palashcbiswas,
gostokanan, sodepur, kolkata-700110 phone:033-25659551
From: "PWAP@yahoogroups.com" <PWAP@yahoogroups.com>
To: PWAP@yahoogroups.com
Sent: Wednesday, 22 July, 2009 16:06:13
Subject: PEOPLE'S WATCH ANDHRA PRADESH Digest Number 760[1 Attachment]
Messages In This Digest (25 Messages)
- 1.
- IRAQ Bishop of Baghdad: "Christians, do not be afraid", but the fear From: marco.pertoni@libero.it
- 2.
- Moroccans in Holland are most unhappy From: marco.pertoni@libero.it
- 3.
- Milan bans alcohol for minors. Other cities expected to follow suit From: marco.pertoni@libero.it
- 4.
- TERROR CURVE Sharpest to ENVELOP Hillary Arms and MONSOON Premier of From: palashc biswas
- 5.
- Gunfight breaks out on Gaza border/other news From: marc samberg
- 6.
- INDIA Inquiry into confessional polarisation a pretext against relig From: marco.pertoni@libero.it
- 7.
- INDIA - UNITED STATES No US-India agreement on climate but deals on From: marco.pertoni@libero.it
- 8.
- FINLAND Violence in Immigrant Families a Tough Nut to Crack From: marco.pertoni@libero.it
- 9.
- Saudi princess given asylum in UK over fears she faces execution for From: marco.pertoni@libero.it
- 10.
- SA - Women in polygamous marriages can now inherit - ruling From: marco.pertoni@libero.it
- 11.
- India and the US: A Good Thing From: marco.pertoni@libero.it
- 12.
- SRI LANKA - PRESIDENT REJECTS WAR CRIMES ALLEGATIONS From: Priyadarsi Dutta
- 13.
- Anti torture bill - our proposal From: Kirity Roy
- 14.
- GM Crop Hazards+Indian against environment barriers in trade+Seeds B From: Indian Society For Sustainable Agricultur
- 15.
- BANGLADESH Bangladesh, a minor pregnant after rape: beaten and force From: marco.pertoni@libero.it
- 16.
- IRAN Ahmadinejad now wants control of who uses the internet From: marco.pertoni@libero.it
- 17.
- TIBET - CHINA Lawyer ejected because of "no use": monk sentenced to From: marco.pertoni@libero.it
- 18.
- FRANCE: 2,000 JEWS TO LEAVE COUNTRY FOR ISRAEL IN 2009 From: marco.pertoni@libero.it
- 19.
- LEBANON: ANTI-UNIFIL TERROR CELL DISMANTLED From: marco.pertoni@libero.it
- 20.
- MIDEAST:PRESS, ISRAELI ARMY PREPARE TO DISMANTLE 23 OUTPOSTS From: marco.pertoni@libero.it
- 21.
- Afghanistan: Italian defence minister rules out troop withdrawal From: marco.pertoni@libero.it
- 22.
- FW: What Christians (and others) Don't know About Israel by Grace Ha From: Alex James
- 23.
- Pakistan: Swat Taliban leader vows to seize assets of pro-army 'trai From: marco.pertoni@libero.it
- 24.
- CHINA China takes hard line against Uyghurs, local authorities to ad From: marco.pertoni@libero.it
- 25.
- Elephant stampede causes torture From: Harshi Perera
Messages
- 1.
-
IRAQ Bishop of Baghdad: "Christians, do not be afraid", but the fear
Posted by: "marco.pertoni@libero.it" marco.pertoni@libero.it sitrep_comalp
Wed Jul 22, 2009 2:45 am (PDT)
07/20/2009 11:33
IRAQ
Bishop of Baghdad: "Christians, do not be afraid", but the fear of a new exodus remains
Bishop Shlemon Warduni emphasizes the "high participation of the faithful" in Sunday services, which took place without incident, but does not hide the risk of a "new exodus from the country." The prelate asks the central government for "guarantees of safety" and the Christian community "to pursue the value of unity".
Baghdad (AsiaNews) - The Iraqi Christian community "attended Sunday mass regularly", despite a "climate of fear for possible new attacks". "I asked the faithful to have courage", but the "fear" of a possible "new exodus of Christians from Iraq" remains. Mgr. Shlemon Warduni, auxiliary bishop of Baghdad, speaks to AsiaNews one week from attacks - July 12 last - that targeted several churches in the country, in Baghdad and Mosul.
"It went well", commented Msgr. Warduni. "There was a high level of participation among the faithful, both in the morning and evening masses, which recorded only a slight decline" The prelate urged the Christian community "to come to mass" and the faithful "responded with courage. "
In recent days a feeling of "powerlessness and despair" is spreading among Christians, which could lead to a new mass exodus. To everyday problems, such as unemployment, concerns over restarting businesses after years of war, fear over the recent wave of violence is added. Msgr. Warduni does not hide the danger of "a new exodus of Christians from Iraq" and says that "this feeling of fear, fuelled by deaths, injuries and destruction is normal". "I asked the faithful to stay - he said - but we must also give them security guarantees, job opportunities, a future. Without these basic prerequisites, what can we say to them?".
In Mosul, the Christian community condemns the lack of a strong position after the attack on the church of Our Lady of Fatima, 13 July. Maroan Bhnam, a Christian in Mosul approached by the Arabic website Ankawa.com, wonders why "neither of the two Christian representatives in the Council" issued a statement of condemnation. He added that the representatives of other communities in the event of attacks, have "raised their voice: from the Christians nothing". Aiub Ibrail says he is "surprised" at the absence of the "local tv Moussalia, the first to film the scene of attacks. " Amer Petros wants "representatives who can be relied on".
Sources for AsiaNews in Mosul confirmed the deployment of forces around churches; the police has set up several check points to ensure regular Sunday celebrations.
The climate of distrust and general insecurity has led to the re-emergence of the project related to the plain of Nineveh, the establishment of a Christian enclave in the north. It would become a buffer zone between Kurds and Arabs and is opposed, with some distinction, by the majority of Christian leaders. Based on humanitarian grounds and security, it actually hides beneath the surface economic interests and a series of attractive business deals for the construction of housing.
"We must pursue the supreme value of Christian unity - concludes Msgr. Warduni - because it is the only guarantee of salvation for the community in the country". The prelate calls for the creation of a "strong" Christian leadership, which defends the interests of the people "working in conjunction with the Iraqi central government".
http://www.asianews .it/index. php?l=en& art=15827& size=A
- 2.
-
Moroccans in Holland are most unhappy
Posted by: "marco.pertoni@libero.it" marco.pertoni@libero.it sitrep_comalp
Wed Jul 22, 2009 2:46 am (PDT)
Moroccans in Holland are most unhappy
Monday 20 July 2009
Moroccan immigrants in the Netherlands are the least happy of any Moroccan immigrants in Europe and their children are even more dissatisfied, the NRC reports on Monday.
The paper says a survey by an organisation called the Council of the Moroccan Community Abroad concludes that the relationship between society as a whole and second generation Moroccan immigrants is 'significantly more tense' than in other countries.
The researchers looked at the position of Moroccan immigrants in the Netherlands, Belgium, Germany, France, Italy, and Spain.
In Europe as a whole, 50% of immigrants and their children said they felt rejected by society but in the Netherlands almost two-third said they were sidelined.
The survey also showed that while second generation immigrants are less likely to attend mosques than their parents, in the Netherlands children are more likely than their parents to actively practice religion.
In June, a poll for NCRV television showed the rise in support for anti-Islam politician Geert Wilders had led many Dutch Muslims to consider emigrating.
While 75% of Dutch Muslims said they still feel at home in the Netherlands, 57% said they feel less welcome and 51% are thinking more often about leaving.
Wilders described that poll as 'good news'.
http://www.dutchnew s.nl/news/ archives/ 2009/07/moroccan s_in_holland_ are_most. php
- 3.
-
Milan bans alcohol for minors. Other cities expected to follow suit
Posted by: "marco.pertoni@libero.it" marco.pertoni@libero.it sitrep_comalp
Wed Jul 22, 2009 2:47 am (PDT)
2009-07-20 15:28
Milan bans alcohol for minors
Other cities expected to follow suit
(ANSA) - Milan, July 20 - Milan became the first Italian city to ban minors under 16 from buying or consuming alcohol when a new ordinance came into force on Monday.
Mayor Letizia Moratti has introduced the measures to combat a relatively new phenomenon among Italian youths: binge drinking and public drunkenness.
While minors under the age of 16 cannot be served alcohol under Italian law, there is no legal age limit for purchasing alcohol.
But under the new ordinance in Milan, shopkeepers will be fined if they are caught selling alcohol to minors, while there will also be a crackdown on bars and restaurants.
Under-16s caught drinking alcohol will meanwhile have their parents to deal with, who will be sent a 450-euro fine.
''It's not punitive. The aim is to send a message to young people and their families and to remind them that alcohol is bad for them,'' Moratti said.
Milan bar owners were largely supportive of the ban, but they said they were not convinced the measure would prevent underage drinking altogether.
''We'll ask to see their documents, but the problem is that the older teenagers will buy drinks for the younger ones, and that will be very difficult to control,'' said Gianluca Corziatto, owner of the Ganas bar.
Gianpiero Comini of the Carlsberg Bar and Pizzeria agreed, saying it would be ''hard to check among a table of 30 or 40 people that nobody is buying alcohol for anyone under 16''.
Milan teenagers were also dismissive of the measures, with some confirming the bar owners' fears.
''This ordinance is useless,'' said 15-year-old Clara. ''There are other ways of going crazy that don't involve alcohol and these measures will just encourage young people to transgress. It doesn't change anything for me, my older friends buy drinks for me,'' she said.
Criticism also came from the other end of the country, as Milan's former culture chief and prominent art critic Vittorio Sgarbi, currently mayor of the small Sicilian town of Salemi, described the initiative as ''idiotic'' and invited young people to Salemi where they could ''drink freely''.
Sgarbi claimed the ban was harmful to the Italian wine industry, while it was ''Coca-Cola and Fanta that need to be banned''.
''We need to educate young people to drink Italian wines and not spirits. Limiting wine is like limiting bread,'' he said.
Milan Deputy Mayor Riccardo De Corato said he ''would not dignify'' Sgarbi's comments with a reply.
OTHER CITIES CONSIDER FOLLOWING SUIT.
Premier Silvio Berlusconi has praised the Milan initiative as an ''excellent idea'' and said he hoped it serves as an example to be followed elsewhere.
The Sicilian town of Caltagirone said Monday it would follow in Milan's footsteps, announcing fines of between 50 and 250 euros for shopkeepers who sell alcohol to minors, although it stopped short of fining families. ''We are well aware that this will not resolve the problem of under-age drinking, but together with other initiatives it will be a step in the right direction,'' Mayor Francesco Pignataro said. Other cities including Pavia, Bergamo and Ravenna are said to be considering similar bans.
However, Rome Mayor Gianni Alemanno has dismissed the initiative, and on Monday Venice Mayor Massimo Cacciari did likewise, describing it as a politically motivated publicity stunt.
''It will be practically impossible to enforce,'' said Cacciari, who has spearheaded a huge 'urban decorum' crackdown in Venice that has included banning tourists from picknicking in St Mark's square and wandering around shirtless.
''What can a city council do? Put a policeman in every bar from eight in the evening to midnight? It seems to me that it hasn't been thought through''. Saverio Romano, an MP for the opposition centrist UDC party, has meanwhile announced he will present a bill in parliament that would ban the purchase and consumption of alcohol by minors at a national level.
According to a recent report from the health ministry, 20% of Italian children between the ages of 11 and 15 are at risk from alcohol abuse, while in the 11-17 age bracket some 740,000 minors are drinking too much.
http://www.ansa. it/site/notizie/ awnplus/english/ news/2009- 07-20_120393567. html
- 4.
-
TERROR CURVE Sharpest to ENVELOP Hillary Arms and MONSOON Premier of
Posted by: "palashc biswas" palashcbiswas@yahoo.co.uk palashcbiswas
Wed Jul 22, 2009 3:09 am (PDT)
TERROR CURVE Sharpest to ENVELOP Hillary Arms and MONSOON Premier of Drought and the Winning Pack
Troubled Galaxy Destroyed Dreams, chapter 290
Palash Biswas
Fresh News
General Kapoor to visit US from July 20-25
Sify - ‎Jul 16, 2009‎
Taking Indo-US strategic partnership to a higher level for synergized and concerted
efforts to combat the scourge of global terrorism and to bring peace
and ...
Army chief to visit US next week Times of India
Army chief to visit US next week Hindu
Army chief to Antony: Don't block gun trials Business Standard
AHN - SINDH TODAY
all 30 news articles »
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Deccan Herald
First day on job, US envoy Tim Roemer meets Menon
Times of India - ‎Jul 17, 2009‎
She also reiterated the Obama administration' s commitment to the Indo-US civil nuclear agreement but said she would like to discuss with Indian leaders the ...
US envoy designate Roemer meets Foreign Secretary Menon Gaea Times
all 37 news articles »
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SamayLive
'Partnership with US vital to achieve developmental goals'
Hindu Business Line - ‎Jul 13, 2009‎
She said that Indo-US relations have undergone a historic transformation over the course of the past decade. Ms Shankar said both the US President, ...
Nuke deal transformed Indo-US relationship: Indian Ambassador to US Indian Express
Embassy Row Washington Times
Market Watch
Graphs
Stocks
Sensex Nifty http://profit. ndtv.com/ 2009/07/14230452 /India-Incs- rain-hopes. html
70 p.c. of defence equipment being imported, says Antony
New Delhi (PTI): Defence Minister A K
Antony on Monday said it was "unfortunate and painful" that 70 per cent
of defence equipment was still being imported and informed the Lok
Sabha that government was working towards manufacturing
state-of-the- art equipment indigenously.
"It is unfortunate and painful that 70 per cent of defence equipment is still being imported," he said during the Question Hour.
Mr. Antony said till India reached a
stage where it could provide state-of-the- art equipment, it would have
to rely on imports. "If Indian products are not of state-of the art
quality, using them would be dangerous," he said.
The defence minister said his ministry
had decided to accord first priority to Indian public and private
companies which are able to provide such equipment.
In reply to a question on whether there
was a time-frame by when India would become self-sufficient in defence
production, Mr. Antony hoped the process would be "speeded up".
He said the procurement policy would be reviewed annually.
Minister of State of Defence, Vincent
Pala conceded that there were deficiencies in bullet proof jackets but
said these were not "sub-standard" .
On the issue of delay in buying defence
equipment, Mr. Antony said a committee has been constituted for the
purpose and given financial powers which were till now vested with the
defence minister.
"We should understand that we are a
democracy and have a system and procedure (for procurement of
weapons)," he said, responding to Naveen Jindal (Cong) who said the
forces were still using World War II vintage weapons while Pakistan and
Bangladesh had better arms. In reply to a query by Lalu Prasad
(RJD), Mr. Antony said there was an "inordinate delay" in starting the
Ordnance Factory set up at Rajgir in Bihar during the NDA regime, but
added that it would be expedited now.
tates Affected by Drought
http://www.mapsofin dia.com/maps/ mapinnews/ 03052000. htm
Image results for Drought in India - Report imagesReport the following images as offensive. Confirm CancelThank you for the feedback.
* INDIA NEWS
* JULY 14, 2009, 1:15 A.M. ET
No Signs of Drought in India
Dow Jones Newswires
NEW
DELHI -- There are no signs of drought in India despite below-normal
monsoon rains, a senior meteorological official told the CNBC-TV18
television channel Tuesday.
"July is the rainiest month in terms of quantity. If we get more
than 90% (of long period average), it will be good," said A. Mazumdar,
a senior official of the India Meteorological Department.
India's four-month-long annual monsoon is crucial for summer-sown crops as 60% of the agricultural area is rain-fed.
Write to Dow Jones Newswires editors at asknewswires@ dowjones. com http://online. wsj.com/article/ SB12475482479173 7459.html
No plan for drought-proofing the economy
17 Jul 2009, 0151 hrs IST,
In
June, from peasants to the prime minister's office, everyone was praying for
rains. In July, their prayers seem to be heard, and some catching
up of delayed
monsoon has occurred. But still, the cumulative rainfall of the country from
June 1 to July 9, was deficient by 34% from its Long Period Average (LPA) of 89
cms measured over a fifty-year period of 1941-90.
It is strange that
while we boast of resilience of Indian economy from global financial shocks, yet
a 15-day delay in monsoon can send jitters to policymakers. The reason for this
paradox is the huge under-investment in water resources, as also the almost
complete lack of institutional and pricing reforms in the water sector,
including power for irrigation.
Indian agriculture is still
considered a gamble in monsoons as about 60% of cropped area remains rainfed.
This need not be so, and the fate of Indian peasants can change in just five
years if the policymakers decide to scale up investments in the irrigation
sector, from rainwater harvesting schemes to small and medium, and even large,
irrigation schemes to, say, Rs 40,000 crore a year for the next five years, as
has been done for National Rural Employment Guarantee Act (NREGA) programme.
The reason is that there are more than 400 irrigation projects
waiting to be completed, which need a total investment of more than Rs 200,000
crore. But the budget allocation under Accelerated Irrigation Benefit Programme
for 2009-10 is only Rs 9,700 crore.
No wonder, at this pace, Indian
peasants will keep looking up to the sky for the next 20 years. Enhanced budget
allocations alone will not solve the problem. The irrigation sector needs a
major dose of institutional and price reforms to "tame the anarchy".
Unfortunately, there is no such vision, no priority, and there is no
solid agenda on the table towards drought-proofing the economy. The proposal for
inter-linking of rivers has been gathering dust for years. No wonder then Indian
agriculture remains hostage to the vagaries of monsoons.
(Ashok Gulati, Director in Asia,
International Food Policy Research Institute)
http://economictime s.indiatimes. com/ET-Debate/ No-plan-for- drought-proofing -the-economy/ articleshow/ 4787252.cms
Effective monsoon-governing strategy missing
17 Jul 2009, 0153 hrs IST,
As the
demand for water in India is increasing from 634 BCM (billion cubic metres) in
2000 to 813 BCM in 2010, 1443 in 2020, our dependence on
monsoon will be
increasing manifold in the years to come.
Thus there is a need for
serious policy planning to meet and manage the requirement in the face of
frequent deficient monsoon. Demand-side management strategy is needed for
rationalising water use patterns and address the problem of monsoon dependency.
While dependence cannot be eliminated, it may be possible that
appropriate interventions in technology, socio-economic and geo-political
spheres can address the negative impact.
The monsoon rainfall is the
major source of irrigation (70% water for agriculture, 22% for industry and 8%
for urban areas), yet its major portion is being wasted due to lack of water
holding capacity in the traditional rain water harvesting structures.
Under the circumstances, carefully designed investment strategy on
low-cost but effective watershed management, restoration and management of
natural water bodies with the help of peoples’ participation would go a
long way in mitigating the impact of monsoon.
The solution to
minimising the dependence on the monsoon lies in an effective monsoon-
governance strategy such as proven forewarning systems and rainfall forecasting,
institutional setup to ensure timely and assured input-output delivery system
including seed system, rural credit and crop insurance.
There should
be an enabling environment and capacity to develop and adopt water-saving
mechanisms such as drip irrigation, fertigation and other moisture conserving
practices.
The promotion of resource conserving practices is
essential for ensuring sustainable food production given the uncertain monsoon.
The system of rice intensification, hybrid rice, aerobic rice, zero tillage,
direct seeding rice practices, etc, are notable here.
Since the
small farmers are unable to invest in irrigation infrastructure, the government
plays a big role in fulfilling the social responsibility. The lesson learnt from
shallow tube well schemes in Assam is worth mentioning in terms of impact
management â€"â€" which transformed the perpetual deficit state to a
surplus rice-producing state.
(B C
Barah, Principal Scientist, National Centre for Agricultural Economics and
Policy Research, New Delhi)
http://economictime s.indiatimes. com/Opinion/ ET-Debate/ Effective- monsoon-governin g-strategy- missing/articles how/4787256. cms
Prepare for drought
Economic Times - ‎16 hours ago‎
If July witnesses good rainfall across north India, the kharif crop will recover substantially. If, however, July rainfall is seriously deficient for the ...
Drought likely if monsoon fails to pick up now domain-B
Poor monsoon raises concern over India's growth Emirates Business 24/7
Monsoon Delayed, Two Indian States Declare Drought EcoWorldly
SteelGuru - Forbes India
all 13 news articles »
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Monday Market Monitor - India (WEEK 29) - Drought continues
SteelGuru - ‎11 hours ago‎
Another factor, which may affect long product market in India, is the likely shortage of power due to reduced hydro generation, which would put small ...
Calcutta Telegraph
MP drought-hit
IBNLive.com - ‎Jul 9, 2009‎
... the intensity is expected to increase and if that happens, then Sharad Pawar's confidence that there will be no drought in India will not be misplaced. ...
Indian needs more rains : US report Commodity Online
Good rain in east, south and central India: Met dept Times of India
Drought threat in farming zones Calcutta Telegraph
Zee News - Business Standard
all 125 news articles »
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Voice of America
No Signs of Drought in India
Wall Street Journal - ‎Jul 13, 2009‎
NEW DELHI -- There are no signs of drought in India despite below-normal monsoon rains, a senior meteorological official told the CNBC-TV18 television ...
No plan for drought-proofing the economy Economic Times
India Inc's rain hopes NDTV.com
Monsoon to pick up; drought in northeast Reuters India
Livemint - Commodity Online
all 192 news articles »
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Fleeting Rains, Looming Drought to Hit Main Crops
Wall Street Journal - Rajesh Roy - ‎7 hours ago‎
Associated Press Farmers sprinkle fertilizers on their rice crop on the outskirts of Amritsar, India, Wednesday, June 24, 2009. Area under summer-sown crops ...
Press Trust of India
Rains forecast in India's sugarcane, rice areas
Reuters India - Himangshu Watts, John Mair - ‎3 hours ago‎
An unusually dry June, which saw
the lowest rainfall in more than eight decades, followed by
below-normal rains in early July led to fears of drought, ...
Revival vision dims as rains refuse to fall Economic Times
Low monsoon rain concern for India's farm output: Pawar Thaindian.com
all 20 news articles »
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A primer on droughts
Economic Times - Nidhi Nath Srinivas - ‎Jul 18, 2009‎
Maharashtra alone has about a quarter of India's drought-prone districts. About 50 million Indians are affected every year. Climate change is accelerating ...
