminals continue to attack innocent Iraqis and Coalition forces, we will pursue them and bring them to justice." judythpiazza@newsblaze.com Tags: World, | The website of the forces in Iraq has reported that seven alleged criminals were killed in Baghdad yesterday. The deaths, which were the result of multiple incidents, were mainly claimed to be caused as the result of returned fire by the US and Iraqi armies. A press release by Multinational Force Iraq describes the incidents. The description of the first incident reads "at approximately 12:10 p.m., soldiers from 4th Brigade Combat Team, 10th Mountain Division, were conducting a route clearing operation when the vehicle they were traveling in was struck by an improvised explosive device in eastern Baghdad." The press release continues with, "after the IED improvised explosive device strike, soldiers were attacked by small-arms fire as they secured the damaged vehicles and prepared to move. Soldiers returned fire and killed five criminals. No soldiers were injured." |
Five days after mine collapse, Chile rescue efforts press on COPIAGO, Chile — Painstaking efforts to reach 33 workers trapped in a Chilean mine continued Tuesday five days after the structure collapsed, as desperate relatives prayed their loved ones would be found alive. There has been no word on the condition of the workers, who were trapped some 400 meters (1,300 feet) underground when the entrance to the San Esteban copper mine collapsed. Rescuers at first focused on reaching the miners through a ventilation shaft, but ceased operations when the shaft collapsed on Saturday, dealing the rescue operation a major setback. Since Sunday, they have worked to drill into the mine, hoping to first pass food and water to the trapped workers and then eventually bring them up to the surface. But the work has been painstaking, and Mining Minister Laurence Golbourne cautioned Tuesday that it may take up to a week to reach them. Anxious families have camped out at the site of the copper and gold mine, awaiting news of their loved ones, who include 55-year-old Franklin Lobos, a one-time footballer who played for a number of Chilean clubs and even made the national team that competed in the 1984 Olympics. A mass was celebrated at the site Tuesday, and prayers were also said for the trapped men at the presidential palace in Santiago. Chilean President Sebastian Pinera visited the rescue site at midnight Saturday on his way home from the presidential inauguration in Colombia. He pledged to "do everything possible" to get to the trapped miners, but acknowledged he was pessimistic about the outcome. "This is not easy, and I have to tell you the truth," Pinera said. "The situation is now not only in our hands, but also in the hands of God, and I want to ask him for his help in avoiding the loss of lives." Copyright © 2010 AFP. All rights reserved. More » ||||| Posted Thu, 18 Oct 2012 13:22:00 GMT by Michael EvansAs the population of the world slowly becomes more prosperous, earlier forecasts of enormous rises in population are being revised. The risk of a breakdown of society due to overcrowding is no longer seen to be so significant, but the problem still remains that by 2050, according to best estimates, there will be an additional 2 billion mouths to feed. Posted Wed, 17 Oct 2012 18:26:22 GMT by Dave ArmstrongThe major threat of climatic changes hangs like the sword of Damocles over the heads of many endangered species - and the rest of us. Posted Wed, 17 Oct 2012 13:29:00 GMT by Paul RobinsonMarine fish often visit the surface to warm up after diving deep. Whale sharks were used to test some time/depth recorders to see how they regulate their body temperatures. Posted Wed, 17 Oct 2012 13:07:00 GMT by Dave ArmstrongKim Wonjung and his colleagues at MIT, in the US, have worked out how the tongue of the hummingbird can achieve a capillary action. Posted Tue, 16 Oct 2012 11:49:36 GMT by Dave ArmstrongA new report highlights the 25 most endangered primate species. The new report, Primates In Peril, was published this week at the UN's Convention on Biological Diversity COP11. Posted Mon, 15 Oct 2012 11:28:00 GMT by Dave ArmstrongAt the moment, we try and recycle or downcycle many materials, such as electronics (e-waste), that are environmentally distasteful or downright toxic. Posted Mon, 15 Oct 2012 00:01:00 GMT by Michael EvansWomen are the backbone of rural society and the International Day of Rural Women recognises the contribution they make to the enhancement of agricultural and rural development, the improvement of of food security and the eradication of rural poverty. Posted Fri, 12 Oct 2012 13:15:12 GMT by Dave ArmstrongThe variety of fishing techniques used in the Pacific means that BET (bigeye tuna) biomass is soon going to dip below the maximum sustainable yield levels. Posted Thu, 11 Oct 2012 11:20:47 GMT by Dave ArmstrongThe submarine lifestyle of the humpback whale has been uncovered by the use of data-logging tags, on both ends of the dorsal fin. Posted Tue, 09 Oct 2012 10:58:27 GMT by Dave ArmstrongThe interminable expansion of oil palm plantations in the Far East is the cause of carbon emissions, climate change and loss of wildlife habitat. Posted Sun, 07 Oct 2012 09:34:10 GMT by Michael EvansThe theme for 2012 World Teachers' Day was 'Take a Stand for Teachers'. If the UN Millennium Goal to achieve Universal Primary Education by 2015 is to be achieved, an additional 1.7 million additional teaching posts will be required worldwide. Taking account of the 5.1 million teachers who are expected to leave the profession by then, this means around 6.8 million additional teachers will be required to meet the UN target. Teachers are currently under-valued, but their contribution to society is vital. Posted Fri, 05 Oct 2012 13:42:25 GMT by Dave ArmstrongDredging the Great Lakes to clear and deepen the river channel is causing increased flow and water loss, which means a record low level will be reached this winter. Posted Wed, 03 Oct 2012 19:33:00 GMT by Michael EvansWorld Habitat Day is celebrated on the first Monday in October each year. Organised by UN-Habitat 2012 World Habitat Day was opened by Dr Joan Clos, UN Under-Secretary-General and Director of UN-Habitat, at Embu in Kenya. The Earth Times site and content have been updated. We do apologise, as this may mean that the article or page you were looking for has changed. The Earth Times now focuses on producing and publishing our own unique content on environmental issues, which is written by our own team of expert authors and journalists. We now publish environmental news articles and information on various environmental problems. You can use the site search at the top of each page, otherwise there are links to some of the main site categories and green blogs we publish included on this page. Some of the environmental topics and categories that we now focus on include climate change and the effects of global warming, including their various impacts on both people and the planet as well as conservation issues and news articles relating to nature and wildlife. The site puts an emphasis on sustainability issues, including the use and technological progress made with various types of alternative or renewable energy. Earth Times runs several eco friendly blogs (environmentally friendly) on various topics such as ecotourism (sustainable travel and tourism), eco fashion, green living, green gadgets and clean technology, plus various other environment based news categories including pollution and science news. If you have any questions or queries please contact us. | Rescuing efforts in San José de Copiapó. A gold mine collapse in Copiapó, Atacama Region, Chile has trapped 33 miners since last Thursday. Another collapse occurred on Saturday, that provoked temporary suspension of the rescue works. Rescue efforts were first focused on a ventilation shaft, but attempts to reach the miners failed. Rescuers have been drilling into the mine since Sunday. "The situation is very complex, the mine continues to have collapses because there is a geological fault-line," said Sebastián Piñera, President of Chile, who "pledged to do everything possible to get to the trapped miners," but acknowledged he was pessimistic. There is no certainty that the miners, who are trapped about 400 meters (1300 feet) below the ground, are still alive. |
A man who became distraught as he was being briefed on his mother’s condition by a surgeon at Johns Hopkins Hospital here pulled a gun and shot the doctor on Thursday, then killed his mother and himself in her room at the medical center, the police said. The doctor, who was wounded in the abdomen, was expected to survive. He was identified by colleagues as Dr. David B. Cohen, an orthopedic surgeon. The gunman, Paul W. Pardus, 50, had been listening to the surgeon around midday when he “became emotionally distraught and reacted ... and was overwhelmed by the news of his mother’s condition,” Commissioner Frederick H. Bealefeld III of the Baltimore police said. Mr. Pardus pulled a semiautomatic gun from his waistband and shot the doctor once, the commissioner said. He then holed up in the room in a standoff of more than two hours that led the authorities to lock down a small section of the building while allowing the rest of the sprawling medical complex to remain open. ||||| A police vehicle arrives at Johns Hopkins Hospital, Thursday, Sept. 16, 2010. (AP/Alex Dominguez) BALTIMORE (CBS/AP) Baltimore police say a lone gunman shot a doctor on the eighth floor of a Johns Hopkins Hospital building in Baltimore, was believed to have barricaded himself in a relative's hospital room. There were conflicting reports about whether the shooting suspect was still at-large. Parts of the Nelson Building, the main tower at Johns Hopkins, was put on lockdown around 11:15 a.m. Thursday, and other sections of the East Baltimore hospital campus were evacuated, after reports of shots being fired, according to The Baltimore Sun. A nurse who worked on the floor where the injured doctor was shot told the paper that the gunman was unhappy about the way his mother was being treated and had threatened to jump out of a window when the shooting occurred. "I started running," The nurse told the Sun. "When you hear gunshots you run." Baltimore police said they were setting up a tactical operation to deal with a gunman who is holed up on the eighth floor. The doctor was rushed to surgery and is expected to survive, police spokesman Anthony Guglielmi said. He said he did not know the relationship between the gunman and the doctor. The hospital said in a statement that the doctor is a faculty physician but it could not release more information because of privacy policies. A spokesman for Johns Hopkins hospital in Baltimore earlier said the gunman had been caught, but Guglielmi says that's not the case. Guglielmi said some parts of the hospital were being evacuated, but not the entire massive complex in east Baltimore. He says he doesn't know the doctor's condition. "The doctor will be OK," Guglielmi said. "He's in the best place in the world - at Johns Hopkins hospital." ||||| BALTIMORE – A man who became distraught as he was being briefed on his mother's condition by a surgeon at Johns Hopkins Hospital pulled a gun and shot the doctor Thursday, then killed his mother and himself in her room at the world-famous medical center, police said. The doctor, who was wounded in the abdomen, was expected to survive. The gunman, 50-year-old Paul Warren Pardus, had been listening to the surgeon around midday when he "became emotionally distraught and reacted ... and was overwhelmed by the news of his mother's condition," Police Commissioner Frederick H. Bealefeld III said. Pardus pulled a semiautomatic gun from his waistband and shot the doctor once, the commissioner said. The doctor, identified by colleagues as orthopedic surgeon David B. Cohen, collapsed outside the eighth-floor room where Pardus' mother, Jean Davis, was being treated. Pardus then holed up in the room in a more than two-hour standoff that led authorities to lock down a small section of the Nelson Building while allowing the rest of the sprawling red-brick medical complex — a cluster of hospital, research and education buildings — to remain open. When officers made their way to the room, they found Pardus and his mother shot to death, he on the floor, she in her bed. Bealefeld said he did not know what the woman was being treated for at Hopkins, a world-class institution widely known for its cancer research and treatment. It is part of Johns Hopkins University, which has one of the foremost medical schools in the world. Harry Koffenberger, vice president of security, said the hospital uses handheld metal detectors to screen patients and visitors known to be high-risk. However, with 80 entrances and 80,000 visitors a week, it is not realistic to place metal detectors and guards everywhere. "Not in a health-care setting," Koffenberger said. The hospital will review procedures and look again at the use of metal detectors, he said. Michelle Burrell, who works in a coffee shop in the hospital lobby, said she was told by employees who were on the floor where the doctor was shot that the gunman was angry with the doctor's treatment of his mother. "It's crazy," she said. Pardus was from Arlington, Va., and had a handgun permit in that state, police said. The gunman was initially identified as Warren Davis, but police later said that was an alias. The wounded doctor, an assistant professor at the medical school, underwent surgery. "The doctor will be OK," police spokesman Anthony Guglielmi said. "He's in the best place in the world — at Johns Hopkins Hospital." With more than 30,000 employees, the Johns Hopkins medical system is Baltimore's biggest private employer. The hospital has more than 1,000 beds and more than 1,700 full-time doctors. The Nelson Building is the main hospital tower. The eighth floor is home to orthopedic, spine, trauma and thoracic services. Hopkins said it informed its employees about the gunman in an e-mail at 11:30 a.m., about a half-hour after the doctor was shot. They were told to remain in their offices or rooms with the doors locked and to stay away from the windows. At 1:30 p.m., another e-mail went out advising employees that police "are in control of the situation." As the standoff dragged on, people with appointments in other parts of the hospital were encouraged to keep them. Hannah Murtaugh, 25, a first-year student at the nursing school, said her physiology class in an adjacent building was put on lockdown. She said a classmate received a text-message warning from the school about a gunman in the Nelson Building. Her professor interrupted the lecture to let students know. "They just kept telling us to stay away from the windows," she said. "I was scared — wondering if any of my friends or other students who had clinicals that day were on that floor, hoping the situation would be contained, trying to see what was going on while staying away from the windows." She said security personnel helped keep everyone calm and made sure doors were locked. ___ Associated Press writers Ben Nuckols and Kathleen Miller in Baltimore and Medical Writer Marilynn Marchione in Milwaukee contributed to this report. ||||| Gunman who shot Johns Hopkins doctor kills himself, his mother while barricaded from cops Ruark/AP Members of the Baltimore County SWAT team arrive at Johns Hopkins Hospital in Baltimore. A man who became "overwhelmed" when told that his mother was paralyzed during surgery at Johns Hopkins Hospital pulled a gun and shot her surgeon - then killed his bed-ridden mom and himself. For three hours on Thursday, parts of the world-famous teaching hospital were on lockdown because cops thought the gunman, 50-year-old failed screenwriter Paul Warren Pardus, was barricaded alive in his mother's room. The all-clear was sounded when a SWAT team entered the room and found the bodies of Pardus and his mother, Jean. Both had been shot once in the head. The doctor, spinal surgeon David Cohen, was in critical condition with a bullet in the chest, but expected to live. "He's going to be okay. He's in the best place he could ever be - at Johns Hopkins hospital," said police spokesman Anthony Guglielmi. Most of the sprawling teaching hospital remained operational during the crisis but visitors were told to leave. Pardus, who used the name Pardus Davis at the hospital, shot Cohen at 11:11 a.m. in a hallway outside his mother's 8th floor room, according to Baltimore Police Commissioner Frederick Bealefeld. "He was overwhelmed by the news of his mother's condition," Bealefeld said. "He became emotionally distraught. He removed a small semi-automatic handgun from his waistband and fired a single gunshot that struck the doctor in the lower chest." Then Pardus ran into his mother's room. When he shot her and himself was not clear. "No one heard those shots," said Bealefeld. The hospital wouldn't say what illness Jean Davis was suffering from, citing federal privacy laws. But Michelle Burrell, who works in the hospital coffee shop, said she was told by witnesses that Jean Davis had been in surgery. "Basically, he was upset about his mother being paralysed by the doctor," Burrell said. Little was known about Pardus, who lived in Arlington, Va. Cops said he had a very minor criminal record. He appears to have spent the 1990s writing theatrical pieces with names like "Black Panther Cult," "Dark Justice" and "Get Back Satan." In 1996, he wrote a spec script for the New York Undercover TV show called "Vigilante." Jacqueline Billy, a respiratory care nurse on the seventh floor, said she fled to an elevator when the shooting took place but accidentally went up to the eighth floor instead of down. The doors opened on a crowd of cops with guns drawn, telling her to close the door. "I was petrified, the door opened and there are a bunch of guns. You never expect that," she told the Baltimore Sun. Two weeks ago and 30 miles away, a madman rampaged through the Silver Spring, Md. headquarters of the Discovery Channel, holding three people hostage until he was killed by cops. Johns Hopkins is one of the founding institutions of American medicine and is consistently ranked best overall hospital in the nation. The hospital has more than 1,000 beds, 1,700 full-time doctors and 30,000 employees. hkennedy@nydailynews.com ||||| "At this point we are treating this case as a murder-suicide," Bealefeld said. Police identified the mother as Jean Davis, age 84, and her son as Paul Warren Pardus, age 50, of Arlington, Virginia. Pardus had no prior criminal record beyond traffic violations, police spokesman Anthony Guglielmi said. The doctor, whose name was not released, was rushed to surgery for an abdominal wound and is expected to survive, Guglielmi said. "He's in the best place he could ever be," Guglielmi said, referring to the hospital. Bealefeld initially identified the gunman as Warren Davis. Hospital officials said they could not disclose any details about what illness afflicted the gunman's mother, citing federal privacy laws. Johns Hopkins Hospital, which first opened in 1889, is part of a $5 billion medical system, according to its website. The 982-bed facility has consistently earned the top spot in U.S. News & World Report's annual rankings of more than 4,800 American hospitals, placing first in five medical specialties, among other things. Harry Koffenberger, the hospital's security chief, said the roughly 80,000 visitors who come to the hospital each week are issued wristbands. Only "high-risk" patients get screened with hand-held magnetometers, he said. "We have over 80 doors, loading docks and emergency exits on these campus buildings," Koffenberger said. "So to put a magnetometer at 80 doors, and the required armed force that would need to be staffing the magnetometers, is not realistic." Authorities evacuated part of the hospital after the shooting, and Bealefeld said the facility's security plan "worked as designed" to protect patients, staff and visitors. The hospital "asked employees, visitors, patients and caregivers to stay in rooms or offices until further notice" restricted access to the main hospital building after the shooting, it said in a statement. Earlier, police said officers shot and killed the gunman, but later said that account was incorrect. | A man shot a faculty physician as well as his own mother before killing himself at in Baltimore, Maryland. The shooting occurred on the eighth floor of the Nelson Building, the hospital's main building. Baltimore police found the suspected shooter, who had been barricaded inside his mother's hospital room for several hours before killing himself and his mother. At around 11:15 a.m. (1515 ), an unnamed doctor was shot in the chest at a patient area of the Nelson Building's thoracic center. All major hospital facilities were placed under a lockdown, and some medical personnel were evacuated from the Nelson Building. The doctor was sent to surgery at the hospital, and police spokesperson Anthony Guglielmi said that the doctor will likely survive the incident. He was not aware of any connections between the suspect and the doctor, who was in critical condition. A nurse at the hospital told '''' that the shooter was dissatisfied with how his mother had been treated and even said that he was going to jump out of a window. The nurse said that, upon hearing gunshots, she ran. Earlier, Baltimore area police said that they were "in the process of a tactical operation" to capture the gunman, who was holed up on the eighth floor. A spokesperson for the (FBI) said that it had been assisting local police in the incident. A Johns Hopkins spokesperson had previously said that authorities had taken the shooter into custody, but police said that the report was incorrect. The suspect, who had not taken any hostages, was described as a black man in his thirties. After a standoff lasting for three hours, law enforcement officers moved into his mother's hospital room, and found both him and his mother dead from gunshot wounds to their heads. The suspect was first identified as 50-year-old Warren Davis, and his mother as Jean Davis. Police later said that "Warren Davis" was an alias and that his real name was not known. Baltimore Police Commissioner Frederick Bealefeld, who said that the department is "treating this case as a murder-suicide," said that no officers reported hearing the shots that killed the two. Police had previously said that the gunman had been shot and killed by police, but police later said that that report was incorrect. |
") function VwComp(w,v){return p_o.PluginCommand("GetVersion("+w+")",0,0)>=v} function VwIn(){var i,m="MetaStream"+(VwMc?"3":" 3 Plugin") if(VwIE&&!VwMc){ i=(VwAx(VwC)==0) if(i){VwVv='0.0.0.0' var x=p_o.PluginCommand("GetVersion(SWFVIEW.DLL)",0,0) if(!(x=="No base control"||x>0))i=false x=p_o.PluginCommand("GetVersion(SceneComponent.dll)",0,0) if(x!="No base control"&&x;>0){var f="" var b=new Array(4) for(var z=0;z<4;z++){ b[z]=x%256 f=(b[z]+f) if(z<3)f=("."+f) x>>=8 } VwVv=f } } }else{ i=VwNp(m)?true:false if(VwN6||VwN4||(VwMcX&&!(VwIE||VwSf))||(VwMc&&!VwMcX)) i=false if(i)VwVv='0.0.0.0' } return i } VwVt=VwIn() /* section for Omniture tracking and Doubleclick and targeting */ var dclk_vp=(VwVt)?'yes':'no'; if (dclk_vp!='NUL') vTag+=';vpmp='+dclk_vp; omni_vp=(VwVt)?'Installed-'+VwVv:'Not Installed'; /* surround cookie */ var surroundC = readCookie('surround'); if (surroundC > -1) { surroundX = random % 2; surroundC = (surroundX > 0 ) ? 'b' : 'a'; document.cookie=("surround="+surroundC+";domain=.ncaasports.com;path=/" ); vTag += ";adv="+surroundC; } else { vTag += ";adv="+surroundC; } //--> ||||| Notes: 1) If you are having problems viewing this page, please download the latest version of Adobe Acrobat Reader and install the newest version of the Acrobat plug-in for your browser. This is a free download. 2) To Print: Open complete version and then click on the "Printer" icon (second icon from the left) in the .pdf toolbar. Complete Version ||||| It's tough not to feel bad for Bruiser Flint. Poor guy went out and scheduled every difficult game he could get, won 13 contests on the road and seemed to be in decent shape. But the Drexel coach was misinformed. All this time he thought that a win at Syracuse was significant. Turns out it was just a victory over an NIT team. Who knew? Anyway, here's a bracket breakdown. (Damn-near everything you need to know.) Who got lucky? It's OK Stan. Your Hogs are in the tourney. (US Presswire) Illinois: The Illini finished 1-6 against the Top 25 and 4-9 against the top 50. They only beat two at-large teams and their best road win was at Northwestern. Still, Illinois made the field. And though I'm not sure how, I don't really mind. Because if there's anybody who deserves something good to happen after how his past four months have gone, it's Bruce Weber, by all accounts a likeable man who lost his best recruit (Eric Gordon) to a de-commitment and one of his best players (Jamar Smith) to a drunken-driving arrest stemming from a car accident. So if the worst thing that happened here is that Weber finally caught a break, I say good for him. Duke: The Blue Devils finished 13-10 against the top 100 after losing their final three games. Air Force finished 7-5 against the top 100 after losing its final four games. Duke received a No. 6 seed; Air Force didn't get invited. So the lesson is clear, and it's one we've known for a while: It's good to be Duke and it sucks to be Air Force. Which brings me to ... Who got screwed? Air Force: The Falcons' body of work is solid, as they beat Texas Tech, UNLV and Stanford. But they did lose their last four, so I can't feel sorry for them. If a team can't beat Wyoming on a neutral court, I'm not going to spend much time defending it. But again, Air Force's body of work was good enough for an at-large bid. The only problem was it spent the past two weeks letting its body go (who hasn't done that?). Syracuse: The Orange finished 8-8 against the top 100 with wins over Georgetown, Villanova and at Marquette. That's not spectacular, I know. But there are a slew of teams in the field that don't have three wins as good as those three. Missouri State: Barry Hinson's Bears beat Wisconsin, went 9-9 against the top 100 and only had one loss outside the top 100 (to Evansville). Still, that wasn't enough even though two Big Ten teams that couldn't beat Wisconsin received bids with inferior credentials. Consider: Purdue couldn't beat Wisconsin while going 9-9 against the top 100 with two losses outside the top 100 (to Indiana State and Minnesota). But Purdue made it and Missouri State didn't. Illinois couldn't beat Wisconsin while going 8-11 against the top 100. But Illinois made it and Missouri State didn't. Does that sound fair? Of course not, and it's also worth noting the Bears would be 10-8 against the top 100 if not for a timing error at Saint Louis that allowed the Billikens to score a game-winning bucket after the buzzer. So while I did not agree two weeks ago when Hinson implied the Missouri Valley Conference was as tough as the Big 12, if he feels his team got shafted, I'd have to agree on that point. Three things I learned Sunday 1. The selection committee claims it doesn't look at league affiliations. But it does. It must. Otherwise, there's no logic behind some of this stuff. Take Arkansas, for example. What happened there is once the committee knew it was taking six Big Ten teams, it knew it couldn't just take four SEC teams because the SEC rated as the second-best league in the nation while the Big Ten was fourth. So at some point over the past few days, the committee decided to take a fifth SEC team, and by Sunday morning the best option was Arkansas, even if by Sunday afternoon it didn't look that way at all. And that, I'm telling you, is how Arkansas ended up in the field. Nobody will convince me otherwise. 2. People talk about how having a high RPI can protect you, but it really only protects BCS schools. This year the top four RPIs omitted from the field were Air Force (30), Missouri State (36), Bradley (38) and Drexel (39). Non-BCS schools, every one of them. Last year the top three RPIs omitted were Missouri State (21), Hofstra (30) and Creighton (39). Non-BCS schools, every one of them. Two years ago the top three RPIs omitted were Miami of Ohio (39), Wichita State (45) and Buffalo (46). Non-BCS schools, every one of them. And if you want to call that a coincidence, I want to call you an idiot. ||||| Florida State: The Seminoles had zero bad losses -- all 12 of their L's were to teams in the RPI Top 50 -- but they only won five games against teams in that category. They beat Florida in nonconference play and won at Duke in ACC play for their best wins. Syracuse: With 10 Big East wins, many people will be surprised by the Orange's omission, but a deeper look provides some answers. Cuse went only 3-7 against the RPI Top 50 and suffered home losses to Wichita State and Drexel in nonconference play. The Orange did win six of eight to close the season and were better than .500 on the road, but it wasn't enough. West Virginia: West Virginia fans will forever lament the uncalled travel on Edgar Sosa at the end of regulation in the double-OT loss to Louisville that sent the Mountaineers to the NIT. WVU beat UCLA at home, but really didn't have a lot of strength behind that win in its profile. The Mountaineers only went 4-8 against the RPI Top 100. Kansas State: The Wildcats become the first major conference team in this era to end with 20-plus wins, 10-plus conference wins and a fourth-place or better finish in league play and miss the NCAAs. The Wildcats were victimized by a contracting bubble, a weakish Big 12 North schedule and an even more barren nonconference slate. Missouri State: For the second year in a row, Bears fans likely feel slighted, but this team's profile was not as solid as that of last season's team. They finished solidly in third in a top-six conference, but went 1-7 in games against the top competition they faced. Air Force: Losses in their last four games undid a lot of good work from the Falcons. The nonconference schedule, though littered with routs of "name" opponents, didn't have a ton of significant heft beyond the big win at Stanford and their victory over Texas Tech in K.C. They were only 2-4 against the RPI Top 50. Drexel: Despite nonconference wins at Syracuse, Villanova and Creighton as part of a profile that included 14 road/neutral wins, the Dragons likely were punished for their fourth-place finish in the CAA. Drexel might have been one of the teams really hurt by Nevada's and Xavier's losses in their conference tournaments. At least the committee didn't take Syracuse instead, but Drexel's omission is the most egregious of the bracket. Appalachian State: The fighting Donte Minters were omitted despite a very strong profile since the Virginia transfer arrived in mid-December. With Minter, App State's RPI was around 40 and the Mountaineers had wins at Wichita State, at VCU, at Davidson, and against Virginia and Vanderbilt on a neutral floor. | The field for both the 65-team NCAA national tournament and the 32-team National Invitation Tournament were set yesterday following the conclusion of the final conference tournaments. The 65-team NCAA Tournament is highlighted by top seeds Florida (Midwest regional), North Carolina (East regional), Ohio State (South regional), and Kansas (West regional). An opening round game between Niagara and Florida A&M will take place on Tuesday night, with the first round of the tournament being played out on Thursday and Friday. A number of teams widely considered to be "on the bubble" were not selected and instead will join the 32-team NIT field, which begins play on Tuesday night, March 13. The top seeds for the NIT are Mississippi State, West Virginia, Air Force, and Clemson. Of the top seeds, West Virginia and Air Force had a chance at being selected for the NCAA tournament. However, when they were not selected, they were relegated to the NIT. The championship for the NIT will take place on March 29, with the championship of the NCAA tournament and the right to be called the "National Champion" taking place on April 2. |
NASA Honors Columbia's Dead in Memorial CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. (AP) — In an emotional ceremony just a few miles from where Columbia should have landed five years ago Friday, NASA officials, astronauts, schoolchildren and family members of the lost shuttle crew gathered to remember the seven who died while returning from space. Evelyn Husband-Thompson noted that Friday's sunrise was just as beautiful as it was the morning of Feb. 1, 2003, when she awaited the homecoming of Columbia and her husband, Rick, its commander. Columbia never made it back from its science mission. Its wing gashed by a chunk of fuel tank foam insulation at liftoff 16 days earlier, the spaceship shattered high above Texas just minutes from home. "This morning, I couldn't stop thinking about Rick and Willie and Kalpana and Dave and Mike and Laurel and Ilan," said Husband-Thompson, naming each of the Columbia crew. "All of our families went through so much that day. We so miss them, and we will never forget them." NASA's top spaceflight officials joined Husband-Thompson, who remarried just three weeks ago, her two children and nearly 200 others at the Kennedy Space Center's outdoor astronaut memorial. Each guest received a long-stemmed rose; the flowers were placed in the grating in front of the giant shiny granite marker bearing the names of all NASA's 24 astronauts killed in the line of duty. Standing on the sidelines under an overcast sky were 44 ninth-graders from Israel, the homeland of astronaut Ilan Ramon. Some of the teenagers were from the same school Ramon attended decades earlier. "He's Israeli, so it's important," 15-year-old Roman Rashchupkin said. "He learned in our school." India, the homeland of Columbia astronaut Kalpana Chawla, also was represented at the hourlong ceremony. The chairman of India's space research organization, G. Madhavan Nair, noted how the loss of Columbia was painful not just for the astronauts' families but for the entire world. Even though the Columbia seven are memorialized all over Earth, and even on Mars where a range of hills is named Columbia, "much more importantly than any physical monument, they're memorialized right here in our hearts," said former shuttle commander Bill Readdy. Readdy named each of Columbia's crew and said: "We'll always miss your easy laughter and your smiling faces. God willing, five years from now, they'll have even more to be proud of us about as we take even longer strides ... back to the moon and onward toward Mars. May God bless the crew of Columbia." Past and present NASA officials, including the space agency's boss, Michael Griffin, stressed how spaceflight is risky and always will be. As the next shuttle crew readies for a launch on Thursday, Griffin noted how crucial it is to learn from past mistakes. He read a letter from President Bush acknowledging the sacrifice of "the seven brave astronauts of Columbia," then presented it to Husband-Thompson. This is a solemn time of year for NASA. Sunday marked the 41st anniversary of the Apollo 1 spacecraft fire on the launch pad, which killed three astronauts. Monday was the 22nd anniversary of the Challenger launch explosion, which killed seven. "Americans don't quit and we won't quit. We'll never quit," Griffin said, grimly noting that "not quitting has high costs." ||||| Astronauts honored at emotional ceremony in Florida By MARK CARREAU Copyright 2008 Houston Chronicle Family and friends of the Columbia astronauts gathered at NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida today to pay tribute to the seven fliers who perished five years ago when their space ship broke apart as it descended to Earth. The Feb. 1, 2003 breakup of Columbia, which was 16 minutes from reaching the runway at the Florida shuttleport, rained debris across East Texas. Under a sunlit sky early today, some of those closest to the Columbia astronauts gathered at the Space Mirror Memorial, a massive stone structure at Kennedy created as a tribute to all of the astronauts who have perished in the line of duty, to comemmorate the mission. "I still grieve the loss of my precious husband," Evelyn Husband-Thompson, the widow of Columbia commander Rick Husband told the gathering. Since remarried, she offered an emotional recollection of the shuttle's ancipated return. She and the couple's young son and daughter awoke early at their Florida hotel that morning to listen to the last in a series of recorded daily devotionals prepared by the shuttle's commander before his flight. They left for the runway at Kennedy, eager for a re-union. "The reconciliation was not to be, but it will be some day," said Husband, who credited her family's deep religious faith for the inner strength to weather the tragedy. "What a relief to know there is healing even in the midst of searing pain." Columbia's crew included Willie McCool, Mike Anderson, Kalpana Chawla, Dave Brown, Laurel Clark and Ilan Ramon of Israel. President Bush was among those who offered their respects to the Columbia families. "Space exploration is a dream deeply rooted in humanity, and the seven brave astronauts of Columbia sacrificed their lives so the rest of mankind could realize that dream," Bush said in message delivered by NASA administrator Michael Griffin. "They assumed great risk so they could understand what lies beyond the heavens. We are greatful for their service and they will be always be cherished. Columbia's loss was traced to damage in the fragile heat shielding of the left wing caused by an impact from a breakaway chunk of fuel tank insulating foam. The damage went undetected, largely because NASA managers assumed the foam was not massive enough to cause damage. Shuttle flights resumed in mid-2005 with safety modifications to the fuel tank foam. At least two heat shield inspections are part of every mission. Engineers have developed tools and patches to repair severe heat shield damage. As a result of the Columbia tragedy, the Bush administration has called for an end to shuttle missions in 2010, as the construction of the international space station draws to a close. The loss became a catalyst for a new direction at NASA, future missions to the moon to establish a human base as a stepping stone to Mars and other deep space destinations. This week, NASA also honored the seven astronauts of the shuttle Challenger and the three Apollo 1 astronauts. Challenger's crew perished 22 years ago Monday, when the spacecraft exploded soon after liftoff. The Apollo 1 astronauts died 41 years ago Sunday in a launch pad fire. . ||||| Columbia astronauts remembered Houston (PTI): Rich tributes were paid to India-born Kalpana Chawla and six other astronauts of the shuttle Columbia at an emotional ceremony in the US state of Florida, five years after they perished in the mid-air disintegration of the space ship just 16 minutes before landing. Family members and friends of the seven astronauts yesterday participated in a memorial at NASA's Kennedy Space Centre in Florida. They gathered at the Space Mirror Memorial, a stone structure created in the memory of all the astronauts who died in the line of duty, to pay their tributes during the hour-long ceremony, which was also attended by the Chairman of the Indian Space Research Organisation, G Madhavan Nair. "I still grieve the loss of my precious husband," Evelyn Husband-Thompson, the widow of Columbia commander Rick Husband was quoted as telling the gathering by 'Houston Chronicle'. In a message, President George W Bush said: "Space exploration is a dream deeply rooted in humanity, and the seven brave astronauts of Columbia sacrificed their lives so the rest of mankind could realise that dream." "They assumed great risk so they could understand what lies beyond the heavens. We are grateful for their service and they will be always be cherished," he said. Apart from Kalpana Chawla and Rick Husband, Columbia's crew who died in the February 1, 2003 break-up of the shuttle were Willie McCool, Mike Anderson, Dave Brown, Laurel Clark and Ilan Ramon of Israel. Top Stories | Columbia's final ascent NASA has held a memorial ceremony to mark the fifth anniversary of the Space Shuttle ''Columbia'' disaster. All seven astronauts were killed when their spacecraft broke up on re-entry over Texas on February 1, 2003, 16 minutes prior to scheduled landing time at Florida. ''Columbia'' had been damaged by a chunk of loose foam during takeoff 16 days earlier. NASA officials, astronauts, schoolchildren and family members attended the ceremony, which was held just miles from ''Columbia'''s intended landing site. Approximately 200 people attended the event, held at the Kennedy Space Center's Space Mirror Memorial to all 24 astronauts killed in space disasters. Each was presented with a rose, which was placed in front of a granite memorial bearing the names of the 24. Evelyn Husband-Thompson, widow of commander Rick, who has remarried just three weeks ago, said "This morning, I couldn't stop thinking about Rick and Willie and Kalpana and Dave and Mike and Laurel and Ilan. All of our families went through so much that day. We so miss them, and we will never forget them." 44 teenagers from Israel were amongst those present, there in respect to astronaut Ilan Ramon. Some came from the same school Ramon had attended. 15-year-old Roman Rashchupkin said "He's Israeli, so it's important. He learned in our school." G. Madhavan Nair represented India at the memorial, remembering Indian astronaut Kalpana Chawla. Nair is chairman of the Indian Space Research Organisation. Former shuttle commander Bill Readdy commented that, despite a large number of memorials, including one on Mars, "... much more importantly than any physical monument, they're memorialized right here in our hearts," Going on to name them individually, then saying "We'll always miss your easy laughter and your smiling faces. God willing, five years from now, they'll have even more to be proud of us about as we take even longer strides ... back to the moon and onward toward Mars. May God bless the crew of Columbia." NASA boss Michael Griffin was amongst several people who commented on the dangerous nature of spaceflight. He proceeded to read a letter from United States President George W. Bush praising the astronauts, which was then presented to Husband-Thompson. "Space exploration is a dream deeply rooted in humanity, and the seven brave astronauts of Columbia sacrificed their lives so the rest of mankind could realize that dream," said Bush's letter. "They assumed great risk so they could understand what lies beyond the heavens. We are grateful for their service and they will be always be cherished." Griffin also noted the importance of learning from mistakes, adding "Americans don't quit and we won't quit. We'll never quit," and that "not quitting has high costs." It wasn't the only such anniversary around this time. The 41st anniversary of the Apollo 1 fire was on Sunday, and Monday saw the 22nd anniversary of the ''Challenger'' disaster. |
Father and son, 4, killed after high-powered Subaru crashes into tree By Daily Mail Reporter Last updated at 6:37 PM on 18th February 2010 A father and his four-year-old son died when their high-powered car careered off a road and crashed into a tree. The bodies of Tony Eldridge and his son Bradley and were found by a policeman on patrol who came across the wreckage. Investigators are not sure how long they had been lying there but both the 36-year-old driver and his son were declared dead at the scene. They were travelling in a Subaru Impreza from the village of Bucknall in Oxfordshire towards Bicester at around 8.15pm last night when the car came off a 60mph stretch of road. Four-year-old Bradley Eldridge who was found dead alongside his father Tony after the car they were travelling in came off a road and crashed into a tree Floral tributes are left at the crash scene. One from Bradley's grandparents read: 'To our son and grandson, you will always be in our hearts, love you loads, Mum and Dad xxxxxxxxxxx' Floral tributes were laid at the crash scene today as officers launched an investigation into how the collision happened. The tree which the car hit had branches snapped off up to half way up the trunk. Relative and friends left a number of touching floral tributes under the tree. One from Bradley's grandparents read: "To our son and grandson, you will always be in our hearts, love you loads, Mum and Dad xxxxxxxxxxx" A Thames Valley spokesman said: 'A police officer came across the vehicle while out on patrol. 'It was a significant impact and he immediately raised the alarm before going to the aid of the occupants. 'It is unclear at this stage when the accident happened but it is not believed to have been long before it was found.' A spokesman for the South Central Ambulance Service said that controllers sent a rapid response ambulance to the scene. 'Sadly, there was nothing that the crews could do,' he said. 'An adult male and a four-year-old child were declared dead at the scene and our crew was stood down.' Today a specially-trained family liaison officer was breaking the news to family and friends of the pair who were from Bicester. Post-mortem examinations were expected to take place in the next few days before an inquest is opened and adjourned into the deaths. The spokesman for Thames Valley Police appealed for any witnesses to the collision to come forward. ||||| A father and son have been killed after the car they were travelling in hit a tree. A 35-year-old and a four-year-old were declared dead at the scene after a white Subaru Impreza left the road in Bucknell Road, Bicester, at about 8.15pm yesterday. Police spokesman David Staines said both are believed to be from Bicester. Officers are appealing for anyone with information to contact police on 08458 505505. | File photo of a vehicle similar to the one involved in the collision. Two people have been killed as the result of a collision involving a vehicle crashing into a tree in Oxfordshire, England. The two occupants of the Subaru Impreza were four-year-old Bradley Eldridge and his father, 36-year-old Tony Eldridge, who was driving the vehicle. Both were thought to be from the village of Bicester. The vehicle was travelling between the Oxfordshire villages of Bicester and Bucknell at around 20:15 GMT on Wednesday when it departed from the road and crashed into a tree. Both occupents of the car were declared dead at the scene of the collision. A rapid response ambulance had been directed to the crash site, however, a spokesperson for the South Central Ambulance Service stated that "sadly, there was nothing that the crews could do." The spokesperson also commented that "an adult male and a four-year-old child were declared dead at the scene and our crew was stood down." A spokesperson for the Thames Valley Police was quoted as saying: "A police officer came across the vehicle while out on patrol. It was a significant impact and he immediately raised the alarm before going to the aid of the occupants. It is unclear at this stage when the accident happened but it is not believed to have been long before it was found." |
719 wtpn31 pgtw 172100 subj/tropical cyclone warning// rmks/ 1. Typhoon 05w (Haitang) warning nr 026 01 active tropical cyclone in northwestpac Max sustained winds based on one-minute average --- warning position: 171800z --- near 23.7n 123.0e movement past six hours - 310 degrees at 12 kts position accurate to within 025 nm position based on eye fixed by satellite present wind distribution: Max sustained winds - 120 kt, gusts 145 kt radius of 064 kt winds - 050 nm northeast quadrant over water 050 nm southeast quadrant over water 050 nm southwest quadrant over water 050 nm northwest quadrant over water radius of 050 kt winds - 070 nm northeast quadrant over water 060 nm southeast quadrant over water 060 nm southwest quadrant over water 070 nm northwest quadrant over water radius of 034 kt winds - 150 nm northeast quadrant over water 140 nm southeast quadrant over water 130 nm southwest quadrant over water 140 nm northwest quadrant over water repeat posit: 23.7n 123.0e --- forecasts: 12 hrs, valid at: 180600z --- 24.6n 121.4e Max sustained winds - 105 kt, gusts 130 kt dissipating as a significant tropical cyclone over land radius of 064 kt winds - 030 nm northeast quadrant 030 nm southeast quadrant 030 nm southwest quadrant 030 nm northwest quadrant radius of 050 kt winds - 050 nm northeast quadrant 050 nm southeast quadrant 050 nm southwest quadrant 050 nm northwest quadrant radius of 034 kt winds - 120 nm northeast quadrant over water 120 nm southeast quadrant over water 120 nm southwest quadrant over water 120 nm northwest quadrant over water vector to 24 hr posit: 295 deg/ 07 kts --- 24 hrs, valid at: 181800z --- 25.2n 120.0e Max sustained winds - 075 kt, gusts 090 kt dissipating as a significant tropical cyclone over water radius of 064 kt winds - 020 nm northeast quadrant 020 nm southeast quadrant 020 nm southwest quadrant 020 nm northwest quadrant radius of 050 kt winds - 040 nm northeast quadrant 040 nm southeast quadrant 040 nm southwest quadrant 040 nm northwest quadrant over water radius of 034 kt winds - 100 nm northeast quadrant over water 100 nm southeast quadrant 100 nm southwest quadrant over water 100 nm northwest quadrant vector to 36 hr posit: 295 deg/ 06 kts --- 36 hrs, valid at: 190600z --- 25.7n 118.9e Max sustained winds - 060 kt, gusts 075 kt dissipating as a significant tropical cyclone over land vector to 48 hr posit: 305 deg/ 04 kts --- extended outlook: 48 hrs, valid at: 191800z --- 26.2n 118.1e Max sustained winds - 040 kt, gusts 050 kt dissipated as a significant tropical cyclone over land --- remarks: 172100z position near 23.9n 122.6e. Typhoon (TY) 05w (Haitang), located approximately 115 nm southeast of taipei, taiwan, has tracked northwest at 10 knots over the past 06 hours. Recent animated enhanced infrared satellite imagery shows that TY 05w has briefly become more organized over the past 06 hours. However, it will continue to exhibit a weakening trend as deep convection in the northwest and southwest quadrants diminish as a result of land interaction. Maximum significant wave height at 171800z is 43 feet. Next warnings at 180300z, 180900z, 181500z and 182100z.// ||||| The Central Weather Bureau is expected to issue a sea warning later today and possibly a land warning tomorrow for Typhoon Haiting as the storm gained strength and moved toward the island over the past 24 hours. Haiting, the 5th typhoon reported in the Pacific Ocean this year, was located 1,700 kilometers southeast of Taiwan and moving northwesterly toward at a speed of 30 kilometers per hour, CWB Chief Forecaster Wu Te-jung said. Wu said Haiting was gaining strength to become a strong typhoon that might cause devastating damage to the main island if it continues on its present course. Packing gust of 48 meters per second and with a radius of 200 kilometers, Haiting was expected to reach a location some 1,030 kilometers southeast of the southern tip of Hengchun by 8 a.m. this morning. If the typhoon makes landfall on Taiwan, it is most likely to do so on Tuesday or Wednesday, Wu said. The weather around Taiwan today might still be hot and sunny as it has been in the past few days, but Wu suggested that people should avoid going to beaches on the east coast as high waves are likely ahead of the typhoon. Meanwhile, a spokesman for the Council of Agriculture urged farmers and fishermen to take necessary precautions to reduce possible damage to their property to a minimum. The official urged farmers to harvest corps and vegetables that are mature and to build shelters for fruits and other kinds of farm produce over the next few days. Farmers who raise pigs and other animals should check the drainage systems on their farms and check to see make sure their water pumps are functioning well, the official advised. Chicken and duck farmers should move their poultry away from their usual runs close to the rivers, he said. The spokesman also warned of possible landslide or mudslides in mountains, and urged farmers and other workers in mountainous areas to find shelter early. People residing in villages that were damaged by landslides should consider moving to safer places once the CWB has issued sea and land warnings for the typhoon. In order to understand more about the formation and the structure of typhoon Haiting, Wu Chun-chieh (§d«T³Ç), professor of atmospherics at National Taiwan University, said that some of his colleagues got aboard a research plane yesterday to drop 14 floating detectors in and around the typhoon. Wu said his colleagues will send back the data they collected for further analyses. This is part of a project sponsored by the National Science Council to learn more about the structure of different typhoons and what scientists described as "sensitive points" in typhoons. ||||| Tropical Cyclone Information (RSMC Tokyo - Typhoon Center Tropical Cyclone Advisory) Tropical Cyclone: All Click on map to zoom in Analysis Archive Notes on RSMC Tropical Cyclone Advisory 1-hour Estimated Position Abbreviations used in the RSMC Tropical Cyclone Advisory PSTN : Center position MOVE : Movement direction and speed PRES : Central Pressure MXWD : Maximum wind speed(10min. average) iiHF : ii-hour Forecast Unit conversions 1KT(knot) = 1.852 km/h = 0.5144 m/s 1NM(nautical mile) = 1.852 km ||||| The 1998 ATCR (Best Tracks and Verification portion only) is now available on our NIPRNET site. If you are viewing this page on the NIPRNET/INTERNET, please see the link at the bottom. | Super Typhoon Haitang Super Typhoon Haitang is now making landfall in Taiwan. Yesterday, Haitang was a Category 5 typhoon, with winds at 160 mph (257 km/h) and gusts up to 195 mph (317 km/h), and is currently moving west-northwest at 14 knots (16 mph, 26 km/h). As of 12:00 GMT on July 16, Haitang was located at 20.7° N, 127.7° E. Current Wind speeds are 140 mph, with gusts up to 165 mph , the typhoon is moving northwest at 13 mph. The Taiwan central weather bureau is expected to issue a sea warning later today and possibly a land warning tomorrow. |
23:28, 13.07.2008 /TVN24, dziennik.pl POLSKI POLITYK ZGINĄŁ W WYPADKU SAMOCHODOWYM Jeden z najwybitniejszych polskich polityków ostatnich dekad, europejski mąż stanu - jak mówią o nim wielcy tego świata - po godzinie 13. w niedzielę zginął w wypadku samochodowym na drodze w Wielkopolsce. Prof. Geremek zginął w wypadku samochodowym Relacja niemieckiego świadka wypadku Był jednym z najbardziej uznanych polityków ostatnich kilkudziesięciu lat w Polsce. Cieszył się wielkim szacunkiem tak w kraju, jak i za granicą. Walczył o wolną Polskę w czasach "Solidarności", potem aktywnie brał udział w budowie III RP. Z wielką determinacją walczył o wejście naszego kraju do NATO i Unii Europejskiej.Do wypadku doszło o godz. 13.20 w okolicy Lubienia w województwie wielkopolskim, niedaleko Nowego Tomyśla. Mercedes Bronisława Geremka zjechał nagle na przeciwległy pas ruchu i zderzył się z fiatem ducato. Najprawdopodobniej profesor jechał z Poznania w kierunku zachodniej granicy.Nie ma na razie oficjalnych informacji policji na temat przyczyn wypadku. - Funkcjonariusze wciąż badają okoliczności zdarzenia - powiedział w TVN24 Mariusz Sokołowski z Komendy Głównej Policji.Jak jednak donosi dziennik.pl, policjanci sądzą, że przyczyną tragedii mogła być usterka samochodu. Nie wykluczają również, że prof. Geremek zasłabł za kierownicą. Serwis zaznacza, że są to wstępne ustalenia funkcjonariuszy.Ubolewanie z powodu śmierci prof. Geremka wyraził prezydent Lech Kaczyński podkreślając, że mimo różnic w poglądach uznaje jego wielkie zasługi dla Polski.Na prośbę prezydenta Kaczyńskiego, minutą ciszy jego pamięć uczcili uczestnicy szczytu Unia dla Śródziemnomorza w Paryżu.Geremek urodził się 6 marca 1932 r. w Warszawie. Z wykształcenia był historykiem, profesorem nadzwyczajnym Polskiej Akademii Nauk, znanym opozycjonistą w PRL, szefem MSZ, posłem na Sejm kilku kadencji, a od 2004 r. eurodeputowanym Parlamentu Europejskiego.Geremek w 1950 r. wstąpił do PZPR. W 1968 r. na znak protestu przeciwko inwazji wojsk Układu Warszawskiego na Czechosłowację wystąpił z partii. W latach 70. działał w polskiej opozycji antykomunistycznej. W sierpniu 1980 r. związał się z powstającą w Gdańsku „Solidarnością”, był jej doradcą.Geremek był internowany w czasie stanu wojennego. Zwolniono go w grudniu 1982 r. Został wtedy doradcą "Solidarności", blisko współpracował z Lechem Wałęsą. W 1983 r. został aresztowany.W latach 1987-1989 przewodniczył Komisji Reform Politycznych Komitetu Obywatelskiego. Brał udział w obradach Okrągłego Stołu. W 1989 r. po raz pierwszy zdobył poselski mandat. Przedstawiciele "Solidarności" wybrani zostali do Sejmu dzieki plakato, na których sfotografowani zostali z Lechem Wałęsą. Henryk Wujec powiedział w TVN24, że pomysł, by przedstawicieli opozycji sfotografować z Wałęsą był pomysłem Geremka. Później był jeszcze wybierany na posła w latach 1991, 1993 i 1997. Działał m.in. w Unii Demokratycznej i Unii Wolności.Po utworzeniu koalicji AWS-UW w 1997 roku został szefem polskiej dyplomacji. 12 marca 1999 w imieniu rządu polskiego podpisał akt wejścia naszego kraju do NATO.W wyborach do Parlamentu Europejskiego 13 czerwca 2004 został wybrany europarlamentarzystą z komitetu Unii Wolności. W Parlamencie Europejskim był członkiem frakcji Porozumienia Liberałów i Demokratów na rzecz Europy.Jest autorem licznych artykułów, wykładów, odczytów oraz książek przetłumaczonych na wiele języków. Jako naukowiec w latach 1955-1985 pracował w Instytucie Historii Polskiej Akademii Nauk w Warszawie. Był wybitnym specjalistą w dziedzinie średniowiecza.Geremek wykładał także na paryskiej Sorbonie, gdzie szefował tamtejszemu Centrum Kultury Polskiej. Uhonorowano go kilkunastoma tytułami doktora honoris causa kilkunastu uniwersytetów.Ma na swoim koncie wiele odznaczeń i wyróżnień. Wśród nich m.in Wielki Krzyż z Gwiazdą Orderu Zasługi RFN oraz Pour le Mérite. W 2002 prezydenta Aleksander Kwaśniewski uhonorował go Orderem Orła Białego.Jak opowiadają współpracownicy i znajomi Geremka, profesor nie zamierzał startować w najbliższych wyborach do Parlamentu Europejskiego. Chciał poświęcić się pracy naukowej.mac/pra ram ||||| Bronisław Geremek (1932 - 2008) zdjęcia Prezydent: Szanowałem go, to wielka strata - Około godziny 13.10 mercedes, którym jechał profesor Geremek, zjechał nieoczekiwanie na przeciwległy pas jezdni doprowadzając do czołowego zderzenia z nadjeżdżającym fiatem Ducato - powiedział portalowi Gazeta.pl rzecznik policji Mariusz Sokołowski.Samochód kierowany przez byłego szefa MSZ jechał z Poznania w kierunku zachodniej granicy. - Usłyszałem huk, wybiegłem, a fiat już płonął. Przypadkowi kierowcy wezwali policję i pogotowie - opowiadał świadek zdarzenia.przewieziono do szpitali w Poznaniu i Nowym Tomyślu. W najcięższym stanie jest kierowca fiata Ducato. Kobieta, która podróżowała z b. ministrem jest w szoku, nie zeznawała jeszcze na okoliczność wypadku. Policja bada jego przyczyny.Tragiczna śmierć prof. Geremka wstrząsnęła politykami i publicystami. - To bardzo smutna wiadomość. Geremek był wybitną postacią - mówił wyraźnie przygnębiony prezydent Kaczyński. Według marszałka Komorowskiego, profesor miał ogromny autorytet, a jego śmierć będzie odczuwalna na arenie międzynarodowej. - Wielka tragedia. Nie znam nikogo, kto mógłby go zastąpić - podkreślał Jacek Żakowski. Katarzyna Kolenda-Zaleska na antenie TVN24 z trudem powstrzymywała łzy. Kaczyński | Ks. Boniecki | Kwaśniewski | Borusewicz | Żakowski po śmierci prof. Geremka . - Straciliśmy prawego polityka i przyjaciela. Ta śmierć wywołała wielki smutek - powiedział szef niemieckiej dyplomacji Frank-Waltek Steinmeier. Przewodniczący Komisji Europejskiej Jose Barroso nazwał Geremka "człowiekiem o wielkim duchu, Europejczykiem niedoścignionej wielkości".Bronisław Geremek urodził się w 1932 r. w Warszawie. Ukończył studia na Wydziale Historycznym UW, w latach 1956-58 studiował w Ecole Pratique des Hautes Etudes w Paryżu. W 1960 r. obronił doktorat, a w 1972 r. habilitację w Polskiej Akademii Nauk. W 1989 r. został mianowany profesorem nadzwyczajnym.Był jednym z najważniejszych ludzi Solidarności, negocjował przy Okrągłym Stole. - Nawet wiecznie zbuntowany Władek Frasyniuk uznawał jego racje -Geremek był przewodniczącym Unii Wolności, posłem na Sejm i ministrem spraw zagranicznych w latach 1997-2000. To on wprowadził Polskę do NATO. W 2004 r., mimo fatalnych wyników Unii Wolności, zdobył w Warszawie wielkie poparcie i został posłem w Parlamencie Europejskim. W IV RP odmówił lustracji. - Cieszył się, że może polskie dzieje współtworzyć. On - na pozór wytrawny polityczny lis - sapał ze szczęścia, że tyle nam się udało - pisze Pacewicz. ||||| Według policjantów, którzy oglądali miejsce wypadku, żaden z samochodów nie jechał zbyt szybko. Dziennik.pl dotarł do informacji, że mundurowi szacują predkość obu aut - mercedesa Geremka i fiata ducato - na 90-100 km na godzinę. Policjanci argumentują, że przy zderzeniach czołowych przy bardzo dużej prędkości wraki pojazdów odbijają się zwykle od siebie z ogromną siłą i zatrzymują w dużej odległości. Przeważnie też szczątki aut rozrzucone są w promieniu kilkunastu, a nawet kilkudziesięciu metrów. W tym przypadku było inaczej. Gdyby auta miały jechać z większą prędkością, samochody po zderzeniu byłyby gdzie indziej - mówią nieoficjalnie policjanci. Dodają, że pojazdy jadące za autami uczestniczącymi w wypadku zdążyły wyhamować, a to też uwiarygadnia hipotezę o niezbyt dużej prędkości. Świadkowie wypadku mówią, że słyszeli huk pękającej opony. Czy właśnie to było przyczyną tragedii? Zbadają to biegli, bowiem opona mogła wybuchnąć już w momencie zderzenia samochodów. Jak dowiedział się dziennik.pl, wstępne hipotezy mówią też, że Bronisław Geremek mógł zasłabnąć za kierownicą. Jednak jego pasażerka nie pamięta, by profesor miał kłopoty ze zdrowiem podczas jazdy. "To trwało ułamki sekund. Nawet nie wiem, jak to się stało" - tak, tuż po wypadku, mówiła policjantom pasażerka profesora. Była przytomna. Nie było widać, by z Bronisławem Geremkiem działo się coś złego - opowiadała. Kobieta nie potrafiła odpowiedzieć na pytanie, dlaczego Geremek nagle zjechał na przeciwległy pas. Profesor jechał mercedesem z Warszawy w stronę granicy z Niemcami. Prawdopodobnie udawał się do Brukseli. » To nie prędkość była przyczyną wypadku Geremka Zamknij X Wypadek wydarzył się na wysokości miejscowości Lubień Geremek zginął na miejscu. Towarzysząca mu kobieta trafiła do szpitala. Wypadek przeżyli również ludzie jadący fiatem. Jedna osoba z fiata została przetransportowana śmigłowcem do szpitala w Poznaniu. Pasażerka profesora oraz druga osoba z fiata karetkami trafiły do szpitala w Nowym Tomyślu. >>> Przeczytaj, kim był Bronisław Geremek ||||| Z prośbą o uczczenie pamięci Geremka zwrócił się do gospodarza spotkania - prezydenta Francji Nicolasa Sarkozy'ego - prezydent Polski Lech Kaczyński. Bronisława Geremka wspominali w rozmowie z dziennikarzami przywódcy europejscy; kondolencje złożyli m.in. szef Komisji Europejskiej Jose Manuel Barroso i przewodniczący Parlamentu Europejskiego Hans-Gert Poettering. W niedzielę wieczorem zakończyła się kilkugodzinna sesja spotkania powołującego oficjalnie Unię dla Śródziemnomorza. Wieczorem uczestnicy spotkania zostali zaproszeni na uroczystą kolację do Petit Palais przez parę prezydencką - Nicolasa Sarkozy'ego i Carlę Bruni-Sarkozy. Po kolacji ma odbyć się dwustronna rozmowa Lecha Kaczyńskiego z prezydentem Francji. Zaplanowano także spotkania polskiego prezydenta z Barroso, a także kanclerz Niemiec Angelą Merkel i brytyjskim premierem Gordonem Brownem. ||||| Geremek was a historian by training Bronislaw Geremek, a key anti-communist dissident and former Polish foreign minister, has been killed in a car crash, police have announced. Mr Geremek, 76, died when the car he was in hit an oncoming vehicle in western Poland on Sunday afternoon. He was one of the key advisers to Lech Walesa, the Solidarity union leader which helped topple communist rule. Mr Geremek was foreign minister from 1997-2000 and European Parliament member since 2004. Mr Geremek died when his Mercedes car collided with a van near the western town of Lubien, police spokeswoman Hanna Wachowiak said. It was not immediately clear on whether he was driving at the time. The former foreign minister - a historian by training - oversaw his country's accession to Nato. ||||| Jerzy Grunwald. Folklor, bigbit i pop Muzyk Jerzy Grunwald grał z No To Co, En Face oraz Niebiesko-Czarnymi. Przez kilka lat mieszkał w Stanach Zjednoczonych, a obecnie jego domem jest Szwecja. ||||| A 2011 audit suggests that GlaxoSmithKline’s problems may go beyond the sales practices that are currently at the center of a bribery and corruption scandal in China, and may extend to its research center. ||||| Le Président de la République a appris avec tristesse et émotion la disparition tragique de M. Bronislaw GEREMEK. Il tient à rendre hommage à cette grande figure de la construction européenne et de la réunification du continent et à dire son admiration pour le combat qu’il a mené au sein de Solidarité en faveur de la démocratie polonaise. Le Président de la République salue la mémoire de cet homme exceptionnel, parlementaire européen respecté, qui par son courage, son humilité et son engagement sans faille au service des droits fondamentaux a su incarner les valeurs fondatrices de l’idéal européen. Le Président de la République tient à assurer sa famille, ses proches et l’ensemble du peuple polonais de la solidarité du peuple français dans cette épreuve. ||||| AJC Remembers Bronislaw Geremek July 13, 2008 – New York – The American Jewish Committee (AJC) is saddened by the tragic death of Bronislaw Geremek, former Foreign Minister of Poland and a highly respected Member of the European Parliament. Geremek, 76, died this morning in a car accident near Nowy Tomyśl, Poland. “Words do not describe this tremendous loss, for both Poland and the Jewish people,” said AJC Executive Director David A. Harris. “Bronislaw Geremek was a statesman and diplomat of the first order, and a beloved son of Poland. He will be sorely missed.” A leading political activist and survivor of the Holocaust, Geremek was a key figure in forging a promising new relationship between postcommunist Poland and the Jewish people, both in Poland and around the world. Indeed, as foreign minister, Geremek came to Washington to address the AJC annual meeting in 1999. Geremek’s historic leadership in Polish political life included his important role in the democratic opposition movement, Solidarity. He was jailed a number of times by Communist authorities after the imposition of martial law in 1981. Between 1987 and 1989, Geremek was the leader of the Commission for Political Reforms of the Civic Committee, which prepared guidelines for peaceful democratic transformations in Poland. In 1989, Geremek played a crucial role during debates between Solidarity and the Communist authorities, which led to the first parliamentary elections in Eastern Europe. His dedication to politically transitioning Poland back to democracy was evident in his work as a founding member of the Freedom Union Party. Geremek was a member of the Polish Parliament, the Sejm, in which he chaired the Committee for Foreign Affairs and the Constitutional Commission. Geremek was appointed Polish Foreign Minister in October 1997, a post he held for three years. On March 12, 1999, he signed the NATO accession treaty on behalf of the Polish government. Following Poland’s accession to the EU, he was elected in 2004 with the largest amount of votes in Warsaw to serve in the European Parliament. AJC leaders worked very closely with Geremek, particularly in the years in which he led Polish efforts to join NATO. He presented Poland's Sword of Freedom, one of only three presented in the United States, to David Harris in gratitude for AJC's steadfast support of Poland's membership in NATO. AJC, with an office in Warsaw, has long played a central role in furthering Polish-U.S, Polish-Jewish relations. AJC was the first Jewish organization to publicly support the inclusion of Poland in the first round of NATO expansion in 1999, sponsors the National Polish American-Jewish American Council in the U.S., and partnered with the Polish government to build a fitting memorial at the site of the Nazi death camp at Belzec. | Professor Bronisław Geremek, a former Polish Minister of Foreign Affairs, a member of European Parliament and chairman of the Freedom Union, has died today at the age of 76 in a car crash near Nowy Tomyśl, Poland. The accident occurred about 13:15 Polish time (12:15 UTC) along the way 92 near Lubień in the Greater Poland Voivodeship. According to the spokeswoman of the Greater Poland Voidodeships's police, Hanna Wachowiak, Geremek died when the Mercedes he was driving collided head-on with a Fiat Ducato on the road from Warsaw to the German border. The reason of Geremek's car crossing to the other side of the road and crashing into the oncoming car is still unknown. "The officers are investigating the reasons of the accident. They have interrogated first witnesses", said Mariusz Sokołowski, the spokesman of the Main Command of Police in an interview with the Polish news channel TVN 24. Bronisław Geremek was the only casualty of the crash; the driver of the Fiat and his passenger as well as the passenger of Geremek's Mercedes have been transported to hospitals in Poznań and Nowy Tomyśl. The daily ''Dziennik'' writes it was not the excessive speed which caused the crash. The newspaper's Internet news service informs that both cars were driving with the speed of 90-100 km/h (56-62 mph). The daily reports it is assumed that Bronisław Germemek might have collapsed when driving; other assumptions include a defect of the car. "It lasted for a split of seconds. I don't even know how it happened. I haven't seen anything wrong happening to professor", told Geremek's passenger the police officers. Bronisław Geremek was born on March 6, 1932 in Warsaw, Poland. Being a historian by training, he was an associate professor of the Polish Academy of Sciences (Polska Akademia Nauk, ''PAN''), a member of the democratic opposition in the Polish People's Republic, a member of Sejm from 1989 to 2001 and a chairman of the political party Freedom Union. He served as a Minister of Foreign Affairs of Poland from October 31, 1997 to June 30, 2000. He was also a member of the European Parliament from July 20, 2004 onwards. Bronisław Geremek is survived by two sons. |
ANALYSIS By Richard Black Environment correspondent, BBC News website The review's main focus is on electricity generation And in a process dominated by headlines about a new nationwide network of nuclear reactors, there is much to enthuse the champions of the small and the green. Many important details remain to be resolved; but the overt commitment to renewables and the many pages pledging improvements in energy efficiency hold out the prospect of genuine moves towards sustainability. "The direction of travel is a welcome one," said Dave Sowden of the Micropower Council. "The government has seen the light on renewables," added Philip Wolfe of the Renewable Energy Association (REA). "The energy review supports what we and many others have been consistently saying - that renewables, energy efficiency and decentralised systems are the strongest prospects for secure and sustainable energy supplies." Barriers down Planning laws have been a particular bugbear of the microgeneration industry; and it is easy to see why. Renewable energy: Small is beautiful At-a-glance The house is directly under the flight path into Heathrow Airport. The energy review promises to sweep such barriers away. The details are not honed down but the intention is "...to ensure that, as far as possible, homeowners will be able to install solar panels, photovoltaic cells, domestic wind turbines, etc. without having to apply for planning permission". "We agree with that," said Mr Sowden. "It wouldn't be appropriate for people to install a 15 ft (5m) wind turbine on their roof without planning permission, but within sensible limits you should be able to install micropower equipment without it," he told the BBC News website. "You don't need permission for a satellite dish, and small wind turbines are no more intrusive." Boost for microgeneration Other measures designed to encourage microgeneration include: changing codes for new buildings looking to include microgeneration in the financial incentives of the Energy Efficiency Commitment expecting planning authorities to require on-site renewable generation in new developments making it easier for householders and communities to sell electricity It's very laudable to talk about removing the least efficient products from the market, but my question is when? Tim Curtis, Energy Saving Trust In an echo of its statements on nuclear reactors, the review concludes that public planning enquiries for wind farms are taking too long, and do not always give sufficient priority to the nation's interest. Accordingly the government has published a Statement of Need, stating that "...the benefits to society and the wider economy as a whole are significant, and this must be reflected in the weight given to these considerations by decision-makers...". While this may ease the planning process for wind farms and other forms of renewable energy, changes to the Renewables Obligation (RO) may be more important as a way of stimulating the uptake of new technologies. The review pledges to speed planning procedures for wind farms "Exactly how the government will do it remains to be seen," said Rob Gross, head of policy and technology at the UK Energy Research Centre, "but essentially you would have a share of the obligation reserved for certain kinds of technology. "Or you could increase the reward given for investing in certain kinds of technology. "The most important of these now is offshore wind; onshore wind companies, as long as they can find the site and can build, are doing very nicely, but offshore wind is the technology we're looking to bring in and it's stuck." Exploring the tides Before the review's publication there had been speculation that the Severn Barrage concept, a 10-mile long tidal power installation spanning the Severn Estuary which could generate 5% of Britain's electricity, would be given government backing. But the review came up short, promising instead that the government would join other interested parties in "exploring the issues arising on the tidal resource in the UK". While this will please conservation groups alarmed at a project which they believe carries dire ecological consequences, one of the potential barrage builders was less enthusiastic. The barrage would stretch 10 miles across the Bristol Channel "In a sense, though, it says what we would have wanted it to say because we're confident there is nothing else out there which is able to produce the power that the barrage will produce," he told the BBC News website. "So if there is to be an official comparison of the different tidal technologies, that should suit us." Reduce and survive Producing more renewable energy is of course only one possible answer to rising energy demand; using less is the other, infinitely preferable in some peoples' eyes. The review sets out several measures for increasing Britain's energy efficiency, including: giving consumers better information on electricity usage and costs ensuring better compliance with building regulations incentivising energy suppliers to help householders reduce energy use removing the least efficient products from the market But much of the detail on how these pledges are to be met is as yet absent. "There are some very positive words in there - advice to consumers, building regulations, restrictions on retailers," said Tim Curtis, director of operations at the Energy Saving Trust. "But what we're looking for are more specifics in some areas. STANDBY BRITAIN How electricity is being wasted in UK homes "It's very laudable to talk about negotiations with manufacturers and the EU to remove the least efficient products from the market, but my question is when?" Overall, the energy review contains a bit for everyone. Nuclear enthusiasts can foresee a bright new dawning of fission power; wind lovers see moves which can hasten the turbines' march across Britain; would-be home generators are a step closer to achieving electrical independence. Big questions remain to be address in several areas, not least how the grid system can accommodate both major megawatt generators and a plethora of householders doing it themselves. As always, projections of carbon savings depend on other projections. The government's assertion that their measures will bring emissions 13% to 17% below what they otherwise would have been in 2020 is going to be contentious. They recently admitted that the prior target of a 20% reduction on 1990 levels by 2010 will not be met. Perhaps the biggest criticism of the review is that it concentrates on electricity generation at the expense of transport, which receives far less extensive treatment. Richard.Black-INTERNET@bbc.co.uk ||||| Nuclear power to make "significant contribution" Industry secretary Alistair Darling told MPs nuclear power needed to be part of the mix of energy supply for the UK over the next 40 years. The Conservatives say nuclear power should only be a "last resort". The Liberal Democrats accuse ministers of "surrendering" to the nuclear lobby. Tony Blair says new nuclear power stations will reduce future reliance on imports and help tackle climate change. In a Commons statement on the Energy Review, Mr Darling said: "The government has concluded that new nuclear power stations could make a significant contribution to meeting our energy policy goals. "It would be for the private sector to initiate, fund, construct and operate new nuclear plants and cover the costs of decommissioning and their full share of long term waste management costs." "Safety and security" would be "paramount" with nuclear plants, he promised. "Nuclear does mean we can generate electricity without carbon emissions. It does provide a consistency of energy which wind power cannot," he said. Mr Darling stressed that "a mix of energy supply is essential and we should not be over dependent on one source". The plans would help meet the government's target of cutting carbon emissions by 60% by 2050, he said. And they would ensure the UK had secure energy supplies rather than relying increasingly on foreign gas imports. The review also proposes: That electricity companies provide 20% of energy from renewables - up from the current 15% Storing carbon dioxide in old oil fields - the UK is working with Norway to develop this New incentives to make homes more energy efficient and to cut energy waste by businesses Measures to cut the 7% of electricity currently used by domestic appliances left on standby Encouraging smaller scale electricity generators, and combined heat and power plants, to be sited close to where the power is used For the Conservatives, shadow trade and industry secretary Alan Duncan said Mr Darling's statement contained "no real policies, no real action, no real decisions". He said the review showed Mr Blair was "out on a limb" in his backing for new nuclear power stations - a position, he claimed, that was not shared by the Cabinet. Fresh look Edward Davey, the Lib Dems' trade and industry spokesman, warned: "By caving into the nuclear industry lobby, you have destroyed the possibility of cross-party consensus." London Mayor Ken Livingstone said it was "a colossal mistake" to head down the nuclear path again. "We need a solution to the climate change that protects the environment rather than threatens it, and one that does not literally cost the earth," said Mr Livingstone. It's not a question of either/or - it's everything that's got to be done to make a difference Tony Blair Key points: Energy Review Support for small and green Green Party Principal Speaker Keith Taylor said: "Alistair Darling has today led the UK down a dirty and dangerous path, that of a fresh round of astronomically expensive nuclear power stations." An Energy White Paper in 2003 said better efficiency and investment in renewable forms of energy was the way ahead for the UK. But the prime minister ordered a policy review last November, saying a fresh look was needed at how the UK could ensure it had a secure energy supply and meet its targets for fighting global warming. The review has been criticised for purely "rubber stamping" Mr Blair's own wish for developing nuclear. But the prime minister told BBC Two's Newsnight: "If we're going to go from being self-sufficient in gas to importing it, if prices are rising, if we know that climate change is an even more serious problem than we thought a few years ago, how can we take nuclear out of the mix?" During a visit to an offshore wind farm near Whitstable, Kent, Mr Blair said he wanted to see renewables grow by five times in the next 15 years. "It's not a question of either/or - it's everything that's got to be done to make a difference," he said. HAVE YOUR SAY Nuclear will cost us billions of pounds that can be better spent on a massive nationwide renewables program. Rob, London Send us your comments As well as opposition from the Conservatives and Liberal Democrats, the nuclear power proposals have also come under fire from a number of Labour MPs. Former environment minister Michael Meacher asked: "Why are we going down the nuclear route at all? Nuclear is more expensive and decommissioning costs are enormous." Members of SERA, the Labour environment campaign, said nuclear power could not contribute to tackling climate change over the next 10 years. ||||| We've noticed you're adblocking. We rely on advertising to help fund our award-winning journalism. We urge you to turn off your ad blocker for The Telegraph website so that you can continue to access our quality content in the future. Thank you for your support. ||||| Now, ministers have given the green light to new nuclear power plants, which will replace the ageing fleet that currently provides 20% of the UK's electricity. Industry figures and nuclear experts say three designs of so-called Generation III+ reactors are likely to be among the front runners: "GENERATION III+" TECHNOLOGY The UK's current fleet of Magnox and Advanced Gas Cooled Reactors (AGRs) are Generation I and Generation II designs, the vast majority of which are fast approaching the end of their 40-year operating lives. The new power plants that could replace them are Generation III+ reactors - a term used to describe the latest designs. Generation IV reactors are not likely to be commercially available for at least another 20 years, but manufacturers are developing a number of designs. The characteristics of Generation III+ designs include: Modular construction - components are built elsewhere and shipped to the reactor site components are built elsewhere and shipped to the reactor site Evolutionary design - years of experience operating reactors has allowed engineers to simplify designs and cut construction and generation costs, while improving safety measures years of experience operating reactors has allowed engineers to simplify designs and cut construction and generation costs, while improving safety measures Passive safety features - in the event of a "severe accident", safety systems use natural forces such as gravity, circulation and evaporation, rather than "active" systems such as pumps, motors and valves in the event of a "severe accident", safety systems use natural forces such as gravity, circulation and evaporation, rather than "active" systems such as pumps, motors and valves Waste - industry experts say the new more efficient reactors, over their design lives, will generate only 10% of the waste the UK's entire nuclear sector has produced to date industry experts say the new more efficient reactors, over their design lives, will generate only 10% of the waste the UK's entire nuclear sector has produced to date Cost - manufacturers say the final figure depends on a number of factors, such as location, number of reactors, and the planning and licensing process, but each plant is estimated to cost about £400-500m AREVA EPR 1. Reactor core 2. Control rod drive mechanism 3. Pressuriser 4. Steam generator 5. Generator turbine 6. Cooling water 7. Containment shell Reactor type: Pressurised Water Reactor (PWR) Generation capacity: 1,600 MW Design life: 60 years Construction time: approximately 42 months Manufacturer: Europe-based Areva/Framatome ANP Currently licensed in UK? No The EPR (European Pressurised Reactor) is the latest design from Areva, and the 1,600 MW reactor is described as "the highest unit power to date". The manufacturers say the reactor offers significantly reduced power generation costs because it requires less fuel and is designed to be operational for 92% of its 60-year life. Finland is currently building the first EPR reactor at Olkiluoto, which is expected to start producing electricity in 2009. France is expected to start work on the second reactor of this kind in 2007. WESTINGHOUSE AP1000 1. Reactor core 2. Steam generators 3. Pressuriser 4. Passive cooling water tank 5. Steel containment shell 6. Turbines Reactor type: PWR Generation capacity: 1,117 MW Design life: 60 years Construction time: 36 months Manufacturer: US-based Westinghouse Currently licensed in UK? No Westinghouse says the AP1000's passive safety systems have simplified its design. Compared with reactors that produce the same amount of power, it uses 50% fewer valves, 35% fewer pumps, 70% less cabling and can be contained in a building almost half the size. This has a knock-on effect regarding the time it takes to construct the reactor. Westinghouse says: "Construction forecasts, verified by independent reviewers, indicate that an AP1000 could be built in three years or less." The AP1000 is currently the only generation III+ design to be licensed by the US Nuclear Regulatory Commission, and Westinghouse is bidding to build the power plant in China. CANDU ACR1000 1. Reactor core 2. Horizontal fuel channels 3. Steam generators 4. Heat transfer pumps 5. Emergency injection system 6. Steel containment wall 7. Turbine generators Reactor type: Pressurised Heavy Water Reactor (PHWR) Generation capacity: 1200 MW Design life: 60 years Construction time: 42 months "from first concrete to fuel loading" Manufacturer: Canada-based Atomic Energy of Canada Ltd Currently licensed in UK? No The Candu ACR1000 is a light-water-cooled, heavy-water-moderated tube reactor and is the latest design in a line of reactors which stretches back to the 1940s. Its horizontal fuel channels allow the reactor to be refuelled with slightly enriched uranium while it is still generating heat to power the steam generators, reducing the amount of time the plant is "offline" and not supplying electricity to the grid. The first ACR1000 is expected to be built in Canada, and producing electricity by 2014. | The has given permission for new to be built in the United Kingdom. This decision follows months of public debate and controversy over the proposal. Many Britons have argued for greater use of renewable energy supplies, but the government has said that even with a big increase in investment, renewable sources will not meet all of the UK's additional energy demands. It is expected that 25 GW of additional generating capacity will be required over the next two decades, partly as compensation for old nuclear stations which will be closed down. This additional capacity must be met while reducing overall greenhouse gas emission as per the . The government also announced big increases in spending on renewable energy research and for the construction of onshore wind farms. It is claimed that 20% of energy will be produced from renewables by 2020, and if there are new breakthroughs in renewable energy science this figure may be increased further. Philip Wolfe of the Renewable Energy Association (REA) told the BBC "The government has seen the light on renewables. The energy review supports what we and many others have been consistently saying - that renewables, energy efficiency and decentralised systems are the strongest prospects for secure and sustainable energy supplies." The new nuclear plants will cost 400-500 million UK pounds (700-900 million US dollars) and will generate 1.5 to 2 GW of power each. These will provide the baseline amount of additional power should there be a lack of success in new areas of renewable energy research. The private sector will initiate, fund, construct and operate the new nuclear plants and will cover the full cost of decommissioning and their full share of long-term waste management costs. The Government proposes to address potential barriers to new nuclear stations, but says it will not provide any taxpayer money for the nuclear industry - tax investment will only be put into renewable energy research. This approach is similar to the successful approach adopted in the USA. It contrasts with early UK nuclear power development, where individual power plants or small groups of plants were planned and built by separate publicly funded research and engineering groups, but there was poor planning of nationwide issues such as waste management. Critics argue that the government has only put the nuclear option on the table as it is privately run and does not require government investment, whereas increasing renewable energy production would cost taxpayer money. The review also discusses energy self-sufficiency, and points out that the increase in renewable energy to 20% of the total will improve the UK's self sufficiency. No mention is made of opening uranium mines in the (or reopening uranium mines) in order to make the UK self-sufficient in uranium, something which in 1980. Some critics were disappointed that the review had little discussion of the reduction of emissions from transport, a sector which gives a larger contribution to the total UK emissions than electricity generation. This may relate to the high costs associated with significant reductions in emissions in the transport sector. |
BEIRUT, Lebanon -- Eight members of a Canadian family vacationing in Lebanon were killed Sunday in an Israeli air raid that hit a Lebanese town on the border with Israel, Canadian and Lebanese officials said. Canadian Foreign Affairs Minister Peter MacKay said six other Canadians were in critical condition. Lebanese security officials, speaking on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to make statements to the media, said the victims were members of a single family of Lebanese origin and were killed at home in their family's village of Aitaroun, which abuts the border. TV stations said the family had come from Canada to spend their summer holiday in the town. MacKay, who was quoted by The Canadian Press, said the government is putting commercial ships in place to evacuate its citizens by sea. The victims were not identified. The killings came on the fifth day of an Israeli barrage of Lebanon that began when the Shiite guerrilla group Hezbollah captured two Israeli soldiers and killed eight others in a cross-border raid. The fighting has killed at least 148 in Lebanon and 23 in Israel. ||||| 7 Canadians killed in Lebanon Seven Canadians, including several members of the same Montreal family, were killed in an Israeli air strike in southern Lebanon on Sunday as the Canadian government stepped up plans to evacuate the estimated 40,000 Canadians stranded in the war-torn region. Foreign Affairs spokeswoman Ambra Dickie confirmed the seven deaths and said three other Canadians were injured in the attack, but declined to provide names or hometowns of the victims, citing privacy laws. Earlier reports had said that eight Canadians died and six were injured. Media reports out of Montreal indicated that six family members — an elderly man, his nephew’s wife and her four young children, — were killed while vacationing in the village of Aitarun, about 50 kilometres south of Beirut. During a protest by hundreds of Lebanese-Canadians in Montreal, an unidentified woman said she had just learned that two of her family members were killed in the Israeli bombardment. “My father, my uncle — they’re dead!” she screamed. “What’s happening?” Hussein El-Akhras, who lost his father in the bombing, told all-news channel LCN in Montreal that Canadian Embassy officials in Lebanon did little to help his relatives evacuate. “My cousin even tried through the Internet to contact the Canadian Embassy,” said El-Akhras. “But no response.” He said his father and mother moved to Canada 15 years ago but returned to Lebanon every year for a visit. His mother was wounded in the bombing. The elderly couple were joined on the trip this year by El-Akhras’s cousin’s wife and her four young children aged one, four, six and eight. All were killed. El-Akhras pleaded with the Canadian government to intervene. “It is not just us, there are a lot of civilians who have been killed,” he told the CBC. “Two hundred people are dead, 500 to 600 are wounded, the streets are closed. I am asking the international community to help, put pressure on Israel to stop the bombing.” The deaths occurred as the federal government began organizing evacuation plans for Canadian citizens in Lebanon while the violence in the region continues to escalate. Officials believe there are 40,000 Canadians in the country, but only 21,000 have registered with the Canadian Embassy in Beirut. Still, the number of Canadians in Lebanon who have registered has more than doubled from 10,000 since the crisis began. Commercial ships are being secured and will be positioned off the coast of the country to evacuate Canadians, said Foreign Affairs Minister Peter MacKay. “We’re putting in place a plan that will assist all Canadians who express the interest to leave Lebanon,” he said, adding that staff at the embassy are working around the clock. With so many potential evacuees, it’s a logistical challenge to even answer all of the calls coming into the embassy, MacKay said. He said the government is working to ensure safe passage of the evacuation vessels, and that he has spoken personally to the foreign affairs ministers from Israel and Lebanon. MacKay declined to say where evacuated Canadians may be sent because of security concerns, but Dickie later indicated that Cyprus, an island nation about 200 kilometres to the west in the Mediterranean Sea, is a possible destination. “The quickest option seems to be to bring Canadians to Cyprus, where onward transportation will be available,” she said. Dickie would not discuss specifics of a potential rescue operation. “We’re working on it, and if there’s any information, Canadians who are registered will be notified as soon as information is available,” she said. Liberal foreign affairs critic Dan McTeague criticized the Conservative government for waiting until Sunday to announce evacuation plans. “It’s a question of being slow in response and short on specifics,” he said. “We’re still a long shot away from what deployment will look like if (MacKay) does indeed have an evacuation plan.” McTeague said all sides must work together to ensure Canadians being evacuated don’t become unwitting targets. “Something at this level requires knowing who is most affected, ensuring that they receive the priority, and that the priority doesn’t just mean how to get them out of Lebanon, but out of harm’s way immediately,” he said. Since the conflict erupted last week, the Foreign Affairs Department has advised Canadians in Lebanon to avoid open spaces, secure documents such as passports, and to wait for word from the government. MacKay said Canada is working closely with British, American and French authorities to ensure the safety of their citizens. “We really want to focus on emphasizing the protection of civilians ... the need to avoid further loss of life or harm to everyone in the region,” MacKay said. Leaders of the G8 countries meeting in Russia issued a statement Sunday calling for the return of the Israeli soldiers captured by Hezbollah that incited the conflict. The leaders also called for Israel to cease its attacks against Lebanon. “Obviously, our concern right now is with the security of the thousands of Canadian citizens who are caught in this, particularly in Lebanon,” Prime Minister Stephen Harper said from St. Petersburg. | Seven Canadians were killed, and six others were in critical condition, after an Israeli raid in Lebanon on Sunday, Canadian Foreign Affairs Minister Peter MacKay announced. The deaths were believed to be the first recent casualties in Lebanon from any G8 country. Associated Press reports anonymous Lebanese officials saying the family of Canadians were killed at their home in the town of Aitaroun. Many Lebanese citizens have emigrated to Canada and often return to spend their summers in the south of Lebanon. Sixteen thousand Canadians have registered with the embassy in Beirut, but MacKay said the number of those present could be as high as 40,000. "We're calling for restraint in all sectors right now and hope to be able to have those ships in place and citizens moving out of Lebanon as quickly as possible." MacKay said. Parliament Hill demonstrators in Ottawa on Sunday protested the Harper government's position regarding the ongoing strikes. One placard declared, "Killing children is not a 'measured response'," referring to the G8 statement released earlier. During a protest in Montréal on Sunday, one woman said she had just been informed that two of her family members were killed in the Israeli air strike. The unnamed woman screamed "My father, my uncle — they're dead. What's happening?" She said her family members were in the Middle East for a summer vacation. The deaths occurred on the fifth day of Israel's military attacks in Lebanon, instigated by the capture of 2 Israeli soldiers and killing of 8 others by the Shiite Hezbollah in a cross-border attack. The fighting has caused at least 148 fatalities in Lebanon and 23 in Israel. |