Woe of seven sisters: northeast heading for drought?
SINDH TODAY - ‎8 hours ago‎
Agartala/Shillong, July 20 (IANS) In India's northeast it has rained a little, but way too little. The weatherman has no pleasant news for states in the ...
Hindu
Mahindra Holidays lists up 7 pct, ends IPO drought
Reuters India - ‎Jul 16, 2009‎
... as investors cheered the end of a 15-month drought in initial public offers (IPOs). Shares of Mahindra Holidays & Resorts India Ltd (MAHH. ...
Mahindra Holidays lists up 7%, ends IPO drought Hindustan Times
Mahindra Holidays makes positive debut in bourses, ends IPO drought IBTimes India
'Mahindra Holidays and Resorts' lists high on NSE Thaindian.com
Reuters India
all 48 news articles »
BOM:533088 - BOM:500520
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SINDH TODAY
Opposition wants drought declared
Hindu - ‎Jul 15, 2009‎
His demand for a discussion on drought was backed by Mulayam Singh of the Samajwadi Party and Basudeb Acharia of the Communist Party of India (Marxist), ...
Indian MPs concerned over impending drought Daily Times
BJP almost invisible in Lok Sabha Livemint
This is Lok Sabha, Not London, Mulayam tells Jairam Ramesh Daijiworld.com
all 41 news articles »
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1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 Next
Main Mumbai suspect pleads guilty
Mohammed Ajmal Amir Qasab opened fire on commuters, it is alleged
The leading suspect in last November's deadly attacks in the Indian city of Mumbai (Bombay) has pleaded guilty.
Mohammad Ajmal Amir Qasab stood up before the court to say he admitted his role in the killings.
Mr Qasab, who is a Pakistani, faces 86 charges, including waging war on India, murder and possessing explosives.
It
is not clear why he changed his plea after pleading not guilty in May
to all charges. More than 170 people died in the attacks, nine of them
gunmen.
Prosecutors say Mr Qasab is the sole surviving attacker.
He could face the death penalty if his confession is accepted and judges agree to impose the maximum penalty.
'Shocked'
The BBC's Prachi Pinglay, who was in the courtroom in Mumbai, said Mr Qasab appeared calm.
INSIDE COURT
Prachi Pinglay
Mumbai
Mohammad
Ajmal Amir Qasab appeared very calm in court, smiling a number of times
as his confession was being recorded. Now Pakistan has accepted he is a
Pakistani national he wanted to confess, he told the court.
Mr
Qasab spoke lucidly for several hours, giving specific details of names
of people he had met, the kind of training he had received and weapons
he had used. He talked about his family and named his two brothers and
two sisters.
The
judge will now meet prosecution and defence teams to hear their views
about the change of plea. Legal experts say it is still not clear if
the trial is over.
He said there had been no pressure on him to confess and it had been his decision to do so.
"I request the court to accept my plea and pronounce the sentence," he told the judge, smiling.
Prosecutor Ujjwal Nikam said: "We were not expecting this. We were all shocked when he made a plea of guilt.
"It is for the court to decide whether to accept his plea or not. It was all of a sudden. The court is now recording his plea."
Shortly afterwards Mr Nikam told the BBC the confession was "a victory for the prosecution" .
During
his testimony, the suspect gave details of his journey from Pakistan,
the attacks at a historic railway station in Mumbai and the city's Cama
hospital.
Mr Qasab's lawyer said he had nothing to do with the confession.
It is not fully clear what prompted Mr Qasab to change his plea.
He said he had done so because Pakistan had finally admitted he was a Pakistani citizen, but that was some time ago.
Police
say Mr Qasab confessed before a magistrate to the attacks after his
arrest, but he retracted that confession at an early hearing.
His lawyers said then that it had been coerced.
Wept in court
Mohammad Ajmal Amir Qasab, 21, was arrested on the first day of the attacks and has been in Indian custody ever since.
MAIN QASAB CHARGES
Waging war on India
Murder
Conspiracy to murder
Destabilising the government
Kidnap
Robbery
Smuggling and possessing illegal arms and explosives
Profile: Mumbai suspect
Tears and smirks in the dock
In his initial appearances before the court, Mr Qasab appeared relaxed and smiled and grinned.
But
more recently, he broke down and wept in court as a witness recounted
the violent events which took place over three days in late November.
The attacks led to a worsening of relationship between India and Pakistan.
India accused Pakistan-based fighters from the banned militant group Lashkar-e-Taiba of carrying out the attacks.
In
the immediate aftermath of the killings, Pakistan denied any
responsibility, but later admitted the attacks had been partly planned
on its soil.
Islamabad also eventually admitted that Mr Qasab was a Pakistani citizen.
MUMBAI ATTACKS
KEY STORIES
Main Mumbai suspect pleads guilty
Mumbai warrants seek 22 suspects
Mumbai suspect denies all charges
Pakistan admits India attack link
ANALYSIS AND BACKGROUND
Police 'name gunmen'
Mapping the key targets
Attacks as they happened
Will India's overhaul work?
Pakistan scepticism
EYEWITNESS ACCOUNTS
'No value on life'
'We barricaded the door'
'They killed so many'
IN VIDEO CCTV of gun battle on night of attacks
Shot Briton: 'He opened fire on us'
RELATED INTERNET LINKS
Maharashtra police
Mumbai High Court
The BBC is not responsible for the content of external internet sites
FROM OTHER NEWS SITES
Jerusalem Post Lone surviving Mumbai-attacks gunman admits guilt - 1 hr ago
AFP via Yahoo! Surviving Mumbai gunman in dramatic guilty plea - 1 hr ago
Reuters India Kasab pleads guilty - 1 hr ago
Washington Post Lone Surviving Mumbai Gunman Admits Guilt - 2 hrs ago
Mail Online UK Mumbai terror attack gunman makes dramatic courtroom confession - 3 hrs ago
About these results
TOP SOUTH ASIA STORIES
Main Mumbai suspect pleads guilty
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Drought in India
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The dry bed of the Niranjana River, Bihar.
Drought in India has resulted in tens of millions of deaths over the course of the 18th, 19th, and 20th centuries. Indian agriculture is heavily dependent on the climate of India: a favorable southwest summer monsoon is critical in securing water for irrigating Indian crops. In some
parts of India, the failure of the monsoons result in water shortages,
resulting in below-average crop yields. This is particularly true of
major drought-prone regions such as southern and eastern Maharashtra,
northern Karnataka, Andhra Pradesh, Orissa, Gujarat, and Rajasthan.
Contents[hide]
* 1 History
* 2 Impact of El Niño
* 3 See also
* 4 References
* 5 Citations
* 6 Further reading
* 7 External links
[edit] History
In the past, droughts have periodically led to major Indian famines, including the Bengal famine of 1770,
in which up to one third of the population in affected areas died; the
1876â€"1877 famine, in which over five million people died; and the 1899
famine, in which over 4.5 million died.[1][2]
[edit] Impact of El Niño
All such episodes of severe drought correlate with El Niño-Southern Oscillation (ENSO) events.[3][4] El Niño-related droughts have also been implicated in periodic declines in Indian agricultural output.[5] Nevertheless, ENSO events that have coincided with abnormally high sea
surfaces temperatures in the Indian Oceanâ€"in one instance during 1997
and 1998 by up to 3 °C (5 °F)â€"have resulted in increased oceanic
evaporation, resulting in unusually wet weather across India. Such
anomalies have occurred during a sustained warm spell that began in the
1990s.[6] A contrasting phenomenon is that, instead of the usual high pressure
air mass over the southern Indian Ocean, an ENSO-related oceanic low
pressure convergence center forms; it then continually pulls dry air
from Central Asia, desiccating India during what should have been the
humid summer monsoon season. This reversed air flow causes India's
droughts.[7] The extent that an ENSO event raises sea surface temperatures in the central Pacific Ocean influences the degree of drought.[3]
[edit] See also
* Peak water
[edit] References
* Allaby, M (1998), Floods, Facts on File, ISBN 0-8160-3520- 2.
* Allaby, M (2002), Encyclopedia of Weather and Climate, Facts on File, ISBN 0-8160-4071- 0.
* Balfour, E (1976), Encyclopaedia Asiatica: Comprising Indian Subcontinent, Eastern and Southern Asia, Cosmo Publications, ISBN 8170203252.
* Burroughs, WJ (1999), The Climate Revealed, Cambridge University Press, ISBN 0-521-77081- 5.
* Caviedes, C (2001), El Niño in History: Storming Through the Ages, University Press of Florida, ISBN 0-8130-2099- 9.
* Chouhan, TS (1992), Desertification in the World and Its Control, Scientific Publishers, ISBN 8-1723-3043- X.
* Collier, W & R Webb (2002), Floods, Droughts and Climate Change, University of Arizona Press, ISBN 0-8165-2250- 2.
* Heitzman, J & RL Worden (1996), India: A Country Study, Library of Congress (Area Handbook Series), ISBN 0-8444-0833- 6.
* Nash, JM (2002), El Niño: Unlocking the Secrets of the Master Weather Maker, Warner, ISBN 0-446-52481- 6.
* Posey, CA (1994), The Living Earth Book of Wind and Weather, Reader's Digest Association, ISBN 0-8957-7625- 1.
* Singh, VP; CSP Ojha & N Sharma (2004), The Brahmaputra Basin Water Resources, Springer, ISBN 1-4020-1737- 5.
[edit] Citations
1. ^ Nash 2002, pp. 22-23.
2. ^ Collier & Webb 2002, p. 67.
3. ^ a b Kumar
KK, Rajagopatan B, Hoerling M., Bates G, Cane M (2006). "Unraveling the
Mystery of Indian Monsoon Failure During El Niño". Science 314 (5796): 115â€"119. doi:10.1126/ science.1131152.
4. ^ Caviedes 2001, p. 121
5. ^ Caviedes 2001, p. 259.
6. ^ Nash 2002, pp. 258-259.
7. ^ Caviedes 2001, p. 117.
[edit] Further reading
* Toman, MA; U Chakravorty & S Gupta (2003), India and Global Climate Change: Perspectives on Economics and Policy from a Developing Country, Resources for the Future Press, ISBN 1-8918-5361- 9.
[edit] External links
Wikimedia Commons has media related to: Atlas of India
Ecology portal
India portal
General overview
* "Country Guide: India". BBC Weather. http://www.bbc. co.uk/weather/ world/country_ guides/results. shtml?tt= TT002240.
* "Indiaâ€"Weather and Climate". High Commission of India, London. http://www.hcilondo n.net/tourism- information/ weather.html.
Maps, imagery, and statistics
* "India Meteorological Department". Government of India. http://www.imd. gov.in/.
* "Weather Resource System for India". National Informatics Centre. http://www.weather. nic.in/.
Forecasts
* "India: Current Weather Conditions". National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA). http://weather. noaa.gov/ weather/IN_ cc.html.
Retrieved from "http://en.wikipedia .org/wiki/ Drought_in_ India"
Categories: Climate of India | Droughts | Environment of India | Natural disasters in India | Agriculture in India
TERROR CURVE Sharpest to ENVELOP Hillary Arms!
With Clinton’s nuclear assurance; India, US to hold reprocessing talks!
uly 19th, 2009 - 3:51 pm ICT by IANS -
By Manish Chand
New Delhi, July 19 (IANS) With Secretary of State Hillary Clinton
making it clear that the future of the India-US nuclear deal is secure
despite the G8 declaration on the transfer of sensitive technologies,
the two countries will hold talks in Vienna next week on reprocessing
American-origin spent fuel.
Undeterred by the G8 declaration this month on banning the transfer
of enrichment and reprocessing (ENR) technologies to those countries
that have not signed the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT), India
is likely to announce two sites for American nuclear reactors after
Clinton’s talks with External Affairs Minister S.M. Krishna here
Monday.
These sites are likely to be in Andhra Pradesh and Gujarat, reliable sources told IANS.
In another important step to implement the India-US civil nuclear
accord signed last year, Indian and American officials will hold talks
in Vienna July 21 to reach an agreement on arrangements and procedures
for reprocessing spent fuel.
With the difficult experience of the US-assisted Tarapur reactor in
the past, India wants to ensure there are no glitches this time round
on the issue of reprocessing.
The negotiation on reprocessing to be done in a safeguarded facility
in India, according to the 123 agreement, has to be completed within a
year after it begins.
Richard Stratford, director of the Office of Nuclear Energy Affairs
in the State Department, will lead the American side. A five-member
technical committee will be headed by R.B. Grover, director (strategic
planning group) in the Atomic Energy Commission.
The US is understood to have handed to India a draft earlier this month that could form the basis for the Vienna talks.
The transfer of sensitive reprocessing technologies is currently barred under the US law save for exceptions like Japan.
With the G8 declaration at the L’Aquila summit banning the export of
the sensitive ENR technologies, India will seek clarifications on the
reprocessing issue from the US when Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and
External Affairs Minister Krishna meet Clinton.
India has said it will go by a country-specific clean waiver it has
received from the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) and the
Nuclear Suppliers Group (NSG).
In an interview to the Times Now after landing in Mumbai Thursday,
Clinton stressed that “the civil nuclear deal stands on its own merit�.
“No. I worked hard to pass the India-US civil nuke deal and am very
committed to it and its implementation,� Clinton replied when asked if
the nuclear deal will be held hostage to India signing the
Comprehensive Test Ban Treaty (CTBT).
Clinton, however, stressed that the US will seek India’s help in
preventing the proliferation of nuclear technologies to non-state
actors and countries like Iran and North Korea.
S Secretary of State Hillary Clinton Monday called
on Congress president Sonia Gandhi at her residence here and discussed
several issues, including cross-border terrorism and Indo-US relations.
Clinton went to Gandhi's residence at 10, Janpath, after meeting Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leader L.K. Advani.
Sonia Gandhi's son, Congress general secretary Rahul Gandhi, was also present during the meeting.
Sonia Gandhi, who is also chairperson of the
ruling United Progressive Alliance (UPA), voiced optimism about the
future of India-US relations and expressed concern on the use of
terrorism by Pakistan against India, according to party sources.
Earlier in the day, Clinton for met Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, who hosted her to a lunch.
Is India winning or losing? We live in an age of manias and phobias. ... ranging from a nation of caste-bound and poverty-ridden pack of ... cannot start before it becomes abundantly clear that New India means business!Rains have always played an important role in the Indian economy.
Between the two monsoon seasons â€" the south-west monsoon
(June-September) and the post monsoon/north- east monsoon
(October-December) â€" the focus usually centres on the former, as it
accounts for about 80% of India’s total rainfall.
In the past
two decades, most of the major droughts were caused by deficient
rainfall in July, usually the wettest month of the south-west monsoon.
Such
deviations have adversely affected agricultural production, and
therefore overall GDP growth. In recent years, 2002 was one of the
worst droughts, as grain production declined, dragging down
agricultural growth significantly.
This Monsoon, India has a GUEST who sells US ARMS and WARS ! The
SUPER Sales woman has everything in her purse infinite! Wars and civil
wars, foreign relations, environment, climate, woman and child welfare,
education, shining India dream and India to be Nuclear super Power!
What a Monsoon!
This
MONSOON, in fact the HORRIBLE Premier of DROUGHT, has focused on Indo
Us Nuke deal, Defence Pacts, Arms bargain, strategic Realliance in US
Israel Lead, War against Terror, Indo Pak USA Triangular instead of
Climate, Weather and Harvest! It is quite different for us!
For
a person like me who was born and brought up amidst Himalayan Monsoon,
it is rather the Experience to be amidst some THRILLER of a dreading
Horror Film!
I grew up as a helping hand in a Peasant
family in the Terai! My people, the Bengali Refugges from east Bengal,
had been trown in the Dense Forest of plague, malaria, wild animals in
nainital Terai! I opened my eyes and saw the Jungle around me which
hosted Gim Corbett once upon a time!
I had never been in
East Bengal and I have no idea what meant monsoon for my ancestors! But
I had the feeling while I invested the best of my childhood time to
help my family working hard day and night in our fields during Rain as
well as heat!
We never experienced DROUGHT there but we
had to encounter Heavy Rain during Monsoon and we ENJOYED it every
time! We used to swim in our fields! It often rained for almost a week!
But we never faced any FLOOD! Floods were introduced with Intense
Deforestation and Big Dams later!
Even my student life is full of MONSOON Memories, Rain and rain, Land slides and Romance!
But
MONSOON has changed with Global warming and climate Change in this part
of the GLOBE! Rivers have been sold out! Big Dams stops the Lifelines
from my Home, the Himalayas!
Former FIRST Lady of United States of America has rather INTRODUCED a DIFFERENT Monsoon EXPERIENCE!
Meanwhile,Oppositio n
parties on Monday slammed the government for ignoring the interests of
farmers and said funds allocated in the General Budget for agriculture
ministry were not sufficient.
Participating in the debate on
demands
for grants for the Agriculture Ministry, Rewati Raman Singh (SP) said
farmers in Maharashtra, Kerala and Karnataka were committing suicide
despite the loan waiver announced by the Centre.He claimed children of
farmers were not ready to take up the profession and were ready to work
as peons.
Mr.
Singh said while 58 per cent of
country's population was involved in agriculture and related
activities, the government has neglected the farmers.He said in the
absence of cold storage facilities, 40 per cent of fruits and
vegetables were getting damaged.
The SP member suggested that the
government set up bio-fertiliser plants in both public and private
sector to help farmers get sufficient fertilisers.
He also demanded a 'white paper' on the condition of agriculture sector in the country.
Vijay Bahadur Singh (BSP) lamented that
while 62 per cent of the population was dependent on agriculture, the
budgetary provisions were a mere one per cent. "For 62 per cent people
you provide only one per cent, and for the rest 38 per cent the
allocation is 99 per cent," he added.
Those
were the days while MONSOON meant Culture, Folk, Songs, dance,
Literature, Poetry, Love and Romance! Now, it is associated with
Repression, Ethnic cleansing, SELL Off, Big Projects to feed the Killer
machine, Retail chain, Displacement and Exodus, Freesensex and GROWTH
Rate! monsoon remains the bandles of hard datas and False Statics as
the Inflation Rate anouncements!
The Bombay
Stock Exchange benchmark Sensex on Monday regained the 15,000 level by
gaining nearly 272 points in opening trade, extending last weeks' gains
on increased capital inflows by foreign funds, supported by
better-than- expected earnings by some blue-chip companies.
Firm Asian equity markets also supported the rally.
The 30-share index again breached
15,000 points level to trade 271.83 points, or 1.45 per cent higher at
15,016.75 points in the first five minutes of trade, a level last seen
on July 6. The sensex had surged by nearly over 9 per cent last week.
The wide-based National Stock Exchange index Nifty moved up by 78.50 points, or 1.53 per cent to 4,453.45 points.
Stock brokers said announcement of
better-than- expected quarterly results by some blue-chip companies this
earning season so far mainly buoyed the trading sentiments, sparked-off
buying activity.
They said firming global cues after positive US housing data also influenced the domestic markets' sentiments.
Shares of oil and gas, power, realty and IT sectors were in good demand, attributing major support to the Sensex.
Reliance Industries stocks were in keen
demand and shot up by 3.44 per cent to Rs 2,020 as the Supreme Court
begins hearing a case related to a gas pact between the RIL and RNRL.
Thus BLOOMBERG.COM reports:
India Rain Deficit to Narrow, Aiding Crop Sowing (Update1)
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By Thomas Kutty Abraham
July 16 (Bloomberg) -- India’s monsoon deficit will drop
below 20 percent by end of this month as rains increase, easing
a dry spell that’s dented sowing of crops in the world’s second-
biggest producer of rice, wheat and sugar.
The shortfall for the season started June 1 narrowed to 27
percent as of yesterday from 45 percent last month, the India
Meteorological Department, said. Falls were 6 percent more than
the long-period average for the week ended July 15, the first
weekly surplus this year, the weather office said.
Rains have intensified since July 8, helping allay fears of
a drought undermining Prime Minister Manmohan Singh’s efforts to
push economic growth back to a 9 percent pace. A deficit of as
much as 50 percent earlier this month in the northwest region,
the nation’s grain bowl, has dimmed prospects for bigger crops
of rice, oilseeds and sugar cane.
“The good news is that the current active phase of the
monsoon has helped alleviate drought fears,� D. Sivananda Pai,
a director at the weather bureau said in a phone interview from
Pune today. “Most parts will continue to receive good rains,
though the northwest remains a bit of a concern.�
The formation of a low-pressure weather system over the Bay
of Bengal may bring more rain starting July 20, A.B. Mazumdar,
deputy director general at the weather office, said today from
Pune. The current spell across paddy, oilseeds and cane growing
areas will persist for at least two days, he said.
India got 220.5 millimeters (8.68 inches) of rains between
June 1 and July 15, compared with the 50-year average of 300.8
millimeters, the weather bureau said. Falls were deficient in 22
of the 36 weather divisions, down from 25 in the previous week.
Rice Crop
Area planted to rice in the past week has risen 76 percent
from the previous week, Farm Minister Sharad Pawar said in New
Delhi today. That compares with a 20 percent drop in crop area
to 7.43 million hectares on July 10.
“Rains have improved in the last one week and there seems
to be no shortage in sowing of paddy,� Pawar told reporters.
The monsoon is the main source of irrigation water for the
nation’s 235 million farmers as more than half the crop land
isn’t irrigated. Sowing begins in June and ends mostly by July.
An El Nino that’s forming over the Pacific Ocean may not
impact the June-September rains, Pai said. The weather event,
which occurs about every four to seven years, causes dry weather
conditions in many Asian countries.
“By the time the El Nino phenomenon peaks, a better part
of the monsoon would have been over,� he said. “It may impact
the last leg of the rains in September.�
India got below normal rains in 15 of the 36 El Nino years
it had in the 1875-2008 period, the weather office said June 24.
Showers this season may be below normal, or 93 percent of
the long-period mean of 89 centimeters (35 inches), the bureau
said last month. In April, it forecast rains to be near normal.
To contact the reporter on this story: Thomas Kutty Abraham in Mumbai at tabraham4@bloomberg .net.
http://www.bloomber g.com/apps/ news?pid= 20601091& sid=aEwjnzeLyJVg
And see this:
Monsoon picks up; govt says no need to panic
Wed Jul 15, 2009 8:57pm IST
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By Mayank Bhardwaj and Rajesh Kumar Singh
NEW DELHI (Reuters) - India has a contingency plan if annual
monsoon rains remain below normal and there is no need panic, the
finance minister said on Wednesday.