Police fired live rounds during the disturbance A suspected looter was shot by guards, a passer-by was hit by a stray bullet and an Asian man was stoned to death, while police have fired live bullets. There have been several attacks on Asians in Kampala, and a Hindu temple has been damaged. The sugar firm which wants to use part of the Mabira forest is Asian-owned. Environmentalists say the move threatens the existence of rare species of trees and birds in the 30,000 hectare forest. 'Frightening' The march began quietly, with some 1,000 people marching through central Kampala, carrying placards and tree branches. We were inside the temple and the protesters started attacking us from outside Dipaul Patel Talking point: Jobs vs the environment "People were demonstrating peacefully when there was a misunderstanding with the police. All of a sudden they opened fire," environmental activist Frank Muramuzi told Reuters news agency. The BBC's Sarah Grainger in Kampala says protesters threw stones at the police and set fire to vehicles. An Asian motorcyclist was attacked and later beaten to death, witnesses say. Our correspondent says the demonstration took on a racial dimension with some protestors blaming the country's Asian-Ugandan population for the situation because the parent company of the sugar firm, Mehta Grou, is owned by an Asian Ugandan. Reuters also reports that police had to rescue about 40 men from a Hindu temple after it was attacked by a mob. Some Asian residents were targeted by the protesters "We were inside the temple and the protesters started attacking us from outside," 50-year-old Dipaul Patel told Reuters. "It was very frightening." A police source says about 20 people have been arrested. The Sugar Corporation of Uganda (Scoul), part of the Mehta group, wants to expand its plantations in central Uganda, taking over one-third of the Mabira forest. Campaigners are now calling on Ugandans to boycott its sugar products. In recent years, Ugandan Asians, including the owners of Mehta, have started to return to the country, after being expelled by Idi Amin in the 1970s. They used to control much of the economy, sparking resentment among some Ugandans. Text campaign Parliament is yet to change the status of the forests and campaigners have threatened legal action if the forest is given away. The police blocked the protesters Public protests over the government plans have heightened in the capital and car bumper stickers urging people to save Mabira forest have become very popular, our correspondent says. There has also been a text message campaign, urging people to take part in the protests. Supporters of Scoul's bid for more land say the expansion of would create more jobs and income for the country. They dismiss those opposing the move saying subsistence farmers have already encroached on much of the forest land. The kabaka, or king, of the local Buganda community has offered to give alternative land for the sugar company in a bid to save the hardwood forest. ||||| We spoke to four people about the impact losing a loved one has had on them, and about their search for answers in a country with the worst death toll per capita of any of the world’s large economies ||||| By Francis Kwera and Euan Denholm KAMPALA (Reuters) - A mob stoned to death an Asian man in Uganda on Thursday and two other people were killed during a protest over a plan to cut down nearly a third of a rainforest reserve to grow sugarcane, police and witnesses said. Troops in several armoured cars were deployed in central Kampala after police fired tear gas and live rounds to stop rioters attacking Asian businesses and a Hindu temple, angered by moves to expand an Indian-owned company's sugar plantations. "Three people have been confirmed dead," the capital's police commander, Edward Ochom, told Reuters. "One is an Asian man who was stoned to death by the rioters. The other two are Ugandans and we are still investigating their deaths." As scores of demonstrators hurled rocks at police in pouring rain, officers rescued more than 100 Asian men besieged in a Hindu temple and elsewhere, and rushed them to a police station. "We were inside the temple and the protesters started attacking us from outside," 50-year-old Dipaul Patel told Reuters. "It was very frightening." One witness, Senusu Mugodansonga, said a mob killed an Asian man after he crashed a motorbike into them. "The Indian was driving his motorbike and he knocked into people, so they wanted to respond," he said. Protest organiser Frank Muramuzi said the march began peacefully, before a "misunderstanding" with the police. "All of a sudden they opened fire with tear gas and live ammunition," Muramuzi said. "Everyone scattered but two people were seen lying in the road." FOREST TARGETED The late former dictator Idi Amin expelled Uganda's Asians in 1972. Thousands have returned, but they are viewed with suspicion by some Ugandans who resent their domination of many businesses. Police commanders had approved Thursday's march, called to protest against plans to cut down thousands of hectares of Mabira Forest to expand the estate of local sugar company Scoul. Scoul is part of the Indian-owned Mehta Group. The controversy began last year when President Yoweri Museveni ordered a study into whether to axe 7,000 hectares (17,000 acres) or nearly a third of Mabira. Mabira -- which has been a nature reserve since 1932 -- is one of Uganda's last remaining patches of natural forest. The government's proposal angered some parliamentarians and residents. They said the environmental costs of slashing the forest would far exceed the economic benefits of the plantation. Environmentalists say destroying Mabira could have grave ecological consequences, from increased soil erosion to the drying up of rivers and rainfall, and the removal of a buffer against polluting nearby Lake Victoria. They say it would also threaten monkeys and nine species found only in Mabira and surrounding forests -- the Tit Hylia bird, six butterflies, a moth and a shrub used to treat malaria. In a newspaper advertisement published on Thursday, Scoul said "anti-development lobby groups" were misleading Uganda's public about the company's plans for Mabira. "Scoul is very conscious of the environment and would not like to disturb the ecology," it said. The company had only asked the government for parts of Mabira that were already depleted or encroached on by locals. ||||| We are committed to clean and healthy environment. We shall always adhere to the following principles: Compliance We shall strive to comply with all applicable laws and regulations and shall implement programs and procedures to assure compliance. Prevention We shall minimize risk and protect our employees and the communities in which we operate. We shall seek to prevent pollution before it is produced, reduce the amount of waste generated at our facilities and minimize leakages and spillages of materials. We shall consider environmental factors and the total acquisition,use and disposal costs in making planning, purchasing, and operating decisions. Sustainable use of resources We shall manage land and wetlands reources in an environmentally sensitive manner, and employ energy efficient technologies and procedures. Training and Communication We shall provide appropriate environmental training and educate employees to be environmentally responsible on the job and at home. Continuous Improvement We shall monitor our environmental performance regularly and continuously seek opportunities for improvements. S.C.KHANNA (Chief Executive) ||||| Uganda wants to expand its sugar industry MP Beatrice Atim said that leasing parts of Mabira Forest Reserve to a sugar company was a matter of national concern, the state-run paper reports. The lawmakers were reacting to reports that the government is to seek parliament's approval for the plan. Mabira Forest supports more than 300 bird species. According to BirdLife International, Mabira Forest Reserve is the largest block of moist semi-deciduous forest remaining in the central region of Uganda. "The give-away is a threat to the biodiversity of the eco-system of the forest and it cannot be brushed aside," the New Vision newspaper quotes MP Sebuliba Mutumba as saying. An official from Uganda's National Forestry Authority said the move would be a "disaster". "The ecosystem will be disturbed, the biodiversity will be destroyed and people's livelihoods will change for the worse," the official told AFP news agency, requesting anonymity. Last year, President Yoweri Museveni ordered a study into the possibility of axing 7,000 hectares of Mabira Forest, nearly a third of the reserve, to expand a nearby sugar estate, Reuters news agency reports. | Four people are reported killed in Kampala, Uganda, amidst protest marches organised against a government proposal to cut down 7,000 hectares of forest land to expand a private company's sugarcane plantations. Two men of Asian descent were stoned to death by a mob, and the deaths of two others were under investigation, according to police sources. A witness said that one of the Asians was attacked after he ran his motorcycle into a crowd. ''BBC News'' reported that a looter was shot dead and a bystander wounded by security guards. Asian businesses and a Hindu temple were attacked by rioters; in response, police deployed armoured cars, used tear gas, and opened fire to quell the violence. A group of Asians trapped in the temple by a mob were rescued by police. The sugar company is owned by the Mehta Group, established by Indian immigrant Nanji Kalidas Mehta. Asian immigrants formed a prosperous trading community in Uganda before they were expelled by Idi Amin in 1972. Many returned following Amin's downfall, but some Ugandans view their presence and business with suspicion. The Mabira reserve forest in south-east Uganda covers about 30,000 hectares and is home to several rare species; it has been a reserve forest since 1932. A primatologist working in the area announced in February that monkeys in the forest previously thought to be Gray-cheeked Mangabey (''Lophocebus albigena'') were in fact a new species. President Yoweri Museveni's government is considering a proposal to de-notify and transfer 7,000 acres of land to the Sugar Corporation of Uganda Limited (Scoul) to expand its sugarcane plantations. A cabinet paper says the plan will generate 3500 jobs and will contribute 11.5 billion shillings to the treasury. Arched tree root in the Mabira forest. Source: S A Perez. Scoul bills itself as the largest employer in East Africa, with 7,300 employees manufacturing sugar and industrial alcohol at its 10,000 hectare Lugazi estate. The Ugandan newspaper ''Monitor'' reports that Scoul's plantations have been reduced in acreage after it failed to reach agreement over existing leases with various landlords. Scoul says that plantations at the Mabira forest will help double its annual production to 110 metric tonnes, and in a newspaper advertisement published on Thursday, said that "anti-development lobby groups" were misleading the public about the Mabira plan. In its environment policy, the company says it is committed to a managing land and wetlands resources in an environmentally sensitive manner. The plan is opposed by Ugandan MPs because of its environmental impact. An official from the Ugandan National Forestry Authority told the news agency AFP that the plan will destroy the area's biodiversity and affect locals' livelihood. Scoul says the forest land is already being encroached upon by subsistence farmers. Meanwhile, the group has been offered land in Mengo and by the Anglican church in Mukono as an alternative to the Mabira plan. Scoul Chief Executive S.C Khanna says that he will consider such an alternative if the land is fertile, free of "squatters" and close enough — within 30 km of the sugar factory — so that the cost of transporting sugarcane is viable. Scoul has increased security after multiple fires destroyed crops at its plantations. |
Please turn on JavaScript. Media requires JavaScript to play. Advertisement Brazil's President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva has arrived in Israel where he begins a tour of the Middle East. He is visiting Israel, the Palestinian territories and Jordan ahead of a more controversial visit to Iran in May. While in the region Lula will throw his country's growing diplomatic weight behind the Middle East peace process. Brazil has previously said it will not bow to pressure from the US on the issue of further sanctions against Iran over its nuclear work. President Lula's visit comes amid an ongoing US-Israeli row over the announcement of Israeli plans to build 1,600 homes for Jews in East Jerusalem. A top aide to President Barack Obama, David Axelrod, said on Sunday that the move was an "insult" to the United States and "destructive" to the peace process. President Lula has said the peace process requires "someone with neutrality" to speak to all sides. Heightened sensitivities His visit comes as Brazil continues to seek an expanded role for itself on the world stage, including a long-running campaign to secure a permanent seat on the UN Security Council. The BBC's Gary Duffy, in Sao Paulo, says the trip stands out from the president's other overseas visits as being both unusual and carrying heightened sensitivities. In November last year, Mahmoud Ahmadinejad became the first Iranian president to visit Brazil. On that occasion, President Lula criticised attempts to isolate Iran over its nuclear ambitions but he also urged President Ahmadinejad to engage with the West. Newspapers in Brazil have observed that this is the first time a Brazilian head of state has been to this region since a journey by the last Emperor of Brazil, Dom Pedro II, in 1876, our correspondent says. President Lula is due to meet the Israeli President Shimon Peres and the Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, and to travel to the West Bank to meet the Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas. He will also visit Israel's Holocaust museum and in a gesture to Palestinians will stay the night in Bethlehem, while later in the week he will travel on to Jordan. However, our correspondent says, he arrives in the region amid renewed tensions in the Middle East peace process, and there seems likely to be limited expectations over what even a fresh perspective can achieve at this delicate stage. Bookmark with: Delicious Digg reddit Facebook StumbleUpon What are these? E-mail this to a friend Printable version ||||| Trump Encourages Americans To Get Covid-19 Vaccine Former President Donald Trump has called upon his Republican supporters to get vaccinated against Covid-19. In a TV interview, Trump said the vaccines currently being administered in the United States are "safe" and "something that works." 8 People, Including 6 Women Of Asian Origin, Shot Dad In Spas In Atlanta Eight people, including six women of Asian origin, were killed in shooting spree at three massage parlors in Atlanta, Georgia. South Korea's foreign ministry has confirmed that four of the victims were of Korean descent. Two other victims were a white woman and a white man, according to the spokesman for Acworth, Cherokee County Sheriff's office. Public officials raised doubt if the attacks were 54K New COVID Cases, 1245 New Deaths In US 54434 new coronavirus cases and 1245 deaths from the disease were reported in the United States on Tuesday. With this, the national total of COVID cases increased to 29495420, according to latest data compiled by Johns Hopkins University. The U.S. COVID death toll rose to 536922. California, Florida and Texas, the three worst-affected states, reported more than 100 COVID deaths while New York h WHO, EU Safety Experts Meeting To Review AstraZeneca Vaccine As More Nations Suspend Rollout Health officials from the UN and the European Union are meeting on Tuesday to review the safety of Oxford-AstraZeneca anti-coronavirus vaccine as European countries continue to halt its use following reports of possible side effects. The World Health Organization's Secretary General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said that its Advisory Committee on Vaccine Safety has been reviewing available data on White House COVID Response Team Warns Against Complacency As COVID Metrics Plateau 57083 new coronavirus cases and 751 deaths from the disease were reported in the United States on Monday. With this, the national total of COVID cases increased to 29495420, according to latest data compiled by Johns Hopkins University. The U.S. COVID death toll rose to 535628. California and Texas, the two worst-affected states, reported more than 100 COVID deaths while New York had the most nu With 28th Win, Beyonce Becomes Most-awarded Woman In Grammys History With her 28th win, Beyonce has become the most-awarded female artist in the 63-year old history of Grammy Awards Beyoncé, who received nine nominations in the 63rd Annual Grammy Awards, won four of them to surpass Alison Krauss to become the most-awarded woman in the show's history, and tied Quincy Jones as the artists with the second-most wins. Beyoncé and her 9-year-old daughter Blue Ivy Carte Low COVID Metrics At The Weekend In US 38034 new coronavirus cases and 572 deaths from the disease were reported in the United States on Sunday, the lowest figures in both metrics in recent months. This is the data recorded on the last day of the past week in which an average of more than 53,000 Covid-19 cases and more than 1,350 deaths were reported daily. With this, the national total of COVID cases increased to 29438779, according COVID-19 Vaccine Program To Be Extended To 950 Community Health Centers As part of President Joe Biden's commitment to ensure the nation's underserved communities and those disproportionately affected by COVID-19 are equitably vaccinated, the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) announced that an additional 700 HRSA-supported health centers will be invited to join the Health Center COVID-19 Vaccine Program this week. These health centers will have the opp Biden Sets Goal Of US Independence From Covid-19 On July 4 President Joe Biden has announced the next phase of his administration's wartime effort to vaccinate the entire American population with the goal of leading the United States to independence" from Covid-19 by July 4. Biden promised in his primetime address Thursday to mark the first anniversary of the coronavirus pandemic that all adult Americans will be eligible to get a vaccine no later than Ma New US COVID Cases Rise Above 60K With an additional 62689 coronavirus cases reported in the United States on Thursday, the national total increased to 29286142, according to latest data compiled by Johns Hopkins University. With 1618 new deaths in the same period, the U.S. COVID death toll rose to 530821. President Joe Biden promised in his primetime address Thursday to mark the first anniversary of the coronavirus pandemic tha US Defense Secretary To Visit Asia To Focus On Strengthening Ties With Japan, Korea, India Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin will embark on a three nation tour in the Indo-Pacific region this week to discuss the strengthening of existing partnerships and alliances there. The Defense Department announced that Austin will depart on Saturday to visit the U.S. Indo-Pacific Command headquarters in Biden To Sign $1.9 Tln Covid Relief Bill Friday President Joe Biden intends to sign the massive $1.9-trillion Covid-19 relief bill that was passed by both the houses of the US Congress on Friday. The package, which represents Biden's ambitious attempt to rebuild the US economy hit hard by the coronavirus, was approved by the House of Representatives by a 220-211 vote along partisan lines. The Senate had already passed the Bill. Biden said in 56000 New COVID Cases, 1500 Deaths In US With an additional 56663 coronavirus cases reported in the United States on Wednesday, the national total increased to 29096053, according to latest data compiled by Johns Hopkins University. With 1504 new deaths in the same period, the U.S. COVID death toll rose to 529203. CDC's most recent data indicate that the recent plateau of cases may be again starting to trend downward, with a seven-day Arkansas Bans Most Abortions Arkansas has banned nearly all abortions in the state. The Arkansas Senate Bill, SB6, was signed into law by Governor Asa Hutchinson on Tuesday. SB6 is a pro-life bill that prohibits abortion in all cases except to save the life of the mother in a medical emergency. It does not include exceptions for women who become pregnant by rape or incest. Abortion-rights advocates have vowed to challenge t | Brazilian President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva in 2007. Brazil's President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva has arrived in Israel to start his tour of the Middle East that will also include visits to the and Jordan. He is also set to visit Iran in May. His visit comes at a time when Israeli-US relationships are tense over Israel's plans to build 1,600 homes for Jews in Jerusalem. During his time in Israel, Lula will meet with President and the Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. He is planning to visit Israel’s Holocaust Museum and meet with Palestinian Authority President , in addition spending a night in . Lula will visit Iran later this year. Last year, Iranian President became the first Iranian leader to visit the South American nation. Through these international tours, Lula is hoping to expand Brazil's role in world politics. He is furthermore campaigning to have a permanent seat on the . |
The shooting has shocked Finland, where gun crime is unusual Under the plan, minors would be banned from buying guns but would be allowed to use them under adult supervision. Currently, 15-year-olds can buy guns with parental permission. Finland has the world's third highest rate of gun ownership according to a recent survey. A student, 18, killed eight people and fatally wounded himself at his school in the town of Tuusula on Wednesday. The shooting shocked Finland, which has low levels of violent crime despite the high rate of gun ownership. According to the Small Arms Survey, based in Geneva, Switzerland, only the US and Yemen have more firearms per capita. Video warning Hunting and shooting are popular in Finland and the country has until now resisted pressure to bring its gun laws into line with the rest of Europe. "The cabinet is ready to agree on a proposal which says that those under 18 years old can use a gun only under parental or adult guidance," said cabinet spokeswoman Sanna Kangasharju. FINLAND GUN FACTS 5.2 million population World's 3rd highest gun ownership 56 guns per 100 people Low rate of gun violence Guns used in 14% of homicides In pictures: Finland shooting Finland shocked at shooting Pekka-Eric Auvinen opened fire in Jokela High School with his .22 calibre pistol on Wednesday as students were about to start their lunch break. Six students and two members of staff, including the female head teacher, were killed before Auvinen shot himself in the head. He was taken to hospital with critical injuries and died later. Police have found a suicide note he left where he explained his hatred towards society, police said. He also gave a warning of the shooting in a video posted on the internet. Police said Auvinen had apparently selected his victims at random but had been intent on causing maximum damage. Auvinen obtained the licence for his pistol on 19 October, police said. ||||| HELSINKI (Reuters) - Finland said on Friday it would tighten gun policies after an 18-year-old killed six fellow students and two staff members with a handgun this week in the country's deadliest school shooting. The Nordic country had resisted European Union plans to limit gun ownership to those 18 years or older across the continent. Finns as young as 15 have had the right to own and use a gun. "Finland has changed its position to the EU firearms directive," Finland's Minister of the Interior, Anne Holmlund, told Reuters in an interview. She said the permit to buy a gun would be raised to 18 years from 15 years and youths between 15 and 18 could only carry a gun with parental supervision. Pekka-Eric Auvinen obtained a license for the .22 caliber handgun he used in Wednesday's massacre through a gun club last month. In Internet postings, he referred to the gun as "Catherine". Prime Minister Matti Vanhanen said Finland's views on gun policy might change after the shooting at Jokela High School, but Holmlund denied the incident was behind the policy shift. "There is no direct link (to the school shooting). ... It is important that our new position is clear," Holmlund said. "We were the only EU member country that was willing to keep its regulations untouched and it was obvious we would be left alone." Finland has the world's third-highest gun ownership per capita. While hunting is a widespread hobby, deadly shootings are rare. Continued... ||||| Threat of 'copycat' attack in Finland Last Updated: 09/11/2007 16:53 Panic swept a school in southern Finland today after an online threat that it would be the next target for a shooting rampage, the school's principal said. Two days earlier, 18-year-old Pekka-Eric Auvinen shot dead six fellow students and two staff members at a school in nearby Tuusula, in a massacre foreshadowed by the gunman in online postings in the days and hours before the shooting. The Finnish government said it would toughen regulations on gun ownership by those aged under 18. "Yesterday there was a threat on the Internet ... someone posted a note with the username 'Sturmgeist', saying that the next target would be a Kirkkonummi middle school," Maarit Rossi, principal of Kirkkoharju middle school in Kirkkonummi, said today. "One can imagine how the rumours spread when we have 1,300 pupils in the complex. This did not proceed calmly, there was panic," Mr Rossi said. Auvinen, who shot himself in the head after the rampage and died later of his injuries, used "Sturmgeist89" as his username on his postings on the YouTube Web site. He began making postings on Monday indicating that he planned a massacre at his high school. The last was made less than an hour before the shootings, police said today. "Sturmgeist" means "storm spirit" in German. Officials at Kirkkoharju said today they had allowed pupils to leave with parental permission and had suspended regular classes. "At first I thought it was a joke, but then I started to think about everything that has happened this week. I was scared of going to class," Susanne Cederberg, 17, said at the school. Police said they regarded the threats aimed at Kirkkonummi, about 70 km (44 miles) from Tuusula, as "a bad joke" but were investigating who posted the message on the Web. Finnish police visited a second school in Tuusula today to talk to pupils and their parents after rumours of similar threats against it. © 2007 ireland.com | shooting Finland is considering toughening gun legislation in light of this week's Jokela school shooting. Nine people, including the gunman, were killed when Pekka-Eric Auvinen, 18, went on a shooting spree at his local school. Until now, Finland has actively resisted plans for all European Union member states to limit gun ownership to persons aged 18 and over. Currently, the law stipulates that Finns may apply for a gun permit at age 15. However, Anne Holmlund, Finnish interior minister, told reporters today that "Finland has changed its position to the EU firearms directive." Holmlund told the press that the intention is now to raise the age for ownership to 18, and require those aged 15-18 to be under parental supervision when carrying or using a firearm. Prime minister of Finland Matti Vanhanen had earlier commented that the shooting would likely cause a change in Finnish gun control policy, but Holmlund denied a direct connection. "There is no direct link (to the school shooting). ... It is important that our new position is clear," Holmlund said. "We were the only EU member country that was willing to keep its regulations untouched and it was obvious we would be left alone." She added. "As all other EU countries are ready to accept the age limit of 18 years for the acquisition of firearms ... Finland does not want to oppose the said amendment to the directive under the circumstances." "The cabinet is ready to agree on a proposal which says that those under 18 years old can use a gun only under parental or adult guidance," commented cabinet spokeswoman Sanna Kangasharju. Ministry spokesman Ilkka Salmi agreed that a potential change in legislation was being considered months beforehand, but added that, "It's obvious that this kind of tragic incident has probably sped up the decision." Auvinen had obtained a license for his .22 caliber handgun via a local shooting club just weeks prior to the attack, on October 19. He opened fire on students and staff shortly before lunch break was due to start, killing five students and two staff members with the gun, which he called 'Catherine' in internet discussions, before turning it on himself. He later died in hospital. There is also evidence he attempted to set the building on fire. Police have commented that he had apparently acted with intent to kill as many as possible, but selected his victims at random. The day prior to the incident, he posted a video on YouTube announcing his intentions. Police have also recovered a suicide note that said that he hated society. In related news, police are investigating after an internet posting claimed Kirkkoharju middle school in Kirkkonummi was going to be the subject of another attack. Police say they are treating the incident as a "bad joke". Finnish gun ownership per capita is the third highest in the world, due largely to a long tradition of hunting sports in the country, but fatal attacks are exceedingly rare. Around 13% of the 5.2 million inhabitants own a gun, with only the United States and Yemen having higher levels of gun ownership. |
Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Qin Gang said in Beijing Sunday that the responsibility for the current situation of Sino-Japanese relations does not lie with China. In response to a journalist's question, Qin said "Japan must adopt an earnest attitude and appropriate ways to deal with major principled issues concerning the feelings of the Chinese people. The Japanese have to do more things conducive to enhancing mutual trust and maintaining the relations between the two countries, rather than doing the reverse." Japanese Foreign Minister Nobutaka Machimura on Sunday demanded an official apology and compensation from China for the Japanese embassy being attacked and damaged by demonstrators in Beijing. Qin said that during the protests and demonstrations against Japan in Beijing in recent days, the Chinese government has been appealing to demonstrators to remain calm and sane and to express their opinions in a lawful and orderly way. He said relevant departments of the Chinese government have done a great deal to ensure the safety of Japanese citizens and organizations in China. China, however, does not want to see few radical actions occurred in the process of the recent demonstrations in Beijing, he said. Thousands of people gathered in Beijing over the past couple of days to protest Japan's distortion of its wartime past and Tokyo'sbid for a permanent seat on the UN Security Council. People came to the Hailong shopping center in northern Beijing's Haidian district, carrying anti-Japanese banners. The government mobilized a huge police force to maintain order. Japan officially approved a new textbook Tuesday that glosses over Japanese wartime atrocities. The gathering participants called out slogans such as "Boycott Japanese products," "Protect the Diaoyu Islands" and "Smash Japan's daydream of seeking a permanent seat on the UN Security Council." ||||| STAY 'LEVEL-HEADED': WANG Machimura demands apology from China Foreign Minister Nobutaka Machimura lodged a formal protest with Chinese Ambassador Wang Yi on Sunday and demanded an apology for an anti-Japanese rally in Beijing the previous day that turned violent. Chinese Ambassador Wang Yi (right) meets with Foreign Minister Nobutaka Machimura at the Foreign Ministry on Sunday, where Japan expressed its displeasure with a demonstration that took place in front of the Japanese Embassy in Beijing the previous day. "A series of acts of vandalism on not only the Japanese Embassy and the ambassador's residence, but also Japanese firms, is indeed a serious problem," Machimura told reporters after a half-hour meeting with Wang at the Foreign Ministry. But later Sunday in Beijing, Qin Gang, a spokesman for the Chinese Foreign Ministry, said "the responsibility for the current state of affairs between Japan and China does not rest with China." Machimura sought assurances for the safety of Japanese nationals and asked that steps be taken to prevent a repeat of Saturday's events. He also called on the Chinese side to pay for the damage. "Although (China had taken) security measures, it is problematic that security was not effective enough to prevent such an incident," Machimura said. Wang responded by telling Machimura that Japan's concerns will be conveyed to China, and called for both sides to be "level-headed" in dealing with such matters, according to the minister. He added that Wang did not issue a clear apology during the meeting. "The (Chinese) government does not endorse any violent actions," Wang told reporters in Japanese after the meeting. A Foreign Ministry official later quoted Wang as saying that China would do "its utmost" to prevent violent activities from occuring in the future. Japan and China are currently making arrangements to hold talks between their foreign ministers in Beijing on April 17. Machimura is expected to use the opportunity to urge his Chinese counterpart, Li Zhaoxing, to take steps to prevent such vandalism. Thousands of Chinese protesters marched in Beijing, accusing Tokyo of distorting its wartime past and urging a boycott of Japanese products. Some participants hurled rocks, eggs and plastic bottles at the embassy and the ambassador's residence as well as restaurants and a bank. No official figures were announced, but estimates of the number of anti-Japanese protesters in the demonstration ranged from 10,000 to 20,000. It is believed to be the first major anti-Japanese demonstration in Beijing since the two countries normalized relations in 1972. About 20 window panes were broken at the embassy, according to a Japanese Embassy official. The Japan Times: April 11, 2005 (C) All rights reserved About us / Contact us / Advertising / Subscribe News / Business / Opinion / Arts & Culture / Life in Japan Sports / Festivals / Cartoons Advertise in japantimes.co.jp. This site is optimized for viewing with Netscape or Internet Explorer, version 4.0 or above. The Japan Times Ltd. All rights reserved. ||||| Anti-Japanese protests have been building throughout the week The rallies follow a 10,000-strong march in the Chinese capital - the city's biggest protest since 1999. Protesters are angry at a new Japanese history textbook which they believe plays down Japan's wartime atrocities. Japan has protested to China after stone-throwing protesters attacked Japan's embassy in Beijing on Saturday. Japan's foreign minister is to visit China next week to discuss "a number of bilateral and international issues", a spokesman for Japan's Foreign Ministry said. Security measures At least 3,000 people demonstrated at the Japanese consulate in the southern city of Guangzhou on Sunday, shouting for a boycott of Japanese goods and burning Japanese flags. A Japanese diplomat said some windows in the consulate were broken. Hong Kong cable television showed protesters with Chinese flags and banners reading "down with Japanese militarism". A city hall spokesman said the "spontaneous demonstration" was peaceful and under control. China says it has mobilised a huge police force to maintain order. Thousands more marched in Shenzhen, also in the southern Guangdong province, and threw objects at Japanese-owned businesses. On Saturday, Japan summoned the Chinese ambassador to demand a formal apology, after windows at its embassy in Beijing were broken during a demonstration, despite the presence of Chinese police. The ambassador, Wang Yi, said Beijing did not condone the protests. However, correspondents say the fact that Saturday's demonstration took place at all signals tacit acceptance, if not approval, by the authorities. 'Whitewash' The protests were sparked by new Japanese schoolbooks, which many Chinese say whitewash Japan's occupation of much of China during the 1930s and early 1940s. Critics are angered that one of the books refers to the killing of more than 250,000 civilians by Japanese troops in the Chinese city of Nanjing in 1937 as an "incident", rather than the "massacre" it is known as elsewhere. China says it mobilised police to protect Japanese buildings They also say it glosses over mass sex slavery of Asian women by Japanese troops. Anti-Japanese sentiment has also been fuelled by Japan's campaign for a permanent seat on the UN Security Council. Many Chinese feel Japan has not yet addressed its wartime history, and as such is not fit to take up such a position of responsibility, says the BBC's Rupert Wingfield-Hayes in Beijing. Tokyo says private companies, not the government, were responsible for the texts, and that it is up to individual school districts to decide which books they use. The book, approved by a local education authority, is one of many and has been taken up by a tiny proportion of schools in Japan, our correspondent says. ||||| China protests again target Japan BEIJING, China (CNN) -- As Japan's ambassador called on the Chinese government to take stronger measures to protect Japanese citizens in China, thousands of Chinese citizens took to the streets in another protest to call for a boycott of Japanese products and to shout anti-Japanese slogans. Sunday's protest by about 3,000 protesters who surrounded Japan's consulate in Guangzhou, capital of the southern Guangdong province, followed Saturday's angry demonstration at Japan's embassy in Beijing. Video of Sunday's protest showed a mostly youthful crowd carrying anti-Japanese banners and Chinese flags while they sang, shouted and chanted. Several Japanese flags were burned. Japanese press attache Ide Keiji told reporters Sunday that Japan's envoy Koreshige Anami met Chinese Deputy Foreign Minister and called Saturday's protest, in which rocks and bottles were thrown at the Japanese embassy, "gravely regrettable." Ambassador Koreshige also asked the Chinese government to take all necessary measures to protect Japanese citizens in China, something he said has not been done, Ide said. The Japanese spokesman said the Chinese Deputy Foreign Minister expressed regret on behalf of his government for the Saturday protest and said the Chinese government could not allow it to happen again. The protests are targeted at Japan's bid to become a permanent U.N. Security Council member and have been made more emotional by Chinese objections to how Japanese school textbooks recount Japan's 20th century military campaigns. The protesters in Beijing Saturday chanted anti-Japanese slogans, sang patriotic songs, waved Chinese flags and carried banners critical of Japan. Some protesters threw rocks and plastic water bottles toward the embassy gate. The messages included a call for China to boycott Japanese products. Hundreds of military police in riot gear lined up outside the embassy, while hundreds more police blocked nearby streets to keep the number of protesters down. Police moved in to end the protest after about an hour. It was the biggest protest in the Chinese capital since 1999 when angry crowds demonstrated outside the U.S. Embassy after three Chinese were killed when the Chinese Embassy in Belgrade, in what was then the Yugoslav capital, was accidentally bombed. That came during the NATO air war against the Serb-led forces in the Serbian province of Kosovo, where Serbs and ethnic Albanians had been fighting. | The protesters repeated their demands for a boycott of Japanese goods, to block Japan from obtaining a seat on the U.N. Security Council, and for Japan to change textbooks which they say whitewash Japan's war atrocities. Chinese protests against the publication of a Japanese government textbook continued for a second day in China, (Sunday) as an estimated three thousand protesters marched on the Japanese consulate in Guangzhou. Thousands of protesters also marched in Shenzhen, throwing objects at Japanese businesses. The protesters repeated their demands for a boycott of Japanese goods, to block Japan from obtaining a seat on the U.N. Security Council, and for Japan to change textbooks which they say whitewash Japan's war atrocities. Protesters burned Japanese flags while singing and shouting anti-Japanese slogans. They also carried anti-Japanese signs along with Chinese flags. Chinese view the textbook as "whitewashing" the events and actions of Japan to cast them in a more positive light. The protests are against the , which is publishing a high-school textbook that refers to the Nanjing Massacre as an "incident" ( translation) and de-emphasizes the roles of comfort women as well as the contemporary issues surrounding Japanese Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi's visits to the Yasukuni shrine, in honor of Japanese soldiers. The Japanese government has claimed that the demonstrations have an "anti-Japanese sentiment," for which China should apologise. In , Japan formally summoned Wang Yi, China's ambassador to Japan, concerning China's actions on Sunday. "We formally demanded China’s apology and compensation," said Japanese Foreign Minister . He also said that Wang Yi replied "No" when asked for an apology. While not issuing a formal apology through diplomatic channels, Wang claimed that China did not approve of the violent aspects of the protests. "The (Chinese) government does not agree with extreme action," he said. Back in , the ''People's Daily'' reported that Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Qin Gang deflected blame away from China for the recent downturn in Sino-Japanese relations. "Japan must adopt an earnest attitude and appropriate ways to deal with major principled issues concerning the feelings of the Chinese people," Qin said. "The Japanese have to do more things conducive to enhancing mutual trust and maintaining the relations between the two countries, rather than doing the reverse," he said. |
Family, friends and senior politicians attended the service for the Livingston MP at St Giles Cathedral in Edinburgh. Chancellor Gordon Brown said his Labour colleague's death had left a gap "which can never be properly filled". Mr Cook died last weekend at the age of 59 after falling ill while walking in the Scottish hills. The mourners were led by Mr Cook's wife Gaynor and his sons from his first marriage, Peter and Christopher. His ex-wife Margaret attended with partner Robin Howie. His election agent Jim Devine, a close personal friend and the best man at his second wedding, greeted mourners. Delivering the principal tribute to Mr Cook, the chancellor said his colleague was "taken from us at the height of his powers". 'Greatest parliamentarian' "His mission and his achievement was not just to make great speeches but to advance great causes - and he did. "This is how I believe we best remember Robin, not just for what he said and how he said it but what he stood for - the greatest parliamentarian of our time, who put all his talents and his life at the service of the greatest causes of our time. "Whenever there was injustice he sought to right it, wherever there was poverty he fought a war against it." Readings were also given by Mr Cook's children, Glasgow MP Mohammad Sarwar and racing pundit John McCririck. He attacked Prime Minister Tony Blair, who is abroad on holiday and did not attend the service, for delivering a "snub" to the Cook family. He said his decision "demonstrates a petty vindictiveness and a moral failure, opting to continue snorkelling instead of doing his duty". However, Mr Devine responded: "John McCririck was wrong to say those things. It is not what Robin would have wanted." The service was led by the Right Reverend Richard Holloway, former Primus of the Scottish Episcopal Church. He told mourners that as an avowed atheist Mr Cook would have raised a "quizzical eyebrow" at the service being held in St Giles Cathedral. But he said it was an "entirely appropriate" venue because, like late First Minister Donald Dewar, Mr Cook was "a Presbyterian atheist". We meet to give thanks for one of Scotland's greatest sons Right Reverend Richard Holloway And he added: "This historic cathedral is not just the home of a Christian church, it is an important place in the civic and community life of Scotland. "So it is entirely fitting that it is where we meet to give thanks for one of Scotland's greatest sons and in which to express our feeling of sorrow and loss at his untimely death." Christopher Cook read from his father's political memoir The Point Of Departure, while his brother Peter chose a passage from Germinal by Emile Zola - one of his father's favourite books. The service also featured a recital by traditional musicians Aly Bain and Phil Cunningham. Robin Cook took ill while hillwalking Floral tributes were placed outside the doors of the cathedral on the city's Royal Mile. The square next to St Giles is usually bustling with festival performers, but was cleared of entertainers for the funeral. Many people stood behind crowd barriers to watch mourners arrive and then listen to the service on a loudspeaker. After the service the funeral cortege left for a local cemetery and a private burial. Mr Cook collapsed while hillwalking in the Scottish Highlands last weekend. He was pronounced dead in hospital after he fell eight feet down a ridge, near the summit of 2,365ft Ben Stack. A post-mortem examination concluded that he died from hypertensive heart disease. ||||| Mr Cook had apparently collapsed with a suspected heart attack on the mountainside while out walking during his summer holidays. He was also reported to have seriously injured himself in a fall after his collapse. The father-of-two grown up sons was on the mountain for nearly half an hour before rescue services reached him. Then, guided by medical experts via telephone, they battled to revive him using cardio pulmonary resuscitation equipment, before he was airlifted by helicopter to hospital in Inverness. But it was more than three hours later before police confirmed his death. A police spokesman added: "As is normal in such circumstances, a report will be prepared for the Procurator Fiscal." Prime minister Tony Blair described Mr Cook as "an outstanding, extraordinary talent". In a statement released by 10 Downing Street, Mr Blair said: "Our thoughts and prayers are with Gaynor and all Robin's family. "This news will be received with immense sadness, not just in Britain but in many parts of the world. "Robin was an outstanding, extraordinary talent - brilliant, incisive in debate, of incredible skill and persuasive power." Mr Cook was a keen hill-walker, who regularly spent his summer holidays with close family and friends enjoying the dramatic mountain scenery of Highland Scotland, rather than going abroad. A leading figure in the Labour party for decades, Mr Cook was put in the key job of foreign secretary when the party won power in 1997. He was demoted to the post of leader of the Commons following Labour's second election victory in 2001 and resigned from the cabinet in protest at the Iraq war in 2003. He then became one of the sharpest critics of the government's foreign policy in Iraq. Mr Cook's devotion to enhancing the role of parliament as leader of the Commons made him a popular figure among backbench MPs, and his powerful resignation speech on the eve of war won him great respect from opponents of military action. ||||| Robin Cook was walking with wife Gaynor when he collapsed It is believed he was taken ill while walking with his wife Gaynor near the summit of Ben Stack, at around 1420 BST, Northern Constabulary said. Mr Cook was flown by coastguard helicopter to Raigmore Hospital in Inverness, where he was pronounced dead, said an NHS Highland spokesman. Mr Cook quit as Commons leader in March 2003, in protest over the war in Iraq. Following Mr Cook's death, former friends and colleagues paid tribute to him. The Conservative leader Michael Howard said: "He is a very great loss. He was someone who made an immense contribution to our political life." Liberal Democrat leader Charles Kennedy said: "Scottish, British and international politics have lost a good and gifted man." Keen walker RAF Kinloss Assistant controller Tom Docherty said the centre had received a call about a "collapsed male walker". Mr Cook was walking near the summit of Ben Stack "He was given CPR with instructions over the telephone from ambulance control staff at Inverness." It is understood Mr Cook, who has two adult sons, arrived at hospital at 4pm, about 90 minutes after his collapse and was declared dead five minutes later, said an NHS Highland spokesman. It was more than three hours before police confirmed his death, as it is believed family members were being informed. Following Mr Cook's death, a report will be prepared for the Procurator Fiscal, as is usual in such circumstances. Landslide win The Livingston MP, who lived in Edinburgh, was a keen walker and cyclist and a keen follower of horse racing. Robin Cook was flown from Ben Stack to Inverness He first became an MP for Edinburgh Central in 1974 and was appointed the shadow health secretary in 1989, becoming shadow trade and industry secretary in 1992. In 1994, he became the shadow foreign secretary, a position he held until the 1997 election. After Labour's landslide win, he entered the Cabinet as foreign secretary. A Cabinet reshuffle after the 2001 Labour victory saw him replaced at the Foreign Office by Jack Straw, with Mr Cook instead given the job of Leader of the Commons. He resigned that position in the lead-up to the conflict in Iraq in protest over Tony Blair's decision to go to war. He had been an outspoken critic of the government's foreign policy from the backbench. | Robin Cook Robin Cook, the former British foreign secretary and current Member of Parliament, has died of a suspected heart attack after collapsing on a walk with his wife on Ben Stack hill, Scotland. Cook, aged 59, was flown to a hospital in Inverness by a rescue service helicopter half an hour after collapsing. A spokesperson for NHS Highland said that Mr. Cook arrived at hospital 90 minutes after his collapse, and was reported dead five minutes later. A postmortem examination has concluded that he died from hypertensive heart disease. Mr. Cook was buried on August 12 at St Giles Cathedral in Edinburgh in a service attended by close family, friends and political figures from across the world. British Prime Minister Tony Blair however came under attack from Mr. Cooks friend and racing pundit John McCririck for his absence from the service. Robin Cook served as Foreign Secretary under New Labour and was a critic of the war in Iraq. He resigned as Leader of the House of Commons in 2003 in protest against Prime Minister Blair's foreign policies. |
JK Rowling has amassed a £540m fortune from writing It will be called Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows. The announcement was made on the writer's official website. Despite the publication date not being known, the book is tipped to be a big seller, like the rest in the series. Speculation about the plot has surrounded the book after Rowling admitted two characters will die - some think it could be Harry Potter himself. 'Elated and overwrought' The title has certainly got some fans excited. Harry, 13, from Leicestershire emailed BBC Newsround and said: "It sounds interesting, but a bit sinister." Book chain Waterstone's children's buyer, Sam Harrison, said the announcement had been greeted with "huge excitement" among Potter fans. "This is a wonderfully intriguing and ominous title, with all the sense of magic and adventure that any true Potter fan has come to love and expect," Harrison added. I'm now writing scenes that have been planned, in some cases, for a dozen years or even more JK Rowling The last book, Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince, broke UK records by shifting just over two million copies on its first day of release. Sales of all Harry Potter titles now total more than 52 million worldwide. This week Rowling revealed how she has gone back to writing in cafes - as she did 13 years ago when starting to write about the boy wizard. She has also admitted how she has been dreaming of the character. Writing on her website she described it as an "epic dream" where she was Harry and the narrator simultaneously. THE HARRY POTTER SERIES Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone (Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone in the US) Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince In a recent web posting, she said she has been working hard on the last book. "I'm now writing scenes that have been planned, in some cases, for a dozen years or even more," she said. She also described feeling "alternately elated and overwrought" at writing it and joked she cannot decide if she wants to finish it or not. The first four novels in the series have been turned into films, while the fifth, Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix, is currently in production and is due for release in July 2007. Helena Bonham Carter joins the cast as the evil Bellatrix Lestrange and Imelda Staunton will play the part of dark arts teacher Dolores Umbridge. ||||| As she completes the final instalment of the hit Harry Potter book series, author J.K. Rowling has come full circle, doing most of her writing in a café. The Scottish author has been hard at work writing "huge parts" of Book 7 in a local café, she wrote in an entry posted Tuesday on her website. J.K. Rowling, seen on a New York stage with John Irving in August, says she has returned to writing in a café for the final Harry Potter book. (Ann Billingsley/Scholastic/Associated Press) "I'm writing scenes that have been planned, in some cases, for a dozen years or even more," Rowling wrote. "I don't think anyone who has not been in a similar situation can possibly know how this feels: I am alternately elated and overwrought. I both want, and don't want, to finish this book (don't worry, I will)." The final Harry Potter book, in which the young wizard is expected to engage in an all-out battle with his evil nemesis, Lord Voldemort, is expected for release in summer 2007. Rowling's newest post also mentioned visiting Leavesden Studios, northwest of London, to check the progress on the fifth instalment of the movie franchise, Harry Potter and the Order of The Phoenix, due out in July 2007. Rowling, now one of the most famous authors in the world, wrote her first Potter book in Edinburgh cafés 13 years ago. Whenever her eldest daughter Jessica fell asleep, Rowling would put her into a carriage and wheel her to the nearest café, she has previously recounted on the site. Once there, she would rush to write as much as she could about the now famous boy wizard, his friends and enemies as well as Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry, the magical boarding school they attend. Fans of the internationally beloved Harry Potter franchise, which has sold more than 300 million books worldwide and been translated into 47 languages, are eagerly awaiting the final book. ||||| Why did this happen? Please make sure your browser supports JavaScript and cookies and that you are not blocking them from loading. For more information you can review our Terms of Service and Cookie Policy. | British author J.K. Rowling has revealed the title of the seventh and final book in the Harry Potter series in an online game on her official website. Contenders would click on items to reveal a chamber, then they would use the clues given and guess the title. After fans played a game they were rewarded with the title of the book which is to be called ''Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows''. She also revealed that Harry had been taking place in her dreams and she was returning to writing in cafes, as she did 13 years ago. "One character got a reprieve but I have to say that two die that I didn't intend to die," Rowling, 41, said June 27 on ''Richard & Judy'', a television show run in the U.K. The book is first published in the U.K. by London-based Bloomsbury and then sent to the U.S. by Scholastic Corp. "I'm writing scenes that have been planned, in some cases, for a dozen years or even more," Rowling wrote on her website. "I don't think anyone who has not been in a similar situation can possibly know how this feels: I am alternately elated and overwrought. I both want, and don't want, to finish this book (don't worry, I will)." The film version of ''Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix'', the fifth book in the series published June 21, 2003, is still in production and will be released in July 2007. Rowling was inspired to write after her mother died from multiple sclerosis in 1990 and after a marriage breakdown. She started writing in Edinburgh cafés. Whenever her daughter Jessica fell asleep she would put her in a carriage beside her and stroll her to the closest café. 300 million books worldwide have been sold and the series has been translated into 47 languages. No publication date has been set. |
Edgar Ray Killen A judge in the U.S. state of Mississippi has sentenced an 80-year-old man to 60 years in prison for the killings of three civil rights workers more than 40 years ago. The sentence is expected to bring to a close one of the most bitter episodes of the U.S. civil rights era. Edgar Ray Killen, an 80-year-old sawmill operator, part-time Baptist preacher and alleged leader of the hate group, the Ku Klux Klan, was given the maximum sentence of 60 years in prison, after being convicted on three counts of manslaughter on Tuesday. The conviction came 41 years to the day after three young civil rights workers, James Chaney, Michael Schwerner and Andrew Goodman, were murdered. The three disappeared after being briefly arrested near Philadelphia, Mississippi. They had been registering voters in Mississippi in the so-called freedom summer of 1964. Their bodies were found several weeks later, and 19 men, including Edgar Ray Killen, were tried in 1967 on federal civil rights charges. Seven men were convicted in that case, but Edgar Ray Killen was set free, after the jury deadlocked. Mr. Killen, who said he was innocent of the charges, was re-tried on state murder charges this year, after new evidence based on secret testimony implicated him as the leader of the group that killed the three civil rights workers. A mixed race jury found him guilty of manslaughter in the three killings, but was unable to find him guilty of the more serious charge of murder. In passing sentence on Thursday, Judge Marcus Gordon commended the jury, saying it made a difficult decision that will be criticized by people on both sides of the case. "No doubt they may be subjected to some criticism," he said. "They may be subjected to some abuse and some ridicule. Yet, you just have to remember that they are citizens, who are here to perform an unpleasant duty, and they did so. I respect those persons and you all who are here, who are critical of the judgment of the jury, those of you who believe the jury should have found Mr. Killen not guilty, and those of you who believe that the findings of manslaughter are wrong, and they should have found the persons guilty of murder - you have to remember that, no doubt these persons attempted to follow the evidence to the best of their ability." Edgar Ray Killen's lawyers say they will appeal the verdict. All three of the victims were in their early 20's when they were murdered. James Chaney was an African-American from Mississippi. Andrew Goodman and Michael Schwerner were white men from New York. The killings shocked the nation, and, in part, led to a federal crackdown on the Ku Klux Klan. Prosecutors across the U.S. South have reopened a number of so-called atonement cases in recent years. In 1994, they achieved a conviction in the assassination of Medgar Evers, a black civil rights leader who was killed in Mississippi. Three years ago, a man was convicted in the 1963 fire-bombing of a church in Birmingham, Alabama that killed four young black girls. Earlier this year, prosecutors exhumed the body of Emmit Till, a young African-American, who was kidnapped and killed in Mississippi in 1955, and they are expected to reopen that case in the near future. ||||| We spoke to four people about the impact losing a loved one has had on them, and about their search for answers in a country with the worst death toll per capita of any of the world’s large economies | Judge Marcus Gordon passed sentence on 80 year old Edgar Ray Killen who was convicted Tuesday of three counts of manslaughter in the slaying of three civil rights workers in 1964. The judge sentenced Killen to the maximum 20 years for each count -- a total of 60 years. Judge Gordon noted some people "would say a sentence of 10 years would be a life sentence" for Killen. The minimum time Killen could serve is one-third, or 20 years. The conviction came 41 years to the day after James Chaney, Michael Schwerner and Andrew Goodman were murdered. They had been registering minority votes in Mississippi during the "Freedom Summer" of 1964. Killen's attorneys say they will appeal the verdict. |
Fud Leclerc, the man who represented Belgium four times at the Eurovision Song Contest, passed on yesterday, Belgian media reports. The singer, who competed for Belgium already in 1956, got to do it again for another three times - in 1958, 1960 and 1962. At his last attempt, Leclerc's became the very first person to ever finish with the dreaded 0 points at the contest with the song Ton Nom. After his career as a pianist, accordionist, song writer and singer, Leclerc traveled the world before returning to Belgium where he began a new career as a building contractor. As his last notable connection with Europe's favourite TV-show, Leclerc was invited to a special programme for the 2005 Eurovision Song Contest by the Belgian broadcaster, RTBF as a guest star. ||||| Fud Leclerc, the Belgian singer who represented his country four times at the Eurovision Song Contest died yesterday at the age of 86. The 86 years old Belgian singer Fud Leclerc died yesterday. Fud Leclerc was the stage name of Fernand Urbain Dominic Leclerc. He got four times the honour from the Walloon broadcaster, RTBF, to represented Belgium at the Eurovision Song Contest. His first participation was in 1956. 2 years later, in 1958 he represented Belgium again with the song Ma petite chatte and achieved his best result. In 1960 he got again the ticket for Eurovision, where he performed the song Mon amour pour toi and findished 6th. Once again 2 year later, Fud represented Belgium at the 1962 Eurovision Song Contest. His song Ton Nom didn’t get any points. After his bad results in 1962, Fud decided to do something else in his life and changed career getting a job in the building sector. Belgian entry in 1958 Fud Leclerc - Ma petite chatte | at the , who represented Belgium at the four times, has died at the age of 86. Leclerc had the distinct honour of being the first person to score at the 1962 contest. The singer performed at the first contest in 1956 and appeared again two years later and achieved his best result with his performance of ''Ma petite chatte''. After appearing for the third time at the 1960 contest he made his final appearance at the 1962 contest. At the 1962 contest Leclerc became the first person in Eurovision history to fail to score any points, also known as Nul Points. During his career he also worked as a pianist and a songwriter. After his final Eurovision appearance he left the music industry and became a building contractor. In 2005 he made an appearance on a special programme to commemorate Eurovision. |
Argentine junta leader Massera dies Emilio Massera always defended his actions Continue reading the main story Related stories Former Argentine military ruler Emilio Eduardo Massera has died at the age of 85 after a long illness. The former admiral was one of the three-man military junta that ruled Argentina between 1976 and 1983. Mr Massera was placed under house arrest after being convicted of the torture and murder of civilians during Argentina's "Dirty War". He avoided prosecution on further charges after a court ruled he was too ill to stand trial. Germany, Spain, Italy and France had also sought his extradition over the killing of their citizens during military rule in Argentina. As commander of the Navy, Emilio Massera helped lead the coup that toppled President Isabel Eva Peron in 1976 at a time of rising political violence. Led by General Jorge Videla, the junta launched a campaign of oppression against left-wing opposition groups. Torture centre As head of the navy, Mr Massera was responsible for Argentina's most notorious torture centre, the navy mechanical school in Buenos Aires. Thousands of political prisoners were tortured and killed there, their bodies dumped dead or drugged into the sea from military aircraft. In a 1985 trial of junta leaders, Mr Massera was convicted of murder, torture and robbery. But he served only five years of his life sentence before he was released under an amnesty law. In 1998 he was put under house arrest on charges of stealing babies born to political prisoners and giving them up for adoption, a crime not covered by the amnesty law. And in 2007 his life sentence was reinstated after the courts ruled that the amnesty law was unconstitutional. But after suffering a stroke in 2002, he was considered too ill to face further prosecution, sparing him the multiple trials being faced the former President Jorge Videla and other junta figures. At his trial in 1985, Mr Massera refused to apologise for the abuses, saying the military was fighting a war against left-wing subversion. "Nobody has to defend himself for having won a fair war," he said. "You can't interrogate a terrorist as if you were questioning a child." Human rights groups say up to 30,000 Argentines were killed during military rule. ||||| Director: Orlando Mario Vignatti -- This publication is a property of NEFIR S.A. - Issn 1852 - 9224 - Te. 4349-1500 - San Juan 141 , (C1063ACY) CABA | Argentine admiral and member of the has died at the age of 85. Massera died after suffering from an episode of . He was one of the three men to rule Argentina from 1976 to 1983. Some human rights groups said that up to 30,000 people were killed during hi military rule. As Commander of the Massera, along with General and toppled the then Argentine President . The three ran the country under military rule for 7 years. Massera ran the torture centre at the navy mechanical school in Buenos Aires. There he oversaw the death of thousands of political prisoners. In 1985 at the trial of the junta leaders, Massera was sentenced to life in prison on charges of murder, torture and robbery. He only served five years of his sentence after he was released under an . However, in 1998 he was placed under . He was charged with the stealing of babies born to political prisoners, a crime not protected under amnesty law. He had his life sentence reinstated in 2007, but due to a stroke he suffered in 2002, he was deemed too ill to face prosecution. |
What's Next 25 August Celebrate Uruguay Independence Day 2 September Maj. Gen. Godofredo Correa, Mil Attaché, Brazil 2 September Celebrate Trinidad & Tobago Independence Day 4 September Celebrate Brazil Independence Day 12 September Festival of the Hemisphere Dinner, Columbus Trade Center 15 September Celebrate Independence Days for Costa Rica, El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras, and Nicaragua 16 September Celebrate Mexico Independence Day 17 September Celebrate Chile Independence Day 26 September Fest. of the Hemisphere Open House, Faith Middle School ||||| School of the Americas Cold War training camp remains focus of controversy By Bruce Kennedy CNN Interactive (CNN) -- The intruder waited in his hiding place for just the right moment -- soon after his targets had gone to bed. He then put his plan into operation. Earlier that day in 1983, Vietnam veteran and priest Roy Bourgeois had walked unchallenged into Fort Benning, Georgia, wearing surplus military fatigues. He had climbed up a tree near a barracks used by Salvadoran soldiers training with the U.S. Army, waited until "lights out," then unleashed his guerrilla protest. Bourgeois turned on his electronic "boom box" that blared into the night air a recording of Salvadoran Archbishop Oscar Romero calling on his nation's soldiers to stop killing their countrymen. Romero was later killed while conducting Mass in San Salvador. Of the three men accused in Romero's assassination, two were graduates of the U.S. Army's School of the Americas (SOA). Bourgeois served 18 months in a federal prison for his actions. But his protest paved the way for larger demonstrations against what some people call the "School of Assassins" -- but what SOA supporters say is an important tool in helping spread democratic values to Washington's allies in Central America and South America. The end of World War II and the start of the Cold War ignited new concerns in the United States that Communists would attempt to infiltrate and subvert the country's southern neighbors. The U.S. Army started its School of the Americas in Panama in 1946. In 1984, under the terms of the 1977 Panama Canal Treaty, the school was moved to Fort Benning. More than 63,000 Central and South American soldiers from 22 nations have trained at SOA since its inception. According to the school's Web site, instruction at SOA for its first several decades "focused on nation-building skills, then [was] altered in 1961 by President John F. Kennedy to provide instruction necessary to the nations in Latin America to thwart armed communist insurgencies." Opponents of the school, who maintain their own "School of the Americas Watch" Web site, claim SOA graduates "have been responsible for some of the worst human rights abuses in Latin America." Some of the more notorious individuals who have trained at SOA include: Former Panamanian leader Manuel Noriega, now serving an extended sentence in a U.S. prison on drug charges. El Salvador's Roberto D'Aubuisson, who formed the death squads that killed Romero and thousands of others during the Salvadoran civil war. Former Argentine President Gen. Leopoldo Galtieri, accused of making thousands of people "disappear" during Argentina's "dirty war" of the 1970s. SOA officials said that out of thousands of soldiers the school has trained, only about 300 have been accused of human rights violations. Joe Leuer, a training specialist for course management who has worked at SOA since the early 1990s, said the connections that critics make between the school and the crimes allegedly committed by its graduates are tenuous at best. D'Aubuisson, for example, "took a radio operator's course in the early 1970s. People want to connect the dots and allege the school which taught him how to operate radios efficiently also taught him how to create death squads," Leuer said. The school insisted it was not responsible for the actions of individuals who ignored its training, which has always included instruction on the basic rules of warfare as set out in the Geneva Convention. The SOA controversy intensified when a 1992 report declassified by the Pentagon in 1996 revealed the details of a manual used at SOA in the 1980s that advocated tactics such as beatings, false imprisonment, execution and bounty payments for enemy dead. Following the report, the SOA curriculum was expanded to include instruction on international humanitarian law, human rights and ethical use of force. "The school has never taught torture and never will," SOA commandant Col. Glenn R. Weidner told a November 1998 news conference. "We still do military training, but this is not the torture training that Father Bourgeois would have you believe." According to SOA's Web site, the curriculum in the late 1990s focused "on supporting the primary foreign policy goals of the United States in the region -- consolidation of the effective democratic governance, respect for the rule of law, and economic development along free market principles." Opponents were not appeased. They wanted the school shut down. Some protests were loud, such as the ones staged every November 16 for the past 10 years outside the gates of the school. They commemorate the killings in El Salvador on that date in 1989 of six Jesuit priests, deaths to which some of the graduates of the school have been linked. Notable among the protesters in recent years has been actor Martin Sheen, star of the TV drama, "The West Wing." Other opposition took the form of efforts in Congress to cut the budget of the school. Finally, in October 2000, Congress voted to close the school in December and reopen it in January 2001 under a new name, the Western Hemisphere Institute for Security Cooperation. Army officials hope that changing the school's name and making sure its curriculum stresses civilian control of the military and respect for human rights will blunt some of the criticism. The new school will offer courses in such topics as anti-drug operations, disaster relief and peace support -- not just to military personnel but also to law enforcement officials and civilians. Although the new law directs the school to comply with the "democratic principles" of the Organization of American States, opponents of the school have said the changes will only be cosmetic. They vow to continue protests. "We see this as cosmetic," Bourgeois, a co-founder of School of the Americas Watch, said in November 2000. "It's like taking a bottle of poison and writing 'penicillin' on it." A recent statement on the Web site of School of the Americas Watch calls on Americans to let Congress and new administration "know that we are not fooled by this attempt to dissociate the SOA from its brutal history and from the violence that graduates continue to perpetrate on our sisters and brothers in Latin America." But the school's defenders such as training specialist Joe Leuer say the training it provided was important in post-Cold War Central and South America. "By looking at where our graduates are working now," Leuer said, "on peacekeeping missions, de-mining missions, creating transparent [military] budgets, putting their military under civilian rule for the first time ... that's democratization. If you're trying to market a product that nobody wants, no one is going to buy it." ||||| Martin Sheen, who has many times joined protests for causes he believes in, marched in Sunday's demonstration and rallied the crowd with a fiery speech. (Photo: AP) COLUMBUS, Georgia -- At least 20 people were arrested Sunday while protesting a U.S.-run military school for Latin Americans, some of whose graduates they claim later committed civil rights abuses including murder. Charges filed against the demonstrators range from trespassing to "wearing a mask," a violation of a rarely invoked 1951 law originally aimed at fighting the Ku Klux Klan. Those arrested were among about a record 16,000 people who demonstrated outside the Western Hemisphere Institute for Security Cooperation at Fort Benning, calling for the school to be shut down. Organizers of the protest said concern about the war in Iraq and President Bush's re-election boosted attendance at this year's event. Oscar-winning actress Susan Sarandon addressed the group Saturday, and Martin Sheen, who plays the president in NBC's "West Wing" TV series, delivered a fiery speech Sunday. "We gather to revive the memory of those who have died at the hands of this combat school," said the Rev. Roy Bourgeois, a Catholic priest. "How do you teach democracy behind the barrel of a gun? If they are so concerned about teaching democracy, then why not close this school and send these students to some of our fine universities." Bourgeois is head of SOA Watch, which monitors the institution formerly known as The School of the Americas. The group has staged annual protests there since 1990. SOA Watch and other critics allege the school's graduates have committed murder, rape and torture, including the murders of six Jesuit priests, their housekeeper and her daughter in El Salvador in 1989. Seventeen of the arrests Sunday came after some protesters scaled chain-link fences onto military property, said Bill Quigley, legal adviser for the protest group. The school trains soldiers, police and government officials. SOA Watch claims some of its graduates were involved in a string of human rights abuses in the 1980s and even now exploit the people and resources of Latin America. As recently as October, a former Colombian army officer who graduated from the school had been accused of murdering a state official while still a member of the military. Maj. David Hernandez, who became the head of a paramilitary group, was killed in a clash with army troops. Carlos Mauricio, Rev. Graylan Hagler, Father Roy Bourgeois, Davida Cody, Martin Sheen and others lead the funeral procession on Sunday, November 21, 2004. Photo by Craig Squires. Defense officials have steadfastly disputed the group's claims about the school. In the past, Army officials have held news conferences to deny allegations, but days before Sunday's event the Army said it would have no comment. Organizers of the protest said concern about the war in Iraq and President Bush's re-election boosted attendance at this year's event. Oscar-winning actress Susan Sarandon addressed the group Saturday, and Martin Sheen, who plays the president in NBC's West Wing TV series, delivered a fiery speech yesterday © Copyright 2004 Associated Press ### ||||| upload media | post an article | link to the otherpress | Comment on this article | View comments | Email this Feature News :: Peace : Protest Activity Presente! 16,000 Protesters Gather to Close the School of Americas Current rating: 0 Over 16,000 people from across the Americas — including actors Martin Sheen and Susan Sarandon — gathered this weekend outside the gates of Ft. Benning, Georgia in the most diverse demonstration yet of opposition to the School of the Americas/ WHINSEC! Stories by SOA Watch, Atlanta IMC and Tennessee Indymedia . . . The gathering culminated today with a solemn funeral procession to the gates of Fort Benning led by actor Martin Sheen. 20 people were arrested in acts of nonviolent civil disobedience, many negotiating a 10-foot-high barbed-wire fence to enter the base. They took this action despite knowing they likely face 3-6 months in federal prison. Since protests against the SOA/WHINSEC began fourteen years ago, 170 people have served prison sentences of up to 2 years for civil disobedience. “Prison will not deter us,” said Elizabeth Nadeau, who was among those arrested today. “We will be here until we close the school and change the foreign policy that it represents.” Nadeau, 27, is a student and member of the Steelworkers Union in Minneapolis, MN. Sunday, 9 pm: 250 people and many puppets are gathered outside of the Muscogee County Jail in a lively support vigil for those arrested during the weekend's activities. The SOA Watch Legal Collective has accounted for all arrests and expects each person arrested on the base to appear before a federal magistrate on Monday morning before being released on bond. Tennessee Indymedia Reporting on the SOA: Interviews from the Street - FLOC, Solidarity, NLG & RCP at the SOA (11/22/04) Audio File An estimated 15,000 people attended today's vigil and twenty two were arrested at the School of the Americas in Columbus, Georgia. In addition to peace activists, many organizations were represented at today's gathering including the Farm Labor Organizing Committee, Atlanta Solidarity, the Revolutionary Communist Party and the National Lawyers Guild. The following is excerpts from on the street interviews with represenatives of these organizations at today's SOA gathering. http://atlanta.indymedia.org/newswire/display/34527/index.php Human Rights Activists Speak to 15,000 at SOA (11/22/04) Audio File Fr. John Dear and other human rights activists speak to 15,000 people gathered at the largest gathering of peace activists to close the school of the americas. http://atlanta.indymedia.org/newswire/display/34525/index.php Celeste Zappala of Military Families Speak Out at the SOA (11/22/04) Audio File Celeste Zappala who lost her son to the war in Iraq speaks before 15,000 people at the SOA on Sunday November 22 about the war in Iraq, militarism, and the terrible grief of a mother losing a loved one to warfare. http://atlanta.indymedia.org/newswire/display/34524/index.php Martin Sheen and Fr Roy Bourgeois Hold Morning Press Conference in Front of SOA Gates (11/22/04) Audio File Martin Sheen and Father Roy Bourgeois gathered in front of the gates of the School of the Americas to hold a press conference before today's vigil. "You know what I do to make living, but this (social justice work) is what I do to stay alive . . ." Sheen said during his press conference. Martin Sheen is an actor who plays the president on the popular television series "West Wing." He has been active in various social justice causes for years and has been arrested at the SOA on several occassions. http://atlanta.indymedia.org/newswire/display/34519/index.php Stories of Resistance and Hope from the Gates of Columbus Georgia (11/21/04) Audio Files Kathy Kelly, Bishop Gabino Zavala and John Nelson Pallmeyer give stories of hope and inspiration and resistance to two thousand people gathered at the gates of Ft Benning on the day before the vigil to shut down the school of the americas. http://atlanta.indymedia.org/newswire/display/34511/index.php Torture Victims Carlos Mauricio and Neris Gonzales speak out against the SOA (11/21/04) Audio File Carlos Mauricio was a professor at the University of El Salvador when he was detained in June 1983 and tortured for nearly two weeks at the National Police Headquarters. After coming to the United States, he obtained two Master's degrees, in Molecular Genetics and Adult Education, from San Francisco State University, and a teaching credential. He teaches biology at Balboa High School in San Francisco. He spoke out against the SOA at the Saturday vigil before thousands of people. http://atlanta.indymedia.org/newswire/display/34510/index.php 500 Puppets Gather to Close the School of the Americas Approximately 500 Puppets of various shapes and sizes gathered at the gates of Fort Benning Georgia today in an attempt to close the School of the Americas. The mood among the puppets was both somber and festive. The puppets processed about the stage and infront of the gates creating festive theater and telling the stories of the disappeared and disempowered as well as offering a radical new vision for the future. At the end of the day several puppets were detained by the polices but imc reports say the puppets are in good spirits. http://www.tnimc.org/newswire/display/3676/index.php See also: http://www.atlanta.indymedia.org http://www.soaw.org This work is in the public domain. Terrible (-1) No comment Good (+1) Very good (+2) Excellent (+3) Comments Re: Presente! 16,000 Protesters Gather to Close the School of Americas Wow, what a convergence of people of good will! The numbers just keep growing every year as more people come to understand the links between the various elements of our repressive foreign policy. While the name may have changed, the mission of the SOA remains the same: to provide the training that will enable our proxies abroad to keep the rabble under the thumbs of Western business interests. The SOA/WHINSEC is an incubator for terrorism, and every American needs to know how his/her tax dollars are being invested. The Army will tell you that they can't be responsible for a few bad apples. However, you can be assured that Congress would not continue to allocate funding to any program that wasn't regularly assessed and that managed to demonstrate its efficacy. The SOA is functioning EXACTLY as it was designed to, and the tortures and murders executed by its graduates are merely a part of our wider policy of controlling democratic elements in Third World countries--what has been called "the threat of a good example" that might encourage other anti-capitalist grassroots movements. I would encourage each of you to contact your elected representatives in Washington and demand that the search for terrorists begin at home. We have a great deal of house cleaning to do before we go looking for terrorists outside our own borders. Thanks, Chris, for the coverage. We got home last night and searched the mainstream media in vain for any mention of this phenomenal event. It seems that a couple of basketball players swapping licks with a few fans is more newsworthy than 15K people coming from all over the country to resist this cruel and inhumane tool of empire building. Thanks to IndyMedia for getting the truth out! Readers, pass this link on to everybody you know--REAL journalism still lives! Hope NOT to see you all there next year--close the SOA NOW! Terrible (-1) No comment Good (+1) Very good (+2) Excellent (+3) Re: Presente! 16,000 Protesters Gather to Close the School of Americas I particpated this past weekend, as I did last year, in this protest hoping to bring an end to our governments teaching of terroism. If you value life , democracy, freedom, and believe that workers should have the right to form trade unions I encourage you to get involved by any way that you are able. Participating at the protest is important, however, learning about how our government is not being truthful on what is taught at the SOA. Spend sometime and investgate the facts and by doing so, you will than have the ability to speak with friends, family, co-workers, and elected officials intelligently, so they may hopefully become inolved in the movement to close this terrorist training that is funded with the american people tax dollars. Terrible (-1) No comment Good (+1) Very good (+2) Excellent (+3) | According to the ''Associated Press'', around 16,000 protesters demonstrated outside a Fort Benning, Georgia, military school this weekend, demanding it be closed in connection with accused human rights violations. Indymedia reports 20 people were arrested in acts of nonviolent civil disobedience. Among the crowd were celebrity-actors Martin Sheen and Susan Sarandon; Sarandon narrated the 1997 documentary ''School of Assassins'' about the school's history. Indymedia web site quotes Elizabeth Nadeau, a 27-year-old student, as saying "Prison will not deter us. We will be here until we close the school and change the foreign policy that it represents." In 1946 the military Latin American Training Center U.S. Ground Forces was established in Panama; in 1949 it became the U.S. Army Caribbean Training Center and during 1963 the training center expanded and became the U.S. Army School of the Americas (USARSA or SOA). The SOA mission was to counter the influence of Communism in the region, and to assist Latin-American nations in fighting armed Communist movements. In 1984 the school was moved to Fort Benning, near Columbus. At the end of 2000, the SOA was closed as its reason of existence as an anti-Communist school was rendered unnecessary. In 2001, the Western Hemisphere Institute for Security Cooperation was opened in the same location. WHINSEC offers training to Latin American military and civilian forces in combat, counter-narcotics, and counter-insurgency techniques, with training completed mainly in the Spanish language. Activists claim that both SOA (in the past, during 80's) and WHINSEC (at present day) trained militias in tactics of violence that are/were used against political dissidents in their native countries. They accuse SOA graduates of been responsible of death squads, drug deals, murders, rape and torture. They say the school is responsible by these acts and that many techniques of torture its graduated students have used in their countries had been learned at the military American school. A list of allegeds SOA graduated students's crimes can be seen at the Virtual Truth Commission, an anti-SOA webpage. Pro-SOA say the school was important in the maintenance of the security in the Latin America and United States during Cold War. A list of death victims by communist groups between 1935-1972 only in Brazil can be seen at the Ternuma (Terrorism never), a Brazilian alleged anti-terrorism webpage. Also, the US Department of Defense maintains a list of significant terrorist incidents between 1961-2003, among them are several crimes committed by communist groups. The UK version of IndyMedia distributes a copy in English of the Manual of the Urban Guerrilla which details techniques of urban terrorism for communism, written by Carlos Marighella, a communism fighter. The Cuban dictator Fidel Castro advocated armed revolutionary struggle in Latin America. The USSR or Soviet Union gave trainning, military and economic help through Cuba to various communists groups in American continent. The protest at Fort Benning which involved a mock funeral procession is an annual event organized by the School of Americas Watch (SOAW) to commemorate the first assassination attributed to school's graduates, the November 16 1989, killing of six Salvadoran Jesuit priests, their housekeeper, and her teenage daughter, at the University of Central America (UCA). Of the 27 soldiers cited for that killing by a 1993 UN Truth Commission, 19 were SOA graduates. SOAW lists 11 former Latin American dictators as graduates of the School. USA deny they supported dictators and they protest against Fidel Castro, the long-time dictator of Cuba, who has received support, military and economic help from USSR for a long time. SOA officials say thousands of soldiers have been trained and about 300 of them have been accused of human rights violations. "The connections that critics make between the school and the crimes allegedly committed by its graduates are tenuous at best", says Joe Leuer - who worked at SOA. Pro-military activists planned a concurrent gathering called "God Bless Fort Benning Celebration," to honor the soldiers and history of the military base where WHINSEC is located. "If they have 10,000, then we have 10,001," organizer Miriam Tidwell told Associated Press. Unverified reports of this counter-demonstration put attendance figures between 10,000 and 15,000. WHINSEC operates with an annual budget of approximately $8 million, the school curriculum now includes a mandated 8 hours of training in human rights which includes "human rights, rule of law, due process, civilian control of the military, and the role of the military in a democratic society." |
Introduction Welcome to the National Assessments of Adult Literacy home page, a new feature of the NCES website. This page incorporates links to other literacy assessment information, including the web page about the 1992 National Adult Literacy Survey. The National Center for Education Statistics has conducted periodic national assessments of the English-language literacy skills of the nationís adults since 1985. In 1985, NCES conducted the Young Adult Literacy Survey. The most recent national assessment of adult literacy was the National Adult Literacy Survey of 1992, which was the largest and most inclusive literacy survey ever conducted in the United States. Purposes of literacy data Statistical data on adult literacy serve three broad purposes: To inform federal and state policymakers about the social and economic impacts of literacy To help monitor the nationís progress in developing a more literate society To foster policies designed to help adults develop their skill levels Last update January 11, 1999 Questions, problems or comments with this Web site? Contact NCESwebmaster@ed.gov. ||||| Description: The 2003 National Assessment of Adult Literacy (NAAL) measures the English literacy of America's adults (people age 16 and older living in households and prisons). NAAL builds on the previous national assessment of literacy completed in 1992. The 2003 assessment defines literacy as “using printed and written information to function in society, to achieve one’s goals, and to develop one’s knowledge and potential.” Results are reported in terms of scale score averages and literacy levels on three literacy scales: prose, document, and quantitative. The literacy levels were described as below basic, basic, intermediate, and proficient. Each level corresponded to a specific range of scale scores and was described in terms of the abilities associated with each level and the types of tasks that adults could complete at that level. An additional component comprising 5 percent of the adult population was the non-literate in English. The non-literate in English included the 2 percent who could not be tested because they could not communicate in English or Spanish, and the 3 percent who took an alternative assessment because they were unable to complete a minimum number of simple literacy screening questions. Results showed that the average quantitative literacy scores of adults increased 8 points between 1992 and 2003, though average prose and document literacy did not differ significantly from 1992. Among Blacks, average prose literacy scores increased by 6 points and average document literacy scores rose by 8 points between 1992 and 2003 (figure 1). The average prose scores of Asians/Pacific Islanders increased as well, rising 16 points between 1992 and 2003.The average prose literacy scores of Hispanics fell 18 points from 1992 to 2003, while average document literacy scores decreased by 14 points. Average prose and document literacy scores among Whites did not change significantly. | Preliminary results from the National Assessment of Adult Literacy (NAAL), released 15 December 2005 by the , indicate gains and losses in among minority adults between 1992 and 2003. __TOC__ The nationally representative study among US adults age 16 and older found the over-all average prose and document literacy remained relatively unchanged, but quantitative literacy improved 8 points (on a scale of 500.) Results among minorities were mixed, with White and Asian/Pacific Islander minorities scoring significantly higher than Hispanic or Black ethnicities; Hispanic subjects in particular had sharp decreases in prose and document literacy (-9% and -8%, respectively) and quantitative illiteracy remained unchanged with 50% of subjects scoring at less than basic literacy levels. The National Assessment of Adult Literacy is the most comprehensive measure of adult literacy in the USA. The 2003 NAAL, with 19 000 participants, was conducted by the , a non-governmental organization which charges for its services. |
Despite the defeat, Mr Abe has vowed to press on with reforms Mr Abe told a news conference that he took the result "very seriously" and pledged a reshuffle of his Cabinet. But he said that it was his duty to continue as premier and push forward his reform agenda. Support for Mr Abe's government has plummeted in recent months following a series of gaffes and scandals. "It was a severe result. We accept the people's judgement seriously and sincerely," Mr Abe said. Voters gave a clear failing mark... The prime minister should face the results seriously and step down Asahi newspaper Tough road ahead for Abe "However, it is my responsibility to continue with my mission in building a new nation and pushing for reform." He said a Cabinet reshuffle would take place after a special session of parliament. "Voters said we must reflect on our shortcomings and refresh the line-up," Mr Abe said. "I plan to reshuffle the Cabinet and top party posts at an appropriate time." Despite Mr Abe's determination to stay in his job, the deputy leader of the LDP, Hidenao Nakagawa, has decided to resign over Sunday's polls. 'Failing mark' Mr Abe achieved solid levels of popular support when he took office in September 2006. FACTS AND FIGURES There are 242 seats in the upper house, half of which were up for grabs Pre-polls, the LDP-led coalition controlled 133 seats The coalition won 46 seats (LDP: 37, New Komeito: 9)* Opposition DPJ won 60 seats* LDP-led coalition now controls 105 seats* *Source: Kyodo news agency Press calls for new polls But many voters began to question his leadership skills following a series of ministerial scandals and a crisis over lost pension records that affected millions of payments. In Sunday's polls, Mr Abe's Liberal Democratic Party-led ruling coalition fell far short of the 64 seats it needed to retain its majority in the upper house. The opposition Democratic Party of Japan made huge gains, becoming the largest party in the upper house for the first time in history. Final official results are expected later on Monday. The ruling coalition still has a sizeable majority in the more powerful lower house, which chooses the prime minister. HAVE YOUR SAY The Japanese people have at last demonstrated that when something is not right they are going to vote against the government Yuji, Tokyo, Japan Send us your comments Several newspapers have called for Mr Abe to step down or call a snap election. "Voters gave a clear failing mark," the Asahi newspaper said. "The prime minister should face the results seriously and step down." Mr Abe has been damaged by this heavy defeat, says the BBC's Chris Hogg in Tokyo. In fact, commentators say, the only reason he has not been forced to step down is that no-one else in his party wants to take over after such a drubbing at the polls, our correspondent adds. ||||| TOKYO (Reuters) - Hawkish Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe vowed to stay in his post despite a crushing defeat for his ruling camp in an upper house election, but policy gridlock loomed and Abe’s grip on his job was uncertain. Japan's Prime Minister Shinzo Abe attends a news conference on Sunday's upper house election results at his Liberal Democratic Party headquarters in Tokyo, July 30, 2007. REUTERS/Issei Kato Voters outraged at a string of government scandals and gaffes and government bungling of pension records stripped Abe’s coalition of its upper house majority on Sunday in his first big electoral test since taking office 10 months ago. “The election expressed the frustrations of the people. He really needs to accept the results of the election and think about the future. This might include quitting,” said Akihiro Kodaira, a 38-year-old civil servant. Abe reiterated on Monday his intention to stay on. “We must take these results very seriously and reflecting on what we must reflect on ... I want to fulfill my responsibility to proceed with reform to build the nation and promote economic growth that the people can feel,” Abe told a news conference. Abe’s bloc will not be ousted from government by the upper house defeat, since it has a huge majority in the more powerful lower chamber, but he said he would reshuffle his cabinet in an effort to win back voter trust. Abe has also pledged to boost Japan’s global security profile and rewrite its pacifist constitution, but his conservative agenda may have to take a back seat. “Constitutional reform is important, but we need to clearly show that we care about issues close to home, like life in regions and social disparities,” Akihiro Ota, head of the junior ruling party New Komeito, told reporters. FRACTIOUS OPPOSITION Critics had said Abe was out of touch with voters concerned with bread-and-butter issues such as pensions and health care. Ichiro Ozawa, head of the main oppositions Democratic Party and a pugnacious veteran who bolted from the ruling Liberal Democratic Party (LDP) 14 years ago, had pledged in the campaign to shrink income gaps and help farmers, long LDP supporters. Ozawa has vowed to make the upper house win a step towards an early general election, but media warned that his party’s public image could suffer if it takes too obstructionist a stance. Ozawa, who suffers heart problems, has not appeared in public since Sunday’s victory. Party officials said he was resting after a tough campaign, but his absence cast doubt on his ability to keep leading his often fractious party. The Democrats are a mix of ex-LDP lawmakers, former socialists and young conservatives, some of whom are seen as ripe for poaching. No lower house poll need be held until late 2009, and Abe said he was not considering calling a snap poll anytime soon. But the soft-spoken, once-popular Abe could face pressure to quit from within his own party, which has ruled Japan for most of the past five decades. “The truth is that we were defeated. He needs to take responsibility,” said Ryosuke Hara, an executive of LDP’s local branch in western prefecture of Hyogo. Slideshow ( 3 images ) “For him not to do so when everyone around is resigning would not go well with the people.” For now, though, a lack of suitable successors in the LDP could help Abe survive, analysts said. POLICY GRIDLOCK Without ruling coalition control of the upper chamber, laws will be hard to enact, threatening legislative paralysis. Some analysts noted, however, that Abe had never stressed economic reforms to begin with, in contrast to former Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi. “Investors may worry that the LDP’s defeat means that the ongoing reform drive will take a back seat, but they won’t be greatly disappointed because expectations for Abe as reformer were not high in the first place, compared with his predecessor,” said Takahide Kiuchi, chief economist at Nomura Securities. The election loss came on top of a global shake-out in markets, and the two factors combined to push the Nikkei stock index to a four-month low, although it later made up the lost ground. The LDP and New Komeito, won 46 seats compared with 60 for the Democrats and well short of the 64 the coalition needed to keep its majority in the upper house. The election, for half the seats in the upper house, leaves the ruling bloc with just 103 seats, down from 133 before the poll, Kyodo news agency said. | Japanese House of Councillors election, 2007 - Liberal Democratic Party - New Komei Party - Democratic Party of Japan - Japanese Communist Party - Social Democratic Party - The People's New Party - New Party Nippon - Others Democratic Party of Japan (DPJ) could claim victory in Sunday's House of Councillors elections. The House of Councillors is the upper house in the bicameral National Diet of Japan. Of the 242 seats, DPJ went from 82 to 109 seats, making it the largest party in the House of Councillors. This gain came largely at the expense of the ruling Liberal Democratic Party (LDP), which went from 119 seats to 83. Also losing seats was LDP's coalition partner, New Komeito Party (NKP), which lost 4 councillor seats and now holds 20. Shinzo Abe on November 18, 2006 Japan's Prime Minister Shinzo Abe said that while he takes the result of the election "very seriously," he does not intend to resign his post. "We must take these results very seriously and reflecting on what we must reflect on," Abe said at a news conference. "I want to fulfill my responsibility to proceed with reform to build the nation and promote economic growth that the people can feel." The election result will not force the government out of power, since the LDP holds 296 of the 480 seats in the House of Representatives. Nonetheless, Abe said that he would reshuffle the cabinet. "Voters said we must reflect on our shortcomings and refresh the line-up," Abe said. "I plan to reshuffle the Cabinet and top party posts at an appropriate time." "The election expressed the frustrations of the people. He really needs to accept the results of the election and think about the future. This might include quitting," 38-year-old civil servant Akihiro Kodaira told ''Reuters''. |
WASHINGTON (CNN) -- U.S. investigators are looking into accusations that a company hired by the U.S. military supplied corroded and decades-old Chinese ammunition to the Afghan Army and police. Efraim Diveroli, 22, is president of AEY Inc., an arms dealer suspended by the Defense Department. The U.S. government has suspended AEY Inc. of Miami, Florida, for violating its contract, according to U.S. Army documents obtained by CNN. The Army and House Oversight Committee identified the president of AEY Inc. as Efraim E. Diveroli. He is a 22-year-old whose father started the company as a small printing company, according to WFOR-TV, a CNN affiliate in Miami. Watch father describe 'boy genius' » The government is conducting a criminal investigation into allegations that AEY Inc. knowingly misrepresented what the company would provide the Afghan security forces. Under the contract, AEY said it would supply ammunition manufactured in Hungary. But an investigation by the Army found most of the bullets were made in China, a violation of the contract, according to the Army documents. U.S. regulations bar companies from purchasing weapons or ammunition from a Chinese military company directly or indirectly, according to U.S. military officials. U.S. government investigators took numerous photographs of the ammunition showing that it was improperly packaged and corroding, according to the Army documents. The Department of the Army, the contracting authority for the government, sent a letter to Diveroli on Wednesday informing him that he and his company were suspended from contracting with the U.S. government until the investigation is complete. The Army documents show that since 2004 the company entered agreements with the U.S. government that totaled about $10 million. The papers also reveal the company struck it big in 2007 with contracts totaling more than $200 million to supply ammunition, assault rifles and other weapons to the Afghan National Army and Police. When that ammunition arrived in Afghanistan, U.S. officials were contacted because of its unsatisfactory condition. Army criminal investigators were sent to look at the packages in January. They took hundreds of pictures showing ammunition dumped in deteriorated and broken cardboard boxes and wrapped in plastic, according to the Army documents. The documents also reveal ammunition was corroded and made in China from 1962 through 1974. According to U.S. government regulations, the alleged misrepresentation by AEY could bring a fine, five years imprisonment or both. Additionally, if AEY is found in violation of the contract the company will be permanently barred from doing business with the U.S. government. The House Oversight Committee plans to hold a hearing into the matter on April 17. "The hearing will examine the company's financial history, past performance and compliance with U.S. law and government contracting regulations," the committee said in a statement late Thursday. The hearing also will examine "the federal government's efforts to investigate allegations that AEY may have violated U.S. law and government contracting regulations," the committee said. E-mail to a friend All About China • Afghanistan • Miami ||||| WASHINGTON, March 27, 2008 Army officials announced today that the service has suspended its contract with a company that delivered ammunition from China for use by Afghan army and police forces in a way that violated the contract terms. Officials from the Army Legal Services Agency notified Edraim Diveroli, president of the Miami Beach-based AEY Inc., that his company is suspended from future contracting with any U.S. government agency. That letter, dated March 25, follows an Army investigation launched in November regarding AEY’s violation of its contract. The Army contracted with AEY in January 2007 to supply various types of nonstandard ammunition for use by the Afghan National Army and Afghan National Police, an Army official said on background. The company was required to purchase the ammunition and deliver it to Kabul International Airport in Afghanistan. As of today, the Army has issued five task orders, collectively worth $155.3 million, the official said. AEY has made about 80 deliveries, with an estimated value of $54.6 million, into Kabul. Those deliveries violated two specific terms of the contract, the official said. One stated that the ammunition could not be acquired directly or indirectly from the People’s Republic of China, and the other specified that it must be packaged to comply with best commercial practices for international shipment. Although AEY specified that its 7.62 mm ammunition had been produced in Hungary for the civilian market, U.S. inspectors and Army investigators in Afghanistan determined that much of it actually was manufactured in China. In addition, much of the ammunition was older than specified, with some produced as early as 1962, officials said. Army Criminal Investigation Command is continuing its investigation, an Army official said. Bryan Whitman, deputy assistant secretary of defense for public affairs, told reporters today the Army suspended its contract with AEY over questions about the origin and packaging of ammunition, not the company’s safety or performance. “Safety and performance has not apparently been a factor, according to our folks in Afghanistan,” Whitman told Pentagon reporters. “They have had no safety incidents reported and no reports of any ammunition that has malfunctioned associated with this particular contract.” Whitman denied that the issue resulted from the Army’s awarding of a contract to the lowest bidder and said he was not aware of AEY’s qualifications for fulfilling the contract terms. “As the United States government does business, they are obviously always trying to ensure they get the best value,” he said. “But that does not mean that, in achieving the best value for the taxpayer, that we will accept something that is below standard for what it is we are purchasing, either.” Suspension of the AEY contract will have no impact on operations in Afghanistan, and many other contractors have expressed interest in entering into a contract, an Army official said. “Besides, there’s no shortage of ammunition already in Afghanistan,” he said. “This will have no impact.” ||||| The U.S. Army has suspended a contract with an ammunition supplier, which, according to The New York Times, provided 40-year-old bullets for delivery to the Afghan army. The U.S. Army is investigating, but the Pentagon says it has no reports that the bullets failed to function. VOA's Al Pessin reports from the Pentagon. This undated handout photo provided by the US Army depict the shipments of ammunition to the Afghan National Army The New York Times says the ammunition for rifles and machine-guns arrived in Afghanistan in decaying cardboard boxes, and that some of it was manufactured as long ago as 1966. The newspaper also says some of the ammunition was made in China, and it may have been illegal for the U.S. government to buy it. The Times says the bullets were supplied under a $300 million contract awarded to a company called AEY, which the newspaper says has provided ammunition and other equipment to the U.S. military and other U.S. government agencies for several years. According to the Times account, the company was founded nine years ago, and now lists the founder's 22-year-old son as its president. The Times says the company obtained much of the ammunition from old communist bloc stockpiles that the State Department and NATO had determined to be both unreliable and obsolete. A picture on the Times' website shows one box of ammunition it says came from the company, with some of the bullet casings appearing to be badly corroded. The newspaper says Afghan troops were not able to use some of the ammunition, and it quotes an Afghan officer as saying last year that he was "worried" about the quality of a shipment his unit received. The Times also quotes a British expert as saying the quality of such old ammunition varies widely and "would tail off rather dramatically." But Pentagon Spokesman Bryan Whitman says the U.S. military unit responsible for training and equipping the new Afghan Army has not received reports of U.S.-supplied ammunition failing to perform as it should. "Age is something that's certainly interesting, but the measure of ammunition, in terms of it being safe and it being effective, and it performing as it's supposed to perform, are the two most important things," he said. "And in this particular case there is no indication that this ammunition hasn't performed to the standard or has posed a safety risk." The Times quotes an Army officer dealing with acquisitions as saying the ammunition did not undergo standard testing, because it was for foreign-made weapons and the Afghans did not request it. The Pentagon spokesman could not say whether some of the bullets were procured from China, which could be a violation of U.S. law. But he says the Army is looking into that allegation, along with other aspects of the ammunition provided by AEY, and will determine whether to resume the purchase of its supplies. | Yugoslavian version of the 7.62x39mm cartridge, the standard-issue ammunition for the AK-47, which is the standard-issue rifle of the Afghan National Army. The United States Army has suspended its contract with a company that delivered old and corroding ammunition from China for use by Afghan army and police forces in a way that violated the contract terms. The ammunition was supplied by the Miami-based AEY Inc., a company run by a 22-year old named Efrain Diveroli. The nearly US$300 million contract stated that bullets were coming from Hungary, but were actually decades-old, damaged and corroded bullets from China. Officials from the Army Legal Services Agency notified Diveroli, via a letter, that his company is suspended from future contracting with any U.S. government agency. The letter came as part of an Army investigation since November regarding violation of the contract. According to the ''New York Times'', Diveroli signed papers back on November 25, 2007 certifying that 28 pallets of ammunition for Afghanistan had been manufactured by MFS 2000, a Hungarian company, according to a memo written by investigators. AEY violated the contract by breaking two clauses, one stating that the ammunition could not be acquired directly or indirectly from the People’s Republic of China, which is a violation of American law. The other clause specified that it must be packaged to comply with best commercial practices for international shipment. According to the ''Times'', says the ammunition arrived in decomposing cardboard boxes which contained ammunition dating as far back as 1966. However, Army officials believe some ammunition even dates back further to 1962. The Army had contracted with AEY in January 2007 to supply various types of nonstandard ammunition for use by the Afghan National Army and Afghan National Police, an Army official said on background. The company was required to purchase the ammunition and deliver it to Kabul International Airport in Afghanistan. AEY was recently awarded a delivery order amount of $48,717,553 on March 17, 2007 as part of the $298,004,398 contract. Also according to the ''Times'', when purchasing the ammunition, AEY worked with middlemen and a shell company which has been placed on federal list of entities suspected of illegal arms trafficking. Also, the ''Times'' reported that, Diveroli was secretly recorded in conversation that suggested corruption on his company's purchase of 100 million aging rounds from Albania. Bryan Whitman, The Pentagon's spokesperson told reporters that suspension of the contract was due to the violation of the origin of the ammunition and the packaging of the ammunition, not the safety and performance. “Safety and performance has not apparently been a factor, according to our folks in Afghanistan. They have had no safety incidents reported and no reports of any ammunition that has malfunctioned associated with this particular contract,” Whitman told the press. He also denied that the issue happened because the Army awarded the contract to the lowest bidder and that he was not aware of AEY's qualifications to fulfill the contract. “As the United States government does business, they are obviously always trying to ensure they get the best value,” he said. “But that does not mean that, in achieving the best value for the taxpayer, that we will accept something that is below standard for what it is we are purchasing, either.” According to an Army official, the suspension of the contract will not have an impact on Afghanistan operations and other contractors are expressing interest into entering into a contract. “Besides, there’s no shortage of ammunition already in Afghanistan. This will have no impact," he said. Michael Diveroli, Efrain's father, who originally founded AEY as a small printing business, said of his son's career choice to CBS' Miami affiliate, WFOR, "I would prefer he became a nice Jewish doctor or lawyer rather than an arms dealer. He's never asked for my approval on the company. He doesn't always take my advice, I don't influence him. As a father of a boy genius he's hard to control." Angelo Diveroli, Efrain's grandfather said the young man frequently accompanied him to gun shows when he was younger and became an expert at weapons. A friend of Diveroli said to WFOR, "The government came here and checked him out and gave him the contract. How do you give someone, a 21 year old kid a contract like that?" The United States Army Criminal Investigation Command is continuing their investigation, according to officials. |
Unemployment in the United States rose sharply last month and government figures released late Friday show the number of new jobs was at its lowest level in four years. As VOA White House Correspondent Scott Stearns reports, President Bush is considering more tax cuts in an effort to boost the nation's sagging economy. American unemployment rose to five percent last month, the highest rate since 2005. And new employment statistics released Friday show the U.S. economy added only 18,000 new jobs in December, far fewer than most economists expected. President Bush, flanked by VP Dick Cheney, left, and Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson, meeting with members of President's Working Group on Financial Markets, 4 Jan 2008 Following a meeting with his top financial advisers, President Bush said that while the Friday jobs report shows some uncertainty, the U.S. economy remains strong. "This economy of ours is on a solid foundation, but we can't take economic growth for granted, and there are signs that will cause us to be ever more diligent and make sure good policies come out of Washington," he said. The president says consumer spending is still strong and core inflation is low, but home values are declining and gasoline and food prices are rising. Mr. Bush warned opposition Democrats in Congress against raising taxes, saying that is the worst thing lawmakers could do. But he did urge them to pass legislation that could help more Americans refinance their homes. "When Congress comes back, I look forward to working with them to deal with the economic realities of the moment and to ensure the American people that we will do everything we can to make sure we remain a prosperous country," he added. The ongoing financial crisis over adjustable-rate mortgages continues to affect the overall economy and not just home sales. There has been a cut in jobs in the building industry and the Labor Department report also shows a drop in factory jobs. President Bush is considering an economic stimulus package that could include more tax cuts. In a Thursday interview with the Reuters news service, Mr. Bush said he and his economic team are considering all their options and he probably will not decide whether to act until his State of the Union address later this month. Democratic Senator Charles Schumer is urging the president to take action to avoid what the lawmaker says could be the economy tumbling into recession. ||||| 4.45pm GMT update US jobless figures up as economy suffers severe downturn Shares went into sharp retreat on both sides of the Atlantic today as gloomy jobs data from the United States heightened fears over prospects for the global economy. On Wall Street, the Dow Jones Industrial Average tumbled more than 180 points, taking it below the 13,000 level. In London, earlier gains were wiped out, with the FTSE 100 index trading more than 140 points down towards the close. Unemployment in the US rose to its highest level in more than two years last month as the job-creation machine in the world's biggest economy virtually ground to a halt, according to figures released in Washington today. The Labor Department prompted fresh speculation on Wall Street that the Feberal Reserve would cut interest rates later this month when it said the jobless rate rose from 4.7% to 5% in December. It also sent the FTSE 100 index down into negative territory, wiping out earlier gains, and pushed the dollar down against a range of currencies including sterling. Employers added a mere 18,000 jobs last month - the weakest performance by non-farm payrolls since 2003, when the economy was starting to recover from the short-lived recession that followed the collapse of the dotcom bubble. Economists had expected 70,000 jobs to be created last month, and bond prices rallied immediately after the announcement by the Labor department in anticipation that the Federal Reserve will cut interest rates for a fourth time in a row at the end of this month. Pierre Ellis, senior economist at Decision Economics in New York said: "The bond market rallied because the unemployment rate moved up in a shocking way and that's the sort of political dynamite that may make the Fed more prone to easing than otherwise." President Bush was meeting with the Fed chairman, Ben Bernanke, and the treasury secretary, Hank Paulson, today to discuss ways of boosting the economy. A breakdown of today's official US data showed that during December, manufacturing industries shed 31,000 jobs and construction businesses cut another 49,000. There were 31,000 more government jobs creater and 44,000 were added in education and health services, but retail industries cut more than 24,000 jobs. Weekly hours of work were unchanged at 33.8 in December but overtime hours dropped to 3.9 from 4.1 in November. | Unemployment in the United States rose sharply last month and government figures released late Friday show the number of new jobs was at its lowest level in four years. President Bush is considering more tax cuts in an effort to boost the nation's sagging economy. American unemployment rose to five percent last month, the highest rate since 2005 and new employment statistics released Friday show the U.S. economy added only 18,000 new jobs in December, far fewer than most economists expected. "This economy of ours is on a solid foundation, but we can't take economic growth for granted, and there are signs that will cause us to be ever more diligent and make sure good policies come out of Washington," he said. The president says consumer spending is still strong and core inflation is low, but home values are declining and gasoline and food prices are rising. Mr. Bush warned opposition Democrats in Congress against raising taxes, saying that is the worst thing lawmakers could do. But he did urge them to pass legislation that could help more Americans refinance their homes. "When Congress comes back, I look forward to working with them to deal with the economic realities of the moment and to ensure the American people that we will do everything we can to make sure we remain a prosperous country," he added. The ongoing financial crisis over adjustable-rate mortgages continues to affect the overall economy and not just home sales. There has been a cut in jobs in the building industry and the Labor Department report also shows a drop in factory jobs. President Bush is considering an economic stimulus package that could include more tax cuts. In a Thursday interview with the ''Reuters'' news service, Mr. Bush said he and his economic team are considering all their options and he probably will not decide whether to act until his State of the Union Address later this month. Democratic Senator Charles Schumer is urging the president to take action to avoid what the lawmaker says could be the economy tumbling into recession. |
You’re looking to watch some great Telugu movies online for free? Do you want to take a look at the most popular Tollywood hits? Here is the list of the top 10 best websites to watch Telugu movies for free. There is such a nice mosaic today of much different cinematography and, thanks to the internet, everything is right here. With a little search – you can find anything. You have probably heard of Bollywood, India’s largest movie industry producing movies in such a rapid rate that legendary Hollywood can only envy. But… what about Telugu? If you ended up on this article, you probably know or heard about Telugu – which is a 3rd most widely spoken language in India. Telugu has a movie industry of its own and many hits are made and released in the Telugu language every year. The name of this industry is a derivative of Hollywood and Bollywood and they call it – Tollywood. This article will help you find places in which you can watch Tollywood movies completely free and easy. Of course, some of these websites may not be legal to watch in your country so you should pay attention to. Top 10 Telugu movie sites to watch Telugu free online movies Here is the list of top websites to watch Telugu movies for free – so pay attention! What a magical website this is! This is one of the best websites to watch Telugu movies. They are all hand-picked, with a lot of new hits finding its place in the catalog. You can see the servers are quality and the movie are rarely taken down. The website is perfectly sorted. It looks nice and it is categorized in some awesome ways. You can filter the films by a cast (if you have a favorite actor), by release date, or even composer. Besides Telugu, there are Punjabi and Bengali movies, but also Tamil and Marathi. All in all a great website and here is hoping that it will stay like that for years to come. You should use it as quick as you can and as much as you can, though! Andhra Watch is a Telugu-based website that will not only offer you a chance to watch new and old movies for free but you can download Telugu music in mp3 format, watch some new trailers and read Telugu news in English. This website doesn’t have its own player or server, but instead offers you Telugu movies uploaded on YouTube with perfect quality and mostly with English subtitles alongside it. The movies are sorted nicely and you will immediately see the quality and if there are subs in the headlines. The website will then open an embed YouTube video which is a full-length movie and you may enjoy it like any streaming service. Another free movie streaming website with a big Tollywood section and a nice collection of movies for you to watch. This is an Indian-based place where you will not only find Telugu, but also various Hindi movies and some Hollywood blockbusters too. A good perk about Pycker is that you have movie reviews and comments alongside the movie you want to watch, so you may think again before playing it! Pycker is much more than just a streaming website – it contains some gossip, news, trailers, songs and various other content coming from the world of Indian pop culture, so you may come for Telugu movies, but stay for many other things. MovieRulz has a simple, minimalistic structure of a website but is not shy of Telugu content. You will find over 100 newest Telugu movies here and before you watch them, you will probably see that another couple is being uploaded. This is a good website to watch movies, and you will be satisfied with the offer, but considering Telugu is not the primary niche, you might not be satisfied with the quantity. The quality is top, though. The Cinebay is a place you can sail into as a real pirate and stay for a while. It is completely Telugu-based so you will find various new hits and Tollywood movies that recently came out in amazing quality and ready to be watched. The movies are sorted only by genre and year, so since the database is big and not really well-sorted you may have some trouble if you don’t know exactly what you are searching for. On the other hand, if you are straight-forward, or not a picky type you will enjoy this website. The aesthetics are not the primary point but they are not really pleasing, and the content makes up for the most of it. You will find some interesting new pictures from the sets, red carpets and promotions of Tollywood blockbusters. You can read news, reviews and watch trailers that are only Telugu-related here, which is great. Movies Vala is another great Indian website that has a distinctive sort of Indian movies to show. Here you can also see some Hindi, Bengali or Punjabi movies, Bollywood hits, and Telugu movies too. Telugu section of MoviesVala has millions of visits and movies and is regularly updated with fresh content, new movie releases, etc. The old links that are broken can be reported and are refreshed easily and nicely and you can always find great things here. This website gives you an opportunity to download the movie too. So if you want, you may store it on your hard drive. Smart Talkies is a website that switched its domain from .com to .in but it is still working (albeit a bit slower). You will have a test in patience to open this website sometimes but when you do, the movies buffer quickly. It is a good alternative to the aforementioned websites, but you may have to call it into action sometimes especially if other links fail. Believe it or not, a lot of Telugu movies are free to watch and uploaded on YouTube too. If you know what you’re after, you may find full movies in great quality on YouTube and some even have subtitles of other countries (mainly English). There are some hot YouTube Telugu movie channels you can subscribe to that regularly upload new movies in brilliant quality, such as Telugu Movies (https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCHI0PxjdAZfVIHr04z-S4nw) that is slowly approaching one million subscribers. If you’re searching hard, you’ll probably find it here. Online Movie Watch has a respectable database of Telugu movies that came to fruition last year. Since the year 2018 many Tollywood movies that were made can be found on this site. The amount of Telugu movies on this website is unusually high and the website (being India-based) has a whole section dedicated only to Telugu. Other than that, you will here find some amazing new Hollywood blockbusters, popular Bollywood movies, etc. This website doesn’t offer as much as the previous mentioned, but you will find some of the greatest hits to see here. There is a category of Telugu movies that you can browse and the movies are of good quality. If you don’t want to watch anything specific, you will find a lot of great, random Telugu movies here. They are usually the most popular ones from the previous 2 years. Related: Conclusion That’s the list. Judging by the popularity of Telugu movies in recent years there is no doubt that in the future even more websites to watch Tollywood movies online will appear Until then, you try and browse the websites from this list, or maybe you have some of your recommendation that you may comment on and leave feedback! We would like to hear if there are more! ||||| TAIPEI, Taiwan – A strong earthquake struck off the eastern coast of Taiwan on Thursday, rocking buildings in the capital of Taipei. There were no immediate reports of injuries or damage. The Central Weather Bureau measured the quake at 6.2-magnitude. It put its epicenter 39 miles southeast of the city of Chengkung, or about 82 miles southeast of Taipei. Quakes frequently rattle Taiwan, but most are minor and cause little or no damage. However, a 7.6-magnitude earthquake in central Taiwan in September 1999 killed more than 2,300 people. Last month a 6.7 offshore tremor south of the city of Kaohsiung severed two undersea cables, disrupting telephone and Internet service to millions of users throughout Asia. | * On Wednesday at 11.36 p.m, an earthquake struck the border between Uzbekistan and Kyrgyzstan. * On Thursday at 1:20 p.m (0520 GMT), a 5.6-magnitude earthquake hit the eastern portion of Papua, Indonesia. * On Thursday, a 6.2-magnitude earthquake hit Taiwan's east coast. * On Friday at 10:20 a.m, a 4.7-magnitude earthquake struck the province of Elazig, Turkey. |
(CNN) -- Seven members of a joint United Nations-African Union peacekeeping patrol have been killed by a heavily armed militia group in Sudan's Darfur region, the U.N. said. Peacekeepers drive into a Sudanese refugee camp near Farchana, east of Chad. Five of those killed were Rwandan, a U.N. peacekeeping official said, and the other two were a Ugandan and a Ghanaian. Twenty-two others were wounded in the attack, which was immediately condemned by U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon. "The attackers used heavy weapons and engaged the UNAMID convoy in an exchange of fire for more than two hours," according to the statement released by Ban's spokesman. UNAMID is the acronym for the U.N.-AU mission in Darfur. The peacekeepers are allowed to used force when fired upon directly. "The secretary-general condemns in the strongest possible terms this unacceptable act of extreme violence against AU-U.N. peacekeepers in Darfur and calls on the government of Sudan to do its utmost to ensure that the perpetrators are swiftly identified and brought to justice," the statement said. "The secretary-general expresses his deepest condolences to the families of the peacekeepers who lost their lives, and reiterates his appreciation for their service, valor and commitment to the search for peace in Darfur." The ambush happened around 2:45 p.m. (1145 GMT) in northern Darfur. The rescue mission did not take place until after dark, she said. The peacekeepers who were attacked operated out of Shangil Tobayi -- a base to the west of El Fasher. In five years of war the U.N. says more than four million people have been affected: Two-and-a-half million people forced from their homes and more than 300,000 killed. Sudanese officials dispute those numbers claiming only 10,000 have died -- a number they say is normal for five years of war. U.S. President George W. Bush calls the killings genocide and has put sanctions on Sudan. The U.N. says Sudan's government is guilty of crimes against humanity and of violating international human rights laws every bit as heinous and serious they say as genocide. In February 2008, a fresh wave of killing forced 58,000 people to flee their homes as government troops and Janjaweed militiamen retaliated against rebels. A U.N. report said Sudan broke international law as 115 innocent civilians were killed using tactics similar to those employed in 2003, 2004, the worst years of the war. Peacekeepers are frequently targeted by militias in Darfur, where they are trying to protect civilians from "janjaweed" militias -- nomadic Arab militias, supported by Sudan's government, which target pastoral black Africans. Ten African Union peacekeepers were killed in October in an ambush on their peacekeeping base -- the deadliest single attack on AU peacekeepers since they began their mission in late 2004. Don't Miss Rape is a way of life for Darfur's women Rape is a way of life for Darfur's women Sudan cuts ties with Chad after attack A U.N. commission concluded in 2005 that the Sudanese government and militias "conducted indiscriminate attacks, including killing of civilians, torture, enforced disappearances, destruction of villages, rape and other forms of sexual violence, pillaging and forced displacement" in Darfur. In 2006, the U.N. Security Council authorized the creation of the joint AU/U.N. hybrid force of peacekeepers to protect civilians in Darfur. That hybrid force formally took over peacekeeping duties late last year from the force composed solely of members of the African Union. Yet the force is under-manned as a result of the Sudanese government's opposition to a U.N. presence, with just over 9,500 troops of an authorized strength of 26,000. All About Darfur • Sudan • UNICEF ||||| Only 10,000 troops of a planned 26,000-force have been deployed UN chief Ban Ki-moon has condemned an ambush which left seven members of the joint UN-African Union peace mission to Sudan's Darfur region dead. Twenty-two others were injured, seven critically, in one of the deadliest assaults on UN forces in recent years. The UN says its peacekeepers fought for over two hours to repulse suspected Janjaweed fighters, who were armed with mortars and rocket-propelled grenades. Only 10,000 of a planned 26,000-strong peacekeeping force have been deployed. Correspondents say the UN-AU mission, which began work this year, lacks the military hardware, including attack helicopters, needed to operate effectively in a region roughly the size of France. 'Extreme violence' Khartoum, which wants predominantly African peacekeepers, has been accused of slowing down the deployment of the force by repeatedly raising objections. Please turn on JavaScript. Media requires JavaScript to play. About 40 armoured vehicles ambushed the peace force while it was on patrol in North Darfur on Wednesday. Ten vehicles from the UN-AU Mission in Darfur (Unamid) were destroyed, Sudan's state media reported. A spokeswoman for UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon said he "condemns in the strongest possible terms this unacceptable act of extreme violence". The BBC's Laura Trevelyan at the UN in New York says that UN officials suspect Janjaweed militia loyal to Sudan's government were to blame. She says diplomats are wondering whether the timing of the attack could be linked to the fact that top Sudanese officials could be indicted for war crimes at the International Criminal Court next week. The Janjaweed has long been hostile to UN troops in Sudan, fearing they could be used to arrest anyone indicted by the court at the Hague, our correspondent says. Since the conflict began in Darfur five years ago, the UN estimates that some 300,000 people have died and two million have fled their homes. The conflict began when rebels took up arms in protest at alleged government discrimination against the region. Pro-government Arab militias have been accused of widespread atrocities against the black African population. ||||| Ambush Kills Darfur Peacekeepers At least seven soldiers from the joint U.N. - African Union peacekeeping force in the Darfur region of western Sudan are dead after gunmen ambushed a patrol. From VOA's East Africa bureau in Nairobi, Derek Kilner reports. Sudan Liberation Movement leader Minni Minnawi (File) The attack took occurred in Um Haqiba, in North Darfur. According to U.N. officials, there have been recent disputes in the area between Arab militias and forces loyal to Minni Minnawi, a former rebel leader who joined the government after signing a 2006 peace agreement. At least 40 vehicles were involved in the attack. A U.N. spokesperson said about 22 peacekeepers were also injured in the ambushed. The incident is the latest in a series of attacks on the peacekeeping force, since it took over from an African Union mission in January. A patrol was ambushed by gunmen in May, and in June a Ugandan peacekeeper was killed. Hafiz Mohammed, who leads the Sudan program at Justice Africa in London, says the latest attack reflects the deteriorating security situation on the ground. "The situation is very bad. Instead of actually protecting the civilians, they will end up not able even to protect themselves. It's sad to see this happening. It's going to discourage countries to contribute to the unit, which is creating problems," said Mohammed. "This is the security situation in Darfur, nobody is immune from being attacked. Nigerian peacekeepers with the UN-AU mission to Darfur (UNAMID) prepare for a patrol at the Kalma refugee camp in Darfur Sudan, 31 Jan 2008 The U.N. Security Council authorized a force of 26,000 for the mission. But so far, fewer than 10,000 have been deployed. The Sudanese government has thrown up roadblocks in the form of restrictions on troop contribution countries and other issues. But donor governments have also been unwilling to contribute troops and equipment. Undermanned, the mission has been vulnerable to attacks. But in a vicious cycle of sorts, the mission's struggles may be discouraging countries from contributing resources. The Darfur region has grown increasingly chaotic in recent months, with a growing number of rebel factions and Arab militias, along with a increase in banditry. The identity of Wednesday's attackers is not yet known. But Mohammed says that it would not be surprising if members of the Janjaweed militia, which has been armed by the government in Khartoum, were responsible. The government, he says, is worried that the U.N. force could be used to go after officials wanted by the International Criminal Court for crimes in Darfur. "One of the government's strategies is actually to attack any international force. Because they think the mandate of the international force might change and they end up chasing the people who might be indicted by the ICC," added Mohammed. "And that is actually deliberately done by the government." The United Nations says the conflict has displaced some 2.5 million people and killed up to 300,000 others. The attack took occurred in Um Haqiba, in North Darfur. According to U.N. officials, there have been recent disputes in the area between Arab militias and forces loyal to Minni Minnawi, a former rebel leader who joined the government after signing a 2006 peace agreement.At least 40 vehicles were involved in the attack. A U.N. spokesperson said about 22 peacekeepers were also injured in the ambushed.The incident is the latest in a series of attacks on the peacekeeping force, since it took over from an African Union mission in January. A patrol was ambushed by gunmen in May, and in June a Ugandan peacekeeper was killed.Hafiz Mohammed, who leads the Sudan program at Justice Africa in London, says the latest attack reflects the deteriorating security situation on the ground."The situation is very bad. Instead of actually protecting the civilians, they will end up not able even to protect themselves. It's sad to see this happening. It's going to discourage countries to contribute to the unit, which is creating problems," said Mohammed. "This is the security situation in Darfur, nobody is immune from being attacked.The U.N. Security Council authorized a force of 26,000 for the mission. But so far, fewer than 10,000 have been deployed. The Sudanese government has thrown up roadblocks in the form of restrictions on troop contribution countries and other issues. But donor governments have also been unwilling to contribute troops and equipment.Undermanned, the mission has been vulnerable to attacks. But in a vicious cycle of sorts, the mission's struggles may be discouraging countries from contributing resources.The Darfur region has grown increasingly chaotic in recent months, with a growing number of rebel factions and Arab militias, along with a increase in banditry. The identity of Wednesday's attackers is not yet known. But Mohammed says that it would not be surprising if members of the Janjaweed militia, which has been armed by the government in Khartoum, were responsible. The government, he says, is worried that the U.N. force could be used to go after officials wanted by the International Criminal Court for crimes in Darfur."One of the government's strategies is actually to attack any international force. Because they think the mandate of the international force might change and they end up chasing the people who might be indicted by the ICC," added Mohammed. "And that is actually deliberately done by the government."The United Nations says the conflict has displaced some 2.5 million people and killed up to 300,000 others. | At least seven United Nations peacekeepers are dead, and nearly two dozen wounded, after Janjaweed militants in Darfur, Sudan, ambushed their convoy around 11:45 GMT. Five of those troops were from the African nation of Rwanda. Troops fought with militants for over two hours after militants ambushed their convoy of 40 armoured vehicles. Sudanese media states that ten were wrecked beyond repair. Hafiz Mohammed, who leads the Sudan program at Justice Africa in London, England, says the latest attack reflects the deteriorating security situation on the ground and that everyone in Sudan is at risk of being attacked. Kigali International Airport for deployment in Darfur in 2005. "The situation is very bad. Instead of actually protecting the civilians, they will end up not able even to protect themselves. It's sad to see this happening. It's going to discourage countries to contribute to the unit, which is creating problems. This is the security situation in Darfur, nobody is immune from being attacked," said Mohammed. The U.N. has condemned the attack releasing a statement saying, "the secretary-general (Ban Ki-moon) condemns in the strongest possible terms this unacceptable act of extreme violence against AU-U.N. peacekeepers in Darfur and calls on the government of Sudan to do its utmost to ensure that the perpetrators are swiftly identified and brought to justice." The peacekeepers are part of a joint African Union-U.N. mission aimed at putting 26,000 troops in the region. So far only around 10,000 of that planned mission have been ordered to the region. Countries unwilling to contribute forces, and constant government restrictions from Sudan, have contributed to the slow movement of troops to the region. |
(Page 1 of 2) Fast Facts Dean packed a wallop in the cruise ship port of Majahual, and its storm surge flooded 70 percent of Ciudad del Carmen, a city of 120,000 where Mexico's state oil company has major installations. WHAT DO YOU THINK? Go To Comments (CBS/AP) A sprawling Hurricane Dean slammed into Mexico for the second time in as many days and quickly stretched across to the Pacific Ocean Wednesday, drenching the central mountains with rain that swelled rivers before weakening into a tropical depression. Coming ashore with top sustained winds of 100 mph, Dean's center hit the tourism and fishing town of Tecolutla shortly after civil defense workers loaded the last evacuees onto army trucks and headed to inland shelters. There was no escaping the wide storm's hurricane-force winds, which lashed at a 60-mile stretch of the coast in Veracruz state. At 10 p.m. local time, Dean was about 95 miles northwest of Mexico City and was heading westward about 21 mph. The Hurricane Center downgraded Dean to a tropical depression and predicted it would dissipate on Thursday over the mountains of central Mexico. During the day Wednesday, Dean's hurricane strength sent thousands scrambling and had others hoping for the best as they rode out the storm. "You can practically feel the winds, they're so strong," said Maria del Pilar Garcia, as Dean made landfall 40 miles north of the hotel she manages in Tuxpan. "I hope this passes quickly and the rivers don't overflow." Sounds of crashing metal prompted farmer Moises Aguilar to take a dangerous risk in Monte Gordo, 20 miles down the coast from Tecolutla. At the height of the storm, he dashed outside his house, about 300 yards from the sea, and struggled against the wind as his neighbor's roof ripped apart. "We've closed the curtains because we don't want to see what is going on out there," Aguilar said, his voice nearly drowned out by another crash. "I think that's more metal roofing from my garage." Mexico had suspended offshore oil production and shut down its only nuclear power plant as tens of thousands headed for higher ground. More than 14,000 workers were evacuated from off oil facilities in advance of the storm. The state oil company said there is no known damage to any of its production facilities on shore or in the Gulf of Mexico. Dean struck land Wednesday as a Category 2 storm after regaining some of the force it unleashed on the Yucatan. Its first strike on the peninsula came Tuesday as a Category 5 tempest with 165 mph winds was the third most intense Atlantic hurricane ever to make landfall. Officials say there are no reports of deaths in Mexico directly caused by Dean, which killed 20 people in its earlier sweep through the Caribbean. The toll rose Wednesday when Haitian officials said seven more storm deaths had been reported in remote areas. Continued 1 | 2 © MMVII, CBS Interactive Inc. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. The Associated Press contributed to this report. ||||| A resident puts down bags with sand to protect the beach from the passing of the hurricane Dean, in Tecolutla, state of Veracruz, southern Mexico, Tuesday, Aug. 21, 2007. Hurricane Dean crashed into the Caribbean coast of Mexico on Tuesday as the strongest hurricane to hit land in the Atlantic region since 1988, and is expected to reach the coast of Veracruz on Wednesday, forecasters said. (AP Photo/Alexandre Meneghini) Hurricane Dean struck the Mexican mainland Wednesday for a second time after battering oil platforms in the Gulf and forcing thousands to flee. The sprawling storm made landfall near the port of Tecolutla in Veracruz state on the central Gulf coast as a Category 2 hurricane with maximum sustained winds reaching 100 mph. It quickly weakened, with its winds falling to 85 mph and Category 1 status, as it pushed inland. Dean's center hit the tourism and fishing town of Tecolutla just hours after civil defense workers in yellow raincoats loaded the remaining residents onto army trucks for a trip to inland shelters. But there was no escaping the sprawling storm's hurricane-force winds, which lashed at least 60 miles of the Veracruz coast. Heavy rains caused rivers to rise in a region that saw hundreds die due to flooding and landslides in 1999. Officials said they had received no reports of deaths in the Yucatan Peninsula, although driving rain, poor communications and impassable roads made it difficult to determine how isolated Mayan communities fared in the sparsely populated jungle. Earlier, Dean killed 13 people in the Caribbean. Magdalena Gonzalez, 55, clutched a black plastic bag of belongings as she waited for the ride to a shelter, torn between fear of the storm and concern for what she leaves behind. "I'm afraid it's going to take my house," she said. South of Veracruz state, the storm surge flooded Ciudad del Carmen, a city of 120,000 people. Dean became the third most intense Atlantic hurricane to make landfall in recorded history when it plowed into the Yucatan Peninsula on Tuesday as a ferocious Category 5 storm. It toppled trees, power lines and houses but spared glitzy resorts on the Mayan Riviera. Greatly weakened from that overland journey, Dean moved across the Bay of Campeche in the southern Gulf of Mexico, home to more than 100 oil platforms, three major oil exporting ports and the Cantarell oil field, Mexico's most productive. | Hurricane Dean satellite image at 19:45 UTC on August 22, 2007, courtesy of NOAA. hit the coast of 's mainland today as a Category 2 hurricane, with winds sustained at 100 mph. Dean moved across the , eyeing over 100 oil platforms and several oil ports in the center of the country's oil industry. Over 14,000 workers in the area had to be evacuated. The eye of the storm hit , a major tourist town. Over 10,000 people were evacuated. Currently, there are no reports of deaths or serious injuries following the landfall in Mexico. However, the storm caused major damage to some areas with very heavy rains shutting down many roadways and flooding many homes. Overall Dean is being blamed for at least 20 deaths in the Caribbean. The storm has since been downgraded to Category 1 status. |
IraqSide : Developments The Latest US Airstrike "Hits Primary School" in Diyala Report: Helicopter's Missile Kills Seven Children and Injures Three Photo by Patrick Baz/AFP. US Army Blackhawk helicopters fly over Baghdad at sunset, 28 March 2007. A US helicopter struck a primary school in Diyala province on Tuesday, killing seven children and injuring three more, Voices of Iraq reports. A U.S. chopper shelled on Tuesday a primary school in Mindli town, killing seven students and injuring three others, eyewitnesses and medical sources said. "The Mindli hospital received seven bodies and three wounded of a primary school's students," a medical source told the independent news agency Voices of Iraq (VOI) over the phone. "A U.S. helicopter shelled Al-Saada primary school, killing seven students and injuring three," the source said, adding no further details. An eyewitness confirmed the news by saying that "a U.S. chopper bombarded the school while students and teachers were still there and the blasts rattled the town. We rushed to the scene to rescue victims." The U.S. miltiary has not commented on the incident directly except to say that there was "helicopter activity" in the area and that it is investigating the events, the BBC reports. According to an Iraqi policeman, the helicopter took fire from the ground and hit the school with its return fire, the BBC reports. ||||| By James Shaw BBC News, Baghdad Iraqi police said the helicopter had been shot at from the ground The attack took place in Diyala province north-east of Baghdad, the sources say. A spokesman for the US military said there had been helicopter activity in the area but he was not able to confirm any other details. The school is in the village of al-Nedawat close to the Iranian border. Investigation One police officer said the helicopter was shot at from the ground during the morning. The school was said to have been hit when the aircraft returned fire. The officer said police had spoken to eyewitnesses and that six children had been killed and six injured but the figures have not been independently confirmed. A spokesman for the US forces in Iraq, Lt-Col Chris Garver, said the US tried to do everything possible to avoid civilian casualties, which was why it was taking the reports seriously and conducting an investigation. There has been an escalation of violence in Diyala in recent weeks. On Sunday, a convoy of US armoured vehicles was hit by a bomb which killed six soldiers and a Russian journalist who was travelling with them. ||||| Baghdad - A car bomb blast in the Iraqi city of Kufa, around 170 kilometres south of Baghdad, Tuesday killed 45 and wounded more than 80, police said. The suicide attacker blew up his explosives-laden car in a market district near a school in the predominantly Shiite city. Kufa is home to many loyalists of radical Shiite cleric Moqtada al-Sadr. Seven schoolchildren were killed and three injured in attack on a school in Mandali in Diyala province. A spokesman for health authorities told the Aswat al-Iraq news agency said their bodies had been taken to a local hospital. Witnesses said a US military helicopter had opened fire on the school. The US military had yet to confirm the attack. Also in Diyala province the Aswat al-Iraq news agency reported that a suicide attack on a police station Tuesday killed three policemen and wounded 11 people. Earlier reports said gunmen had shot dead a married Iraqi couple Monday at an elementary school where both were teachers. Independent news agency Voices of Iraq citing police sources reported that the pair were tied up and shot dead in front of pupils and colleagues in Khalis, north of Baghdad. The killers made their escape following the attack. Elsewhere, police in Baghdad discovered some 30 bodies of murder victims within a 24-hour period. Four employees of Iraq's Higher Education Ministry were found dead Tuesday, Aswat al-Iraq quoted a ministry source as saying. The four, who were kidnapped Monday, were three ministerial bodyguards and a driver. Analysts say the level of violence perpetrated by religious extremists and criminal gangs now is on the same level as that which plagued the city prior to the implementation of a new security plan three months ago. Meanwhile US soldiers arrested 13 suspected al-Qaeda terrorists in Iraq, the military said Tuesday. One of those arrested is suspected of leading a Baghdad terror cell which prepared car bombs. © 2007 dpa - Deutsche Presse-Agentur | Diyala province in Iraq. At least 7 school children are dead and 3 more injured after a United States military helicopter opened fire on a school in the Diyala province of Iraq. The helicopter was supposed to be firing upon militants located near the school. "A U.S. helicopter shelled Al-Saada primary school, killing seven students and injuring three. The Mindli hospital received seven bodies and three wounded of a primary school's students," said an unnamed hospital official in Iraq. According to reports by Baghdad police, militants on the ground began to fire at the helicopter. The helicopter then returned fire, hitting the school in the process. Lt. Col. Chris Garver, a spokesman for the U.S. military in Iraq said that an investigation was going to be conducted and that the incident is being taken seriously. Garver also said that the soldiers in the helicopter attempted to do whatever they could to avoid civilian deaths. |
To continue, please log in or register: Already a member? Please log in: E-mail: Password: Remember me on this computer Forgot your password? If you have already created an account with Boston Globe services, you may log in with that user name and password. Not a member yet? Sign up for FREE! Benefits of membership: - Unlimited access to all Boston.com and Boston Globe content - Participation in chats, message boards and blogs - E-Mail newsletters on topics ranging from the Sox to Shopping Member agreement | Privacy policy | Member FAQ ||||| By Jon Kelly BBC News Both men have raised the temperature of the campaign They promised positive, high-minded campaigns which focused on issues rather than personalities. But as the race for the White House intensifies, the two contenders have increasingly gone on the attack. Republican John McCain has earned huge publicity for an advert mocking rival Barack Obama as "the biggest celebrity in the world", juxtaposing the Democrat with gossip magazine regulars Britney Spears and Paris Hilton. But Senator Obama has not hesitated to lambast his opponent and his allies as "cynical", "desperate" and "in the pocket of Big Oil". Negative campaigning is, of course, hardly be a new phenomenon in US politics - and as Professor Shanto Iyengar of Stanford University attests, it is often the quickest way for politicians to grab attention. "That is a stock approach here - candidates use controversial personal attacks as a means of attracting free news coverage," he says. Regular blows Senator McCain has so far been the most forthright of the two contenders when it comes to going on the offensive. The Republican has accused his opponent, who promises to withdraw troops from Iraq, of being prepared to "lose a war in order to win a political campaign". A McCain campaign advert also charged Mr Obama with cancelling a visit to injured US soldiers. But in the blue corner, Mr Obama has aimed regular blows at his rival. Please turn on JavaScript. Media requires JavaScript to play. He has accused Mr McCain of taking the "low road" in the election and dismissed his time in the US Senate as "years of inaction". An Obama advert accused Mr McCain of practising the "policies of the past", using images of him with President George W Bush. The McCain camp also protested when John Kerry, the Democratic candidate in 2004, said the 71-year-old was "confused" over Iraq. The tone of the contest took an angrier turn after Mr Obama warned an audience that the Republican would try to scare voters about how he looked unlike "all those other presidents on the dollar bills". A McCain aide responded furiously, attacking Mr Obama for having "played the race card" - all previous US presidents having been white men. Mr Obama said no-one had thought his comments were accusations of racism until Mr McCain's team "started pushing it". If Mr Obama has so far avoided the jugular, it is only because his campaign do not want to tarnish his brand of idealism and hope, Professor Larry Sabato of the University of Virginia believes. "The candidate of fresh, optimistic change cannot afford to go too negative," Mr Sabato says. "McCain is also now given more leeway to go negative since he is the underdog. It isn't fair, but nothing about politics is fair." 'Battle-tested' Few American voters are likely to be shocked by such tactics. Negative campaigning has, after all, played a key role in modern elections. The Swift Boat Veterans for Truth - who questioned Mr Kerry's Vietnam war record in the 2004 presidential election - were widely agreed to have contributed to George W Bush's victory. In 1988, the "Willie Horton" campaign run by George Bush against Michael Dukakis accused the Democrat of supporting weekend leave for prisoners who went on to reoffend. The famous Daisy ad played on Cold War fears of a nuclear exchange And perhaps the most famous negative advert of all time was shown just once in 1964. Lyndon Johnson's "Daisy" showed a small girl counting as she picked the petals off a flower. When she reached nine, an ominous adult voice counted down to 10 and the scene dissolved into a nuclear explosion - playing on public fears that Mr Goldwater would start a war if elected. Not everyone believes that negative campaigning is intrinsically unhealthy. Brooks Jackson, director of the nonpartisan campaign monitoring group FactCheck.org, says he is less concerned by whether an advert is positive or negative than by whether it is accurate. "Political scientists and communications scholars will tell you that negative ads tend to have more information in them than positive ads," he says. "We see positive ads that are false or misleading, too." Professor John Geer of Vanderbilt University, Tennessee, is the author of In Defense of Negativity - a spirited defence of the role of attack adverts in the political process. He says it is vital that candidates are held up to scrutiny and examined under fire. "Being president is a tough job - ask Bush or Clinton," he adds. "Having a negative campaign run against you is a test of your toughness. You come out of the election battle-tested." E-mail this to a friend Printable version Bookmark with: Delicious Digg reddit Facebook StumbleUpon What are these? ||||| Democratic presidential contender Barack Obama's campaign just released a new TV ad that answers Republican John McCain's latest spot. McCain's team, in the Broken ad it released yesterday, made the case that their guy is a "maverick." The new Obama ad, called Original, makes the case that McCain would be a president much like the current occupant of the White House: Worth noting: While the ad shows McCain touting the fact that he had voted "with" President Bush more than 90% of the time, the Arizona senator did criticize the administration's conduct of the war in Iraq -- calling early on for more troops to be sent there. He also voted against the president's original tax cut plan -- though McCain now says he supports extending those tax cuts. And, he proposes cuts in all kinds of corporate taxes, not just those on oil companies. | John McCain Barack ObamaThe latest advertisement for United States Republican presidential candidate John McCain is questioning Democrat Barack Obama's benefit to families. Last week the BBC reported that the McCain campaign had released an advertisement comparing Obama to American celebrities Britney Spears and Paris Hilton, calling him "the biggest celebrity in the world." McCain's newest advertisement, released early this week, continues along those same lines. "Is the biggest celebrity in the world ready to help your family?" the narrator asks, according to ''The Boston Globe'' and a video of the ad displayed on its website. "The real Obama promises higher taxes, more government spending. So, fewer jobs." With images of wind turbines in the background, the narrator says, "Renewable energy to transform our economy, create jobs and energy independence, that's John McCain." ''The Boston Globe'' reports that McCain's latest ad does not acknowledge that Obama's economic policy, especially the proposed rollback of current president George W. Bush's capital gains tax cuts, would largely affect the wealthiest of America, not the middle class. Obama, the BBC reports, is quoted as calling McCain "cynical," "desperate" and "in the pocket of Big Oil." The latest Obama video, shown on the ''USA Today'' website, touts McCain as "just more of the same" politics employed by George W. Bush. The ad cites a May 22, 2003 Fox News Channel interview where McCain says "the President and I agree on most issues. There was a recent study that showed I voted with the President over 90 percent of the time." The ad then criticizes McCain's policies on tax cuts, money for oil companies, and "tax breaks for companies that ship jobs overseas." ''USA Today'' does note that "while the ad shows McCain touting the fact that he had voted "with" President Bush more than 90% of the time, the Arizona senator did criticize the administration's conduct of the war in Iraq — calling early on for more troops to be sent there. He also voted against the president's original tax cut plan — though McCain now says he supports extending those tax cuts. And, he proposes cuts in all kinds of corporate taxes, not just those on oil companies." McCain is set to appear at an Ohio furniture plant Wednesday to reinforce the messages in his latest advertisement. "America has the second highest business tax rate in the entire world," he plans to say, according to prepared remarks issued by his campaign, and released by ''The Boston Globe''. "Is it any wonder that jobs are moving overseas when we are taxing them out of the country? Unfortunately Senator Obama's plans would raise taxes on businesses even more. He has promised tax increases on income, tax increases on investment, tax increases on small businesses. This is exactly the wrong strategy. Raising taxes in a bad economy is about the worst thing you could do because it will kill even more jobs when what we need are policies that create jobs." Obama spokesman Bill Burton responded: "Is the biggest proponent of George Bush’s tired, failed policies ready to bring about change? Another day brings another dishonest attack from John McCain. While Senator McCain knows that Senator Obama has proposed cutting taxes for 95% of American families, what he’s not telling us is that he wants to give $4 billion in tax breaks to the oil companies, continue giving tax breaks to corporations that ship our job overseas, and provide no direct tax relief for more than 100 million middle-class families. It’s time to retire these old policies and bring new energy to America." |
CIA Director Porter Goss (C) and U.S. President George W. Bush shake hands in the Oval Office of the White House to announce that Goss is resigning as director of the CIA on May 5, 2006 in Washington. Bush said that he appreciated Goss' "candid advice" during his two years as director of the CIA. At left is National Intelligence Director John Negroponte. (UPI Photo/Chip Somodevilla/POOL) President George W. Bush said in a White House news conference that he accepted the resignation. No replacement has been named. Goss, who was an undercover CIA agent, became the agency's director in September 2004. The appointment followed a 16-year career in the US House of Representatives, where he chaired the Intelligence Committee for several years. Goss took over the agency from George Tenet in one of its most difficult times. The CIA had been harshly criticized for intelligence failures leading up to the invasion of Iraq and its inability to uncover the plot of the September 11, 2001 terrorist attacks. Tenet, who had been appointed by President Bill Clinton, had called the evidence that Iraq had weapons of mass destruction a 'slam dunk.' During the news conference, Goss siad it had been a 'very distinct honour and privilege to serve' both Bush and 'the people of the country and the employees of the Central Intelligence Agency.' He added that the US spy agency 'is on a very even keel; it's sailing well.' Shortly after taking office, Goss was criticized over placing congressional aides in key positions and several high-ranking CIA career officials left their jobs. When Bush created the position of director of national intelligence following the recent intelligence failures, Goss was widely believed to have sought the position. But he publicly praised John Negroponte, the eventual nominee, as a good candidate for the job. During Friday's news conference, Bush touted his close personal relationship to Goss and thanked him for his service, integrity and 'candid advice.' 'He honours the proud history of the CIA, an organization that is known for its secrecy and accountability,' Bush said. The president also praised Goss' five-year plan to increase the number of CIA operatives and analysts. This, Bush said, 'is going to help make this country a safer place and help us win the war on terror.' © 2006 dpa - Deutsche Presse-Agentur ||||| WASHINGTON: Central Intelligence Agency chief Porter Goss abruptly resigned on Friday after less than two years on the job. President George W Bush thanked him for his candid advice during a time of transition. Neither explained why Goss was leaving and no replacement was announced. The CIA fell under a newly created director of national intelligence as part of reforms enacted after intelligence failures related to the September 11 attacks. “He's led ably,” Bush said as he sat next to Goss in the Oval Office of the White House. Goss said he believed the CIA was “on a very even keel, sailing well.” ||||| May 5, 2006 7:15 pm US/Pacific (CBS News) WASHINGTON CIA Director Porter Goss resigned unexpectedly Friday. Although President Bush says the decision was mutual, CBS News chief White House correspondent Jim Axelrod reports that U.S. officials familiar with the CIA say Goss was forced out. The sources tell Axelrod that the White House was unhappy with the lingering tensions between Goss and the director of national intelligence, John Negroponte. Goss was miffed at being passed over for the top intelligence job when it was created last year. He no longer briefed the president each morning; Negroponte did. Inside CIA Headquarters, sources say, they couldn't be happier, reports Axelrod. Goss, a former CIA operative brought in 18 months ago to reform the agency, was disliked intensely. The former congressman was also supposed to smooth over relations between the White House and the CIA, strained in the run-up to the war in Iraq. Sources say that Air Force General Mike Hayden, currently Negroponte's No. 2 at National Intelligence, is the most likely candidate to replace Goss, reports Axelrod. Goss leaves behind a spy agency still battling to recover from the scars of intelligence failures before America's worst terrorist attack and faulty information that formed the U.S. rationale for invading Iraq. It was the latest move in a second-term shake-up of President Bush's team. Making the announcement from the Oval Office, Mr. Bush called Goss' tenure one of transition. "He has led ably," President Bush said, Goss at his side. "He has a five-year plan to increase the analysts and operatives." Goss said the trust, confidence and latitude that Mr. Bush placed in him "is something I could have never imagined." "I believe the agency is on a very even keel, sailing well," Goss said. "I honestly believe that we have improved dramatically." The president did not name a successor, but said that person would continue Goss' reforms. "As a result, this country will be more secure," Mr. Bush said. "We've got to win the war on terror, and the Central Intelligence Agency is a vital part of the war. So I thank you for your service." When President Bush nominated Goss in August 2004, in the midst of the president's re-election campaign, he said he would rely on the advice of the CIA officer-turned-politician on the sensitive issue of intelligence reform. "He knows the CIA inside and out," Mr. Bush said in a Rose Garden announcement at the time. "He's the right man to lead this important agency at this critical moment in our nation's history." Goss is a former congressman from Florida, head of the House Intelligence Committee and CIA agent. He has served as CIA director for more than a year after being confirmed confirmed by the Senate on Sept. 22, 2004. He came under fire almost immediately, in part because he brought with him several top aides from Congress who were considered highly political for the CIA. He had particularly poor relations with segments of the agency's powerful clandestine service. In a bleak assessment, California Rep. Jane Harman, the Intelligence Committee's top Democrat, recently said, "The CIA is in a free fall," noting that employees with a combined 300 years of experience have left or been pushed out. Goss' legacy at the CIA helm will be tied to Mr. Bush's global war on terror. Under Goss and the sweeping intelligence overhaul Congress approved in December 2004, the CIA lost considerable clout among U.S. spy agencies. With the installation of the country's first national intelligence director, John Negroponte, Goss no longer sat atop the 16 intelligence agencies. Negroponte took that role — and many of the CIA director's responsibilities. That includes Bush's morning intelligence briefings. Goss also had some public blunders. In March 2005, just before Negroponte took over, Goss told an audience at the Ronald Reagan Presidential Library that he was overwhelmed by the many duties of his job, including devoting five hours out of every day to prepare for and deliver the presidential briefings. "The jobs I'm being asked to do, the five hats that I wear, are too much for this mortal," Goss said. "I'm a little amazed at the workload." Goss has pressed for aggressive probes about leaked information. "The damage has been very severe to our capabilities to carry out our mission," he told Congress in February adding that a federal grand jury should be impaneled to determine "who is leaking this information." Just two weeks ago, Goss announced the firing of a top intelligence analyst in connection with a Pulitzer Prize-winning story about a network of CIA prisons in Eastern Europe. Such dismissals are highly unusual. The realignment of Bush's team amid the president's sagging poll standings started with the resignation of Andrew Card as chief of staff and his replacement by Joshua Bolten, who had been the budget director. Recently, longtime presidential adviser and confidant Karl Rove had the policy-making portion of his portfolio taken away so he could focus on the midterm elections and White House press secretary Scott McClellan announced his resignation. McClellan has been replaced by Fox News commentator Tony Snow. McClellan's last briefing at the White House was Friday. His last day isn't until next week, but the president is traveling in Florida the first part of the week, meaning that McClellan will be briefing on the road. There has been rampant speculation that Treasury Secretary John Snow would be leaving. ||||| (Page 1 of 2) The White House plans to quickly nominate a new CIA director to replace Porter Goss, who offered little explanation in announcing his resignation from the embattled agency.has learned that, despite public posturing by the White House, Goss was forced into resigning his job.The leading candidate to replace him is Air Force Gen. Michael Hayden, top deputy to National Intelligence Director John Negroponte, said a senior administration official. An announcement could come as early as Monday.Hayden was National Security Agency director until becoming the nation's No. 2 intelligence official a year ago. Since December, he has aggressively defended the Bush administration's warrantless surveillance program. He was one of its chief architects.While President Bush says the decision for Goss to leave was mutual,reports that U.S. officials familiar with the CIA say Goss was forced out.Sources inside CIA headquarters tell, they couldn't be happier. Goss, a former CIA operative brought in 18 months ago to reform the agency, was disliked intensely. The former congressman was also supposed to smooth over relations between the White House and the CIA, strained in the run-up to the war in Iraq.Agency officials dismissed suggestions that the resignation was tied to controversy surrounding the CIA's executive director, Kyle "Dusty" Foggo. The FBI is investigating whether Foggo's longtime friend, defense contractor Brent Wilkes, provided prostitutes, limousines and hotel suites to former California congressman Randy "Duke" Cunningham, who pleaded guilty to taking bribes from Wilkes and others in exchange for government contracts.Still, it was not clear why Goss resigned so unexpectedly. An intelligence official, speaking only on condition of anonymity because of the sensitivity of his position, said Goss had stood up for the agency when there were differences with Negroponte's office, which was created about a year ago.Goss was taking a stand against "micromanagement," the official said, and wanted the agency to "remain what its name says, the 'Central' Intelligence Agency."With the backing of the White House, Negroponte recently raised with Goss the prospect that he should leave, and the two talked about that possibility, a senior administration official said. That official also spoke on condition of anonymity, in order to give a fuller account of events.Negroponte, Goss' classmate at Yale University, said in a statement that Goss worked tirelessly during a CIA transition period. "As my friend for almost 50 years, I will miss Porter's day-to-day counsel," he said. | Porter Goss, former director of the CIA with President George W. Bush.According to United States President George W. Bush, CIA director Porter Goss has resigned. "He has led ably. He helped make this country a safer place. He has a five-year plan to increase the analysts and operatives. He honours the proud history of the CIA, an organization that is known for its secrecy and accountability. We've got to win the war on terror," said Bush in a press conference on Friday. "I would like to report to you that the agency (CIA) is back on a very even keel and sailing well," said Goss. The reasons for Goss's resignation are not yet known and as of the moment, the President has announced no replacement. Goss was appointed as the CIA's director in 2004 and served as director for 19 months. He was previously an undercover agent for the organization and was also a member of the U.S. House of Representatives for 16 years. |
Plane Explodes at Jakarta's Soekarno-Hatta Thursday, 18 June, 2009 | 16:07 WIB TEMPO Interactive , Jakarta : An airliner caught fire at the Garuda Maintenance Facility at Soekarno-Hatta Airport on Thursday (18/6) afternoon. The explosion was heard at Terminal I, according to a spokeswoman for Garuda Maintenance Facility, Siska Tobing. The airline maintenance unit said fire did not spread to other aircraft around the plane that exploded. Sudaryanto Corporate Secretary of the airport operator Angkasa Pura II, said the burned plane was damaged, while Garuda said the explosion ocurred on an old plane being dismantled. Reports said the plane was a Boeing operated by a Thai carrier, Phuket Airlines. Garuda Indonesia's spokesman Pudjobroto said there were no casualties. AYU CIPTA ANOTHER INDEX : Select Ambon Child Rapist Jailed Afghan Escapees Nabbed Fuel Briquettes Made of Cattle Cud West Sumatra Authorities Limit Mining Activities Indonesia Hosts UN Joint Military Training Exercise Government Revises Economic Assumptions PLN Seeks to Reduce Its Debt to Pertamina Pertamina Executive Quit Support For Yudhoyono Indian Mining Worker Arrested in Bengkulu Employees of Omni Hospitals Distressed Indonesia: Stop Sending Migrant Workers to Malaysia Around 500 Migrant Workers Return Home Due to Global Economic Crisis Kuwait Eyes Partnership with South Sulawesi Embassy to Find a Place for Siti Hajar Around 50 Chickens Die Suddenly in Bengkulu Two Chopper Survivors Die at Atang Sanjaya Hospital Indonesia Projects Lower Income from Central Bank Fund Army Prepares Supporting Force in Maluku Airforce Chopper Crashes in West Java Journalists Not Invited to Visit Ambalat Monitoring Point There Must be a Women’s Empowerment Program Mining Companies to Rehabilitate Lands Around their Concession Areas Aero Seeding to be Implemented Singapore Asked to Join in Combating Smuggling Indonesian Economic Risk Level Declines ||||| Putri Prameshwari A Garuda Indonesia airplane at Soekarno-Hatta International Airport. (Photo: Dimas Ardian, Bloomberg) Government Confident EU Will Lift Flight Ban The government and officials from the European Union on Thursday wrapped up evaluations on Indonesia’s airlines, which have been banned from flying to EU member countries since July 2007. Herry Bhakti Singayuda, director general of civil aviation at the Ministry of Transportation, told reporters that Indonesia was optimistic the flight ban would be lifted in a few weeks as Indonesia had fulfilled all of the EU’s requirements. “Technically, we have addressed all of their recommendations,” he said. “We’ll just have to wait for the official announcement after their meeting in Brussels on June 30.” In 2007, EU issued a ban on all Indonesian aircraft, restricting them from flying to Europe after a series of fatal crashes. The ban was based on an audit by the International Civil Aviation Organization, which resulted in 69 recommendations for the country’s airlin es. Julian Wilson, EU ambassador to Indonesia, in March said that three main points from the ICAO had yet to be addressed by the governme nt. Transportation Minister Jusman Syafii Djamal had vowed to fulfill the three requirements before the next EU visit to Indonesia, which ended on Thursday. The EU delegation could not be reached for comment on Thursday. However, just as the government held talks with the EU regarding the lifting of the ban, an aircraft caught fire at flag carrier Garuda Indonesia’s maintenance facility in Tangerang, Banten, on Thursday afternoon. Dwi Prasmono Adji, corporate secretary of Garuda Maintenance Facilities, said the right wing of the aircraft, a plane owned by Globe Air Services, caught fire when several technicians were dismantling i t. “The airline has gone bankrupt and the plane was being taken apart so they can resell the pieces,” he said, adding that the plane had been parked at the facility for the past five years. Herry said that the fire occurred because there was fuel on the pipes that were being cut. “It happened outside a hangar and it did not harm anyone,” he said. Herry said he did not believe the incident would affect the EU’s decision to lift the ban as they were not concerned with aircraft safety on a case by case basis. This is not the first time an EU visit coincided with a plane incident in the country. During their visit last March, a McDonnel-Douglas plane operated by Lion Air was forced to crash land at Jakarta’s Soekarno-Hatta International Airport. | The terminal buildings and gardens at Soekarno-Hatto Airport An airliner has suffered an explosion and caught fire at Soekarno-Hatta Airport in Tangerang, Banten, Indonesia. The plane was being dismantled for spare parts and there were no injuries. The plane was at a maintenance facility operated by Garuda Maintenance Facilities, a subsidiary of Garuda Indonesia. Ownership of the plane is unclear, with ''Tempo Interactive'' saying that reports indicated Thailand's Phuket Air owns the plane and the ''Jakarta Globe'' quoting GMF corporate secretary Dwi Prasmono Adji as saying the plane belonged to Global Air Services. Adji also told the ''Globe'' that the aircraft has been parked at the airport for the last five years. "The airline has gone bankrupt and the plane was being taken apart so they can resell the pieces," and the fire occurred as several technicians cut the plane up, he said. Herry Bhakti Singayuda, the Ministry of Transportation's director general of civil aviation, attributed the explosion to the presence of fuel in lines on the plane's right wing, which was being cut up. Singayuda also said the accident occurred outside a hanger and prevented injuries. GMF spokeswoman Siska Tobing said the explosion was heard at Terminal 1 of the airport, which serves Jakarta. Singayuda and other Indonesian officials are currently in negotiations with the European Union in the hope of removing the nation's carriers from the list of airlines banned in the EU. This event is the second such coincidence, with the EU's last visit in March seeing one of Lion Air's McDonnel-Douglas planes crash-landing at the same airport. |