India has suffered the worst start to the vital monsoon in eight
decades, raising fears of a drought in a country where only 40 percent
of farmland is irrigated.
But the rains have picked up from a shortfall of 34 percent of the
long-term average in the June 1-July 9 period, to 29 percent between
June 1 and July 14, weather officials told Reuters.
The weather office on Wednesday forecast rains in key cotton, rice
and soy regions, including widespread precipitation in the next 48
hours in central India, boosting the soybean crop.
"There has been some concern on the progress of the monsoon. As I
mentioned earlier, the government is monitoring the situation," Finance
Minister Pranab Mukherjee told parliament.
India was ready to implement a contingency plan, he said, but did not elaborate.
"At the same time I would not like to press the panic button," he added.
Flash floods triggered by heavy monsoon rains have killed 15 people
in Orissa, but in Assam and Manipur authorities have declared droughts
after scant rain. Continued... http://in. reuters.com/ article/specialE vents1/idINIndia -41056020090715
US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton has met
Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and other top leaders, as part of
her visit to the country.
Indian relations with Pakistan are thought to be high on the agenda, along with education and technology.
The countries are also expected to sign deals on arms sales and the building of US-funded nuclear plants.
Correspondents say the visit aims to show the US is committed to broadening its ties with Delhi.
Addressing
students at Delhi University ahead of the talks, Mrs Clinton said the
US wanted to "deepen our strategic understanding" with India and find
more common ground.
As well as Mr Singh, Mrs Clinton has held talks with the leader of the opposition, Lal Krishna Advani.
Drought
threat is looming large over north India. Punjab, Uttar
Pradesh, Haryana, Rajasthan and Jammu and Kashmir have received only
half the normal amount of rain that they get by this time of the
year..Though hard data on the India economy continues to improve,
uncertainty over the monsoons is weighing on sentiment!
As
per the latest report released by the Indian Meteorological Department
(IMD), the cumulative seasonal rainfall for the country as a whole from
1 June to 9July was 34% below the long period average (LPA) â€" if
rainfall is below 10% of the LPA it constitutes a drought.
More importantly, the distribution remains highly skewed, with the north-west region of the country being the worst hit.
Specifically,
the important crop-producing states such as Uttar Pradesh, Uttrakhand,
Haryana, Chandigarh, Delhi, Punjab, Himachal Pradesh, and Gujarat
region have witnessed rainfall deficiency of 60% or more.
If
the situation does not improve, it will have an impact on agricultural
growth, economic activity, fiscal deficit, inflation, and overall
market sentiment. We have analyzed the impact of such events in the
past to better understand the probable effect on the economy should the
monsoons turn out to be detrimental.
In the event of a
drought, adverse impact on growth and inflation is inevitable. But the
effects should be relatively less severe than in prior years
A drought in India's major tea growing region has led to a dramatic
fall in production during the first quarter of the year, industry
officials said Sunday.
Tea growers in the northeastern state of Assam say they produced
12,000-15,000 tons less tea in the first quarter than in the same
period last year because of insufficient rain, said Dhiraj Kakati, head
of the Assam Branch Indian Tea Association.
Assam and neighboring states account for more than 70 percent of the
more than 1 million tons produced by India's $1.5 billion tea industry.
The BBC's Sanjoy Majumder in Delhi says that publicly Mrs Clinton
has insisted that what Pakistan and India do is completely up to them.
However,
he says that everyone in Delhi is clear that it was pressure from
Washington that pushed the countries to hold talks in Egypt last week.
Pakistan-India
relations dominated Mrs Clinton's visit to Mumbai on Saturday, in the
wake of attacks on the city last November that left more than 170
people dead.
India blamed Pakistan-based militants for the
attack. Much of the US focus in the region has been on countering
militancy in Pakistan and Afghanistan.
India's junior foreign minister, Shashi Tharoor, told the BBC that Delhi and Washington shared similar concerns on security.
"We
believe that terrorism of any stripe needs to be tackled firmly and we
believe Washington is on the same page as us," he said.
BBC reports:
Climate disagreements
Mrs Clinton is spending three full days in India. She departs on Tuesday.
On
Sunday, talks in Delhi focused on climate change, which remains a
sensitive subject for developing countries such as India and China,
which have so far refused to commit to carbon emissions cuts in a new
treaty.
Ms Clinton has also met opposition leader Lal Krishna Advani
Mrs Clinton also sought to assure India the US would not try to impose conditions that might affect India's economic growth.
But Indian Environment Minister Jairam Ramesh said his government could not accept targets that would limit economic growth.
India argues the US must do more as it has been historically to blame for the emissions.
Mrs Clinton later told reporters she was optimistic a deal on climate change could be reached.
The
key date for climate change is December - when a summit in Copenhagen
will look to forge a new international treaty that will replace the
Kyoto Protocol, which expires in 2012.
Meanwhile,Activists of Socialist Unity Centre of India (SUCI)
held a
demonstration in the national capital, on Wednesday over irregularities
in the distribution of Below Poverty Line (BPL) social security
cards.Scores of SUCI activists marched to Delhi state secretariat,
raising
slogans against the government, alleging that Delhi government is
laidback in issuing BPL cards.
“Today our main demand is that people of this (Delhi) region that
are living Below Poverty Line (BPL) have not yet received BPL cards.
Many people have applied for these cards but so many years have passed
and they are yet to receive BPL cards,� said Pratap Samal, State
Secretary of SUCI.
“People who have given cards for renewal have not received them back,� Samal added.
Meanwhile, a member of parliament belonging to SUCI alleged that BPL
cards are being issued to people living above poverty line, which is a
gross misuse of the facility.
“Taking the Below Poverty Line (BPL) cards there are lots of delay
dealings, there are lots of corruption and there are nepotism. Those
parties who are in power either in the state or the central government
they are using these BPL cards for Above Poverty Line (APL).� said a
member of parliament of SUCI.
“The real people are not getting the BPL facilities,� the member added.BPL cardholders are entitled to get subsidised food grains from the government.
Standard Chartered Bank has said that the country's growth this fiscal could dip to 6 per cent in the case of a drought but the
government's fiscal measures should prevent it from falling further.
"...growth could dip to below 6 per cent (we forecast 6.4 per cent for
FY'10) in the event of a drought, support from fiscal measures should
prevent it from falling more dramatically, " Standard Chartered Bank said in a report.
It further said that a slowdown in personal consumption expenditure,
which contributed 55 per cent of overall GDP in the last fiscal, is
inevitable, should the rains fail, as the agriculture sector employs 52
per cent of the total labour force.
It added that drought would also have an adverse effect on the industrial sector.
As per the latest report released by the Indian Meteorological
Department (IMD), the cumulative seasonal rainfall for the country as a
whole from June 1 to July 9 was 34 per cent below the long period
average (LPA). A rainfall below 10 per cent of the LPA constitutes a
drought, the report said.
Recently, the Centre for Monitoring Indian Economy (CMIE),an economic
think-tank, has revised down India's growth forecast to 5.8 per cent in
the current fiscal on account of lower agricultural output and slower
industrial recovery due to the poor progress of monsoon.
Tackle climate change now: Scientists
As leaders of the world's
13 major countries prepare to meet at the G8+5 summit in Italy this week, 24
leading scientists from these
countries have appealed to them to take immediate
action to combat climate change.
"We come together to call on our
government leaders to recognise both the unacceptable risks that climate change
creates for our societies, and the unprecedented opportunities a clean energy,
low-carbon transition creates for our economies," the scientists said in a joint
appeal.
The appeal appeared as an advertisement in the International
Herald Tribune newspaper Tuesday. The scientists asked the leaders of the
industrialised eight and developing five countries to take five specific steps
at their summit this week:
* Recognise that present global warming of 0.8 degree Celsius above pre-industrial levels is already having a
significant impact, and that warming exceeding 2 degrees Celsius predicted for
later this century would create great risks and have irreversible consequences.
* Commit to peak global greenhouse gas emissions by no later than
2020 and reduce these by at least 50 percent relative to 1990 levels by 2050.
* For developed countries, commit to emissions reductions of at
least 80 percent relative to 1990 by 2050 with appropriate intermediate targets
set in time for Copenhagen (the next climate summit scheduled this December).
* For developing countries, commit by Copenhagen summit to
significant gains in energy efficiency, reductions in carbon intensity, and cuts
in non-carbon dioxide greenhouse gas emissions over the next two decades; this
should be designed to support sustainable development and to lead to substantial
reduction from business-as- usual emissions.
* Recognise that the
impacts of existing changes in climate are primarily due to past emissions by
developed nations, and that unless the burden of poverty in developing nations
is alleviated by significant financial support for mitigation, adaptation, and
the reduction of deforestation, that ability of developing countries to pursue
sustainable development is likely to diminish, to the economic and environmental
detriment of all.
The scientists who signed the appeal included:
Kamal Bawa of the University of Massachusetts in the US; Kirit and Jyoti Parikh
of the Indira Gandhi Institute for Development Research in Mumbai; Martin Parry
of the Imperial College in London and a former lead author of the
Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change; Robert Costanza of the University of
Vermont (US); Hironori Hamanaka of Keio University (Japan); John Houghton of the
British Meteorological Office; Gordon McBean of the Royal Society of Canada;
Anthony J. McMichael of the Australian National University; Stefan Rahmstorf of
the Potsdam Institute for Climate Impact Research (Germany); and Henning Rodhe
of the Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences.
They said: "The world is
looking to the MEF leaders to act on this challenge and to seize this immense
opportunity. The time for bold leadership is now."
Globalist Perspective > Global Diplomacy
Time to Reset U.S.-India Relations
By W. Pal Sidhu | Monday, July 20, 2009
With
U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton concluding her visit to India
today, the EastWest Institute’s W. Pal Sidhu examines creative ways in
which the two countries can build on the successful civilian nuclear
deal. Security and counter-terrorism continue to be important, he
argues, but Afghanistan’s development may prove to be a key issue as
well.
illary
Clinton's first visit to India as U.S. Secretary of State, within the
first six months of the Obama Administration, is significant for
several reasons.
First, it is the clearest indication that the new U.S.
administration is committed to building and expanding on the
relationship established by the previous administrations, especially
that of George W. Bush.
The
visit by National Security Adviser General Jim Jones in late June was
another indication of the growing strategic ties between the world’s
oldest and largest democracies.
Second, given Clinton’s own political gravitas in the United
States â€" especially her historic presidential run and her reputation as
an avid supporter and friend of India â€" this messenger is more
important than the message she will bring.
Even her itinerary, which deliberately (if somewhat
inconveniently and artificially) leaves out Pakistan, is perhaps
reflective of the efforts being made to “de-hyphenate� the
India-Pakistan relationship and focus on India alone. Clearly, this
administration is determined to "reset" U.S.-India relations at a
higher plane.
The significance of the Clinton visit notwithstanding, she is
not the first senior member of the Obama Administration to visit India.
In fact, she is also not the second. Leon Panetta made history of sorts
when he became the first CIA chief to visit India in his first outing
in March. This visit was clearly prompted by the terrorist events in
Mumbai last November and the realization in Washington that the
atrocities that were committed in India could be exported to the United
States.
The visit led to an unprecedented level of intelligence
cooperation. Similarly, the visit by National Security Adviser General
Jim Jones in late June and his discussions on Iran, energy and defense
ties was another indication of the growing strategic ties between the
world’s oldest and largest democracies.
The Clinton visit will undoubtedly continue this promising trend
in Indo-U.S. ties, which is being built on the initiatives taken during
the eight previous years of the Bush Administration. Indeed, the
crowning glory of the bilateral strategic partnership was the
controversial India-U.S. civilian nuclear cooperation agreement â€" which
succeeded despite the fact that it nearly brought down the previous
government in New Delhi and remains unpopular in many corners of
Washington, D.C.
The
Clinton visit will undoubtedly continue the promising trend in
Indo-U.S. ties, which is being built on the initiatives taken during
the eight previous years of the Bush Administration.
Unlike the Bush Administration, which was ideologically driven
and dominated by neo-conservatives, the Obama Administration will not
rebuild fences where they already exist. But it will probably give them
a fresh coat of paint.
Even before the Clinton visit, it was apparent that the new
pragmatism in Washington will not "reset" the Indo-U.S. relations to a
pre-Bush era.
For instance, Phil Gordon of the Brookings Institution and a
nominee for a senior State Department position notes: “In an ideal
world, rejection of the nuclear deal would preserve the sanctity of the
nuclear non-proliferation regime… In the world we live in, however, it
would do little to prevent non-proliferation and significantly harm
India, the United States and their ability to do good things together.�
Similarly, Richard Holbrooke, the special envoy for South Asia,
has at the insistence of New Delhi dropped the Kashmir issue from his
portfolio. Although this might be to the detriment of India in the long
run, he is now solely focused on Afghanistan and Pakistan.
This pragmatism notwithstanding, there is a need to reset some
aspects of the Indo-U.S. relationship so that the world’s two biggest
democracies can do good things together. First, the relationship should
go beyond just the nuclear agreement â€" otherwise there is a real
concern that it may become uni-dimensional.
This could be done by looking for greater cooperation on new
security issues such as cyber-security (given the vulnerability of the
Indian software industry to cyber attacks), climate change (akin to the
green partnership being considered between China and the United States)
and maritime security (especially protecting the trade routes against
piracy).
On cyber-security, India and the United States could work
closely with each other, and perhaps Russia and China as well. The
nations need to develop at least some basic norms and a common lexicon
to ensure the presence of clear red lines â€" so as to avoid an
inadvertent lapse into cyber-warfare.
The Obama Administration will not rebuild fences where they already exist. But it will probably give them a fresh coat of paint.
Similarly, climate change has the potential to become a divisive
issue if not addressed cooperatively. This is certainly the Chinese
perspective, which has led them to work with the United States on
building a "green partnership. "
In addition, although India and the United States have had some
maritime cooperation (evident in the joint tsunami rescue operations),
there is potential for greater cooperation â€" especially in anti-piracy
operations.
Finally, perhaps for the first time, Washington and New Delhi
share the same deep anxiety about counter-terrorism, Pakistan and
Afghanistan. They should explore the possibility of positive engagement
in these spheres of mutual concern.
In the counter-terrorism sphere, India and the United States
should build on the cooperation between the Indian intelligence
agencies and the CIA. After all, this led to the first-ever public
admission by Pakistan of the role of their nationals in one of the most
dramatic incidents on Indian soil. In a similar vein, India should also
seek greater coordination and cooperation of its role in Afghanistan in
the context of U.S.-led operations.
This does not necessarily mean military cooperation (although it
might be in India’s interest to work closely with the United States and
NATO-led International Security Assistance Force), but it could mean
integrating New Delhi’s impressive Afghanistan assistance program with
that of other key countries operating in Afghanistan.
The Indian model of development assistance in Afghanistan has
been widely praised and should be promoted as new initiatives are
launched in Afghanistan.
The Clinton visit provides a promising opportunity to widen and
deepen the strategic Indo-U.S. relations. However, unless the new
Congress-led government in New Delhi is more pragmatic and imaginative,
it could be that Indo-U.S. relations will wear the same old coat of
paint.http:/ /www.theglobalis t.com/storyid. aspx?StoryId= 7885
* Views
*
A revival of the nuclear issue?
Hillary Clinton’s visit to India is an opportunity to clarify the US’ position on India’s nuclear programme
Arundhati Ghose
US
secretary of state Hillary Clinton is in town today, with the stated
purpose of consolidating and pushing further the new directions in
Indo-US strategic and economic relations, created over the last
half-decade. On her agenda, she has indicated priority to both global
and bilateral relations. At the global level are climate change and
non-proliferation, and there are several issues at the bilateral level,
including the “operationalization� of the iconic Indo-US civilian
nuclear agreement. India, too, is bound to have its own agenda. In an
otherwise fairly upbeat scenario, a small and abstruse element in
bilateral nuclear relations has thrust itself to the forefront.
Photo: Haraz N Ghanbari / AP
The normally sober Hindu reported that at the recently concluded Group of Eight, or G-8, summit
in Italy, the G-8 countries had “blocked ‘full’ nuclear trade with
India� and had imposed a “ban on ENR (enrichment and reprocessing)
sales� to India. The relevant part of this G-8 declaration reads:
“While noting that the NSG (Nuclear Suppliers Group) has not yet
reached consensus on this issue, we agree that the NSG discussions have
yielded useful and constructive proposals contained in the NSG’s clean
text developed at the November 20, 2008 consultative group meeting.
Pending completion of work in the NSG, we agree to implement the text
on a national basis in the next year.� The “clean text� referred to is
not a public document, and it is somewhat confusing that TheHindu relied
on a comment by an unnamed diplomat from a G-8 country that
non-membership of NPT (nuclear non-proliferation treaty) was an agreed
criterion for restrictions on ENR transfers should have led to such a
conclusion. Nonetheless, the issue has raised concerns both in the
public mind and in Parliament. It is clear, though, that G-8 does not
refer to India or NPT, nor does it refer to a ban on exports to India.
The civilian nuclear deal was meant to remove the nuclear thorn in the side of Indo-US relations
There
is, however, agreement in NSG that the transfers of technology and
material related to ENR by those who possess them should be
restrictedâ€"it is clear from the beginning of the paragraph that the
context in which the increased restrictions are being considered is the
so-called nuclear “renaissance�. What is not agreed is to whom these
should not be exported. It has been agreed that a criteria-based
approach should be used to identify those who are to be denied these
technologies and materials, but there is no agreement on what those
criteria should be. Certainly, the inclusion of countries which are not
members of NPTâ€"a so-called “objectiveâ€� criterionâ€"is on the table,
proposed by the US, but so are other criteria, such as countries that
do not already possess such technologies, countries in volatile areas,
countries that have not signed an additional protocol with the
International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), countries that are not of
good standing (a “subjective� criterion) and so on. There is no
agreement to date in NSG, which works by consensus.
For the
sake of clarification for the general reader, ENR technologies could
enable countries to produce nuclear weapons, through uranium enriched
beyond 95% and plutonium reprocessed from spent fuel from nuclear power
reactors. India already has both technologies, though access to global
technologies may help in upgrading facilitiesâ€"should that be required
in the future.
On 4 September, while NSG was debating the
issue of restricting transfers of ENR technologies and materials, NSG
agreed to “exceptionalize� India and waived the guidelines that had
restricted global civilian nuclear cooperation with India. India, in
return, had made certain non-proliferation commitmentsâ€"such as
continuing the moratorium on testing and support for the objectives of
non-proliferation. The question that has been raised is whether the G-8
exhortationâ€" which in itself is non-specific and certainly not aimed at
Indiaâ€" would lead to a formulation in NSG which, in effect, would open
up the waiver of September 2008.
The Prime Minister has
clarified that France, a member of G-8, has assured him of “full�
civilian nuclear cooperation; the finance minister has relied on the
acceptance by IAEA and NSG of India’s “exceptionalization�. Is it
likely that those countries which have individually and formally
informed IAEA of the change in their laws following the NSG waiver of
September last would change their laws againâ€"against India? Perhaps.
But would the criterion of non-NPT membership contribute to the goal of
non-proliferation at a time of nuclear renaissance? There are only four
countries that are not members of NPTâ€"Israel, India, Pakistan and North
Korea. And all are known to be nuclear-armed; therefore, all possess
ENR technology. The only purpose to include such a criterion would be
to try and pressure these countries to join NPT.
Those who
are today wary of the non-proliferation policies of the new Obama
administration may be justified if the linkage to NPT is the case. The
Indo-US nuclear agreement was meant to remove the nuclear thorn in the
side of Indo-US relations. Even if this issue is not on the agenda of
secretary of state Clinton, the opportunity should not be missed to
clarify issues rather than permit a potential irritant to fester.
Arundhati Ghose is former ambassador to the UN Conference on Disarmament. Comments are welcome at theirview@livemint. com
http://www.livemint .com/2009/ 07/19211810/ A-revival- of-the-nuclear- issue.html? h=B
Bed here, bite there
ANANYA SENGUPTA
A jawan outside Hillary’s Delhi hotel. (PTI)
New Delhi, July 19: Below
the radar of policy wonks scanning the horizon for even a minute shift
in Indo-US ties, a “strategic relationship� has changed without much
fanfare.
Hillary
Clinton is staying in the capital at Taj Palace Hotel, not at ITC
Maurya that had hosted her husband Bill Clinton and daughter Chelsea
during the charm-charged visit in 2000 when the then US First Lady
could not accompany her family.
For
some years, the Maurya had been a favourite of the Americans: it also
hosted Bill Clinton’s successor George W. Bush in 2006 and Hillary’s
one-time predecessor in the state department, Colin Powell.
This
time, the pendulum has swung towards the Taj. The hotels are situated
adjacent to each other in the diplomatic enclave in central Delhi â€" so
location could not have been much of a deciding factor.
The
card rate â€" the actual tariff could be lower â€" for the most expensive
suite at the Maurya is Rs 2,90,000 a night, while the Taj’s top slot
goes for Rs 1 lakh, according to their official websites.
American-baiters may not miss the opportunity to draw attention to the
recession and cite the change of hotels as an instance of the
superpower’s newfound austerity.
Officials
from both hotels declined comment. But a source pointed out that
Hillary had started out in Mumbai by staying at the Taj to express
solidarity with the victims of the 26/11 terror strikes and she may
have wanted to stay on the same course in Delhi, too.
Hillary
enjoys a good rapport with Ratan Tata, whose Indian Hotels runs the Taj
group of hotels. The two had interacted closely when Hillary was New
York Senator and Tata headed the Indo-US CEO Forum. The head of the
Tata corporate office in the US, David Good, has also had a long
association with the American foreign service.
But
all’s not lost for the Maurya. Hillary today turned up at the Bukhara,
a restaurant at the Maurya, for dinner and sat at the same table (No.
64) made famous by her husband.
Bukhara
was so taken in by the charm of the then most powerful man in the world
that its menu has a Presidential Platter named in Bill Clinton’s honour
and a Chelsea Platter.
Hillary
did not let Bill down tonight, opting for the Presidential Platter: dal
Bukhara, paneer tikka, murgh malai kebab, sikandari rann, seekh kebab
and mixed raita. For dessert, she chose kulfi and ras malai.
Asked
whether a platter would be named after Hillary, too, a hotel employee
refused to comment. But he added: “It’s a pity she isn’t staying here.
But the table is always ready for her.�
One
occupant at the Maurya may have stoked Hillary’s interest. Foreign
minister S.M. Krishna, whose official bungalow has been allocated but
is not yet ready, has been mostly staying at an apartment in the Maurya
complex. Hillary is scheduled to meet Krishna tomorrow. http://www.telegrap hindia.com/ 1090720/jsp/ frontpage/ story_11258718. jsp
Lawyers perplexed at Kasab's dramatic confession
Mumbai (PTI) The dramatic confession of
the lone surviving gunman Abdul Kasab admitting his crime in the Mumbai
terror attacks triggered a collective gasp in the court room and left
lawyers perplexed raising questions whether it was voluntary or a ploy.
Ujwal Nikam, the Special Public
Prosecutor in the high-voltage case, admitted he was "surprised" at the
"unexpected" confession for the first time in the court hailing it as
as a big victory for the prosecution.
He said Kasab(21) may have realised
that the "cat is out of the bag" after 134 witnesses gave evidence
against him since the trial began in April.
But another criminal lawyer Satish
Manishinde counselled caution saying it should be known whether the
"belated" confession was voluntary and whether he was coerced or got
any instructions even though there was "clinching evidence to his
involvement.
The action of the Pakistani national
pleading guilty on the 65th day of his trial in the high security
Arthur road prison left those in the special court shocked.
And Judge M.L. Tahiliyani, who was
apparently taken aback, called lawyers from both sides to figure out
the significance of Kasab's statement.
"We are surprised that Kasab has abruptly taken this stand (of confessing to involvement in 26/11 attacks)," Nikam said.
"Everybody in the court was shocked the
moment he said he accepts his crime. It was unexpected," he said,
adding," We are minutely assessing what he admitted in court," he said.
Harish Salve, a senior Supreme Court lawyer, said it is not clear if Kasab confessed voluntarily.
"I hope it is not a ploy and he doesn't come the day after and give it another twist,"he said.
Policemen claim Kasab's confession reveals 'Pak's role'
Mumbai (PTI) Policemen, who were in the
team that arrested Ajmal Kasab, the lone surviving gunman in the Mumbai
attack, on Monday said his confession to the crime was a "smart act"
after being cornered and exposed Pakistan's hand.
N R Mali, Senior Inspector D B Marg
police station (who was also instrumental in arresting Kasab) said,
"Kasab should have confessed long back..Now after two months into the
trial he realised that everything is going against him and that he is
in trouble..so he smartly confessed... "
"Kasab's confession has revealed
Pakistan before the whole world..," said Sanjay Govilkar, Assistant
police inspector D B Marg police station who was injured while
arresting Kasab at Girgaum Chowpatty said.
Govilkar said, "The moment we arrested
Kasab, he acted as if he was unconscious and when he was admitted to
the hospital he started speaking...this clearly shows the training he
has undergone as to how to trick police officials. I am hoping that
Kasab is hanged to death thus briging justice to Tukaram Ombale who
fell victim to Kasab's bullets and other victims."
Govilkar, who was injured near his wais
when one of Kasab's bullets scraped through him, added, "I managed to
escape death by a whisker..if that bullet had pierced through me then
after Ombale it would have been my turn."
Kasab's confession proves need for GUJCOC, MCOCA-like laws: BJP
New Delhi (PTI) Claiming that the
confession of key accused Ajmal Kasab in Mumbai attack trial was a
"success" for MCOCA which was invoked against him, the BJP on Monday
said it should convince UPA government to give its consent to a similar
anti-terror bill passed by Gujarat.
"Kasab's confession is a step forward.
MCOCA was imposed on him due to the deficiency of earlier laws.... This
is the success of MCOCA," Deputy Leader of Opposition in the Lok Sabha
Sushma Swaraj said.
Pitching for passing of anti-terror
bills patterned on Maharashtra Control of Organised Crime Act (MCOCA)
and the scrapped POTA passed by BJP-led state governments, Swaraj said
the UPA government should now give its assent to them.
GUJCOC, the anti-terror bill passed by
the Narendra Modi Government in Gujarat which makes confession made
before a police officer admissible in a court of law, has been rejected
twice by the Centre despite being passed by the state government.
Mr. Modi has pledged to pass GUJCOC again and send it to the Centre for its assent.
Anti-terror bills formulated on the lines of GUJCOC by other BJP governments have also failed to get the Centre's nod.
MS, Clinton tie-up offers free GHG on-line tool for cities
Washington (PTI) As US Secretary of
State Hillary Clinton tries to rope in India in combating climate
change, Microsoft has teamed up with her husband's NGO to create a free
on-line tool for global cities, including Delhi and Mumbai, to monitor
their greenhouse gases (GHG) emissions.
Microsoft, the global software firm,
has created the online carbon accounting tool called 'Project 2
Degrees' for cities across the world to monitor their GHG emissions and
open up an area for enterprise software companies to provide the best
tools for the job.
Cities account for only two per cent of
the world's land mass but produce up to 75 per cent of worldwide
greenhouse gas emissions, so they became the focus for 'Project 2
Degrees' that is a collaboration with software designers Autodesk and
the Clinton Climate Initiative (CCI), a programme launched by former US
President Bill Clinton.
"This is a long journey for our
governments, be they local or national, but we could have the biggest
impact by working with local governments as they have the ability to
measure what's happening locally in terms of greenhouse gas emissions
and to have an effect on the local economy and the local environment
first," Matt Miszewski, Microsoft's general manager for Worldwide
E-government, said.
Oil Ministry not to let RIL off hook for MoU with ADAG
New Delhi (PTI) The government has not
let Reliance Industries off the hook for signing a private MoU with a
firm run by Anil Ambani Group to divide entire gas volumes from KG
basin fields, thus holding industrial development to ransom, the
Petroleum Ministry said on Monday.
"We for the first time got to know from
the Bombay High Court judgment (of last month) that all volumes beyond
28 mmscmd committed to (Anil Ambani's) RNRL and 12 mmscmd to NTPC were
divided between RIL and RNRL in 60:40 ratio," Petroleum Secretary R.S.
Pandey told reporters here.
Peak gas out from KG-D6 fields may be 100-120 million standard cubic meters per day.
"The MoU also states that they are free
to price the volumes beyond those locked in litigations. So
practically, RIL may transfer KG-D6 gas for use in its refineries and
petrochemical plants at USD 1 per mmBtu," he said.
Other industries will be dependent on
the mercy of RIL and RNRL to get the scarce fuel, he said, adding that
the government filed a petition in Supreme Court to get the MoU
declared null and void to prevent such appropriation of natural
resource through private agreements.
"We have so far not taken any action
against RIL as it has so far not done anything in contravention to the
gas pricing and utilisation policy as derived from Production Sharing
Contract," Mr. Pandey said. "I cannot today say that no action will be
taken."
Media picks up sensational issues, not real ones: CBI chief
New Delhi (PTI) CBI Director Ashwani
Kumar on Monday took a dig at the media saying it was only giving
prominence to sensational issues.
Mr. Kumar, some of whose decisions had come under attack, had a word of advice on 'investigative journalism'.
"A serious journalist will try to
understand the whole scheme of things and then he will arrive at his
opinion based on objective inputs. As it is, it runs counter to
investigative journalism.. .(sic) Even national dailies are not free
from this malaise."
Mr. Kumar said dependence on advertisements has led to compromising commitment of professional mediapersons.
The media establishments are dependent
on advertisements and this tendency, particularly in TV channels, is
compromising the commitment of professional mediapersons.
"As professional media managers, you
(reporters) can cherish the values of propriety and balanced writing in
exposing corruption in India. You should stand resolutely against any
blockade in the area of professionalism in media," he said in an
interaction with journalists at the CBI headquarters here.
India isn't under obligation to take emission cut target: Govt.
New Delhi (PTI) India is not under any
obligation to take any emission reduction target and has asked
developed nations to go for deep and ambitious carbon cut for the
second commitment period of the Kyoto Protocol commencing 2013, Rajya
Sabha was informed on Monday.
"There is no obligation for India under
the provisions of the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change(UNFCCC)
and its Kyoto Protocol to take any emission reduction target,"
Environment Minister Jairam Ramesh said in a written reply.
On the other hand, he added, "India has
urged developed nations to take deep and ambitious emission reduction
targets for the second commitment period of the Kyoto Protocol starting
from 2013."
The Minister said the government was
committed to implementing the National Action Plan on Climate Change
(NAPCC) envisaging eight national missions in specific areas and
several other initiatives that will have co-benefits in terms of global
warming.
"The documents in respect of the
national missions are at various stages of finalisation and will be
implemented after approval of the Prime Minister's Council on Climate
Change," he further added.
'Annual mean temperature for country has risen by .52 degrees'
New Delhi (PTI) Annual mean temperature
for the country as a whole has risen by .52 degree celsius in the past
107 years since 1901, according to a data analysis by the Met
department, the government informed the Rajya Sabha on Monday.
In his reply to a written question in
the Upper House, Environment Minister Jairam Ramesh said, "the analysis
of data for the period 1901-2008 by Meteorological Department suggests
that annual mean temperature for the country as a whole has risen by
.52 degree celsius over the period."
Mr. Ramesh said the concentration of
Green House Gas (GHG) in the atmosphere was leading to global warming
and that spatial pattern of trends in the mean annual temperature show
significant positive (increasing) trend over most parts of the country.
However, in parts of Rajasthan, Gujarat and Bihar significant negative (decreasing) trends were observed, the minister added.
Regarding the melting of glaciers, he
said as per Geological Survey of India, the majority of Himalayan
glaciers were receding at varying rates during the twentieth century.
However, he added, "Recession of
glaciers is a complex phenomenon ... Thus it is not possible to specify
the role played by the rise in temperature alone in this shrinkages."
The receding of glaciers may lead to
reduction in their ice reserves, besides changes in the river
hydrology, enhanced silt and debris production, ecological disturbances
and rise in sea level, Mr Ramesh said.
Kalam wants India to adopt Bangladesh's Grameen Bank model
Dhaka (IANS): Inspired by Bangladesh's
Grameen Bank endeavour, former Indian president A.P.J. Abdul Kalam has
mooted a separate Indian law for micro credit in rural areas, a media
report here said Monday.
Responding to Dr. Kalam, who is on a
three-day visit here, Nobel Laureate Muhammad Yunus Sunday said that
Grameen Bank would be delighted to help in any effort to set up micro
credit programmes in India and is already involved in such an effort in
Kerala.
Yunus presented Dr. Kalam the Hindi translation of his book Banker of the Poorduring his visit to the Grameen Bank, the Daily Star reported.
India's first technocrat president, who
held office from 2002 to 2007, also mooted joint research and
development, using modern technology, of jute -- the “golden fibre�
common to Bangladesh and India. Its production has steadily declined in
recent years.
On Sunday, Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina on Sunday hosted a dinner in Kalam's honour.
Dr. Kalam's itinerary here includes visiting Dhaka University and the historic Viqarunnisa Noon School and College. Dr. Kalam, along with President Zillur
Rahman, will Monday attend the first convocation of the University of
Information Technology and Sciences (UITS).
Krishna to attend ARF meet in Thailand tomorrow
New Delhi (PTI) With terrorist threats
spanning across the globe, the ASEAN Regional Forum, to be attended by
External Affairs Minister S.M. Krishna in Thailand, will come out with
a work plan to tackle the threat.
The two-day meeting in Phuket is also expected to discuss global economic crisis and food and energy security.
Progress on the negotiations for Free
Trade Agreement between India and ASEAN is also expected to be reviewed
during the three-day visit of Krishna beginning Monday.
The Work Plan is aimed at committing
the 26 member countries to make efforts towards concrete,
capacity-building efforts, technical support and information exchange.
The meeting will also discuss other
global and regional challenges like food and energy security, climate
change, regional security, nuclear non-proliferation, disaster
management and prevention and control of pandemic diseases.
The ARF meet will issue a Vision Statement, outlining the roadmap to give a fillip to cooperation among the member countries.
The ministerial meeting of the ASEAN and ARF will set the agenda for the Summit to be held in Thailand in October.
Congress refuses to comment on India, Pak's joint statement
New Delhi (PTI) The Congress on Monday
refused to comment on the joint statement of India and Pakistan in
Egypt, saying the party had nothing to add to the two statements of
Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, including one on the floor of the House.
Replying to a volley of questions on
whether the joint statement negated what India had been standing for
and whether the party endorsed it, party spokesman Abhishek Singhvi
said, "if you need any further clarification, go to Government of
India".
He said the PM's statement leaves no scope for any doubt.
Mr. Singhvi also parried questions on
Leader of Opposition L K Advani's criticism of the joint statement
saying such statements came even during the Indo-US nuclear deal.
"There are objectives he has been using...They don't deserve to be answered," he added.
To a query about the proposed rath
yatra of Mr. Advani, Mr. Singhvi said he wished him "happy journey" but
added that the country was in turmoil when similar yatra was undertaken
earlier.
Tapioca kept for sale in a street in Kochi. It is as a nutritious
food substitute, and in animal feed formulation, production of starch,
sago and commodity chemicals like citric acid and high fructose syrup.
Photo: K.K. Mustafah.
Photo Gallery
Cane output may fall 17 million tonnes below demand by 2012
New Delhi (PTI): India's sugarcane production is projected to fall
short of the demand by 17 million tonnes at the end of this Plan period
(2007-2012) from a surplus supply of 14 million tonnes now, as per the
Planning Commission.The country is ... More
Chilli, turmeric rises on tight supply
New Delhi (PTI): Red chilli and turmeric prices rose up to Rs 200 per
quintal in the national capital on Monday on fall in supplies from
producing belts amid fresh buying support from local parties and
stockists.Red chilli prices were up by Rs ... More
Copra, dry dates up on fresh buying
New Delhi (PTI): Copra and dry dates price rose by Rs 100 per quintal
in the national capital on Monday on the back of buying by retailers
and stockists due to festive demand.Fall in supplies from producing
Southern region also supported the rise ... More
Agriculture Ministry advising farmers on sowing Pepper futures price improve on fresh buying Cardamom strengthens on pick up in spot demand Jeera future prices up on short-covering Almond extends gains as demand rises PEC invites bids for import of pulses `Cultivate different crops without fertilisers'
From The Times
July 16, 2009
Indian food and power shortages loom as monsoon arrival is latest in 80 years
Rhys Blakely in Delhi
Recommend? (6)
India is looking anxiously to the skies as the worst start to the
monsoon in 80 years raises fears of food shortages, power cuts and
riots.
In Bhopal a young couple and their son were beaten and stabbed to
death yesterday, allegedly after a dispute with their neighbours over
water in the drought-stricken city.
In the surrounding state of Madhya Pradesh water tankers were under
police guard as they visited areas where normal drinking supplies have
been exhausted for weeks.
“Street brawls are happening as the water supplies are coming in.
It’s hot; tempers are short; people are thirsty and frustrated,� said
Indira Khurana, of WaterAid India.
Related Links
* India's imperfect storms
* Scientists seeks to bring on Indian monsoon
The monsoon’s prolonged tropical downpours, which account for 80 per
cent of India’s annual rainfall, should have started early last month
but have only just begun. The delayed onset of the rainy season has
pushed back the planting of staples such as rice and grain after a
scorching June, in which temperatures in the northwest hovered 6-7C
above historical averages, and led to vegetable crops and paddy
nurseries withering in the sun.
While food prices have risen, the stock market in Mumbai has
plummeted. Last week it suffered its worst falls since October over
fears that a failed monsoon could ruin the livelihood of millions of
poor consumers.
Economists now fear that the vagaries of the weather could wreck a
national economy that has weathered the financial storms of the global
credit crisis relatively unscathed.
State governments in the central region of Jharkhand and the north
eastern region of Manipur have already declared droughts â€" a highly
unusual step so early in the growing season. Assam, also in the
northeast, which produces tea and rice, said 14 of its 28 districts are
suffering drought.
In Punjab, the northern region known as the bread basket of India,
rainfall has been less than half the historical average. Across the
country as a whole it is about 30 per cent below normal. The Government
banned wheat exports from the country this week, over concerns that a
poor harvest will lead to shortages and price increases.
The looming crisis has emphasised just how dependent India remains
on the monsoon â€" even to keep the lights on. The country relies on
hydroelectric generation for about a quarter of its power output. With
electricity being diverted to irrigate crops, vast areas face blackouts.
Meanwhile, most of the 800 million Indians who rely on agriculture
for their living are hanging on the weather man’s every word. Here, at
least, the latest news is comforting, with the heavy rains that have
descended on much of the country in the past few days forecast to
continue.
Indians pray that now the rains have started they will continue.http: //www.timesonlin e.co.uk/tol/ news/world/ asia/article6715 468.ece
India Inc's rain hopes
NDTV Correspondent
Wednesday, July 15, 2009 (New Delhi)
The
monsoon is still to reach the optimum levels in many parts of the
country, raising fears of even a drought. But is the situation that bad
or is there still some hope left?
A
seventy per cent of Indians are farmers, dependent on the monsoon and
their livelihood now hangs in balance, thanks to large parts of the
country getting poor rainfall. There is already fear in the markets and
the government is treading softly, but are the concerns justified?
According
to the Metereological department, June saw 55 per cent less than normal
rains, but July made up with 95 per cent rainfall in the first week,
which means late sowing is possible and reservoirs are filling up.
BP
Yadav, director of IMD, said, “There was a 54 per cent deficiency
earlier that has come down to 32 per cent, which means an improvement
of 20 per cent and it has come mainly from South India and Central
India. The rains have been enough in quantity and distribution but
northwest areas still remain a concern.�
While industries related to agriculture have cause for concern, some players feel they can weather the storm.
Vivek
Saraogi, MD of Balrampur Chini Mills, said, “The cane is a crop that
does not require rainfall equal to something like paddy. I don’t think
there is going to be too much of a dip in production.
HM
Bangur, MD of Shree Cement, said, “ The monsoon is good. It was delayed
but we do not think that it is going to effect much.�
However, India Inc’s confidence may be a little misplaced. Manipur has
declared a drought and so have parts of Jharkhand and if the situation
does not improve soon, India could be facing a long summer of
discontent.http: //profit. ndtv.com/ 2009/07/14230452 /India-Incs- rain-hopes. html
* Posted: Wed, Jul 15 2009. 10:32 PM IST
*
* Economy and Politics
*
Opposition wants Centre to declare drought
The
opposition has demanded that the government call a meeting of chief
ministers, leaders of all political parties and experts to chalk out
strategies to deal with the foodgrain scarcity
Liz Mathew
New
delhi: Even as the government maintained that the monsoon is likely to
get stronger over the next few weeks, the Opposition on Wednesday
demanded the Centre to declare a drought in the country and offer
financial assistance to farmers who are dependent on the monsoon.
A
senior minister in the United Progressive Alliance (UPA) government
admitted that the monsoon situation in the north-west is “worrying� and
that the rains in July would not compensate for the shortfall in June
in this region. He said the progress of the rains was unlikely to be
good in Punjab, Haryana, Rajasthan and eastern Uttar Pradesh as the
monsoon rains had started moving south, away from the region.
Dry
tension: Farmers ploughing a field in north India. Parts of the country
face the threat of a drought after recording weak rains. Ramesh
Pathania / Mint
“As of 12 July, 25 of 36 meterological
subdivisions fall under scanty or deficient monsoon category. But the
mitigation strategy has to be worked out at the states,� the minister,
who did not want to be identified, said.
In the Lok Sabha,
urging the government to declare a “drought�, the opposition demanded
that the government call a meeting of chief ministers, leaders of all
political parties and experts to chalk out strategies to deal with the
“foodgrain scarcity, power shortage and drinking water scarcity�,
which, they said, would be the outcome of deficient rains.
The
proceedings in the Lower House was adjourned for half-an-hour after the
opposition MPs led by Janata Dal (United), or JD(U), leader Sharad
Yadav wanted Speaker Meira Kumar to suspend Question Hour and discuss
the “drought situation� in the country. Lawmakers cutting across party
lines said the government must chalk out a contingency plan to deal
with the situation.
Communist Party of India MP Gurudas
Dasgupta said rice acerage in the country has dropped by 20% and the
area under oilseeds cultivation has fallen 45%. The government,
however, did not respond to this.
Parts of India face the
threat of a drought after recording weak rains, despite flash floods in
Orissa and Mumbai claiming the lives of at least 15 people. In Assam
and Manipur, authorities have already declared drought after scanty
rainfall. Four districts in Jharkhand were also declared drought-hit.
Although
stating that the monsoon will improve in the latter half of July, the
government has banned export of wheat. However, minister of state in
the Prime Minister’s Office Prithviraj Chavan said: “If there is a
shortage of foodgrain, we will import. We have plenty of stock for the
current year.�
http://www.livemint .com/2009/ 07/15223255/ Opposition- wants-Centre- to-dec.html? h=B
Clouds, seas to be targeted by UN climate report
17 Jul 2009, 2026 hrs IST, REUTERS
OSLO: Cloud formation, sea level rises
and extreme weather events are among areas set to get more attention in the next
UN report on global
warming due in 2014, the head of the Nobel Peace Prize
winning panel said on Friday.
Rajendra Pachauri also said the panel
did not plan to issue more frequent reports as suggested by some governments,
reckoning that several years were needed to come up with robust findings. The
last series of reports was in 2007.
"We would certainly have much
more greater detail," in the next reports, Pachauri told in a telephone
interview from Venice, where leading scientists have been meeting from July
13-17 to work on an outline to be approved later this year.
"In the
case of clouds we will certainly provide much greater emphasis in this report --
clouds, aerosols, black carbon. These are issues that we will certainly cover in
much greater detail," he said.
The 2007 report pointed to cloud
formation as a big uncertainty in climate change. Warmer air can absorb more
moisture and so lead to more clouds in some regions -- the white tops can
reflect heat back into space and offset any warming.
In an opposite
effect, black carbon -- or soot from sources such as factories or forest fires -- can blanket ice and snow with a heat-absorbent dark layer and so accelerate a
thaw.
"Sea level rise is another issue that...will get much greater
in-depth attention," he said.
Scenarios for sea level rise this
century in the 2007 report ranged from 18 to 59 cm (7-24 inches). But it said
that 59 cm should not be considered an upper limit because of uncertainties
about a possible melt of Greenland and Antarctica.
And the panel,
the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC), is also planning an extra
report on extreme events such as droughts, floods, heatwaves or mudslides
projected because of global warming.