Spanish co-prince for Gibraltar? by our Political correspondent With Gibraltar always regarded as solid on its British credentials, the decision by the Chief Minister Peter Caruana to suggest an Andorra status for the Rock has caused a stir both locally and abroad. Reports in English-language media say that Mr Caruana is urging 'joint rule with Spain', because Andorra is deemed to be something of a joint sovereignty situation between Spain and France. In Spain it is seen as odd that Mr Caruana, who promoted the referendum in 2002 against joint sovereignty, should now be putting forward an Andorra-style solution. An Andorra-style solution would dilute British sovereignty, which will not be understood by the very many British friends we have in the UK. When Gibraltar opposed joint sovereignty the pro-Gibraltar response in Britain was overwhelming. Mr Caruana is now suggesting that an Andorra deal would have to be put to the Gibraltarians in a referendum - but that is what the then foreign secretary Jack Straw offered in his deal with Spain! Mr Caruana discards the Treaty of Utrecht of 1713 and says that what Gibraltar needs is a 'modern' solution - 'In the 21st century we cannot have a solution from the 18th century' he says - but what he is offering finds its roots in feudal times! It is the case that Andorra was forced by the EU to change its constitution in 1993. That new Constitution retains the two co-princes, one appointed by France and the other by Spain, who are 'the highest representation' in Andorra. Presumably, Gibraltar would have a Spanish co-prince and a UK co-prince, under what Mr Caruana wants. As is well known, any dilution of Gibraltar's sovereignty in favour of Spain causes concern, as Gibraltar wants to remain fully Gibraltarian and fully British, while giving any power to Spain gives rise to the saying 'Give Spain an inch and they will take a mile!' 29-11-10 Previous Headlines Next ||||| Spain expected to be a hot topic in Gibraltar election, as 'joint sovereignty' looms By DAVID EADE According to Spain’s minister for foreign affairs, Trinidad Jiménez, in her recent address to the Senate committee dealing with such manners Senator José Carracao is anxious that Gibraltar should not become an issue in the 2012 Spanish general election. Apparently he has asked the minister to tell Partido Popular to back off from making it part of their election agenda. Certainly Jiménez has been busy since her appointment stressing that nothing has changed in Madrid’s attitude to Gibraltar and that the Brussels Process is the only show in town. In other words both PSOE and the PP share a joint view so the opposition should back the government on this issue. As Carracao is from the Campo de Gibraltar and has a special responsibility in the Senate for Gibraltar relations one can understand his concern. However in the wider world I would argue that Gibraltar will not even register with the Spanish electorate when it comes to cast its vote in 2012. In a recent opinion poll the main preoccupation with voters is the high unemployment levels (62.2 per cent) followed by the economy (18.5), politicians (5.8), immigration (2.5), corruption and fraud (1.1) and terrorism including ETA on 0.6 per cent. If ETA can only register 0.6 per cent then Gibraltar is not even on the voters’ radar. CONTRAST This is of course is in stark contrast to Gibraltar which is due to go to the polls within the next 12 months. Spain will definitely be a hot topic and Fabian Picardo who could well be leading the GSLP in to battle told me: “The relationship with Spain is always an issue in Gibraltar politics. Now that Mr Caruana has been quoted as saying that he wants Joint Sovereignty on the basis of an Andorra style ‘solution’, I believe that this is likely to be a major issue at the election. I certainly don’t share Mr Caruana’s view and believe that we should never agree to anything that dilutes our sovereignty one iota.” A similar view was offered by Dr Joseph Garcia for the Liberals who said: “The Spanish claim to Gibraltar has always featured to a greater or lesser extent in every general election in Gibraltar and the next ones are not likely to be any different.” Whilst Jiménez has tried to build bridges with the PP over Gibraltar her statement to the committee on the incursions of the Guardia Civil and confrontations with the RGP has only gone to anger the opposition. Her view of “stuff happens” – there have been confrontations for over 200 years and they are not a problem – have been deplored by the PP administration in La Línea. Speaking from the party’s policy manual it argues the Guardia Civil is defending Spain’s waters and the armed force should be backed to the hilt by the government with no quarter given to Gibraltar. This issue of course also resonates strongly with Gibraltarians with Fabian Picardo stating: “I have always believed in co-operation in international policing; but incursions into out territorial sea by the Guardia Civil - or any other police force, e.g. those of the Kingdom of Morocco - are an intolerable step in Spain's assertion of her purported claim on our waters. There is no excuse for the Spanish decision to escalate tension in this way and the UK must act to defend the Sovereignty of British Gibraltar Territorial Waters. No "fudge" or "compromise" will do. If they don't, the effects will not just be felt here, but in all British Territorial Waters - even those where there are lucrative deposits of minerals and oil.” SERIOUS CONCERN This stance is shared by Dr Joseph Garcia who added: “There is serious concern on the Rock at the number and scale of Spanish incursions into Gibraltar's territorial sea. We had pointed out that the Guardia Civil were becoming increasingly reckless and cavalier in their intrusions into Gibraltar's waters. This was seen at the end of last year when they entered the Port of Gibraltar and actually landed on Gibraltar soil. There was also another extremely serious incursion in September of this year where the Guardia Civil removed a suspect who was about to be arrested by the Royal Gibraltar Police inside our territorial waters. They have shown a complete lack of respect for British sovereignty, jurisdiction and control over Gibraltar's territorial sea and it is imperative that these incursions cease forthwith before the matter escalates even further. Spain must understand that under the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea, Gibraltar is legally entitled to claim territorial waters of its own.” If either Spanish party tries to top its political agenda with the Gibraltar issue – other than in the Campo de Gibraltar – it will be ridiculed by the electorate. However when Gibraltar goes to the polls it will be the hot topic – but then the Rock’s economy is not in the dire straits that Spain’s is. 29-11-10 Previous Headlines Next ||||| The chief minister of Gibraltar has suggested that Britain and Spain should share sovereignty of the Rock and said the idea should be put to the people of the colony in a referendum. Peter Caruana, who has been in power for 14 years, made the call for the Rock to be given a similar status to that which the tiny mountain principality of Andorra had when it was jointly ruled by Spain and France, during a speech to local Spanish politicians and businessmen in Seville. The idea of joint sovereignty to end the situation which has been a thorn in the side of British-Spanish relations for generations is not new. However, public support for such a solution from a leader of Gibraltar's own government is unprecedented. Mr Caruana's comments follow remarks by Spain's newly appointed foreign minister, Trini Jimnez, earlier this week, in which she reiterated the Spanish government's long-held insistance that any negotiations on Gibraltar's sovereignty must be between the British and Spanish governments and not with the local administration on the Rock. Pointing out that Gibraltar has been British for longer than the United States has existed, since it was ceded to Britain by Spain under the Treaty of Utrecht, the chief minister said that treaty should not be applied in reaching an agreement. "In the 21st century, we cannot have a solution from the 18th century," Mr Caruana told his audience. He added that he, personally, favoured a status similar to that which Andorra had when it was jointly ruled by Spain and France, supported by the approval of a majority of the 30,000 population of Gibraltar in a referendum. | Celebrations with the flags of Gibraltar and the United Kingdom Chief Minister of Gibraltar has been discussing the possibility of the British overseas territory having joint sovereignty with Spain. He suggested that Gibraltar take an Andorra-style status. Caruana's suggestion has caused controversy in both Gibraltar and the United Kingdom. Many people in Gibraltar have said they want to remain British and Gibraltarian. The media in Gibraltar has also spoken out against the move using the phrase "Give Spain an inch and they will take a mile!" His decision has come as a surprise; in 2002 Caruana announced a against joint sovereignty. If the plan goes ahead, another referendum would be held. Andorra received their joint sovereignty in 1993. The move forced the European Union to change its constitution. Andorra has a joint deal with Spain and France. Some Spanish politicians are worrying that the suggestion will be too heavily looked into during the 2012 Spanish general election. , Spain's minister for foreign affairs, has asked that it not be a part of their election agenda. Liberal member Dr Joseph Garcia also commented on the event. He said “The Spanish claim to Gibraltar has always featured to a greater or lesser extent in every general election in Gibraltar and the next ones are not likely to be any different.” He added that “There is serious concern on the Rock at the number and scale of Spanish incursions into Gibraltar's territorial sea. We had pointed out that the Guardia Civil were becoming increasingly reckless and cavalier in their intrusions into Gibraltar's waters. This was seen at the end of last year when they entered the Port of Gibraltar and actually landed on Gibraltar soil. There was also another extremely serious incursion in September of this year where the Guardia Civil removed a suspect who was about to be arrested by the inside our territorial waters. They have shown a complete lack of respect for British sovereignty, jurisdiction and control over Gibraltar's territorial sea and it is imperative that these incursions cease forthwith before the matter escalates even further. Spain must understand that under the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea, Gibraltar is legally entitled to claim territorial waters of its own.” |
Friday, August 14 2009, 12:45 BST By Andrew Laughlin, Technology Reporter A BBC presenter has been sacked by the corporation after he was found guilty of hitting a teenager in the face with a patio umbrella, according to reports. Ashley Blake, who was a reporter on Midlands Today and also worked on the Inside Out current affairs programme, was convicted on charges of unlawful wounding during a hearing at Birmingham Crown Court. The incident in question occurred in January at an 18th birthday celebration at The Place 2B pub in Sutton Coldfield, which was owned by Blake at the time. Prosecution lawyers told the court that the 40-year-old had swung the umbrella above his head, striking 17-year-old Greg Jones in the face and injuring his chin and lip. Blake was also found guilty of perverting the course of justice after he threw the wooden pole into a nearby garden centre in an effort to prevent police from discovering it. Judge Peter Carr said that a jail term was "almost inevitable" due to the severity of the offence, with the presenter due to be sentenced at Birmingham Crown Court on September 2. Speaking to reporters after the hearing, Blake said that he was "gutted" at the verdict, adding: "It's all over, isn't it? My job - everything." In response, a BBC spokesman said: "Ashley Blake was found guilty last week of two serious charges. An internal process has resulted in Ashley's dismissal which is effective immediately." ||||| Sentencing of Ashley Blake was set for 2 September A BBC presenter who hit a teenager with a wooden pole has been sacked. A crown court judge has told Ashley Blake, 40, who presented Midlands Today, it was "almost inevitable" he would be jailed. He denied the attack outside a bar in Sutton Coldfield, Birmingham, but was convicted of wounding and attempting to pervert the course of justice. A BBC spokesman said on Thursday that Blake had been dismissed with immediate effect. The spokesman said: "Ashley Blake was found guilty last week of two serious charges. "An internal process has resulted in Ashley's dismissal which is effective immediately." Blake, who also presented Inside Out, denied attacking Greg Jones, 17, outside the bar in January. Blake told Birmingham Crown Court he used the pole as a "bat" to deflect bottles and other missiles thrown at him by up to 30 people. He had been arrested at the scene and, when interviewed by police, denied wielding the pole. He changed his story when shown CCTV footage of him fetching the pole from behind the bar. Speaking after the trial ended on 3 August, he said: "(I am) just gutted, absolutely gutted... it's all over, isn't it? My job - everything." Blake, who was remanded on bail, will be sentenced on 2 September. | The BBC logo A BBC newsreader has lost his job after he was found guilty of unlawful wounding of a teenager. Ashley Blake, 40, who presented ''Midlands Today'', attacked Greg Jones, 17, with a wooden pole outside a bar in Birmingham in January. Jones received injuries to his lip and chin. The trial took place at Birmingham Crown Court and concluded on August 3. The presenter, who was arrested at the scene, denied the attack and claimed he used the pole to protect himself from bottles being thrown at him by up to thirty people. Blake was also convicted of attempting to pervert the course of justice. The judge told Blake it was "almost inevitable" he was going to be sent to jail. A BBC spokesman released a statement that said, "Ashley Blake was found guilty last week of two serious charges. An internal process has resulted in Ashley's dismissal which is effective immediately." After the conviction, Blake spoke to reporters, saying, "I am just gutted, absolutely gutted ... it's all over, isn't it? My job — everything." Blake is scheduled to be sentenced on September 2. |
TEACHERS are alarmed that surveillance cameras are being fitted in NSW classrooms, citing privacy concerns and fears of misuse. Some schools already have closed-circuit television cameras in outdoor areas, including playgrounds, but more are eager to install them inside classrooms and corridors. NSW Teachers Federation senior vice-president Bob Lipscombe said a growing number of teachers had spoken out in recent months, worried that the footage could be used inappropriately and that they would be filmed throughout their working day. "They are concerned about its improper use and that it may be taken out of context," Mr Lipscombe said. An increasing number of schools are keen to install the video surveillance, particularly around computer rooms, in an attempt to protect expensive equipment. With many different subjects being taught in the computer rooms throughout the school day, the installation of security cameras is an issue that could potentially affect many teachers, Mr Lipscombe said. "It could be an English lesson using the web," he said. Some schools favour a CCTV system as cheaper than securing a room with bars and an alarm Mr Lipscombe said the privacy of students in the rooms was another consideration. One solution could be to run a camera system that switches on only after hours or when the rooms are unattended. He said the federation was not against the use of CCTV systems as long as they were used appropriately and with proper consent. More than 50 schools already have some type of camera surveillance in place, NSW Department of Education figures show. "Not all schools are suitable for CCTV cameras, due to the size and physical layout of the school," a department spokesman said. "Where this and legal or privacy issues are raised, a school is recommended to use another effective security measure or a combination of measures." The spokesman said: "The footage from CCTV cameras is confidential and is released to the police to help with their investigations in the case of criminal activity impacting on the school." Teachers have also expressed concern about an increasing tendency for students to film them using mobile phones and posting the footage on interactive websites. Source: The Sun-Herald ||||| Sunday, July 8th, 2007 By Mick Meaney RINF Alternative News The Australian government seems to be involved in a game of catch up with Great Britain as they increase the level of surveillance on its citizens. Now over 50 schools in New South Wales have installed CCTV cameras in classrooms to monitor student and teachers. Many schools have already been using the cameras in playgrounds but this new measure of classroom surveillance is provoking a worrying reaction from teachers, as many are now speaking out against the Big Brother style system. Defending the system, a NSW Department of Education spokesman said: “Not all schools are suitable for CCTV cameras, due to the size and physical layout of the school. “Where this and legal or privacy issues are raised, a school is recommended to use another effective security measure or a combination of measures. The footage from CCTV cameras is confidential and is released to the police to help with their investigations in the case of criminal activity impacting on the school,” he said. However, Bob Lipscombe, senior vice-president of the NSW Teachers Federation said: “Teachers are concerned about its improper use and that it may be taken out of context.” Where is this information kept and who has access to it? How long will it be stored for and has the system been fully tested for security? These questions have yet to be answered. A report last week revealed at least 40,000 CCTV cameras are in operation in Melbourne and the number is growing as the Australian government has been inspired by the UK on how to monitor its citizens, with no regard for personal privacy. Global surveillance is on the increase with the UK pioneering the Big Brother template. America is also upping the level of state sponsored surveillance, with Bermuda, China, Australia and Ireland quickly following behind. Besides the obvious privacy issues, the technology being used is not up to par and is very insecure. With the advancement of Wi-Fi, a whole new set of problems arise opening the doors to hackers and give them the ability to spy on us and record our movements. Other concerns with the surveillance society are; how this data can be used, where it is kept and the length of time is it stored for, who has access rights to the data and who makes the decision to what is acceptable behaviour? As seen in the UK, the Data Protection Act was created to merely humour privacy advocates and does not work under real life conditions. Share the truth: These icons link to social bookmarking sites where readers can share and discover new web pages. Discuss 'Growing use of CCTV in classrooms' in the forum (coming soon) Related News: Big Brother Britain: Wireless CCTV Can Be Hidden Inside Clothing 8 - 10 CCTV Cameras per Irish Bus Australians Fear Cities Becoming Like Great ‘Orwellian’ Britain Big Brother Insanity: Cameras Watching Cameras Teacher calls for CCTV in classrooms | Installations of closed-circuit television (CCTV) security cameras into schools in the Australian state of New South Wales has alarmed teachers. Quevaal Over 50 schools in New South Wales already have surveillance cameras in playgrounds and outside dining areas. The concern from teachers arises from the pending installation of further cameras inside classrooms and also corridors. Teachers have expressed concerns about privacy and misuse of the equipment. Senior vice-president of the New South Wales Teachers Federation, Bob Lipscombe, said that teachers are worried about the footage being used improperly, as well as the fact that both teachers and students would be filmed at work by the cameras. The increase in security cameras being used in schools is an attempt to protect valuable schooling equipment from theft and damage, in particular computers in computer rooms. Lipscombe said that installations in computer rooms will potentially affect many teachers, as all subjects can be taught with the integration of technology. CCTV surveillance is preferred by some schools over fitting alarm systems and physical bars on entrances to the room, as it is cheaper to install. Lipscombe said that the Teachers Federation isn't against CCTV systems provided they are operated properly and with appropriate consent. A solution proposed is to only have the surveillance system record during times when the room is unattended. A spokesperson for the New South Wales Department of Education and Training has said that the footage obtained is confidential and used to assist police in investigating criminal activity. |
Select "local" link above to view local news by town/area! Hereford soldier dies in Afghanistan 9:06am Monday 25th January 2010 IT is understood that a soldier from Hereford has been killed in Afghanistan. The Ministry of Defence have not named him yet, but said that he was a member of 3rd Battalion The Rifles. However, the Hereford Times understands that he is a 21-year-old who lived in the city. The MoD said that the soldier died yesterday morning from wounds received as a result of an explosion near Sangin in Helmand Province. Lieutenant Colonel David Wakefield, spokesman for Task Force Helmand, said: "It happened in the 'Green Zone' area to the south of Sangin District Centre, an area where until recently insurgents had held sway. "He was on a foot patrol as part of the operations that have been bringing security to the local population in that area. "We have lost one of our comrades and we will remember him." The soldier's next of kin have been informed. ||||| The number of British soldiers killed in Afghanistan rose to 251 yesterday. A soldier, from 3rd Battalion The Rifles, was killed by an explosion while on foot patrol in an area recently "made safe". Lt Col David Wakefield, spokesman for Task Force Helmand, said: "It happened in the 'Green Zone' to the south of Sangin district centre where until recently insurgents held sway." Green Zones are supposed to be areas not under the control of insurgents. His death took the number of servicemen and women killed to just four below the number who died in the Falklands War of 1982. Advertisement - article continues below » Fellow rifleman Peter Aldridge, 19, of A Company 4 Rifles, was on his first tour of duty when he died in an explosion near Sangin on Friday. It emerged the teenager's last words were to tell his mother he loved her. In a statement, Peter's family, from Folkestone, Kent, said: "Our son died a hero, he lost his life doing what he believed in. Peter said, 'If I'm going to die I want to die a soldier'." It added: "We love you sweet pea. Swift and Bold Forever." His CO Lt Colonel Rupert Jones, said Rfn Aldridge was a "natural leader" in his platoon. Wage fit for Heroes: Page 8 | A soldier from , Britain died yesterday in Afghanistan's province. The incident occurred when the soldier (who belongs to ) was on foot patrol, and takes the death toll in the conflict to 251, which is four short of the number who died during the Falklands war in 1982. The soldier, whose name has not yet been released by the UK Ministry of Defence, died due to the wounds incurred when the bomb exploded in the southern part of Sangin, Helmand. Lieutenant Colonel David Wakefield, spokesperson for Task Force Helmand, stated: "He was part of the operations that have been bringing security to the local population. It happened in the 'green zone' south of Sangin district centre." He further added that "he the soldier was on a foot patrol as part of the operations that have been bringing security to the local population in that area." The soldier's family has been informed about the former's death. Earlier, Peter Aldridge, aged 19, belonging to A Company 4 Rifles, died after a blast in the same place. The teenager's final words were to express his love for his mother. His family said that their son died a hero and had lost his life "doing what he believed in." According to them, Peter had earlier stated: "If I'm going to die I want to die a soldier." |
The much-awaited Sivaji is nearing its release. In the next few days, the magnum opus from the AVM stable will hit the screens. Rumors are doing rounds that Sivaji might see the light of the day on 26 May. The major highlight of Sivaji is that it is Rajinikanth's 100th straight film in Tamil. Rajinikanth has so far acted in a total of 173 films including remakes and dubbings. Sivaji will be his 100th straight film in Tamil. With big names like Shankar, A R Rahman and K V Anand coming together, no doubt expectations are high on Sivaji. Being 100th film of Rajinikanth in Tamil, his fans do expect a lot of fireworks in the movie. Hope Rajini delivers them. ||||| MUMBAI: Pyramid Saimira Theatre Ltd will be adding 36 theatres in Andhra Pradesh in the West Godavari and Nizam areas. With this acquisition, the company has added 23,000 seats in Andhra Pradesh. The company has acquired the distribution rights for the mega Rajnikanth movie Sivaji for the Nizam territory. Pyramid Saimira Theatre Ltd chairman V Natarajan said, "We are extremely happy to expand in Andhra Pradesh, which is a pivotal market to us. All the that PSTL has acquired are of good quality with superior features like OTS and AC. In fact, PSTL has already digitized more than 10 theatres and will digitize all the theatres in its network. We plan to invest Rs 1 billion (Rs 100 crores) in the state of Andhra Pradesh for infrastructure improvement and digitization, amongst other developmental activities, in the current fiscal year." The company has plans to construct over 25 multiplexes in the state of Andhra Pradesh, for which, theatre and land identification is going on. Pyramid Saimira Theatre is keen on purchasing close to 100 single screen theatres in the next two years in the state. As part of their content fund and production effort, the company will produce more than six Telugu films this year, through its newly formed subsidiary Pyramid Saimira Productions Ltd. The company also plans to purchase around 20 films this fiscal year in Andhra Pradesh, for which, talks are on with producers. Pyramid Saimira expects more than Rs 120 million (Rs 12 crores) as revenue in the Nizam area alone, through the exhibition and distribution of Sivaji. Rate this Very Poor Poor Average Good Excellent [Rating :: Good] ||||| Sivaji The Boss : | Stills | Wallpapers The eagerly awaited Ranjinikanth-starrer "Sivaji: The Boss" is releasing on May 17 all over the world simultaneously. The date is officially confirmed. The film is directed by Shankar and produced by M. Saravanan and M.S. Guhan of AVM Productions. Though the budget of the film has not been disclosed, Film circles estimate that AVM would have invested more than Rs 100 crore. The film crew had to travel far and wide for the shooting. The countries where the shooting took place included America and Spain. This mega movie is releasing nearly two years after the release of super hit "Chandramukhi" in which Rajini played the role of an America-educated psychiatrist. "Chandramukhi" is still running at Shanthi Theatre in Chennai crossing 700 days - a record for any Tamil movie for decades. In this background, the release of "Sivaji" is looked forward to with great expectations bordering on hysteria. The reason behind releasing it on Thursday is believed to be based on numerology - for Director Shankar No. 8 is said to be lucky (1+7 = 8) and for Rajinikanth, Thursday is considered as the lucky day. The audio release function scheduled for April 4 has now been advanced by two days to April 2 to combat piracy. The cassettes are priced at Rs. 45 and CD at Rs 100. As an inaugural offer, buyers of audio cassettes and CD will get a Rajini's 3D sticker specially made for the occasion from China. Meanwhile, AVM Productions, Galatta.com and Hungama Mobile have teamed up to offer mobile and other content across the globe for "Sivaji". According to reports, mobile content is available from March 30 all over the world, much ahead of the formal release of the audio release. Visual and audiovisual content will also be available to mobile users soon. ||||| Shivaji postponed again May 10, 2007, 11:04 The release date of Superstar Rajinikanth's magnum opus shivaji is postponed again to May 26. This time, it is due to the pending background music to be composed by music director A.R.Rahman. Moreover, graphics work for a few scenes are left undone. Though the movie has been produced in a grand manner, the director has taken lots of time in post production stage, which is almost equal to the time he spent for its shooting. Initially, the film was scheduled for release on Tamil New Year Day on April 14. Shankar couldn't complete its shooting on time. So, producer AVM Saravanan announced that it would be released on May 17 without fail. But the truth is that post production works are still going on and A.R.Rahman is yet to complete a major segment of its background score. Sources from AVM revealed that Shankar is willing to release the film on June 8. However, the producer has pressurised him to release it on May 26. The bad news is that pundits in Kollywood are expecting change in its release date. This bilingual film starring actress Shreya opposite Rajini will be released simultaneously in Tamil and Telugu. Print this Article Digg this story! Send to a Friend ||||| Rajnikanth fans start countdown Superstar Rajnikant and Shriya in "Sivaji". The film is the 100th Tamil film for Rajni. Produced by AVM productions and directed by Shankar, the film is expected to be released soon. Amid speculation about the date on which Sivaji - The Boss will hit theatres, Rajnikanth fans in Kochi are busy working out strategies to give a rousing welcome to the latest film of their star. They have only one wish: somehow manage a ticket for the first day, first show. Kumar, an ardent fan, says: "I shall like to watch it on the first day of release. There is a chance that the exhibitors may cut some scenes from the second day. Moreover, the `premiere show' is like a festival. The drama on the other side of the screen, with cheering and hooting, is a treat to watch." How can fans stop celebrating the arrival of yet another Rajni movie? The star was last seen in a film 20 months ago in Chandramukhi. It is still drawing crowds in small centres. Box-office records were broken. Rajnikanth has been tipped as the second highest paid actor in Asia, behind the all-time favourite Jackie Chan. "Sivaji - The Boss will rewrite box-office history. A Rajni film is special, as the actor is so dear to all of us. His style remains unchallenged," says Shanmugam, a loyal fan. Fans have lapped up everything related to the film. Three days after the audio release, retail music shops in South India are sold out. "The A.R. Rahman-Shankar-Rajni combine has clicked. Songs from the movie are top on charts. My favourite is Athiradi sung by Rahman. Balleilakka is another foot-tapping number," says Sasi, a Government employee. Rajnikanth fans hope that the film will be released by the third week of May. Sivaji has been in the news for long, as it has some of the high-profile names in Tamil film industry. Made under the banner of AVM Productions, the movie is directed by Tamil's highly successful director Shankar, who is teaming up with Rajnikanth for the first time. The name of A.R. Rahman makes the team more power-packed. The lyrics are penned by Valee, Vairamuthu, Pa Vijay, and Muthukumar. K.V. Anand cranks the camera. Sujatha provides the punchy dialogues for the star. Thotta Tharani, Kollywood's respected art director, has designed the expensive sets. Entertainment | The much awaited film of Tamil Nadu is nearing release. After several postponements from April 12 to May 8 then to May 17 and finally postponed to the release date of May 26. The last three dates are all add up to the magic number of Shankar's, 8. This release date was confirmed by Ayngaran International (the international distributor) and AVM (the producer). The reason for the latest postponing of the film was due to the background score of the film being incomplete, A. R. Rahman (music director) is currently working on this. This will be Rajinikanth's 100th Tamil language film. The film has big names Shankar (director of the 8 Filmfare Award winning Anniyan), AVM (the largest producer of films in Tamil Nadu), A. R. Rahman (word recognized due to his work in the Bombay Dreams musical) and the "Superstar" of Tamil cinema Rajinikanth. Pyramid is expecting over Rs. 120 million in the Nizam area of Andra Pradesh from the films ticket sales. So far it has been estimated that over Rs. 1 billion has been invested in the film. |
Associated Press Key legislators celebrate passing of the bill Thursday. WASHINGTON—Congress approved a rewrite of rules touching every corner of finance, from ATM cards to Wall Street traders, in the biggest expansion of government power over banking and markets since the Depression. The bill, to be signed into law soon by President Barack Obama, marks a potential sea change for the financial-services industry. Financial titans such as J.P. Morgan Chase & Co., Goldman Sachs Group Inc. and Bank of America Corp. may be forced to make changes in most parts of their business, from debit cards to the ability to invest in hedge funds. Congress approved a sweeping rewrite of rules that touch every corner of finance in the biggest expansion of government power over banking and markets since the Great Depression. David Wessel, David Reilly and Al Lewis discuss the likely impact of Dodd-Frank. The Senate passed the bill 60-39 Thursday, following House passage last month. Earlier in the day, three northeastern Republicans joined with Democrats to block a filibuster, allowing the bill to squeak through. Now, the legislation hands off to 10 regulatory agencies the discretion to write hundreds of new rules governing finance. Rather than the bill itself, it will be this process—accompanied by a lobbying blitz from banks—that will determine the precise contours of this new landscape, how strict the new regulations will be and whether they succeed in their purpose. The decisions will be made by officials from new agencies, obscure agencies and, in some cases, agencies like the Federal Reserve that faced criticism in the run-up to the crisis. The Commodity Futures Trading Commission has designated 30 "team leaders" to begin implementing its expansive new authority over derivatives, and has asked for $45 million for new staff. The Federal Reserve, Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. and Securities and Exchange Commission are also in the thick of the implementation. The Big Interview with AFL-CIO's Trumka 20:48 The U.S. needs a jobs-recovery plan, Richard Trumka tells WSJ's John Bussey. The AFL-CIO president also says he stands by the Obama administration and called the U.S. financial-reform bill a "step in the right direction." J.P. Morgan Chase, one of the biggest U.S. banks by assets, has assigned more than 100 teams to examine the legislation. Democrats say the bill will cut the odds of another crisis and better handle one when it arrives. They also contend it will restore confidence in U.S. financial markets, protect consumers and spur growth. White House officials said it will put an end to taxpayer-funded bailouts of banks, addressing the scars of the financial crisis of 2008. The legislation creates a council of regulators to monitor economic risks; establishes a new agency to police consumer financial products; and sets new standards for the way derivatives are traded. "These reforms will benefit the prudent and constrain the imprudent," Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner said in a press conference. "Strong banks, the well-managed financial innovators, will adapt and thrive under the new rules of the road." Republicans said the bill could jeopardize the recovery by constraining credit and crimping the banking industry, and chided the expansion of government power it envisions. The bill "is a 2,300-page legislative monster…that expands the scope and the powers of ineffective bureaucracies," said Sen. Richard Shelby (R., Ala.). The measure is the latest sweeping law to emerge from the 111th Congress. But the financial revamp, the 2009 stimulus act and this year's health-care overhaul—by any measure significant legislative achievements—haven't translated into support for the White House. Mr. Obama's approval ratings have sunk to some of their lowest levels in some polls amid a gloomy economic picture and rising doubts that his economic policies are working. Once this bill is signed into law, lawmakers and the Obama administration are expected to pivot to another contentious issue: the future of government-run mortgage-finance giants Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac. Republicans like Sen. Mitch McConnell (R., Ky.) complain that the failure to tackle these companies in the finance bill was a glaring omission. The administration has begun work on a proposal to redesign the mortgage-finance system, and Congress could take up the issue in 2011. The finance overhaul will be implemented in a volatile environment. Profits on Wall Street are soaring, with J.P. Morgan reporting $4.8 billion in net profit in the second quarter. But the banking sector is contracting, with close to 300 banks failing since January 2008. Many businesses and borrowers are struggling to obtain loans. Supporters and critics agree the impact of the bill will be determined over several years. The law's passing "is the beginning of the process and not the end," says Satish Kini, co-chair of the banking group at law firm Debevoise & Plimpton LLP. "The shape of the reform won't be known until the regulators have spoken." How the Bill Tackles Problems From the Fed to hedge funds and more View Interactive What's Made It Into the Bill? For consumers, for investors, for banks and for the government. View Interactive Getty Images Overhaul Timeline See a timeline of the legislation's progress. View Interactive Treasury Department officials have taken initial steps to prepare the new consumer agency, called the Bureau of Consumer Financial Protection and housed within the Federal Reserve. Regulators are in the process of creating a system so that large, complex and failing financial companies can be broken up and liquidated without disrupting markets. Despite creating the new consumer watchdog, the bill leaves America's patchwork regulatory framework largely intact, and most of the players will be familiar. That has irked critics on the left and right who say one of the bill's key flaws is that it relies on the judgment of officials rather than hard rules. Conservatives worry regulators will throttle the industry. Liberals worry they'll be co-opted by banking lobbyists. "The same regulators who ignored consumer advocates' warnings about predatory lending have veto power over the consumer agency," said John Taylor, chief executive of the National Community Reinvestment Coalition. "That club of regulators is very insular, and usually in agreement." In a sign of the challenge, at a congressional hearing Thursday to approve her nomination as Fed vice chairman, Janet Yellen acknowledged that the Fed's regulatory approach was insufficient for years. "We failed completely to understand the complexity of what the impact of the national decline in housing prices would be in the financial system," said Ms. Yellen, currently president of the Federal Reserve Bank of San Francisco. "We saw a number of different things, and we failed to connect the dots." Regulators will have multiple questions to answer. What types of trades can banks conduct, and what types will be illegal? At what level should regulators cap the fees that retailers pay to banks to process debit-card transactions? On which companies will the Fed apply stricter regulations? What will be the new standards for mortgages, credit cards and ATM fees? By next summer, regulators could have many answers. The new consumer agency should be established, with its own staff and director. A new council of regulators will be monitoring emerging risks to the economy. There will be new rules on golden parachutes for employees at public companies, policies for ATM cards, the abolishment of the Office of Thrift Supervision, new derivatives rules and hedge-fund registration. View Full Image European Pressphoto Agency US Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid embraces US Democratic Senator from Montana Jon Tester as the walk to the Senate chamber to cast their final votes on Wall Street regulation. Administration officials and lawmakers have been talking about who should head the new consumer agency, as well as whom to appoint as chief regulator for national banks. Bank outreach to regulators began in earnest months ago. French bank BNP Paribas hosted a dinner at Manhattan's Le Bernadin at which representatives from U.S. hedge funds and investment firms grilled a Federal Reserve Bank of New York official about how the derivatives rules would be applied. Over striped-bass tartare, some participants told Patricia Mosser, the Fed official attending, that they didn't want much to change in the current model of derivatives trading. Ms. Mosser said pushing more derivatives onto exchanges, as the law demands, would make the market more transparent and safer, people familiar with the matter said. Still, it was clear the rules wouldn't be put in place overnight. The law would take months, maybe years, to implement, Ms. Mosser told the group. Grading the Bill Economists and other prominent members of the financial community gave the overhaul legislation mixed reviews, with some saying it would do nothing to stop another financial crisis from occurring and others saying it was a good first step toward a new financial system. All eyes will be watching how the regulatory agencies charged with putting the law into practice determine critical issues like the definition of "too big to fail." {if djIsFlashPossible} The version of Adobe Flash Player required to view this interactive has not been found. To enjoy our complete interactive experience, please download a free copy of the latest version of Adobe Flash Player here {else} {else} This content can not be displayed because your browser does not support the Adobe Flash player required to view it. {/if} {/if} Write to Damian Paletta at damian.paletta@wsj.com and Aaron Lucchetti at aaron.lucchetti@wsj.com ||||| Congress gave final approval Thursday to the most ambitious overhaul of financial regulation in generations, ending more than a year of wrangling over the shape of the new rules and shifting the government's focus to the monumental task of implementing them. The final Senate vote, which came almost two years after the nation's financial system nearly collapsed, was a significant legislative victory for President Obama, who had pledged to rein in the reckless Wall Street behavior behind the crisis and to right the government regulation that failed to prevent it. The massive bill establishes an independent consumer bureau within the Federal Reserve to protect borrowers against abuses in mortgage, credit card and some other types of lending. The legislation also gives the government new power to seize and shut down large, troubled financial companies -- like the failed investment bank Lehman Brothers -- and sets up a council of federal regulators to watch for threats to the financial system. Under the new rules, the vast market for derivatives, complex financial instruments that helped fuel the crisis, will be subject to government oversight. Shareholders, meanwhile, will gain more say on how corporate executives are paid. Obama, who is scheduled to sign the legislation next week, said Thursday that the bill will "protect consumers and lay the foundation for a stronger and safer financial system, one that is innovative, creative, competitive, and far less prone to panic and collapse." The legislation places much faith -- and much authority -- in regulators to spot brewing problems in the financial system and to prevent another crisis. Sen. Christopher J. Dodd (D-Conn.), who shepherded the bill through the Senate, said the legislation will help restore Americans' confidence in the badly battered financial system. "More than anything else, my goal was, from the very beginning, to create a structure and an architecture reflective of the 21st century in which we live, but also one that would rebuild that trust and confidence." The Dodd-Frank bill -- named after Dodd and Rep. Barney Frank (D-Mass.), who ushered it through the House -- passed by a vote of 60 to 39. Three Republican senators -- Scott Brown of Massachusetts and Olympia J. Snowe and Susan Collins of Maine -- joined 57 members of the Democratic caucus in support. Sen. Russell Feingold of Wisconsin was the lone Democratic opponent, saying the measure didn't go far enough. Some liberals have criticized the bill for failing to more aggressively alter the structure of Wall Street and for leaving so many critical decisions to federal regulators, who missed many of the warning signs before the crisis. "It's the dumbest argument I've ever heard," Dodd countered. "What do they expect me to write, a 100,000-page bill? This is far beyond the capacity, the expertise, the knowledge of a Congress" to detail every new regulation, he said. Meanwhile, most Republicans continued to argue that the bill creates bigger, more intrusive government and fails to prevent future bailouts of financial companies using taxpayers' money. These critics joined with leaders in the banking and business communities in insisting that the new regulations will undermine the competitiveness of the U.S. economy, stifle growth and kill jobs at a time when unemployment is high. "The White House will call this a victory," said Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.). "But as credit tightens, regulations multiply and job creation slows even further as a result of this bill, they'll have a hard time convincing the American people that this is a victory for them." | , one of the politicians in favor of the bill, who is expected to sign it next week. On Thursday, the United States Senate approved the financial overhaul package in a 60-39 vote. The bill is now awaiting 's signature. Obama is expected to sign the legislation into law next week, and the focus now switches to how the new regulations will be implemented in the coming weeks and months. The legislation will give financial regulators significant discretion in shaping the rules. The legislation also puts faith in regulators to spot developing problems in the financial system, and gives them the authority to act to attempt to prevent another financial crisis. The bill calls for banks to hold more money in their reserves to prepare for bad economic situations, but the details of how this will be done are also up to regulators. |
Security was being tested at Bratislava Airport Irish police have released a man held over an explosives find, after Slovak authorities admitted planting them in his luggage as part of a security test. The explosives were among eight contraband items placed with passengers at Bratislava Airport last weekend, broadcaster RTE reported. The 49-year-old man unwittingly brought the material into Dublin when he returned from his Christmas holidays. He was arrested on Tuesday morning but has since been released without charge. Minister for Justice Dermot Ahern said he was very concerned that Irish police had not been alerted for three days. Airport security detected seven of the illicit items, but the eighth - 90g of research development explosive - managed to escape detection. Slovak authorities were reportedly trying to test screening procedures for checked-in luggage by placing items with unwitting passengers. Slovak police alerted their Irish counterparts on Tuesday morning, and the man's flat near the city centre was cordoned off while bomb disposal experts removed the explosives for further examination. The Irish Army said passengers had not been put in danger because the explosives were stable and not connected to any essential bomb parts. The Slovak minister for the interior has expressed his government's "profound regret" to Mr Ahern. An Irish government spokesman said Mr Ahern had "ordered a full report into what has transpired". Airport security has been stepped up in many countries following an alleged plot to bomb an airliner over the US city of Detroit on 25 December, though it was not clear if the Slovak test was linked to such efforts. ||||| Explosives found in Dublin flat CONOR LALLY, Crime Correspondent A Garda investigation is under way after a Slovakian man unwittingly carried explosives on a commercial flight to Ireland as part of an airport security check that went wrong. The 49-year-old was one of eight people who had plastic explosives planted in their luggage last Saturday morning at Bratislava airport by the Slovakian security services. The covert planting of the material in the passengers’ bags was done to test the airport’s security screening. Security checks at the airport uncovered seven of the concealments. However, the man flying to Dublin was not detected. He passed through all checks in Bratislava, took his flight to Dublin airport and then travelled into his apartment on Gardiner Street in Dublin’s north inner city. He unpacked his bag but the explosives had been concealed so well that he did not find them. The Slovakian authorities only realised yesterday that one batch of explosives was missing. They established the Dublin-bound passenger had not been detected. The airport police at Bratislava airport then contacted their counterparts in Dublin. Gardaí were then alerted, identified the man’s flat and went to it and searched it. The Army’s bomb disposal experts examined the explosives at the scene. The roads around the apartment complex including Dorset Street, a main artery into the city, were sealed off for an hour, and local apartments and businesses were evacuated. The area was declared safe at 12.05pm. The 96 grams of plastic explosives were taken away for examination by Garda ballistics experts. The man at the centre of the incident knew nothing about the explosives that had been planted in his bag. He was arrested at his apartment, but gardaí released him after they satisfied themselves he was innocent. He has been living in Ireland for some time and works here as an electrician. He was returning to Ireland after holidaying in Slovakia over Christmas. The Government and Garda have been in contact with the Slovakian authorities. The Slovakian Minister for the Interior has already expressed his “profound regret” to Minister for Justice Dermot Ahern. Garda Commissioner Fachtna Murphy has appointed Det Chief Supt Martin McLaughlin to establish the full background into the incident. ||||| (CNN) -- The head of Slovakia's border police apologized for a security test snafu in which a police officer put a plastic explosive into the bag of an unsuspecting passenger who unwittingly carried it from Poprad, Slovakia, to Dublin, Ireland. "The police officer made a silly and unprofessional mistake, which turned the good purpose of protecting people into a problem," said Slovakian Police Chief Tibor Mako in a written statement Wednesday. "The head of the Border Police is going to undertake disciplinary measures against this police officer, and he will investigate possible responsibility of other people as well. "We have apologized to the person involved and to his wife." The passenger was identified as a 49-year-old electrician traveling on a flight from Poprad, Slovakia, to his home in Dublin, Ireland. The test had been intended to keep sniffer dogs "in shape and on alert in a real environment," he said. In Saturday's incident, a Border Police officer placed two samples of research development explosive, or RDX, into a bag at Poprad-Tatry Airport, Mako said. "The sniffer dog found one sample, after which the police officer and the dog were called off to a different matter and the officer had forgotten to take out the second sample." The material -- 90 grams (3 ounces) of the explosive -- went undetected in the Slovakian man's bag until the police officer responsible for the screw-up told his superiors on Monday, a spokesman for the Slovakian president said in a written statement. Slovakian authorities then alerted their Irish counterparts. The man was contacted by police and, following their instructions, found the sample in his luggage on Monday evening and waited for Irish police to arrive to take it away. Meanwhile, police and army bomb disposal experts closed the section of central Dublin where the man lived. And, for "an incomprehensible reason," the Irish police took the man into custody, releasing him a few hours later after they were contacted by Slovakian authorities, Mako said. The explosive did not pose any imminent threat, officials said. "On their own, this type of explosive does need to be combined with other elements to make it into a bomb, but obviously this type of high-grade explosive is potentially extremely dangerous," Commandant Gavin Young, an Irish Defense Forces spokesman, said in an RTE interview. Ireland's Justice Minister Dermot Ahern ordered an investigation on Tuesday. Slovakian Minister for the Interior Robert Kalinak has conveyed his government's profound regret for this incident and will cooperate with the Irish investigation, according to the Irish justice department. The incident came on the heels of the botched December 25 bombing of a Northwest Airlines flight from Amsterdam, Netherlands to Detroit, Michigan, by a passenger who had hidden explosives in his underwear. The explosives failed to ignite fully, but the incident led to heightened security at airports around the world. Mako said that Slovakia's minister of interior has decided to search for new ways to train sniffer dogs "so this situation will not be repeated." Steve Lott of the International Air Transport Association told CNN airports must carry out regular security exercises to test their systems but rarely use real explosives placed in a passenger's luggage. In the United States, Lott said, security drills are typically conducted using simulated explosives so as not to pose any risk to airport staff or passengers. Materials are typically placed in baggage belonging to officials or agents taking part in the exercise, he said. CNN's Bridget Fallon contributed to this report. ||||| Irish police say they have seized explosives smuggled into the country as part of a test of security procedures at Slovakia's Bratislava airport. The Slovakian interior ministry had conveyed its "profound regret" to Irish Justice Minister Dermot Ahern over the incident, which comes amid heightened security following the failed Detroit plane bombing, Ahern's office said. Sections of inner-city Dublin were sealed off on yesterday morning and homes and businesses were evacuated as anti-terrorist police units and the Irish army bomb disposal experts raided an apartment in Dorset Street. A quantity of explosives, thought to be 90g of research development explosive (RDX), was seized in the raid. A 49-year-old Slovakian electrician, who has worked in Ireland for three years, was arrested under anti-terrorist laws. He was questioned for three hours but was released without charge, a police spokesman said. The raid was launched after the Slovakian authorities contacted police at Dublin airport, the justice ministry said. It said the explosives were recovered from the luggage of a passenger who had flown back to Dublin after his Christmas holidays on Saturday. The material was "concealed without his knowledge or consent in the passenger's luggage as part of an airport security exercise by the authorities in Slovakia", it said. RTE state radio said the Dublin package was one of eight pieces of contraband planted by the authorities in the luggage of unsuspecting passengers at Bratislava airport. The other seven items were detected. Police said they were in contact with law enforcement authorities in Slovakia regarding the matter and an investigation has been launched. "Garda commissioner Fachtna Murphy has appointed Detective Chief Superintendent Martin McLaughlin to establish the full background to this incident," the statement said. Labour Party opposition spokesman Joe Costello described the incident as an "extraordinary affair". "This incident led to the closure of roads in the area, the evacuation of businesses and the lives and safety of residents could have been put at risk," he said. "We also need to know what protest the government is going to make about this breach of our security." Airports across the world have stepped up their security checks after a Nigerian man allegedly tried to set off a bomb on a US jetliner arriving at Detroit airport on December 25. AFP ||||| Following contact earlier today from the Slovakian authorities with the Airport Police at Dublin Airport, members of the Garda Síochána have recovered a small quantity of explosive material from the luggage of a passenger who had flown into Dublin from that country on Saturday last. It has since been established that this material was concealed without his knowledge or consent in the passenger's luggage as part of an airport security exercise by the authorities in Slovakia. The Slovakian Minister for the Interior has conveyed to Justice Minister Dermot Ahern his Government's profound regret for this incident. Minister Ahern has asked the Garda Commissioner for a full report on the matter. The Commissioner has informed him that he has appointed a Chief Superintendent to investigate fully the circumstances surrounding the incident. 5 January 2010 | A failed test of security at Slovakia's Poprad airport resulted in a 49 year-old man unknowingly carrying plastic explosives from Slovakia to Dublin, Ireland. The explosives were concealed so well that the man did not find them when he unpacked his bag at his apartment. On Saturday, Slovak authorities planted contraband in passengers' luggage at Poprad's Poprad-Tatry Airport without the knowledge of passengers. Seven of the eight items were recovered, while an eighth made its way to an apartment in Dublin. Slovak authorities realised on Tuesday that one package of explosives were missing and notified Irish authorities who searched the man's apartment. During the search, parts of Dublin's inner-suburbs were sealed off and evacuated causing disruption to residents and businesses. At the apartment authorities found the package and arrested the man under anti-terrorism laws; he was later released without charge after it was established he was innocent. The man, a Slovakian electrician had been living in Ireland for some time. He was holidaying in Slovakia over Christmas. Ireland's Department of Justice, Equality and Law Reform issued a statement saying, "Following contact earlier today from the Slovakian authorities with the Airport Police at Dublin Airport, members of the Garda Síochána have recovered a small quantity of explosive material from the luggage of a passenger who had flown into Dublin from that country on Saturday last." The package contained 90 grams (3 ounces) of the plastic explosive RDX, also known as cyclonite or hexogen. According to Commandant Gavin Young, a spokesperson for the Irish Defense Forces, "On their own, this type of explosive does need to be combined with other elements to make it into a bomb, but obviously this type of high-grade explosive is potentially extremely dangerous." Slovakia's Minister for the Interior Robert Kalinak has apologized to Irish Justice Minister Dermot Ahern over the incident and expressed his “profound regret”. Irish authorities are now investigating the incident and the government has ordered for a full report to be delivered. The Irish Opposition has expressed concern about the incident. Labour Party spokesman Joe Costello said "This incident led to the closure of roads in the area, the evacuation of businesses and the lives and safety of residents could have been put at risk. We also need to know what protest the government is going to make about this breach of our security." |
NEW YORK (Reuters) - Where, oh where, did AIG's bailout billions go? That question may reverberate even louder through the halls of U.S. government in the week ahead now that a partial list of beneficiaries has been published. ||||| To help illiterate voters, the campaigns used fruit symbols Mr Kibaki said he would announce a new line-up of ministers in two weeks. The result is seen as a protest against Mr Kibaki, and there is speculation that ministers opposed to the draft will not be part of the new team. Campaigners celebrating the "No" vote have asked their opponents to join them in drafting a fresh constitution. "Please come and join the rest of the nation in rebuilding a new Kenya," the so-called "orange" anti-constitution campaign said in a statement. The result is a blow for Mr Kibaki, who led the "banana" campaign for a "Yes". The president has made no reference to discussions on a new draft. Opposition campaign leaders called for a cross-party effort to draft a new constitution "now that the people of Kenya have decisively spoken, and in the spirit of genuine reconciliation". "We invite our colleagues in the Banana camp to join us in expeditiously charting the way forward for a new Constitutional dispensation for our country," the leaders said in a statement read out by opposition leader Uhuru Kenyatta. President Kibaki admitted defeat in a live television address. "My government will respect the will of the people," he said. But he said that the existing constitution would serve Kenya's needs for now, the Daily Nation newspaper reports. Protest vote Many used the poll to protest against Mr Kibaki's leadership, and crowds of people celebrated the result on the streets of the capital, Nairobi. DRAFT CONSTITUTION Prime minister - works to the president Bans foreign land ownership Land commission formed - individuals can no longer distribute land Christian and other religious courts set up; Muslim courts already exist Regional parties banned Elections for local officials Same-sex marriages banned Women get equal rights to inherit property Abortion outlawed - unless permitted by parliament Press says listen to the people With just four out of 210 constituencies still to return their results, the "No" campaign has an unassailable lead of almost 1m votes. The latest figures released by the Electoral Commission of Kenya (ECK) show 3,548,477 (57%) voted "No" while 2,532,918 (43%) backed the draft. Mr Kibaki's cabinet was split over the constitution, with seven ministers joining with the opposition, urging voters to reject the draft. Correspondents had expected the cabinet reshuffle and say manoeuvring will increase ahead of general elections due in 2007. | After Kenyans voted "no" for the implementation of the new constitution, the "Orange" anti-constitution campaign and the "Banana" pro-constitution campaign finally sat down together to discuss the way forward. The draft constitution would have banned foreign land ownership, set the prime minister position to report to the country's president, banned same-sex marriages and restricted regional political parties. It would have also given women equal rights to inherit property, and addressed local elections. The country was attempting to rewrite its post-colonial constitution. This draft constitution was brought forward by the Attorney General, Amos Wako. A day after the results were announced, the President of the country, Mwai Kibaki, fired his whole cabinet. It is not yet known what he plans to do, but hopes for reconciliation are high: a member of the opposition called on the president "to provide leadership in the way forward". |
President Bush and his wife, first lady Laura Bush wave, as they walk with Mrs. Bush's mother Jenna Welch, second from left, past Brig. Gen. Margaret H. Woodward, obscured, right, on their way to board Air Force One at Andrews Air Force Base in Maryland, Wednesday Dec. 26, 2007, enroute to Crawford, Texas.(AP Photo/Jose Luis Magana) Bush Signs $555 Billion Spending Bill CRAWFORD, Texas (AP) — President Bush on Wednesday signed a $555 billion bill that funds the Iraq war well into next year and keeps government agencies running through September. Bush's signature on the massive spending bill capped a long-running battle with the Democratic-run Congress as he left on Air Force One to fly from his Maryland mountaintop retreat to his Texas ranch here to see in the new year. Bush had deep reservations about special "earmark" spending in the bill, but signed it into law nevertheless. "The omnibus (bill) funds the government at responsible levels that the president proposed without raising taxes," White House spokesman Scott Stanzel told reporters traveling to Texas with Bush. Stanzel said that although he signed the bill, Bush continues to be "disappointed with Congress' addiction to earmarks." "And soon the president will outline his fiscal year 2009 budget proposal," the spokesman added, "which will hold the line on spending, keep taxes low and continue us on the path to a balanced budget." A fuller Bush statement on the bill was expected later Wednesday, Stanzel said. Bush, who had used his veto power to remain relevant in the debate with Democrats on national spending priorities, had agreed to sign the measure, which includes $70 billion for military operations in Iraq and Afghanistan, after winning concessions on Iraq and other budget items. The bill bankrolls 14 Cabinet departments and federal agencies and funds foreign aid for the budget year that began on Oct. 1. Bush and his Senate GOP allies forced the Iraq money upon anti-war Democrats as the price for permitting the year-end budget deal to pass and be signed. Democrats tried to use war spending legislation to force a change in Bush's Iraq policy, chiefly by setting a withdrawal goal with dates such as Dec. 15, 2009. But Bush and Republicans held a powerful hand. They knew Democrats would not let money lapse for troops overseas. That allowed a Bush veto in May and GOP stalling tactics to determine the outcome. On the domestic budget, Bush's GOP allies were divided over whether the overall spending bill was a victory for their party in the long fight with Democrats over agency budgets. Conservatives and outside watchdog groups criticized the bill for having about $28 billion in domestic spending that topped Bush's budget and was paid for by a combination of "emergency" spending, transfers from the defense budget and other maneuvers. Bush had complained about more than 9,000 "special interest" earmarks that he found in the bill. But when asked Wednesday whether the president had included any kind of accompanying statement with the signed legislation, Stanzel said that one would be forthcoming, noting that Bush already had asked for options the White House might have to abrogate some or a large degree of that spending. "So no decisions have been made on that front," Stanzel added, "but certainly as you noted in the president's press conference last week, he talked about directing the OMB director, Jim Nussle, to look at ways — or look at avenues by which the federal government can address those earmarks." "The signing statement will — or the statement by the president, rather, will note out dissatisfaction with continued addiction to earmarks," Stanzel said. ||||| Please Register or Log In The story you requested is available only to registered members Registration is FREE and offers great benefits. Please be aware that your browser must accept cookies in order to successfully login, so that we can identify your account.You may also need to adjust your firewall or browser security to login. ||||| We'll be in touch with the latest information on how President Biden and his administration are working for the American people, as well as ways you can get involved and help our country build back better. | Air Force One on December 26, 2007. On Wednesday, United States President George W. Bush signed into law a US$555 billion appropriation bill, called the ''Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2008'' (aka H.R. 2764). The bill will keep government agencies running through September 2008. It also includes US$70 billion, which will fund the military efforts in Iraq and Afghanistan well into 2008. The signing of the bill concluded a battle between Bush and the United States Congress, during which he threatened to use his Presidential veto. Even so, Bush complained about the final outcome of the bill: "I am disappointed in the way the Congress compiled this legislation, including abandoning the goal I set early this year to reduce the number and cost of earmarks by half. Instead, the Congress dropped into the bill nearly 9,800 earmarks that total more than $10 billion. These projects are not funded through a merit-based process and provide a vehicle for wasteful Government spending," Bush said in a press release from the White House. |
Earthquake strikes Iceland, causing some injuries REYKJAVIK, Iceland: A powerful earthquake shook Iceland on Thursday, rocking buildings in the capital, lightly injuring up to 30 people and forcing residents in outlying towns to evacuate. The U.S. Geological Survey said the 6.2 magnitude earthquake hit at 3:46 p.m. (1546 GMT), with its epicenter near the town of Selfoss, 30 miles (50 kilometers) east-southeast of the capital, Reykjavik. The Golden, Colorado-based organization earlier put the magnitude at 6.1 but later revised its estimate. Up to 30 people were in injured in the quake, the Civil Protection Department of Iceland's police said. It said none of the injuries was serious. Residents in the capital felt buildings shake when the tremors struck and the road between Reykjavik and Selfoss was closed by quake damage, Iceland's national broadcaster RUV reported. Sharp aftershocks were felt in the southwest of the country, and police traveled around the nearby town of Hveragerdi, 45 kilometers (28 miles) east of Reykjavik, with a bullhorn, advising residents to stay outdoors. An AP Television News cameraman in Hveragerdi said residents were beginning to pitch tents outside because they were not allowed to return home. "It was a horrific experience. Everything inside my house is ruined," Sveinn Ingvason, a 51-year-old construction worker, told Iceland's Channel 2 from the town. Adalheidur Gudmunsdottir, the 52-year-old director of nursing at a clinic in Selfoss, said many of her patients were frightened by the tremors. "Some of the patients asked to moved outside," she told Channel 2. "The initial idea was to evacuate the clinic ... (but) we decided to move beds from walls and close off the elevators." Amateur video footage aired on RUV television showed rocks tumbling down the sides of jagged peaks in Vestmannaeyjum, a small archipelago off the southern coast of Iceland. Iceland, population 300,000, is a geologically unstable volcanic island in the north Atlantic. The country's last major earthquake, in June 2000, measured 6.6 on the Richter scale. It knocked down a dozen houses but caused no serious injuries. ||||| (Adds Rice visit paragraph 8) SELFOSS, Iceland, May 29 (Reuters) - A strong earthquake rocked Iceland on Thursday, damaging roads and buildings in one town and sending frightened residents running into the streets. Police in Selfoss, 31 miles (50 km) southeast of the capital Reykjavik, said they had received no reports of injuries and that damage to buildings in the area had been relatively minor. The U.S. Geological Survey said the quake struck at 3:46 p.m. (1546 GMT), 6.2 miles (10 km) beneath the earth's surface. In Selfoss, a small southwestern town near the quake's epicentre, dozens of panicking people poured into the streets. "I didn't know what was happening. All of a sudden, I felt the ground moving and saw the shelves shaking and walls in the store shaking," said Kolbrun Sigurdardottir, a clothing store clerk in the town. "I ran out into the street, which was filled with people. A pregnant lady next to me was terrified. We're still shaking with nerves, but I'm glad everybody is okay," she told Reuters. Iceland is renowned for its fierce geophysical temper. The island, which sits on a fault line, is dotted with geysers and volcanoes. Earthquakes of magnitudes up to 7.1 have shaken the island in the past. The quake hit a day before a planned visit to Iceland by U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice. State Department spokesman Sean McCormack, who was with Rice at a conference in Sweden on Thursday, said the visit would go ahead. "EVERYTHING WAS SHAKING" Selfoss rescue team worker Soffia Sigurdardottir said all available teams were out helping people, visting hospitals, schools and other sites. "People are mostly shocked and scared but no one is seriously injured so far," she said. At the famous Blue Lagoon hot springs resort, several kilometres from the epicentre, receptionist Kristrun Bragadottir said she had experienced similar tremors before. "I felt it. And it is not good." Residents also felt the impact in Europe's northernmost capital. "I am in Reykjavik ... everything was shaking. The glass in the windows shook and everybody was just really scared," said economist Audbjorg Olafsdottir. The Iceland Meterological Office said Thursday's was the strongest quake to hit the country since two large quakes in 2000, which followed 88 years of relative seismic inactivity. "This is by far the largest since then," said Einar Kjartansson, a geophysicist at the office. The main quake was followed by several smaller aftershocks, he said. Iceland sits on two shifting plates far beneath the earth's surface, known as the Eurasian plate and the North American plate, which are moving away from each other, not converging, Kjartansson said. The strongest quakes tend to happen where plates are knuckling up against each other, as they do in California. Iceland, a North Atlantic island halfway between Europe and North America, has a population of about 300,000. Some four-fifths of its rocky surface is uninhabited. It was first settled by Vikings from Norway in the ninth century A.D. (Reporting via Stockholm newsroom; additional reporting Sarah Edmonds, Adam Cox and Niklas Pollard; editing by Tim Pearce) ||||| Please turn on JavaScript. Media requires JavaScript to play. Advertisement A strong earthquake measuring 6.1 has hit southern Iceland, 50km (30 miles) from the capital, Reykjavik. In the town of Selfoss, near the epicentre, buildings were damaged and up to 20 people needed treatment for minor injuries, reports say. Residents in the capital felt buildings shake and aftershocks were felt in the south-west of the country. The US Geological Survey said the earthquake struck at 1546 GMT at a shallow 6.2 miles (10 km). Pall Einarsson, Professor of Geophysics at the Institute of Earth Sciences in Iceland, told the BBC that the earthquake happened in an area popular with tourists: "It was close to the town of Selfoss and there is apparently, according to the preliminary news, considerable damage in that town," he said. "Iceland is sitting on a plate boundary where the North America and Eurasian plates are drifting apart. So it's a country of volcanoes and earthquakes and so earthquakes are common but large earthquakes are relatively rare," he added. People 'terrified' Please turn on JavaScript. Media requires JavaScript to play. "It was quite a lot of shaking... It was quite a big one," Ivar Ingimarsson, a footballer who plays for Britain's Reading club but who is now in Reykjavik, told the BBC. Danny Austin, a Briton who has been living in the Icelandic capital for a year, told the BBC the earthquake lasted about eight seconds: "It was fairly noisy. It sounded like thunder coming from the ground. The whole house was shaking, although we haven't had much damage here," he said. Audbjorg Olafsdottir, an economist in Reykjavik, told Reuters news agency that "the glass in the windows shook and everybody was just really scared". "In Selfoss, where it happened, I heard everything is broken and people are standing outside in the street and everybody is terrified," she added. Iceland's national broadcaster RUV radio reported that the road between Reykjavik and Selfoss had been closed due to damage. Authorities have advised residents in the area to leave their homes because of the possibility of aftershocks. Iceland, which has a population of about 300,000, is a geologically unstable volcanic island in the north Atlantic. A spokesman for Iceland's Institute of Earth Sciences said the country had been expecting further quakes after a series of tremors in the same area in 2000. E-mail this to a friend Printable version Bookmark with: Delicious Digg reddit Facebook StumbleUpon What are these? ||||| Thursday, May 29, 2008 at 15:46:00 UTC Thursday, May 29, 2008 at 03:46:00 PM at epicenter Time of Earthquake in other Time Zones | A strong earthquake with magnitude 6.2 hit southwestern Iceland at 15:46 UTC. The epicenter was located 45 kilometers (30 miles) from the nation's capital, Reykjavik. At least 30 people are reported to have been injured, but so far there are no reports of deaths. Some buildings along the main road leading to the town of Selfoss suffered minor damage, leading to the closure of the road. Almost 6,400 people live in the town. "People are mostly shocked and scared but no one is seriously injured so far," said Soffia Sigurdardottir, a rescue worker assisting those in need of help. "Everything was shaking. The glass in the windows shook and everybody was just really scared," said Audbjorg Olafsdottir, an economist in Reykjavik. Over 300,000 people live in Iceland. In June of 2000, a magnitude 6.6 quake struck the nation, which had been the country's first major earthquake in 88 years. |
THE dungeon house where Austrian incest monster Josef Fritzl imprisoned and raped his daughter for 24 years is to be demolished it has emerged. The judge dealing with Fritzl's bankruptcy told the Kurier newspaper that given the home's grisly history, he doubted it could be sold for a profit. "This house should be torn down. There is much interest in it completely disappearing," he said. Former neighbours in Amstetten, southern Austria, want all trace of Fritzl's house to be removed as soon as possible. The case gained worldwide attention in 2008 when daughter Elisabeth Fritzl told police she was held captive by her abusive father for 24 years. The 75-year-old converted the basement of the family home into a dungeon for Elisabeth and three of the seven children he fathered with her. Fritzl was convicted of murdering one of the children, along with enslavement and rape, and jailed for life in 2009. Earlier this month, Fritzl spoke for the first time from his prison cell to German newspaper Bild, telling how he dreams of being reunited with his "loyal" wife. "I have written eight letters. I have never got an answer. But I know she still loves me," he said. "My dream is that I come out of here alive. I would like to look after my wife later, because she has always been loyal to me." Last Thursday, Fritzl got news on another property deal in Amstetten. He was granted planning permission to build 13 homes, an office block and underground parking lot - a project he devised before his crimes were uncovered. His insolvency lawyer successfully pursued the application to pay off his creditor, much to the annoyance of locals. ||||| "There is a lot of interest in seeing it disappear," said Judge Markus Sonnleitner, who is handling Fritzl's insolvency. "This seems to be the sensible course as there is little chance of ever selling the property for a profit. It should be done as quickly as possible." His announcement puts an end to official uncertainty about what to do with the property ever since its terrible secret became known. The house at number 4 Ybbstrasse in the small provincial Austrian town of Amstetten achieved worldwide infamy in April 2008 when it was discovered he had imprisoned his own daughter Elisabeth in it when she was 18 as his own sex slave. The house was filled with tenants who never knew of the agonies being endured in the soundproofed cellar below them. There Fritzl raped his daughter an estimated 3,000 times over 24 years, fathering seven incest children with her, one of whom died in the rat infested prison guarded by eight secret doors. Fritzl, 75, was sentenced to life last year, for enslavement, imprisonment, rape, and for the murder of one of the children he fathered. Judge Sonnleitner said he was looking for a way to pull down the building without attracting "too much attention". Fritzl had built a dungeon under the house for his daughter and the children, while he lived a seemingly normal life with his wife upstairs. Three of the incest children were brought up by them after he convinced authorities that Elisabeth, now 43, had run away to join a cult and had left the babies on his doorstep. The decision to destroy one property that belonged to Fritzl continues as controversy over a decision to allow him planning permission for others still rages in Austria. On Thursday last week he received in his jail cell the green light for his insolvency lawyer to pursue a building project for houses, an office block and an underground car park. He lodged the blueprints for the scheme two years before his secret life was exposed. The mayor of Amstetten said he was embarrassed by the plan but had no choice but to allow it to proceed as all planning criteria were met. As neighbours of this new development announced an appeal against the decision, the old neighbours at Ybbstrasse 1,500 feet away pleaded for a swift end to the "house of horrors". Their fear was always that an entrepreneur might buy it and turn it into a grisly museum. People still visit Ybbstrasse to photograph the house, the doors of which have been welded shut to prevent souvenir hunters trying to break into the cellar. | Josef Fritzl's mugshot The house where used to live and where he imprisoned his daughter is set to be demolished. Fritzl locked his daughter Elisabeth in the make-shift dungeon for 24 years. During that time he raped her repeatedly — and fathered seven children with her, one of whom died in the basement of the house. Judge stated, "There is a lot of interest in seeing it disappear. This seems to be the sensible course as there is little chance of ever selling the property for a profit. It should be done as quickly as possible." Ever since the case became known in 2008, there has been a question over what would happen with the property. The property, in , Austria, has become an unlikely tourist attraction with several people showing up to take pictures of the house. The door is sealed shut to stop anyone from gaining entry to the building. On Thursday, Fritzl received the news that he has been granted planning permission to build a project consisting of houses, an office block and an underground carpark. Fritzl produced the blueprints for the project two years before police were aware of his crimes. Judge Sonnleitner announced the plans as part of Fritzl's ongoing case. |
This website uses cookies. Using this website means you are okay with this but you can find out more and learn how to manage your cookie choices here ||||| Bethan Jones was flown to a special unit after suffering 50% burns Bethan Jones, from Porth, Rhondda, had been three days into a round-the-world trip with boyfriend Alex Collins, 22, from Maesteg, near Bridgend. Mr Collins was one of 81 people who died in the crash in Phuket. His body has now been flown home. Miss Jones received 50% burns in the 16 September crash, in which the jet slid off a runway and burst into flames. A total of 123 passengers, mostly foreign tourists, were on the One-Two-Go flight from Bangkok at the time. She was among the 42 survivors. Two days later, she was flown from Phuket by military aircraft to a special unit in Bangkok General Hospital. Her death is an immense loss to her family and also to members of our school and the wider community. Steve Bowden, Miss Jones's former head teacher Her parents Stephen and Jean, brother Dewi and uncle Terry had all flown out to be with her. On Friday, the family issued a statement thanking family, friends and "the community of Porth and Rhondda and all Bethan's friends and work colleagues for their kindness and sympathy". Miss Jones's death has been confirmed by the Foreign Office and the West London coroner, who said an inquest would be opened after her body has been repatriated. The full inquests into the deaths of all the British victims of the crash will be held by the West Lincolnshire Coroner. Tributes Steve Bowden, head teacher of Porth County Community School where Miss Jones was a former pupil, said staff, students and ex-students were "deeply saddened" by news of her death. He said: "Our deepest sympathy goes to her parents and family and she will be in our thoughts and prayers. Alex Collins will be buried next week Miss Jones was a "most able student" he said, whose main love was English and she had gone on to study at Cardiff University where she had gained first class honours, he said. He added: "Bethan was a delightful, caring person who respected the views and feelings of those she came into contact with and was greatly respected by all who knew her. "Her death is an immense loss to her family and also to members of our school and the wider community." Mr Collins, who had also graduated from Cardiff University, had initially been declared missing following the crash but it was confirmed on Wednesday that his body had been flown home. In a statement released by South Wales Police, his parents, Margaret and Richard, said: "Alex was a fantastic, loving son and our loss has left us with a hole in our hearts that can never be filled. "He was an intelligent, polite and considerate young man with an extraordinary sense of humour. "He had a great zest for life and both he and his girlfriend Bethan were really looking forward to this trip that he had meticulously planned for over a year." His funeral is due to be held next Monday at Our Lady and St Patrick's Church in Maesteg, before he is buried in Maesteg Cemetery. | This One-Two-Go plane is similar to the one that crashed. A Welsh woman has died in a Thai hospital from injuries sustained in the September 16 crash of One-Two-GO Airlines Flight 269 at Phuket International Airport, bringing the death toll to 90. Bethan Jones, 22, from Porth, had been one of 42 original survivors in the crash, which her boyfriend, Alex Collins, 22, did not survive. They were three days into a round-the-world trip when the crash occurred. Jones, whose family flew to Thailand in order to be with her, never regained consciousness after the crash, which left her in critical condition with burns across more than 50% of her body. Two days after the crash a military aircraft had flown her to a specialist unit at the Bangkok General Hospital for treatment. Her family released a statement in which they thanked family, friends and "the community of Porth and Rhondda and all Bethan's friends and work colleagues for their kindness and sympathy". Bethan's body will be flown home this weekend. Alex's body is already in Wales, and his funeral is scheduled for Monday. |
Cassini flew past Iapetus on New Year's Eve 2004, capturing the four visible light images that were put together to form this global view. The scene is dominated by a dark, heavily-cratered region, called Cassini Regio, that covers nearly an entire hemisphere of Iapetus. + Image Details + More Iapetus Information Cassini's Closest Visit of Iapetus On Sept. 10, the Cassini spacecraft performs its closest flyby during the entire mission of the odd moon Iapetus, passing by about 1,640 kilometers (1,000 miles). Iapetus is a world of sharp contrasts. The leading hemisphere is as dark as a freshly-tarred street, and the white, trailing hemisphere resembles freshly-fallen snow. Scientists want to know more about the composition of the dark material that coats Iapetus. They also want to learn more about Iapetus' distinctive walnut shape and the chain of mountains along its equator. ||||| WASHINGTON, Sept. 7 (Xinhua) -- Spacecraft Cassini will make its only close flyby of Saturn's odd, two-toned, walnut-shaped moon Iapetus on Sept. 10, at about 1,640 km from the surface, according to mission updates from NASA. This flyby will be 100 times closer than Cassini's 2004 encounter, and will be the last time the spacecraft will aim its instruments at this moon. "Iapetus spun fast, froze young, and left behind a body with lasting curves," said Julie Castillo, Cassini scientist at NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory. Iapetus has a ridge of surprisingly large mountains -- the so-called "belly-band" -- that lies directly on top of the equator. The moon also has a distinct difference in the brightness of its leading and trailing hemispheres, one as bright as snow and the other dark as tar. The irregular shape, the mountain ridge and Iapetus' brightness contrast are among the key mysteries scientists are trying to solve. An array of Cassini instruments will home in on Iapetus during the flyby. The full menu of objectives includes plans to: characterize the chemical composition of the surface; look for evidence of a faint atmosphere or erupting gas plumes; and map the nighttime temperature of the surface. This will be the first Cassini flyby of an icy moon, other than Titan, that's close enough and slow enough to perform radar imaging with Cassini's Synthetic Aperture Radar. A large swath of terrain will be covered, including the equatorial ridge and regions of craters and basins. These measurements may provide the height of some of the features. In coming weeks, scientists will be analyzing data from multiple instruments. Some results of that analysis will be presented at a planetary science conference in Orlando, Fla., in mid-October. ||||| Saturn watchers on the Cassini mission are preparing for another fly-by, this time of the oddly shaped moon Iapetus. The Cassini probe is set to pass within 1,600 kilometres of the moon, roughly 100 times closer than the last encounter in 2004. It is also the last time the probe is scheduled to fly past the moon, and mission scientists are keen to capture as much data as they can. Iapetus has long been a puzzle to scientists. It has a two-tone appearance, where the leading edge is far brighter than the trailing hemisphere. The difference is similar to the contrast between fresh snow and black tar. Several possible explanations have been put forward, but no consensus has yet been found: could the dark matter, which has a slightly red tinge, be residue from another moon? Could it come from inside the moon? Is it comet debris, or the result of meteoroid impacts? JPL scientist Amanda Hendrix, of Cassini's ultraviolet imaging spectrograph team, speculates that an event that disrupted the moon Hyperion, which has a similarly dark red tint, could be responsible for depositing the material on Iapetus. Meanwhile, Dale Cruikshank, at NASA's Ames Research Center, suggests that the dark matter could be pre-biotic organic compounds: the raw stuff of life. The moon also has a ridge of high mountains running exactly around its equator. The origin of these peaks remains mysterious, too. The scientists involved with the mission hope this fly by will help clear up some of these mysteries. They are planning to turn Cassini's Synthetic Aperture Radar towards the little world to collect data on the size of various surface features. They also plan to study the chemical composition of the surface, search for any evidence of an atmosphere or erupting gas plumes; and map the night-time temperature of the surface. The probe will make its closest approach on September 10th. ® ||||| The page you are looking for does not exist, or may have moved or is currently under construction. You can start at our home page (http://www.sciencedaily.com) or main news page (http://www.sciencedaily.com/news/), or you can use our search engine ((http://www.sciencedaily.com/search/) to look for a recent science news story. Alternatively, you can browse our main sections -- listed in the navigational menu at the top of each page. Tips on Viewing ScienceDaily If you are having any problem viewing ScienceDaily's pages, we recommend that: you use the latest version of a modern web browser (Internet Explorer, Firefox, Chrome, Safari, Opera, etc.); you have Javascript enabled (needed for navigating and interacting with various elements on ScienceDaily's pages; and you avoid overriding our web site's CSS stylesheets with any custom ones that may be selected in a browser's settings. You may also find that clearing your browser's history and cache may help resolve any display issues you may be having when viewing ScienceDaily's content. If you are still having problem accessing our content, you are welcome to send us feedback (https://sciencedaily.wufoo.com/forms/sciencedaily-feedback/). ||||| The mysterious equatorial ridge on Saturn's moon Iapetus is either a fossil ring system that fell to the surface, or a pile up of crustal rocks formed as the satellite changed its shape. These are the latest theories from planetary scientists. The ridge, revealed by the Cassini probe, is unlike anything else in the solar system. It is up to 20 kilometres high and stretches 1300 km along the moon's equator, resembling the ridge on a walnut. Counts of impact craters show the ridge must be nearly as old as the crust on the adjacent plains, which are thought to have solidified about 4.5 billion years ago. The first possible explanation for the ridge's formation is the slowing of Iapetus's spin from less than 10 hours per rotation when it formed to the present speed of 80 days. The initial rapid spin would have produced strong centrifugal force that pushed the equator of the largely fluid young satellite outwards. It was about 1.5 times wider across the equator than from pole to pole, says Julie Castillo at the Jet Propulsion Laboratory in California, US. Then tidal (gravitational) friction with Saturn slowed the spin, so Iapetus became more spherical. This caused the surface area to shrink, leaving the moon with an excess of solid crust, which Castillo says piled up along the equator. Falling down Alternatively, the ridge might have formed from debris that fell from rings that once orbited the equator of Iapetus, says Wing-Huen Ip of the National Central University in Chung Li, Taiwan, (Geophysical Research Letters, DOI: 10.1029/2005GL025386). The rings may have been remnants of the disc of dust and rock from which Iapetus originally condensed. Or the rings may have been formed after a large body hit Iapetus during the final stages of its formation, splashing debris into orbit which formed rings and a satellite which later escaped or broke up. In either case, Ip says, the ring material would have fallen back to the surface in a narrow strip along the equator. He told New Scientist that he has yet to work out how the ring material could have hit slowly enough to build up a ridge rather than blast craters along the equator. In a spin Ip argues his scenario is more plausible because a hot, fast-spinning young Iapetus could not have dissipated rotational energy fast enough for Castillo's scenario to work. Castillo, however, says that Ip uses too simple a model to calculate cooling, and that Iapetus needed only to slow its spin down to once every 20 hours in order to become spherical enough to form an equatorial ridge. Her group has submitted a journal paper describing a complex numerical model of the thermal and dynamic effects that they believe produced the equatorial ridge. So the jury remains out. "The question for both models is: How do you get so much material in such a very small area?" says Paul Schenk of the Lunar and Planetary Institute in Houston, Texas, US. If you would like to reuse any content from New Scientist, either in print or online, please contact the syndication department first for permission. New Scientist does not own rights to photos, but there are a variety of licensing options available for use of articles and graphics we own the copyright to. Have your say Only subscribers may leave comments on this article. Please log in. username: password: Remember me ||||| There may be several reasons why the page can't be found --- the link may no longer be working, the web address was typed incorrectly, or the page just doesn't exist anymore. Please try your search again. Or click here to return to www.bakersfield.com ||||| Space Topics: Saturn Iapetus Two-Faced Moon Click to enlarge > Iapetus has extreme topography and one of the most ancient surfaces in the solar system. It also has a tall mountain range running exactly around its equator. Credit: NASA / JPL / Space Science Institute Size: 1,460 km - 3rd largest moon of Saturn Orbital radius: 3,561,000 kilometers - 59.1 Saturn radii - far outside Saturn's ring system Orbital period: 79.33 days - 5 times Titan's Discovery: 1671 by Giovanni Domenico Cassini Update November 15, 2005: added a page of data from Cassini's rev 17 flyby of Iapetus Iapetus orbits much farther away from Saturn than any other major moon, three times farther away than Titan and about ten times farther than all the rest of the medium-sized icy moons. It is also the only one of Saturn's major moons with an inclined orbit, 15 degrees away from the ring plane. Iapetus is the highest-contrast body in the solar system. Its leading hemisphere is very dark, as dark as asphalt, while its trailing hemisphere is bright, similar to the solar system's other icy satellites. The cause of the black smudge on one face of Iapetus is unknown. The common explanation from before the Cassini mission was that dust from Phoebe -- the darkest object in the Saturnian system except for Iapetus's smudge -- spirals in to Iapetus and is deposited on the surface. However, Cassini's spectrometetric measurements indicate that the dark stuff on Phoebe is a better match to the composition of Iapetus' bright side. The dust-from-outside hypothesis has a second problem: if true, then one entire hemisphere of Iapetus should be dark and the other bright. Closer examination reveals that the dark stuff wraps around to Iapetus' trailing side at the equator, while the poles are bright. The data suggest that the dark and bright coloration may be as much an endogenous process (caused within Iapetus) rather than an exogenous one (having an outside origin). One possibility is that some initial amount of dark material deposited on the leading hemisphere Iapetus' equator could have absorbed solar energy and accelerated evaporation of ice there. The evaporated water would preferentially condense on Iapetus' poles. Another oddity about Iapetus is its topography. It is the only body in the solar system with a self-defined equator; a startlingly linear ridge of tall mountains (a feature that is casually known as Iapetus' "belly band" exactly girdles its equator). In addition, it has a flattened shape that indicates that it once spun much faster than it does now. But judging from the number of huge impact basins and smaller craters covering Iapetus' surface, there has been little in the way of geologic activity on Iapetus recently. Features on Iapetus are named for people and places from Dorothy Sayers' translation of Chanson de Roland. Flybys of Iapetus Click to enlarge > NASA / JPL / SSI Cassini December 31, 2005 at 18:49 UTC “0CIA” nontargeted flyby Closest approach altitude 123,402 kilometers (76,670 miles) Click to enlarge > NASA / JPL / SSI Cassini November 12, 2005 at 14:36 UTC "17IA" and "18IA" nontargeted flyby Closest approach altitude about 416,000 kilometers (258,000 miles) Future Flybys Cassini September 10, 2007 at 12:34 UTC “49IA” targeted flyby [I1] Closest approach altitude 1,229 kilometers (764 miles) Map of Iapetus | The Cassini space probe will make a close flyby today of Saturn's third largest moon Iapetus. For reasons that are not well-understood, one side of Iapetus is much darker than the other side. Explanations for the dark side include meteorite deposition as well as possible debris from other moons of Saturn. Also, the Cassini probe had previously discovered an equatorial ridge on Iapetus during a flyby in 2004 which compounds Iapetus' already non-spherical shape. The origin of the ridge is also not well understood and scientists have proposed a variety of explanations for its presence. This second flyby will be approximately 1,600 km from the surface and will be about 100 times closer than the previous flyby. Scientists hope that the detailed observation using radar and photography will provide insight into Iapetus's odd shape and coloring. Iapetus was first discovered by Giovanni Cassini, for whom the probe is named, in 1671. He was also responsible for discovering that one side of Iapetus was substantially darker than the other. This flyby will likely be the last close flyby of one of Saturn's moons by the Cassini probe. |