Pachauri said the next report
by the IPCC, which shared the 2007 Nobel Prize with former US Vice President Al
Gore, was intended to guide nations after the planned agreement of a new UN
climate treaty in Copenhagen in December.
He welcomed an agreement
by major economies at a Group of Eight summit in Italy last week to recognise a
broad scientific view that world temperature rises should not exceed 2 Celsius
(3.6 Fahrenheit) above pre-industrial times.
But he said too little
was being done to achieve the limit. "It's a step forwards. I wish they would
have made some commitments on what would ensure limiting the temperature
increase to 2 degrees," he said.
"In the (2007 report) we said if
you want to limit temperatures to that range all we have is up to 2015 as the
year when global emissions must peak and they must decline thereafter," he said.
Greenhouse gas emissions, mainly from burning fossil fuels, have
risen fast in recent years although recession is now curbing industrial activity
in many nations. China has overtaken the United States as top emitter.
Of 177 scientific scenarios in the 2007 report, only 6 looked at
tough emissions curbs needed to keep temperature rises below 2 Celsius.
Governments have put more funding into scientific research into
higher emissions limits that they judge to be more likely.
"We're
certainly going to look at much more stringent mitigation," Pachauri said, when
asked if governments were still reluctant to put money into looking at curbs
needed to achieve the 2 Celsius limit.
MNCs' buyback rush may open arbitrage gate
18 Jul 2009, 0210 hrs IST, Vijay Gurav, ET Bureau
Print EMail Discuss Share Save Comment Text:
MUMBAI:
Investors could see some good arbitrage opportunities coming their way, as
foreign parents of many multinational companies (MNCs) are
expected to hike
their holdings in Indian subsidiaries through open offers, feel investment
bankers. Anticipating a further improvement in market conditions, these
companies may rush with voluntary or delisting offers before valuations become
expensive, investment bankers reckon.
Brokerage house Edelweiss Securities has named 10 MNCs which may come out with open offers. These are
Atlas Copco, Alfa Laval, Avaya Global, Gillette India, BASF India, Monsanto
India, BOC India, Ingersoll Rand, Blue Dart and Oracle Financial Services.
“With stability returning to equity markets, MNCs would like to make the
most of the current reasonable valuations for consolidating holdings in their
Indian subsidiaries.
Going by the trend observed in the case of
recent offers, it appears that the market is ready to make the most of these
special situation arbitrage opportunities,� said Edelweiss Securities in
its report ‘Master Moves’.
The past trend showed that as soon
as a company announces an open offer â€" which is generally at a premium to
the prevailing market price â€" investors flock to the counter to buy shares
in anticipation of a further rise in the price.
Pricing of open
offers has been a major issue among investors, particularly those holding shares
for a long time, because of which not many offers could be completed
successfully. Some MNCs had to make quite a few attempts to increase their stake
in local arms over a period of few years, while others had to increase their
offer price to attract shareholders. Novartis and Pfizer are the two latest
examples where the acquirers had to hike the respective offer prices. The
foreign parents could hike their stake in Novartis from 50.9% to 76.4% (against
the proposed 89.9%) after raising the offer price from 351 to Rs 450 per
share.
Despite a smart recovery in the market, many MNCs are
currently quoting at a substantial discount to their peak values and so could
see their parents rushing with offers, feel bankers. “Hopes of further
improvement in valuations could prompt foreign parents of MNCs to acquire shares
through open offer. Being cash-rich, most of them need not raise funds to run
their operations and would like to eventually delist shares,� said Almondz
Global Securities investment banking head Sharad Rathi.
All the MNCs
mentioned above are currently quoting between 14-36% lower than their 52-week
highs. For instance, Atlas Copco closed at Rs 616 on Friday, which is 36% lower
than the 52-week high price of Rs 960 scaled on September 8, 2008. Swedish
parent Atlas Copco Group had made an open offer in 2002, which increased its
holding from 51% to nearly 84% in the company. In another notable example, Alfa
Laval, where the foreign parent holds as high as 89% stake, is currently quoting
at Rs 885, 14% lower than its peak value. http://economictime s.indiatimes. com/Market- Analysis/ MNCs-buyback- rush-may- open-arbitrage- gate/articleshow /4791269. cms
India wilts as monsoon fears grow
By Santwana Bhattacharya
NEW DELHI - India could be staring at an imminent drought. It's not the delayed national budget, but the specter of a delayed - or, in large measure, denied - monsoon that's giving everyone sleepless nights. The Indian Meteorological Department has stopped short of baneful predictions in an economically stressful year - mindful of the political implications - but the signs are dire.
It has been a heart-breaking June, with the fabled wet wind from the southwest absent in most regions normally on its itinerary. The northern plains are bone dry, with temperatures regularly touching the mid-40s in centigrade. They are the last port of call
for the complex, mobile weather system which usually arrives there in July after drenching the vast swathes of peninsular India in June. But the monsoon has not even kept this date, for a number of reasons.
The monsoon season had an ominous start. In May, a spoiler developed in the Bay of Bengal in the shape of Cyclone Aila. Its low pressure core sucked off huge volumes of moisture from the incipient monsoon system building up off the Arabian Sea coast in the southwest, pouring it down in torrential buckets over the eastern seaboard states of Orissa and West Bengal. The residual moisture was funneled up into India's northeast, which saw rains a week or so ahead of schedule.
In the southwest and over the peninsula, the delicate monsoon never really recovered. It mostly hovered around the windward areas of the Western Ghats, the Malabar and Konkan coasts proper, as if hesitating to make an ingress into the mainland because it didn't have enough wind in its sails.
By the end of June, the rains were estimated at 54% below normal levels in these parts, with the deficit reaching 75% in central India. Desperation has began to show, with the state of Andhra Pradesh readying for cloud-seeding and some analysts gloomily offering el-Nino as a possible cause. Those capable of seeing patterns beyond the rational, of course, sought refuge in prayers and rituals, the most exotic instance being the marriage of two frogs organized in Nagpur to propitiate the gods.
At this point, the government finally thought it fit to say something. In a sort pre-emptive measure, it officially downgraded the 2009 monsoon to 93% of normal. This is a "below normal" figure - a cautious trimming of the "near normal" 96% forecast in April.
According to data collected since the 1940s, "normal" is 890 millimeters for the whole season. This naturally varies in different parts of India - which allows for the co-occurrence of bounty and scarcity.
The current reading is that, since June accounts for less than one-fifth of this total, central India may recover in the latter part of the season. What is really worrisome is that India's northwestern foodgrain belt, falling in the states of Haryana and Punjab, is likely to be worst hit. The prediction is that it will get only 81% of the long-term average for the region. That is not counting the 5% to 8% error level which could bring the rainfall level down to 73% of the normal.
The fear of drought - it would be the first in seven years - looms large. With power and water scarcity setting in, tempers in the cities are soaring almost in tandem with the heat.
After the predictions were made public, the first knee-jerk reaction came from Punjab. The state banned the use of air-conditioners in government offices, boards and corporations - despite the sweltering heat - so eight hours of uninterrupted power could be supplied to the farm sector. Some states have begun advertising to persuade farmers to switch crops and are even inviting tenders for cloud-seeding. The government is trying to keep things calm. Agriculture Secretary T Nanda Kumar has acknowledged the concerns but has insisted there is no reason to panic yet. A delayed monsoon could still make up for the loss.
The monsoon, which runs from June through September, is such a big thing in India that a bad year has the potential to topple governments. Even now, 60% of Indian farmland is dependent on rains, not irrigation. It goes beyond the economic, the imprint goes into the very socio-cultural make-up of a nation. From classical culture to kitsch Bollywood romance, nothing is untouched by the the unfailingly iconic moment of the arrival of the rains.
Its failure to arrive, then, is a soul-killer. The image of the ubiquitous poor farmer scanning the skies for a sign of the first dark cloud, framed against a parched piece of land with as many cracks as there are on his face, is both a subject of cliche and a matter of all-too-mundane reality. Governments of India dread nothing more than a bad monsoon. On the scale of enormity, it is no less huge than terrorist attacks or internal turmoil. For economists, who ply a predictive trade as risk-prone as that of weathermen, it's a built-in uncertainty in their forecasts. Their permitted margin of error.
Scientific monsoon prediction in India is an old game. The Met Department was the first national weather service in the world to start operational monsoon prediction work in 1886. This was when a British officer-cum- researcher used the relationship between winter Himalayan snow cover and the monsoon to make predictions. Forecasting the quantum of rainfall for the whole season was found useful for planning purposes. For farmers now, official word on intra-seasonal phenomena such as onset and withdrawal of the monsoon cycle is crucial for planning.
In a nutshell, a truant monsoon plays havoc with the kharif (rain-dependent, summer) crops. The implications can be better understood when seen against what are otherwise mundane statistics - 60% of India's 1.1 billion population survives on agriculture. That they account for only a fifth of India's national income only underlines the peril-ridden nature of their economics.
A dry June means kharif sowing is badly affected as it needs good rains for at least 15 days of June spilling over to July. Kharif crops like paddy, sugarcane, groundnuts, maize and pulses have a significant bearing on the country's food security, while others like cotton shape rural incomes. The spate of suicides by debt-ridden farmers in the past few years was highest in peninsular India's cotton areas.
This is, still, part of the problem. As poor rains lower agricultural output, in a chain effect they will also raise food prices and dent rural demand. Not to speak of the impact it would have on corporate profitability and market sentiment. The corporate sector wants the government to take corrective measures, if there's a problem at hand, so that food prices can be kept in check. Even the prime minister's office is monitoring the reluctant march of the monsoon. The state governments have been called for a meeting on Thursday to thrash out a contingency plan. There's obviously no time to lose.
A drought would affect the central government's finances on both the revenue and expenditure sides. Reduced rural demand in turn impacts industrial demand and consequently growth. Lower collections of all major taxes ranging from personal income to corporate, excise and even customs is a natural corollary. India's relative immunity to the global meltdown was attributed to its large domestic economy - in particular its hitherto under-appreciated rural component, whose robustness, being more insulated from world trends, came to the rescue of the more glamorous cities. It is this sector that gets directly hit by a bad monsoon.
On the other side, there would also be more pressure on the government's social welfare schemes. Drought would most certainly increase demand for the rural employment guarantee scheme and other sops may also be necessary. Besides, the government has promised a National Food Security Bill that would statutorily require the supply of 25 kilograms of rice or wheat at 3 rupees (US$0.06) per kilogram to poor families - a measure that could push up the subsidy bill by millions of rupees. And all this is happening in a year when the government has little maneuverability to spend its way through the crisis.
Little wonder that Minister for Science and Technology Prithviraj Chavan has cautiously admitted, "The southwest monsoon from June to September is likely to be below normal. But we've July and August to make up for the deficit." In concrete terms, bad rains signifies trouble in states like Uttar Pradesh, Jharkhand, Maharashtra and Orissa, where farmers could face crop loss; in Kerala, Uttarakhand and Punjab it could result in shrinking of reservoirs that would affect power generation and release of water to irrigated tracts.
For instance, the Tehri hydroelectric power station in Uttarakhand supplies power to New Delhi and its hinterland. The water level in its reservoirs has shrunk to dangerously low levels - 741 meters against a normal level of 830 meters during monsoons. The Bhakra dam, the biggest hydroelectric project in northern India, has water flowing in from the mountains. Its reservoir levels remain lower than they were last season.
Elsewhere in the country, the situation is no better. The Central Water Commission has made it known that in 80% of the reservoirs, the water level is below the 10-year average for the season. What has compounded the problem is that there was no snow in the higher ranges and no rain in the lower Himalayan mountains. In other words, with snow-fed rivers too under stress, a grim rain scenario would only complicate matters.
Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee has the toughest job ahead. Scheduled to place a budget before parliament on July 6, he's faced with the task of producing a document that can revive an economy hemmed in by a high budget deficit and a looming food crisis. Actual gross tax revenue already fell by 3% in 2008-09, adding to Mukherjee's troubles.
All in all, it's the kind of crisis management that could require the Manmohan Singh government - voted back to power partly because of the premier's much-touted economic skills and partly because of its welfarism - to empty its coffers and stretch its talent pool.
Santwana Bhattacharya is a New Delhi-based journalist who writes on politics, parliament and elections. She is currently working on a book on electoral reforms and the emergence of regional parties in India.
(Copyright 2009 Asia Times Online (Holdings) Ltd. All rights reserved. Please contact us about sales, syndication and republishing. )
Rags remain India's true story
Jun 12,'09
In India, the comedy of power-sharing
Jun 1,'09
India wet and wary as rains arrive
Jun 6, 2008
Premier in drought areas visit as a little rain falls
Source: Xinhua | 2009-2-9 | NEWSPAPER EDITION
____________ _________ _________ __
Premier
Wen Jiabao inspects the growth of wheat in Yangbei Village, Yuzhou City
of central China's Henan Province. Wen visited the drought-hit Henan
over the weekend and urged all relevant departments to place
drought-relief work as their top priority. Parts of China's parched
north got light rain over the weekend after authorities fired shells
loaded with cloud-seeding chemicals to the sky, but there still seemed
to be no end in sight for China's worst drought in 50 years.
Photograph byXinhua
More in photo gallery
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PARTS of China's parched north got light rain after
authorities fired shells loaded with cloud-seeding chemicals into the
sky, but there was no end in sight for its worst drought in five
decades, the government said yesterday.
China
has declared an emergency across the country's north, where 4.4 million
people lack adequate drinking water and winter wheat crops are
withering.
"The drought situation will not be eased in the near future," the China Meteorological Administration said.
Some
areas got a sprinkling of rain and sleet at the weekend after clouds
were hit with 2,392 rockets and 409 cannon shells loaded with
chemicals, the administration said. It said clouds were thin and moving
out of the region, making conditions poor for more rain making.
Rainfall
in northern and central China is 50 percent to 80 percent below normal,
according to the Flood Control and Drought Relief Office.
Artificial
means were employed to create rains in at least seven provinces on
Saturday to alleviate the drought, the meteorological administration
said.
Rain-enhancing practices were adopted in Henan, Gansu, Ningxia, Shaanxi, Shanxi, Hubei and Anhui.
In
central China's Henan Province, artificial precipitation brought on
average 0.5 millimeters of rain to 17 counties and cities. The province
is one of the major wheat-producing areas.
Parts of the
artificially moistened provinces and north China's Hebei Province saw 1
to 5 millimeters of rain from Saturday to yesterday morning.
Irrigation
had covered 52.7 percent of the wheat farmland in the drought-hit
provinces by Saturday, the Ministry of Agriculture said yesterday.
A
total of about 5.67 million hectares of wheat land had been irrigated
in eight drought-stricken provincial regions, the ministry said.
Agriculture
Minister Sun Zhengcai said it was important to fully use machinery in
the fight against drought. He asked local governments to increase
subsidies for farmers to buy more irrigation-related and water-saving
equipment, and make every effort to expand irrigation coverage and save
water.
By Saturday, 10.1 million hectares of wheat farmland,
which accounted for 95 percent of the drought-stricken crops in China,
was affected in eight provincial areas of Hebei, Shanxi, Anhui,
Jiangsu, Henan, Shandong, Shaanxi and Gansu. The drought began to hit
most parts of China's north in November.
The foul weather has
affected 1.07 million hectares of crops and threatened the drinking
water supply for 4.37 million people and 2.1 million heads of
livestock.
Relief work
Premier Wen Jiabao has urged
officials to place "top priority" on relief work as agricultural
stability concerned China's bid to revive its economy.
The
fight against drought has to do not only with the safety of grain
supply but also with the country's efforts to stimulate domestic
demand, Wen said during a visit to Henan Province over the weekends.
He said: "It's of vital significance to the overall economy to boost steady growth of grain production and farmers' income."
The
premier told local governments to allocate relief funds at the earliest
possible time, ensure adequate supply of farm tools, fertilizer and
pesticide and subsidize farmers' purchase of urgently needed machinery.
Local governments are also urged to speed up construction of water control works, reservoirs in danger and irrigation projects.
China
is to divert water from the nation's longest rivers, the Yangtze and
Yellow rivers, to irrigate drought-stricken farmland, a Ministry of
Water Resources official said.
http://www.shanghai daily.com/ sp/article/ 2009/200902/ 20090209/ article_390386. htm
palashcbiswas,
gostokanan, sodepur, kolkata-700110 phone:033-25659551
- 5.
-
Gunfight breaks out on Gaza border/other news
Posted by: "marc samberg" mechelsamberg@gmail.com mechelsamberg
Wed Jul 22, 2009 3:10 am (PDT)
Contents:
Israel Today
Theater of the absurd
Arutz Sheva Israel National News
Daily Alert
Germany honors Israeli 'Israel hater'
Excerpts: Global jihad infiltrates Gaza?Iran 'ethnic sectarian conflict'
'I wed Iranian girls before execution'
Disclaimer: Israel Today is a Christian Messianic resource, not Jewish.
*
http://www.israelto day.co.il/ default.aspx? tabid=79*
*Gunfight breaks out on Gaza border *
Israeli and Palestinian forces engaged in a brief but intense firefight
along the Gaza Strip security fence late Sunday night. There were no
casualties reported on either side.
The battle erupted after Palestinian terrorist gunmen fired an anti-tank
missile at an Israeli patrol.
Earlier in the day, Israeli troops shot and wounded a Palestinian man after
he ignored warnings to stop approaching the security fence in northern Gaza.
Army officials said several warning shots were fired, but the man continued
advancing, raising fears that he was a suicide bomber.
Israeli army medics treated the man and then moved him to an Israeli
hospital.
*Obama orders Israel to halt Jerusalem hotel project *
The Obama Administration has ordered Israel to halt construction of a new
Jewish-owned hotel on the eastern side of Jerusalem, Israel's major radio
stations reported on Sunday morning.
According to the reports, Israeli Ambassador to the US Michael Oren was
summoned to the State Department on Friday, where he was told that the
president wants Israel to halt construction of the Shepherd Hotel being
built next to the Israel Police headquarters on the eastern side of main
road that runs north from Jerusalem's Old City. Two other Israeli luxury
hotels already stand near the site.
The direct American pressure came following complaints by Palestinian leader
Mahmoud Abbas that the hotel was being built on land claimed by his own
regime as part of its future capital.
Israeli officials responded by telling radio interviewers that the land is
privately owned, and that the Israeli government is not about to start
interfering in private business affairs as a result of diplomatic pressure.
Nor will Israel give up its right to build wherever its sees fit in
Jerusalem.
"Israel has built in Jerusalem and will continue to build in Jerusalem,"
said one official.
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu personally weighted in on the matter at
Sunday's cabinet meeting, insisting that under his government, Israel will
never comply with demands that Jews stop buying land and building wherever
they please in Jerusalem.
He explained that all of Israel's citizens are free to buy and build where
they choose, and that if Israel put the kind of restrictions on Arabs buying
land and building homes that Washington is trying to put on Jews, there
would be outrage in the international community.
*UN ignoring Hizballah activity in Lebanon *
An Israeli government official told *Ha'aretz* at the weekend that last
Tuesday's accidental explosion at a Hizballah rocket depot in southern
Lebanon was not an isolated incident, but that UN forces on the ground there
are routinely choosing to ignore Lebanese violations of the resolution that
ended the 2006 Second Lebanon War.
The stockpile of Katyusha rockets in the southern Lebanon village of Hirbet
Salim only came to public attention when it blew up and killed a handful of
Hizballah fighters. But the Israeli source said that UNIFIL, the UN force
tasked with preventing another terrorist assault on Israel from Lebanese
territory, knew of its location for many months before that.
In fact, UNIFIL knows about a lot of Hizballah locations and activity in
southern Lebanon, but is choosing to do nothing about it, in violation of
its mandate, the source complained.
In light of the explosion in Hirbet Salim, UNIFIL felt compelled to act in
some way, so sent a detachment of soldiers to investigate the area on
Saturday. But those soldiers were stopped and violently confronted by local
Lebanese who refused to let them look into what Hizballah was doing in their
village.
Instead of forcefully fulfilling their mandate, the UN troops retreated.
Israeli officials say it is not uncommon for UNIFIL to abandon monitoring
missions when it faces even the most mild resistance. Jerusalem hopes that
when UNIFIL's mandate comes up for review in late August, the Security
Council will grant it far greater authority to act against those who attempt
to hinder its mission.
*Lebanese plant Hizballah flag in Israel *
Fifteen Lebanese civilians on Friday infiltrated northern Israel and planted
Hizballah and Lebanese flags before fleeing back across the border.
Israeli army officials said the flags were placed at a makeshift observation
point several yards into Israel.
Soldiers who spotted the infiltrators refrained from opening fire after
confirming that the Lebanese were unarmed an that the group was made up
mostly of women and children.
Israel did file a complaint, however, noting that the infiltration, even if
unarmed, was a serious violation of UN Security Council Resolution 1701,
which brought an end to the 2006 Second Lebanon War. Had Israelis crossed
into southern Lebanon, the reaction from the international community would
have likely been far more severe.
*Israel last 'safe bet' in crumbling global economy *
Bank of Israel Governor Stanley Fischer said in an interview with Fox News
at the weekend that with the economies of all the world's major powers
succumbing to the global recession, Israel remains one of the last few "safe
bets" for investors.
Fischer said that while Israel, too, is in the midst of a recession, it is
far more mild than the recessions being experienced in the US and Europe,
and that full recovery appears to be just around the corner.
Fischer said Israel's ability to withstand the economic meltdown was due in
large part to government spending restraints in recent years and the
purchase of massive amounts of foreign currency, particularly US dollars.
As evidence of how well Israel has done while other nation's floundered,
Fischer pointed out that major Tel Aviv Stock Exchange indexes are today 30
percent higher than where they were five years ago, while most US shares
have lost value.
************ ********* ********* ********* ********* ********* ********
*Theater of the absurd*
Dear Friends,
Four items caught my attention in today's newsbag:
1. Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas (a.k.a. the terrorist Abu
Mazen) accused Israel of trying to "Judaicize" East
Jerusalem<http://www.haaretz. com/hasen/ spages/1101542. html>.
Excuse me! Why is it that the PA controlled Waqf won't let Jews even move
their lips in case they might pray at the edge of the Temple Mount? Exactly
who is trying to push their religion and wipe out someone else's? In which
cities in the world is it *illegal *for the adherents of a particular
religion to purchase land or live? Friends, the answer is not Israel. I
believe that it is only the Arab world (including the Palestinian Authority)
that is allowed to practice such racist apartheid practices.