Woman Killed In Fire On Commuter Train A woman killed when a fire broke out in a toilet on a commuter train is believed to have committed suicide. To view this content you need Flash and Javascript enabled in your browser. Please download Flash from the Adobe download website. British Transport Police (BTP) said the 43-year-old was travelling on the London-bound train at around 5pm when the blaze occurred. Another passenger alerted the conductor to the fire on the London Midland-operated service, which had left Northampton at 4.25pm. The train pulled into Leighton Buzzard station in Bedfordshire where the other passengers alighted safely. No one else was hurt. A spokeswoman for BTP said: "The deceased woman has injuries consistent with burns. "No other person is believed to have been involved in the incident and it is not being treated as an accident." Overhead power lines on the busy West Coast main line were switched off for a time as BTP, firefighters and the ambulance service attended the scene. London Midland initially put on bus services to replace trains. West Coast operator Virgin Trains had its rush-hour services badly disrupted and delays continued into the night. :: Anyone feeling emotionally distressed or suicidal can call Samaritans for help on 08457 90 90 90 or email jo@samaritans.org. ||||| 'She kissed a woman then set herself on fire': Last horrifying moments of passenger who committed suicide on a train A woman passenger who committed suicide in a train toilet by setting herself on fire was named today as Rachel James. The blonde passenger, 43, from Uxbridge, west London, calmly kissed an elderly woman before setting herself on fire, it was revealed today. Carrying a can of highly flammable gas, she walked along an aisle on the London-bound train as it approached Leighton Buzzard railway station, in Bedfordshire, before igniting it in the cubicle. All the other passengers escaped from the train on its approach to Leighton Buzzard station in Bedfordshire unharmed The Ms James was pronounced dead at the scene and was due to be examined by a pathologist today. Police sources said she was seen chatting with an elderly couple before kissing the woman on the cheek moments before she died, it was reported. Anne Farthing, 49, who saw the fire from her flat, said: 'I looked out of the window and saw thick smoke that was like a fog. 'The train was going from Northampton to London and when it got to the station, for some reason it reversed back up the track under the bridge. 'The other passengers must have got out there and walked up the track.' Many trains on the West Coast Main Line in and out of Euston were cancelled or severely delayed The incident led to serious disruption to trains heading in and out of London Euston with some trains cancelled. A British Transport Police spokesman said: 'Officers are currently investigating the death of a 43-year-old woman on board a train near Leighton Buzzard Rail Station in Bedfordshire. 'A fire was reported inside a toilet cubicle on the train at 5.07pm. The deceased woman has injuries consistent with burns. 'No other person is believed to have been involved in the incident and it is not being treated as an accident. 'Officers from the Ambulance and Fire services also attended. The train involved was a London Midland service from Northampton to Euston.' A London Midland spokesman said: 'The fire appeared to have been in the toilet. A passenger reported the fire to a conductor. All the other passengers got off safely.' The service was a Desiro commuter train. The incident led to serious disruptions along the West Coast Main Line | File photograph of a train. A passenger was killed Monday evening after a fire started in a washroom aboard a train near , in , England. Emergency services were called to the train, where they found the body of a female passenger who had suffered burns. confirmed one female individual was killed in the blaze. A spokesperson said: "The deceased woman has injuries consistent with burns, no other person is believed to have been involved in the incident. Officers from the fire and ambulance services are on the scene." The fire has caused serious disruption to trains on the . A spokesperson for said they were attempting to reopen two of the four tracks on the line as London Midland scrambled to organise a replacement bus service. London Midland said no-one else was injured in the incident. "The fire appeared to have been in the toilet," a spokesperson said. "A passenger reported the fire to a conductor. All the other passengers got off safely." == Sources == * * |
Getty Images Toyota representatives examined a crashed Toyota Prius in March in Harrison, N.Y. The U.S. Department of Transportation has analyzed dozens of data recorders from Toyota Motor Corp. vehicles involved in accidents blamed on sudden acceleration and found that the throttles were wide open and the brakes weren't engaged at the time of the crash, people familiar with the findings said. The early results suggest that some drivers who said their Toyotas and Lexuses surged out of control were mistakenly flooring the accelerator when they intended to jam on the brakes. But the findings—part of a broad, ongoing federal investigation into Toyota's recalls—don't exonerate the car maker from two known issues blamed for sudden acceleration in its vehicles: "sticky" accelerator pedals that don't return to idle and floor mats that can trap accelerators to the floor. The findings by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration involve a sample of the reports in which a driver of a Toyota vehicle said the brakes were depressed but failed to stop the car from accelerating and ultimately crashing. The U.S. Department of Transportation found that throttles were wide open and brakes not engaged on Toyotas involved in accidents blamed on sudden acceleration, said people familiar with the matter. Mike Ramsey discusses. Also, Joe White and Ashby Jones discuss the U.S. Court ruling striking down certain FCC rules against broadcast indecency. A NHTSA spokeswoman declined to comment on the findings, which haven't been released by the agency. The data recorders analyzed by NHTSA were selected by the agency, not Toyota, based on complaints the drivers had filed with the government. Toyota hasn't been involved in interpreting the data. The initial findings are consistent with a 1989 government-sponsored study that blamed similar driver mistakes for a rash of sudden-acceleration reports involving Audi 5000 sedans. The Toyota findings appear to support Toyota's position that sudden-acceleration reports involving its vehicles weren't caused by electronic glitches in computer-controlled throttle systems, as some safety advocates and plaintiffs' attorneys have alleged. More than 100 people have sued the car maker over crashes they claim were the result of faulty electronics. It is unknown how many data recorders NHTSA has read so far. The agency's investigators have been reading the data only since Toyota provided the agency with 10 reading devices in March. Since then, investigators have responded to accidents involving sudden acceleration when the driver claims to have been stepping on the brakes. Because the data recorders can lose their information if disconnected from the car's battery or if the battery dies—as could happen after a crash—the agency is focusing only on recent accidents, said a person familiar with the situation. NHTSA has received more than 3,000 complaints of sudden acceleration in Toyotas and Lexuses, including some dating to early last decade, according to a report the agency compiled in March. The incidents include 75 fatal crashes involving 93 deaths. However, NHTSA has been able to verify that only one of those fatal crashes was caused by a problem with the vehicle, according to information the agency provided to the National Academy of Sciences. That accident last Aug. 28, which killed a California highway patrolman and three passengers in a Lexus, was traced to a floor mat that trapped the gas pedal in the depressed position. Toyota has since recalled more than eight million cars globally to fix floor mats and sticky accelerators. The NHTSA spokeswoman said the agency wouldn't comment on its Toyota probe until a broader study is completed in conjunction with NASA, which is expected to take months. View Full Image Associated Press A recalled Toyota gas pedal is posed next to a recalled Toyota Avalon at a dealership in Palo Alto, Calif. Daniel Smith, NHTSA's associate administrator for enforcement, told a panel of the National Academy of Sciences last month that the agency's sudden-acceleration probe had yet to find any car defects beyond those identified by the company: pedals entrapped by floor mats, and accelerator pedals that are slow to return to idle. "In spite of our investigations, we have not actually been able yet to find a defect" in electronic throttle-control systems, Mr. Smith told the scientific panel, which is looking into potential causes of sudden acceleration. "We're bound and determined that if it exists, we're going to find it," he added. "But as yet, we haven't found it." Some Toyota officials say they are informally aware of the NHTSA data-recorder results. Toyota officials haven't been briefed on the findings, but they corroborate its own tests, said Mike Michels, the chief spokesman for Toyota Motor Sales. Toyota says its own downloads of data recorders have found evidence of sticky pedals and pedal entrapment as well as driver error, which is characterized by no evidence of the brakes being depressed during impact. Still, since the start of Toyota's troubles late last summer, the Japanese company hasn't blamed drivers for any of the sudden-acceleration incidents, though in many cases the company couldn't find another cause. Toyota President Akio Toyoda has said the company won't pin the blame on customers for its problems as part of its public-relations response. An attorney who represents four drivers who sued Toyota in state courts over sudden acceleration said the NHTSA finding doesn't mean much for his litigation. "Toyota has always taken the position that the electronic data recorder system is not reliable," said Tab Turner, the Little Rock, Ark., lawyer. A Toyota spokesman said the company considers the device "a prototype tool. It wasn't designed to tell us exactly what happened in an accident. It was designed to tell us whether our systems were operating properly." One case studied by U.S. regulators involves Myrna Marseille of Kohler, Wis., who reported in March that her 2009 Toyota Camry accelerated out of control and crashed into a building. Ms. Marseille said in an interview Tuesday that she was entering a parking space near a library when she heard the engine roar. "I looked down and my foot was still on the brake, so I did not have my foot on the gas pedal," she said. Police in Sheboygan Falls, Wis., investigated and believe driver error was to blame, Chief Steven Riffel said Tuesday. He said surveillance video showed that the brake lights didn't illuminate until after the crash. But Mr. Riffel said that determination is preliminary and that his agency has turned over the investigation to NHTSA. Based on the black box data, NHTSA investigators found that the brake was not engaged and the throttle was wide open, according to a person familiar with the matter. Ms. Marseille sticks by her story. "It makes me very angry when someone tells me, 'She probably hit the gas pedal instead,' because I think it's a sexist comment, an ageist comment," she said. —Josh Mitchell contributed to this article. Write to Kate Linebaugh at kate.linebaugh@wsj.com ||||| A 2008 Toyota Prius brakes in a stadium parking lot following Toyota's announcement of preliminary findings regarding their investigation of an unintended acceleration incident involving a 2008 Prius, during a news conference in San Diego, California, in this March 15, 2010 file photo. Toyota Motor Corp said on July 14 its investigation of nearly 2,000 cases of unintended acceleration had found no problem with its electronic throttle system, and that driver error was to blame in some cases. TOKYO/WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Toyota Motor Corp said on Wednesday its investigation of nearly 2,000 cases of unintended acceleration had found no problem with its electronic throttle system, and that driver error was to blame in some cases. The world's top automaker made the statement after a Wall Street Journal report that early results of the U.S. government's analysis of dozens of data recorders from Toyota vehicles suggested that some drivers were at fault in cases of sudden acceleration. Citing people familiar with the unreleased results of the U.S. Department of Transportation's tests, the paper said some drivers who said their Toyotas or Lexuses surged out of control might have pushed the accelerator when they meant to brake. The Department of Transportation would not confirm the report. Toyota said the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) had not reported details of its findings to Toyota. It said Toyota had also concluded that "pedal misapplication" was shown to be the cause in some cases of unwanted speeding. Toyota has provided NHTSA with 10 event data recorders, and four recorders to Canadian authorities, and all of its findings from the 2,000 on-site inspections, Toyota spokesman Mike Michels said. NO CONCLUSION EXPECTED FOR MONTHS U.S. regulators are investigating whether there are problems with Toyota's electronic throttles, and whether any glitches have played a role in unintended acceleration complaints. As many as 89 crash deaths have been reported since 2000 as possibly being linked to unintended acceleration in Toyota cars. NHTSA has enlisted space agency experts to look at the software-driven throttles. The safety agency will also tap the expertise of an independent scientific panel, which is studying the matter separately. Conclusions are not expected for months. In years of reviewing unintended acceleration in Toyota vehicles, NHTSA has never found a link to electronic throttles. Toyota maintains its throttles are sound and blames unintended acceleration on floormats that can jam the accelerator pedal and pedals that would not spring back as designed. Those equipment and mechanical problems were behind the worldwide recall of more than 8 million Toyota and Lexus vehicles in October 2009 and January 2010 for unintended acceleration. Toyota faces a potential civil liability estimated at more than $10 billion from lawsuits sparked by complaints of runaway cars and trucks. Shares in Toyota rose 4.6 percent on Wednesday morning in Tokyo, in line with a strong rise in other Japanese auto stocks. "It's basically the weaker yen," said Hiroaki Kuramochi, chief equity marketing officer at Tokai Tokyo Securities. "Exporters and other auto shares are all pretty strong on this." He added: "The Toyota issue is pretty much worn out as a factor; it's been priced in. This is especially true since some of it may have been a kind of Japan-bashing taken up as a political factor." (Additional reporting by Elaine Lies in Tokyo, Soyoung Kim in Detroit and Helen Chernikoff in New York; Editing by Michael Watson) | The , one of the models recalled by Toyota. According to '''', the U.S. has analyzed data from the vehicles involved in accidents caused by sudden acceleration, which led to Toyota, the world's top automaker, recalling a large number of automobiles. Early analysis showed that the throttle was wide open and the brakes weren't engaged when the cars crashed, and suggests that the accidents may have been caused by drivers unintentionally flooring the accelerator instead of the brakes. The U.S. Department of Transportation did not confirm this report. However, Toyota is still under federal investigation for a number of known issues with its cars' acceleration. The accelerator is known to not return to idle after it has been released, and the floor mats are known to trap the accelerator pedal. Toyota is also suspected of having electronic in its computer-controlled throttle systems, but released a statement on Wednesday saying that its investigations found no problems in the throttle systems. Over the years Toyota has received more than 3000 complaints about sudden acceleration. These may have caused up to 75 fatal crashes that led to 93 deaths. Due to these accidents, Toyota provided the (NHTSA) with ten from cars involved in accidents. However, the NHTSA has only managed to confirm that one of these accidents was caused by malfunctions in the car – an accident in California this August that was caused by the floor mat trapping the gas pedal in a depressed position. The NHTSA, in conjunction with NASA, has begun a broader study into what caused these accidents, however conclusions aren't expected for months. The ongoing lawsuits against Toyota could result in more than $10 billion of damages. |
The army of southern Sudan says more than 100 people were killed when a local tribe attacked a rival group in the southern state of Jonglei. Jonglei State in Southern Sudan Gunmen from the Lou Nuer tribe attacked a village of the Dinka Hol tribe on Sunday, driving away security forces who were guarding the remote settlement, Duk Padiet.Southern army spokesman Kuol Diem Kuol said Monday that the dead include 23 attackers, 28 security forces, and more than 50 villagers. Another 46 people were injured. Jonglei state has experienced multiple deadly clashes involving the Lou Nuer, the Dinka Hol, and other tribes this year, often triggered by cattle raids or disputes over natural resources The area has long been the scene of violent cattle raids between the groups. But southern Sudanese officials say northern Sudan's ruling party is organizing the attacks to spark conflict and undermine the 2005 peace deal that ended Sudan's civil war. That deal calls for the semi-autonomous south to vote on full independence in 2011. The National Congress Party has repeatedly denied the accusations. The United Nations says more than 2,000 people have been killed this year and another 250,000 displaced in tribal violence in South Sudan. Some information for this report was provided by AFP and Reuters. ||||| *Surge in violence threatens peace deal, southern stability *Some locals say attack was revenge for cattle rustling JUBA, Sudan, Sept 21 (Reuters) - More than 100 people were killed when tribesmen raided a south Sudan village, burning buildings and attacking churchgoers, officials said on Monday, in a further escalation of violence in the oil-producing region. A surge of tribal killings this year has sparked fears for the stability of Sudan's underdeveloped south, still emerging from two decades of civil war. Fighters from the Lou Nuer tribe attacked the village of Duk Padiet, home to a rival Dinka group, on Sunday morning while many of the villagers were in church, officials told Reuters. The extent of the carnage only emerged on Monday when officials reached the remote settlement in Jonglei state. A total of 51 villagers and 28 southern soldiers, national security and police officers guarding the settlement were killed, said southern army spokesman Kuol Diem Kuol. "From the attackers 23 bodies were found on the ground. These attackers were found in uniform with arms and organized in a military organisation in platoons with G3 rifles," he said. The United Nations estimates more than 1,200 people have died in ethnic attacks in south Sudan this year. Some of the fiercest fighting has been in Jonglei, parts of which are included in a largely unexplored oil concession operated by France's Total. Southern politicians have accused their former civil war foes from north Sudan of arming rival tribes to destabilise the region in the build-up to elections in 2010 and a referendum on southern secession in 2011. Khartoum denies the accusation. THOUSANDS FLED AS BUILDINGS BURNED "This is a campaign against the Comprehensive Peace Agreement (the faltering 2005 accord that ended Sudan's north-south civil war) and against the people of Duk," Mayen Ngor, the commissioner of surrounding Duk County, told Reuters by phone from near the scene of the attack. Ngor said the attackers burned down 260 huts, the police station and local government buildings, injuring 46 people and forcing thousands to flee. Around two million people died in the 1983-2005 war between Sudan's Muslim north and mostly Christian south. The conflict also set southern tribes against each other as the north backed rival southern militias. Some analysts and southern leaders say they fear the new violence marks a return of the southern militias, backed by groups trying to undermine the peace deal, or local leaders, strengthening their power bases in the run-up to elections. The 2005 peace deal which promised elections and a referendum also gave the south a share of the country's oil wealth and set up a semi-autonomous southern government. North-south relations have remained tense and analysts say many of the northern political elite are nervous about the referendum, and the prospects of losing the south, the source of most of Sudan's proven oil reserves. South Sudan has long been plagued by ethnic clashes, mostly fought over cattle and related feuds. But observers have been shocked by the scale of this year's violence, where tribal fighters have attacked villages and killed women and children. Members of the Lou Nuer tribe this month denied their fighters had joined militias, telling Reuters most of the recent raids were revenge attacks for past cattle rustling. "It is just cattle raiding ... It's just revenge," said William Khor Reath, executive director for Akobo County, a mostly Lou Nuer area in Jonglei state. Traditional disputes have been exacerbated by a ready supply of guns left over from the civil war. (Editing by Andrew Heavens and Tim Pearce) ||||| KHARTOUM, Sept. 21 (Xinhua) -- About 100 people were killed during the latest tribal clash in southern Sudan, where witnessed mounting tribal violence this year, sources from the UN peacekeeping forces said Monday. Thousands of armed men from the Lou Nuer tribe attacked the village of Duk Padiet in Jonglei state Sunday. The fighting killed about 100 people, including about 80 civilians, the sources of the UN Mission in Sudan (UNMIS) said. Last month, about 185 Lou Nuers were killed during the tribe clash in the same state. Some 2,000 people have died in tribe violence across the south this year, according to UN figures. The Comprehensive Peace Agreement, inked in 2005 to end a two-decade war between northern and southern Sudan, stipulates a referendum in the south in 2011 to decide whether an independent state would be set up in the currently semi-autonomous region. However, the two peace partners, namely the ruling National Conference Party (NCP) and the Sudan People's Liberation Movement (SPLM), have not ironed out their differences on the referendum. The SPLM accused the NCP of being involved in the tribal violence in southern Sudan, but the NCP denied the claim. | Jonglei state in Sudan. The army of southern Sudan says more than 100 people were killed when a local tribe attacked a rival group in the southern state of . Gunmen from the tribe attacked a village of the tribe on Sunday, driving away security forces who were guarding the remote settlement of Duk Padiet. army spokesman Kuol Diem Kuol said Monday that the dead include 23 attackers, 28 security forces, and more than 50 villagers, with 46 more injured. "From the attackers 23 bodies were found on the ground. These attackers were found in uniform with arms and organized in a military organisation in platoons with ," Kuol said. Jonglei state has experienced multiple deadly clashes involving the Lou Nuer, the Dinka Hol, and other tribes this year. The area has long been the scene of violent cattle raids between the groups. Southern Sudanese officials say northern Sudan's ruling party is organizing the attacks to spark conflict and undermine the 2005 that ended Sudan's civil war, which calls for the semi-autonomous south to vote on full independence in 2011. The has repeatedly denied the accusations. |
EUGENE VICTOR DEBS 1855-1926 Born: Nov. 5,1855, at Terre Haute, Indiana. Died: Oct. 20,1926, Lindlahr Sanitarium, Elmhurst, Illinois. Buried in Terre Haute, Ind. Education: Attended Terre Haute Public schools, dropping out of high school at age of 14 to take job as painter in railroad yards. In 1870 became fireman on railroad. In his spare time, he went to night classes at a local business college. September 1874—At his mother’s insistence he gave up job as railroad fireman and went to work in wholesale grocery firm of Hulman & Cox as a billing clerk. February 27, 1875—Became charter member and secretary of Vigo Lodge, Brotherhood of Locomotive Firemen. He continued work at Hulman & Cox and used his salary to help the fledgling local union and conducted its work at night. Later the same year he became president of Occidental Literary Club of Terre Haute. Brought famous personages to Terre Haute including Col. Robert Ingersoll, James Whitcomb Riley, Susan B. Anthony and many others. 1878— Made assistant editor of national Brotherhood of Locomotive Fireman’s Magazine. 1879—Elected to first of two terms as City Clerk of Terre Haute on Democrat ticket. 1880—Named Grand Secretary of Brotherhood of Railway Firemen and editor of the Magazine. 1884—Elected state representative to the Indiana General Assembly as a Democrat representing Terre Haute and Vigo County. Served in 1885. June 9, 1885—Married to Kate Metzel whom he loved and cherished until his death. They had no children. 1890—Built and moved into his beautiful Terre Haute home at 451 North Eighth Street, which is now a National Historic Landmark of the National Parks Department of the Department of Interior of the United States; an official historic site of the State of Indiana and is now the Debs Museum. 1891—Announced his retirement from the Brotherhood of Locomotive Firemen as its Grand Secretary. 1892—Convention of Brotherhood of Locomotive Firemen prevailed on him to retain editorship of Magazine. June 1893—Organized in Chicago first industrial union in United States, the American Railway Union. April 1894—The American Railway Union struck Great Northern Railway. Not a wheel moved on Great Northern and at end of 18 days, the railway granted demands of union. May 11, 1894—Pullman Boycott and strike at Chicago began. July 23, 1894—Debs and leaders of ARU jailed. May, 1895—Debs and leaders of ARU sent to jail for contempt of court in connection with Pullman strike. Finished sentences Nov. 22, 1895. Given triumphal welcome by thousands on his arrival in Chicago, from Woodstock, Ill. jail where sentence was served. 1900, 1904, 1908, 1912, 1920—Ran as candidate of Socialist Party for President of the United States in some of the most dynamic campaigning ever seen in the United States. Made his greatest showing in campaign of 1908 which featured the RED SPECIAL train which went to every section of the country. 1907-1912—Named Associate Editor of the Appeal to Reason published in Girard, Kan. He was paid the then fabulous salary of $100 per week. The weekly magazine achieved a circulation of several hundred thousand due to the powerful writing of Debs. The bound files of the Appeal to Reason for the years of 1907 to 1914 ar part of the library in the Debs home. 1916—Ran for Congress in his home district in Terre Haute on the Socialist ticket and was defeated. June 16, 1918—Debs made his famous anti-war speech in Canton, Ohio, protesting World War I which was raging in Europe. For this speech he was arrested and convicted in federal court in Cleveland, Ohio under the war-time espionage law. He was his own attorney and his appeal to the jury and his statement to the court before sentencing, are regarded as two of the great classic statements ever made in a court of law. He was sentenced to serve 10 years in prison. April 12, 1919—Debs began serving his sentence in Moundsville, W. Va. State prison and was transferred to Atlanta, Ga. Federal prison two months later. His humility and friendliness and his assistance to all won him the respect and admiration of the most hardened convicts. 1920—For the fifth and last time, while a prisoner at Atlanta, he was nominated to run for president on the Socialist party ticket. Conducting his campaign from inside the prison, he was given nearly a million votes but was defeated by the Republican, Warren G. Harding. On Christmas Day, 1921 President Harding released Debs from prison, commuting his sentence to time served. Dec. 28, 1921—Debs arrived home in Terre Haute from prison and was given a tremendous welcome by thousand of Terre Hauteans. Debs spent his remaining days trying to recover his health which was severely undermined by prison confinement. He made several speeches, wrote many articles and finally in 1926 went to Lindlahr sanitarium just outside of Chicago. Oct. 20, 1926—Eugene V. Debs died in Lindlahr sanitarium. His body was brought back to Terre Haute where it lay in state in the Terre Haute Central Labor Temple. Great men and women from the world came over to Terre Haute for his funeral which was conducted by Norman Thomas from the front porch of the Debs home. ThIrty-eight years later, Thomas returned to Terre Haute to dedicate the Debs home as a memorial to the great humanitarian. Debs was cremated and his ashes were interred in Highland Lawn cemetery, Terre Haute, with only a simple marker. Ten years later his beloved wife, Kate, was buried beside him. Over the years, hundreds have journeyed to his grave to pay tribute to this great man whose many reforms have now become a part of the American way of life. There is hardly any American alive today, rich or poor, whose life has not been touched in some beneficent way by the influence of Eugene Victor Debs. “Too long have the workers of the world waited for some Moses to lead them out of bondage. I would not lead you out if I could; for if you could be led out, you could be led back again. I would have you make up your minds there is nothing that you cannot do for yourselves.” From an address on Industrial Unionism delivered at Grand Central Palace. New York City, Dec. 18,1905. Back to top ||||| David Martosko is The Daily Caller's executive editor. He is the father of two, a frequent public speaker, and a graduate of Dartmouth College and the Johns Hopkins University. A 52-year-old felon with a ponytail, a mullet, a 210-month federal prison sentence — and a surprising amount of political experience — gave President Barack Obama a serious fight Tuesday night in West Virginia’s Democratic primary election. With 47 of 55 counties reporting their results, Keith Russell Judd had collected 55,592 votes statewide, or 42.80 percent of the total. Although party rules would award Judd at least one Democratic National Convention delegate for winning more than 15 percent of the vote, it’s unclear whether he would actually have a voice at the Charlotte, N.C. event since no one has volunteered to represent him as a delegate. Still, the ultimate outsider was leading Obama in eight counties late Tuesday night. As disaffection with the president grows nationwide, Obama has already suffered one embarrassing defeat in Oklahoma, where anti-abortion activist Randall Terry won 18 percent of votes in that state’s March primary contest. Judd, otherwise known as “prisoner #11593-051″ at the Beaumont Federal Correctional Institution in Texas, is serving time for “mailing a threatening communication with intent to extort money or something of value” in New Mexico. He was arrested in 1995 and convicted in 1999. In 2000 a federal appeals court noted that he had already “filed thirty-six notices of appeal … [and] no less than 180 motions,” all unsuccessfully. Ironically, while felons can’t vote in many states, they can run for president. Judd’s eclectic resume includes the claim that he spent a year studying political science at Harvard University’s Kennedy School of Government, but that may be taken with a grain of salt: He claims to have been a member of the ”Federation of Super Heroes” from 1976 to 1982. He also boasts a stint as a U.S. Air Force band leader, says he founded an organization called “World Peace Through Musical Communications Skills,” and claims he earned “various degrees” in physics, nuclear physics and acoustics at the “University of California Los Alamos.” (RELATED: Twenty percent of NC Dems decline to vote for Obama) The UC system operates the national laboratory at Los Alamos, Calif., but has no degree-granting campus there. Though Judd may be a less-than-serious candidate, he has all the political experience of a dogged insider. Beginning in 1995, he has filed more than 70 Federal Election Commission reports on his various political committees. In December 2010 he reported that his presidential committee had raised “well over $700,000 in contributions, collectively from almost every State.” Judd sent the report not to the FEC, but to the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office. He later filed a copy with the Consumer Product Safety Commission. More reports followed, including one in December 2011 that claimed he had $946,581.50 in cash on hand. It was accompanied by a list of donors, including a “John Doe” category listing nearly 50 phone numbers of supposed contributors and a subsequent list of 1,080 additional donors’ phone numbers. It’s unclear whether the FEC has verified that any of the numbers belong to actual voters. He appeared on the 2008 presidential primary ballot in Idaho, after filing his forms and paying the $1,000 fee with a check drawn on his prison account. Ben Ysursa, then Idaho’s Secretary of State, told the Spokane, Wash. Spokesman-Review in April 2008, “We got conned.” Pages: 1 2 NEXT: Judd's appeal this year appears to be tied to protest voting ||||| Just how unpopular is President Barack Obama in some parts of the country? Enough that a man in prison in Texas is getting 4 out of 10 votes in West Virginia's Democratic presidential primary. The inmate, Keith Judd, is serving time at the Beaumont Federal Correctional Institution in Texas for making threats at the University of New Mexico in 1999. With 93 percent of precincts reporting, Obama was receiving just under 60 percent of the vote to Judd's 40 percent. For some West Virginia Democrats, simply running against Obama is enough to get Judd votes. "I voted against Obama," said Ronnie Brown, a 43-year-old electrician from Cross Lanes who called himself a conservative Democrat. "I don't like him. He didn't carry the state before and I'm not going to let him carry it again." When asked which presidential candidate he voted for, Brown said, "That guy out of Texas." Judd was able to get on the state ballot by paying a $2,500 fee and filing a form known as a notarized certification of announcement, said Jake Glance, a spokesman for the Secretary of State's office. Attracting at least 15 percent of the vote would normally qualify a candidate for a delegate to the Democratic National Convention. But state Democratic Party Executive Director Derek Scarbro said no one has filed to be a delegate for Judd. The state party also believes that Judd has failed to file paperwork required of presidential candidates, but officials continue to research the matter, Scarbro said. Voters in other conservative states showed their displeasure with Obama in Democratic primaries last March. In Oklahoma, anti-abortion protester Randall Terry got 18 percent of the primary vote. A lawyer from Tennessee, John Wolfe, pulled nearly 18,000 votes in the Louisiana primary. In Alabama, 18 percent of Democratic voters chose "uncommitted" in the primary rather than vote for Obama. In Tuesday's North Carolina primary, 21 percent of Democratic voters marked "no preference." Obama's energy policies and the Environmental Protection Agency's handling of mining-related permits have incurred the wrath of West Virginia's coal industry. With the state the nation's second-biggest producer of this fossil fuel, Gov. Earl Ray Tomblin and Sen. Joe Manchin --both Democrats who have championed the industry -- have declined to say whether they will support Obama in the November election. Hillary Rodham Clinton beat Obama handily in the state's 2008 primary, and he lost the state to Republican John McCain in the general election. The latest state-by-state Gallup poll, released in January, found Obama with a 32.7 percent approval rating in West Virginia. The president had a lower approval rating only in Utah, Idaho, Oklahoma and Wyoming. "Keith Judd's performance is embarrassing for Obama and our great state," outgoing West Virginia Republican Chairman Mike Stuart said. Presumed Republican presidential nominee Mitt Romney won West Virginia's GOP primary Tuesday with more than 69 percent of the vote, with 93 percent of precincts reporting. Rick Santorum followed with 12 percent, while Ron Paul had 11 percent. ||||| A federal inmate who received more than 40 percent of the vote in the Democratic primary in West Virginia has ties to New Mexico — including multiple runs for office in the state. Keith Russell Judd is in a federal prison in Texas after making a threat at the University of New Mexico in 1999. It is unclear what type of threat Judd made, but he has made multiple appeals and frivolous lawsuits in the intervening time — so many that judges have ruled that he has to pay fees before he can file any more lawsuits. Some of these lawsuits include references to the Secret Service. Here’s an example of a court filing on Judd’s filings: Appellant Keith Russell Judd has thus far filed thirty-six notices of appeal. Fifteen have been dismissed for being frivolous, for lack of jurisdiction, or for lack of prosecution. Judd also has filed no less than 180 motions, and sent at least 47 additional documents upon which no action was taken. This blog quotes a broken link which says: “On September 27, 1999, the petitioner was convicted by a jury of two counts of mailing a threatening communication with intent to extort money or something of value in violation of 18 U.S.C.§ 876. See United States v. Judd, 252 F.3d 435 (5th Cir. 2001) (per curiam) (not published) (affirming conviction and sentence). Because of various aggravating factors that increased the offense level by a total of eighteen and the criminal history category from one to four, the petitioner was sentenced to 210 months’ imprisonment.” Despite this record, and because of virtually no campaigning in the state by Obama, Judd received the votes of more than 40 percent of the Democratic electorate in West Virginia. Of course, voters were likely not actually voting for Judd but instead casting ballots against Obama. Obama received just 25.77 percent of the vote in the 2008 primary, while Clinton received more than two-thirds of the vote. Obama notably had problems gathering votes in the rural, heavily white area of Appalachia in 2008, causing reporters to ask about Obama’s “Appalachian problem.” Previous electoral runs In 2008, Judd managed to get on the Democratic Party ballot in Idaho according to the Associated Press. It’s Judd’s second presidential bid in Idaho, the newspaper said Wednesday. In 2004 he declared as a write-in candidate for president, which requires only the submission of a declaration, and didn’t get any votes. Those runs were not Judd’s first forays into elective politics, as he ran three times as a write-in candidate in New Mexico. In 1993, Judd ran as a write-in candidate in the Albuquerque mayoral election. Martin Chavez won that election in an upset, beating former Gov. Dave Cargo narrowly. In 1994, Judd filed as a write-in candidate for governor in the Republican Primary and received 57 votes. Gary Johnson won that election and went on to become mayor governor. And as a write-in candidate for mayor of Albuquerque in 1997, Judd received 50 votes and came in last place out of 8 total candidates. Environmentalist and former state Land Commissioner Jim Baca ended up winning that election. Despite getting over 15 percent, it is unlikely that Judd will have any delegates represent him at the Democratic National Convention this fall. The Associated Press: If he receives 15 percent of the state vote he will qualify to receive delegates to the national Democratic convention. But state Democratic Party Executive Director Derek Scarbro said no one has filed to be a delegate for Judd, and the state party was unaware that Judd has actually filed the required paperwork. This is the same problem that anti-abortion candidate Randall Terry ran into in Oklahoma. Wallace Collins, chairman of the state party, said that Mr. Terry failed to produce required paperwork and missed a March 15 deadline to identify a delegate. “Nobody in the state of Oklahoma said ‘I pledge to be a delegate for Randall Terry,’ ” said Mr. Collins, who sent Mr. Terry a certified letter on Friday. In other words, this is a moot point — but a show that there are pockets of America that will vote for anyone except for Obama — even if they have no idea who they are voting for. And it wasn’t like Obama was going to compete with Romney in West Virginia anyway. McCain carried 56 percent of the vote in the state in 2008. The presidential election will not be decided in the mountains of Appalachia but instead in swing states like Ohio, Florida and Virginia. ||||| Filing for the West Virginia presidential primaries is about to close. So far, the only two candidates who have qualified for the West Virginia Democratic presidential primary are President Obama and Keith Russell Judd. Judd is currently incarcerated in Texas for having made threats on a college campus some years ago. Judd was also a prisoner in 2008, and he was the only person besides Obama and Hillary Clinton who appeared on the Democratic presidential primary in Idaho. He received 734 votes. In 2012, he is suing many states to appear on their Democratic presidential primary ballots. Candidates qualify for the West Virginia presidential primary with a filing fee of $2,500. The deadline is January 28, Saturday. The West Virginia Secretary of State’s office is closed on January 28, but anyone who postally mails the filing fee with a postmark no later than January 28 can qualify. So far, the only candidates on the Republican presidential primary ballot are Newt Gingrich, Ron Paul, Mitt Romney, and Rick Santorum. The primary is May 8. Here is a news story about Judd. UPDATE: the Republican ballot will also include Buddy Roemer. | Federal prison inmate , of Texas, won 72,459 votes (40.6 percent) in Tuesday's West Virginia Democratic presidential primary, behind President Barack Obama, who finished with 105,833 (59.4 percent). Judd qualified to appear on the West Virginia ballot after completing a notarized certification of announcement and paying the required $2,500 filing fee. Although surpassing 15 percent of the vote qualifies him for a delegate, according to Democratic Party Executive Director Derek Scarbro, Judd did not specify a delegate slate and will likely not be awarded a delegate. West Virginia Democratic primary by county. President Obama won the counties in black while Keith Judd won the counties in red. Judd has run several unsuccessful write-in campaigns for of and of New Mexico, and appeared on the 2008 Idaho Democratic primary ballot, winning 734 votes. He was sentenced to 210 months of prison in 1999 after being found guilty of "mailing a threatening communication with intent to extort money or something of value" at the . He is currently serving his term at the . Though federal law prohibits felons from voting in elections, they are still eligible to run for office. Judd is not the first prisoner to run for president. In , of the ran a presidential campaign from prison after being prosecuted under the . He won nearly a million votes. According to Democratic consultant Mike Plante, "most of the people who were casting a vote for Keith Judd, it was not a vote for him, it was a vote expressing dissatisfaction with the president." One West Virginia voter expressed this sentiment, telling the Associated Press that he "voted against Obama" because "I don't like him. He didn't carry the state before and I'm not going to let him carry it again." In 2008, Obama finished with only 25.77 percent of the West Virginia primary vote, losing to Hillary Clinton. Though Obama has faced some challenges in the Democratic primaries, losing 18 percent to anti-abortion activist in Oklahoma, losing nearly 12 percent to attorney in Louisiana, and having 18 and 21 percent of Democrats in Alabama and North Carolina vote "uncommitted", he has already won enough delegates to secure the Democratic nomination. |
Aragones has named seven Premiership players, with Liverpool quartet Jose Reina, Fernando Morientes, Luis Garcia and Xabi Alonso all included. Arsenal pair Jose Antonio Reyes and Cesc Fabregas both get the nod along with Chelsea's Asier del Horno. There was no room in the squad for Valencia winger Vicente Rodriguez or Espanyol playmaker Ivan De La Pena. Goalkeepers: Iker Casillas (Real Madrid), Jose Reina (Liverpool), Santiago Canizares (Valencia) Defenders: Antonio Lopez (Atletico Madrid), Pablo Ibanez (Atletico Madrid), Carles Puyol (Barcelona), Juanito (Real Betis), Asier del Horno (Chelsea), Joan Capdevila (Deportivo Coruna), Michel Salgado (Real Madrid), Sergio Ramos (Real Madrid), Carlos Marchena (Valencia), Javi Venta (Villarreal) Midfielders: Cesc Fabregas (Arsenal), Jose Antonio Reyes (Arsenal), Andres Iniesta (Barcelona), Xavi (Barcelona), Joaquin (Real Betis), Luis Garcia (Liverpool), Xabi Alonso (Liverpool), David Albelda (Valencia), Ruben Baraja (Valencia), Marcos Senna (Villarreal) Forwards: Fernando Torres (Atletico Madrid), Fernando Morientes (Liverpool), Raul (Real Madrid), David Villa (Valencia) ||||| News Spain criticised for picking Del Horno ahead of Pernia 5 May 2006 by Reuters Getafe coach Bernd Schuster has criticised Spain's Luis Aragones for picking Chelsea left-back Asier Del Horno ahead of Mariano Pernia for next week's FIFA World Cup™ get-together. "All Del Horno has done this year is kick Barcelona's Lionel Messi in the Champions League," Schuster told a news conference on Friday. In February, Del Horno was shown a red card in the first leg of the UEFA Champions League first knockout round tie against Barcelona for a late challenge on Messi. Getafe's Argentine full-back Pernia secured dual nationality last week and after a good season in the Primera Division was expected to be given a chance in Spain's squad before the FIFA World Cup. "Pernia has had a sensational season and scored ten goals but Aragones is the coach and he has to select a competitive side to try and win the World Cup," said Schuster. "It's a shame but there is still time for him to make it." Aragones, who on Friday named a 27-man squad for Monday's get-together, must announce his 23-strong FIFA World Cup party by 15 May. | Spain's coat of arms On Friday, Luis Aragones, coach of the Spanish national football team, announced the preliminary squad for the World Cup finals in Germany. The pick was criticised by Getafe coach Bernd Schuster. The 27-man squad includes 7 players from the Premier League, among them Chelsea left-back Asier Del Horno. Schuster claims that Getafe full-back Mariano Pernia should have been picked instead. "All Del Horno has done this year is kick Barcelona's Lionel Messi in the Champions League," says Schuster, referring to Horno's red card in the Champions League game between Chelsea and Barcelona back in February. Pernia, who was born in Argentina, has dual citizenship, and could play for Spain in the World Cup finals. According to Schuster, Pernia had a successful season in La Liga, scoring ten goals. Aragones must announce his 23-man squad by May 15. |
He was speaking just hours after President Chirac confirmed in a TV address that he would not be seeking re-election in April. Mr Sarkozy said he had "never felt like anybody's heir". "France is the republic, it is not something you inherit," he told French radio on Monday. But he also praised Mr Chirac for a "dignified, sincere" speech. Chirac under fire Some of Mr Sarkozy's rivals in the presidential race made sharp criticisms of Mr Chirac's record during his 12 years as president. Far-right leader Jean-Marie Le Pen said Mr Chirac had left France in a "catastrophic" state. He will leave more popular than he has been for a long time Le Figaro French press bids adieu "I think Jacques Chirac was the worst president of the republic in the history of France. With him I lose my worst enemy and I'm delighted," he said. Socialist candidate Segolene Royal, currently second in the opinion polls behind Mr Sarkozy, called for a "new page in history" after the Chirac era. Anti-globalisation campaigner and presidential hopeful Jose Bove dismissed Mr Chirac's record as "disastrous" and called for "a real alternative on the left that will end people's suffering and inequalities". Centrist candidate Francois Bayrou, who has emerged as a strong contender in opinion polls, praised Mr Chirac's speech, saying it "embodied the main thread of what we should be pursuing in France". An opinion poll published by the LH2 organisation on Monday put Mr Sarkozy on 28% in the first round, against 26% for Ms Royal and 22% for Mr Bayrou. But it also found that Mr Bayrou could beat Mr Sarkozy if he got through to the second round. Veteran leader Mr Chirac, 74, has been president since 1995 and has had a political career spanning four decades. "The moment has come for me to serve you in a different way," he said in an address to the nation on Sunday evening. Mr Chirac said he was "proud of the work which we have carried out together", citing in particular improvements for the elderly and the disabled, reforms of the pension system and reductions in crime and unemployment. He also called on France to defend its values, saying it was a country like no other. In a newspaper interview published on Sunday, Mr Sarkozy said he hoped to receive Mr Chirac's endorsement, but promised a new approach to politics. ||||| Oh dear… this is not what was supposed to happen. The page you were looking for no longer exists – but we can explain! This proud domain name once belonged to the Irish Times newspaper. Now it belongs to us. If you like reading about Ireland stick around or continue on to the Irish Times. | In the wake of Jacques Chirac's announcement that he will not seek re-election, French politicians have taken the opportunity to distance themselves from him. Nicolas Sarkozy, the frontrunner to succeed Jacques Chirac, said that he "never felt like anybody's heir" and that "France is the republic, it is not something you inherit." French Prime Minister Dominique de Villepin, who was also considered a potential candidate, has endorsed Sarkozy. Villepin and Sarkozy are members of the same party, but fell out years ago. Meanwhile, right-wing leader Jean-Marie Le Pen said Mr. Chirac left France in a 'catastrophic state.' "I think Jacques Chirac was the worst president of the republic in the history of France. With him I lose my worst enemy and I'm delighted," he said. |
THE Queen's speech in the British parliament overnight may have been routine but at least nobody got bored to death - that would have been against the law Dying in parliament is an offence and is also by far the most absurd law in Britain, according to a survey of nearly 4000 people by a television channel showing a legal drama series. And though the lords were clad in their red and white ermine cloaks and ambassadors from around the world wore colourful national costumes, at least nobody turned up in a suit of armour. Illegal. Other rules deemed utterly stupid included one that permits a pregnant woman to urinate in a policeman's hat and murdering bow-and-arrow-carrying Scotsmen within the city walls of York, northern England. A law stating that in Liverpool, only a clerk in a tropical fish store is allowed to be publicly topless, was also ridiculous, said a poll of 3931 people for UKTV Gold television out yesterday. Nearly half of those surveyed admitted to breaking the ban on eating mince pies on Christmas Day, which dates back to the 17th century and was originally designed to outlaw gluttony during the rule of the Puritan Oliver Crowmell. The laws and other regulations were culled from published research into ancient legislation that has never been repealed although subsequent statutes have rendered them obsolete. Respondents were given a shortlist and asked to vote. Most ridiculous British laws: 1. It is illegal to die in the Houses of Parliament (27 per cent) 2. It is an act of treason to place a postage stamp bearing the British monarch upside-down (7 per cent) 3. In Liverpool, it is illegal for a woman to be topless except as a clerk in a tropical fish store (6 per cent) 4. Mince pies cannot be eaten on Christmas Day (5 per cent) 5. In Scotland, if someone knocks on your door and requires the use of your toilet, you must let them enter (4 per cent) 6. A pregnant woman can legally relieve herself anywhere she wants, including in a policeman's helmet (4per cent) 7. The head of any dead whale found on the British coast automatically becomes the property of the king, and the tail of the queen (3.5 per cent) 8. It is illegal to avoid telling the tax man anything you do not want him to know, but legal not to tell him information you do not mind him knowing (3 per cent) 9. It is illegal to enter the Houses of Parliament in a suit of armour (3 percent) 10. In the city of York it is legal to murder a Scotsman within the ancient city walls, but only if he is carrying a bow and arrow (2 per cent). Share this article (What is this?) NEWS.com.au is not responsible for the content for external internet sites ||||| A ban on people dying in the Houses of Parliament has been named the most absurd legislation in Britain. The ten most ridiculous British and international laws In a public vote, the second strangest law was one making it an act of treason to place a postage stamp bearing the monarch's head upside down on an envelope. A bizarre Liverpudlian bye-law that apparently banned women from going topless in public unless they worked in a tropical fish store came third. However, the city has denied such a rule existed, saying it was an urban myth. A spokesman for Liverpool City Council said: "It's something that has been heard of before and does crop up from time to time, but it is absurd. "It is a myth and totally made up. It has no basis in fact." But others are real - the reason people are banned from dying in parliament is that it is a Royal palace. Nigel Cawthorne, author of The Strange Laws of Old England, said: "Anyone who dies there is technically entitled to a state funeral. "If they see you looking a bit sick they carry you out quickly." advertisement He added: "You can see the sense in the 1279 law banning people from wearing armour to Parliament. It is not supposed to be a violent place." At number seven on the list is a law, the Royal Prerogative 1324, that decrees that any whale or sturgeon found on the British coast belongs to the monarch. The law is very much still in place, as fisherman Robert Davies found out in 2004 when he was investigated by police in Plymouth. He had faxed the Royal Household to tell them he had caught a sturgeon, and was told to keep it, but did not realise it was still illegal to try and sell it. Eventually no charges were brought. Other laws on the list include Oliver Cromwell's decree from around 1644 to combat gluttony by banning people from eating mince pies on Christmas Day and the revelation that, according to an old London bye-law, a pregnant woman can relieve herself anywhere she wants - including in a policeman's helmet. Not everyone is happy about that. There is currently a petition on the Downing Street website calling on Gordon Brown to take that right away from pregnant women, calling it "an insult to male police officers". The survey, carried out by television channel UKTV Gold, also asked people to comment on some of the more absurd international laws. Top of that list was a local bye-law from Ohio in the US, that banned residents from getting a fish drunk. | The results of a survey by the UK TV station UKTV Gold has revealed the 10 most stupid laws, as determined by the 4,000 participants. It is unclear as to how many of the laws are true, or still in effect but at least one has been determined as being a myth. The ten laws are listed below. #It is illegal to die in the Houses of Parliament. 27% #It is an act of treason to place a postage stamp bearing the British monarch upside-down. 7% #In Liverpool, it is illegal for a woman to be topless except as a clerk in a tropical fish store. 6% #Mince pies cannot be eaten on Christmas Day. 5% #In Scotland, if someone knocks on your door and requires the use of your toilet, you must let them enter. 4% #A pregnant woman can legally relieve herself anywhere she wants, including in a policeman's helmet. 4% #The head of any dead whale found on the British coast automatically becomes the property of the king, and the tail of the queen. 3.5% #It is illegal to avoid telling the tax man anything you do not want him to know, but legal not to tell him information you do not mind him knowing. 3% #It is illegal to enter the Houses of Parliament in a suit of armour. 3% #In the city of York it is legal to murder a Scotsman within the ancient city walls, but only if he is carrying a bow and arrow. 2% At least some of the items on the list have been confirmed as urban legends. A spokesman for Liverpool City Council commenting on the third item stated "It's something that has been heard of before and does crop up from time to time, but it is absurd... It is a myth and totally made up. It has no basis in fact". |
The signing ceremony was attended by Spain's defence minister (l) However, the aircraft will be made with more expensive European parts because the US has blocked the use of its technology for Venezuela. The US says Venezuela's Socialist President Hugo Chavez could use the planes to destabilise the region. Both Madrid and Caracas have said the equipment - also including eight patrol boats - is for defensive purposes. Deputy Prime Minister Maria Teresa Fernandez de la Vega said Spain "did not share" the US reasons for blocking the deal. She said the deal would create 1,000 Spanish jobs over the next few years. Drug-trafficking Mr Chavez has condemned the US position as "horrific imperialism," Reuters news agency reports. The US accuses Mr Chavez of harassing the opposition and spreading instability across South America. Madrid said the US decision was based on commercial interests and insisted it would not damage relations between the two countries. Spanish Defence Minister Jose Bono travelled to Caracas last November to attend the signing of the deal with Mr Chavez. Mr Chavez had said the patrol boats and military transport planes supplied by EADS-Casa will be used to combat drug-trafficking on the Colombian border. Earlier this week, Venezuela accused Washington of blocking the purchase of training jets from Brazil, because the planes contained protected US technology. ||||| Espacio publicitario La nota que esta intentando visualizar no se encuentra disponible, por favor intente más tarde. Espacio publicitario Espacio publicitario DESDE TWITTER PORTADA DEL DIA Espacio publicitario TE PUEDE INTERESAR Espacio publicitario | Map highlighting Venezuela. In a communique issued by the Embassy of the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela in Madrid as response to the barring of Spain's sale of military planes to Venezuela, and then made public by the chancellor’s office, Venezuela has claimed that the reason why the United States government vetoes the selling of Spanish planes to Venezuela is because Washington wants to continue imposing the flight of American anti-drug patrols dean nations. If the US did so it would violate Venezuela's sovereignty he said. Spain says it will keep its promise and will equip the planes using European parts to bypass the US licenses. Venezuela wants to buy 12 planes with a combined value of 2 billion U.S. dollars to carry out its own anti-drug surveillance and interception flights. Venezuela is also attempting to buy planes from Brazil, but this move has also been vetoed by the US government under the grounds that Brazilian planes use US technology. |
Please turn on JavaScript. Media requires JavaScript to play. Advertisement A videotape of a detainee being questioned at the US prison camp in Guantanamo Bay has been released for the first time. It shows 16-year-old Omar Khadr being asked by Canadian officials in 2003 about events leading up to his capture by US forces, Canadian media have said. The Canadian citizen is accused of throwing a grenade that killed a US soldier in Afghanistan in 2002. He is seen in a distressed state and complaining about the medical care. The footage was made public by Mr Khadr's lawyers following a Supreme Court ruling in May that the Canadian authorities had to hand over key evidence against him to allow a full defence of the charges he is facing. One of those lawyers, Dennis Edney, told the BBC his client was seen in a distressed state because he had been "abused" by his American guards. "He was deprived of sleep by being removed from his cell and to another cell every three hours on a 24-hour basis for three weeks solid, followed by three weeks of deep solitary confinement," Mr Edney told the BBC. Uncontrollable sobbing Mr Khadr, the only Westerner still held at the jail, was 15 when he was captured by US forces during a gun battle at a suspected al-Qaeda camp in Afghanistan. During the 10-minute video of his questioning in Guantanamo a year later, he can be seen crying, his face buried in his hands, pulling at his hair and repeatedly chanting. Please turn on JavaScript. Media requires JavaScript to play. At one point he lifts his orange shirt to show the foreign ministry official and agents from the Canadian Security Intelligence Service (CSIS) wounds on his back and stomach which he says he sustained in Afghanistan. "I'm not a doctor, but I think you're getting good medical care," one of the officials responds. Mr Khadr says: "No I'm not. You're not here... I lost my eyes. I lost my feet. Everything!" in reference to how his vision and physical health were affected. "No, you still have your eyes and your feet are still at the end of your legs, you know," a man says. Sobbing uncontrollably, Mr Khadr tells the officials several times: "You don't care about me." In an accompanying classified document describing the interrogation, Mr Khadr also says he was tortured while being held at the US military detention centre at Bagram air base in Afghanistan, and that everything he had said previously was a "lie" because of the "torture". Public outcry? The White House maintains that the US has treated all detainees held at Guantanamo in a humane way. Q&A;: Military tribunals Canada gets Guantanamo insight The Bush administration argues that it needs flexibility and those it calls terrorists cannot be treated as if they are simply criminal defendants. But one of Mr Khadr's lawyers, Dennis Edney, said he hoped the video would cause an outcry in Canada and pressure Prime Minister Stephen Harper to demand that the US does not prosecute their client. "I hope Canadians will be outraged to see the callous and disgraceful treatment of a Canadian youth," Mr Edney told the Toronto Star. "Canadians should demand to know why they've been lied to." Mr Harper reiterated last week that he would not interfere in Mr Khadr's military tribunal, due to begin at Guantanamo on 8 October. The human rights group Amnesty International described the video as "disturbing". "We've always said that anyone suspected of involvement in international terrorism should be brought to justice, but what we see on this video is a travesty of justice," said Amnesty International UK's Sara Mac Neice. She added that the US should abandon its attempt to put Guantanamo prisoners in front of what she called "unfair military commission trials", instead allowing them "proper civilian trials in appropriate safe countries". Mr Khadr, now 21, faces multiple terrorism-related charges, the most serious of which is murder. He faces up to life in prison if convicted. E-mail this to a friend Printable version Bookmark with: Delicious Digg reddit Facebook StumbleUpon What are these? ||||| TORONTO A 16-year-old captured in Afghanistan and held at Guantanamo Bay sobbed during his questioning, holding up his wounded arms and begging for help in a video released Tuesday that provided the first glimpse of interrogations at the U.S. military prison. •Click here to view photos "Help me," he cries repeatedly in despair. The 10 minutes of video — selected by Omar Khadr's Canadian lawyers from more than seven hours of footage recorded by a camera hidden in a vent — shows Khadr weeping, his face buried in his hands, as he is questioned by Canadian intelligence agents over four days in 2003. The video, created by U.S. government agents at the prison in Cuba and originally marked as secret, provides insight into the effects of prolonged interrogation and detention on the Guantanamo prisoner. A Canadian Security Intelligence Services agent in the video grills Khadr about events leading up to his capture as an enemy combatant when he was 15. Khadr, a Canadian citizen, is accused of throwing a grenade that killed a U.S. Special Forces soldier during a 2002 firefight in Afghanistan. He was arrested after he was found in the rubble of a bombed-out compound — badly wounded and near death. At one point in the interrogation, Khadr pulls off his orange prisoner shirt and shows the wounds he sustained in the firefight. He complains he cannot move his arms and says he had not received proper medical attention, despite requests. "They look like they're healing well to me," the agent says of the injuries. "No, I'm not. You're not here (at Guantanamo)," says Khadr, the son of an alleged Al Qaeda financier. The agent later accuses Khadr of using his injuries and emotional state to avoid the interrogation. "No, you don't care about me," Khadr says. Khadr also tells his interrogator that he was tortured while at the U.S. military detention center at the Bagram air base in Afghanistan, where he was first detained after his arrest in 2002. Later on in the tape, a distraught Khadr is seen rocking, his face in his hands. On the final day, the agent tells Khadr that he was "very disappointed" in Khadr's behavior, and tries to impress upon him that he should cooperate. Khadr says he wants to go back to Canada. "There's not anything I can do about that," the agent says. A Pentagon spokesman, Navy Cmdr. J.D. Gordon, denied that Khadr was mistreated while in U.S. custody. "Our policy is to treat detainees humanely and Khadr has been treated humanely," Gordon said. The video is believed to be the first footage shown of the Canadian Security Intelligence Service in action during its 24-year history, offering an unprecedented glimpse into its interrogation strategies. The video was made by U.S. authorities and turned over to Khadr's defense team, Gordon said. The tapes are U.S. property. "What you see in the video is a teenager begging for help and what you see is an interrogation that violates U.S. law and any international law concerning the rights of children," said Wells Dixon, a lawyer for the New York-based Center for Constitutional Rights, which represents dozens of Guantanamo prisoners. "If this is the way a teenager in Guantanamo has been treated, you can just imagine how anyone else has been treated." The Supreme Court of Canada in May ordered the Canadian government to hand over key evidence against Khadr to his legal team to allow a full defense of the U.S. charges against him, which include accusations by the U.S. that he spied for and provided material support to terrorists. In June, a Canadian Federal Court judge ordered the Canadian government to release the video to the defense team after the court ruled the U.S. military's treatment of Khadr broke human rights laws, including the Geneva Conventions. A Canadian Department of Foreign Affairs report said Canadian official Jim Gould visited Khadr in 2004 and was told by the American military that the detainee was moved every three hours to different cells. That technique, dubbed, "frequent flyer," was one of at least two sleep deprivation programs the U.S. military used against Guantanamo prisoners. Detainees were moved from cell to cell throughout the night to keep them awake and weaken their resistance to interrogation. The document also says Khadr was placed in isolation for up to three weeks and then interviewed again. The report indicates that Khadr, who was born in Canada and raised in Afghanistan, is questioned about his family, which has a long history of alleged involvement with radical Islamic causes. His Egyptian-born father, Ahmed Said Khadr, and some of his brothers fought for Al Qaeda and had stayed with Osama bin Laden. The interrogator also questions him about the events leading up to his capture. Before being detained, Khadr says he was staying with "bad people"——bad because they were "killing Americans." He says his father dropped him at this house and he would be back for him. He initially says the people at the house were Afghan, but then says there were also Arabs who told him and the Afghan to fight to the death. The Arabs shot at the Americans, then the Americans shot back, he says, adding, "I did not want to fight, but I had no choice." Khadr faces up to life in prison on U.S. charges that include murder for allegedly throwing a grenade that killed an American special forces soldier, Army Sgt. 1st Class Christopher Speer of Albuquerque, N.M. During his last interrogation, according to the Canadian government report, Khadr is shown a picture of his family. He denied knowing anyone shown, but when left alone with it later, he urinated on the photograph. Gould later wrote a briefing note related to his visit stating he had met a "screwed up young man" whose trust had been abused by just about everyone who had ever been responsible for him — including his family and the U.S. military. With the release of the video "We hope that the Canadian government will finally come to recognize that the so-called legal process that has been put in place to deal with Omar Khadr's situation is grossly unfair and abusive," Nathan Whitling, one of Khadr's lawyers. "It's not appropriate to simply allow this process to run its course." Canada's Conservative Prime Minister Stephen Harper has maintained he will not seek Khadr's return to Canada. Government officials did not immediately return calls seeking comment Tuesday. Khadr's sister, Zaynab Khadr, who lives in Toronto, said she was pessimistic his situation would improve soon. She noted that another brother, Abdullah Khadr, now in prison on terror charges in Canada awaiting extradition to the United States, was interrogated by Canadian agents despite having been abused in detention in Pakistan. "He was tortured for their benefit and he still continues to be in jail and it hasn't changed much, so I can't expect it to be any different in Guantanamo," Zaynab Khadr said. ||||| 'You don't care about me,' Omar Khadr sobs in interview tapes Tapes reveal interrogation by Canadian officials Video images show the Toronto-born Omar Khadr in the U.S. naval prison at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba. The black dot obscures the face of his interrogator. (CBC) Video images show the Toronto-born Omar Khadr in the U.S. naval prison at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba. The black dot obscures the face of his interrogator. (CBC) A teenage Omar Khadr sobs uncontrollably as Canadian spy agents question him at the U.S. military prison in Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, in interrogation footage released by his lawyers Tuesday. The video is of poor quality and the voices are often inaudible, as it was never intended to be viewed by the public. But it shows the Toronto-born Khadr, 16 at the time, being interviewed by Canadian Security Intelligence Service officials over several days in late February 2003. The footage is from five formerly classified DVDs consisting of 7½ hours of questioning that took place six months after Khadr was captured, following a 2002 firefight in Afghanistan. Khadr, who is a Canadian citizen, has been held at Guantanamo Bay for six years on charges that he killed a U.S. medic during a firefight in Afghanistan. Khadr's defence lawyers have repeatedly called for their client to be returned to Canada, arguing he was a child soldier and was tortured to extract confessions. Although he appears reluctant to answer many of the interrogator's questions, Khadr is shown at one point on the tapes saying to his questioners, "Promise me you'll protect me from the Americans." Upon further questioning, during which time interrogators insisted Khadr be clear on the truth, the teen said: "They tortured me very badly at Bagram [detention facility in Afghanistan]." "They tortured you?" the interrogator asked. "Yes," Khadr replied. "And you had to say what you said?" the interrogator asked. The tapes, made public under a court order obtained by Khadr's lawyers, offer a rare glimpse of interrogations of Guantanamo detainees and of Khadr, now 21. The only Western foreigner still being held at the naval prison, Khadr is scheduled to go on trial before a U.S. military commission in the fall. The U.S. Defence Department granted special permission to CSIS and Canada's Foreign Affairs Ministry to question Khadr after he was brought to Guantanamo Bay. Shows wounds from firefight A brief video excerpt of the tapes was released via the internet early Tuesday morning, followed by disc copies of the five DVDs made available in the afternoon at the lawyers' offices in Edmonton. At another point during one of the interviews, Khadr raises his orange prison-issued shirt to show wounds that he says he sustained during the firefight. Omar Khadr is shown here at 15, not long before he was captured by U.S. forces in Afghanistan, in July 2002. (Canadian Press)He complains that he can't move his arms and hasn't received proper medical attention. "I'm not a doctor, but I think you're getting good medical care," the interrogator responds. As with all the agents in the video, his face is blacked out to protect his identity. Khadr cries, "I lost my eyes. I lost my feet. Everything!" in reference to how the firefight in Afghanistan affected his vision. "No, you still have your eyes and your feet are still at the end of your legs, you know," a man says. When the agent accuses Khadr of crying to avoid interrogation, Khadr tells the agent between gasping sobs, "You don't care about me." As Khadr continues crying, the agent calls for a break. "Look, I want to take a few minutes. I want you to get yourself together. Relax a bit. Have a bite to eat and we'll start again," the interrogator says. Then Khadr begins sobbing with his head in both his hands, chanting over and over again in a haunting voice. His words are difficult to hear, and at first could be taken for "Kill me" or "Help me." However, Arabic speakers working at CBCNews.ca say the teenager appears to be keening "Ya ummi," which is Arabic for "My mother." (Asked about it after the video was released, Khadr lawyer Nathan Whitling told reporters: "Your guess is as good as mine.") 'He was screwed up' Jim Gould, a now-retired foreign service officer who once visited Guantanamo Bay to assess Khadr's mental and physical condition and was present when the videos were shot, said he thought Khadr should have received "some proper care, custody and probably some treatment." "He had been abused or betrayed by everybody who had been in authority above him — his father, the Americans, the people in the cages or the cells with him. He was screwed up," Gould told CBC News. "I thought at the time and think today he would be a whole lot better off if he was in a different environment. I was quite conscious of the fact he was young, under the age where we would … try him as an adult, and I sympathize with him." Khadr's mother, Maha Elsamnah, emotional after watching her son's interrogation, expressed a deep sense of loss for her family and uncertainty over what she should do. In a brief interview with CBC News on Tuesday morning, Elsamnah — who lives in Toronto — said she feels the need to protect the five children still with her. Her husband, Ahmed Said Khadr, was an avowed al-Qaeda sympathizer before he was killed in fighting with Pakistani military forces in 2003. Elsamnah refused to say more without speaking to her lawyer. But retired soldier Sgt. Layne Morris, who was in the firefight in which U.S. medic Sgt. First Class Christopher J. Speer was killed by a grenade, allegedly by Khadr, said he has no sympathy for the Guantanamo detainee. "Whoever has sympathy for a young snivelling, whining, crying Omar is misplaced sympathy because this is not a man who deserves any sympathy," he told CBCNews.ca. "I use all my sympathy for Chris Speer's widow and two children. I have none left for Omar Khadr." Morris has repeatedly stated he believes Khadr is responsible for throwing the grenade that killed Speer. Interrogation not unusual: Morris Morris said the interrogation itself looked mild, and no different than any normal police interview. "Anybody who wants to tell me that was over the top has certainly never been to war and never been to any police interview. Cops are more aggressive than that, geez. That just offends me that anybody is outraged by that knowing the circumstances." Khadr's defence lawyers, however, said they hope Tuesday's release of the videos will spark public support for their efforts. "We Canadians stand for compassion, we stand for the rule of law. And what you are seeing there is the abuse of the rule of law as Canadian courts have indicated about Canadians and Canada's involvement in Guantanamo Bay," lawyer Dennis Edney told CBC News. Edney said Canadian officials should have asked Khadr about potential torture, but instead went into the interview without any help for the then teenage boy. "We don't do that in Canada and that shouldn't have happened to this young, most vulnerable boy in Guantanamo," the lawyer said. He also said Khadr suffers from several injuries, including the loss of sight in one eye and difficulty with the other, as well as shrapnel and bullet wounds. Referring to Khadr's sobbing chants, Edney said, "It's the cry of a desperate young man. He expected the Canadian officials to take him home." But Morris slammed Khadr's lawyers, saying they're more interested in attacking the system than defending their client. "This is just another arrow in their quiver to attack the system and Omar is a convenient vehicle to do that. I think that's an amazing feat to try and sway public opinion in favour of Omar." In May, the Supreme Court of Canada ruled that branches of the Canadian government had to hand over key evidence against Khadr to his legal team to allow a full defence of the charges against him, which include accusations by the U.S. that he spied for and provided material support to terrorists. Several Canadian media organizations then applied for and obtained the release of the DVDs, as well as a package of documents that made headlines last week. Officials knew about some aspects of treatment The DVDs come nearly a week after internal foreign affairs documents were released showing that Canadian officials knew Khadr had been sleep-deprived for weeks to make him more willing to talk during interrogations. The report says Gould learned during a visit to Guantanamo on March 30, 2004, that Khadr had been put on a "frequent flyer program," meaning he was not permitted to remain in any one location for more than three hours. In another portion of the videotape released later in the day, the interrogator asks Khadr about the 2002 firefight between suspected Islamist militants and U.S. soldiers, and how the fight began. Pentagon officials said Khadr, who was 15 at the time, ambushed American soldiers with a hand grenade after the four-hour fight at the suspected al-Qaeda compound in Afghanistan. In response to a question, Khadr said it wasn't the Americans they had planned on attacking, but the Northern Alliance — the anti-Taliban coalition. "So a firefight started. The Arabs shot at the Americans, the Americans shot back. Did you guys make a decision that you would fight till the end," "They made the decision," Khadr replied. Khadr shook his head when asked whether he was going to fight until he died. Asked whether the event overtook him and he had to react, Khadr said: "I had no choice." | Omar Khadr crying during an interrogation by Canadian officials. For the first time a video showing the interrogation process at the Guantanamo Bay detention camp has been released. According to reports broadcast by Canadian media, the video shows Omar Khadr, one of the prisoners, being questioned by Canadian Security Intelligence Service (CSIS) officials. The video was filmed with a hidden camera through an air vent. It shows an interrogation from late February 2003 and it is being released now under a court order obtained by Khadr's lawyers. In the video, Khadr can be seen repeatedly crying and telling officials that "you don't care about me." This image, provided by the Khadr family, shows Omar Khadr in 2001. Dennis Edney, lawyer for Omar Khadr, responded by saying Dennis Edney "I hope Canadians will be outraged to see the callous and disgraceful treatment of a Canadian youth." He also said that "Canadians should demand to know why they've been lied to." Omar claimed in the video that he was receiving poor medical care. When an official said "I'm not a doctor, but I think you're getting good medical care," he responded by saying "No I'm not. You're not here... I lost my eyes. I lost my feet. Everything!" The official's response to this was "No, you still have your eyes. Your feet are still at the end of your legs." ''CBC News'' has reported that that Khadr's comments about his eyes and feet are in reference to effects from the firefight in Afghanistan. When the crying continued the questioner called for a break and said "Look, I want to take a few minutes. I want you to get yourself together. Relax a bit. Have a bite to eat and we'll start again." Khadr, who is currently aged 21, faces life imprisonment for charges as serious as murder if he is found guilty. He also says that he has faced torture in Bagram air base, Afghanistan. Prime minister Stephen Harper has repeatedly rejected calls for him to ask the United States for Khadr's return to Canada. "Mr. Khadr faces serious charges. There is a judicial process underway to determine Mr. Khadr's fate. This should continue," Kory Teneycke, Communication Director at the Office of the Prime Minister, told CBC News. "We might also add in terms of background that the Government of Canada's position is consistent with the previous government's," Teneycke further said. "This is a judicial process as opposed to a political one." |
The Netherlands' bid to qualify for Euro 2016 ended in failure as Robin van Persie scored an own goal in a home defeat by the 10-man Czech Republic. The Dutch needed to win and for Iceland to beat Turkey to earn a play-off spot, but Van Persie's error saw them go 3-0 down despite Mark Suchy seeing red. Klaas-Jan Huntelaar and Van Persie replied to goals from Pavel Kaderabek and Josef Sural but instead it was Turkey who secured third place. Fatih Terim's side beat Iceland 1-0. Turkey go through automatically Turkey had Gokhan Tore dismissed in the 78th minute as their match appeared to be heading for a draw, but Selcuk Inan's last-minute goal saw them claim a dramatic victory. That result means Turkey qualify for next summer's tournament in France as the highest ranked third-placed team out of all nine qualifying groups. Ukraine and Norway both finished third in their respective groups and had more points than Turkey. But results against the sides finishing bottom in their respective groups do not count - leaving Turkey with the most points. "As a country we really needed this win to feel happy, even for a few hours maybe," said Terim. "We are so happy to have offered some happiness to our people." Blind plans to remain in charge Netherlands coach Danny Blind took over at the start of July after Guus Hiddink left after 10 months in the position. He has lost three of his four matches in charge but says he has "no intention" of stepping down. "I'm going to carry on with my work because I'm under contract until 2018 and I believe in this team," Blind added. "I haven't achieved my goal. The aim was to qualify automatically or via the play-offs and I haven't done that. "Am I the one to blame? I now have to analyse that. The results weren't good." Against the Czechs, Van Persie's cushioned header past his own goalkeeper was the low point - and seemed to spark a reaction from the home side as they scored twice in quick succession afterwards. But they still failed to capitalise on their numerical advantage, with Suchy having been dismissed for a last-man tackle on Manchester United forward Memphis Depay late in the first half. The Netherlands, who finished third at the 2014 World Cup in Brazil, were crowned European champions in 1988 and were third in 1992, 2000 and 2004. The last time they failed to qualify for a major tournament was the 2002 World Cup. Before that, they were absent from the 1982 and 1986 tournaments and from the 1984 European Championship. Reaction to the Euro 2016 qualifiers. Lineup, Bookings (7) & Substitutions (6) Netherlands 01 Zoet 02 Tete 03 Bruma 04 van Dijk (Dost - 64' ) (Dost - 64' ) 05 Riedewald (van Persie - 39' Booked ) (van Persie - 39' ) 08 Wijnaldum 06 Blind Booked 10 Sneijder Booked 11 El Ghazi (Lens - 69' ) (Lens - 69' ) 09 Huntelaar Booked 07 Depay Substitutes 12 Van der Wiel 13 Anita 14 Rekik 15 Kongolo 16 Bazoer 17 Lens 18 Dost 19 van Persie 20 Afellay 21 Elia 22 Vermeer 23 Stekelenburg Czech Republic 01 Cech 02 Kaderábek 17 Suchy Dismissed 03 Kadlec 04 Gebre Selassie Booked 12 Pavelka 10 Skalak Booked 22 Darida 13 Plasil (Skoda - 86' ) (Skoda - 86' ) 18 Sural (Kalas - 71' ) (Kalas - 71' ) 07 Necid (Prochazka - 45' ) Substitutes 05 Prochazka 06 Kalas 08 Frydek 11 Skoda 14 Petrzela 15 Kopic 16 Vaclik 19 Krejci 20 Novak 23 Koubek Ref: Damir Skomina ||||| The Dutch fail to reach the Euros for the first time since 1984, as Turkey make it to France in the most dramatic of circumstances. | Yesterday, the football team crashed out of the after a 2–3 defeat against the in . Dutch player scored an own goal. The match was held in the in the Dutch capital. , and the Czech Republic qualified for the tournament from group A, Turkey defeating Iceland 1–0 to take third position. The Dutch team, nicknamed Oranje, had 60% ball possession in front of the Czechs. The match saw six and one . Four Dutch players were shown yellow cards. A total of 30 fouls were committed in the match, seventeen by the Dutch, and thirteen by the Czechs. Czech defender was sent off in the 43rd minute. The first half saw two goals by the visitors, three yellow cards, and one red card. The first goal came in the 24th minute. , by , scored. assisted for the second goal, scoring in the bottom left corner. Robin van Persie, who scored the own goal, pictured from file last year. In the second half, Robin van Persie scored an in the 66th minute, providing the visitors a 3–0 lead. The Dutch side won a corner in the 70th minute, from which reduced the goal difference with a header, assisted by . Later, in the 83rd minute, van Persie scored in the correct net, making it 2–3 for the Netherlands, assisted by . In the next minute, van Persie was booked for . The match ended in a 2–3 loss for the Oranje, and they failed to qualify for the Euros for the first time since 1984. In order to qualify, the Dutch had to beat the Czechs and rely on Iceland to beat Turkey. A ten-man Turkish side defeated Iceland 1–0 and qualified for the tournament. '''Group A standings''' Position Team P W D L F A +/- Pts 1 30px Czech Republic 10 7 1 2 19 14 5 22 2 30px Iceland 10 6 2 2 17 6 11 20 3 30px Turkey 10 5 3 2 14 9 5 18 4 30px The Netherlands 10 4 1 5 17 14 3 13 5 30px Kazakhstan 10 1 2 7 7 18 -11 5 6 30px Latvia 10 0 5 5 6 19 -13 5 ---- == Match stats == |
Ivory-billed woodpecker not extinct, as feared Scientists report sightings of bird in Arkansas, release videotape WASHINGTON (CNN) -- An ivory-billed woodpecker -- widely believed to be extinct and whose last confirmed sighting was 60 years ago -- is alive in Arkansas, according to a research paper released Thursday. And there are plans to use federal money to preserve the bird's habitat. Evidence the woodpecker still exists includes eight independent sightings between 2004 and 2005 and a videotape. "The bird captured on video is clearly an ivory-billed woodpecker. Amazingly, America may have another chance to protect the future of this spectacular bird and the awesome forests in which it lives," said a statement from John Fitzpatrick, director of the Cornell Laboratory of Ornithology, The Associated Press reported. Fitzpatrick co-wrote a paper about the discovery that was released Thursday in the online version of Science magazine. Interior Secretary Gale Norton called the find an "exciting opportunity," the AP reported. "Second chances to save wildlife once thought to be extinct are rare .. we will take advantage of this opportunity," she said at a news conference. The AP reported that Norton and Agriculture Secretary Mikle Johanns promised federal assistance to protect the ivory-bill. The paper's authors said that observers heard drumming sounds that are consistent with those made by the bird. Searchers have been unable to spot the bird outside a three-kilometer area of the Big Woods region of Arkansas, but the paper's authors note the area is prime to support a few breeding pairs. As a result of the sightings, the Cornell Lab of Ornithology, the Nature Conservancy and other groups have joined to form the Big Woods Conservation Partnership to conserve 200,000 acres of forest habitat and rivers in the area during the next 10 years. The last confirmed U.S. sighting of the the bird was in a Louisiana hardwood forest in the 1940s. The bird is second in size to the extinct imperial woodpecker of Mexico, once the largest woodpecker on Earth. Ivory-billed woodpeckers, which have about a 30-inch wingspan and are almost 20 inches in height, once spread across bottomland hardwoods and mountain pine forests of the southeastern United States and Cuba. The birds, which require a large area for feeding, maintained a small, healthy community until the late 1800s. Logging and hunting caused the birds' severe decline to near-extinction, according to the Cornell Lab of Ornithology. The birds lived primarily in mature deciduous forest swamps in the southeastern United States, Cornell Lab's Web site states. It takes about three square miles of mature forest to sustain a breeding pair of ivory-bills. By 1938, about 22 birds remained. But reported sightings -- in Florida, Texas, Mississippi and Louisiana -- spawned searches. Many of those sightings turned out to be of the more common, slightly smaller and more widespread pileated woodpecker. The ivory-bill differs from the pileated in size, bill color, the female's all-black crest and large patches of white on the lower back of the perched bird. When perched, the pileated appears solid black on the back. In 1999, a Louisiana State University student David Kullivan said he saw a pair of ivory-billed woodpeckers in a remote bayou. "That morning, I was sitting at the base of a tree," Kullivan told Audubon magazine. "Suddenly, these two birds were in the trees. I watched them for 15 minutes. The male -- the bird with a red crest -- seemed to be doing all the calling. I was awfully excited when they flew away. I tried to follow them, but they were gone." Cornell and Zeiss Optics sponsored a search of the area beginning in 2002, but they did not find any clear evidence of the bird. Mary Scott, avid birder and operator of the Web site BirdingAmerica.com, says she saw the ivory-bill in Arkansas in 2003, but did not announce it until April 27, 2005. Scott said she saw the bird while taking a break and without her camera. Gene Sparling reported seeing the bird while he was kayaking in early 2004 in the Cache River National Wildlife Refuge in Monroe County, Arkansas. Bobby Harrison of Oakwood College in Huntsville, Alabama, and Tim Gallagher of Cornell, who was writing a book about the bird, asked Sparling to lead them to the site where he saw it. Two weeks after Sparling's sighting, Gallagher and Harrison saw the bird, too. Five more sightings -- all by experienced observers -- came between April 5, 2004, and February 15, 2005. But the key evidence is an April 25, 2004, video that David Luneau shot. It shows a large woodpecker perched on a tree and flying away as his canoe approaches. "Its images are blurred and pixilated owing to rapid motion, slow shutter speed, video interlacing artifacts, and the bird's distance beyond the video camera's focal plane," the paper says of the video. "Despite these imperfections, crucial fieldmarks are evident both on the original and on deinterlaced and magnified video fields." ||||| Submitted on April 8, 2005 Accepted on April 27, 2005 Ivory-billed Woodpecker (Campephilus principalis) Persists in Continental North America John W. Fitzpatrick 1*, Martjan Lammertink 2, M. David Luneau Jr.3, Tim W. Gallagher 1, Bobby R. Harrison 4, Gene M. Sparling 5, Kenneth V. Rosenberg 1, Ronald W. Rohrbaugh 1, Elliott C. H. Swarthout 1, Peter H. Wrege 1, Sara Barker Swarthout 1, Marc S. Dantzker 1, Russell A. Charif 1, Timothy R. Barksdale 6, J. V. Remsen Jr.7, Scott D. Simon 8, Douglas Zollner 8 1 Cornell Laboratory of Ornithology, Cornell University, 159 Sapsucker Woods Road, Ithaca, NY 14850, USA. 2 Cornell Laboratory of Ornithology, Cornell University, 159 Sapsucker Woods Road, Ithaca, NY 14850, USA. ; Institute for Biodiversity and Ecosystem Dynamics, Universiteit van Amsterdam, Mauritskade 61, 1092 AD Amsterdam, Netherlands. 3 Department of Engineering Technology and Department of Information Technology, University of Arkansas at Little Rock, Little Rock, AR 72204, USA. 4 Department of Communications, Oakwood College, Huntsville, AL 35896, USA. 5 107 Stillmeadow Lane, Hot Springs, AR 71913, USA. 6 Birdman Productions, Post Office Box 1124, 65 Mountain View Drive, Choteau, MT 59422, USA. 7 Museum of Natural Science, Louisiana State University, Baton Rouge, LA 70803, USA. 8 The Nature Conservancy, Arkansas Chapter, 601 North University Avenue, Little Rock, AR 72205, USA. * To whom correspondence should be addressed. John W. Fitzpatrick , E-mail: jwf7{at}cornell.edu | Wildlife scientists confirmed on Thursday that a bird long thought extinct, the , has been found in Arkansas. The remarkable birds have a 30-inch wingspan and stand nearly 20 inches high. The birds inhabited a wide swath of American bottomlands and mountain pine forests until the latter part of the 1800s. They require a large feeding ground, and it is thought the expansion of towns and cities closed off their domain. They went extinct in Cuba during the same period. Ornithologists say each mating pair of Ivory-billed woodpeckers needs three square miles of forest to survive. There were thought to be only 22 of them left in 1938. There have been several independent sightings of the bird in Arkansas over the last year, and even a videotape. In an effort to support the birds, the Lab of Ornithology, , and other groups have joined to form the Big Woods Conservation Partnership to conserve 200,000 acres of forest habitat and rivers in the area during the next 10 years. John Fitzpatrick, director of the Cornell Laboratory of Ornithology told the Associated Press, "the bird captured on video is clearly an ivory-billed woodpecker. Amazingly, America may have another chance to protect the future of this spectacular bird and the awesome forests in which it lives." The story premiered Thursday in the online version of Science magazine. |
Wikipedia experienced major service outages today that took the popular free reference site down for roughly 2 hours, beginning at around 1:00 PM EST. According to a Facebook blog post, the outage has been attributed to overheating at the site's European data center. The servers shut down, which ultimately led to more issues: "As this impacted all Wikipedia and other projects access from European users, we were forced to move all user traffic to our Florida cluster, for which we have a standard quick failover procedure in place, that changes our DNS entries," the site said in a statement. "However, shortly after we did this failover switch, it turned out that this failover mechanism was now broken, causing the DNS resolution of Wikimedia sites to stop working globally. Wikipedia resolved most of the problems by 3:00 PM EST, according to the site's official Twitter account. Due to continued overheating at the Amsterdam data center, however, users may still be experiencing service glitches. ||||| [UPDATE: It appeared that Wikipedia was back online as of about 4:30 p.m. ET.] Wikipedia was offline Wednesday afternoon after an overheating problem at the online encyclopedia's European data center. Wikipedia's technical blog said the site's servers shut themselves down to avoid damage from the heat. Administrators tried to shift traffic to a cluster of servers in Florida, but "it turned out that this failover mechanism was now broken, causing the DNS resolution of Wikimedia sites to stop working globally," according to the blog. "This problem was quickly resolved, but unfortunately it may take up to an hour before access is restored for everyone, due to caching effects," the blog said. Trying to access wikipedia.com and wikipedia.org at about 2:45 p.m. ET produced a navigation error message. One post to Wikipedia's technical blog, by a user named Jimmy, found some humor in the situation: "And so we remember Thursday, March 25, 2010 as the day every English speaking student failed their research papers." | Wikimedia Foundation. From approximately 1:00 p.m. (18:00 UTC) to 4:00 p.m. (22:00 UTC) Eastern Standard Time (EST), the popular free encyclopedia Wikipedia, alongside its sister projects (including Wikinews), went offline due to major server outages. Downtime was later attributed to overheating at the Project's central data center in Amsterdam. According to a post made by Mark Bergsma at the Wikimedia Foundation's technical blog, the servers "shut themselves down" to avoid further heat damage. Administrators reportedly attempted a shift of traffic to the Project's servers in Florida. However, "it turned out that this failover mechanism was now broken, causing the DNS resolution of Wikimedia sites to stop working globally." According to the Project's official Twitter account, programmers were able to resolve most of the server problems by around 4:00 p.m. EST. Since the situation with the servers in Amsterdam is still ongoing, some users may still experience lingering service glitches due to "caching effects". |
View larger image Her Excellency the Right Honourable MichaŽlle Jean, Governor General of Canada and Commander In Chief of the Canadian Forces rides in the Observer seat of the C130 Hercules during her flight from Camp Mirage to Kabul. (image: DND) View larger image Gov. Gen. Michaelle Jean meets with Canada's military women Thursday night during a visit to the NATO base in Kandahar, Afghanistan. (CP / John Cotter) View larger image Afghan President Hamid Karzai shows the way to Governor General Michaelle Jean at the Presidential Palace in Kabul, Afghanistan on Thursday. (AP / Shah Marai) View larger image Afghan President Hamid Karzai and Governor General Michaelle Jean inspect a guard of honour before their meeting at the Presidential Palace in Kabul, Afghanistan on Thursday. (AP / Shah Marai) Jean pays tribute to female troops in Afghanistan CTV.ca News Staff To help mark International Women's Day, Gov. Gen. Michaelle Jean paid homage to Canada's female military presence in Afghanistan on Thursday. Jean reiterated to troops the importance of telling their stories in order to put a human face on the war. "The more we do that, the more people will understand the value of your mission here, and how important it is, every action you are taking here at great risk,'' she said. The commander-in-chief told the packed crowd at Canada House -- a place where soldiers go to relax while on duty -- how proud she was of their continuing efforts. After her speech, Jean jokingly called on male troops to get down on their knees and honour their female comrades. The men urged the women soldiers in attendance to join Jean at the front of the room for a photo opportunity. The soldiers jumped and jostled at the chance to share a smile with their commander-in-chief. "This just shows that women are part of the Canadian Forces and that we are here doing the same job as the men,'' Master Warrant Officer Mary-Ann Barnes of Barrie, Ont. said. She went on to say that Jean's comments gave her a much needed lift, "It is just absolutely amazing to have her here. To recognize us and to see us. It is absolutely incredible,'' Barnes said. The men in the room also welcomed the recognition from the Governor General. "It shows support and the morale comes up. She can go back and tell the Canadian people that the guys and gals over here are doing a good job,'' Cpl. Dean Cairns of Clavet, Sask., said. Brig-Gen. Tim Grant, commander of Task Force Afghanistan, said Jean's visit is significant for soldiers, most of who have been away from family and friends for six months. "Her recognition is important to them, he said. "The significance is tremendously huge.'' "For her to take the time out of her very busy schedule and come this far to see the folks in this operation is almost beyond words,'' Grant said. Jean's government jet landed in the city just hours after Afghan militants attacked two Canadian convoys. There were no casualties among Canadian or coalition troops, but Afghan civilians were injured in the explosions. Jean has twice been denied permission to visit Afghanistan because of security concerns. Earlier in the day, Jean met with Afghan President Hamid Karzai. She also toured a women's school funded by the Canadian International Development Agency and met with Canadian soldiers and diplomats. "Canada is proud to be among the 37 countries restoring stability and supporting reconstruction efforts,'' Jean said in a statement. "The work that has been accomplished in so little time is promising and we are proud to support the Afghani people on this difficult, sometimes painful, journey. On behalf of all Canadians, I wish the Afghani people peace, prosperity and happiness." Jean also met with leading Afghan women to stress the need for reform on women's issues in the country. "She said there was no better place to emphasize and highlight the issue than by coming here to Afghanistan and speaking to the women of Afghanistan about what progress can be made in this country," said CTV's Tom Clark in Afghanistan. Amnesty International has called the violence against women and girls in Afghanistan a pervasive issue. "The women of Afghanistan may face the most unbearable conditions, but they never stop fighting for survival. Of course, we, the rest of the women around the world, took too long to hear the cries of our Afghani sisters, but I am here to tell them that they are no longer alone. And neither are the people of Afghanistan," said Jean. The visit coincides with Operation Achilles, the alliance's largest-ever offensive in Afghanistan. Jean's visit comes two days after a Canadian reserve soldier was killed in a non-combat shooting in his tent at the Kandahar air field. With files from The Canadian Press ||||| Use filters to search for the most recent news articles. 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Ahmed D. Hussen Hon. Anita Anand Hon. Bardish Chagger Hon. Bernadette Jordan Hon. Bill Blair Hon. Carla Qualtrough Hon. Carolyn Bennett Hon. Catherine McKenna Hon. Chrystia Freeland Hon. Dan Vandal Hon. David Lametti Hon. Deb Schulte Hon. Diane Lebouthillier Hon. Dominic LeBlanc Hon. Filomena Tassi Hon. François-Philippe Champagne Hon. Harjit Singh Sajjan Hon. Jean-Yves Duclos Hon. Jim Carr Hon. Jonathan Wilkinson Hon. Joyce Murray Hon. Karina Gould Hon. Lawrence MacAulay Hon. Marc Garneau Hon. Marc Miller Hon. Marco E. L. Mendicino Hon. Marie-Claude Bibeau Hon. Maryam Monsef Hon. Mary Ng Hon. Mélanie Joly Hon. Mona Fortier Hon. Omar Alghabra Hon. Pablo Rodriguez Hon. Patricia A. Hajdu Hon. Seamus O’Regan Hon. Steven Guilbeault Right Hon. Justin P. J. Trudeau Audience Any Aboriginal peoples business children educators employers funding applicants general public government immigrants job seekers media non-Canadians non-governmental organizations parents persons with disabilities rural community scientists seniors students travellers veterans visitors to Canada women youth Region Any Atlantic British Columbia Ontario Prairies Quebec Territories | Her Excellency the Right Honourable Michaëlle Jean. Today, Governor General of Canada Michaëlle Jean issued a statement regarding International Women's Day. The day was first designated unofficially by some in the United States in 1909, to acknowledge the economic, political and social achievements of women. In 1975, during International Women's Year, the United Nations gave official sanction to the day, and began sponsoring events. |
Train derails in flood waters In pictures Rescue workers have been searching for people trapped in carriages amid fears the death toll could rise further. Initial reports suggest an irrigation tank burst, causing a bridge to collapse, derailing seven carriages. The crash occurred early on Saturday south of Hyderabad, the state capital of Andhra Pradesh. Heavy rains have killed more than 100 people in south India this week. Holidaymakers The Delta Express crashed near the town of Veligonda in Nalgonda district, about 30km (18 miles) south of Hyderabad. Seven of the 14 coaches and the engine of the train were derailed and at least three coaches fell into the flood waters. Divers from the air force and navy used blow torches to cut through the wreckage to free the scores of people still feared trapped. Some survivors were clinging to luggage racks and ceiling fans. We were fast asleep, when there was a big bang and a thud. The next thing the train was under water P Ramesh, survivor Hundreds of passengers have been rescued so far but television pictures also showed bodies of men, women and children laid out on the banks. After surveying the site of the crash, India's junior railway minister, R Velu, told a news conference in Hyderabad that "little could have been done to avoid the accident". The BBC's Omer Farooq, who is at the scene, says many of the victims were holidaymakers travelling to celebrate Diwali, the festival of lights, which takes place on Tuesday. Srinivas Rao and his cousin, Gangadhar, were travelling on the train with their parents and managed to escape. "But we don't know what's happened to our parents," they told the BBC. P Ramesh, a passenger who lost seven members of his family, including his wife and brother, told Associated Press: "We were fast asleep when there was a big bang and a thud. The next thing the train was under water. "It was pitch dark and people were screaming." Heavy rains Rains have lashed southern India for more than a week, claiming more than 100 lives in Andhra Pradesh, Tamil Nadu and Karnataka. India's state-run railway system carries more than 13m passengers a day. It has one of the world's largest rail networks, but also a poor safety record. About 300 rail accidents are reported every year, resulting in a high number of casualties. Earlier this month, at least 16 people died and dozens were injured in a train crash in Madhya Pradesh state. Are you in the area affected by the train crash? Send us your comments. Do you have any images? If so, you can send photos and mobile phone footage to yourpics@bbc.co.uk or text them to 00447921648159 Name: Email address: Town and Country: Phone number (optional): Comments: The BBC may edit your comments and cannot guarantee that all emails will be published. ||||| Indian train crash kills 102 From Ram Ramgopal CNN International Correspondent RELATED QUICKVOTE Would you be reluctant to use trains in India following Saturday's disaster there? Yes No or View Results YOUR E-MAIL ALERTS India Railway Accidents Disasters and Accidents or or Create Your Own (CNN) -- At least 102 people died and 92 others were injured when a passenger train derailed in southern India Saturday as it attempted to cross tracks washed away by a flood, police said. The incident occurred about 4:15 a.m. in the Andhra Pradesh state near the town of Valigonda. Seven coaches of the 15-coach train remained in the water, and it was not known how many people remained inside. Each coach has a capacity of about 60 people. Rescue workers were using cranes to retrieve the coaches from the water, and using acetylene torches to open them, authorities said. (Watch a report of the wreck -- 1:32 ) The train was crossing a bridge flanking a reservoir when it derailed, as a flood of water had washed the tracks away, said Krishnaiah Panabaka, chief public relations officer for India's state-run South Central Railway. Hundreds of rescue workers were at the scene, he said, and the railway protection force was called in to assist. Also, the Indian Army, Navy and Air Force were on scene. Conditions were difficult, Panabaka said. A series of high-level Indian officials were also en route. The train, the Repalle-Secunderabad Delta Fast Passenger, was en route from Repalle to Secunderabad. Passengers on the train's other coaches were evacuated in buses. Andra Pradesh has been experiencing torrential rains after a slow-moving tropical depression made landfall there on Friday. There have been reports of other railway lines and roads washed away. The rain continued Saturday, adding to the difficulty of rescue operations. Home Page Get up-to-the minute news from CNN CNN.com gives you the latest stories and video from the around the world, with in-depth coverage of U.S. news, politics, entertainment, health, crime, tech and more. Home Page Get up-to-the minute news from CNN CNN.com gives you the latest stories and video from the around the world, with in-depth coverage of U.S. news, politics, entertainment, health, crime, tech and more. ALL AL AK AZ AR CA CO CT DE DC FL GA HI ID IL IN IA KS KY LA ME MD MA MI MN MS MO MT NE NV NH NJ NM NY NC ND OH OK OR PA RI SC SD TN TX UT VT VA WA WV WI WY | India flag The BBC and CNN has reported that a train derailment Saturday morning at about 4:15 a.m. local time (Friday 2245 UTC) has resulted in at least 100 casualties in the state of Andhra Pradesh in Southern India. Heavy rains, which killed over one hundred people in India this week, apparently washed out a section of track. A rescue operation is ongoing as some train carriages overturned into the flood waters and some people are apparently trapped. The BBC reports that many of the passengers were traveling to celebrate Diwali, the festival of lights, which occurs Tuesday. India operated rail systems carry more than 13 million passengers a day, but has a poor history of safety. The BBC says that about 300 rail accidents are reported each year, resulting in significant casualties. |
Spokesman Ahmad Fawzi (left) with Joint Special Envoy of the UN and the League of Arab States on the Syrian Crisis, Kofi Annan. UN Photo/Violaine Martin 15 May 2012 Three vehicles belonging to a convoy of UN observers in Syria were damaged in a bomb blast near the city of Hama today, according to a UN spokesperson. The three vehicles were part of a four-vehicle convoy of the UN Supervision Mission in Syria (UNSMIS), which was in Khan Cheikhoun, when an improvised explosive device was detonated around mid-afternoon local time, Ahmad Fawzi, the spokesperson for the Joint Special Envoy for the UN and the League of Arab States for the Syrian crisis, Kofi Annan, told reporters in Geneva today. “Three UN vehicles were damaged, no UN personnel were injured,” Mr. Fawzi said in response to questions. “The Mission has sent a patrol team to the area to extract the UN military observers.” The crisis in Syria, which began in March 2011 as a protest movement similar to those across the Middle East and North Africa, has claimed over 9,000 lives, mostly civilians, and displaced tens of thousands. Separately, the Spokesperson’s Office in New York today said that UNSMIS had reported that heavy fighting took place on Monday in Tal Biseh and Rastan, and UN observers witnessed that a highway in the area had been blocked by Government forces. It added that an UNSMIS patrol helped to de-escalate the situation and get the highway opened after interaction with Government Forces. On Wednesday last week, a bomb blast went off in the vicinity of a convoy of UNSMIS observers, which had been approaching the southern city of Dar’a. The blast injured several Syrian soldiers accompanying the delegation. Authorized by the Council last month under resolution 2043, UNSMIS is tasked with monitoring the cessation of violence in Syria and supporting the full implementation of Mr. Annan’s six-point plan. The plan calls for an end to violence, access for humanitarian agencies to provide relief to those in need, the release of detainees, the start of inclusive political dialogue that takes into account the aspirations of the Syrian people, and unrestricted access to the country for the international media. ||||| A U.N. observer convoy was bombed Tuesday at a Syrian funeral procession, the opposition said, as the United Nations reported its vehicles were hit but that staff escaped unharmed in apparently the same attack. At least 20 people were killed and dozens wounded when Syrian regime forces opened fire on a funeral procession in Idlib province during a visit by U.N. monitors, a watchdog said. “The Syrian regime committed a massacre Tuesday during a visit by U.N. monitors to Khan Sheikhun,” in the northwestern province, said the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights. Separately, U.N. spokesman Martin Nesirky said a roadside bomb exploded in front of a convoy of U.N. ceasefire monitors in Khan Sheikhun, but no injuries were reported among U.N. workers. Video uploaded to YouTube by activists showed a convoy of U.N. vehicles surrounded by dozens of people before a blast was heard and a puff of smoke went up in front of the leading U.N. -marked jeep. It was unclear from the footage if anybody was injured, and the jeep was driven off despite having its front hood damaged. The authenticity of the video could not be verified. Activists said the four-vehicle U.N. convoy in Khan Sheikhun had come under attack and one car was hit by a shell, prompting the monitors to quickly leave the area. Major Sami al-Kurdi, a spokesman for the rebel Free Syrian Army, told AFP that the monitors had arrived during the funeral and that their presence had encouraged more mourners to turn out and join the procession. “The regime dared to attack the procession, however, and then targeted the vehicles of the U.N. observers from a regime checkpoint,” he said. The Observatory, a Britain-based rights watchdog, called for an international probe into the killings that took place during the funeral of a man killed the day before. It also urged the 200-strong U.N. monitoring mission overseeing a tenuous ceasefire in Syria to launch its own investigation. Opposition votes to keep secular head The attack came hours after the Syrian National Council (SNC), an umbrella group in which the influence of Islamists is extensive, re-elected Burhan Ghalioun, a sociologist long resident in France, as its leader for another three months. People involved in the vote said the secular Ghalioun was viewed as acceptable to Syria’s array of sects and ethnicities. Damascus said more than half of eligible voters turned out for a parliamentary election last week, part of reforms it says show Assad’s intent to resolve the uprising peacefully. Khalaf al-Azzawi, head of the judiciary body that oversaw the election, said 51 percent of eligible voters had turned out, down slightly from an election in 2007 when the rule of Assad’s Baath party was unchallenged. At least one independent figure made it into the assembly, according to results Azzawi read out in a televised news conference in Damascus. No figures were given for turnout in cities and towns under siege by government forces. “The election gave the people the broadest possible representation,” he told a televised news conference in Damascus. “The election took place with full transparency, democracy, integrity, supervised and monitored by independent judicial councils which were not pressured by any side.” Opposition leaders dismissed the election in advance as a ruse to buy more time for crushing dissent and said voting was not feasible in areas under continued siege and shelling from Assad’s security forces. The vote follows amendments to Syria’s constitution to allow more political parties, a move Damascus has cited as evidence of good faith to move toward a political solution to the bloodshed. A peace plan brokered by U.N.-Arab League envoy Kofi Annan in April calls for the release of detainees and for peaceful protests to be allowed. Cross-border ripples | Syrian activists uploaded this video of the attack on the UN convoy to YouTube. The United Nations has confirmed that its convoy in Syria was bombed this afternoon while a human rights group reported a Syrian military attack on civilians at a nearby funeral in the Syrian town of in today. Just prior to the bombing of the UN convoy at around 1400 Eastern European Time (UTC+2), the Syrian military is said to have attacked a funeral procession and reportedly 20 people were killed in that incident. The attack on civilians by the Syrian military was reported by the . According to Martin Nesirky, who is the UN spokesperson for Secretary-General , an IED bomb struck its four-vehicle convoy. UN personnel had to be left behind after the blast but no UN staff were injured. Later, the UN sent a patrol to pick up personnel left behind. Three UN marked vehicles were damaged. A video uploaded to the video sharing website YouTube reportedly shows the UN convoy being targeted and bombed. About a dozen civilians can be seen surrounding the lead car of the convoy talking to UN observers. Some civilians can be heard screaming. Several seconds later, a bomb explodes near what appears to be the lead car of the convoy severely damaging the front end of the vehicle and injuring several civilians. The lead car, still operating, begins to leave the area. The two other vehicles follow. According to reports, several civilians were injured and or killed in the attack. The UN has reportedly stated that none of their observers were injured. "We went to observe and after a while shooting occurred"; "We are safe with the and we are waiting for a U.N. group to pick us up," said UN observers to . According to reports, the UN is seeking "to remove the observers from the area." It is not yet known who was responsible for the attack on the UN convoy. |
Get a behind-the-scenes look at how the news is gathered and reported. March 22: NBC’s Lisa Daniels reports on a new trend among schools — not allowing Wikipedia as source material for reports. By Lisa Daniels and Alex Johnson MSNBC and NBC News Lisa Daniels Correspondent • Profile MIDDLEBURY, Vt. - Neil Waters had never seen anything quite like it. “I was looking at a stack of final examinations,” said Waters, a professor of Japanese studies at Middlebury College in Vermont, “and I found several instances of misinformation that [were] identical from one student to another.” All of those students in Waters’ Japanese history class late last year had been steered wrong by the same source — Wikipedia, the sprawling online encyclopedia that has revolutionized how ordinary people find information. Story continues below ↓ advertisement advertisement Wikipedia is a marvel of Web innovation and utility, but the incident in Waters’ class, added to several celebrated controversies in which entries for famous people were found to be false, raises a troubling question: Just how accurate is Wikipedia, and can you trust what it tells you? For Middlebury College’s history department, the answer is plain: Not totally, and not always. The department banned students from using it as a source in their papers, although they are allowed to consult it for background material, a move that was quickly mimicked by professors at other schools, including UCLA and the University of Pennsylvania. Harnessing the wisdom of the masses Wikipedia is different from traditional encyclopedias in one crucial respect. Instead of seeking out recognized authorities in hundreds or thousands of fields to write its articles, it lets anybody — everybody — write them. And it also lets anybody edit nearly all of them at will. The idea is that the large Wikipedia usership will yield experts on a particular topic. The back and forth as they debate and tweak entries should, in turn, yield a deeply reviewed and credible consensus article. Alex Johnson Reporter • Profile But the sheer size of that usership means tens of thousands of changes are made each day to Wikipedia’s nearly 1.7 million entries (that’s in the English version — there are Wikipedias for nearly every significant language on Earth, including Esperanto and even Tok Pisin, a Creole spoken in northern Papua New Guinea). And while Wikipedia has a large staff of moderators and trusted editors, it can take a while for entries to be reviewed. If you happen to consult an entry that hasn’t been fully vetted or edited — or one that’s fallen victim to a flurry of disputed edits by folks with axes to grind — you can get into trouble. Just this year, a Wikipedia entry falsely proclaimed that the comedian Sinbad was dead. (“Saturday, I rose from the dead,” he said.) Golfer Fuzzy Zoeller sued last month to find out who anonymously posted, falsely, that he abused drugs. And a prolific and highly trusted contributor believed to be a professor was unmasked as a 24-year-old college dropout. Wikipedia comes clean Wikipedia co-founder Jimmy Wales presides over a burgeoning empire. Wikimedia, the site’s host, has expanded into textbooks, republishable content, news, shared media and online project coordination. It all rests on Wikipedia’s reputation as an always available, convenient and reliable repository of the world’s knowledge. But as controversies have grown, Wikipedia has had to fight to uphold its reputation. One way it now does so is by acknowledging its shortcomings. “Reaching neutrality is occasionally made harder by extreme-viewpoint contributors,” it says, and it warns that “Wikipedia makes no guarantee of validity.” “Please be advised that nothing found here has necessarily been reviewed by people with the expertise required to provide you with complete, accurate or reliable information,” it says in a general disclaimer. ‘Hacked to bits by hoi polloi’ That unreliability draws critics who say Wikipedia allows a forum for information vandals and propagandists. One of them is Larry Sanger, a co-founder of Wikipedia with Wales and its first editor. While making it clear that he appreciates the merits of a project like Wikipedia, Sanger said in an article on the technology site Kuro5hin in 2005 that users are forced to take authors’ claims of expertise on faith and can be sandbagged by vandals at any time. “If the project was lucky enough to have a writer or two well-informed about some specialized subject, and if their work was not degraded in quality by the majority of people, whose knowledge of the subject is based on paragraphs in books and mere mentions in college classes, then there might be a good, credible article on that specialized subject,” Sanger wrote. “Otherwise, there will be no article at all, a very amateurish-sounding article, or an article that looks like it might once have been pretty good, but which has been hacked to bits by hoi polloi,” he added. The conclusion is that users who rely on Wikipedia are running a risk. And for students whose research will be graded by real, honest-to-goodness experts in the classroom, that is probably too big a risk, said Sree Srinivasan, a journalism professor at Columbia University and visiting professor of new media at the Poynter Institute, a journalism education organization. “We need to teach our students that, basically, information on Wikipedia can be updated very easily,” Srinivasan stressed. On that point, even Wikipedia agrees. The ban at Middlebury College “is a great idea,” said Jim Redmond, a Wikipedia administrator and editor. “Students shouldn’t even be tempted to use Wikipedia as an original source.” Lisa Daniels is a correspondent for NBC News. Alex Johnson is a reporter for MSNBC.com. ||||| Wikipedia , like Switzerland, wants to be neutral. But the new bankers of the Net's knowledge face foes invested in partisan points of view. It's not just the Congressional staff members, special interest groups, and Microsoft making changes to Wikipedia entries. Islamic jihadists fancy themselves editors, too. On Dec. 9th of last year, an Internet user posted a message to a jihadist Web site titled, "Why Don't We Invade Wikipedia?" The forum participant advised Muslims to contribute to the online encyclopedia, "and in this way, and through an Islamic lobby, apply pressure on the encyclopedia's material, as is the case with most of the other participants," according to news summary distributed by the Open Source Center of the Office of Director of National Intelligence. Wikipedia says that "The DNI Open Source Center was established Nov. 1, 2005, and, operating under the Office of the Director of National Intelligence, is intended to improve the availability of open sources to intelligence officers and other government officials." One such source is Wikipedia. Wikipedia "has steadily grown in popularity, credibility, and influence to the point that it is now used and referenced in U.S. Government intelligence products," explained Steven Aftergood, director of the Project on Government Secrecy at the Federation of American Scientists, a group that monitors government information policy, in a recent blog post. For example, a March 21 OSC profile of Rajnath Singh, president of India's Bharatiya Janata Party, says that it was sourced from wikipedia.org, the official BJP website, and Indian media Web sites including Zee News, Indian Express, and The Times of India. Aftergood sees the government's increasing use of Wikipedia for intelligence as both perilous and promising. "Everyone recognizes the limitations of Wikipedia, that it's only as good as its contributors, but it's a starting point," he said. "And in many cases it can be a source of first resort. If you have 30 seconds to check something, it can be the best place to turn." On the whole, Aftergood sees the government's willingness to look to new sources of intelligence as "a welcome development," even if it means approaching Wikipedia entries with caution. As to the invasion of Wikipedia, last year's call to arms hasn't resulted in a noticeable increase in vandalism or partisan editing, according to a Wikipedia spokesperson Sandra Ordonez. However, she acknowledges that Wikipedia is working on developing better reporting and anti-vandalism tools, which at least suggests the issue hasn't gone away. Ordonez maintains that edits to articles that alter the neutral point of view will be addressed by the Wikipedia community. Asked whether the defense community was aware of concerted efforts by jihadists to alter Wikipedia, Maj. Patrick Ryder, a spokesperson for the Department of Defense, said, "I have no information on this particular case to pass along. However, as we have seen, terrorists continue to use the Internet to conduct distributed operations, recruit, raise funds and spread false information." ||||| In the wake of the Essjay controversy and a history department’s ban, Wikipedia’s founder has sought to restore credibility in the Web site in a well-established fashion. He set new policies and granted confidence-building interviews in national magazines. Meanwhile, an ardent user has taken things into his own hands, which is how a collaborative enterprise is supposed to work anyway. Eric Rauchway of the University of California, Davis, has written a piece on The New Republic’s Web site that tries to inspire academics to join up. “Wikipedia is on our side,” he declared. With publications like Encyclopaedia Britannica fighting “to retain control over the means of producing knowledge,” Mr. Rauchway argues that anyone who cares “about the free production and promulgation of information” has a duty to participate. A BusinessWeek columnist also appeals to a personal sense of duty. Taking a long tour around the difficulty in solving credibility issues at the site, he eventually ends up blaming everyone. Like it or not, it’s your responsibility and mine to monitor what’s being said about us online. If motivation is what you need to start, look no further than Secrecy News, a blog from the Federation of American Scientists. It reports that Wikipedia “has steadily grown in popularity, credibility and influence to the point that it is now used and referenced in U.S. Government intelligence products.” The Open Source Center, based at the C.I.A., has cited Wikipedia material in profiles of three key figures in South Asia, the blog says. | Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia Many professors at universities throughout the United States have recently adopted policies prohibiting Wikipedia, the free online encyclopedia, from being used as a primary source in reports. Neil Walters, a history professor at Middlebury College claims that vandalism of Wikipedia was used as a source in reports submitted to him. Walters' department adopted a policy banning the use of Wikipedia as a primary source, while allowing it to be used for background information. Individual professors at other schools, including UCLA and the University of Pennsylvania, have taken up this policy. Wikipedia contributors regularly review the articles, but with the English version of the site recently reaching 1 million articles, they can rarely take time to protect every entry against subtle vandalism. Wikipedia's guidelines, and the statements of its founder, Jimmy Wales, have advised against using Wikipedia or other encyclopedias as a primary source. |
Metronet said it was facing financial uncertainty Responsible for the upkeep of nine Tube lines, including the Bakerloo, Victoria and Central, Metronet was hired under a private-public financing initiative. Following a cost over-run, Metronet said it was no longer able to meet its obligations without additional money. London Mayor Ken Livingstone said the crisis "would not undermine services". "All trains will continue to run and all stations will remain open," he stressed. 'No funds' Metronet is not responsible for operating trains with London Underground, which is overseen by Transport for London (TFL), dealing with the day-to-day running of the Tube. This company has now established that it has no access to such further funds Metronet Changing the Tube London Underground said it had planned for the eventuality of Metronet's collapse, adding that it was vital that planned improvements to the Tube were not delayed too long. Unions are set to meet Metronet and TFL officials to discuss the crisis on Wednesday. Ernst & Young has been appointed as administrators and will now take over the running of the business in an effort to put its finances in order. METRONET LINES Bakerloo, Central, Victoria, Waterloo & City, Circle, District, Metropolitan, Hammersmith & City and East London Ultimately, Metronet's responsibilities will be transferred to a newly-formed company - although the financial implications of this are as yet unclear. Metronet has been involved in a long-running dispute with Transport for London about who should pay for the spiralling cost of upgrading the network's infrastructure. Budget wrangle Metronet planned to invest £17bn over the next 30 years under the terms of a public-private partnership (PPP) scheme, a method of funding and financing large projects opposed by Mr Livingstone but supported by the government. But it estimates there will be an overspend of as much as £2bn by 2010. The financial crisis was triggered by a PPP arbiter's decision earlier this week not to award Metronet about £550m in funding which the firm said it needed to pay for budget over-runs which were out of its control. Services will not be affected by the financial crisis Instead, Metronet was awarded an interim £121m payment, a decision which left it unable to meet its running costs. "Metronet Rail requires additional funding to enable it to carry out its contractual obligations," the firm said in a statement. "This company has now established that it has no access to such further funds." Engineering firm Atkins, one of Metronet's shareholders, said the decision to seek administration was "clearly disappointing, while not unexpected". Metronet's other shareholders are Bombardier, Thames Water, EDF and Balfour Beatty. "Their company was no longer viable," said London Mayor Ken Livingstone. "It has ceased to exist." "The shareholders have lost hundreds of millions of pounds," he added. Tube Lines, the private contractor which maintains the other Underground lines, has not suffered any substantial cost over-runs. ||||| Metronet, the London Underground contractor, announced this morning that it will go into administration after racking up a £2bn overspend bill. It has asked the London mayor, Ken Livingstone, to appoint an administrator. Alan Bloom, an insolvency specialist at Ernst & Young and the former administrator of Railtrack, is expected to be appointed to run Metronet at the high court later this morning. In a statement, Metronet said its two Public Private Partnership contracts to renovate and maintain the capital's tube system were unsustainable. Its Metronet BCV programme, for the Bakerloo, Central and Victoria lines, had an unpluggable funding gap of just under £1bn. Metronet's creditors and shareholders – Balfour Beatty, WS Atkins, Bombardier, EdF and Thames Water – had refused to provide more funding. "Metronet Rail BCV requires additional funding to enable it to carry out its contractual obligations during the period of the Extraordinary Review," said the company. "This company has now established that it has no access to such further funds." Its second contract , Metronet SSL, for London's sub-surface tube lines, had built up an overspend of £1bn. Metronet said Monday's negative ruling by the PPP regulator on a request for emergency funds for Metronet BCV had effectively doomed the other contract as well. "Applying the logic of the PPP Arbiter's draft direction to the circumstances of Metronet Rail SSL, the Board of this infrastructure company has come to the conclusion that any application for Extraordinary Review ... would come to a similar position." Under the terms of today's process, Metronet has asked to put Metronet BCV and Metronet SSL into administration. However, the company will in effect cease to exist once the contracts are sold on by the administrator. Metronet's collapse, less than a year after its financial troubles became apparent and four years into a 30-year programme, is an embarrassment for chancellor Gordon Brown and his PPP policy. Mr Brown drove through the tube PPP in the face of strident criticism from Mr Livingstone who, ironically in the light of this morning's events, took his battle to the high court in 2001 and lost. His advisers are expected to see today's events on the Strand as a vindication of his stance. The mayor is expected to assure Metronet's 3,000 staff that there will be no mass lay-offs, although senior jobs are expected to go, putting in doubt the position of Andrew Lezala, Metronet chief executive. Ernst & Young's Mr Bloom will stabilize the business, which receives £860m in annual payments from the state, before selling the contracts to a new owner – who will assume responsibility for Metronet's workforce. The head of London Underground, Tim O'Toole, has assured Londoners that the service on the lines that Metronet is responsible– nine of the capital's 12 – will continue as normal. However experts have warned that the PPP administration process is untested and was not foreseen when the contracts were launched in 2003. | Metronet, a company set up to manage the upgrade of three-quarters of London's tube network, has gone into administration (which is similar to Chapter 11 in the United States) after having accrued debts of up to £2 billion, following the decision on Monday to limit the amount of extra funds that the company would receive from public funds. A notice on the Metronet website announced that the Boards of both Metronet BCV (responsible for the upgrade of the Bakerloo, Central and Victoria lines) and Metronet SSL (responsible for upgrade of the 'sub-surface' lines) had asked the Mayor to seek the appointment of a PPP Administrator. The statement says that the decision follows a period of 'financial uncertainty', with the decision of the arbiter leaving Metronet "unable to carry out its contract". Metronet's shareholders, the companies Atkins, Balfour Beatty, Bombardier, EDF Energy and Thames Water had blocked access to an extra funds, and each have a limited liability of £350 million, their original equity stake. Transport for London have reassured the public that tube services will not be affected - Metronet is not responsible for day-to-day operation - but it is so far unclear what will happen to the upgrade contracts. |
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia § Patrick and Wool resign in office shakeup In separate and apparently unrelated announcements, Wikimedia Foundation employees Brad Patrick and Danny Wool both announced their resignations this week, both citing disagreements with the Board of Trustees. Wool first made his announcement late Tuesday, when he removed his name from the list of "current staff" on the Wikimedia Foundation website. He removed his rights on all wikis on Wednesday, and on Thursday, formally announced his resignation in a mailing list post: ...at present, I am unwilling to discuss the reasons for my resignation from the WMF office team. I plan on remaining an active editor on various projects, as I have always been, even before I began working for WMF. To ensure that there are no misunderstandings or claims of an abuse of power, I ask that all admin status on the various projects be revoked. If I feel I can help as an admin, I will ask to be reelected by the normal process. I look forward to this opportunity to reenter the community as a new user and to share in the building of free knowledge. I would also like to announce that I plan on running for the Board of Trustees in the June elections for the seats currently held by Kat, Oscar, and Erik. At that time, I will make known my position on how the Wikimedia Foundation should operate, and what mistakes I perceive are being made at present. So let's leave the gossip and second-guessing behind us and get on with the real task at hand--building the largest and most reliable repository of knowledge ever created. Patrick, meanwhile, also announced his resignation on Thursday, while noting that his resignation was not related to Wool's: I am stepping down as General Counsel to the Wikimedia Foundation, Inc., effective March 31, 2007. I tendered my resignation to the Board some weeks ago, which was accepted. In the context of Danny Wool's announcement earlier today that he has resigned, some will speculate the two are related. They are not. The timing is just unfortunate. ... This community understands implicitly that people of goodwill can (and do) have strong differences of opinion about important matters. Should I choose to comment about these sorts of things at some point in the future, it will be as a person who cares about the vitality and success of the Foundation. I intend any such criticism to be constructive and based on a well-founded, good faith belief in making the Foundation stronger. I certainly wish for nothing but success for the organization. To the extent I, (like any person who has had anything to do with the workings of the Foundation), have opinions about what I think is good, bad, ugly, etc. about how the Foundation does things, they are my own. ... It is my earnest hope that everyone who cares about the Foundation, but has concerns about what is happening at the Foundation now, will say so. This community is strongest when it is vocal, not silent. If you have questions you want answered, be bold, speak up, and ask them. The Board members -- the ones who are accountable, since it is they who are running the Foundation -- deserve the support of the community when they earn it. But, since this is real life, {{SOFIXIT}} isn't as simple as clicking on an article. It's really hard work that takes a great deal of time and energy. In an interview with Wired News, Patrick criticized the Board's ability to handle the tasks of running the Foundation: "A board that is tasked with the responsibility of running a 501(c)3 should have the competences to run a 501(c)3 and get all the help they can from as many people as they can, including outside people, to do that. I've said before that the board could just as soon have a pie-eating contest or flip a coin or Tiddly Wink to determine who the next board member would be and it would have the same legitimacy as an election." Developer Tim Starling noted that, unlike Patrick's announcement, which had already been given privately to the Board of Trustees, Wool's announcement came with no prior notice: "...Brad gave about a month's notice. Danny left last Tuesday with no prior notice. Danny's resignation caused some comment on internal-l. Anthere decided that since we were talking about resignations, this would be a good time to announce Brad's pending resignation, also to internal-l." The moves represent the first full resignations in the history of the Wikimedia Foundation. Patrick was interim executive director until February (see archived story), but remained in his role as general counsel. Prior to the Foundation's existence, Larry Sanger resigned from the project on March 1, 2002, after Jimbo Wales and Bomis became unable to fund his position as "chief organizer" of Wikipedia and editor-in-chief of Nupedia. The Foundation has already announced a search for a new legal coordinator to handle many of the duties that Patrick previously handled. It has not yet been announced whether Wool's position will be filled in the near future. In other Foundation news, Foundation Chair Florence Devouard announced that the Foundation has hired Rob Halsell as a full-time IT and networking professional, working at the Tampa data center and in the St. Petersburg offices. ||||| Two top employees of the Wikimedia Foundation have resigned, citing disagreements with the board. Both publicly tendered their resignations to the community yesterday on a foundation mailing list, but say their resignations are unrelated and the timing coincidental. Danny Wool, who has worked out of the foundation's St. Petersburg, Florida, office since October 2005 under the title of grants coordinator, and who is widely regarded as the number two guy at Wikimedia, discussed his resignation first in a message to the foundation list. That note was later followed by one from Brad Patrick, general counsel and interim Executive Director of the foundation, who resigned formally to the foundation earlier this month but decided to announce it publicly to the community after seeing Wool's note go up. Patrick will continue with the foundation until March 31 and has retained executive headhunting firm Phillips Oppenheim to help find a permanent director for the foundation. The Wikimedia Foundation is a 501(c)3 nonprofit, providing administrative and financial support to Wikipedia and other wiki projects. In an interview with Wired News, Patrick cited concerns about the informal structure of the board and the inexperience of its seven members. The board is composed of people from the Wikipedia community, and board members are elected by the community. There are no particular qualifications to become a board member. Among the current members are a biotech and genetics researcher, a former CEO of an options trading firm, a couple of computer scientists, a law student at George Mason University, and a musician and composer. "A board that is tasked with the responsibility of running a 501(c)3 should have the competences to run a 501(c)3 and get all the help they can from as many people as they can, including outside people, to do that," Patrick said. "I've said before that the board could just as soon have a pie-eating contest or flip a coin or Tiddly Winks to determine who the next board member would be and it would have the same legitimacy as an election." The nature of that free-for-all, however, is what has made Wikipedia so popular with its community and users. The idea that anyone can contribute to it and anyone can make suggestions about its direction epitomizes the essence of an interactive, internet community. According to Patrick, however, what worked for the Wiki endeavor in the beginning needs to change now that it's maturing into a powerhouse. "I hold very strongly to the opinion that what we are doing is the most important work of the 21st century," he said. ""But everything that we're doing to help create free knowledge and share it is too important to get wrong. Who has the hubris to say that it's okay to ... turn a blind eye to the essence of good corporate governance and fiduciary responsibility? The idea that we're different because we're Wikipedia doesn't hold water with me." He said that as Wikimedia's fundraising success increases -- the foundation raised $1 million from some 50,000 people in four weeks last December -- and new partnership opportunities come its way, decisions about what to do with the money and which business opportunities to pursue shouldn't be handled by the multitudes. Wales, when reached by phone, was confused by Patrick's statements. He said the board recognizes that it needs outside expertise to help guide it and the foundation has, in fact, recently put together an advisory board of people from business, academia and the non-profit realm to help them. That group includes Mitch Kapor, chair of the Open Source Applications Foundation. "We are aware as a board that these are very important questions and so we need very good advice on how to expand the board and grow the board long term," Wales said. "We tried to bring in some people who would have that kind of experience." For his part, Wool said he wasn't so much resigning as wanting to move to a new position where he might have a greater say in how the foundation achieves its objectives. To that end, he plans to run for election to the board in June, and will release a statement several weeks before then explaining the changes he'd like to see. Despite his title, Wool had much clout in Wikipedia governance. His decisions regarding the deletion of sites were generally not open to question, according to one very active member of the community, who asked not to be identified because of disagreements with Wool over deletion issues. Wool also had power to change a user's access level. "I'm fully committed to the mission of Wikimedia and I believe in the projects and goals we've set forth for ourselves," Wool told Wired News, "but I believe we still have a lot to do to fulfill our mission to provide free content and free culture to the world." Patrick said the success of the foundation lies in finding the right executive director, though he acknowledged that this could be thwarted if the board resists changes that are needed. "What I hope for is for the board to decide to choose a future that will be conducive to a very powerful executive director who can provide some much needed leadership right now," he said. Wikipedia Shakeup: Resignations ||||| [Foundation-l] My resignation Hello, First, I would like to thank those people who have contacted me privately, expressing concern about the events of the past few days. I truly value your friendship and support. That said, at present, I am unwilling to discuss the reasons for my resignation from the WMF office team. I plan on remaining an active editor on various projects, as I have always been, even before I began working for WMF. To ensure that there are no misunderstandings or claims of an abuse of power, I ask that all admin status on the various projects be revoked. If I feel I can help as an admin, I will ask to be reelected by the normal process. I look forward to this opportunity to reenter the community as a new user and to share in the building of free knowledge. I would also like to announce that I plan on running for the Board of Trustees in the June elections for the seats currently held by Kat, Oscar, and Erik. At that time, I will make known my position on how the Wikimedia Foundation should operate, and what mistakes I perceive are being made at present. So let's leave the gossip and second-guessing behind us and get on with the real task at hand--building the largest and most reliable repository of knowledge ever created. Danny ************************************** AOL now offers free email to everyone. Find out more about what's free from AOL at http://www.aol.com. ||||| [Foundation-l] [Announcement] Brad Patrick Resigns as General Counsel -----BEGIN PGP SIGNED MESSAGE----- Hash: SHA1 To the Wikimedia Community: I am stepping down as General Counsel to the Wikimedia Foundation, Inc., effective March 31, 2007. I tendered my resignation to the Board some weeks ago, which was accepted. In the context of Danny Wool's announcement earlier today that he has resigned, some will speculate the two are related. They are not. The timing is just unfortunate. Many people who decide to leave the projects do so by invoking the right to disappear. That isn't me. I am very proud of my association with WMF and will carry the distinction of having been a part of its growth with me for the rest of my life. I care deeply about the future of the Foundation, and am more dedicated in my beliefs about the free culture movement than ever before. With respect to my relationship with the Foundation and those of you whom I have come to know, I hope we are on good terms. This community understands implicitly that people of goodwill can (and do) have strong differences of opinion about important matters. Should I choose to comment about these sorts of things at some point in the future, it will be as a person who cares about the vitality and success of the Foundation. I intend any such criticism to be constructive and based on a well-founded, good faith belief in making the Foundation stronger. I certainly wish for nothing but success for the organization. To the extent I, (like any person who has had anything to do with the workings of the Foundation), have opinions about what I think is good, bad, ugly, etc. about how the Foundation does things, they are my own. One of the last things I did before stepping aside as interim ED was retain the firm of Phillips Oppenheim to conduct the ED search process for WMF. I hold them in the highest regard as professionals who are exclusively in the business of non-profit executive search, and I have a high degree of confidence that they are the right people to aid the Foundation in its next steps. They can make a difference. It is my earnest hope that everyone who cares about the Foundation, but has concerns about what is happening at the Foundation now, will say so. This community is strongest when it is vocal, not silent. If you have questions you want answered, be bold, speak up, and ask them. The Board members -- the ones who are accountable, since it is they who are running the Foundation -- deserve the support of the community when they earn it. But, since this is real life, {{SOFIXIT}} isn't as simple as clicking on an article. It's really hard work that takes a great deal of time and energy. So, I'm leaving as of March 31, 2007. I am not going away or deleting myself out of wikiexistence. I'm just not going to be WMF's General Counsel. Brad http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/User:BradPatrick -----BEGIN PGP SIGNATURE----- Version: GnuPG v1.4.6 (MingW32) Comment: Using GnuPG with Mozilla - http://enigmail.mozdev.org iD8DBQFGAtJ65txwQhyxnbIRAtC/AJ4xaN8hjmS4Zf/RWAKaiy2HapSd3wCdGhdJ fe6Nz7wYcObeRG+JMLfq4TI= =a75c -----END PGP SIGNATURE----- | Brad Patrick, former General Counsel for the WMF Brad Patrick and Danny Wool announced their resignations from the Wikimedia Foundation last week. Danny Wool, previous Grants Coordinator for the Foundation made his resignation first known on March 20, by removing his name from the current staff listing on the Foundation's website. Unlike Patrick, this was the first indication of Wool's resignation. According to a mailing list post by Wool, he will be running for a seat on the Board of Trustees, the Wikimedia Foundation's governing body, in June. Earlier in the same message, he says that he is unwilling to discuss the reasons of his resignation with the community. Danny Wool, former Grants Coordinator for the WMF Brad Patrick's resignation was known to the Board of Trustees about a month previously and was made public on March 22. Patrick says in his mailing list message that his resignation is not related to Wools, and that "the timing is just unfortunate". Patrick says that he will not be leaving the Wikimedia projects, just "not going to be the WMF's General Counsel" anymore. In an interview with Wired News, Patrick criticized the Board's ability to "handle things", as well as concerns with the "informal structure of the Board" and "the inexperience of its seven members". When contacted by phone, Jimbo Wales said that he was confused by Patrick's statements. "What I hope for is for the board to decide to choose a future that will be conducive to a very powerful executive director who can provide some much needed leadership right now," Patrick said. |
Legia will miss out on a season of European football (©Getty Images ) Legia punished with UEFA ban e-mail Print Legia Warszawa have been expelled from the 2007 UEFA Intertoto Cup and banned from UEFA competition for one future season following weekend crowd trouble. 'Ugly and shocking' The UEFA Control and Disciplinary Body met today to discuss disturbances involving Polish supporters at last Sunday's second round first-leg match at Lithuanian club FK Vėtra in Vilnius. With the half-time score at 2-0 in the home team's favour, Legia fans fired "a considerable number" of missiles on to the pitch and, as well as causing damage to the stadium infrastructure, engaged in "ugly and shocking" scenes with police. This continued for 30 minutes and led UEFA match officials to abandon the contest. Default victory As well as their expulsion from this European season and one future campaign should they qualify within the next five years, Legia have been ordered to contact Vėtra within ten days with regard to compensation for the damage caused. The match, played on 8 July, has been awarded as a 3-0 win to Vėtra by default. The Lithuanian club will progress automatically to the third round, where they will take on English side Blackburn Rovers FC. 'Obvious problem' Although Legia said they had done much to curb hooliganism in the past three years, the body identified an "obvious problem with Legia supporters at away matches on the continent". In reaching its decision, it added: "Legia must react quickly and firmly if the club wishes to participate in UEFA competition in future. With Legia's considerable disciplinary record for away matches, the duty of playing matches against Legia becomes a tall order that UEFA cannot afford to support any longer." Legia have until Saturday if they wish to lodge an appeal against the decision. ©uefa.com 1998-2007. All rights reserved. ||||| Blackburn will face Lithuanian side FK Vetra in the Intertoto Cup third round after UEFA expelled Legia Warsaw from the competition following crowd trouble at the weekend. UEFA officials abandoned the second-round match in Vilnius after fans of the Polish club clashed with police and fired numerous missiles onto the pitch. FK Vetra had been winning 2-0 when the hooliganism started. As well as their expulsion from the Intertoto Cup this season, Legia will also be banned for one future campaign should they qualify within the next five years. They have also been ordered to contact Vetra within 10 days to discuss compensation for the damage caused. The match has been awarded as a 3-0 win to Vetra by default. Your views on this story? Email newsdesk@soccernet.com Join the discussion on our Message Boards Club Pages Blackburn Adjust Font Size: ||||| Rovers await UEFA decision over Intertoto violence Email Blackburn will find out on Wednesday what action UEFA are taking after violent crowd scenes caused the Intertoto Cup match between Vetra Vilnius and Legia Warsaw to be abandoned at half-time. Polish FA supremo Michal Listkiewicz already believes the fallout from the clashes could see the country's club teams barred from UEFA-sanctioned competitions. Rovers face the winners in the third round and Lithuanian side Vetra were leading 2-0 at home in the first leg - the return is scheduled for Saturday - when trouble began. Hundreds of Legia fans took to the field and tried to pull down the goalposts and destroy advertising hoardings. Lithuanian police used tear gas to quell the unrest and made around 100 arrests. One police officer was injured during the clashes with the Poles, many of whom were armed with metal bars, rocks and torches. Listkiewicz said: 'A huge price will be paid for this. 'It's possible that our country could be excluded from this competition.' Legia chairman Leszkek Miklas admitted his shock at events, adding that his team will accept whatever punishment the football authorities hand down. 'We are prepared for any decision of UEFA,' he said. 'I am shocked that people from a civilised country can have this kind of behaviour. These savages can't live in a normal society.' The incident comes just 10 weeks after Poland was chosen to host Euro 2012 in a joint bid with Ukraine. UEFA's control and disciplinary body will study reports before making a decision on Wednesday. | Legia Warszawa have been kicked out of the 2007 UEFA Intertoto Cup and have received a one year ban in a future season. UEFA referee Mario Vlk of Slovakia abandoned the match at half time after hundreds of fans of Legia went onto the field and tried to pull down the goalposts and destroy advertising boardings. The fans clashed with police and threw trash onto the field. Lithuanian police used tear gas to stop the violence and made about 100 arrests. Due to the fact that Legia has been expelled, FK Vetra automatically will face Blackburn Rovers in the third and final round. The match was awarded to FK Vetra 3-0. The 2nd Leg of the tie was cancelled. UEFA made a statement in regards to Legia's most recent hooligan problem. "Although Legia said they had done much to curb hooliganism in the past three years, the body identified an "obvious problem with Legia supporters at away matches on the continent". In reaching its decision, it added: "Legia must react quickly and firmly if the club wishes to participate in UEFA competition in future. With Legia's considerable disciplinary record for away matches, the duty of playing matches against Legia becomes a tall order that UEFA cannot afford to support any longer." Legia have until Saturday if they wish to appeal the ban. |
Thailand's electoral commission yesterday recommended the dissolution of the ruling party for allegedly misusing campaign donations as pressure grew for Abhisit Vejjajiva, prime minister, to resolve a stand-off with anti-government protesters. The pressure on Mr Abhisit to resign has mounted since the army's failed attempt on Saturday to clear the "red shirt" protesters from a site in central Bangkok left 21 people dead, including four soldiers, and more than 800 injured. ||||| BANGKOK -- Thailand's electoral commission recommended Monday the dissolution of the country's ruling party for allegedly misusing campaign donations, as protesters paraded through the streets of the capital bearing the coffins of comrades killed in violence over the weekend. Pressure has mounted on Prime Minister Abhisit Vejjajiva to resign since the army's failed attempt Saturday to clear the "Red Shirt" protesters from a site in central Bangkok. The clashes left 21 people dead, including four soldiers, and more than 800 injured. The electoral commission has passed its recommendations to the attorney general's office, which will either reject them or refer them to the constitutional court. Under normal circumstances, the process could take up to six months, but lawyers say it could be accelerated. The court would have the power to dissolve Abhisit's Democrat Party and ban the prime minister from politics, a maneuver with a precedent in Thai politics. In 2008, the constitutional court ejected Somchai Wongsawat, Abhisit's Red Shirt predecessor, citing electoral irregularities. People close to Abhisit said Monday that the move could present a way to break the deadlock between the prime minister and the protesters. So, too, did some opposition figures. Chaturon Chaiseng, who many say could be a future prime minister, echoed the sentiment. "This is a very good opportunity for this country to rearrange the system, to return to the rule of law," he said. If the courts intervene to dissolve the Democrat Party, Abhisit would no longer be in office. But he would avoid being seen as having given in to the protesters' demands. Meanwhile, the political turmoil is starting to take its toll on tourism, the lifeblood of the Thai economy. More than 40 countries have issued travel warnings amid reports of thousands of tourists canceling trips. The Ministry of Finance that growth in gross domestic product, once estimated at between 3.5 and 4.5 percent for 2010, will decline by 0.2 to 0.5 percent because of the unrest. Eknitti Nitithanprapar, executive director of the Macro-Economic Policy Bureau at the Ministry of Finance, said tourism and consumption-related industries will be hit hardest. Tourism draws visitors to the temples of Bangkok, the beaches of Andaman Sea and the mountains of northern Thailand. It accounts for almost 7 percent of Thailand's GDP and is a key source of employment. Tomas Oyarzun, 19, a Chilean who arrived with his family Saturday to stay in Bangkok's Khao San Road, a budget tourist hub on the fringe of the fighting. He said the family is cutting short its holiday and is going to Bali. "It feels strange here," he said, echoing the feelings of many other visitors interviewed Monday. The demonstrators who took on troops Saturday have been campaigning for a month for Abhisit's resignation. The street battles erupted when soldiers moved in to clear one of the main protest sites near the Khao San Road. -- Financial Times ||||| The red-shirts control important intersections of the capital Thai opposition protesters have been parading coffins through Bangkok in protest at the weekend violence which left 21 people dead. Most of the them were empty, but at least two contained the bodies of demonstrators killed in clashes with the security forces. As the procession of coffins began, reports suggested PM Abhisit Vejjajiva was considering calling early polls. Early elections is one of the demands of the anti-government protesters. But the red-shirted protesters want Mr Abhisit's immediate resignation. The red-shirts still control important intersections in the city and are increasingly confident after withstanding the security forces' attempt to move them back, the BBC's Quentin Somerville reports from Bangkok. There was little sign of renewed clashes in the city on Monday, with shops re-opening and the rail network running again. But despite the calm on the streets, there is little sign of Thailand's deep political conflict being solved any time soon, our correspondent says. 'Murderers' Most of the 21 people killed on Saturday were civilians. About 800 people were also injured. Both sides accuse each other of firing live bullets during the confrontation. Jatuporn Prompan, one of the red-shirts' leaders, told a rally that Mr Abhisit's hands were "bloodied" by the clashes. "Red-shirts will never negotiate with murderers," he announced from a makeshift stage. "Although the road is rough and full of obstacles, it's our duty to honour the dead by bringing democracy to this country." The red-shirts - a loose coalition of left-wing activists and supporters of exiled former Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra - say Mr Abhisit came to power illegitimately in a parliamentary vote after a pro-Thaksin government was forced to step down in 2008. Mr Thaksin was ousted in a military coup in 2006. They have vowed to defy the state of emergency declared last Wednesday with more rallies. Arrest warrants have been issued for several of the protest leaders. Unconfirmed reports in local newspapers on Monday said political parties in the coalition government were pressuring Mr Abhisit to compromise with the protesters by dissolving parliament in the next six months instead of by the end of the year, as he had earlier promised. Bookmark with: Delicious Digg reddit Facebook StumbleUpon What are these? E-mail this to a friend Printable version ||||| Red-shirt protesters have paraded coffins through the streets of Bangkok as part of their ongoing action against Thailand's Prime Minister, Abhisit Vejjajiva. Most of the coffins were empty, but at least two contained the bodies of demonstrators who were among 17 killed in clashes with the security forces on Saturday. Both sides accuse each other of firing live bullets during the confrontation. | Remembering the dead, April 11th 2010. In a televised statement on Monday, Thailand's Prime Minister Abhisit Vejjajiva blamed the loss of life last Saturday in Bangkok on armed terrorists who had infiltrated the Red Shirt protesters. He added that the security forces had opened fire only when fired upon. The Prime Minister's statement came as he was suffering a double blow to his authority. As coffins draped in Thai flags paraded through Bangkok to symbolise the death of democracy, Thailand's electoral commission ruled that Vejjajiva's Democrat Party should disband. In addition, the chief of the Thai Army, General Anupong Paojinda, publicly called for the dissolution of parliament. Despite pressure from the Vejjajiva administration, the Thai Army, which traditionally has been politically significant in the country, has been reluctant to use force against the protesters, and will become even more so following what will be seen as innocent blood on its hands. Even though Vejjajiva has stated that the government and military remain united, without the unequivocal support of the Thai military and security forces, his administration has very little room for maneuver. Ironically, Vejjajiva may be saved from having to concede to the Red Shirts' demands for fresh elections through the same process that deposed his predecessor and led to his own rise to the premiership. A court has ruled that Vejjajiva's Democrat Party accepted 258 million baht in illegal campaign donations from cement maker TPI Polene. Under Thai law, the courts have the power to dissolve any party ruled to have broken electoral laws and to ban its members from public office for five years. This is the same law that in 2008 resulted in the disbanding of the People's Power Party and the removal of Somchai Wongsawat from office. Leaders from both sides of the political divide have welcomed this development as a way to resolve the current deadlock. However political commentators note that even with fresh elections the impasse that led to what is now known as ''Black Saturday'' would not end. Thai society has become increasingly polarised into pro-Thaksin Shinawatra and anti-Thaksin Shinawatra camps, and neither side will be willing to see the other side in power whatever the results of elections. The violence on April 10, 2010, the worst for 20 years, saw the death of 21 people, four soldiers and sixteen civilians, including Reuters reporter Hiroyuki Muramoto. |
The failure affected Russian computers on the ISS The station's three crew and seven visiting shuttle astronauts are not at any immediate risk; the ISS has not lost all vital systems. But it could force Nasa to extend the current shuttle mission by one day. Engineers are unsure why the computers stopped working as a failure of this type has not occurred before. The US space shuttle Atlantis docked with the orbiting outpost at the weekend to begin its latest mission. Nasa's space station chief said he expected the problem to be fixed within the next few days. "We have plenty of resources, so we have plenty of time to sort this out," said Mike Suffredini, ISS programme manager for the US space agency. Without the Russian oxygen machine running, the space station has a 56-day supply of oxygen left. "If we are in that position, we have an option to depart," Mr Suffredini said. Different scenarios The station's Russian segment has a network of six computers, but on Wednesday, only two were functioning. The computers have experienced problems before, but a system-wide re-boot usually solved the problem. This time, the system has been unable to re-boot. Astronauts have finished the shuttle mission's second spacewalk The ISS is currently relying on its four gyroscopes to maintain its orientation in space, then shifting to using thrusters aboard the shuttle Atlantis when the gyroscopes are overwhelmed. This dependency on the shuttle has caused Nasa managers to consider an extension of one day to Atlantis' 13-day mission. If this goes ahead, the crew will have to conserve supplies - the shuttle mission has already been extended by two days in order to carry out repairs on a torn thermal blanket. The crew of space shuttle Atlantis was originally due to spend 11 days at the ISS. The mission was extended to 13 days in order to carry out repairs on a 10cm (4in) section of thermal blanket which peeled back as the shuttle blasted off from Cape Canaveral on Friday. The blanket protects the shuttle from the intense heat of re-entering the atmosphere. The shuttle docked with the space station on Sunday The repairs could be made during a planned third spacewalk or a fourth, extra one, Nasa managers have said. Engineers think the blanket was loosened by aerodynamic forces during lift-off, and was not hit by debris. Damage to the shuttle Columbia in 2003 during its launch led to the vehicle's disintegration as it returned to Earth, killing all seven crew. This was supposed to be the second shuttle mission of 2007, but a freak storm over the Florida launch site in late February caused hail damage to the shuttle and delayed the mid-March flight. Despite the delays, managers are confident they will be able to complete the ISS before the shuttles' 2010 retirement date. Nasa plans to fly 15 more missions to the station to deliver large components, spare parts and other supplies. In addition, one final servicing call to the Hubble Space Telescope is planned for September 2008. ||||| Sorry, your browser is unable to play this video.Please install Adobe Flash ™ and try again. Alternatively upgrade to a modern browser. Palin confirmed that her husband was ‘recovering in ICU’ and thanked the crowd for their prayers, before going on to comment on the recent violence which has broken out at Trump rallies, calling it ‘punk-ass thuggery stuff’ ||||| Preparations Continue for Next Return to Flight Mission Discovery is towed into the Orbiter Processing Facility bay 3. Image credit: NASA/KSC + Click for Larger Image The crew of STS-121 is getting ready for the second Return to Flight mission aboard space shuttle Discovery, participating in proficiency training flights and rendezvous simulations. NASA is currently targeting no earlier than March 2006 for launch, and is evaluating how the impacts of Hurricane Katrina will affect the launch schedule. + Read more about STS-121 + NASA and Katrina The first Return to Flight mission, STS-114, wrapped up its successful flight on Aug 9 with a pre-dawn landing at Edwards Air Force Base in California. Discovery returned Aug. 21 to Kennedy Space Center atop a modified Boeing 747 called the Shuttle Carrier Aircraft. The shuttle is now in the Orbiter Processing Facility, where it will be readied for mission STS-121. + Read more about STS-114 | Space Shuttle Atlantis approaches the International Space Station during STS-117 on June 10. NASA has stated that they may extend the STS-117 Space Shuttle Atlantis mission by another two days to assist in the repair of 4 of the 6 computers that control the position, oxygen and water levels of the International Space Station (ISS) which failed, and have not come back on. As a result of the computer's failure, the thrusters on the station and the shuttle have been stabilizing the station's orbit. So far, only partial restoration has been made to at least some of the computer that controls the station's position, oxygen and water, but NASA says that some of the system still needs to be cleaned up. "They've made a lot of progress. There are some cleanup steps to do still and some investigation," said space station flight director for NASA, Holly Ridings. Earlier NASA stated that, "Russian flight controllers will be working overnight to resolve a problem with the Russian segment computers that provide backup attitude control and orbital altitude adjustments. For now, the station’s control moment gyroscopes are handling attitude control, with the shuttle’s propulsion providing backup." It is not known what caused the computers to fail, but Russian engineers say that it could be a problem with power supply. This type of failure has not been observed before on the space station as re-booting the computers have fixed any problems that occurred in the past, but today, that did not work. "We have plenty of resources, so we have plenty of time to sort this out," said manager of the space station program at NASA, Mike Suffredini. NASA officials state that there is an "option to depart" if at least one of the station's stabilizing computers cannot be fixed and the three member crew that is currently there, will have to be taken back to Earth in Atlantis. Without the computer that controls the oxygen levels, there is only 56 days of oxygen left available. NASA had already extended the shuttle's mission by two days on June 11 to repair a tear of at least four inches in the shuttle's Thermal Protection System (TPS), which occurred during liftoff on June 8. |
One week after a hacker group declared war on the Church of Scientology, multiple locations receive envelopes of harmless powder. ||||| UPDATE: Powder mailed to 19 Scientology centers FBI investigating synchronized threats mailed to Southern California properties, including Tustin and Newport Beach locations. The Orange County Register ADVERTISEMENT TUSTIN - At least 19 Church of Scientology-affiliated properties across Southern California, including locations in Tustin and Newport Beach, have received letters containing a white, powdery substance, and federal investigators Thursday were trying to track down the sender. The letters forced the evacuation of dozens of people Wednesday and shut down a major street in Glendale while hazardous-materials crews investigated the powder.Initial tests done by fire and police agencies found the substances to be harmless. The letters appear to be nothing more than a hoax, according to FBI officials. Employees of the Church of Scientology have been warned to be on the lookout for additional letters, FBI spokeswoman Laura Eimillier said.Powders sent in the two envelopes to the Church of Scientology at the corner of Red Hill Avenue and Irvine Boulevard was cornstarch and wheat germ, said Lt. John Strain of the Tustin Police Department. An envelope full of powder was also sent to a Church of Scientology detoxification center in Newport Beach.At least one of the envelopes sent to the Tustin property contained threats, demanding the Church of Scientology be dismantled, Strain said. FBI officials declined to comment on the threat or whether other envelopes contained similar threats.Sending white powder through the mail is assumed to be a threat, Eimiller said.The wording of the threat echoes the sentiments of an Internet-based group called Anonymous, which is planning 170 protests Feb. 10 at Church of Scientology locations worldwide, demanding the church be dismantled.The FBI is investigating the synchronized mailings, which were delivered by the U.S. Postal Service to at least 19 locations across Southern California. Envelopes containing the powders were discovered in 17 locations in Los Angeles, including Hollywood, the San Fernando Valley and northeast Los Angeles. Envelopes were also sent to Church of Scientology properties in Glendale and Santa Monica, in addition buildings in Tustin and Newport Beach.A secretary opening the mail at the Tustin church discovered the powder in two envelopes about 3:15 p.m., Strain said. The secretary told police she had also answered several annoying phone calls throughout the day before discovering the powder, Strain said.The secretary and five other people nearby were quarantined for several hours while a hazardous-materials team from the Orange County Fire Authority investigated the powder. The Orange County Health Care Agency is testing the powder sent to the Newport location.The Church of Scientology had made no comment regarding the mailings. The letters arrived just a week after someone hacked into the Church's website and posted a cyber threat. There was no evidence that Wednesday's mailings were connected to the hacking.No arrests have been made. ||||| Please Register or Log In The story you requested is available only to registered members Registration is FREE and offers great benefits. Please be aware that your browser must accept cookies in order to successfully login, so that we can identify your account.You may also need to adjust your firewall or browser security to login. ||||| Suspicious Envelopes Sent to Scientology LOS ANGELES (AP) — Several envelopes containing white powder were sent to the Church of Scientology in what appeared to be a hoax that prompted street closings and evacuations in Southern California, the FBI said Thursday. The envelopes were mailed to at least 19 church addresses in Los Angeles and Orange counties, and began showing up Wednesday, the FBI said. Glendale police shut down a street for two hours and Tustin authorities evacuated 60 people from buildings as hazardous materials teams were called in. The FBI said initial tests indicated the powder was harmless but more tests were being conducted. The church declined to comment Thursday. The Los Angeles-based Church of Scientology was established in 1954 by science fiction writer L. Ron Hubbard and claims 10 million members around the world, including celebrity devotees such as Tom Cruise and John Travolta. | The Church of Scientology in southern California, United States have received several envelopes containing a white powder which authorities say ended up being wheat germ and corn starch. Authorities had to evacuate at least one building in Tustin and shut down a street in Glendale while they examined the substance. Envelopes were also sent to Hollywood, Los Angeles, San Fernando Valley and Santa Monica locations. "Initial field testing by LAPD indicates the powder is harmless. However, further testing will be conducted. We will also work to assess what threat, if any, was associated with the mailings and determine whether any federal statutes were violated," said Laura Eimiller, a spokeswoman for the FBI. The envelopes, which we were sent through the United States Postal Service, targeted 10 different Churches throughout southern California. Some also contained threats. The Church has not issued a statement regarding the incidents and no one has yet claimed responsibility for sending the envelopes. This comes just before a scheduled protest which an Internet group called 'Anonymous' has organized, set to take place on February 10 at Church locations across the globe. According to the ''Los Angeles Times'', authorities stated that there was no evidence connecting the mailings to the Internet group. On a Project Chanology website, 'Anonymous' made a statement about the senders of the powder under the heading 'To the Public and Anybody Investigating the Anthrax Hoax': "They may not even be Anonymous (they might even have been a plant by the "Church" of Scientology as black propaganda); we do not know, and by the nature of our organization, cannot know." |
Canada presses for international investigation into Kazemi 'murder' in Iran ALEXANDER PANETTA OTTAWA (CP) - Canada has demanded an international forensic investigation into the torture and death of Canadian photojournalist Zahra Kazemi in Iran, saying it is fed up with Iranian "lies" and "coverups." But the Iranian reaction was apparently lukewarm when Foreign Affairs Minister Pierre Pettigrew made the request in a telephone conversation Tuesday with his Iranian counterpart, Kamal Kharazi. Kharazi again dismissed an Iranian-born doctor's claims that Kazemi suffered savage torture, Canadian sources said. Pettigrew remained undeterred. His toughly-worded message was aimed at casting the spotlight on Iranian President Mohammad Khatami, who was attending a United Nations conference Tuesday in Paris. "We will continue to put pressure on Iran," Pettigrew said. "This is something on which we will not give up. We know that in Iran it is lies, it is coverups that are being presented to us." The Liberal government has been hammered for keeping its ambassador in Iran despite allegations of torture from the exiled Iranian doctor who examined the 54-year-old woman after her June 2003 arrest. Doctor Shahram Azam fled to Canada and last week held a news conference to reveal details of brutal injuries inflicted on the Iranian-Canadian citizen. Iran has discounted the doctor's account of how Kazemi died after she was arrested taking photos outside a Tehran prison. In his phone conversation with Pettigrew, Kharazi said the doctor was lying and never even worked at the hospital where he supposedly examined Kazemi, sources said. That official Iranian government line was also trumpeted in a report last week by the country's Islamic Republic News Agency. The report never named Azam or the hospital but, citing Iranian officials, said "the man" was unknown to his supposed hospital colleagues. Canada is demanding that Iran agree to a three-party investigation with representatives from Iran, Canada and the international community. "Dr. Azam's story reinforces our belief that this was a murder," said Sebastien Theberge, a Pettigrew spokesman. "Now the ball is in Iran's court." Canada timed its demand to put pressure on the reform-minded president of the Islamic republic. Khatami delivered a speech Tuesday to hundreds of foreign dignitaries in Paris at the conference of the UN Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization. The Iranian leader was also a guest of French President Jacques Chirac at the Elysee palace. But countries at that gathering should know that Iran's behaviour in the Kazemi affair violates the spirit of the UNESCO meeting, Theberge said. "(This event) was supposed to be about tolerating dissent, sharing values and looking beyond our differences," Theberge said. "We think this behaviour is, from Iran, a habit of double-speak, coverup and lies." Ottawa's representative at UNESCO, Yvon Charbonneau, will spread Canada's message at the conference, sources said. Canada has also denounced the Iranian government before the United Nations. But Conservative critic Stockwell Day blasted the Liberal government for maintaining diplomatic ties with Iran despite being aware of Azam's claims. "Why did (Prime Minister Paul Martin) respond so weakly, by sending our ambassador back to Iran instead of pulling our ambassador out?" Day said. ||||| Ottawa pulls out of conference with Iran The federal government said Wednesday that Canada will not participate in a "Doing Business with Iran" conference in light of new and damning evidence in the Zahra Kazemi case. Dan McTeague, the parliamentary secretary to Foreign Affairs Minister Pierre Pettigrew, told CBC Newsworld Wednesday that the conference, which the federal Agriculture department was to attend, will go ahead as planned but without government presence. "The government of Canada will not be participating in that conference and will withdraw participation of the Canadian government in that conference. The issue of trade among Canadians and Iranians is something that's quite different, but in terms of underscoring Canada's concern at the highest levels, we have, of course, now proceeded with withdrawing Canadian participation and support in that conference," Mr. McTeague said. The Agriculture department will also no longer be a co-sponsor of the April 13-15 event in Montreal, he said. The gathering for importers and exporters was organized with help from Agriculture Canada. The department was to help supply audio-visual equipment, refreshments and interpreters. All related contracts will be honoured, but a previously scheduled roster of federal speakers will no longer take part, a spokeswoman for the Agriculture department said. Advertisements Mr. McTeague said the federal government is also looking at a number of options to send a message to Iran that the treatment of Montreal photojournalist Ms. Kazemi, who died in a Tehran prison in 2003 after allegedly being raped and tortured, was not acceptable. Mr. Pettigrew asked Tuesday that Iran agree to an international forensic investigation into her death in light of recent allegations made by Dr. Shahram Aazam, a doctor who examined her. He says that he saw evidence of rape and injuries consistent with torture. "I have proposed a three-member, independent group of forensic experts to conduct an autopsy that would help to determine precisely what happened during her custody," Mr. Pettigrew said in a statement earlier this week. ""The ball is now in Iran's court. Only a transparent and credible process can answer the disturbing questions that remain about Zahra Kazemi's death and the subsequent investigation." During Question Period Wednesday, Conservative foreign affairs critic Stockwell Day again asked that the government withdraw the ambassador to Iran. Mr. Pettigrew said that is not a solution. "We have, in the past, withdrawn the ambassador, and that has led to nowhere. We need to articulate our case in Iran at the highest level and very strongly." Mr. McTeague said Wednesday that he is encouraged by the support of French President Jacques Chirac. Mr. Chirac has also called on Iranian authorities to have Ms. Kazemi's body undergo an independent forensic analysis, Mr. McTeague said. "Now that we've enlisted the support of the French government, which has very good contacts with the Iranian government, we believe this is the right position to take," he said. | '''April 6, 2005''' Canada pulled out of a trade conference with the Iranian Government after discussions surrounding the alleged torture and death of photo-journalist Zahra Kazemi fell through. The move comes after accusations by Canada that a Canadian journalist, Kazemi, was savagely attacked in Iran. The allegation was denied by Iran's Foreign Affairs Minister Kamal Kharazi on Tuesday. Canadian ministers have since responded by calling for an international forensic investigation into the Kazemi case. "We will continue to put pressure on Iran," Canadian Foreign Affairs Minister Pierre Pettigrew said yesterday. "This is something on which we will not give up. We know that in Iran it is lies, it is coverups that are being presented to us." The allegations stem from Iranian born Doctor Shahram Azam, who fled to Canada and revealed last week how he examined Kazemi in June 2003, following her arrest in Iran. Azam told reporters that Kazemi was brought to him by Iranian authorities with severe injuries that were said to have been inflicted whilst in custody. Kharazi dismissed Azam's claims, adding that he has never worked at the hospital in which he claims he treated Kazemi. |
Two men found unconscious at University of Canberra Release Date: Thursday, April 11 2013, 01:12 PM ACT Policing is investigating the discovery of two unconscious men at the University of Canberra this morning (Thursday April 11). Around 11am, ACT Ambulance Service was called to the student accommodation building. The men, aged 28 and 26, were transported to Calvary Hospital, in a critical condition. ACT Policing has secured the area, with AFP Forensics members to examine the scene. At this stage there are no suspicious circumstances surrounding the incident. ||||| Police and health warning following overdose Release Date: Thursday, April 11 2013, 05:05 PM Health and police authorities in the ACT have issued a warning to the community following the accidental drug overdose by two men earlier today in the grounds of the University of Canberra. About 11am ACT Ambulance Service was called to the student accommodation building, where two men, aged 26 and 28 respectively, were located unconscious under a verandah. The men were conveyed to Calvary Hospital in a critical condition. Detective Sergeant John Giles from ACT Policing’s Criminal Investigations said it appears the men had ingested what they mistakenly believed to be ecstasy capsules but what police suspect are a synthetic Ketamine product. Dr Simon Robertson from ACT Health said this incident is a stark reminder of the damage illicit drugs can cause. “It’s disturbing that people continue to take these substances, and they have no idea the kinds of poisons they contain,” said Dr Robertson.” Sergeant Giles expressed his concern that this particular drug is still circulating throughout the ACT community, particularly the nightclub districts. The drug is described as a clear capsule, containing a white powder with a flour-like consistency. “Our priority, as is that of health professionals, is for the health and welfare of anyone who may mistakenly take this toxic drug. The last thing we want to see is more young people risk their life by consuming drugs, especially when they have no idea what they contain,” Sergeant Giles said. “ACT Policing is doing its best to battle illicit drugs in our community. We need young members of the community to be our eyes and ears, to help us prevent tragedies like this happening to Canberra families.” If anyone has information about this incident, or any type of illicit drugs in Canberra they are urged to contact Crime Stoppers on 1800 333 000 or via www.act.crimestoppers.com.au. | ACT Policing and AFP Forensics on site at the University of Canberra New Ressies investigating the incident Yesterday morning in the Australian Capital Territory, two unconscious men were discovered outside the 's New Ressies. Police said both men were in critical condition after being transported to nearby . According to the University of Canberra and Campus Living Services, who operate the university's residence halls, neither man attended the university. Detective Sergeant John Giles from ACT Policing's Criminal Investigations said the police believe both men overdosed on a synthetic product, which they likely consumed believing it was . According to Giles, ecstasy is commonly used at nightclubs in Canberra. Emergency services were first called to the scene at 11:00am Canberra time; officials were on site for at least another hour and a half. ACT Policing secured the area while AFP Forensics investigated. At this stage, the do not believe there were any suspicious circumstances surrounding the incident. The incident follows a fire alarm going off at 3:20am Canberra time, and going off again around 7:20am. Fire alarm testing has been scheduled for today. == Sources == * * |