2. And pushing this Palestinian racism with even the most absurd of
arguments is the British
consulate<http://www.haaretz. com/hasen/ spages/1101385. html>,
which doesn't seem to have shed its anti-Semitic and pro-Arab tendencies
from the days of the British Mandate over Palestine. In objecting to a
Jewish owned hotel venture in East Jerusalem, "The U.K. envoys also
expressed concern that construction activity so close to the consulate could
lead to an intelligence leak." I guess they are not worried by Arab
neighbours – but being close to Jews might make their limited brains fall
out.
3. And at last something sensible. No wonder it didn't make it to
the mainstream media.
Israeli officials took a step on behalf of captive IDF soldier Gilad
Shalit<http://www.theyeshi vaworld.com/ article.php? p=36958>,
preventing 15 French diplomatic officials accompanied by Jerusalem consular
officials from entering Gaza, where they hoped to take part in
Bastille Dayfestivities.
A source stated that Israel cannot permit them to celebrate a day of
freedom while Gilad Shalit, who also has French citizenship, remains hostage
to Hamas terrorists, now in his fourth year of captivity.
4. Who killed Yasser Arafat? Every good Palestinian can believe his
government controlled press. The Israelis are responsible for everything
bad in the world, no? Palestinian Media Watch
reports<http://www.palwatch .org/main. aspx?fi=157& doc_id=1082>that
there is new competition for the coveted title of Mr Evil. Seems that
PLO
leader (and PFLP terrorist) Ahmad Jibril told the secret that everyone has
been whispering since Arafat got ill. He claims concrete evidence that
jolly Yasser had AIDS, and that's what killed him. The official PA position
is, of course that the "cursed [Jewish] apes and pigs" of Israel poisoned
Arafat, with permission of the US together with French medical
co-conspirators. Al-Jazeera chimes in with the latest conspiracy theory
that Mahmoud Abbas was the perpetrator. Who cares, you ask? The
interesting thing is that the PA, which has "no power" to stop the racist
anti-Jewish, anti-Israel and pro-terror incitement on its state controlled
media, was able to immediately ban Al-Jazeera from the Palestinian
Authority airwaves
for its incitement against the hard done-by Abu Mazen.
Regards,
David
Comments welcome, as usual. Please post them here:
http://dfrankfurter .livejournal. com/118772. html. I read them all.
*
http://www.web- view.net/ Show/0XFB9EC1A96 FD8FCCD5057AE860 DE07B8C001E04F11 E9434438186735DB D637488.htm
*
1. Arab Media: US May Allow Building in Return for Setting Borders
by Tzvi Ben Gedalyahu [image: Report: US To Set Jewish Borders]
The Arabic-language Al Quds newspaper based in Jerusalem reported Monday
morning that the United States has proposed to agree to Israel's building a
hotel on Jewish-owned property in eastern Jerusalem and several hundred
homes elsewhere in return for the American government's setting new borders
for Israel and the proposed Palestinian Authority state.
The U.S. also will include a provision that 300,000 foreign Arabs can
immigrate into areas that Israel would cede to the PA in return for
retaining Jewish towns and cities in Maaleh Adumim, Gush Etzion and possibly
Ariel and nearby communities. The PA previously has rejected the idea.
Neither Israel nor the Obama administration has commented on the report.
The issue of the proposed hotel in Jerusalem has left all three sides – the
Obama and Netanyahu government and the PA –entrenching themselves into
positions that have left virtually no room for compromise.
All sides agree on one critical point with different conclusions: They see
no difference between the status of a hotel in eastern Jerusalem and the
building of homes in predominantly Jewish neighborhoods populated by more
than 250,000 Jews in the capital. The PA, with Obama's backing, has demanded
sovereignty over all of the areas – including Ramot, French Hill and Gilo –
that were restored to the Jewish State in the Six-Day War in 1967.
The Netanyahu government, with wide support from virtually every party
except Meretz and Arab factions, considers all of the areas part of a united
Israeli city that will continue to serve as its capital, without a PA
presence.
The current crisis began in early June, when U.S. President Barack Obama
addressed the Muslim world in Cairo and said that a Jewish presence in Judea
and Samaria is "illegitimate." The State Department later widened the
definition of "settlements" to the Jerusalem neighborhood of Har Homa,
located directly across the road from Gilo.
President Obama sent U.S. Middle East envoy George Mitchell to try to reach
an agreement with Prime Minister Netanyahu, but their positions were so far
apart that the meeting was canceled. Instead, Mitchell met at least three
times with Defense Minister Ehud Barak.
U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, who also has explicitly ruled out
Israel's right to build anywhere in eastern Jerusalem or Judea and Samaria,
refused to comment on the dispute and Mitchell's postponement of another
trip to Israel.
The Prime Minister's public statements on Sunday that Israel will not
consider sacrificing its rights in Jerusalem were an attempt "to pre-empt
further American efforts to stop Jewish building in east Jerusalem,"
according to Israeli officials quoted by The New York Times.
2. Qatar Sheikh Funds Hamas to Buy Jerusalem Buildings
by Tzvi Ben Gedalyahu [image: Hamas Buying Jerusalem Buildings]
An Egyptian sheikh living in Qatar has given Hamas $21 million to buy
buildings in eastern Jerusalem, where the outlawed terrorist organization as
well as the Palestinian Authority are trying to establish a power base,
Israel Security Agency (Shin Bet) Yuval Diskin director told the Cabinet
Sunday.
He also informed ministers that Hamas officials have indicated an interest
in teaming up with the Fatah-led PA, which also is trying to strengthen its
presence in the city. Diskin also revealed that the PA, headed by Mahmoud
Abbas, is trying to locate and prevent Arabs from renting their houses to
Jews, especially in the Old City. The PA also is trying to buy properties
eastern Jerusalem.
The money from Sheik Yusef al-Qaradawi, a Muslim Brotherhood senior cleric
who lives in Qatar, is being used by Hamas to buy buildings for its
re-activated social welfare groups that operate under the guise of
"charities."
Diskin explained to the Cabinet that Hamas is exploiting what it sees as a
weak Israeli policy and is considering cooperating with its arch-rival
Fatah.
PA and Hamas never stopped their activities but they were less in recent
years until now, he added. "Public statements of senior Hamas officials
testify the efforts they are interested in a solution to the dispute in
exchange for a long-term ceasefire" between Hamas and Fatah.
There would be no change in Hamas ideology, but cooperation would take Hamas
out of diplomatic isolation.
The head of domestic intelligence noted that Israel continues to allow the
transfer to the PA tax revenues it collects, although most of it is goes to
Gaza. Fifty million shekels ($12 million) recently was transferred in
addition to $200 million that the United States is giving the Fatah
government this month. The money will be used to cover its debts, which
include salaries for Arabs in Gaza.
3. Case Closed against Olmert on Cremieux Home
by Tzvi Ben Gedalyahu [image: Case Closed against Olmert]
Attorney-General Menachem Mazuz announced Monday that he is closing the case
of suspected bribery in former Prime Minister Ehud Olmert's purchase of a
home on Cremieux Street in Jerusalem. Mazuz explained that there is not
sufficient evidence to indict Olmert.
The suspicions were disclosed more than three years ago by investigative
journalist Yoav Yitzchak, who operates the News 1 Hebrew-language news site.
He has uncovered several documents and testimonies that implicated the
former Prime Minister.
Olmert bought the house at a substantial discount from the market price in
2004 and was suspected of influencing Jerusalem officials to re-zone the
property from a preserved zone in order to allow drastic renovations.
The case is the second to be dropped in criminal probes involving Olmert.
Last year, prosecutors decided to close the case in which Olmert was charged
with trying to favor two business friends in the government's sale of its
shares in Bank Leumi.
State prosecutors already have announced they will indict Olmert in the
"double-billing" affair in which Rishon Tours sent out multiple invoices,
allegedly enabling Olmert to pocket extra money.
He also faces possible indictment for receiving hundreds of thousands of
dollars from American businessman Morris Talansky, including at least
$150,000 in cash that was transferred in envelopes.
A third case involves his activities in the Investment Center, where he has
been accused of favoring friends.
4. 'The Temple Will Never be Rebuilt', Islamist Movement Says
by Yehudah Lev Kay [image: Mufti: 'Temple Won't be Rebuilt']
The deputy chief of the Islamist movement in Israel Kimal Al-Khatib told
thousands of children in a Saturday Islamist protest on the Temple Mount
that the Jewish Temple will never be rebuilt. His speech was published in
the Jerusalem-based Al-Quds Al-Arabi newspaper Monday morning.
"If the Jews think that their mourning will end and they will rejoice by
destroying the Al-Aqsa mosque and building their Temple, we say to them that
their dream will not be fulfilled and they will continue to mourn. Al-Aqsa
is for Muslims only," he said.
Al-Khatib was referring to the traditional period of mourning Jews
commemorate every summer for the destruction of the Holy Temples on Tisha
B'Av (The ninth of the Hebrew month of Av). The Second Temple was destroyed
in 70 CE by the Romans, while the Dome of the Rock and the Al-Aqsa mosque
were erected in 691 and 705 CE.
The Head of the Islamist movement in Jerusalem, Icharma Savri, also spoke to
the assembled children. He previously served as the Chief Mufti of the
Palestinian Authority.
"I tell this gathering, swearing by Allah, and in defiance of our enemies.
We pass this safekeeping from generation to generation. Al-Aqsa is the
safekeeping of the future generations, one after the other, and the children
are dedicated to Al-Aqsa. They are the generation which will free it from
our enemies," he said.
5. Fund Cries Foul after Radio Hosts Call to 'Beat Up Traitors'
by Gil Ronen [image: Radio Hosts: 'Beat Up Traitors']
The New Israel Fund, a liberal organization that funds anti-Zionist Arab
groups and ultra-leftist groups in Israel, was upset by Army Radio talk show
hosts' comments Thursday regarding one of the groups that they sponsor.
Irit Linur and Kobi Arieli, hosts of daily talk show "The Last Word," opened
the show with a conversation about Breaking the Silence, an organization
that recently spread anonymous
stories<http://trailer. web-view. net/Links/ 0X2528CD17392EC3 F33CCE2BC65153D0 9F625C0B594608D0 1801B00900040664 CA395DC65787CF68 88EBC6A7AF9E6874 B05B28E522A1B3B9 07FB6660AFFA374C EC.htm>about
IDF soldiers who supposedly abused Arabs in Gaza.
*Send them home with scars
*Arieli said to Linur and the listeners: "Listen, when we were small, there
were two camps in the neighborhood. There was our camp, the Chizki group. We
were very strong. One day we caught someone from our camp who gave
information to the other camp. I saw him in the neighborhood a few years ago
and I saw the scar near his ear from what Chizki did to him."
"He just grabbed a hold of him… you know… kids… I think it even ended up on
the verge of violence, never mind. This is forbidden of course but it's an
instinct. And my question is – in the case of leftist traitors with identity
problems ratting on us to another camp – the question is why don't our
strong guys work them over and send them home with scars?"
Linur answered: "Okay, you are talking about Breaking the Silence which
manufactured a report with all sorts of ridiculous and ungrounded
allegations," and then exclaimed "ground yourself, you piece of garbage!" –
apparently addressing an imaginary member of Breaking the Silence.
The conversation continued and Linur said that "cowards and chickens like
Breaking the Silence are not worth wasting violence over." She summed up the
talk by saying that "beating people up violently is not our style," to which
Arieli replied: "Not us!…Chizki! Chizki! Where are you when we need you?"
*Fund: Linur and Arieli were not in combat
*The New Israel Fund (NIF), which has donors in North America and Britain,
and which funds Breaking the Silence, sent a letter to IDF Radio Commander
Yitzchak Tunik Sunday and demanded that he take disciplinary action against
the two hosts.
NIF head Eliezer Yaari wrote in his letter that as he listened to the
conversation he thought about the fact that "all of the members of Breaking
the Silence were combat soldiers and that the group is currently headed by a
woman who was a combat Border Police officer"
Yaari expressed "wonder" at Ms. Linur's comments "about the courage of those
whose entire military service was in combat IDF units, a pleasure that Mrs.
Linur – and certainly Mr. Arieli – were spared."
"The incitement to violence, and perhaps even murder, is being carried out
in the military radio, which employs citizens some of whom did not complete
a full term of service in the IDF, and who – like Arieli – spiritedly defend
the right of people to shirk service."
6. Knesset to Vote on Selling State Lands in Israel
by Hillel Fendel [image: Knesset Land-Privatization Vote]
The Knesset is set to vote Monday on the land reform package, which includes
the sale of 800 square kilometers (308 square miles) of state-owned land to
private hands.
The reforms also include the dissolution of the Israel Lands Authority,
which has long handled – with great bureaucracy – everything having to do
with the long-term leasing, development and improvements to state-owned
lands and the structures built there.
*Protest Rally
*Some 650 people from various environmental and social groups demonstrated
on Sunday night outside the Knesset against the bill. The protestors
represented the entire political spectrum, including Bnei Akiva, the
National Union party, the left-wing Young Guard, and more.
*Shneller and the Pushke
*MK Otniel Shneller (Kadima), a strong opponent of the plan, was thrown out
of a Knesset committee meeting on the topic on Monday morning. He was
accused of mocking the committee when he circulated among the members with a
little blue Jewish National Fund box (pushke) – historically used to collect
coins from Jews all over the world to buy land in the Holy Land – to
"collect" money from the MKs to ensure that the Western Wall would not be
among the sold properties.
Shneller explained that the law is terrible in both its content and its
timing: "It allows land to be sold to anyone who is eligible for Israeli
citizenship under the Law of Return, but this can easily be detoured, and if
land is in fact sold 'out,' there will be no way to regain it. I begged the
Prime Minister to at least ensure that the land is sold only in the Jubilee
manner, meaning that after 49 years we can review it, but he refused."
In terms of timing, Shneller said, "We are now about to begin the month of
Av, when the Temples were destroyed and we were exiled and our land was
transferred into the hands of foreigners. At the same time, the US
government brazenly tells us that we cannot even build in our own capital.
And this law comes along and does the same thing – giving away our land to
others."
*Two More Rabbinic Declarations*
Two groups of rabbis circulated Halakhic opinions against the sale of lands
on Sunday.
The Torah and Land Rabbis Council, headed by Rabbi Zalman Melamed and Rabbi
Dov Lior, wrote, "The Council joins the firm declaration issued by the Chief
Rabbis of Israel and has instructed the MKs of the National Union party to
vote as one against the land-reform law. We also all upon [al MKs who adhere
to the rabbis to oppose the law and to try to persuade others MKs to oppose
it as well." The Council rabbis also attempted to prevail upon the rabbis of
the hareidi-religious sector to explain to their representatives in the
Knesset the severity of supporting this plan from Halakhic, ethical and
value-based standpoints.
Also signed on this opinion were Rabbis Yehoshua Shapira, Chaim Shteiner,
Yaakov Yosef, and Shmuel Eliyahu. The latter two are sons of former Chief
Sephardic Rabbis.
A forum of rabbis associated with another branch of the religious-Zionist
public signed a similar call. "We first of all object to the fact that such
a process should be taken before a deep and genuine public debate on the
matter is held regarding the far-reaching ramifications of this process. In
principle, we believe that the process of privatization of lands is
essentially opposed to the values of Torah and of the Jewish State. G-d, to
Whom the entire Land belongs, gave it as a deposit to the entire Nation of
Israel, and not just to one specific family or another. Our [politica
struggle to retain the entire land is in order that it remain in the hands
of the entire nation, and not in the hands of individuals…"
"In addition, we feel that giving lands to those who have no responsibility
or commitment towards the entire populace is a blow to the concepts of
justice regarding which G-d has commanded us. Furthermore, this process is
actually an act of fraud vis-à-vis all those precious Jews who gave of their
money to the Jewish National Fund on behalf of the national revival, and not
for the sake of private individuals."
This declaration was signed by Rabbis Shlomo Aviner, David Stav, Yoel
Bin-Nun, Elisha Vishlitzky, Eran Tamir, and others.
*The Labor Party
*MK Shelly Yechimovitch (Labor) will apparently be one of the few members of
her party to vote against the plan. She says her opposition is a
"first-class ideological struggle and a watershed mark within the Labor
Party. The party is being dragged into a process led by Netanyahu – the
biggest privatization in the history of the state."
The Labor Party is obligated by its coalition agreement with the Likud to
vote in favor of the plan. The hareidi United Torah Judaism party, however,
is not – yet it appears that its MKs will vote in favor of the plan, under
the impression that the only major change it will effect will be to make it
easier for young hareidi-religious couples to purchase apartments. "This,"
MK Shneller told Israel National News, "despite a Halakhic ruling by the
late Rav Yitzchak Yaakov Veiss, head of the Eida Hahareidit, that selling
the land is forbidden."
7. PA, Iran Hold Historic First Official Meeting
by Maayana Miskin [image: PA, Iran Hold Historic Meeting]
The Palestinian Authority and Iran marked a historic first last week with an
official high-level meeting between representatives of the two. Senior PA
negotiator Saeb Erekat met in Sharm el-Sheikh with Iranian Foreign Minister
Manouchehr Mottaki, on the sidelines of a meeting of non-aligned nations.
Dr. Erekat told PA media that the two had discussed internal PA issues,
primary among them the ongoing tension between Fatah and Hamas. Talks
between Fatah and Hamas have been mediated by Egypt, which is seen as one of
Iran's primary rivals for dominance in the Middle East.
An Israeli official quoted by AFP slammed the PA, saying it apparently "has
no qualms about meeting the most extremist and violent enemies of peace."
Erekat downplayed the importance of the meeting. "It was just a regular
meeting," he told Israel Radio. Erekat noted that he had spoken to Mottaki
during pan-Arab conferences earlier in the year.
While Iran's mullahs have expressed support for the PA's demand for a state
of "Palestine," Iranian representatives had not held an official meeting
with the PA since it was formed in 1994. Relations were initially cool due
to the PA's warm ties with Iraq, Iran's enemy, and remained cool in recent
years due to Iran's strong support for Fatah rival Hamas and other Islamic
groups.
PA Chairman Mahmoud Abbas criticized Iran earlier this year, saying in March
that the Islamic Republic should "stop interfering" in PA affairs. Iranian
involvement in PA and Hamas affairs serves to increase the rift between the
rival groups, he said.
Between the years 2000 and 2007, as the PA worked with Hamas and engaged in
attacks on Israel, ties with Iran began to warm. In 2006, former Defense
Minister Shaul Mofaz revealed that Iran had secretly agreed to provide aid
to the PA in exchange for permission to build bases in PA-controlled areas
of Gaza, Judea and Samaria.
Also in 2006, Iran provided tens of millions of dollars to the PA after
western nations cut aid in response to Hamas' prominent role in the PA
leadership.
************ ********* ********* ********* ********* ********* ******
DAILY ALERT Monday,
July 20, 2009
------------ --------- ---------
Daily Alert Needs Your
Support<https://secured4. catom.com/ JCPA/Templates/ showpage. asp?DBID= &LNGID=&TMID= 937&FID=578& PID=0>
------------ --------- ---------
In-Depth Issues:
$21 Million from Qatar to Hamas in Jerusalem - Shlomo Tsazna (Yisrael
Hayom-Hebrew, 20July09)
The head of the Israel Security Agency Yuval Diskin described the
situation in eastern Jerusalem to the Israeli cabinet on Sunday.
Sheikh Yousuf Qaradawi who lives in Qatar has granted $21 million to
Hamas in order to buy buildings to be used by activists providing welfare
services as a base for the organization.
See also Diskin Briefs Cabinet on Hamas Activities in
Jerusalem<http://www.haaretz. com/hasen/ spages/1101207. html>- Barak
Ravid (
Ha'aretz)
Qaradawi, 82, an Egyptian-born Muslim scholar with strong links to the
Muslim Brotherhood, is a keen supporter of suicide bombings in Israel, which
he describes as "martyrdom operations.
Diskin also told cabinet ministers that the PA and its security forces
have been working actively to thwart the sale of Palestinian land to Jews,
particularly in eastern Jerusalem.
He added that there had been a steady trickle into Gaza of foreigners
linked to global jihad.
------------ --------- ---------
PA Negotiator Meets with Iranian Foreign
Minister<http://www.jpost. com/servlet/ Satellite? cid=124644384981 6&pagename= JPArticle/ ShowFull>-
Herb Keinon (Jerusalem
Post)
PA negotiator Saeb Erekat met with Iranian Foreign Minister Manouchehr
Mottaki in Sharm e-Sheikh last week.
In response, the Israeli Prime Minister's Office said Erekat's meeting
stands in stark contrast to the Palestinian refusal to negotiate with the
Netanyahu government.
"The Palestinian side has refused to allow the resumption of peace talks
by placing preconditions on such a resumption," said spokesman Mark Regev.
"It appears, however, that they have no qualms and place no
preconditions upon dialogue with the most extreme and violent enemies of
peace."
------------ --------- ---------
European Court: Israel Boycotts Are Unlawful
Discrimination<http://www.jpost. com/servlet/ Satellite? cid=124644385284 8&pagename= JPost/JPArticle/ ShowFull>-
Herb Keinon (Jerusalem
Post)
On Thursday, the Council of Europe's European Court of Human Rights
upheld by a vote of 6-1 a French ruling that it was illegal and
discriminatory to boycott Israeli goods, and that making it illegal to call
for a boycott of Israeli goods did not constitute a violation of one's
freedom of expression.
Israel Foreign Ministry spokesman Yigal Palmor said Sunday that the
ruling provided important ammunition for those challenging on legal grounds
calls in Europe for a boycott of Israeli products.
------------ --------- ---------
Key Israeli Economic Indicator
Rises<http://www.bloomber g.com/apps/ news?pid= 20670001& sid=a_cBb7yLdcOA>-
Alisa Odenheimer (
Bloomberg)
Israel's index of leading economic indicators rose a preliminary 0.2% in
June, the first increase since July 2008, led by foreign trade, the Bank of
Israel said Sunday.
Standard & Poor's on July 16 said that Israel's GDP will probably
contract by 1.5% in 2009 and grow 1% in 2010.