MS drug's withdrawal triggers scrutiny of stock sales B OSTON - The withdrawal of a new multiple sclerosis drug has focused scrutiny on millions of dollars in insider stock sales at Biogen Idec Inc. and executive bonuses approved in the days before the company disclosed a death and illness that led to the drug's removal from the market. The transactions... The article you requested has been archived » Click for access to article within the archive * All other coverage within BostonHerald.com from the last 7 days remains free of charge. Articles do not always include original photos, charts or graphics. Low High Current Rating: This article has not been rated yet Your Rating: Please enable cookies to rate articles Herald Interactive Tools Herald Columnists Brew ’n’ fans Fred Olivieri knew he was in for a long evening the moment his inebriated neighbor arrived at Row 4 ... [ more ] ||||| Updated from 2:25 p.m. EST The sudden suspension of multiple sclerosis drug Tysabri brought shock to doctors and patients -- but it brought relief to investors in companies whose products faced a challenge from the high-profile drug marketed byand Analysts on both sides of the Atlantic recalculated their estimates for the biggest players in the MS market after Biogen and Elan pulled Tysabri, which had just entered the U.S. market in November. After falling 43% Monday, Biogen shares closed up $2.61, or 6.8%, to $41.26 Tuesday. Elan, which tanked 70% Monday, lost 3 cents, or 0.4%, to $7.97 Tuesday. was removed after the report The drugof one confirmed death and one suspected case of a rare, often fatal disorder among patients in clinical trials who took both Tysabri and Biogen Idec's popular Avonex, the world's bestselling MS drug, which produced $1.4 billion in sales last year. Both patients received combination therapy for more than two years. Although Elan predicted a quick return to the market for Tysabri -- perhaps in the third quarter -- analysts said the circumstances for the drug's suspension provided opportunities for many existing drugs, including Biogen Idec's Avonex. Most major players in the MS drug market have some form of licensing, royalty and/or marketing agreements with partners. For example,, the Swiss developer of Rebif, has an alliance with. The German companysells its drug Betaseron through its U.S. subsidiary Berlex and it also has a marketing agreement with Finally, Israel's, which sells Copaxone in the U.S., has an arrangement with France's. All of the foreign companies trade on U.S. markets via American Depositary Receipts, or ADRs. 1 of 4 Many analysts believe Teva will be the most immediate beneficiary of Tysabri's misfortune. Copaxone, which acts differently than the older MS drugs, has forged into second place in the U.S. market with a 32.9% market share, less than one percentage point behind Avonex, according to IMS Health. These data represent an eight-week average through the week ended Feb. 18. ||||| Elan's shares collapsed in value by almost 70% as the company withdrew Tysabri, its multiple sclerosis drug, after the death of a patient. All clinical trials on the drug were suspended immediately. Tysabri was approved only last November and carried the hope that it would restore Elan to its turn-of-the-century glory, when it was briefly Ireland's most valuable company. The group then collapsed to the brink of receivership in 2002 after an accounting scandal. Many analysts had forecast that Tysabri would become the standard drug for multiple sclerosis, a poorly treated disease, within two or three years. Approval had been fast-tracked by the US food and drug administration and peak annual sales of up to $3bn (£1.6bn) had been forecast. Elan said yesterday that two patients had been diagnosed with an extremely rare disease of the nervous system called progressive multifocal leukoencephalopathy, or PML, and that one had died. Both had been taking Tysabri for two years in combination with Avonex, a drug made by Elan's development partner, the US company Biogen. There is no proof that Tysabri, which acts by suppressing the immune system, was the cause of the PML cases. However, it will be the prime suspect as Avonex has been on the market since 1996. Elan had hoped that Tysabri would have applications beyond multiple sclerosis. Some of the 3,000 patients who have been given Tysabri suffer from Crohn's disease and rheumatoid arthritis. Kelly Martin, Elan's chief executive, expressed confidence that the drug would return quickly if no more cases of PML were found. "I think it is very plausible that, in the absence of anything new that we may find, this product would easily be back on the market by [autumn]," he said. However, public awareness of drug safety has been heightened by high-profile failures such as Vioxx, Merck's painkiller. George Purges, an analyst at Bernstein & Co, said of Tysabri: "If the drug comes back, it will have a huge safety cloud over it." The timing for Elan could not have been worse. Only this month it finally settled with the US securities and exchange commission over charges that it failed to disclose material information about its results in regulatory filings. The company paid a fine of $15m and Mr Martin predicted then that Elan could break even in 2006 if Tysabri sold well. The financial position now looks uncertain given that net debt is still at about $800m. Hopes for Tysabri fuelled a threefold increase in Elan's share price during 2004 to more than €20. That was still a long way from the peak of €73, and yesterday's fall of €14.1 to €6.5 on the Irish market leaves the group valued at just €2.4bn (£1.7bn). City followers were quick to point out that Elan's previous optimism over Tysabri had not prevented some significant sales of shares by directors last December. The biggest was by John Groom, a non-executive director and former chief operating officer, who raised $9.45m, or almost £5m, by selling 350,000 of the firm's American depository shares. | Élan, the largest Irish pharmaceutical company, and its US partner Biogen have withdrawn the multiple sclerosis drug ''Tysabri'' from clinical trials after the death of a patient. The drug was seen by many as a possible blockbuster drug with the potential to alleviate much of the suffering of the millions of multiple sclerosis suffers worldwide. However it is now quite unlikely that it will ever make it to market. The news has seen the shares of both companies fall steeply, with Élan having lost almost 70% of its value after Monday's announcement. Two years ago Élan was the largest Irish PLC, with a value in excess of $20bn, but an accountancy scandal saw its shares fall from over €73 to €1.50 within a few weeks. Since then the stock had risen back to trade between €16 and €18 a share on the back of good restructuring news. However the withdrawal of ''Tysabri'' leaves Elan with almost no potential future revenue streams. Biogen shares which had hit a 52 week high of $70 just two weeks before the announcement have since fallen to just $41.26. Combined equity losses on Monday for the two firms was over $17.8 billion. The paitent who died had been taken in combination with another drug - ''Avonex'' - for the last two years. If it emerges that the death was as a result of taking ''Avonex'', then it is possible ''Tysabri'' could be re-introduced to the market. However for the moment rivals will be seeking to steal a lead in the potentially lucrative MS drug market. |
A police spokesman described the scene as a "graphic homicide". The bodies were found by firefighters after neighbours in the building reported a suspected gas leak. The building was initially evacuated and roads in the area closed for fear of an explosion but police later said they believed there was no gas leak. "We're looking at perhaps a very dramatic homicide scene with as many as six dead," said Sgt Roger Morrow of the Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP). He said he did not know if it was a murder-suicide. Identity unknown Residents of the large block of flats in Surrey, outside Vancouver, may have mistaken the smell of decomposing bodies for a gas leak, said RCMP homicide investigator Cpl Dale Carr. "We have not yet been able to determine who these individuals are," said Cpl Carr. "We have not been able at this time to determine the gender or the race of these individuals," he added. The bodies were discovered Friday afternoon by firefighters who were called to investigate a suspected gas leak. ||||| Six males slain in Surrey mass killing SURREY, B.C. The RCMP says the six people found dead in a Surrey, B.C. apartment Friday are all males and the incident does not appear to have been a random act of violence. Corporal Dale Carr of the integrated homicide investigation team told a news conference outside the building Saturday that the victims appear to have been targeted. He described the scene as grisly and said the team is still trying to identify the victims. He termed it "a very complex crime scene" and said the bodies were found in various rooms of the apartment. He said he was not prepared to get into details as to how the victims may have died. RCMP Cpl. Dale Carr walks near the scene in Surrey, B.C. Saturday after briefing the media. The bodies of six men we discovered Friday night in a suite in the apartment building picture in the background. (THE CANADIAN PRESS/Richard Lam) Videos Latest from murder scene CTV Newsnet: Todd Battis reports from Surrey, B.C. RCMP investigate six deaths CTV Newsnet: Homicide team investigates mass murder in Surrey, B.C. The 15th floor of the apartment building remains evacuated and Cpl. Carr thanked the people displaced from that floor for their co-operation. Cpl. Carr said it is too early in the investigation to be certain but at this stage it does not appear that the apartment was being used as a drug grow-op, as had been suggested by neighbours. Sergeant Roger Morrow said in a news conference Friday near the murder scene that the first emergency call came in as a report of a gas leak with multiple victims, triggering a massive police and fire response. "Initially, it was [a report of] a gas leak. A very large area was cordoned off for fear of an explosion," he said. Police cordoned off several blocks, called out the hazardous materials team and shut down the SkyTrain light-rail station nearby. But emergency responders to the tall concrete building near 98th Avenue and King George Highway quickly realized they we're dealing with a mass murder scene. Sgt. Morrow said he did not know whether the call about a gas leak was genuine and related to the murders. He later said police believe there was no gas leak. Across the parking lot, police cars, ambulances and fire trucks could be seen lined up near the entrance to the apartment block, where lights were on in most residences. Traffic was snarled for dozens of blocks around the area as roads were blocked off with barricades. The temporary shutdown of the King George SkyTrain station forced people to walk to shuttle buses through a pounding rain storm. ||||| At least six adult males were found slain in a Surrey, B.C., highrise by firefighters Friday after initial reports of a gas leak proved to be a multiple homicide.The RCMP was called to the 15th floor of a highrise apartment building at 9830 Whalley Ring Road at 4:30 pm Friday.Cpl. Dale Carr of the Integrated Homicide Investigation Team said at least six adults were found dead in the apartment, but he would not specify their race or gender.“In 25 years of policing in the Lower Mainland, I don’t recall another single incident where we’ve had this many casualties,” said Cpl. Carr.He said it’s too early to tell how the individuals died.“It’s hard to say whether its gang-related, some sort of attack on a group of individuals, or whether it’s a murder-suicide. Certainly it’s a concern to us and we understand it’s a concern in the community.”Surrey RCMP Sgt. Roger Morrow described the scene as grisly.“What it looks like is a very dramatic homicide scene,” Sgt. Morrow said. “What I’ve been told is that they’ve had blood about their faces.”Cpl. Carr said that generally, Surrey is a safe community, but added “at this time it’s difficult for us to say who’s safe and not safe.”Cpl. Carr said it’s going to take the better part of the night and through the weekend for several homicide teams to determine what happened. Investigators examined the room well into Friday evening. “There are a hundred more apartments in the building and we have a lot of canvassing to do and a lot of work to find out who these people are,” said Cpl. Carr. He wouldn’t speak to the nature of the injuries, but said police have an idea how a couple of individuals died.“Anyone who had to get out of the King George station were out of luck,” he said.The nearby Days Inn on King George Highway was locked down by police shortly after five for about three hours, said Marie Huesmann, a front desk clerk at the hotel.“No one was allowed to come in or leave the building,” she said. “No vehicles were allowed to leave. The police told us there was a gas leak and not to turn on the heating or air conditioning and no smoking. The police officers were very strict about that.”Traffic resumed and hotel customers started entering the building around 8 p.m, said Ms. Huesmann.Cpl. Carr said one of the things police are trying to determine was why the incident was initially reported as a gas leak. | Map highlighting Surrey B.C. At least six people are confirmed murdered inside a high rise apartment located in Surrey just outside of Vancouver, British Columbia in Canada, in what is being called a "graphic mass-murder". The bodies were discovered on October 19 at approximately 4:30 p.m. (PT). Residents living near the house called authorities when they reported the smell of what they believed to be natural gas, coming from inside the house and that there were possibly several people inside. The fire department and police arrived in full force and told nearby residents to evacuate, shutting down the roads and stopping train service surrounding the property. When police later entered the home, they discovered the six individuals. The murder is still under investigation, along with the reports of a gas-like smell. "We're looking at perhaps a very dramatic homicide scene with as many as six dead. Initially, it was a report of a gas leak. A very large area was cordoned off for fear of an explosion. As to how this call comes in as a gas leak, that's going to come out in the investigation", said Royal Canadian Mounted Police spokesman, Sgt. Roger Morrow. The identity, race and sex of the individuals are not known. Police also have not yet determined if the mass murder was a result of a murder-suicide. Police have not stated the form of murder and there are no reports of any suspects being in custody. "It's hard to say whether its gang-related, some sort of attack on a group of individuals, or whether it's a murder-suicide. Certainly it's a concern to us and we understand it's a concern in the community", said Integrated Homicide Investigation Team member, Cpl. Dale Carr. |
Row over impact of public sector pension strikes More than 12,000 schools in England and Wales were affected by the strikes Thousands of UK schools closed on a day of strikes by public sector workers over pension changes. But the government said action by civil servants had had "minimal" impact with fewer than 100,000 on strike at midday. The Public and Commercial Services union said it was the best supported strike it had ever held, with 200,000 civil servants striking. Jobcentres, border controls and passport offices were also affected by the industrial action. Thousands of schools were closed across England and Wales on Thursday as teachers from three unions walked out. The government says the proposed pension changes are "fair to taxpayers" and other unions are continuing with negotiations. It condemned the strike, as did the opposition, although Labour leader Ed Miliband accused ministers of mishandling negotiations with the unions. A Downing Street spokeswoman said: "Our border controls are in place and Jobcentres and pension offices are open for business. "Indicative figures from every government department show that as of 12 noon today, over 75% of civil servants were not on strike. Just fewer than 100,000 civil servants were on strike - around one-fifth of the workforce. "This shows that less than half of PCS members decided to take strike action today." Continue reading the main story Analysis Long running and often bitter disputes often end with a clear winner. But the apparent success of a one day strike is often determined as much by spin, as by the numbers who take to the streets. The unions see today as a show of strength - the government want to suggest it was really a sign of weakness. Hence the claim that most civil servants went to work, essential services weren't disrupted, and that the borders remained secure. The unions, on the other hand have been arguing that while perhaps only a handful of courts closed, some cases had to be postponed - and while a small number of job centres shut, far more weren't able to provide a full service to their customers. There seems little doubt, though, that the disruption to parents and school children alike was extensive - with a majority of schools in England closed, or partially closed. Today was only the opening salvo in a longer running battle - one which will take place largely behind closed doors, in detailed negotiations, rather than on the streets. Many of the unions who will sit round the table with government ministers next week weren't on strike today. If they feel the government isn't flexible enough in these talks, much more widespread disruption is possible in the autumn. Mark Serwotka, leader of the Public and Commercial Services union, said up to four million workers could strike in the autumn if the bitter row is not resolved. He also said 85% of his members had been on strike, MPs had refused to cross picket lines and staff in Downing Street had taken action. "The government has been rumbled, and ministers are either badly briefed - or they are lying," he said. The action by the National Union of Teachers (NUT), the Association of Teachers and Lecturers (ATL) and the University and College Union (UCU) affected England and Wales. The unions say the proposals would mean more work and contributions for a reduced pension. NUT General Secretary, Christine Blower, said on BBC's Question time: "Much of this has already been imposed on teachers without negotiation, and when we say there are talks going on it's perfectly true that the government is talking but it isn't actually listening. "This is actually an affordable scheme, so the issue is not about affordability, it's about whether you want to afford it or not." School closures At least 12,000 schools in England and Wales are known to have been closed or partly closed. Unions say the total is even higher. Department for Education data suggests that 11,114 of the 21,500 state schools in England were hit by the walkouts - the department based its calculations on data from 80% of schools. Please turn on JavaScript. Media requires JavaScript to play. It said in total, 5,679 schools were shut, and another 4,999 were partially closed. Some 201 academies and city technology colleges were also shut, while 235 remained partially open. In Wales, according to local authority figures, more than 1,000 out of 1,800 schools were either closed or partially closed. The NUT estimated 85% of schools in England and Wales were affected. Kevin Courtney, the union's deputy general secretary, said the union realised the action was "very disruptive for parents," and said that "we do regret that". He added: "We had hoped to reach a settlement before the industrial action, but the government isn't serious about talks." The PCS also includes police support and border staff and some UK Border Agency staff walked out from 1800 BST on Wednesday. However, airports and ports reported few difficulties. 'Reckless' government Mark Serwotka, general secretary of the PCS, said his members were left with no choice but to take action as the government was not prepared to "compromise on any of the central issues of the strike". "While they are talking, they are not negotiating," he told BBC Radio 4's Today programme. The walkouts by the PCS, which has around 260,000 members, were staged across the UK. Cabinet Office Minister Francis Maude said: "What today has shown is that the vast majority of hard-working public sector employees do not support today's premature strike... "Reform of public sector pensions is inevitable, but we will ensure that public sector pensions will still be among the very best, with a guaranteed pension which very few private sector staff now enjoy. But they will be paid later because people live longer." Writing on Twitter, Mr Miliband said: "These strikes are wrong at a time when negotiations are going on. People have been let down by both sides - the Govt has acted recklessly". Some striking workers spoke of their "anger" at Mr Miliband's refusal to back their walkout. PCS union members on the picket line outside the House of Commons said the party should stand up for their rights. ||||| Thursday's 24-hour walkout by teachers, lecturers and civil servants over plans to overhaul public sector pensions should serve as a "wake-up call" for the government, said the leader of the Public and Commercial Services union. Mark Serwotka warned that the unions were determined to keep protesting until ministers change those plans as he claimed the strike was the "best we have seen for 10 years". He hailed the turnout as proof of the anger felt towards the government by public sector workers, but Downing Street insisted disruption to the public had been "minimal". The action by four unions came on the day that doctors overwhelmingly backed a ballot on industrial action over NHS pensions reform plans. The leader of the Royal College of Nursing, representing more than 400,000 members, warned that it may end up doing the same. The threat of further and more widespread industrial action loomed after thousands took part in a huge rally in central London, with others staged in towns and cities around the country. The London rally heard union officials and teachers criticise the government, while Labour leader Ed Miliband was branded "a disgrace" for failing to support the action. But the Cabinet Office countered the claim with figures suggesting that just under 100,000 civil servants – about one in five of the workforce and less than half of the 250,000 balloted-membership – had taken part in the action. It said: "Less than half of PCS union members have taken strike action, and the vast majority of civil servants are at work. Approximately 80% of the civil service workforce was not on strike, and fewer PCS members have gone on strike today than in either 2004 and 2007." Serwotka said the protest should jolt Francis Maude, the minister for the Cabinet Office spearheading the pension reform talks on behalf of government. "Maybe this is the wake-up call he needed," said Serwotka. "What they now need to do is get around the negotiating table and try to negotiate an agreement. They haven't done that yet, but hopefully having seen how strongly feel today they will have a change of heart. "It's a very, very clear signal to the government that they have been rumbled. This is not about pensions, this is about making public sector workers pay for the economic problems, and we are determined to keep going until they change direction." The PCS leader said 85% of his members had been on strike today, that MPs had refused to cross picket lines and staff in Downing Street had taken action. Maude claimed the turnout was lower than the 2004 and 2007 strikes against Labour's pension reforms. ""I am not at all surprised by the very low turnout for today's action – less than half of PCS's own members chose to take part. Very few civil servants wanted this strike at all – less than 10% of them voted for it – and they are right. "It is simply wrong for their leader to be pushing for walkouts when serious talks, set up at the request of the TUC itself, are still ongoing." More than 11,100 schools in Britain closed or cancelled lessons, forcing parents to stay at home or make other arrangements for their children. Kevin Courtney, deputy general secretary of the National Union of Teachers, said: "We realise that's very disruptive for parents, and we do regret that. We had hoped to reach a settlement before the industrial action, but the government isn't serious about talks." Michael Gove, the education secretary, said the strikes were "disappointing and unnecessary". Downing Street insisted that Britain's borders and essential services had remained "open for business", with air travel unaffected. David Cameron suffered no disruption to his working day at No 10, where fewer than five civil servants took part in the strike action, according to a Downing Street spokeswoman. "The prime minister thinks these strikes are premature," she said. "There has been minimal impact on services." She added: "The civil service put rigorous contingency plans in place and essential public services are up and running." In Wales, around 40,000 public sector workers joined the strike. An estimated 1,000 Welsh schools closed, and dozens of government buildings and services were also shut. The Met police put in place to police the march estimated to have drawn a crowd at least 20,000-strong. There were picket lines outside government buildings in Whitehall as well as well as schools, tax offices, courts and jobcentres across the country. Around 350 colleges and 75 universities also closed or operated a scaled-back timetable. Miliband denounced the strikes in a speech to the Local Government Association. "These strikes are wrong at a time when negotiations are still going on but parents and the public have been let down by both sides because the government has acted in a reckless and provocative manner," said the Labour leader. "After today's disruption, I urge both sides to put aside the rhetoric, get round the negotiating table and stop it happening again." Mary Bousted, general secretary of the Association of School and College Leaders, told the London rally that his comments were a "disgrace". "We are here because of our force of reason, not the Government's reason of force." Bousted, whose union has never before gone on strike, said Miliband should be ashamed of himself. "If our strike is a mistake, what has he done to oppose this devastating attack on our pensions?" ||||| Ed Miliband's failure to support strikes 'a disgrace' Mary Bousted accused Ed Miliband of being "ill-informed" about planned pension changes The head of one of the unions striking over pensions has said Ed Miliband "should be ashamed of himself" for urging workers to call off the action. Mary Bousted, leader of the Association of Teachers and Lecturers, told a rally in London his stance was "a disgrace". The Labour leader said the strikes were "wrong" because negotiations with the government were still ongoing. He said his MPs should turn up for work as normal on Thursday despite the picket lines outside Parliament. Hundreds of thousands of public sector workers have staged a 24-hour walkout in protest at planned changes to their pensions. They include members of three teaching unions and the Public and Commercial Services (PCS) union, which represents civil servants but has no formal links to the Labour Party. The action has been condemned by ministers who insist that meaningful negotiations are still continuing. The unions involved in these talks - Unite, the GMB and Unison - were also those that last year backed Mr Miliband's bid for the Labour Party leadership. Angry response Mr Miliband told the Local Government Association (LGA) annual conference in Birmingham that he understood "the anger of workers who feel they are being singled out by a reckless and provocative government". But he said: "I also believe this action is wrong. "Negotiations are ongoing, so it is a mistake to go on strike because of the effect on the people who rely upon those services. Continue reading the main story “ Start Quote What has he done to oppose this devastating attack on our pensions?” End Quote Mary Bousted Association of Teachers and Lecturers "And it is a mistake because it will not help to win the argument." The Labour leader's stance sparked an angry response from Ms Bousted when she addressed an audience of striking workers in Westminster Central Hall. "I am pleased we are not affiliated to Labour," she said, to loud applause. "The response of Ed Miliband has been a disgrace - he should be ashamed of himself. "If our strike is a mistake, what has he done to oppose this devastating attack on our pensions? If the opposition will not defend our pensions, we will." She later told the BBC that the Labour leader had "not taken any interest" in the fact that the government had never carried out a promise valuation of the teachers' pension scheme. "We haven't been able to negotiate, we haven't had the basic information we need from the government. "[So] to come at this stage, two days before the strike, and say, 'You should negotiate, there's another way round'... is, frankly, unhelpful and ill-informed." 'A mistake' Christine Blower, the leader of the National Union of Teachers, told the BBC's Question Time she would have liked more from the Labour leader. "It would have been nice if Ed Miliband had felt he could have supported what we're doing," she said. The NUT is not affiliated to the Labour Party and Ms Blower refused to be drawn on whether she would have chosen Mr Miliband to lead it. Please turn on JavaScript. Media requires JavaScript to play. Shadow business secretary John Denham was booed by the Question Time audience when he too refused to support the walkouts. "I actually think the strike was a mistake because children lost a day in school today that they shouldn't have lost and many parents had to take a day off," he said. "I don't think it was justified when there are talks taking place." Labour MP John McDonnell said earlier that public sector workers "expected more" from the Labour leader and urged Mr Miliband to listen to their concerns over pensions. "They want to have an opportunity to explain to him why they feel so strongly about what is happening to their pensions," he said. Mr Miliband also condemned the government's handling of the pensions issue, accusing ministers of declaring their final position while talks were still taking place. "This disruption could have been avoided if ministers had been willing to engage with the concerns of those affected by changes to public sector pensions," he told the LGA. "The government's handling of the issue has been high-handed and arrogant." | Strikers march down Kingsway, London.Photo: Harry Metcalfe. Hundreds of thousands of British public sector workers went on strike across the country yesterday to protest planned changes to . As swept the country, half of all schools were hit when teachers walked out, thousands of emergency service responders did not arrive at work, and there were warnings of immigration delays at . Police arrested 26 people as protesters picketed on a march in London, and riot police demonstrators as clashes broke out. Reports vary, but it is thought that up to half of British have been affected as employees did not turn up to work. , the leader of the (PCS), said the strikes would serve as a "wake-up call" to the coalition government. "It's a very, very clear signal to the government that they have been rumbled," Serwotka said. "This is not about pensions, this is about making public sector workers pay for the economic problems, and we are determined to keep going until they change direction." Government officials condemned the strike and said the planned changes to pensions, which would see teachers work until age 68 and get less from their pensions, were "fair to taxpayers" as Britain attempts to deal with a large . A spokesperson for insisted the strike was having a "minimal" impact and said the turnout suggested many public sector workers supported the pension changes. , the general secretary of one of the striking unions, the (NUT), said the strike demonstrated "the anger and distress that this government is causing teachers." She said the "unjustified attacks" on the pensions of teachers "are nothing short of disgraceful." Speaking on BBC television programme '''', she added: "Much of this has already been imposed on teachers without negotiation, and when we say there are talks going on it's perfectly true that the government is talking but it isn't actually listening." But despite government claims that the strike was having little impact, 5,679 schools were closed and another 4,999 were affected as teachers did not turn up for work. , the attacked the walkouts as "disappointing and unnecessary". Thousands of staff handling emergency also striked and pickets were held outside courts as members of the PCS walked out in protest. , the , also maintained that the strikes were wrong and said the low number of people walking out showed many supported the government's plans. "What today has shown is that the vast majority of hard-working public sector employees do not support today's premature strike and have come into work today," he said. Senior Labour party figures including , and said the strikes were unjustified until negotiations with the government had concluded. Mary Bousted of the NUT criticised Labour's lack of support for the striking workers: "The response of Ed Miliband has been a disgrace - he should be ashamed of himself. If our strike is a mistake, what has he done to oppose this devastating attack on our pensions? If the opposition will not defend our pensions, we will." A largely peaceful march by 30,000 protesters took place through London, and the atmosphere was reported to be largely peaceful, but officials said 26 people had been arrested. At a meeting in , many left wing figures attacked the government plans. , a former mayor of London who is running for the job again next year, said the coalition government had "mishandled" the issue of pensions. "The government must end its attacks and negotiate on the core issues under contention," he added. == Sources == * * * * * |
VILNIUS (Reuters) - European Union budget commissioner Dalia Grybauskaite was elected as the first woman president of Lithuanian, the Baltic nation battling a deep recession, official results showed on Sunday. Lithuania's presidential candidate Dalia Grybauskaite (C) laughs as she celebrates her victory at the presidential elections first round in Vilnius, May 17, 2009. REUTERS/Ints Kalnins The 53-year-old, a tough-talking former finance minister, ran as an independent candidate, enhancing her popularity in contrast to the main political parties, whose standing were hit by the economic downturn and allegations of corruption. With 96 percent of votes counted, she secured a little over 68 percent support. Turnout was 51 percent, just above the 50 percent needed to give her an outright first round win. The country, an EU and NATO member since 2004, experienced its worst post-Soviet rioting in January. In Lithuania, the president is the head of state and formally appoints the prime minister and the cabinet. While presidents have some influence over economic policies, including the right to veto budget law, their executive powers are limited to implementing foreign and defense policies together with the government. “I congratulate the Lithuanian people for their choice,” she told a cheering crowd at her election headquarters, adding: “The taste of victory is the burden of responsibility.” The EU will now have to find a new budget commissioner. Grybauskaite had been clear favorite throughout the campaign. As president, she has the power to fire ministers, though she has said she broadly backs the budget austerity measures of the center-right prime minister. However, she has said some tax rises have been a mistake. She also wants to stimulate exports, absorb EU aid faster and provide tax breaks for small and medium-sized businesses. “I think that together we will be able to emerge from these times of hardships much better, much more direct and much richer,” she said. After a presidential election, the government has to resign and be re-appointed and she said this would her first job after her inauguration on July 12. She is expected to again approve Prime Minister Andrius Kubilius, head of a four-party center-right coalition, but has said she would use her powers for a reshuffle. “We shall see which ministers remain in office...,” she told reporters. “We need new ideas, we need someone to inspire the people to be more optimistic. The mood is quite gloomy at the moment,” said Elena Juozapaitiene, 23, a student of medicine, during election day. ||||| Grybauskaite won a clear victory over her nearest rival Dalia Grybauskaite has been elected Lithuania's first female president, according to official results. "I am grateful for the responsibility invested in me," said Ms Grybauskaite, the European Union budget commissioner. With all ballots counted, she won 68.17% of the votes. Turnout at 51.7% was just above the threshold needed to give her an outright first round win. Her nearest challenger, Social Democrat lawmaker Algirdas Butkevicius came a distant second with 12% of the vote. Seven candidates contested the poll which was held amid widespread concern about the economic downturn in the Baltic state. Under the Lithuanian constitution presidents have limited influence over economic policies. Though as president Ms Grybauskaite, whose inauguration is set for 12 July, she will have the right to veto the budget. The president's main power lies in foreign policy and here she has promised to be less confrontational, especially towards Russia. The president also formally appoints the prime minister and the cabinet. 'Level-headed' President-elect Grybauskaite, the EU's tough-talking budget commissioner who has a black belt in karate, ran as an independent. In the difficult times I can give my experience, my knowledge to my country Dalia Grybauskaite Lithuanian readers' reaction Lithuania's crashing economy has dominated what little policy debate this presidential election has generated, the BBC's Adam Easton says. Ms Grybauskaite has been critical of the way the economy has been handled by governments in the past. "Our local political establishment is so boring for people, and they want to see some new faces," she told reporters after voting in the capital Vilnius. "In the difficult times I can give my experience, my knowledge to my country," Ms Grybauskaite added. She is widely seen as being a level-headed caretaker and has also avoided being tainted by domestic scandals, our correspondent says. After enjoying years of impressive growth since it joined the European Union in 2004, Lithuania is experiencing double digit economic contraction and rising unemployment. Frustration turned into violence in January when demonstrators smashed windows in the parliament building in Vilnius. Bookmark with: Delicious Digg reddit Facebook StumbleUpon What are these? E-mail this to a friend Printable version | Dalia GrybauskaiteDalia Grybauskaite, the budget commissioner for the European Union, has claimed victory in the Lithuanian presidential elections. She received 68 percent of the vote after 96 percent of the ballots were tallied. Second place was taken by the Social Democrats' Algirdas Butkevicius, who took about 12% of the vote. "I am grateful for the responsibility invested in me," Grybauskaite said following the first round of voting on Sunday. Turnout in the elections was reported at slightly more than fifty percent. A candidate must win at least half the vote in order to avoid a run-off election if the turnout is over 50%. With voter turnout at less than 50%, a candidate needs at least 33% support from all persons eligible to cast a ballot. If the results are confirmed, Ms Grybauskaite would become the first ever female president of Lithuania. "I congratulate the Lithuanian people for their choice," she said at her election headquarters. "The taste of victory is the burden of responsibility." |
Germany captain Toni Kroos was voted the best player of the FIFA U-17 World Cup Korea 2007, while Nigeria's Macauley Chrisantus took the adidas Golden Shoe as the tournament's top scorer. The Bayern Munich starlet received 26 per cent of the votes, which was carried out by the accredited journalists who attended the final between Spain and Nigeria at the Seoul FIFA World Cup Stadium. In addition to finishing as the seven-goal leading marksman in front of Ghana's Ransford Osei and Kroos, Chrisantus also pocketed the adidas Silver Ball, with Spain's Bojan judged the third most outstanding player on Korean soil. adidas Golden Ball and adidas Bronze Shoe: Toni Kroos (Germany) - 5 goals, 4 assists, 26 per cent of the votes A key figure in the German midfield, captain Toni Kroos proved why he is regarded as the next great Bayern Munich and Germany No10 with his consistent performances throughout the tournament. His moves and passes across the middle of the park showed the essence of German efficiency, while the playmaker's five goals helped Germany become the most prolific team in the tournament with 20 goals. Kroos opened his account with a brace in Germany's second group match against Ghana, then he added one each against England and Nigeria. But his best goal would be the untouchable free-kick against Ghana in the match for third place. adidas Silver Ball and adidas Golden Shoe: Macauley Chrisantus (Nigeria) - 7 goals, 2 assists, 25 per cent Macauley Chirsantus was a nightmare for the defenders who had to mark him. His five goals in the first phase, which included braces against Japan and Haiti, had already made him a strong candidate for this award. His efforts were not spectacular but every one of them was crucial, especially in the second round. Indeed, his clinical finish from close range helped the Golden Eaglets fly over Argentina in the quarter-final, before he scored his seventh goal of the tournament against Germany in the semi-final, his trusted right boot again doing the trick. adidas Bronze Ball: Bojan (Spain) - 5 goals, 1 assist, 19 per cent Although he missed a chance to play in the final, Bojan was deemed the best player in the Spanish camp, scoring five goals, including the last-gasp winner against Ghana in the semi-finals. The Barcelona starlet found the net twice in the opening game against Honduras, but he could not score against Syria in the next match before being rested on the bench for the final group game with Argentina. However, the No9 came back to the starting line-up against Korea DPR and found his rhythm, scoring twice with powerful drives into the net. adidas Golden Shoe: Macauley Chrisantus - 7 goals, 2 assists adidas Silver Shoe: Ransford Osei (Ghana) - 6 goals, 3 assists Despite his efforts to catch up with eventual leading scorer Macauley Christantus, Ransford Osei had to settle with the adidas Silver Shoe. The diminutive forward, who stands at 1.68 metres, chased the tall Nigerian until the final whistle of Ghana's match for third place against Germany, where he scored his sixth goal of the tournament with a glancing header. In fact, Osei got off to a superior start to his chief rival in the beginning when he found the net twice against Trinidad and Tobago in his side's first group game. Osei went on to score two more goals against Germany and Colombia, then picked up another in the quarter-final defeat of Peru. adidas Bronze Shoe: Toni Kroos - 5 goals, 4 assists FIFA Fair Play Award: Costa Rica ||||| The Bayern players completed their final training session on Saturday ahead of the Bundesliga's... FC Bayern appeals to reason and sense of responsibility of fans: Please stay away from the stadium... FC Bayern appeals to reason and sense of responsibility of fans Please stay away from the stadium Matches behind closed doors, personnel and more - Hansi Flick’s key statements ahead of the match...... Live ticker, web radio & more How to follow the Union game live on fcbayern.com and on the App You can keep in touch with all the action in Berlin on Sunday. | Bayern Munich starlet and Germany U17 captain Toni Kroos won the Golden Ball for being the best player and the Adidas Bronze Shoe for finishing 3rd at the 2007 FIFA U17 World Cup. He contributed with 5 goals and 4 assists in 6 matches. With receiving 26% of the votes, Toni Kroos edged out Nigeria's Silver boot winner, Macauley Chrisantus, who received 25% of the vote for the Golden Ball. Spain's Bojan came in 3rd with 19%. Kroos will now return to Bayern Munich II. He is still eligible to play 2 more year in the U19 team. |
Mahalo for supporting Honolulu Star-Advertiser. Enjoy this free story! A huge bravo to Lee Cataluna for having the courage to print the other side of the story regarding Monsanto (“Those wary of Monsanto’s aim should tour their property,” Star-Advertiser, Dec. 20). Read more Article about Monsanto was ‘right thing to do’ A huge bravo to Lee Cataluna for having the courage to print the other side of the story regarding Monsanto (“Those wary of Monsanto’s aim should tour their property,” Star-Advertiser, Dec. 20). Anti-GMO groups use intimidation and bullying to stifle the truth and get their way. Cataluna could have remained quiet. She spoke the truth because it was the right thing to do. From the time that Monsanto acquired its Kunia property, it worked closely with the Japanese Cultural Center of Hawaii, spending more than $1 million and many man-hours to facilitate the adoption of 120 acres of the Honouliuli World War II internment site by the National Parks Service. President Barack Obama officially proclaimed Honouliuli as a National Monument. Monsanto did not have to do this and did it with no publicity. Monsanto did it because it was the right thing to do. Les Goto Kaneohe Anti-GMO book might alter Cataluna’s views Does Lee Cataluna think you can look at an ear of corn and know anything about the effects of genetic engineering? Or listen to the paid programming of Monsanto employees and understand the science? It’s probably too much to ask Cataluna to read something like “Altered Genes, Twisted Truth: How the Venture to Genetically Engineer Our Food Has Subverted Science, Corrupted Government, and Systematically Deceived the Public,” by Steven M. Druker. If she were to, she might be a little less glib about “the hysterical distrust of science” and whether distrust of the genetic engineering project is “fearmongering,” “wildly untruthful” and “unproductive.” Patrick L. Brown Kailua Many rail riders will still have to catch buses Many Ewa commuters will want to go to the University of Hawaii-Manoa or Waikiki, not downtown or Ala Moana, so with the current plans for rail transit, they eventually will have to transfer to a bus. If we convert the rail guideways to bus guideways and end them at Middle Street or Iwilei, individual buses could continue on surface roads to various express destinations. Commuters could get over freeway bottlenecks and would have to catch only one express bus to do it. Modern express buses are far more comfortable than many realize. Transit time for the existing express bus from Kapolei to Ala Moana is only about 10 minutes more than what is projected for the train, and the articulated buses currently on Honolulu roads have a capacity equal to the planned train cars. This option could be both better and cheaper than rail. Both the Honolulu Authority for Rapid Transportation and the Federal Transit Authority should consider it. Richard Tillotson Punchbowl Seems like president took Gabbard’s advice I have always had great respect for our U.S. Rep. Tulsi Gabbard. Recently she said the United States should leave Syrian President Bashar Assad alone and let the local people handle the situation. America must stay out of changing other countries’ policies, whether democratic or not. Look at what happened in Iraq, although its leader was insane. Now it appear that the White House is in agreement. Good for Gabbard. I hope she keeps it up. Toby Allen Hawaii Kai ||||| Posted on: Sunday, May 14, 2006 Officer kills gunman By Will Hoover and Peter Boylan Advertiser Staff Writers The body of a man who police say fired a shotgun and aimed handguns at an officer lies on the ground after an officer shot and killed him last night on Kaukama Road. ANDREW SHIMABUKU | The Honolulu Advertiser The suspect’s car, at right with its doors open, remained on Kaukama Road while police gathered evidence at the scene. An officer shot the man after police say he pointed two handguns at the officer. ANDREW SHIMABUKU | The Honolulu Advertiser MA'ILI — Police last night fatally shot a man who they say fired a shotgun at them on a residential street. The shooting happened about 8 p.m. on Kaukama Road, near the intersection with Farrington Highway, after a disturbance there earlier in the evening and a confrontation with police. The chain of events began about 6:30 p.m., when police received a call that a man in a black trench coat had fired gunshots into a black Dodge Neon on Kaukama Road, police said. Police closed Kaukama Road and began looking for the man. The Specialized Services Division — HPD's equivalent of a SWAT team — was sent to Ma'ili. Police spokesman Capt. Frank Fujii said that when officers arrived, the 47-year-old man would fire a shotgun, get into a car, drive a short way, get out and shoot again. Officers ordered him to get out of the car. He did, firing a shotgun at officers, police said. The man laid the shotgun on the ground, pulled two handguns from his waistband and pointed them at an officer, Fujii said. The officer fatally shot the man, Fujii said. There were no other serious injuries, although one officer may have been grazed by a shotgun pellet, Fujii said. Reach Will Hoover at whoover@honoluluadvertiser.com and Peter Boylan at pboylan@honoluluadvertiser.com. ||||| Gunman seemed intent on death A man killed by police ignored orders to put his weapons down, several witnesses say Friends of a Waianae man who police fatally shot during a standoff Saturday say the 47-year-old was having family problems and had warned them he was going to do something drastic. Tracy Peters was shot at least twice at about 8:15 p.m. Saturday on Kaukama Road in Maili after pointing two handguns at police officers. He was pronounced dead at the scene, witnesses and police said. "That day, he just was telling everybody goodbye," said Stephen Miyose, who rushed to the Kaukama Road standoff on Saturday with his uncle. Miyose also said that Peters told friends Saturday, "The next time you see me, I'm going to be in a casket." Another friend, who could see the standoff from her home on Waapuhi Street, said she cannot understand why Peters refused to surrender. The woman, who asked that her name not be used, also said Peters was provoking the officers, shouting, "Rats, meet me in the middle of the street." Miyose and police said family members and friends were yelling at Peters from behind police tape lines to give up. Among those who saw him get shot was his son, who is in his 20s, Miyose said. Miyose and another friend, who also asked not to be named, raised concerns yesterday over why the police did not allow family members nearer to the scene in hopes of talking Peters down. Miyose said Peters' son had asked to speak to his father but was denied. Peters' son and other family members could not be reached last night. The standoff started at about 6:45 p.m., after police responded to a report of a man shooting a shotgun into the air. Police said Peters was shooting the shotgun near his black sedan, with the door ajar. Repeatedly, Peters would get back in his car, coast downhill on Kaukama Road toward Farrington Highway and then get out to fire his gun. Capt. Frank Fujii said Peters came to a stop about 300 feet from Farrington Highway, put down his shotgun and pulled two handguns from his waistband. When he pointed the handguns at officers, a 15-year veteran of the police Special Services Division shot him. Speaking to reporters late Saturday, Fujii said that Peters had already put lives in danger. "He was shooting at people already," he said, adding that an officer had been grazed by a shotgun pellet. "He had discharged his weapon multiple times." Fujii also said that police officers told Peters repeatedly to put down his weapon, but the suspect gave no indication he was willing to give in. Friends say Peters was shot in the head. The officer was put on administrative leave, as is procedure. Police said Peters had 27 convictions, and had been found guilty of murder in 1977. Genevieve Avilla, Peters' ex-wife, said Peters had not been on drugs. She spoke to Peters on the phone at 5:20 p.m. Saturday, just an hour before the standoff started. "He sounded a little agitated," Avilla said late Saturday as she stood at the crime scene. She said when she heard Peters had been shot, she "flipped out." Avilla's sister, Jewel, also talked to Peters on Saturday and said he looked fine. "He actually seemed happy," she said. "He was smiling." The shooting comes seven months after a police officer shot a suspect three times -- including twice in the head -- outside Furniture Haven on Queen Street, leaving him in critical condition. In that incident a man in his 30s lunged at an officer and security guard with a 10-inch knife. In June 2004, officers shot a 32-year-old fugitive and critically injured a 19-year-old suspect after a standoff at Mayor Wright Homes. A 44-year-old police officer was also injured in the shootout, sustaining a gunshot wound to his shoulder. | Honolulu police on Saturday fatally shot a man who reportedly fired a shotgun at them on a residential street in rural Oahu. Police received a call at about 6:30 p.m. HST that a man in a black trench coat had fired a shotgun at a parked car on Kaukama Road in Ma'ili, on the west coast of Oahu. The Specialized Services Division of the Honolulu Police Department was called to the scene. When officers ordered him to get out of the car, the gunman fired a shotgun at the officers, then pointed two handguns at an officer, who fired at the gunman, hitting him in the head. The man was pronounced dead at the scene. The officer involved has been placed on administrative leave, as per standard HPD procedure after a fatal shooting. The gunman was later identified as Tracy Peters, 47, who had a long criminal history with 23 criminal convictions, including drug possession, firearms violations, and second-degree robbery. Peters had reportedly been experiencing family problems, and had warned acquaintances that he was going to do something drastic. "The next time you see me, I'm going to be in a casket," he said. |
S. Africa apartheid party disbands JOHANNESBURG, South Africa (Reuters) -- The South African party that introduced apartheid and enforced racial segregation for 50 years has voted itself out of existence after a series of stinging electoral defeats. The federal council of the New National Party (NNP), renamed from the National Party in 1997, voted on Saturday for a motion to disband the party by a margin of 88 in favor and two against. Three people abstained. "The forerunner to the NNP, the National Party, brought development to a section of South Africa but also brought suffering through a system grounded on injustice," former leader Marthinus van Schalkwyk said in a speech. "No party ... could hope to successfully atone and move ahead in the same vehicle," said van Schalkwyk, minister for environmental affairs and tourism in President Thabo Mbeki's cabinet. He addressed NNP members who swapped their membership cards for those of the African National Congress (ANC) when the two parties merged last year. But former president F.W. de Klerk said the NNP's demise created a political void with a lack of effective opposition to the ANC. "I really believe that the dissolution of the National Party creates a void in the party political scene in South Africa," he told the BBC. "We need a fairly young person without any political baggage to stand up and be counted and say 'we are going to fill this void'," said de Klerk, who led talks to dismantle white rule and then turned his back on the NNP after last year's merger. The NNP was all that remained of the once mighty National Party -- known as the Nats -- which came to power in 1948 and hardened already discriminatory laws under a system of racial segregation known as apartheid. The system was only finally dismantled at elections in 1994 that came after intense domestic opposition lead by the ANC, international isolation and economic pressure. The NNP was virtually wiped out in elections in April 2004 with less than 2 percent of the vote, while the ANC won a commanding two-thirds majority. De Klerk has said whites and other minority groups felt disempowered under the ANC's leadership with many going abroad in search of better prospects. The ANC argues white South Africans must do more to address the injustices of the past and says it remains committed to establishing a non-racial and multicultural society. ||||| The NNP won just 2% of the vote in last year's elections The New National Party (NNP) suffered a big defeat in the general election last year, taking less than 2% of the vote. Mr de Klerk said the party's demise would weaken opposition to the ruling African National Congress (ANC). He told the BBC that a new party was needed, but without the National Party's historical baggage. The National Party introduced apartheid in South Africa in 1948, and governed until democratic elections in 1994. Its successor party's federal council agreed by 88 votes to two on Saturday to disband. Vacuum "I really believe that the dissolution of the national party creates a void in the party political scene in South Africa," Mr de Klerk said. We need a fairly young person without any political baggage to stand up and be counted FW de Klerk "We need a fairly young person without any political baggage to stand up and be counted and say 'we are going to fill this void'." "I think there is a need to establish something to take the place of the National Party, but hopefully without the historical baggage which the National Party carried and which also played a role in its demise," he added. The party pulled out of the government in 1996 and was relaunched to try to make a break with the past. But last year's election saw the NNP win just seven seats in parliament. 'Injustice' This prompted the party to join forces with its former enemy, the ANC, which took over in the first multi-racial elections. However, it failed to carve out a new identity for itself. The party will formally cease to exist after the forthcoming local government elections, which it will not contest. Party leader Marthinus van Schalkwyk apologised for the apartheid years under the National Party, which he said was "a system grounded in injustice". Mr van Schalkwyk is currently minister for environment and tourism. He said the dissolution of the party was throwing off the yoke of history and was their contribution to finally ending the "division of the South African soul". | The former party of apartheid in South Africa, the New National Party (NNP), has finally been dissolved by a vote of the party's federal council on April 9, 2005. The vote was 88 in favor, 2 against, and 3 abstentions. This follows a decision under the guidance of party leader Marthinus van Schalkwyk last year to join forces with the ruling African National Congress party (ANC). "The forerunner to the NNP, the National Party, brought development to a section of South Africa but also brought suffering through a system grounded on injustice," said van Schalkwyk. The NNP was the successor to the National Party, taking the new name in 1997 to distance itself from its apartheid past. The National Party was the governing party of South Africa from 1948 to 1994, and promoted policies of apartheid and the promotion of Afrikaner (white South African) culture. Former South African President Frederik Willem de Klerk, who oversaw the end of apartheid during his tenure from 1989 to 1994 as its last white president, called for the creation of a new party to take the NNP's place. "I think there is a need to establish something to take the place of the National Party, but hopefully without the historical baggage which the National Party carried and which also played a role in its demise," said de Klerk. Proportion of the NNP share of the national vote have been steadily dropping since 1994, when it received 20.4% as the National Party in the nation's first free multi-racial elections, to 2004, when it received 1.7%. Other prominent South African parties include the ANC (African National Congress), ruling party with 69.7% of the 2004 vote; and the Democratic Alliance (DA), a liberal party which is the official opposition party to the ANC, and received 12.4% of the 2004 vote. Until being dissolved the NNP was the fifth largest party in the country. Concerns have been expressed about the long-term unchecked dominance of the ANC and the possibility for corruption, with Business Monitor International expressing the view that, "While official graft is low by both global and African standards, the blurred line between the government and the dominant ANC party gives plenty of scope for abuses." Transparency International ranks South Africa at 44th on its list of corrupt countries in its 2004 Corrupt Perceptions Index, ahead of most African nations but behind Botswana (31st) and Tunisia (39th). For comparison, the United States ranks at 17th on the same list. |
Pfizer Inc. will cut 2,410 jobs in Michigan and close its massive Ann Arbor research facilities and a site in downtown Kalamazoo in another blow to the battered Michigan economy. Beyond the human suffering involved in job cuts, Pfizer's move marks a setback for Michigan's efforts to develop its health sciences industry as a major generator of jobs for the future. "Michigan adds jobs in tear drops, like Google, and loses them in roaring tsunamis," said Tom Watkins, former state school superintendent of Michigan and CEO of TDW and Associates. ... ||||| Pfizer's big moneymakers Several of Pfizer's most popular drugs contributed mightily to the company's success, and to the job cuts and plant closings announced Monday. LIPITOR: The anti-cholesterol medication is Pfizer’s top-selling drug, but raninto trouble after rival Merck & Co. lost patent protection on a similar drug, Zocort, last year. Now generics are being manufactured, and insurance carriers are pushing them. Pfeizer’s sales in the United States have dropped 6%, to $1.95 billion. Advertisement This article does not have any comments associated with it The antidepressants is a big moneymaker. But Pfizer lost patent protection last year, and sales sank 79% to $166 million.The blood-pressure medicine brought in $4.9 billion in sales last year. This year, Pfizer’s patent protection ends.It’s one of the country’s best-selling allergy medications, with $1.6 billion in revenue last year, but Pfizer’s patent protection expires this year.Pfizer spent $800 million developing the new anti-cholesterol drug, but scrapped it last year amid questions about its safety.Meanwhile, shortly before Pfizer announced its budget-cutting plan today, another of its big sellers, Viagra, was the focus of a lawsuit filed in Los Angeles. Pfizer made more than $850 million off U.S. sales of the impotence drug in 2005. But this morning, the AIDS Healthcare Foundation sued Pfizer, charging its Viagra ads are misleading and encourage recreational use, which spreads sexually transmitted diseases. Pfizer denies the charges. ||||| Why did this happen? Please make sure your browser supports JavaScript and cookies and that you are not blocking them from loading. For more information you can review our Terms of Service and Cookie Policy. | Pfizer CEO Jeffery Kindler has announced that 2,410 jobs will be cut in Michigan, taking out three plants in the state. Pfizer has also announced that they will cut a total of 10 000 jobs by next year. The Ann Arbor, Kalamazoo, and Plymouth sites are representatives of the world's largest drug manufacturing company. A portion of these jobs will be reassigned in Pfizer plants in cities such as La Jolla, CA, Groton, CT, and Sandwich in the United Kingdom. These cuts come after Pfizer's newest drug in development, torcetrapib, was scrapped late last year due to unexpected side effects. The money spent researching the drug Torcetrapib ended with the loss of millions of dollars. This comes as a bigger blow to the region when coupled with ongoing losses to major car manufacturers in the Detroit area, and Gov. Jennifer Granholm said today, "We’re going to have a whole ‘Stick Around Ann Arbor’ campaign for these employees, because we want them to stay here." Among the other groups affected are Ann Arbor schools, to whom Pfizer pays millions of dollars, and local businesses. Most employees declined comment, as they are being asked by Pfizer not to talk with the media. |
'Same Men Behind Attacks' The attempted attacks on London's West End and Glasgow airport were allegedly carried out by the same men, Sky sources say. Sky's Foreign Affairs editor, Tim Marshall, said the two allegedly planted the car bombs in central London before heading to Scotland. "We have had it confirmed by sources that the two men who attempted to bomb London, it would appear, are the same two people who allegedly attempted to bomb Glasgow airport," said Marshall. "In other words after that failed attempt they quickly went up to Glasgow and arranged this. "I also understand that Scotland Yard were pretty much on their trail already." Marshall said police were also already watching one of the eight arrested by police investigating the two bomb plots. "The domestic security services were already aware of one of those arrested," he said. Advertisement "It's not that they were watching someone who was about to bomb the UK and missed them - it was more that a couple of people under arrest that led them to other names and one of those names was already someone who was being watched." In another development, a second man alleged to have been in the flaming jeep driven into Glasgow airport on Saturday was named by Sky sources as Dr Khalid Ahmed. He is being treated for severe burns at Royal Alexandra Hospital in Paisley, Glasgow. The other man in the vehicle was named yesterday as Dr Bilal Abdulla, who worked as a locum at the hospital. He is being quizzed at Paddington Green police station in London. Police investigating the failed terror attacks believe they have their key suspects. But they stress their inquiries are far from over and say Britain is likely to remain on a critical level of terror alert for some time. A total of eight people are being held in connection with the failed bombings - the latest an Indian doctor arrested in Australia. Seven of those eight are believed to be doctors or trainee doctors, while the one woman under arrest is a trained laboratory researcher. The Indian doctor, Mohammed Haneef, was detained at Brisbane International airport last night at the request of the British authorities. According to reports, the 27-year-old had a one-way ticket to Pakistan. Haneef had been working at the Gold Coast Hospital in east Queensland as a registrar from September 2006. Before moving to Australia, he lived in Liverpool. In other developments, it has been claimed the gas canisters used in the car bombs were bought at a branch of B&Q at Paisley near Glasgow. There have also been delays to flights at Heathrow's Terminal 4 after a suspicous bag was identified just before midday. The terminal was partially evacuated and thousands of holidaymakers had to wait outside the building, at times in heavy rain. Earlier controlled explosions were carried out on a car outside a mosque in Glasgow. Police say the mosque, in Forth Street, is not connected to the terror investigation. The terror alert began on Friday when two car bombs were found and defused in central London. Then on Saturday afternoon a flaming jeep was driven into a terminal building at Glasgow airport. :: Anyone with information is asked to call the anti-terror hotline on 0800 789 321. ||||| Controlled explosions have been carried out on a vehicle linked to the car bomb attacks on Glasgow airport and London. ||||| The burned-out vehicle has now been removed from Glasgow Airport Deputy Assistant Commissioner Peter Clarke, the UK's top counter-terrorism officer, has said the inquiry is "extremely fast-moving" with "new information coming to light hour by hour". What is involved in the operation? ARRESTED SUSPECTS Police are holding eight people in connection with the attempted car bombings in London's West End and at Glasgow airport. One man - who suffered severe burns in the Glasgow airport attack in which a burning car was driven into the airport entrance - remains in a critical condition and under armed police guard at Royal Alexandra Hospital in Paisley. A second man was also arrested at the scene. He has been taken to London's Paddington Green police station for questioning. Two further arrests were made on the M6 in Cheshire, with both detainees - a man and a woman - being questioned at the London police station. Another man, arrested in Liverpool, is also in custody at Paddington Green. BBC News has learned that these five people are believed to be of Middle Eastern nationalities. Two more men were arrested at residences of the Royal Alexandra Hospital in Paisley on Sunday night. An eighth person was arrested in Australia while trying to board a flight to India at Brisbane airport, on Monday. Australian police are also interviewing a second doctor. They were acting on information from the UK authorities, Australian Prime Minister John Howard said. Warrants have been issued which allow police to continue questioning the three people arrested in England until Saturday. Police can detain people without charge for up to 28 days under the Terrorism Act 2006, although extensions must be sought from a judge from the 48-hour stage onwards. In other circumstances suspects can be held for just 36 hours, although extensions can be sought up to a total of 96 hours. EXAMINING VEHICLES Forensic examinations are continuing of the two Mercedes cars and the Jeep Cherokee involved in the attempted bombings. BBC correspondent Daniel Sandford said: "The astonishing speed of this investigation has been due to the goldmine of evidence in the car bombs found undetonated in London." Deputy Assistant Commissioner Peter Clarke, of the Metropolitan Police, said study of the vehicles was proving "extremely valuable". The first Mercedes, parked by the busy Tiger, Tiger nightclub in Haymarket, contained gas cylinders, 60 litres of petrol and nails. An ambulance crew alerted police when they saw vapour coming out of the car. The second device, which also included petrol, cylinders and nails, was discovered in a Park Lane car compound after being towed away. It had been illegally parked near Trafalgar Square, just a few minutes' walk from the first vehicle. The BBC understands both devices were linked to mobile phones, a common trigger technique in improvised bombs. It is thought that this remote trigger failed. Both cars have been taken to a maximum security laboratory in Kent for examination. Strathclyde Police issued the registration number of the Jeep Cherokee - L808 RDT - and appealed for information about sightings of the vehicle in recent weeks. It crashed, on fire, into Glasgow Airport's terminal buildings on Saturday. Police conducted two controlled explosions on two vehicles at the Royal Alexandra Hospital on Monday. Three controlled explosions were carried out on a car at a Glasgow mosque on Tuesday morning. SEARCHING ADDRESSES The investigation has involved searches of addresses in the village of Houston in Renfrewshire, Liverpool and Newcastle-under-Lyme, Staffordshire. Police have also been searching premises within the grounds of the Royal Alexandra Hospital. The home secretary said 19 locations had been searched by police investigating the attempted attacks. Australian police are searching sites at the Gold Coast Hospital in Southport, eastern Queensland, plus other locations across the state. UTILISING TECHNOLOGY Metropolitan Police officers have obtained clues about the London attack attempts from CCTV and congestion charge cameras. Deputy Assistant Commissioner Clarke says the investigation involves studying thousands of hours of CCTV footage to help "piece together the events of the past few days" - a process he says will take "many weeks" to complete. Automatic number-plate recognition systems have been used to track movements by the vehicles and mobile phone records have helped police swiftly locate some of the people currently in custody, our correspondent says. ||||| Hammersmith Station was closed during the alert The station and surrounding roads were closed while emergency services dealt with the scare at about 0825 BST. The alert comes amid a raised security threat following the failed terrorist attacks in London and Glasgow. There was an unconfirmed report that the suspect objects had turned out to be three abandoned fire extinguishers. "These are the kinds of challenges we face in London every day," said Ch Supt Ali Dizai. "We can't afford to take any chances." Up to 8,000 commuters were forced to find alternative routes into work as Hammersmith and Barons Court stations were closed for an hour. There were severe delays for motorists as Hammersmith Broadway was closed between King Street and Shepherd's Bush Road as well as Hammersmith Bridge. Tower Hill and East Ham Tube stations, which were shut in a separate alert, have also reopened. | New Scotland Yard, the headquarters of the Metropolitan Police Force A suspicious bag has undergone a controlled explosion outside a London Underground station, as has a car outside a mosque in Glasgow, Scotland. These police actions come in the wake of failed terror attacks involving car bombs in London and at Glasgow International Airport on 29th and 30th June. The terror threat level in the UK remains ''critical'', indicating that an attack could be expected imminently and high security is in evidence on mass transport routes, while the police continue their investigations. Earlier this morning, a controlled explosion took place on a suspicious package discovered outside Hammersmith Station on the London Underground system. The scare led to the closure of Hammersmith and Barons Court stations for one hour. Two other stations, Tower Hill and East Ham, were closed in similar circumstances. All four stations have now been reopened. Sky news reports that three controlled explosions took place on a car outside a mosque in Glasgow, in order to allow police to gain entry to it. The mosque itself is not being linked to the terror attacks. The Muslim Council of Britain has condemned the attacks, and has urged Muslims throughout the country to assist in police investigations. The police force is continuing its investigations throughout the country, with an open appeal to the country for vigilance in reporting anything suspicious. |
In a statement, General Dannatt said: "Over the last few weeks I have made a particular point of saying that I would keep under constant review my decision to deploy Prince Harry to Iraq with his Troop. As with any military operation, circumstances do change, and therefore so should decisions, if necessary. "I have decided today that Prince Harry will not deploy as a Troop Leader with his Squadron. I have come to this final decision following a further and wide round of consultation, including a visit to Iraq by myself at the end of last week. "There have been a number of specific threats – some reported and some not reported - which relate directly to Prince Harry as an individual. These threats place not only him but also those around him to a degree of risk that I now deem unacceptable. Now that I have decided that he will not be deploying with his Troop, the risks faced by his Battlegroup are no different to those faced by any other Battlegroup or other of our Servicemen in Iraq. "I have to add that a contributing factor to this increase in threat to Prince Harry has been the widespread knowledge and discussion of his deployment. It is a fact that this close scrutiny has exacerbated the situation and this is something that I wish to avoid in future. "Let me also make quite clear that as a professional soldier, Prince Harry himself will be extremely disappointed. He has proved himself both at Sandhurst and in command of his Troop during their training. I commend him for his determination and his undoubted talent – and I do not say that lightly. His soldiers will miss his leadership in Iraq, although I know his Commanding Officer will provide a highly capable substitute Troop Leader. "In conclusion, two further points: First, I have asked Prince Harry’s Commanding Officer to continue to develop Prince Harry’s professional career in the Army, but I am not prepared to speculate, either now or in the future, on what Prince Harry might be doing over the next few weeks, months and years. "Second, I pay tribute once again to the excellence and commitment of all our Servicemen deployed around the World and I thank them, and their families, for the way that they are doing their duty in the best traditions of the Armed Forces." ||||| 'Specific Threats' Halt Harry Iraq Tour Prince Harry will not deploy with his regiment to Iraq following "specific threats" to target him by insurgents fighting British and US forces. The head of the Army, General Sir Richard Dannatt, said his presence in Iraq would expose the 22-year-old Prince as well as the troops serving with him to "a degree of risk that I now deem unacceptable". In a statement, Clarence House admitted that the Prince was "very disappointed" that he would not be going with his squadron in the Household Cavalry. But a spokesman insisted that he would not quit the Army. Gen Dannatt said that he had finally reached the decision that the risks were too great after visiting Iraq himself at the end of last week. Advertisement "There have been a number of specific threats - some reported and some not reported - which relate directly to Prince Harry as an individual. "These threats expose not only him but those around him to a degree of risk that I now deem unacceptable." A number of leading insurgents have claimed in recent weeks that they had detailed plans to seize the Prince as hostage, even boasting that they had informants in the British camps who would tell them of his movements. Sky News Foreign Editor Tim Marshall said it was because "he is a magnet for jihadists". "Sending him in not only endangers those around him - the effect of being kidnapped would be a blow to the entire UK." ||||| News Prince Harry deployment update General Sir Richard Dannatt today announced his decision that Prince Harry would not be deployed to Iraq. In a statement at the Ministry of Defence this afternoon the Chief of the General Staff confirmed that Prince Harry would not join the current deployment to Iraq as a troop commander with his squadron. General Sir Richard Dannatt said: "Over the last few weeks I have made a particular point of saying that I would keep under constant review my decision to deploy Prince Harry to Iraq with his Troop. As with any military operation, circumstances do change, and therefore so should decisions, if necessary. "I have decided today that Prince Harry will not deploy as a Troop Leader with his Squadron. I have come to this final decision following a further and wide round of consultation, including a visit to Iraq by myself at the end of last week. "There have been a number of specific threats – some reported and some not reported - which relate directly to Prince Harry as an individual. These threats place not only him but also those around him to a degree of risk that I now deem unacceptable. Now that I have decided that he will not be deploying with his Troop, the risks faced by his Battlegroup are no different to those faced by any other Battlegroup or other of our Servicemen in Iraq. "I have to add that a contributing factor to this increase in threat to Prince Harry has been the widespread knowledge and discussion of his deployment. It is a fact that this close scrutiny has exacerbated the situation and this is something that I wish to avoid in future. "Let me also make quite clear that as a professional soldier, Prince Harry himself will be extremely disappointed. He has proved himself both at Sandhurst and in command of his Troop during their training. I commend him for his determination and his undoubted talent – and I do not say that lightly. His soldiers will miss his leadership in Iraq, although I know his Commanding Officer will provide a highly capable substitute Troop Leader. "In conclusion, two further points: "First, I have asked Prince Harry’s Commanding Officer to continue to develop Prince Harry’s professional career in the Army, but I am not prepared to speculate, either now or in the future, on what Prince Harry might be doing over the next few weeks, months and years. "Second, I pay tribute once again to the excellence and commitment of all our Servicemen deployed around the World and I thank them, and their families, for the way that they are doing their duty in the best traditions of the Armed Forces." Clarence House have issued the following statement: "Prince Harry is very disappointed that he will not be able to go to Iraq with his troop on this deployment, as he had hoped. He fully understands and accepts General Dannatt’s difficult decision, and remains committed to his Army career. Prince Harry’s thoughts are with his troop and the rest of the Battle Group in Iraq." ||||| Story Highlights • Britain's Prince Harry will not be sent to Iraq, says the Ministry of Defence • Top UK general says "specific threats" on prince are behind decision • Risk to prince and those around him too great, says general • Harry, third in line to throne, has said he is serious about an army career Adjust font size: LONDON, England (CNN) -- Britain's Prince Harry will not serve in Iraq as a troop commander because of "a number of specific threats" against him, the UK's top general says. A spokesperson for the 22-year-old prince says he is "very disappointed" by the decision. Chief of the general staff Sir Richard Dannatt said Wednesday: "I have decided today that Prince Harry will not deploy as a troop commander with his squadron. (Watch how risks and public relations are part of the problem ) "I have come to this final decision following a further and wide round of consultation, including a visit to Iraq by myself at the end of last week," Dannatt said "There have been a number of specific threats, some reported and some not reported. These threats exposed him and those around him to a degree of risk I considered unacceptable," he said. Wednesday's announcement reverses a statement made in February by the Ministry of Defence and the royal family, which said that Harry would be sent to Iraq with his regiment. Dannatt commended the prince on his determination. "Let me also make quite clear that as a professional soldier, Prince Harry will be extremely disappointed. "He has proved himself both at Sandhurst and in command of his troop during their training. I commend him for his determination and his undoubted talent -- and I do not say that lightly. His soldiers will miss his leadership in Iraq, although I know his commanding officer will provide a highly capable substitute troop leader." A statement issued by a spokesperson for the prince said: "Prince Harry is very disappointed that he will not be able to go to Iraq with his troop on this deployment, as he had hoped. He fully understands and accepts Gen. Dannatt's difficult decision, and remains committed to his army career. Prince Harry's thoughts are with his troop and the rest of the Battle Group in Iraq." Harry would have led a troop of 12 men in four Scimitar armored reconnaissance vehicles, each with a crew of three, in the southern Iraqi city of Basra. He is a 2006 graduate of Britain's prestigious Royal Military Academy Sandhurst and has been actively seeking the posting in Iraq. Harry's older brother William -- while also a military officer -- is not eligible for combat service because he is the second in line to the British crown. Harry has repeatedly said that he wants to be deployed with his men, but ministry officials have expressed concern that he could become a target for Iraqi insurgents, endangering himself and those serving under him. Royal commentator Robert Jobson told CNN that it would be a "disaster" for the British Army if Harry was targeted by militants. Jobson said he did not believe Harry would quit the army, despite being kept out of Iraq. Harry would have been the first member of the British royal family to serve in a war zone since his uncle, Prince Andrew, flew as a helicopter pilot in the Falklands conflict with Argentina in 1982, The Associated Press reported. | Prince Harry during Inspection of New Colours. Prince Harry, known as Prince Henry of Wales, who was recently set to leave for Iraq with his regiment, has been prohibited from going. The Chief of the General Staff (Head of the British Army) General Sir Richard Dannatt, has decided Prince Harry would not be deployed based on his review of specific risks. "I have decided today that Prince Harry will not deploy as a Troop Leader with his Squadron," said General Dannatt in a statement. ""There have been a number of specific threats – some reported and some not reported, which relate directly to Prince Harry as an individual. These threats place not only him but also those around him to a degree of risk that I now deem unacceptable." Despite Prince Harry's previous threats to quit the army if he was not allowed to deploy to Iraq, a spokesman has said he will stay in the army. "Let me also make quite clear that as a professional soldier, Prince Harry himself will be extremely disappointed," added General Dannatt. A number of threats have been a factor in the Chief of the General Staff's decision making, saying that "sending him in not only endangers those around him, the effect of being kidnapped would be a blow to the entire UK." The UK Ministry of Defence (MoD) indicated in a press release Wednesday that the decision was based on a military assessment and that Clarence House, Buckingham Palace, 10 Downing Street and the Defence Secretary had been informed of the decision. The MoD acknowledged that some insurgents in Iraq might try to claim victory with the decision, but that it was important to deny them "such a high value target". |
Tweet with a location You can add location information to your Tweets, such as your city or precise location, from the web and via third-party applications. You always have the option to delete your Tweet location history. Learn more ||||| Add a location to your Tweets When you tweet with a location, Twitter stores that location. You can switch location on/off before each Tweet and always have the option to delete your location history. Learn more ||||| توالت ردود الفعلة المنددة بالتفجيرات التي وقعت في كل من المدينة المنورة ومدينة القطيف وجدة بالمملكة العربية، والتي قتل فيها خمسة رجال أمن قرب المسجد النبوي الشريف. فقد أدانت دولة الكويت التفجيرات الإرهابية, وبعث الأمير صباح الأحمد الجابر ببرقية إلى الملك سلمان بن عبد العزيز أعرب فيها عن استنكار دولة الكويت وإدانتها الشديدة للتفجيرين الإجراميين. كما بعث أمير دولة قطر الشيخ تميم بن حمد آل ثاني برقية تعزية إلى الملك سلمان, أعرب فيها عن إدانته واستنكاره الشديدين لهذه الاعتداءات الهمجية وما أسفرت عنه. وتلقى الملك سلمان اتصالا هاتفيا من ملك الأردن عبد الله الثاني أعرب فيه عن إدانته للعمليات الإرهابية التي وقعت بالمملكة. كما أعرب الرئيس التركي رجب طيب أردوغان في اتصال هاتفي مع ملك السعودية عن تنديده الشديد بالهجمات التي شهدتها المملكة. كما أدانت مصر والإمارات والبحرين والسلطة الفلسطينية وجامعة الدول العربية ومنظمة التعاون الإسلامي والمنظمة الإسلامية للتربية والعلوم والثقافة (إيسيسكو)، التفجيرات. ومن جهتها، دانت إيران الهجمات الانتحارية التي استهدفت ثلاثة مساجد في ثلاث مدن سعودية بينها المدينة المنورة، كما ذكر التلفزيون الحكومي الإيراني الثلاثاء. وقال الناطق الجديد باسم وزارة الخارجية الإيرانية بهرام قاسمي إن إيران "تدين بشدة الإرهاب بكل أشكاله وفي كل مكان في العالم". وأضاف أن "الإرهاب لا يعرف حدودا وليس هناك حل سوى التلاحم والوحدة الدولية والإقليمية ضد هذه الظاهرة". واعتبرت حركة المقاومة الإسلامية (حماس) أن استهداف المسجد النبوي تحد لكل المسلمين في بقاع الأرض واستفزاز لمشاعرهم لما تمثله هذه البقعة الطاهرة من رمزية دينية كبيرة لكل المسلمين، وأدانت -في بيان صحفي- التفجيرات التي وصفتها بالإجرامية التي استهدفت المصلين في المسجد النبوي وفي منطقة القطيف شرق السعودية أمس الاثنين، وأكدت وقوفها إلى جانب المملكة السعودية. كما دانت الحكومة الفلسطينية هذه الأعمال، وأعلنت الوقوف إلى جانب "الأشقاء في المملكة السعودية في مواجهة الإرهاب الذي يحاول مد أذرعه للمساس بالمملكة وأهلها وأقدس المقدسات فيها". وقدم رئيس الإدارة الروحية الدينية لمسلمي روسيا راوي عين الدين تعازي المسلمين الروس لأسر ضحايا التفجير الذي وقع بالقرب من الحرم النبوي الشريف في المدينة المنورة أمس الاثنين. وقال راوي عين الدين خلال خطبة عيد الفطر في مسجد موسكو المركزي إن مسلمي روسيا يدينون أشد الإدانة هذا العمل الإرهابي. أما الأزهر الشريف فقد ندد بـ"محاولات الإرهابيين والمتطرفين الزج بالمساجد في صراعاتهم، خاصة في هذه الأيام الكريمة، التي توافق احتفال المسلمين بعيد الفطر المبارك في شتى بقاع الأرض"، وأكد الوقوف إلى جانب المملكة في محاربة الإرهاب والتصدي له حتى القضاء عليه واقتلاعه من جذوره. كما أدان رئيس الاتحاد العالمي لعلماء المسلمين الشيخ يوسف القرضاوي في تدوينة له عبر موقع التواصل الاجتماعي (فيسبوك) التفجيرات، واعتبر أن "الإسلام بريء من هذه الأعمال الإجرامية التي تحصد الأرواح الآمنة وتسفك الدماء الزكية". تفجير بالمسجد النبوي يأتي ذلك بعد مقتل أربعة رجال شرطة في تفجير قرب المسجد النبوي بالمدينة المنورة مساء أمس إضافة إلى المهاجم الانتحاري، كما وقع تفجير آخر وقت أذان المغرب في القطيف شرقي المملكة. وقال المتحدث باسم وزارة الداخلية السعودية إن التفجير أسفر كذلك عن جرح خمسة من رجال الأمن. ||||| Deaths reported at Prophet's Mosque in Medina as witnesses say body parts of presumed bomber seen in Qatif. Two people have been killed in an explosion outside the Prophet's Mosque in the Saudi Arabian city of Medina, sources told Al Jazeera. Photos on social media show smoke billowing from a fire outside the mosque where Prophet Muhammad is buried. The cause of the explosion was not immediately known. Some reports suggested it was a suicide bombing, while others said a gas cylinder had blown up. Two other explosions struck near a mosque in the eastern city of Qatif on the Gulf coast on Monday evening, residents said. Witnesses said a suicide bomber blew himself up outside a Shia mosque without causing any other injuries. They reported seeing body parts lying on the ground in the city's business district. "Suicide bomber for sure. I can see the body" which was blasted to pieces, a resident told the AFP news agency. Nasima al-Sada, another resident, told AFP that "one bomber blew himself up near the mosque". A third witness told Reuters news agency that one explosion destroyed a car parked near the mosque, followed by another explosion just before 7pm local time. "We are in the last 10 days of Ramadan and those places are crowded because of that for Maghreb [sunset] prayers," Khaled Batarfi, a Saudi Gazette columnist, told Al Jazeera. Early on Monday morning, two security officers were injured as a suicide bomber blew himself up near the US consulate in the Red Sea port city of Jeddah. In January, at least four people were killed in a suicide attack on a Shia mosque in the eastern al-Ahsa region. In October, the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL) group claimed responsibility for a suicide bombing at a Shia mosque in Najran, in which at least one person was killed. ISIL (also known as ISIS) had also claimed responsibility for an attack at a mosque inside a special forces headquarters in the city of Abha in August 2015. Fifteen people were killed in that attack. Source: Al Jazeera and agencies ||||| A suicide bombing has been reported outside the Prophet's Mosque - one of Islam's holiest sites - in Saudi Arabia's city of Medina. Social media footage showed a blazing vehicle and billowing smoke. The Prophet's Mosque is the burial place of the Prophet Muhammad and Medina the second-holiest city in Islam after Mecca. Earlier, at least one explosion rocked the eastern city of Qatif, where many minority Shia Muslims live. A suspected suicide bomber also died after detonating a device near the US consulate in the city of Jeddah. ||||| السعودية.. 3 تفجيرات انتحارية قرب الحرم النبوي وبالقطيف العربية.نت وقعت 3 تفجيرات انتحارية في السعودية، مساء اليوم الاثنين، أحدها استهدف موقف سيارات قرب #الحرم_النبوي، والآخران قرب مسجد في #القطيف شرق #السعودية. وأفاد مراسل "العربية" في الرياض بنجاة المصلين من تفجيري القطيف الانتحاريين. وشوهدت أشلاء بشرية يعتقد بحسب شهود عيان أنها تعود لمنفذ التفجير الانتحاري، بينما لم تسجل إصابات في صفوف المصلين نتيجة التفجير. ويأتي الحادث بعد يوم من فشل انتحاري في الوصول إلى هدفه مساء أمس الأحد، ففجّر نفسه داخل مواقف #مستشفى_الدكتور_سليمان_فقيه في مدينة #جدة بالسعودية. To view this video please enable JavaScript, and consider upgrading your web browser صورة متداولة على مواقع التواصل لتفجير القطيف الانتحاري صورة متداولة على مواقع التواصل لتفجير القطيف الانتحاري ||||| Four Saudi security force members were killed on Monday after a suicide bombing took place in Madinah near the prophet’s mosque, the Al-Haram Al-Nabawi, regarded as one of Islam's holiest sites. Al Arabiya News Channel’s correspondent said the suicide bombing took place in a parking lot between the city court and the mosque, visited by millions every year. The channel showed images of fire raging in a parking lot with at least one body seen nearby. The suicide bomber also died in the attack. The attack near the prophet's mosque took place during Maghreb prayers, the time when Muslims break their fast during the holy month of Ramadan. Al Arabiya News Channel’s correspondent said the suicide bomber targeted seven security officers when he pretended that he wanted to break his fast with them. Security forces have cordoned off the area. Two million visitors have so far arrived at Al-Haram Al-Nabawi during Ramadan to finish recitation of the Quran. The correspondent said the visitors were undeterred and were heading to perform the Isha prayers, which take place soon after the inital fast-breaking prayer. Governor of Madinah HRH Prince Faisal bin Salman has visited security officers injured in the attack. Two other suicide bombings also took place in the eastern city of Qatif on Monday evening after a foiled attack earlier in the day in Jeddah. Al Arabiya News Channel’s correspondent said worshippers were unhurt following the attack. Witnesses saw body parts at the scene, believed to be the suicide bomber himself. Footage obtained by Al Arabiya shows first moments of Madinah blast To view this video please enable JavaScript, and consider upgrading your web browser Footage shows bombing in eastern city of Qatif To view this video please enable JavaScript, and consider upgrading your web browser The fresh attacks in Madinah and Qatif followed a suicide bombing near the US consulate in Saudi Arabia’s city of Jeddah early on Monday. Also read: Egypt’s mufti says ‘sheikhs inciting radicalism’ are not ‘Islamic scholars’ Last Update: Tuesday, 5 July 2016 KSA 23:03 - GMT 20:03 | Yesterday, a suicide attack was committed moments before sunset in the holy city in , Saudi Arabia killing four officials and injuring five in , the Prophet's Mosque, the Saudi interior ministry said. Earlier yesterday, two Saudi cities Jeddah and suffered attacks. Pilgrims were praying before breaking their Ramadan fast. File photo of Al-Masjid an-Nabawi. 36-year-old eyewitness Qari Ziyaad Patel told Associated Press he heard a blast just as the call to sunset prayers was ending and people were breaking their fast. At first it was widely mistaken for cannon fire traditionally signaling the end of daily fasting during Ramadan, but then they felt the vibrations through the ground. 's correspondent reported that after the explosion pilgrims offered prayers in the Prophet's Mosque and no worshippers were injured in the suicide attacks. The Interior Ministry has identified the suicide bomber. According to them, Abdullah Waqar Khan was responsible for the attack. Waqar, they said, was born in Pakistan and had lived in Jeddah for the past twelve years. The chairman of the Sheikh condemned the attack and said, Abu Dhabi prince tweeted, "" This week, three Islamic countries – Turkey, Bangladesh, and Iraq — faced terror attacks in Istanbul, Dhaka, and Baghdad. |