News Resources - North America, Europe, and Asia:
- Former Iranian President Rafsanjani Offers
Compromise<http://www.nypost. com/seven/ 07182009/ postopinion/ opedcolumnists/ failed_peace_ deal_179839. htm>-
Amir Taheri
Former President Hashemi Rafsanjani proposed that the dispute over the
presidential results be referred to the Supreme Court for final judgment. He
called for the government to release the 5,000 people arrested since June
13, publish the full list of those killed in the insurrection, and lift the
ban on dozens of newspapers and magazines closed down for their opposition
to Ahmadinejad' s controversial re-election. Rafsanjani offered the formula
at the Friday mass prayer at Tehran University where he appeared with former
President Muhammad Khatami and defeated presidential candidates Mir Hussein
Mousavi and Mehdi Karrubi in a show of unity. Rafsanjani refused to
acknowledge Ahmadinejad as the legally elected president. (New York Post)
See also Rafsanjani Defies Ayatollah Khamenei as Protesters Turn Out
in Force<http://www.timesonl ine.co.uk/ tol/news/ world/middle_ east/article6717 745.ece>-
Michael Purcell (
Times-UK)
See also below Commentary: Rafsanjani Accused in 1994 Blast at
Argentina Jewish Center - Alexei Barrionuevo (New York Times)
- Pro-Hizbullah Lebanese Injure 14 UN
Peacekeepers<http://www.google. com/hostednews/ ap/article/ ALeqM5jhGj_ qoQPObxq1ZoMfypL WRqvqAQD99H3Q081>-
Bassem Mroue
Shiite Muslims sympathetic to Hizbullah threw stones at UN peacekeeping
troops in southern Lebanon Saturday, lightly injuring 14 soldiers, in an
attempt to prevent an investigation near the site of last Tuesday's
explosion of a Hizbullah weapons depot. A peacekeeping patrol fired warning
shots in the air to clear its path, said peacekeeping spokeswoman Yasmina
Bouziane. About 100 people attempted to hamper the activity of the UN
peacekeepers less than a mile from the site of the explosion in Khirbet
Silim, about 9 miles (15 kilometers) from the Israeli border. (AP)
See also Report: Explosion Was at Secret Hizbullah Outpost, Not
Weapons Bunker<http://www.jpost. com/servlet/ Satellite? cid=124644384036 6&pagename= JPost/JPArticle/ ShowFull>
Kuwait's A-Siyassa newspaper reported on Saturday that last week's
explosion killed a number of Hizbullah gunmen at a secret military outpost,
and did not destroy a hidden weapons cache as was initially
believed. (Jerusalem
Post)
See also Lebanese Army Seen Collaborating with
Hizbullah<http://www.jpost. com/servlet/ Satellite? cid=124644385248 0&pagename= JPost/JPArticle/ ShowFull>-
Yaakov Katz
Israel's Defense Ministry is hoping that the UN will issue new rules of
engagement for UNIFIL that will enable the peacekeeping force to search
Lebanese villages without prior coordination with the Lebanese Armed Forces
(LAF). A senior defense official said Sunday that there have been several
cases when UNIFIL knew of Hizbullah caches in villages and coordinated
operations with the LAF. However, when the peacekeeping force arrived at the
suspected building it was empty. "We suspect that the LAF is infiltrated by
Shi'ite elements who leak intelligence information to Hizbullah before
operations," the official said. "If UNIFIL were able to act on intelligence
immediately and without coordination, it would dramatically improve the
force's effectiveness. " (Jerusalem Post)
News Resources - Israel and the Mideast:
- U.S. Tells Israel to Halt Construction Project in Eastern
Jerusalem<http://www.ynetnews .com/articles/ 0,7340,L- 3748481,00. html>-
Roni Sofer
A senior Israeli official said Sunday that Israel's ambassador to the
U.S., Michael Oren, was summoned to the State Department over the weekend
and told that Israel must suspend a planned project in eastern Jerusalem
near Israel's national police headquarters, Israel Radio and Army Radio
reported. (Ynet News)
See also "No Difference to U.S. Between Outpost, Eastern Jerusalem
Construction" <http://haaretz. com/hasen/ spages/1101353. html> - Akiva
Eldar
The U.S. views eastern Jerusalem as no different than an illegal West
Bank outpost with regard to its demand for a freeze on settlement
construction, American sources have informed both Israel and the Palestinian
Authority. (Ha'aretz)
See also Israel: Ambassador Not "Summoned" by U.S. Over Jerusalem
Construction<http://www.jpost. com/servlet/ Satellite? cid=124644384457 4&pagename= JPost/JPArticle/ ShowFull>
Israeli diplomatic officials said that Ambassador Michael Oren went to
the State Department last week for routine talks, during which his American
interlocutors raised their concern about plans approved last month by the
Jerusalem Municipality for 20 apartments to be built at the site of the
Shepherd Hotel in eastern Jerusalem, bought in 1985 by American businessman
Irving Moskowitz. The officials said that Oren was not summoned to the State
Department to discuss the issue, nor was it even the main agenda item of the
meeting. Rather, the meeting was planned some two weeks in advance and
covered a range of issues. (Jerusalem Post)
See also Jerusalem Housing Project "Not in the Middle of an Arab
Neighborhood"
<http://www.ynetnews .com/articles/ 0,7340,L- 3748710,00. html>- Ali Waked
"The area...is not located in the heart of the Arab neighborhood, but
rather on the border between the Sheikh Jarrah and French Hill
neighborhoods. It's not as though someone built a Jewish neighborhood smack
in the middle of a remote Arab neighborhood, " said Jerusalem municipal
council member Yakir Segev. (Ynet News)
See also below Observations: If Arabs Can Live in Western Jerusalem,
Jews Can Live in Eastern Jerusalem - Prime Minister Benjamin
Netanyahu (Prime
Minister's Office)
- IDF Troops Trade Fire with Palestinians Near Gaza
Border<http://haaretz. com/hasen/ spages/1101331. html>- Anshel Pfeffer
Israel Defense Forces soldiers Sunday exchanged fire with Palestinian
militants who shot a rocket-propelled grenade at them near the Nahal Oz
Israel-Gaza border crossing. (Ha'aretz)
Global Commentary and Think-Tank Analysis (Best of U.S., UK, and Israel):
- A "Settlement Freeze"
Compromise<http://article. nationalreview. com/?q=NjgwYjE0M zBlYjFkYWNiOTEzM TZkMmFmNTAyN2NhZ jE=>-
Elliott Abrams
Having failed to bully Netanyahu into a total settlement freeze, U.S.
negotiator George Mitchell is said to be asking for a moratorium of six
months or a year in new units started, that would allow completion of all
projects already underway, perhaps 2,500-3,000 units. Mitchell, who is
reported to want to leave his negotiator position at the end of 2009, would
be able to quit while this "freeze" is in place. Why Netanyahu and his
government loathe this entire project is clear. Morally, it accepts the
argument that Israelis have no right to live in the West Bank (or even some
parts of Jerusalem). And what's the exit strategy when the agreed time ends
- and Obama says, "I just need a bit more time to bring peace and freedom to
the Middle East."
The Palestinian leaders know settlement construction is a made-up
issue. They know that life in the West Bank is getting better, the economy
is improving, the Israelis are removing roadblocks and obstacles to movement
- and they know that settlement construction provides badly needed
employment for Palestinian construction workers. Abbas has said a hundred
times in the last few months that he will not agree to resume negotiations
with Israel unless there is a settlement freeze. The U.S. will call whatever
compromise Mitchell reaches a "settlement freeze" and will then turn the
pressure on Abbas to go back to the table. The writer, a senior fellow at
the Council on Foreign Relations, was the deputy national security adviser
handling the Middle East in the George W. Bush administration. (National
Review)
- Abbas: "Talks with Olmert Produced No
Results"<http://www.memri. org/bin/latestne ws.cgi?ID= SD244909>
An interview with PA Chairman Mahmoud Abbas appeared in the Egyptian
weekly October on July 12, 2009:
Q: There are Israeli leaks regarding a concession in the Palestinian
position on the issue of Jerusalem. [What is your response?]
Abbas: "The one who said that was [former Israeli prime minister
Ehud] Olmert. From Annapolis until the end of his term, negotiations over
borders, Jerusalem, and the refugees continued, but no results were
achieved.... Olmert placed a proposal on the table and he spoke of the Haram
[Al-Sharif - the Temple Mount], the Mount of Olives, and the cemetery, and
said: 'All this area is the Holy Basin. We propose that it be overseen by an
international committee.'. ..In the end, we did not agree on anything." (
MEMRI)
- Inquiry on 1994 Blast at Argentina Jewish Center Gets New
Life<http://www.nytimes. com/2009/ 07/18/world/ americas/ 18argentina. html>-
Alexei Barrionuevo
No one has been convicted for the July 18, 1994, bombing of the Argentine
Jewish Mutual Aid Association in Buenos Aires in which 85 people died and
more than 300 were injured. But in May, Argentina's Supreme Court validated
much of the evidence of the initial investigation, which had previously been
ruled inadmissible. Then last month, federal judge Rodolfo Canicoba Corral
ordered the international capture of Samuel Salman El Reda, 43, a Colombian
citizen whom prosecutors accused of helping coordinate the local Hizbullah
cell that Argentine investigators said had carried out the bombing.
Investigators believe that they have solved the case in principle, having
accused the Iranian government of planning and financing the attack, and
Hizbullah of executing those plans.
In 2006, the prosecutor who took over the investigation in 2005,
Alberto Nisman, formally accused several members of Iran's government of
planning and financing the bombing, including former President Hashemi
Rafsanjani. The 1994 bombing came two years after the Israeli Embassy was
bombed, killing 29 people, a case that also remains unsolved. (New York
Times)
Observations:
If Arabs Can Live in Western Jerusalem, Jews Can Live in Eastern
Jerusalem<http://www.pmo. gov.il/PMOEng/ Communication/ Spokesman/ 2009/07/spokesta rt190709. htm>-
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu (Prime
Minister's Office)
Prime Minister Netanyahu told the Israeli Cabinet on Sunday:
- "I read the newspaper headlines today about the construction of a
neighborhood in Jerusalem and I would like to re-emphasize that united
Jerusalem is the capital of the Jewish people and of the State of Israel.
Our sovereignty over it cannot be challenged; this means - inter alia - that
residents of Jerusalem may purchase apartments in all parts of the city."
- "This has been the policy of all Israeli governments and I would like
to say that it is indeed being implemented because in recent years hundreds
of apartments in Jewish neighborhoods in the western part of the city have
been purchased by - or rented to - Arab residents and we did not interfere.
This says that there is no ban on Arabs buying apartments in the western
part of the city and there is no ban on Jews buying or building apartments
in the eastern part of the city."
- "This is the policy of an open city, an undivided city that has no
separation according to religion or national affiliation. We cannot accept
the idea that Jews will not have the right to live and purchase in all parts
of Jerusalem. I can only describe to myself what would happen if someone
would propose that Jews could not live in certain neighborhoods in New York,
London, Paris or Rome. There would certainly be a major international
outcry. Accordingly, we cannot agree to such a decree in Jerusalem. This has
been the policy of Israeli governments over the years and it is also the
policy of our government."
************ ********* ********* ********* ********* ********* ********
http://www.jpost. com/servlet/ Satellite? cid=124644384006 3&pagename= JPost%2FJPArticl e%2FShowFull
Germany honors Israeli 'Israel hater' By BENJAMIN WEINTHAL JPOST
CORRESPONDENT IN BERLIN
<http://us.mc651. mail.yahoo. com/mc/compose? to=editors@ jpost.com>
BERLIN - German President Horst Köhler issued on Thursday the Federal Cross
of Merit, first class - the country's most prestigious award - to Israeli
attorney Felicia Langer, a vociferous critic of Israel who lives in
Tübingen, Baden-Württemberg.
[image: Attorney and Israel critic...]
Attorney and Israel critic Felicia Langer receives Germany's Federal Cross
of Merit, first class from Undersecretary Hubert Wicker.
* Photo: Baden-Württemberg State Website*
SLIDESHOW: *Israel & Region*
<http://www.jpost. com/servlet/ Satellite? cid=124644384006 3&pagename= JPost%2FJPArticl e%2FShowFull#>
|
*World*
<http://www.jpost. com/servlet/ Satellite? cid=124644384006 3&pagename= JPost%2FJPArticl e%2FShowFull#>
Langer, 79, who left Israel in 1990, frequently compares Israel with
apartheid in South Africa, and praised the speech of Iranian President
Mahmoud Ahmadinejad at the Durban II UN conference on racism in Geneva in
April.
When asked about the award and the parallels she has drawn between Israel
and South African apartheid, she told *The Jerusalem Post* that the Federal
Cross of Merit was a "recognition of my work," and "what Israel is
practicing in the occupied territories is apartheid."
In an interview with the *junge Welt*, a Berlin-based Stalinist daily, she
termed Israel "the apartheid of the present" and "the Israeli regime."
Asked about her interview with the Muslim Markt Web site, in which she
argued that Defense Minister Ehud Barak, as well as other leading Israeli
politicians and generals, should be convicted of war crimes at the
International Criminal Court in The Hague,
Langer told the *Post* that she considered Israeli officials "war criminals"
and stood by her comments.
She also said the "official translation" of Ahmadinejad' s threat to "wipe
Israel off the map" did not contain a statement advocating the obliteration
of Israel.
*When asked why Köhler had awarded Langer with Germany's highest
distinction, his press spokesman, Stefan Schulze, declined to comment and
deferred the matter to the State Ministry in Baden-Württemberg. *
In an e-mail to the *Post*, Uwe Köhn, a spokesman for the state of
Baden-Württemberg, wrote, "The honor bestowed on Felicia Langer recognizes
her humanitarian service, independent of political, ideological or religious
motivation.
Most important is her dedication to people in need, regardless of
nationality or religion, given her own background as massively affected by
the Holocaust.
The decision to present the Order of Merit was made on the recommendation of
the lord mayor of Tübingen, where Ms. Langer lives, with confirmation from
all the usual departments involved in bestowing such honors, including the
Foreign Ministry.
The honor will be conferred by President Köhler and presented by
Undersecretary [Hubert] Wicker."
A spokesman for the German Foreign Ministry told the *Post* that the
ministry's involvement in the award process was being reviewed and he could
not issue an immediate comment.
Mayor Boris Palmer could not be reached for a response.
According to Langer, the Christian Democratic Union's governor of
Baden-Württemberg, Günther Oettinger, praised her work in a letter and
congratulated her on receiving the Federal Cross of Merit.
*Dr. Dieter Graumann, vice president of the 120,000-member Central Council
of Jews in Germany, could not fathom the government's decision to honor
Langer. She was a "militant and fanatical hater of Israel," Graumann said. *
"An aggressive verbal attack on the Jewish state is rewarded for the first
time by the German state. Is that really the intention?" Graumann wrote in
an e-mail to the *Post*.
"Fact-based critique of concrete Israeli policies is of course always
legitimate - and one hears it most loudly in Israel itself.
But Ms. Langer is known particularly for entertaining a mean-spirited,
militant hatred of Israel, which only succeeds in getting such effective
public attention because she does this as a Jewish person - as she herself
stresses.
"And Ms. Langer just a few months ago called the German chancellor's
positive attitude toward Israel 'scandalous. '
Now Langer is suddenly getting a Federal Cross of Merit - that's a fatal
signal, recognizing and legitimizing her fully one-sided agitation against
Israel," he continued.
"The reasoning provided by the state government is that Ms. Langer's
political engagement is linked with her past and with the Holocaust, a
connection that is decidedly insensitive, unwise and unfortunate, to put it
mildly.
*Is this the introduction of a new fashion? Whoever criticizes Israel the
loudest - especially if they are Jewish - is first in line for the Federal
Cross of Merit?" Graumann asked. *
Responding to Graumann's criticism, Langer told the *Post* that "the Central
Council of Jews in Germany is a branch of the Israeli Embassy. The council
is doing nothing good for Israel and the peace movement."
He was "denigrating" her because he "does not have an argument," she said.
Peter Weidner, Upper Austrian chairman of the Association of Social
Democratic Freedom Fighters and Victims of Fascism, told the *Post* that
Langer agreed with Ahmadinejad' s speech in Geneva.
Weidner had reported on an event at the Linz city hall, in which Langer
ignored the Iranian president's anti-Semitism, compared Israel with
apartheid South Africa and described Hamas election win in 2006 "as the
freest democratic elections to have taken place in the Middle East."
The Vienna-based online Jewish magazine Die Jüdische (*www.juedische. at*)
and its chief editor, Samuel Laster posted Weidner's report covering the
Linz city hall event in late April.
According to Weidner, Langer described "Israel's politics as racist."
*Critics in Austria and Germany assert that Langer's efforts to delegitimize
Israel meet the criteria outlined in the European Union's working definition
of anti-Semitism. *
President Köhler's office and the state secretary declined further comment
on Weidner's report and allegations against Langer.
************ ********* ********* ********* ********* ********* ***Excerpts: Global
jihad infiltrates Gaza?Iran 'ethnic sectarian conflict'
July 20, 2009
+++JORDAN TIMES 20 July '09:"Foreign jihadists are in Gaza - Israel",
Associated Press
EXCERPTS:- The head of Israel's Shin Bet internal security service said
foreign nationals linked to the global jihadist movement have infiltrated
the Gaza Strip. Service chief Yuval Diskin told ministers at Sunday's (19
July)meeting of the Israeli Cabinet that there had been "a steady trickle
into Gaza of foreigners linked to global jihad", according to an official
present at the closed-door meeting. Diskin did not elaborate or cite
evidence. Gaza's Hamas Interior Minister Fathi Hamad dismissed Diskin's
charge as "baseless propaganda". Hamas controls the West Bank. He added that
"there is no Al Qaeda or any other organisation in Gaza."
+++JORDAN TIMES 20 July '09:"Ethnic sectarian conflict simmering in Iran"By
Alistair Lyon, Reuters
BEIRUT - Iran, plunged in post-election turmoil, is also grappling with
ethnic and religious tensions in a volatile southeastern province where
the authorities have responded to attacks by Sunni rebels with a spate of
hangings.
The executions last week of 13 men accused of membership of Jundollah
(God's soldiers), an obscure ethnic Baluch Sunni group, followed the
bombing of a Shiite mosque on May 28 that killed 25 people and wounded
over 120 in Zahedamn, capital of Sistan-Baluchistan. . . ..
Sectarian violence is relatively rare in Iran, whose leaders reject
allegations by Western human rights groups that the Islamic republic,
dominated by its Persian Shiite majority, discriminates against ethnic and
religious minorities.
Ethnic Baluch, many with tribal links to their restive kin in neighbouring
Pakistan and Afghanistan, make up an estimated one to three per cent of
Iran's 70 million people.
. . .
Jundollah, which also calls itself the Iranian People's Resistance
Movement, launched its armed campaign in 2005.
Popular support for its activities is hard to gauge, but it operates in a
deprived region where Baluch have long complained of ethnic, religious and
cultural discrimination by the state.. . .
************ ********* ********* ********* ********* ********* ********* **
*IDF troops arrest 7 Palestinians during operations in West Bank*
JPost.com <http://jpost. com/> Staff , THE JERUSALEM POST Jul. 20, 2009
www.jpost.com/ servlet/Satellit e?cid=1246443854 225
&pagename=JPArticle %2FShowFull
IDF troops arrested seven Palestinians during operations in the West Bank
overnight Sunday.
All of the detainees were taken by security forces for further
interrogation.
************ ********* ********* ********* ********* ********* ********* *
Mech'el's comments: I posted about this yesterday. Now we know that they
rape them as they do not kill virgin girls.
*'I wed Iranian girls before execution'*
SABINA AMIDI, Special to The Jerusalem Post , THE JERUSALEM POST Jul. 19,
2009
www.jpost.com/ servlet/Satellit e?cid=1246443842 931
&pagename=JPArticle %2FShowFull
In a shocking and unprecedented interview, directly exposing the inhumanity
of Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei's religious regime in Iran, a serving member
of the paramilitary Basiji militia has told this reporter of his role in
suppressing opposition street protests in recent weeks.
He has also detailed aspects of his earlier service in the force, including
his enforced participation in the rape of young Iranian girls prior to their
execution.
The interview took place by telephone, and on condition of anonymity. It was
arranged by a reliable source whose identity can also not be revealed.
Founded by Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini in 1979 as a "people's militia," the
volunteer Basiji force is subordinate to the Iranian Revolutionary Guards
and intensely loyal to Khomeini's successor, Khamenei.
The Basiji member, who is married with children, spoke soon after his
release by the Iranian authorities from detention. He had been held for the
"crime" of having set free two Iranian teenagers - a 13-year-old boy and a
15-year-old girl - who had been arrested during the disturbances that have
followed the disputed June presidential elections.
"There have been many other police and members of the security forces
arrested because they have shown leniency toward the protesters out on the
streets, or released them from custody without consulting our superiors," he
said.
He pinned the blame for much of the most ruthless violence employed by the
Iranian security apparatus against opposition protesters on what he called
"imported security forces" - recruits, as young as 14 and 15, he said, who
have been brought from small villages into the bigger cities where the
protests have been centered.
"Fourteen and 15-year old boys are given so much power, which I am sorry to
say they have abused," he said. "These kids do anything they please -
forcing people to empty out their wallets, taking whatever they want from
stores without paying, and touching young women inappropriately. The girls
are so frightened that they remain quiet and let them do what they want."
These youngsters, and other "plainclothes vigilantes," were committing most
of the crimes in the names of the regime, he said.
Asked about his own role in the brutal crackdowns on the protesters, whether
he had been beaten demonstrators and whether he regretted his actions, he
answered evasively.
"I did not attack any of the rioters - and even if I had, it is my duty to
follow orders," he began. "I don't have any regrets," he went on, "except
for when I worked as a prison guard during my adolescence. "
Explaining how he had come to join the volunteer Basiji forces, he said his
mother had taken him to them.
When he was 16, "my mother took me to a Basiji station and begged them to
take me under their wing because I had no one and nothing foreseeable in my
future. My father was martyred during the war in Iraq and she did not want
me to get hooked on drugs and become a street thug. I had no choice," he
said.
He said he had been a highly regarded member of the force, and had so
"impressed my superiors" that, at 18, "I was given the 'honor' to
temporarily marry young girls before they were sentenced to death."
In the Islamic Republic it is illegal to execute a young woman, regardless
of her crime, if she is a virgin, he explained. Therefore a "wedding"
ceremony is conducted the night before the execution: The young girl is
forced to have sexual intercourse with a prison guard - essentially raped by
her "husband."
"I regret that, even though the marriages were legal," he said.
Why the regret, if the marriages were "legal?"