Articles 24.01.2007 MySpace Takes Serious Measures to Fight On-line Sex Abusers MySpace, a well-known Internet social network, is expanding its on-line safety project for users. MySpace is going to send its users, living in certain U.S. areas, special alert messages as an additional way to assist in finding missing children. MySpace AMBER alerts is a program used by the representatives of the media and law enforcement bodies who deal with serious child abduction cases. The program supported by the National Center for Missing & Exploited Children is meant to protect MySpace teenage members from the danger of being abused by adult predators. In recent time MySpace has been repeatedly sued for neglecting the proper protection measures by families whose teenage children were sexually abused by the network's adult users. To improve the situation MySpace has organized a system of the AMBER alerts that will be featured in a small text box at the top part of a user's profile. The alerts will contain thorough information about the case, including photos and details about suspects. MySpace has planned to supply its protection system with advanced technology to keep sex offenders away from the site. The task is not the easiest one as the network comprises about 150 million profiles and it is rapidly growing. A recent survey determined that among the users of MySpace and the similar sites there are over a half of American teenagers who have Internet access. Consequently, the sites with numerous teen users attract a great deal of sex abusers. The enhanced MySpace safety program makes its necessary for every new user to register with a valid e-mail address. This way it will be easier for law enforcement agents to chase possible criminals. Newly applied users will be sent a verification e-mail offering a special link. They will have to click back in order to verify their identity. Moreover, Charles Schumer and John McCain, the U.S. senators, are going to initiate legislation that would make convicted sex abusers to register their active e-mail addresses. Thus there will be created the database consisting of e-mail addresses. The database will allow MySpace and the sites alike to track down the offenders by finding the new applicants in the database. MySpace built a partnership with Sentinel Tech Holding Corp., a firm involved into background verification. The corporation has to develop an innovative technology called Sentinel Safe. The technology will make it possible for MySpace search through state and federal databases to find and remove profiles belonging to registered sex offenders. Up to the recent time MySpace did not ask its new applicants to verify their e-mail addresses - the sent verification mail was just blocked by junk e-mail filters. At present day MySpace has been negotiating with U.S. Internet service providers in an attempt to persuade them unblock verification e-mails. The site has also made sure that every users has an opportunity to make one's profile private. the users' private profiles will be available only to members within 14-15 year-olds' age group. ||||| Unlikely allies Russia and U.S. push Afghan enemies to accept interim government Russia hosts a summit on Thursday to revive the Afghan peace process, the first in a series of meetings that make unlikely allies of Washington and Moscow as they try to pave the way for an interim government in Kabul and end the bloodshed. ||||| Website MySpace is moving to protect teenagers from cyber-savvy paedophiles by developing software that allows parents to track their children's movements on the internet. Called Zephyr, the software will let parents find out what name, age and location their children use to represent themselves on MySpace. Adults will not be able to read children's email or access their profile, but they will be able to see the level of interaction they open themselves to. The program would also alert parents if the child's profile was changed from another computer. MySpace faces increasing pressure from government groups in the United States worried that children are at risk from sexual predators. Teens who register their age as 14 (the minimum age) or 15 are currently given private profiles that cannot be searched by people over 18. The problem is that there is no verification process. Children could claim they were older or an adult could claim to be younger, without contest. Although the level of parental control established by the software is relatively low, a MySpace spokeswoman said the software would work best as a tool to open discussions about a child's behaviour and safety. The executive director of internet safety group Netsafe, Martin Cocker, said it was good to see sites attempting to be responsible, but it was not a "cure-all". "One of the fears is that parents will rely on this technology to protect children. Realistically, with new technology, (children) just find ways to work around it," he said. Cocker said computer paedophilia was a rising problem in New Zealand but it was "hard to get a handle on the size of it". Cocker said that from interviews his organisation had conducted, teenagers appeared to come into contact with "unsavoury adults" fairly regularly, but most were capable of handling the situation themselves. One Christchurch 17-year-old girl labelled the site "a catalogue for paedophiles" but thought the tracking software would be "an invasion of privacy". Joanna Boyd, 16, said the fears of coming into contact with predatory adults were over-emphasised. She said she checked her profile every day and had never been contacted by a strange adult. | MySpace is a fast-growing website, with about 150 million profiles. Half of all U.S. teenagers access such websites like MySpace with one goal – to make friends. Internet social gathering website MySpace will start sending online alerts to Internet users in certain regions of the United States in order to help find missing children. MySpace established a partnership with the National Center for Missing & Exploited Children in order to enable AMBER Alert. This is a program that provides an early warning broadcast bulletin in cases of earnest child abduction. A week ago, families of five teenagers who were sexually abused by adult users from MySpace sued the website, stating that it showed negligence concerning its users' protection. In 2006, the company hired a former prosecutor from the United States Justice Department in order to improve its online safety program. The representatives from MySpace stated that the AMBER alerts will appear in a little text box, which will be situated at the top of a profile. The website's users will be able to get additional information regarding the case, which will include photos and information about suspects. In a phone interview, the CEO of MySpace, Hemanshu Nigam, stated that the company has been working with partners and law enforcement in order to find all the possible ways to protect children and keep sex offenders away from the website. He also mentioned that MySpace will provide technology that will benefit the whole industry. MySpace is a fast-growing website, with about 150 million profiles. Half of all U.S. teenagers access such websites like MySpace with one goal – to make friends. This survey was made by Pew. As part of its safety program, the website now asks all its users to have a valid e-mail address. This will allow tracking down possible predators. New subscribers will get a verification e-mail with a link which the user must click to verify his or her identity. MySpace made a deal with Sentinel Tech Holding Corp. to create a new technology, called Sentinel Safe. The technology will allow MySpace to search proposed state and federal databases of sex offenders' e-mail addresses, enabling the company to delete the profiles of sex offenders who register with a "blacklisted" e-mail address. MySpace is also developing new software called Zephyr to show parents what information can be publicly seen about their child on the child's profile. However, the adults using this software will not be able to read the e-mails sent to their child or edit their child's profile. |
Syria: Region steps up pressure on Assad regime Amateur video purports to show tanks moving through the city of Deir al-Zour Syria's neighbours are increasing diplomatic pressure on the country as the regime continues a violent crackdown on anti-government protests. Saudi Arabia, Kuwait and Bahrain have all recalled their ambassadors while Jordan has called for dialogue. Saudi King Abdullah has called on Syrian President Bashar al-Assad to urgently implement real reforms. Government tanks have been pounding the eastern city of Deir al-Zour for a second day. At least 50 people died on Sunday after the army launched a pre-dawn assault. Activists said that as in recent days, many people had been afraid to leave their homes or take injured people to hospital for fear of being attacked. Syrian state TV has reported that Mr Assad has appointed a new minister of defence, former army chief of staff Gen Dawoud Rajha. He replaces Gen Ali Habib, said the report. Sana has also said troops are withdrawing from the city of Hama, which has come under heavy attack in recent days - witnesses say scores of people have died there. Access to Syria has been severely restricted for international journalists and it is rarely possible to verify accounts by witnesses and activists. Human rights activists say at least 1,700 civilians have been killed and tens of thousands arrested since the uprising began in mid-March. More than 300 people are believed to have died in the past week alone. 'Depths of chaos' King Abdullah has said that events in Syria were "unacceptable" for his country, and that Damascus had to choose between "wisdom" or being "pulled down into the depths of chaos and loss". Please turn on JavaScript. Media requires JavaScript to play. He called for "an end to the killing machine and bloodshed" and urged "acts of wisdom". "Syria should think wisely before it is too late and issue and enact reforms that are not merely promises but actual reforms." The BBC's Jim Muir in Beirut says that by Arab diplomatic standards, it was a highly dramatic intervention by the Saudi monarch, one of the most influential powers in the region. King Abdullah said he had recalled his ambassador from Damascus for consultation. That move was followed by Kuwait and then Bahrain. Bahrain's Foreign Minister Sheikh Khaled bin Ahmad al-Khalifa called for "a resort to reason". In Kuwait, Foreign Minister Sheikh Mohammad al-Sabah said the military action must end and that "no-one can accept the bloodshed". Continue reading the main story Analysis Syria has yet to respond directly to the moves from its neighbours. But it has reacted to an earlier critical statement from the Gulf Co-operation Council. Damascus said their position ignored the killings and destruction wrought by what it calls "armed terrorist gangs" in Syria and also ignored the reform process launched by the Syrian regime, for which it says it needs more time. As far as the Gulf states - and many other outside powers - are concerned, the time has run out. Next on the list of those applying pressure is likely to be Turkey, whose foreign minister is expected in Damascus on Tuesday. Prime Minister Erdogan has said he will be carrying a tough message. But Damascus has already said he will be given an even tougher one to carry home. Mr Sabah said the foreign ministers of Gulf states would meet soon to discuss the situation. Jordan stopped short of condemning the violence, but Prime Minister Nasser Judeh described the situation as "worrisome, unfortunate and sad". "We hope that dialogue is restored and reforms are achieved in order to get Syria out of this impasse," he said in a televised statement. The 22-member Arab League issued its first statement on Syria on Sunday, saying it was "alarmed" and called for an end to the violence. On Monday the League's head, Nabil al-Arabi, said he hoped the crisis could be overcome "by peaceful means and by launching a serious dialogue towards the reconciliation that the people have been demanding". "When people take to the streets and seek change, presidents and governments must reach that solution through dialogue without making use of violence or force," he told reporters. But he said "drastic measures" should not be expected, and stressed that the League would not take action itself. Turkish Foreign Minister Ahmet Davutoglu is due in Damascus on Tuesday with what Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan said would be a tough message for Mr Assad. Meanwhile the top Sunni Muslim authority, Cairo-based al-Azhar, said the situation in Syria had "gone too far". "There is no other solution but to put an end to this Arab and Islamic tragedy," said the grand imam of al-Azhar, Sheikh Ahmed al-Tayeb. Damascus says it is tackling "armed terrorist gangs" and that its critics have ignored its promises of political reform. Also on Monday, internet hacking group Anonymous claimed to have taken down the website of Syria's ministry of defence. The website was later inaccessible but an alleged screengrab circulating on Twitter told Syrians: "The world stands with you against the brutal regime." Hospitals closed The assault on Deir al-Zour, about 450km (280 miles) east of Damascus, continued on Monday, with scores of tanks and armoured personnel carriers moving into several parts of the city. State media said local leaders had called on the army to "protect the citizens and preserve public and private property". But Mohammed, a resident, told the Reuters news agency that armoured vehicles were shelling the al-Hawiqa and al-Joura districts hard, and that thousands of residents had fled. "Private hospitals are closed and people are afraid to send the wounded to state facilities because they are infested with secret police," added the resident. One activist told the AFP news agency: "The army opened fire with heavy machine-guns on al-Joura. Security forces then launched a search sweep, terrorising residents." The London-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights cited residents as saying security forces shot dead a mother and her two children as they tried to escape al-Hawiqa by car. Troops armed with heavy weapons and backed by tanks also stormed the restive town of Maarat al-Numan, in the northern province of Idlib, at dawn on Monday, the Local Co-ordination Committees said. "Forces entered the city from its eastern side and they are preventing residents from entering or leaving the city." In many other parts of the country, protesters staged impromptu overnight rallies against the regime. ||||| BEIRUT, Lebanon — Saudi Arabia, Bahrain and Kuwait recalled their ambassadors from Damascus on Monday, joining a chorus of global criticism of Syria, as Syrian forces pressed ahead with President Bashar al-Assad’s brutal crackdown on the most restive areas. The Saudi monarch, King Abdullah, called on Mr. Assad to stop the “killing machine and end the bloodshed,” a remarkably sharp rebuke from one of the region’s most repressive countries, underscoring frustration with the rising death toll and the isolation of Mr. Assad’s government. The diplomatic moves came as Mr. Assad replaced his defense minister with the army’s chief of staff, the Syrian state-run news agency said. The departure of Lt. Gen. Ali Habib, a longtime figure in the leadership who had served as defense minister since June 2009, marked one of the highest-level shakeups since the revolt began in March. The news agency said he was in poor health and his condition had “deteriorated recently.” His replacement was Gen. Dawoud Rajha. Mr. Assad’s brother, Maher, and brother-in-law, Assef Shawkat, are thought to exercise power every bit as decisive as the defense minister’s. | Saudi Arabia, Bahrain, and Kuwait all recalled their ambassadors to Syria Monday over concerns about the crackdown on protestors by the Syrian government. King announced the decision to recall the country's Syrian ambassador in a statement read on state television, saying that "the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia demands the stoppage of the killing machine and bloodshed, and the use of reason before it is too late". Foreign Minister of Bahrain said that Syria should "resort to reason" and Kuwaiti Foreign Minister called for an end to military action, saying that "no-one can accept the bloodshed." al-Sabah also said that officials from several countries in the region plan to meet in the near future to discuss Syria. In addition to the recall of the ambassadors, diplomatic pressure increased on Syria from other fronts, with Prime Minister of Jordan making a televised request for talks between the protestors and government, and the issuing its first statement about the situation in Syria on Sunday, saying it is "alarmed" by events. == Sources == * * |
SYDNEY councils are paying private detectives thousands of dollars to have sex with prostitutes so they can gather sufficient proof against illegal brothels. Nine councils across Sydney have forked out $25,000 in fees to private investigators over the past three years. The Sunday Telegraph has learned that Ku-ring-gai Council spent $7000 in the past month employing detectives to have sex with prostitutes. Ku-ring-gai mayor Nick Ebbeck said the extreme measures were necessary to prove the businesses were illegal. "We, like many other councils, have made a decision to pro-actively rid our community of these illegal brothels," he said. "We have to employ private investigators to actually go through with the act and come up with reports that will suffice in a court process. "On numerous occasions over numerous days and times they had to fulfil the act. "The only difference between us closing down an illegal panel beating shop and a brothel is we must prove they are doing the act and this is where it gets interesting." The evidence given by the investigators proved successful in shutting two brothels this month. The council is now employing private investigators, at a cost of about $3500 a case, to look into at least five more premises. The investigators provide an affidavit and a detailed account of the sexual transaction and occasionally a video recording. In a graphic report obtained by The Sunday Telegraph, one detective claimed that premises at 100 Pacific Highway, Roseville, was charging $70 for a half hour "all inclusive full service". "Once the sex was over I was told that if I came back next week I would only have to pay $60 for a half-hour sex (sic) instead of $70," the document said. Concerns over the onus of proof were first raised five years ago. But attempts to change the legislation in NSW parliament failed after the Labor Government voted against it. At Willoughby Council, private detectives were paid $1500 for two visits to prostitutes at the one brothel this month. Willoughby Council environmental services director Greg Woodhams said the council solicitor handled these investigations. "Over the last couple of weeks we have successfully had a premises vacated on Willoughby Rd," Mr Woodhams said. "The difficulty is gaining evidence to make a case to the Land and Environment Court. "In each year, it could be potentially tens of thousands of dollars in private investigators and legal costs that councils have to bear," he said. North Sydney Council has paid $4800 in investigators' fees to shut down three illegal brothels, with the third case due in the Land and Environment Court next month. Sutherland Shire Council paid $800 for a private investigator to investigate an illegal brothel in October last year. The Community Protection Closure of Illegal Brothels Bill was introduced by former Opposition leader John Brogden and debated in June, 2002, but failed under the Carr government. Liberal MP for Goulburn Peta Seaton introduced a new version of the Private Member's Bill in 2003 but again it was defeated. Opposition leader Peter Debnam told The Sunday Telegraph he would introduce legislation putting the onus of proof back on to brothel operators. ||||| ABC New South Wales | Local News | Story Sydney councillor questions brothel investigation methods Sunday, 21 January 2007. 08:13 (AEDT) Sunday, 21 January 2007. 07:13 (ACST) Sunday, 21 January 2007. 07:13 (AEST) Sunday, 21 January 2007. 08:13 (ACDT) Sunday, 21 January 2007. 06:13 (AWDT) A councillor with Sydney's Willoughby Council says it is worrying councils have had to pay private investigators to have sex with prostitutes, so they can gather enough evidence to shut down illegal brothels. A number of Sydney councils have reportedly paid thousands of dollars in fees to private investigators who visit the brothels and then provide affidavits which are used in court. Councillor Trevor Morgan says it is wrong the burden of proof is on councils to prove that illegal activity is taking place on the site of unlawful brothels. He says councils have no choice but to take such measures. "Unfortunately, sometimes you have to take these courses because the law forces you take it," he said. "The only way to do it is change the law and to give councils the right to enter these premises outside of trading hours and say, 'What is going on with all this set-up of type of premises,' but we can't do it." NSW Opposition MP Peta Seaton says she has twice tried to introduce laws to make it easier for councils to close down brothels. But she says on both occasions Labor has voted against the proposed legislation. "I have put all the evidence that people will be looking at today on the record in Parliament in respect of these and other councils, but in the face of private detective's reports and all the information that's in the media, Labor still voted this down on two occasions," she said. ||||| The NSW Government says it will consider any plan to stop unlicensed brothels from taking advantage of laws that allow them to keep operating illegally. Premier Morris Iemma has encouraged Sydney's North Shore councils, which are battling to close unlicensed brothels that offer unprotected sex, to seek legislative changes from the Government. "The enforcement of this area of the law is with councils," Mr Iemma said. "If the Local Government Association or the councils have got a proposition they wish to put to the Government that would ease their burden on cracking down on the illegal activity then I'm happy to consider that," Mr Iemma said. At least three brothels have been operating illegally in Roseville for nearly two years, Ku-ring-gai Council officials say. The council has spent thousands of dollars trying to shut down the brothels but has failed. Private investigators hired to obtain evidence acceptable to a court have successfully solicited unprotected sex in at least one of the brothels. But when the NSW Health Department approached the brothel proprietors they denied the claims and said they offered massage services, for which they were licensed. Therefore, the council must take action against suspected illegal brothels in the Land and Environment Court. The council said previously the legal process was long and potentially unsuccessful because the suspected brothel owners might shut down and move on before they had to appear in court. Other North Shore councils including Willoughby and Lane Cove have reported to be experiencing similar problems. Nine councils across Sydney have paid private detectives $25,000 to have sex with prostitutes to gather sufficient evidence against illegal brothels, News Ltd reported. AAP ||||| Associated Press SYDNEY - Sydney municipal officials have paid private detectives thousands of dollars to have sex with prostitutes to gather evidence needed to shut down illegal brothels, an Australian newspaper reported Sunday. Nine local councils have paid private investigators the equivalent of C$23,150 over the last three years to go undercover and root out the illicit trade, the Sunday Telegraph newspaper reported. Nick Ebbeck, the mayor of Kuringai council, which is reported to have spent C$6,440 in the last month employing detectives to have sex with prostitutes, said extreme measures were necessary. "We have to employ private investigators to actually go through with the act and come up with reports that will suffice in a court process,'' he was quoted saying "On numerous occasions over numerous days and times they had to fulfil the act.'' He said the evidence given by the investigators was successful in closing two illegal brothels this month. Licensed brothels are legal and relatively common in Sydney but a number of unlicensed premises operate throughout the city. Some councillors have complained the burden of proof for shutting down illegal brothels is too high. | It has been revealed that nine councils in Sydney, Australia have paid AUD$25,000 in investigator's fees over the past three years in order to gather evidence against illegal brothels. ''The Sunday Telegraph'' has reported Ku-ring-gai council paying $7,000 worth of investigators fees in the last month. Mayor Nick Ebbeck said the investigations actually include having sex with prostitutes in order to satisfy courts. "We, like many other councils, have made a decision to pro-actively rid our community of these illegal brothels," said Mr Ebbeck. "We have to employ private investigators to actually go through with the act and come up with reports that will suffice in a court process. "On numerous occasions over numerous days and times they had to fulfill the act." Evidence gathered by investigators has been used to close down two brothels this month. The council is set to look at five more premises at a cost of around $3,500 per case. For the fee, the council is provided with a statement and a detailed account of the encounter. On occasion a video recording is provided. Under New South Wales law, local councils have to bear the onus of proof when dealing with illegal brothels in the state's land and environment court. Willoughby Council has also admitted engaging in the practice. According to ''The Sunday Telegraph'', investigators were paid $1,500 for two visits to prostitutes earlier in the month. Willoughby's Director of Environmental Services said the council solicitor managed brothel investigations. Speaking of the programme's success, Mr Woodhams said over the last "couple of weeks" they were successful in closing a premises on Willoughby Road. He said the difficulty was making a case before the court. "The difficulty is gaining evidence to make a case to the Land and Environment Court," he said. "In each year, it could be potentially tens of thousands of dollars in private investigators and legal costs that councils have to bear." Other councils said to have engaged in the practice are North Sydney and Sutherland Shire. There are a fair number of legally licensed brothels operating in Sydney which adhere to strict guidelines, however there are a number of unlicensed premises which also operate. The New South Wales opposition has introduced legislation twice in recent years to move the onus of proof from councils and onto brothel operators. Peta Seaton, Liberal MP for the Southern Highlands attacked the Labor government for voting against the legislation. "I have put all the evidence that people will be looking at today on the record in Parliament in respect of these and other councils, but in the face of private detective's reports and all the information that's in the media, Labor still voted this down on two occasions," she said. The legislation was voted down in 2002 and 2003 by the Carr-led government. Premier of New South Wales since August 2005, Morris Iemma said he would encourage councils to seek changes from the government but stopped short of announcing his own proposition. "The enforcement of this area of the law is with councils," Mr Iemma said. "If the Local Government Association or the councils have got a proposition they wish to put to the government that would ease their burden on cracking down on the illegal activity then I'm happy to consider that," Mr Iemma said. |
At least 29 people have been killed and 42 more wounded by suicide bombers who attacked two police stations and a hospital in a city northeast of the Iraqi capital Baghdad. Captain Ghalib al-Karkhi said the bombings in the mixed Shia-Sunni Baquba targeted the provincial headquarters, the Iraqi army and a hospital. ||||| Triple bombing kill 32 ahead of Iraqi vote BAGHDAD — Suicide bombers struck in quick succession Wednesday in a former insurgent stronghold northeast of Baghdad, killing at least 32 people just days before a crucial election that will determine who will govern the country as American forces depart. The blasts in Baqouba — including one by a bomber who rode in an ambulance to a hospital and blew himself up there — were the deadliest in more than a month and illustrated the challenges facing Iraqi forces trying to prove they can secure the country after the full withdrawal of U.S. forces by the end of next year. No group immediately claimed responsibility for the bombings but they bore the hallmark of al-Qaida in Iraq, which has promised to violently disrupt Sunday's parliamentary vote and warned Sunnis not to participate in the balloting. Iraqi authorities vowed not to let the insurgents derail the democratic process. "These attacks aim to terrify people from going to polling stations," said Fakhri al-Obaidi, spokesman of the Diyala provincial council in Baqouba. "But I am sure that people will insist on voting." In Washington, Pentagon spokesman Geoff Morrell denounced the bombings but said they would not succeed in disrupting the election, "nor do we anticipate that it will derail our responsible drawdown of forces in Iraq" to 50,000 troops by Sept. 1. The violence began about 9 a.m. with a suicide car bomb that targeted a local government housing office near an Iraqi army facility, police spokesman Capt. Ghalib al-Karkhi said. Within minutes, a second suicide car bomb exploded 200 yards (meters) down the street near the provincial government headquarters near many police and army personnel. It was the final bomber, however, who caused the most casualties, by donning a military uniform, pretending to be wounded and riding an ambulance back to the hospital where he blew himself up, al-Karkhi said. Many of the wounded from the first two bombs were killed in the third attack. Police later safely detonated a fourth car bomb about 220 yards (200 meters) from the hospital in Baqouba, which was once controlled by al-Qaida in Iraq before a series of U.S.-Iraqi offensives led to a drop in violence. Mahmoud Fadil, 50, said he was heading to the electric company's office when the force of the explosion tossed him in the air. "I saw others covered with blood lying on the ground and some crying because of wounds caused by shrapnel and the huge blast," he said. Insurgents often carry out multiple bomb attacks to maximize the number of casualties as rescuers and others rush to the scene to help those affected. Authorities arrested four men suspected of involvement in the bombings and clamped a vehicle ban on the city, 35 miles (60 kilometers) northeast of Baghdad. Wednesday's bombings were the deadliest since Feb. 1, when a female suicide bomber blew herself up among Shiite pilgrims in Baghdad, killing 54 people. The persistent violence has dealt a blow to Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki's efforts to portray himself and his party as the best chance for stability in the wartorn country. Deputy Interior Minister Ayden Khalid told reporters later in Baghdad that security forces expect further attacks but will not allow them to interfere with the vote. Iraqi authorities have vowed to tighten security for the election, including a nationwide vehicle ban, airport closures and the deployment of hundreds of thousands of security forces across the country. Also Wednesday, a senior official in Iraq's Independent High Electoral Commission said the results of Sunday's vote won't be announced quickly because of the time required to collect votes from abroad and to investigate any complaints. He did not estimate when results would be released. In Babil province south of Baghdad, police arrested 33 people for distributing leaflets calling for a boycott of the election because it is "supervised by the Americans," a police official said. He spoke on condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to speak to the media. Associated Press Writers Hamid Ahmed and Muhieddin Rashad contributed to this report. Copyright © 2010 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. | Three suicide bombers in the Iraqi city of Baquba, the capital of the Diyala Governorate, killed at least 29 people earlier today, according to reports, although the Associated Press puts the number at 32. According to Captain Ghalib al-Karkhi, the explosions targeted the provincial headquarters, a hospital, and the Iraqi army. One of the explosions occurred at the headquarters of police, the second near a police checkpoint; a third bomb blew up at the Baquba general hospital. A fourth bomb was later detonated by officials without incident about two hundred metres away from the hospital. Fakhri al-Obaidi, thespokesman of the Diyala provincial council in Baquba, commented on the incidents. "These attacks aim to terrify people from going to polling stations. But I am sure that people will insist on voting," as quoted by the Associated Press. Mahmoud Fadil, aged 50, was a witness to one of the bombings. "I saw others covered with blood lying on the ground and some crying because of wounds caused by shrapnel and the huge blast," he said, noting that the blast was strong enough to lift him up into the air. The attacks come several days before Iraqi parliamentary elections are due on March 7. The explosions were the deadliest bombings in the country since February 1, when a suicide bomber in Baghdad killed 54 people. |
China: the US and EU must present deeper cuts Chinese climate official blames the US, EU and Japan for too low ambitions on emissions cuts. The United States and the European Union (EU) are expected by the Chinese delegation to bring more notable emission reductions targets to the Copenhagen climate talks.At a press conference Tuesday, the Deputy Head of the Chinese delegation, Su Wei (photo above), said neither the US, the EU, nor Japan had offered sufficient cuts in their greenhouse gas emissions by 2020.According to Su Wei, the US target on emissions reduction and the US financial support to developing nations are key to the success of the ongoing climate change conference.Su Wei rejected an EU proposal that the economically advanced developing nations commit to emissions reductions and pay part of the public financing of adaptation and mitigation to climate change in the developing countries.The targets proposed by China were in line with UNFCCC frameworks, Su Wei noted according to the Nigerian daily This Day, and added: “The EU position cannot be justified…. The [Kyoto] protocol among other UNFCCC agreements stipulate clearly what developed and developing countries should do.”According to the Kyoto Protocol no developing nations are committed to emission cuts or sharing of funding for mitigation and adaptation in poor parts of the world. (Photo: Scanpix/AFP) ||||| Draft text divides climate summit Documents leaked at the UN climate summit reveal divisions between industrialised and developing countries over the shape of a possible new deal. Campaigners say a draft text proposed by the Danish host government would disadvantage poorer nations. It also sees everything coming under a single new deal, whereas an alternative text from developing countries wants an extension to the Kyoto Protocol. Other blocs are expected to release their own texts in the next few days. Chairmen of working groups will then have to turn the various documents into a political document that 100-odd world leaders, plus delegates representing all other nations, could sign at the end of the conference. The Danish document, plus the alternative text submitted by the BASIC group (Brazil, South Africa, India and China) were discussed by a small group of key countries in Copenhagen last week. But the Danish proposal had remained under wraps until The Guardian newspaper published it on its website during the second afternoon of the conference. More ambition The documents show that at the broadest level, developed and developing worlds are split on several points: the level of cuts from developed countries the establishment of a target date by which global emissions should peak and begin to fall most fundamentally, the shape of any future deal. The BASIC draft sees emission reductions from developed countries coming under the Kyoto Protocol, whereas the Danish draft envisages all measures coming under a single new agreement. Although this might appear a technical point, developing countries have so far remained adamant on the retention of the protocol because of the measures it contains on financial assistance and technology transfer, and because it is the only legally binding treaty in existence that makes countries reduce emissions. "The only formal texts in the UN process are the ones tabled by the Chairs of this Copenhagen conference at the behest of the parties" The Danish text sets out a vision of greenhouse gas emissions peaking globally by 2020, then declining. It specifies a 50% emissions cut globally (from 1990 levels) by 2050. Most industrialised nations have already pledged an 80% cut in their own emissions. According to some calculations, those figures, when combined with projected population growth in the developing world, mean that per-capita emissions in developing countries will remain below those in the west, "locking in" inequality. Oxfam's Antonio Hill said industrialised nations had to offer bigger cuts than are currently on the table. "The targets need to rise in ambition and in line with what the science says," he told BBC News. "We think that at least 40% (from 1990 levels by 2020) is needed; and even that is not enough to produce equity." However, Mr Hill suggested that measures on transferring finance from industrialised to developing countries - to help them curb their emissions and help them protect against the impacts of climate change - were "quite good". Impossible dream? Other observers, such as Sol Oyuela from the development agency CAFOD, were more damning. "The document should not even exist," she said. "There is a UN legal process which is the official negotiating text; there is no need for any other texts. "To be working on a rival text is a kick in the teeth to the UN process that has been negotiated for so long." Yvo de Boer, executive secretary of the UN climate convention, also said the document had no formal weight within the negotiations. "This was an informal paper ahead of the conference given to a number of people for the purposes of consultations," he said. "The only formal texts in the UN process are the ones tabled by the Chairs of this Copenhagen conference at the behest of the parties." The UK government dissociated itself from the text. "At this stage in the negotiation there's inevitably all sorts of texts doing the rounds and more will no doubt appear over the next 10 days," said a spokesman for the Department for Energy and Climate Change (DECC). "The UK is continuing to strive for the most ambitious deal possible, as the prime minister has made clear again today." Gordon Brown declared earlier that he would favour the EU moving from its current 20% target to 30%, which governments have agreed to do if there is a global deal here. Over the next few days, small island states, least developed countries, the African bloc and the overall G77/China grouping are expected to present their own texts. The small island states are expected to demand a legally binding outcome from Copenhagen, which many insiders say is impossible. Richard.Black-INTERNET@bbc.co.uk Do you have a question for world leaders at Copenhagen? What would you ask them if you were at the summit? Send it to us. The best questions we receive will be answered by a panel of world leaders in a special televised debate. Send your video questions to yourpics@bbc.co.uk, text them to 61124 or if you have a large file you can upload here. Read the terms and conditions Name Your E-mail address Town & Country Phone number (optional): Comments The BBC may edit your comments and not all emails will be published. Your comments may be published on any BBC media worldwide. Terms & Conditions RELATED INTERNET LINKS UNFCCC The BBC is not responsible for the content of external internet sites ||||| “Danish text” raises furore According to The Guardian, developing countries “react furiously” after a draft text allegedly written by the UN conference’s host country was leaked Tuesday. For more than a week a rumour has circulated that Denmark, host of the ongoing UN conference on climate change, has drawn up a compromise text. On the afternoon of the conference’s second day, The Guardian published what it claimed to be this text. The British newspaper also claims to have read “a confidential analysis of the text by developing countries” which “shows deep unease”. “You need to listen to all countries. That’s what democracy is about, and that’s what you have been cheering in Denmark. What your Prime Minister (Lars Løkke Rasmussen) does is contrary to the spirit of the developing aid, which Denmark has provided for Africa through many years,” Lumumba Stanislaus Di-Aping (photo above), chair of the Group of 77, mostly consisting of developing countries, tells Danish daily Politiken. The draft on The Guardian’s website is headlined “The Copenhagen Agreement under the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change”. It gives 2020 as the year in which global emissions should peak, while “acknowledging that developed countries collectively have peaked and that the timeframe will be longer for developing countries.” The text specifies that emissions from developed nations should be reduced by 80 percent by 2050 compared to 1990 levels. It also proposes for an interim reduction target for developed countries by 2020 to be set – meeting a key demand from developing countries. However, so far the figure is just given as “X” – meaning it will not be stated before the high level negotiations next week. A critical issue in the UN negotiations has been whether or not certain developing countries should undertake commitments. Under the present agreement, The Kyoto Protocol, all developing countries are exempted from obligations, but industrialized countries have stressed that this is not feasible in the future. On this issue, the “Danish text” says that “developing countries, except the least developed which may contribute at their own discretion, commit to nationally appropriate mitigation actions.” These commitments are suggested to be given as a percentage – to be negotiated next week – which should be achieved by 2020. However, the percentage should not be compared to present levels, rather to a business-as-usual scenario. According to The Guardian’s sources, developing countries are infelicitous about the new proposed division between the “least developed” and other developing nations. Another point of concern is the draft’s suggestion to transfer more control over the enforcement of the Copenhagen agreement from the UN administration – playing an absolute key role in the Kyoto Protocol – to the World Bank. This move would indirectly shift more control over to the industrialized world. According to Danish daily Berlingske, the leak of the draft at this early stage of the conference is seen as unfortunate by European negotiators: “It is incredibly inappropriate to have this document circulating on paper at this point. It should not have come out until next week,” an unnamed source in the delegation of a European country tells Berlingske. According to Danish daily Jyllands-Posten, a press release from the Danish Climate Ministry denies that the text published by The Guardian is an official Danish proposal for a compromise text. UNFCCC Executive Secretary Yvo de Boer comments in a press release: "This was an informal paper ahead of the conference given to a number of people for the purposes of consultations. The only formal texts in the UN process are the ones tabled by the Chairs of this Copenhagen conference at the behest of the Parties." (Photo of G-77 chair Lumumba Stanislaus Di-Aping: Scanpix/AFP) ||||| The UN Copenhagen climate talks are in disarray today after developing countries reacted furiously to leaked documents that show world leaders will next week be asked to sign an agreement that hands more power to rich countries and sidelines the UN's role in all future climate change negotiations. The document is also being interpreted by developing countries as setting unequal limits on per capita carbon emissions for developed and developing countries in 2050; meaning that people in rich countries would be permitted to emit nearly twice as much under the proposals. The so-called Danish text, a secret draft agreement worked on by a group of individuals known as "the circle of commitment" – but understood to include the UK, US and Denmark – has only been shown to a handful of countries since it was finalised this week. The agreement, leaked to the Guardian, is a departure from the Kyoto protocol's principle that rich nations, which have emitted the bulk of the CO2, should take on firm and binding commitments to reduce greenhouse gases, while poorer nations were not compelled to act. The draft hands effective control of climate change finance to the World Bank; would abandon the Kyoto protocol – the only legally binding treaty that the world has on emissions reductions; and would make any money to help poor countries adapt to climate change dependent on them taking a range of actions. The document was described last night by one senior diplomat as "a very dangerous document for developing countries. It is a fundamental reworking of the UN balance of obligations. It is to be superimposed without discussion on the talks". A confidential analysis of the text by developing countries also seen by the Guardian shows deep unease over details of the text. In particular, it is understood to: • Force developing countries to agree to specific emission cuts and measures that were not part of the original UN agreement; • Divide poor countries further by creating a new category of developing countries called "the most vulnerable"; • Weaken the UN's role in handling climate finance; • Not allow poor countries to emit more than 1.44 tonnes of carbon per person by 2050, while allowing rich countries to emit 2.67 tonnes. Developing countries that have seen the text are understood to be furious that it is being promoted by rich countries without their knowledge and without discussion in the negotiations. "It is being done in secret. Clearly the intention is to get [Barack] Obama and the leaders of other rich countries to muscle it through when they arrive next week. It effectively is the end of the UN process," said one diplomat, who asked to remain nameless. Antonio Hill, climate policy adviser for Oxfam International, said: "This is only a draft but it highlights the risk that when the big countries come together, the small ones get hurting. On every count the emission cuts need to be scaled up. It allows too many loopholes and does not suggest anything like the 40% cuts that science is saying is needed." Hill continued: "It proposes a green fund to be run by a board but the big risk is that it will run by the World Bank and the Global Environment Facility [a partnership of 10 agencies including the World Bank and the UN Environment Programme] and not the UN. That would be a step backwards, and it tries to put constraints on developing countries when none were negotiated in earlier UN climate talks." The text was intended by Denmark and rich countries to be a working framework, which would be adapted by countries over the next week. It is particularly inflammatory because it sidelines the UN negotiating process and suggests that rich countries are desperate for world leaders to have a text to work from when they arrive next week. Few numbers or figures are included in the text because these would be filled in later by world leaders. However, it seeks to hold temperature rises to 2C and mentions the sum of $10bn a year to help poor countries adapt to climate change from 2012-15. Footnote: This article was amended on 9th December 2009. The photograph caption was changed to state that the delegate was resting before the start of the second day talks. • For news and analysis of the UN climate talks in Copenhagen sign up for the Guardian's environment email newsletter Green light ||||| By Richard Black Environment correspondent, BBC News website, Copenhagen The leaked text has overshadowed the first day's upbeat speeches Earth Watch - Richard Black's blog Documents leaked at the UN climate summit reveal divisions between industrialised and developing countries over the shape of a possible new deal. Campaigners say a draft text proposed by the Danish host government would disadvantage poorer nations. It also sees everything coming under a single new deal, whereas an alternative text from developing countries wants an extension to the Kyoto Protocol. Other blocs are expected to release their own texts in the next few days. Chairmen of working groups will then have to turn the various documents into a political document that 100-odd world leaders, plus delegates representing all other nations, could sign at the end of the conference. The Danish document, plus the alternative text submitted by the BASIC group (Brazil, South Africa, India and China) were discussed by a small group of key countries in Copenhagen last week. But the Danish proposal had remained under wraps until The Guardian newspaper published it on its website during the second afternoon of the conference. More ambition The documents show that at the broadest level, developed and developing worlds are split on several points: the level of cuts from developed countries the establishment of a target date by which global emissions should peak and begin to fall most fundamentally, the shape of any future deal. The BASIC draft sees emission reductions from developed countries coming under the Kyoto Protocol, whereas the Danish draft envisages all measures coming under a single new agreement. Although this might appear a technical point, developing countries have so far remained adamant on the retention of the protocol because of the measures it contains on financial assistance and technology transfer, and because it is the only legally binding treaty in existence that makes countries reduce emissions. The only formal texts in the UN process are the ones tabled by the Chairs of this Copenhagen conference at the behest of the parties Yvo de Boer, UNFCCC executive secretary Copenhagen: Your questions The Danish text sets out a vision of greenhouse gas emissions peaking globally by 2020, then declining. It specifies a 50% emissions cut globally (from 1990 levels) by 2050. Most industrialised nations have already pledged an 80% cut in their own emissions. According to some calculations, those figures, when combined with projected population growth in the developing world, mean that per-capita emissions in developing countries will remain below those in the west, "locking in" inequality. CLIMATE CHANGE GLOSSARY Glossary in full Oxfam's Antonio Hill said industrialised nations had to offer bigger cuts than are currently on the table. "The targets need to rise in ambition and in line with what the science says," he told BBC News. "We think that at least 40% (from 1990 levels by 2020) is needed; and even that is not enough to produce equity." However, Mr Hill suggested that measures on transferring finance from industrialised to developing countries - to help them curb their emissions and help them protect against the impacts of climate change - were "quite good". Impossible dream? Other observers, such as Sol Oyuela from the development agency CAFOD, were more damning. "The document should not even exist," she said. Global warming: A future glimpse "There is a UN legal process which is the official negotiating text; there is no need for any other texts. "To be working on a rival text is a kick in the teeth to the UN process that has been negotiated for so long." Yvo de Boer, executive secretary of the UN climate convention, also said the document had no formal weight within the negotiations. "This was an informal paper ahead of the conference given to a number of people for the purposes of consultations," he said. "The only formal texts in the UN process are the ones tabled by the Chairs of this Copenhagen conference at the behest of the parties." The UK government dissociated itself from the text. "At this stage in the negotiation there's inevitably all sorts of texts doing the rounds and more will no doubt appear over the next 10 days," said a spokesman for the Department for Energy and Climate Change (DECC). "The UK is continuing to strive for the most ambitious deal possible, as the prime minister has made clear again today." Gordon Brown declared earlier that he would favour the EU moving from its current 20% target to 30%, which governments have agreed to do if there is a global deal here. Over the next few days, small island states, least developed countries, the African bloc and the overall G77/China grouping are expected to present their own texts. The small island states are expected to demand a legally binding outcome from Copenhagen, which many insiders say is impossible. Richard.Black-INTERNET@bbc.co.uk Do you have a question for world leaders at Copenhagen? What would you ask them if you were at the summit? Send it to us. The best questions we receive will be answered by a panel of world leaders in a special televised debate. Send your video questions to yourpics@bbc.co.uk, text them to 61124 or if you have a large file you can upload here. Read the terms and conditions Name Your E-mail address Town & Country Phone number (optional): Comments The BBC may edit your comments and not all emails will be published. Your comments may be published on any BBC media worldwide. Terms & Conditions Bookmark with: Delicious Digg reddit Facebook StumbleUpon What are these? E-mail this to a friend Printable version ||||| Posted on 08 December 2009 Kim Carstensen, leader of WWF Global Climate Initiative, said a leaked draft Copenhagen climate agreement prepared by the Danish hosts of the summit should be regarded "as a distraction" from the negotiations which should focus on texts that have been worked up in previous negotiating sessions. Copenhagen, Denmark - A leaked draft Copenhagen climate agreement prepared by the Danish hosts of the summit should be regarded "as a distraction" from the negotiations which should focus on texts that have been worked up in previous negotiating sessions, WWF said yesterday.The Guardian newspaper, which published the document and sighted a confidential developing country analysis of it, said the text was a departure from the Kyoto protocol which weakened the pre-eminent role of the UN negotiations.“The behind the scenes negotiations tactics under the Danish Presidency, have been focusing on pleasing the rich and powerful countries rather than serving the majority of states who are demanding a fair and ambitious solution,” said Kim Carstensen, leader of WWF's Global Climate Initiative.“The Danish Prime Minister´s proposed text is weak and reflects a too elitist, selective and non-transparent approach by the Danish presidency.”The Guardian said it was believed the UK and US were involved with Denmark in drawing up the text. WWF has been critical of the Danish Prime Minister for talking down what can be achieved in the Copenhagen talks in recent weeks, and has tracked the growing criticism from both emerging economies and states highly vulnerable to climate change impacts.“We understand and share the frustration of the poor and vulnerable countries," Carstensen said. "We urge the Danish presidency to change its style and move to a cooperative and listening mode."We also believe this was one of the political signals sent by COP President Connie Hedegaard in her opening statement yesterday.”Carstensen said the draft appeared to go in a contrarz direction to months of intense negotiations on text over more than a year.“Focus on the Danish text right now is a distraction from the negotiations that have just resumed for their final phase in Copenhagen," he said. "Talks must focus on the text that has so far been negotiated and not on new texts that are being negotiated in small groups.” | On the third day of the two-week Climate Change Conference in Copenhagen, the leaders of developing countries said that EU and US emissions cuts plans are not enough. After a Danish unofficial draft version of the future treaty leaked, they reacted with a demand of shift of emission cuts to developed world industries. The host Danish government's draft version of a treaty was published by UK newspaper The Guardian without the government's consent. The draft says that "developing countries, except the least developed which may contribute at their own discretion, commit to nationally appropriate mitigation actions". The quantitative consideration in it is that a 50% emissions cut globally (from 1990 levels) by 2050 should be achieved, with most industrialised nations implementing 80% cuts. Deputy Head of the Chinese delegation Su Wei recalled the 1997 Kyoto protocol, which includes the statement "no developing nations are committed to emission cuts or sharing of funding for mitigation and adaptation in poor parts of the world". Su Wei said, "The EU position cannot be justified. The Kyoto protocol among other UNFCCC agreements stipulate clearly what developed and developing countries should do." In an interview with Politiken, a Danish daily broadsheet newspaper, the Chairman of Group of 77 commented on the event, mentioning the previous Denmark-Africa friendly political relations: A member of poverty-focused charity, Oxfam, Antonio Hill commented to the BBC, speaking positively about the idea of transferring finance from industrialised to developing countries — to help them curb their emissions and help them protect against the impacts of climate change. Antonio Hill said that otherwise industrialised nations had to offer considerably bigger cuts. Commentators say the G77 block statements are substantially reasonable, since many of emissions sources are geographically located in developing countries, but owned by citizens of developed countries. Executive secretary of the UNFCCC Yvo de Boer said the document had no weight at the conference: Head of the global climate initiative World Wide Fund for Nature Kim Carstensen commented on the event, pledging not to to distract to the 'Danish text' and to concentrate on subsequent official actions at Copenhagen: |
General John de Chastelain, head of the body overseeing the disarmament, is to give a news conference later with two independent church witnesses. They are Catholic priest Father Alex Reid and ex-Methodist president the Reverend Harold Good. The IRA announced an end to its armed campaign in July. The republican organisation said it would follow a democratic path ending more than 30 years of violence. I think republicans will be saying today that the onus is now very clearly on the shoulders of the DUP and both governments Alex Maskey Sinn Fein Arms story about to unfold Send us your comments Statements are also expected on Monday from the IRA, both governments and Sinn Fein President Gerry Adams. DUP MP Nigel Dodds said: "What we have said all along about decommissioning in the post 9/11 world is this - that it is about building and instilling confidence in the unionist community. "In order to do that, this was a position that all parties and all governments had agreed on - was that it was absolutely vital to have that visual aspect. "That has now gone and it is going to be a lot harder, a lot more difficult and a lot more challenging to get people to accept that what was agreed last December has been set aside and now somehow we are asked to proceed as if that didn't matter." IRA is expected to make a statement on its arms Ulster Unionist leader Sir Reg Empey said General de Chastelain's report must be unambiguous. "Obviously we need to get some greater sense of what has actually occurred instead of the general speaking in code," he said. "One of the steps he could take is to give us an inventory of what has actually been decommissioned and disposed of." SDLP leader Mark Durkan said the British and Irish governments must now move ahead with implementing the Good Friday Agreement. "Trust has been damaged by the IRA's failure to decommission before now and Sinn Fein's arguments that the Agreement didn't even require it," he said. "But the fact is that now it has happened and the evidence is there - if General de Chastelain's statement is clear and supporting evidence is clear - then we can take it to the full." 'Latest round' Sinn Fein's Alex Maskey said this would be a "historic day, not only for republicans but for everyone else in society". "I think republicans will be saying today that the onus is now very clearly on the shoulders of the DUP and both governments," he said. Alliance leader David Ford said he was "encouraged" by the news. However, he said there were "crucial questions" for the republican movement, including whether or not they were prepared "to accept the legitimacy of the northern and southern states with respect to policing and criminal justice". General de Chastelain, Andrew Sens and Tauno Nieminen - the commissioners of the Independent International Commission on Decommissioning - have been in Ireland overseeing the latest round of decommissioning since the beginning of September. BBC NI security editor Brian Rowan said: "My understanding is that at the new conference, the general will tell us that the weapons and explosives put beyond use corresponds and matches the estimates he has been given by the security forces north and south of the border. "We are not going to get an exact inventory. The IRA has something in the region of 1,000 rifles, 550 handguns, and two and a quarter tonnes of Semtex. "He is going to be able to tell us that working on those estimates, he has now got the job of decommissioning done and it is now moving on to the next phase of his work, which is to concentrate on loyalist decommissioning." Professor Paul Bew from Queen's University, Belfast, predicted that any move back to self-government would be a slow process. General John de Chastelain expected to report on arms move "There is a widespread assumption here that it will take time to convince the unionist people of Northern Ireland that Sinn Fein has become a party just like the others. "We are into a period of several months, if not years, of political delay yet." Speaking on Sunday, Northern Ireland Secretary Peter Hain said any move on IRA decommissioning must be credible enough to convince unionists. "The people of Northern Ireland will want to see it actually implemented," he said. He said once unionists knew decommissioning was credible and had been put in place, moves could be made towards restoring devolved government in Northern Ireland. ||||| RTÉ News has learned that the chairman of the decommissioning body, General John de Chastelain, will meet representatives of the Irish and British governments tomorrow to tell them that full decommissioning of IRA weapons has taken place. General de Chastelain will present a detailed inventory of decommissioned weapons to the British and Irish governments before making the list available at a news conference. Two independent witnesses will make a statement at the press conference to say that the promised IRA move has taken place. It is understood the two witnesses are the Catholic priest Fr Alex Reid and Rev Harold Good, a Methodist minister. The IRA arsenal is believed to include Soviet-built surface to air missiles, rocket launchers, heavy machine guns, armour-piercing sniper rifles, three tonnes of Semtex, about 1,000 Kalashnikov AK47 assault rifles and large quantities of handguns. Both governments will make statements tomorrow following General de Chastelain's statement. Sinn Féin Chief Negotiator, Martin McGuinness, has said he believes that Ireland stands on the cusp of a historic advance. He said he was confident that tomorrow would bring the final chapter on the issue of IRA arms. Mr McGuinness also said the IRA move will place a huge responsibility on the leadership of the DUP to re-engage in the political process and on the two governments to implement the Good Friday Agreement. In July, The IRA called an end to its armed campaign and ordered all its units to dump arms. It also ordered its members not to engage in any other activities of any kind. | A report confirming that the IRA has fully decommissioned all of its armaments has been submitted to the British and Irish governments on Monday (September 26, 2005). The Chairman of the decommissioning body, General John de Chastelain met representitives of both governments, before releasing details of the report at a press conference in Belfast. A partial catalogue of the arms stock was included, as well as the statements of two independent observers present at the decommissioning process. The observers are a Catholic priest, and a Methodist minister. Both witnesses stressed their independence and de Chastelain commented that it was clear from their observations that the weapons had been gathered from individuals and put beyond use. De Chastelain refused to be drawn on details of the exact numbers of weapons decommissioned, the IRA having agreed to decommissioning based on confidentiality. The decommissioning panel did make comments that the weapons decommissioned did correspond with the estimates of weapons held, included a mix of new and old weapons, including surface to air missiles and heavy machine guns. General de Chastelain, along with Andrew Sens and Tauno Nieminen, has been in Ireland overseeing this latest round of decommissioning since September. Before now, they had been allowed to witness three acts of decommissioning. However, lack of details in the reports provided afterwards meant that opponents questioned the moves. Statements from both governments, as well as the major Northern Irish political leaders, are expected later on Monday. The IRA announced that it was calling an end to its armed campaign in July, and ordered members not to take part in any other activities. The Unionist paramilitary UDA had withdrawn from the decommissioning after initial talks in 1999. de Chastelain indicated inventory of decommissioned weapons will not be published until full paramilitary decommissioning is complete. ===Initial reactions=== DUP MP Nigel Dodds said that decommissioning was always required for "building and instilling confidence in the unionist community", and that "it was absolutely vital to have that visual aspect." UUP leader Sir Reg Empey said that the report needed to make clear that absolutely all arms had been put beyond use. SDLP leader Mark Durkan said that both governments must now move forward with implementing the Good Friday Agreement. Sinn Fein's Alex Maskey called the day "historic", commenting that the responsibility now rests with the DUP and the governments to move forward. During the press conference, General de Chastelain faced critics who questioned the truthfulness of the process. He responded with "We have no Doubt ... We have nothing to gain by misleading you." |
Health boards in Scotland are paying more than 3000 staff £100,000 a year with more than 800 of those earning more than First Minister Alex Salmond’s salary of almost £140,000. The biggest board, NHS Greater Glasgow and Clyde, has 893 staff taking home more than £100,000, with 181 earning more than the First Minister. It is almost double the number in Lothian, where 455 employees earn more than £100,000. Of those, 138 are paid more than Mr Salmond. The figures were uncovered by the Labour Party in response to Freedom of Information requests. Jackie Baillie, the party’s health spokeswoman, said the pay levels in the 22 boards were astonishing. She said: “We really need to have a hard look at this. In the current economic climate, it is impossible to justify huge salaries for consultants and senior executives when health boards are planning 4000 job losses this year, including 1500 nurses and midwives. “I would urge every health board to examine whether they can make savings by cutting the number of managers and reducing the salaries of top earners. “This is a far better option than cutting frontline staff like nurses and midwives. In tough financial times we need to make sure that our focus is on patient care and every penny is spent in the most efficient way.” Ms Baillie said it did not make sense that the NHS in Scotland employed twice as many managers and administrators per head as the NHS in England. Official figures also show there are 50% more people employed as administrators than there are doctors and nurses in the NHS in Scotland. Ms Baillie said the Scottish Government should address the issue in the Budget by announcing an immediate reduction in the number of special boards, merging some and bringing others back into government or devolving the functions to area health boards. The eight special boards, all of which have their own management structure, are NHS Education, NHS Health Scotland, NHS National Services, NHS 24, NHS Quality Improvement Service, Golden Jubilee, Scottish Ambulance Service and the State Hospital. Ms Baillie said: “I believe that most Scots understand that a country our size doesn’t need 22 separate boards, and by cutting bureaucracy we can free up resources to reinvest in frontline patient care.” Labour also plans to scrap the consultants’ bonus scheme. Unison, the biggest health service union, said there were questions to be asked about the number and scale of the payments. Regional Officer Matt McLaughlin said: “Unison doesn’t begrudge anybody the rate of pay for the job but obviously our membership will be concerned that while they are to face a pay freeze and people delivering frontline services are losing their jobs, there is a cohort of folk who appear to earn more than the most senior politician in the land.” Earlier this month, Health Secretary Nicola Sturgeon announced measures that she said were tougher than anywhere else in the UK to rein in distinction awards to medical consultants. The scheme has been frozen at last year’s cost of £28m and next year will be cut by £2m by not granting new awards when existing recipients retire. ||||| Your account has been frozen . For your available options click the below button. To read this article in full you must be registered with the site. Published Date: 27 November 2010 HEALTH boards in Scotland, including NHS Lothian, are paying hundreds of staff more than £100,000 a year, with many workers earning more than First Minister Alex Salmond. In Lothian 455 staff earn more than £100,000 and 138 more than Mr Salmond's £140,000 but the country's biggest health board, NHS Greater Glasgow and Clyde has almost double that number, with 893. The figures were released under Freedom of Information legislation to the Labour Party. The party's health spokeswoman Jackie Baillie said pay levels across the country's 22 boards were "astonishing" and that it was impossible to justify such big salaries when 4000 job losses are planned. Page 1 of 1 | Over 800 staff in Scotland are earning more than 140,000 each year—more than First Minister Alex Salmond. New figures also reveal that 3,000 NHS workers are earning over £100,000. One NHS board alone, , employs 893 staff earning more than £100,000, and 181 being paid over £140,000. , health spokeswoman for the Labour Party, which uncovered the figures, said they were "astonishing", and urged health boards to examine if savings can be made by reducing salaries of top earners. "This is a far better option than cutting frontline staff like nurses and midwives. In tough financial times we need to make sure that our focus is on patient care and every penny is spent in the most efficient way." She further said: “In the current economic climate, it is impossible to justify huge salaries for consultants and senior executives when health boards are planning 4000 job losses this year, including 1500 and ." Britain's largest health service industrial union, , questioned the amount of money the NHS was paying. A spokesperson said: "Unison doesn’t begrudge anybody the rate of pay for the job but obviously our membership will be concerned that while they are to face a pay freeze and people delivering frontline services are losing their jobs, there is a cohort of folk who appear to earn more than the most senior politician in the land." |
Pakistan confirmed 44 more deaths from novel coronavirus in one day as the nationwide tally of fatal... ||||| GHAZNI, Afghanistan (Reuters) - Taliban insurgents shot dead a South Korean hostage in Afghanistan on Wednesday and threatened to kill 22 others, but a deadline passed without word from the kidnappers or the Afghan government. Acquaintances of the kidnapped South Koreans in Afghanistan react as they watch the news about them on television in Seongnam, south of Seoul, July 25, 2007. REUTERS/Shin Young-geun/Yonhap A Taliban spokesman had said the government had been given until 2030 GMT to release rebels from prison or the remaining 22 Korean Christian volunteers would be killed. “Yes, they have killed one of the hostages and efforts are under way to have the others released,” said the Qarabagh district chief in Ghazni province, Khowja Seddiqi. The body of the Korean was later found with bullet wounds. The Taliban accused the government and South Korean negotiators of failing to act in good faith after Kabul rejected a demand for eight named rebels to be freed from prison. “Since Kabul’s administration did not listen to our demand and did not free our prisoners, the Taliban shot dead a male Korean hostage,” Qari Mohammad Yousuf told Reuters by telephone from an unknown location. “If the administration of Kabul is not ready to release our hostages, then by 1 a.m. (local time) the rest of the hostages will be killed,” he said. “That time is the last deadline.” DESERT AREA Yousuf said the Korean hostage had been killed in a desert area in the Qarabagh district of Ghazni close to where the 23 Korean church volunteers — 18 women and five men — were abducted on the main road south from Kabul last week. He rejected Korean media reports that the Taliban planned to free eight of the captives. Afghan President Hamid Karzai has pledged not to swap prisoners for hostages after being criticized at home and abroad for releasing five Taliban from jail in March in exchange for an Italian reporter. But the president and ministers have remained silent throughout the latest hostage ordeal. The kidnappings have made travel outside major cities risky for the thousands of foreign aid workers and U.N. staff in Afghanistan and may weaken support for military involvement among the more than 30 nations with troops in the country. In the past 18 months there has been rising violence in Afghanistan, with daily clashes between Taliban insurgents and Afghan and foreign troops. Suicide and roadside bomb attacks have spread to areas previously considered safe. A NATO soldier was killed on Wednesday in a rocket-propelled grenade attack, the alliance said. A French and a British soldier were also killed in two other separate attacks. Anxious family members of the Korean hostages gathered at the offices of a non-governmental agency in Seoul to follow developments on television. Sounds of crying emerged when the news came out that one of the hostages had been killed. About 1,000 people went to the church, which sent the volunteers to Afghanistan, to pray for their safe return, the broadcaster YTN reported. Elsewhere in Afghanistan, a German journalist reported to have been kidnapped denied he had been abducted. Slideshow (9 Images) But a German and four Afghans seized last week are in Taliban captivity. The body of a second German with the group was found with gunshot wounds. Germany has rejected a Taliban demand that it withdraw its 3,000 troops from Afghanistan. ||||| Taliban militants shot dead a South Korean hostage today after a deadline for their demands passed, a spokesman said. The body of the hostage was recovered in central Afghanistan, a police officer who discovered the victim said. According to the officer, the man had been repeatedly shot in the head, chest and stomach, and was discovered in the Mushaki area of Qarabagh district, in Ghazni province. Qari Yousef Ahmadi, who claims to speak for the militants, told agencies that one of the 23 hostages had been killed at around 4pm local time (12.30pm BST). Mr Yousef told Reuters that the militants would kill the remaining hostages unless demands were met by a new deadline. "If the administration of Kabul is not ready to release our hostages, then by 1am the rest of the hostages will be killed," he told Reuters. "That time is the last deadline." A police official said militants told him the hostage was sick and could not walk, and was therefore shot. A number of other South Korean hostages were freed and taken to a US base in Ghazni, western officials said. The officials did not know how many had been freed. A South Korean news agency, Yonhap, said eight Koreans had been freed, citing unnamed Korean officials. An Afghan official involved in the negotiations earlier said a large sum of money would be paid to free eight of the hostages. Mr Yousef said previously that patience with the authorities was "running out" after Kabul failed to meet their demands to release eight Taliban prisoners by yesterday. South Korea's foreign minister, Song Min-soon, said the hostages were being held in different locations and a "safe release may not be necessarily matched by a quick release". Ali Shah Ahmadzai, the provincial police chief, said he thought talks had been positive and the new threat was a surprise. "I don't know why they've suddenly changed their mind," Mr Ahmadzai said. "My message to the Taliban is to use tolerance and be patient. This [killing of hostages] is against the Afghan culture." The hostages, including 18 women, were kidnapped last Thursday while travelling on a bus through Ghazni province on the Kabul-Kandahar highway, Afghanistan's main thoroughfare. South Korean negotiators have travelled to Ghazni province to take part in the negotiations. Three previous deadlines over the hostages' lives have passed with no consequences. Mr Yousuf told Reuters: "We had assurance from the Koreans that Kabul will release Taliban prisoners in batches and we will reciprocate. "We gave them eight Taliban names and they should have been freed by 7pm yesterday, but nothing happened. "The Koreans should put pressure on Kabul on this for there is the risk that at any moment, any time something can happen to the hostages. If by two o'clock today, the Taliban are not freed, then some of them will probably be killed. Our patience is running out." In a separate case, a German journalist and his Afghan translator were reported to have been briefly abducted. The news magazine Stern said one of its reporters, who had been on holiday in Afghanistan, may have been taken. Both were later reported to have been freed and there was confusion about whether anyone had been forcibly seized. · A French soldier was killed in a rocket attack on an Afghan army base southwest of Kabul, the French defence ministry said today. The attack occurred in the province of Wardak where the non-commissioned officer was training a unit of the Afghan army. France has around 1,100 soldiers in Afghanistan, mainly in the Kabul region. | Afghanistan police have recovered the bullet-ridden body of a South Korean evangelical priest, who was among 23 aid-workers held hostage by the Taliban. Earlier reports that at least 8 other hostages were released are now being denied. "I can confirm that one of the hostages has been killed by the Taliban," said head of the Afghan delegation in charge of the hostage negotiations, Waheedullah Mujadadi who also added that he could not confirm the release of the other 8 hostages. "Since Kabul's administration did not listen to our demand and did not free our prisoners, the Taliban shot dead a male Korean hostage," told Reuters via telephone. "If the administration of Kabul is not ready to release our hostages, then by 1.00 a.m. the rest of the hostages will be killed," he continued. "That time is the last deadline." Yousuf said the hostage was killed in district of . Reports claim he was shot ten times. ''Associated Press'' cited two Western officials when reporting that some of the 23 hostages had been released. One of the officials, who spoke on the condition of anonymity, said six women and two men had been taken to the main United States base in Ghazni. "Talks continue but no one has been freed so far,” said Ghazni governor Mirajuddin Pattan. Taliban spokesperson Yousuf said the claim of a release was "government propaganda." |
Five Aboard Station as Handover Begins The International Space Station's population swelled to five Sunday with the arrival of Expedition 11 and an Italian astronaut. + View launch photos Image to left: Expedition 10 and 11 crewmembers gather on the Station to talk with officials on the ground after docking. Photo Credit: NASA TV A Russian Soyuz spacecraft delivered the new Expedition 11 crew -- Commander Sergei Krikalev and NASA ISS Science Officer John Phillips -- and European Space Agency Astronaut Roberto Vittori of Italy. Krikalev and Phillips will spend about six months aboard the Space Station. Vittori will spend eight days, returning to Earth with the Expedition 10 crew. The Expedition 10 crewmembers -- Commander Leroy Chiao and Cosmonaut Salizhan Sharipov -- have lived aboard the Station since October. During a news conference Monday, Chiao expressed satisfaction with their mission. "All of our major objectives have been accomplished," Chiao said. "The Station is in good shape. We're ready to come home." Chiao, Sharipov and Vittori will leave the Station April 24 in the Soyuz that brought Expedition 10 to the orbiting laboratory. Their landing is scheduled for 6:08 p.m. EDT that day in Kazakhstan. + Read more about Expedition 11 + Read more about Expedition 10 ||||| SPACE Canadian astronaut Thirsk bound for International Space Station Astronaut will stay at station for 6 months on his second trip into space Canadian astronaut Robert Thirsk seen during training at the Baikonur cosmodrome in Kazakhstan on May 16, 2009. (AP Photo)Just when most Canadians are preparing to break out the barbecue, astronaut Robert Thirsk will be saying goodbye to fresh food, swimming pools and sunshine until November. Thirsk is a member of a six-person crew that will live on the International Space Station for six months. On May 27, he and two other crewmates are scheduled to launch from Kazakhstan to join the other three already aboard the station. This will be Thirsk's second trip into space, and the first time a Canadian has participated in a long space mission. Endurance will be tested Many people think being an astronaut is a glamorous career, but Thirsk says he's heard from his colleagues that life on the space station is anything but. "Living aboard a space station is not like living in a four-star hotel," Thirsk told the CBC News in a February 2008 interview. He is currently sequestered at NASA in preparation for his mission and was unavailable for interviews. He'll sleep in a bunk the size of a telephone booth, drink water that comes from recycled sweat and urine, and eat freeze-dried food. A major goal of the mission, dubbed Expedition 20/21 by NASA, is to test the endurance of the human body in space. Scientists hope to use the information to one day build space colonies on the moon and Mars. European Space Agency astronaut Frank De Winne of Belgium (left), Russian cosmonaut Roman Romanenko, center, and Canadian astronaut Robert Thirsk, right, gesture before their final preflight practical examination in a mock-up of a Soyuz TMA space craft at the Russian Space Training Center in Star City outside Moscow on May 6, 2009. (Mikhail Metzel/AP)The International Space Station is in the final stages of an 11-year construction project. Fifteen nations are partners in the orbiting laboratory. This mission will be the first time six people will live on the station for such a long time. In addition to performing scientific experiments and repairing and maintaining the station, Thirsk will be the crew's medical officer and a robotics specialist. One robotics experiment he'll perform will be to control a small, wheeled rover from the station. The rover, nicknamed Red, will ride around a dusty back lot near the Canadian Space Agency's headquarters in Montreal. A rover on Mars could be controlled from the space station in a similar way. (Robotics in space are often operated from Earth, but this will be the first time a robot on Earth has been controlled from space.) Canadian contributions Thirsk says being Canadian helped him get chosen for the space station mission. Canada's main contribution to the space station is its robotic arm, called the Canadarm 2, and NASA holds Canada's medical schools in high esteem. But Thirsk has a lot more going for him than just citizenship. At 55, he's obtained degrees in mechanical engineering from the University of Calgary and MIT, as well as a doctorate in medicine from McGill and an MBA from MIT's Sloan School of Management. Since beginning training for the astronaut program in 1984, Thirsk has taken part in a number of rigorous missions and simulations. He lived under the ocean off the coast of Florida for 11 days as the crew commander in a mission simulation. He's served as the communications link between the ground and astronauts for the International Space Station. And he's already made one trip to space in 1996, when he served as a payload specialist on a space shuttle mission. 'A Canadian typically knows an awful lot about the hockey teams and the hockey players, but I was unusual in that I knew just as much about the early astronauts and cosmonauts.'—Canadian astronaut Robert Thirsk Born in New Westminster, B.C., Thirsk says he was inspired to become an astronaut as a child by following the American space race to put a man on the moon. "A Canadian typically knows an awful lot about the hockey teams and the hockey players, but I was unusual in that I knew just as much about the early astronauts and cosmonauts," he said in an interview with NASA. He stumbled into his extraordinary career in a surprisingly ordinary way: By responding to a newspaper ad. When Canada started its space program, it placed ads in major newspapers saying it was looking for astronaut volunteers and listing the qualifications required. A dream come true Thirsk realized he was a match. "These dreams that I had of being an astronaut when I followed the careers of John Glenn and Neil Armstrong came flooding back to me," he told NASA. "So my application was in the next day." There has been a price associated with Thirsk's ambition. He's married with three children and says spending six months away from his family will be hard. His wife and each of his children are having special rings designed that he will take with him on the mission, he said at a press conference aired May 7 on Russia Today TV. He'll also be saying goodbye to bone density and muscle mass, which degrade in a manner similar to osteoporosis in the space station's low gravity environment. To combat this, he'll be taking nutritional supplements and exercising for two and a half hours a day. But the challenge is part of what drives the crew, Thirsk told CBC News in the 2008 interview. "It's only in those situations where you are able to realize what your own weakness and strengths are and the weaknesses and strengths of your astronaut colleagues as well, and then work as a team to meet everyone's needs." ||||| BAIKONUR, Kazakhstan – A Russian space capsule blasted off Wednesday into the searing hot afternoon skies of Central Asia on a landmark mission to expand the permanent human presence in space. The Soyuz craft carrying Canadian Bob Thirsk, Russian Roman Romanenko and Belgian Frank De Winne soared above Kazakhstan's southern steppe to begin a two-day journey to the international space station the largest man-made object in the earth's orbit. Hundreds of journalists, relatives, visiting space enthusiasts and dignitaries, including Crown Prince Philippe of Belgium, thronged in and around two rickety wooden viewing stands a mile (1.5 kilometers) away, taking pictures and applauding as the rocket's propulsion system shook the earth. Liftoff was on schedule at 4:34 p.m. local time (1034 GMT; 6:34 a.m. EDT) from the Russian-leased Baikonur cosmodrome, despite fears that windy weather earlier would delay the launch. The capsule is expected to dock with the space station Friday. The three astronauts on the Soyuz will join the three crew members already on the station, forming a six-member permanent crew for the first time. Thirsk's 81-year-old mother, Eva, beamed with delight and her voiced wavered as she spoke of her joy at the successful start to her son's second mission in space. "He's doing what he wants to do. And he's so happy about it, and I'm so happy for him," she said. Thirsk, 55, stands to become the first Canadian to spend six months in space, easily outstripping other Canadian astronauts and his own previous 17-day trip on the space shuttle Columbia in 1996. In another first, De Winne, 48, will become the first European Space Agency astronaut to take command of the station when he takes over from Russian Gennady Padalka in October. "It is quite an achievement," said Belgium's Philippe. "He represents Europe, he represents Belgium, he represents international collaboration for peaceful application of science." Romanenko, 37, is the second Russian to follow his father into space. Yuri Romanenko, who flew as a space commander in the 1970s and 1980s, also attended the launch. International space officials and astronauts praised it. "The Russians do a magnificent record of taking people to space and back," Canadian astronaut Chris Hadfield said. "They don't have a launch window, they don't have launch date, they have a launch second." The Soyuz capsule will be hooked to the space station until it is used in the future by astronauts returning to Earth. The newest crew members will further consolidate the international credentials of the space station, which is currently occupied by Padalka, U.S. astronaut Michael Barratt and Japan's Koichi Wakata. Speaking at a news conference on the eve of the launch, De Winne hailed the strengths of the international approach to space exploration. "To maintain six people onboard by one single nation in a space station would be impossible," he said. Experts also say the enlarged crew will allow for greater advances in scientific research. "The kinds of science, the amount of science all of that is going to be expanded once we get our feet planted with the six people onboard," NASA spokesman Rob Navias said. Canada's space agency has planned a dozen experiments to study the effects of weightlessness on the human body. Equipment for a number of European experiments is awaiting a launch on a shuttle in August. More people in space will also mean more trash, however, and Russian, European and Japanese agencies are mobilizing a range of transportation vehicles to smoothly transfer material to and from the station. Astronauts from the U.S. space shuttle Endeavour worked late last year to remodel and expand the station, delivering a new bathroom, a kitchenette, an exercise machine, two sleeping quarters and a recycling system that converts astronauts' urine and sweat into drinking water. ___ On the Net: NASA: http://www.nasa.gov/topics/shuttle_station (This version CORRECTS Corrects spelling to Navias sted Navius. Other minor edits.) | Launch of an earlier Soyuz mission. At 10:34 UTC (4:34 p.m. local time) Wednesday, a Russian carrier rocket launched from at the in Kazakhstan, with the spacecraft, on a to the (ISS). Aboard were three crew members, of the (RSA), Belgian of the (ESA) and of the (CSA). Crew of the From left to right; Thirsk, Romanenko and De Winne The launch was almost cancelled due to strong winds and the threat of swine flu carried by a journalist however, the flight was just delayed by eight hours. "The Russians do a magnificent record of taking people to space and back. They don't have a launch window, they don't have launch date, they have a launch second," said Chris Hadfield, a Canadian astronaut. It will be a two day journey to the ISS with the crew expecting to arrive on Friday. Then there will be six crew members aboard the ISS who will represent all five global space agencies; (NASA), , RSA, ESA and CSA. Thirsk will spend six months aboard the ISS, "It's only in those situations where you are able to realize what your own weakness and strengths are and the weaknesses and strengths of your astronaut colleagues as well, and then work as a team to meet everyone's needs." Romanenko follows his father's footsteps, Yuri Romanenko, into space. The rollout of Soyuz TMA-15 on May 25, 2009 DeWinne will become the ISS commander in October following . "It is quite an achievement," said , "He represents Europe, he represents Belgium, he represents international collaboration for peaceful application of science." |
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