"Because," he went on, "I could tell that the girls were more afraid of
their 'wedding' night than of the execution that awaited them in the
morning. And they would always fight back, so we would have to put sleeping
pills in their food. By morning the girls would have an empty expression; it
seemed like they were ready or wanted to die.
"I remember hearing them cry and scream after [the rape] was over," he said.
"I will never forget how this one girl clawed at her own face and neck with
her finger nails afterwards. She had deep scratches all over her."
Returning to the events of the last few weeks, and his decision to set free
the two teenage detainees, he said he "honestly" did not know why he had
released them, a decision that led to his own arrest, "but I think it was
because they were so young. They looked like children and I knew what would
happen to them if they weren't released."
He said that while a man is deemed "responsible for his own actions at 13,
for a woman it is 9," and that it was freeing the 15-year-old girl that
"really got me in trouble.
"I was not mistreated or really interrogated while being detained," he said.
"I was put in a tiny room and left alone. It was hard being isolated, so I
spent most of my time praying and thinking about my wife and kids."
--
A positive attitude may not solve all your problems, but it will annoy
enough people to make it worth the effort.
~Herm Albright~
http://groups. yahoo.com/ group/ProJewishP roZionistGroup/ ?yguid=368134690
http://launch. groups.yahoo. com/group/ stillnotjustmusi canymore/ ?yguid=368134690
http://groups. yahoo.com/ adultconf? dest=%2Fgroup% 2Fwhateverreturn s%2F%3Fyguid% 3D368134690
http://groups. yahoo.com/ group/shieldofda vid/?yguid= 373549731
- 6.
-
INDIA Inquiry into confessional polarisation a pretext against relig
Posted by: "marco.pertoni@libero.it" marco.pertoni@libero.it sitrep_comalp
Wed Jul 22, 2009 3:10 am (PDT)
07/06/2009 18:16
INDIA
Inquiry into confessional polarisation a pretext against religious minorities
by Nirmala Carvalho
Gujarat has set up a commission of inquiry to study state-wide demographic shifts. Jesuit priest slams the exercise as a way to sow divisions and discriminate against minorities.
Delhi (AsiaNews) - The commission of inquiry into the changing demographic profile of Gujarat since independence is only a pretext against religious minorities, this according to Cedric Prakash, director of the Prashant Jesuit Centre for Human Rights. In his view the State government is pursuing a "communal agenda" to polarise the population and discriminate on the "basis of religion".
In Gujarat, a state that was the scene of past anti-Christian and anti-Muslim violence, the chief minister, Narendra Modi, appointed a commission of inquiry to look into the spatial shifts of religious minorities on a ten-year basis over the period that began with Independence (15 August 1947) until today.
According to Father Cedric (pictured), a human rights activist, the commission on the pretext of studying the polarisation of the State's population along confessional lines will end up negatively affecting religious minorities and fuel the fear of minorities who suffered at the hands of Hindu fundamentalists.
In fact Christians in 1998-1999 and Muslims in 2002 were attacked by extremists close to the State government.
Even today "minorities in Gujarat continue to be victims of overt and subtle intimidations, harassment and attacks," the Jesuit priest said.
In the past the State set up another commission to look at confessional affiliation, he noted. Like that one, the one just set up should be rejected.
"The government of Gujarat should be concerned that each citizen of the State is treated with respect and dignity, enjoying the same rights and liberties guaranteed by the constitution, rather than fuel tensions," he said.
http://www.asianews .it/index. php?l=en& art=15707& size=A
- 7.
-
INDIA - UNITED STATES No US-India agreement on climate but deals on
Posted by: "marco.pertoni@libero.it" marco.pertoni@libero.it sitrep_comalp
Wed Jul 22, 2009 3:11 am (PDT)
07/20/2009 15:35
INDIA - UNITED STATES
No US-India agreement on climate but deals on arms and space programme
US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton is on an official visit to India. She is unable to reach a deal is reached on climate change because the Indian government rejects binding limits on carbon emissions. However, India is a strategic partner for the US in the fight against terrorism. The secretary notes that Pakistan will continue to receive American aid.
New Delhi (AsiaNews/Agencies) - India and the United States have not found any common ground on climate change, but are prepared to work together on weapons and space programmes.
During her visit to India US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton was unable to move New Delhi on binding limits on carbon emissions. She did stress however that she was confident that a deal on global warming could eventually be reached.
After meeting Indian Environment Minister Jairam Ramesh, Clinton was positive about the talks, but her hope for a plan to significantly change India's was of producing, consuming and conserving energy died when Ramesh said that there was "simply no case for the pressure that we-who have among the lowest emissions per capita-face to actually reduce emissions".
Standing firm on binding limits on carbon emissions, India's environment minister squashed hopes that an agreement with Washington could be reached before the UN conference on global warming scheduled for December in Copenhagen.
But global warming was not the only item on the agenda of Ms Clinton's three-day visit. The two nations are set to discuss arms sales, civilian nuclear programme, scientific cooperation and space programme.
New Delhi and Washington are ready to sign an agreement allowing the sale and transfer of US military technology to India.
If approved it would an historic first in the relations between the two countries, who were on opposite sides during the Cold War.
The slow march towards rapprochement began under Bill Clinton and continued under Bush. Now it would bear fruit in an agreement that would allow US companies to play a role in the development of India's civilian nuclear programme.
India's role in the fight against terrorism is also another important item on the secretary's agenda, especially in her direct talks with the Indian prime minister.
Mr Singh, who met his Pakistani counterpart Yousuf Raza Gilani last week, offered India's erstwhile enemy a pledge of full relations on condition Islamabad fully cooperate on the hunt for the Mumbai attackers.
For Ms Clinton Indo-Pakistani dialogue is indeed crucial. But speaking before her meeting with Singh at a gathering of students and professors, she said that Pakistan will continue to receive American aid and India just has to live with that fact.
The other highlight of the secretary's visit was the signing of an agreement to facilitate the launch of US satellites and satellites with US components on Indian launch vehicles.
The new Technology Safeguards Agreement (TSA) to be signed will cover launches involving satellites owned by US government or academic institutions or by third country space agencies and universities which have US equipment on board.
http://www.asianews .it/index. php?l=en& art=15832& size=A
- 8.
-
FINLAND Violence in Immigrant Families a Tough Nut to Crack
Posted by: "marco.pertoni@libero.it" marco.pertoni@libero.it sitrep_comalp
Wed Jul 22, 2009 3:12 am (PDT)
Violence in Immigrant Families a Tough Nut to Crack
published today 02:38 PM, updated today 02:41 PM
Image: YLE / Derrick Frilund
Organisations aimed at supporting immigrant families say there is a steady increase in the need for help. Often problems are caused or exacerbated by cultural differences and a lack of integration into Finnish society.
Domestic violence is a common problem for immigrant families, as it is for other families in Finland.
In 2005 the Men's Line phone service was set up to counsel violent immigrant men and their families, with funding from the Finnish Slot Machine Association and more recently from the city of Espoo. The director of the service, Jari Hautamäki, notes that certain practices that are part of normal family life in some cultures are seen as violence by Finnish standards.
Hautamäki adds that it can be difficult to convince men with foreign backgrounds to commit to the counselling process.
"In certain communities, many issues, including violence, are handled within the community and not discussed with outsiders," he says.
Estonian-born Reet Nurmi helped to set up the Monika organisation for immigrant women in 1998. Its purposes include developing and offering "services for immigrant women and children who are suffering from intimate relationship violence, honour related violence, forced marriages or are victims of human trafficking" .
She says that systems for helping newcomers to integrate into Finnish society do not work as they should.
"When families do not become integrated into Finland," she says, "their internal problems worsen and then they begin to shut themselves off into their own ethnic groups, where they follow their own practices."
YLE
http://www.yle. fi/uutiset/ news/2009/ 07/violence_ in_immigrant_ families_ a_tough_nut_ to_crack_ 874786.html
- 9.
-
Saudi princess given asylum in UK over fears she faces execution for
Posted by: "marco.pertoni@libero.it" marco.pertoni@libero.it sitrep_comalp
Wed Jul 22, 2009 3:13 am (PDT)
Saudi princess given asylum in UK over fears she faces execution for having illegitimate child with British lover
By Neil Sears
Last updated at 5:55 PM on 20th July 2009
Saudi Arabia's King Abdullah II. For asylum judges to suggest the country is too dangerous for a woman to return to raises fresh question about how close Britain should be to the Islamic state.
A wealthy Saudi Arabian princess has been given asylum because she had an illegitimate child by a British man.
The woman claimed that if she returned home she would face being stoned to death for adultery.
The Daily Mail understands that the princess's initial claim for asylum was rejected by Britain's Asylum and Immigration Tribunal, because of inconsistencies in her account, and fears she was exaggerating the dangers.
On appeal, however, she was given permanent leave to remain in Britain.
Last night the Home Office refused to comment on the case, saying it would not discuss an individual decision.
But the granting of asylum to a member of the Saudi elite in fact raises huge questions over the nature of our links to the oil-rich desert kingdom, which has proved a useful ally in the West's 'War on Terror'.
The Government faced controversy three years ago when then-Prime Minister Tony Blair stopped a Serious Fraud Office investigation into alleged bribes paid to senior Saudis in a multi-billion pound military aircraft deal, after claims it would harm relations.
For asylum judges to suggest Saudi Arabia is too dangerous for a woman to return to raises fresh question about how close we should be to the Islamic state.
In the latest case, the woman concerned - who was given anonymity by the asylum tribunal - met her non-Muslim English boyfriend during a visit to London. They soon began a sexual relationship.
The following year, while in Saudi Arabia, she discovered she had become pregnant by her lover.
According to her account, she had reason to believe her elderly husband - a member of the huge and fabulously rich Saudi royal family - was growing increasingly suspicious of her behaviour.
An executioner prepares to move in on a condemned prisoner in a scene from the 1980 docu-drama Death Of A Princess
In order to give birth in London in secret, she claimed she found an excuse to gain permission to visit Britain again, and did so, where the child was born.
It was then that she claimed asylum, saying that her life would have been in danger if she return to Saudi Arabia.
She said that if she returned with her baby, she could have been subject to barbaric Sharia law, with threaten, flogging, stoning to death or beheading for adultery.
Even if the Saudi legal system spared her, she argued, she could have been murdered in a so-called 'honour killing' by angry relatives of her husband
A Home Office source said: 'When she first claimed asylum there were too many inconsistencies in her account of what had gone on, and she was not found to have proved she faced dire consequences.
'It was only on appeal that she was successful.
'We haven't heard from her since then, unlike many asylum seekers, because she is so wealthy she doesn't need any state support.'
The woman is understand to have had no contact from her own family or her husband's since fleeing Saudi Arabia.
The Royal Embassy of Saudi Arabia in London yesterday declined to comment on the case.
A spokeswoman for the Asylum and Immigration Tribunal said it could not give any details of the princess's asylum application.
During the Serious Fraud Office's investigation into bribes paid to Saudi during a £43billion arms deal with British company BAE Systems, the Saudi government threatened to restrict the flow of intelligence it provides on terrorism.
It was that threat which is believed to have led to the Government's halting of the inquiry - but the House of Lords last year strongly criticised Mr Blair's intervention.
Despite the Government's enthusiasm to remain close to Saudi Arabia, the desert kingdom is notorious for its medieval treatment of women.
Only last week the state's religious police were implicated in the murder of two sisters, who were killed by their brother after being arrested simply for socialising with men they were not related to.
Two years ago a Saudi woman was sentenced to 200 lashes and six months jail after she was gang-raped. Her 'crime' was to get into a car an ex-boyfriend, unchaperoned, prior to the incident. She was only pardoned after an international outcry.
And royal blood is certainly no bar to feeling the sharp end of Sharia law.
Famously in 1980, Saudi Arabian diplomats protested angrily to Britain over the ITV documentary Death Of A Princess - which reconstructed the grim death of a young Saudi royal publicly executed with her lover for adultery.
http://www.dailymai l.co.uk/news/ worldnews/ article-1200864/ Saudi-princess- facing-death- penalty-adultery -given-secret- UK-asylum. html
- 10.
-
SA - Women in polygamous marriages can now inherit - ruling
Posted by: "marco.pertoni@libero.it" marco.pertoni@libero.it sitrep_comalp
Wed Jul 22, 2009 3:15 am (PDT)
Women in polygamous marriages can now inherit - ruling
Published in: Legalbrief Today
Date: Mon 21 July 2008
Category: Litigation
Issue No: 2114
http://www.legalbri ef.co.za/ article.php? story=2008072108 2013393
Women in polygamous Muslim marriages can now inherit from their deceased husband's estate, says a Cape Argus report. In a ground-breaking judgment, Judge Dennis van Reenen, of the Cape High Court, effectively ruled that wives should be treated equally and their rights recognised for purposes of inheritance where the husband does not leave a will.
In the case at hand, Fatima Gabie Hassam, second wife of Ebrahim Hassam, lodged a claim against the executor of her husband's estate and the Minister of Justice after her husband died in August 2001. Johan Jacobs was appointed as the executor of his estate and refused to recognise Hassam's claims in terms of the Maintenance of Surviving Spouses Act and the Intestate Succession Act. Jacobs' reasoning was that her marriage was polygamous, and that Hassam could therefore not be treated as a survivor or a spouse. Van Reenen said Hassam would be entitled to the relief if her marriage had been a monogamous one. Denying her a claim would amount to unfair discrimination unless there was justification for limiting these widows' rights.
Full Cape Argus report
The Maintenance of Surviving Spouses Act and the Intestate Succession Act have been referred to the Constitutional Court for the amendments to be confirmed. 'The practical implication is that Muslim women in the position of the applicant (Hassam) will no longer stand to be deprived of their homes and money accumulated during the course of the marriage,' her attorney, Igshaan Higgins, is quoted as saying in a Sunday Times report. He added that in order to prevent dilemmas such as that suffered by Hassam, it was imperative that Muslim law - which gives effect to the provisions of the Koran - be codified in SA. Higgins added Hassam's victory was significant because it showed the Constitution accommodates the needs of diverse people.
Full Sunday Times report
The order will affect a class of women who will now be economically and socially empowered, according to the Women's Legal Centre (WLC). A report on the Legalbrief Today site points out that the Constitutional Court in 2004 extended the right to inherit to monogamous spouses married in terms of Islamic law. The WLC, which represented the applicant in that case, intervened in Hassam's case and requested the High Court to extend the Constitutional Court's protection to women in polygamous Muslim marriages. With just under a million Muslim people in SA, the judgment will have a profound impact on the community. 'We are pleased with the outcome and believe that this takes us one step closer to reducing discrimination against women in our society, which occurs as a result of their relationships not being recognised,' said the WLC.
Full report on the Legalbrief Today site
The WLC is also supporting a Durban widow in her battle to have her Hindu marriage recognised so that she can claim her inheritance from her late husband's estate. Soloshinie Govender's common-law husband, Balasundran Narainsamy, died last year, intestate and without formalising their marriage, says a report in the Sunday Tribune. The pair had been married in a Hindu ceremony in August 2004 in the presence of the couple's parents. Now Govender is embroiled in an inheritance battle with her father-in-law, Narainsamy Ragavayah, who refuses to recognise her marriage to his son. Ragavayah is the executor of his son's estate, and he and his wife are the heirs. The matter has been set down for the Durban High Court tomorrow (Tuesday). Govender's attorney, Suren Moodley, said Ragavayah had filed his intention to oppose the matter.
Full Sunday tribune report
many thanks to Andy G. for posting
- 11.
-
India and the US: A Good Thing
Posted by: "marco.pertoni@libero.it" marco.pertoni@libero.it sitrep_comalp
Wed Jul 22, 2009 3:20 am (PDT)
India and the US: A Good Thing
July 20th, 2009
China's String of Pearls: Ports/Navy Bases Under Construction
BBC has the summary of a military pact agreed upon today between India and the United States. Overall, this is very good for the US. India is a rising power, an obvious counterweight to an unstable Pakistan, and the only blue water competitor in the Indian Ocean. It is also a counterweight to China.
Further, India is a good economic fit with the US. There is a large Indian diaspora here. They speak English and adhere to similar legal and political structures. They do a lot of back office and customer service work for US firms.
However, vocal segments of the Indian polity will find it hard to swallow this deal. There is going to be constant friction from the left-wing in the Congress, the two Communist parties and the nationalist left in general. America was the de facto enemy for too long under the Nehru dynasty, so expect a good bit of friction, backsliding, etc., and expect the American left to amplify this under the usual anti-imperialist concerns.
In addition, Pakistan will find this very hard to swallow and, while we need India more over the medium term, we need Pakistani cooperation now to fight the Taliban and al Qaeda, and stabilize Afghanistan.
Our involvement with India now means we acquire the responsibility for resolving the impossible Kashmir situation the same way we previously did over Palestine. Neither problem is capable of solution. Yet we will be expected to show "progress "and paper over differences and/or bribe both sides.
Last point: The Chinese are bound to see this as a step in an encriclement policy. That may be unavoidable, but let us face reality. India sees China surrounding her. China sees the US cobbling together a stealth NATO to surround her. For China's part, see this description by one researcher at the Army War College:
The "String of Pearls" describes the manifestation of China's rising geopolitical influence through efforts to increase access to ports and airfields, develop special diplomatic relationships, and modernize military forces that extend from the South China Sea through the Strait of Malacca, across the Indian Ocean, and on to the Arabian Gulf.
http://bellum. stanfordreview. org/?p=1441
- 12.
-
SRI LANKA - PRESIDENT REJECTS WAR CRIMES ALLEGATIONS
Posted by: "Priyadarsi Dutta" PRIYADARSI.DUTTA@GMAIL.COM
Wed Jul 22, 2009 3:22 am (PDT)
Did America directly 'kill' 1.2 million Iraqis, or was it the Sunni
insurgents who trigger off explosion every now and then especially on
Shias?. The 20 percent Sunni Arabs, who have ruled Iraq with iron grip since
the days of Brigadier Abdul Karim Kasim at the cost of Shia Arabs and Sunnig
Kurds who far outnumber them are unwilling to enter democratic process. Iraq
should have been split into three to create homgeneous nations and ensure
peace. Sri Lanka is different kind of barbarism. Tamils took up arms after
30 years of democratic process.
-PD
2009/5/31 Jimmy Jumshade <jimmybug@rocketmail .com>
>
>
> Well, if GW Bush can get away with killing 1.2 Million IRAQIS...... ..why
> cannot anybody else for killing a far lesser number??!!
>
>
>
> --- On *Sat, 5/30/09, marco.pertoni@ libero.it <marco.pertoni@ libero.it>*wrote:
>
>
> From: marco.pertoni@ libero.it <marco.pertoni@ libero.it>
> Subject: [Geo-politics] SRI LANKA - PRESIDENT REJECTS WAR CRIMES
> ALLEGATIONS
> To: "4UnitedWeStand yahoogroups" <4UnitedWeStand@ yahoogroups. com>, "Sikh
> yahoogroups" <Sikh@yahoogroups. com>
> Cc: "Geo-politics" <Geo-politics@ yahoogroups. com>, "IHRO Organisation" <
> IHRO@yahoogroups. com>, "PWAP yahoogroups" <PWAP@yahoogroups. com>
> Date: Saturday, May 30, 2009, 8:54 AM
>
>
>
>
>
> SRI LANKA
> 22/5/2009 20.45 PRESIDENT REJECTS WAR CRIMES ALLEGATIONS Other
> , Brief
>
> President Mahinda Rajapakse has rejected international requests to launch
> inquiry commissions into the Sir Lankan army's potential war crimes
> responsibilities in the final phase of the war launched against the Tamil
> Tigers (LTTE), which the UN believes to have left over 7,000 civilian
> casualties. Shortly before the arrival of UN SG Ban Ki-moon, the president
> said that he would be willing to "be hanged" in order to crush the LTTE,
> accusing "external forces" of wanting to stop the struggle against the LTTE
> using the "threat of international tribunals". The 'Tamilnet' news agency,
> close to the LTTE, denounced that the conditions of the internally displaced
> refugees "is similar to Nazi lager camps". While rumors of Tamil children
> having been kidnapped, or women raped, in revenge, the UN Human Rights
> Council has convened a meeting next week to evaluate possible war crimes
> perpetrated by the Sri Lankan army. [*AB*]
>
> http://www.misna. org/news. asp?a=1&IDLingua =1&id=246796
>
>
>
>
- 13.
-
Anti torture bill - our proposal
Posted by: "Kirity Roy" kirityroy@gmail.com
Wed Jul 22, 2009 3:26 am (PDT)
[Attachment(s) from Kirity Roy included below]
Please circulate
--
Kirity Roy
Secretary
Banglar Manabadhikar Suraksha Mancha
(MASUM)
&
National Convenor (PACTI)
Programme Against Custodial Torture & Impunity
26 Guitendal Lane
Howrah 711101
West Bengal INDIA
Mobile: 09903099699
Tele Fax : +91-33-2640 4118
Phone: +91-33-2640 4520
e. mail : kirityroy@gmail. com
Web: www.masum.org. inAttachment(s) from Kirity Roy
1 of 1 File(s)
- 14.
-
GM Crop Hazards+Indian against environment barriers in trade+Seeds B
Posted by: "Indian Society For Sustainable Agricultur" indiansocietyforsustainableagri@yahoo.co.in
Wed Jul 22, 2009 3:26 am (PDT)
NEWS Bulletin from Indian Society For Sustainable Agriculture And Rural Development
------------ --------- --------- -------
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1. European geneticists caution India against GM crops
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2. India against environment barriers in trade
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3. MNCs will dominate if Seeds Bill adopted : Farmers' Associations
------------ --------- --------
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Scientific papers expose health and environment hazards
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European geneticists caution India against GM crops
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Mahyco's Bt brinjal unsafe for human consumption
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http://anypursuit. com/news/ tiki-read_ article.php? articleId= 403
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http://www.mynews. in/fullstory. aspx?storyid= 20568
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By: ASHOK B SHARMA on: Fri 10 of July, 2009 12:57 GMTÂ
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Two leading European geneticists have cautioned India not to accept genetically modified (GM) crops and food. They said that these products were rejected in Europe and were being willfully dumped in India by the multinational corporations as they could not find enough market in Europe.
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The chair of the department of molecular biology in the University of Caen, France, Prof Gilles-Eric Seralini shared with the mediapersons on Friday the findings from his latest path breaking research on the adverse impact of herbicides like glyphosate. Results from his research show that this popularly used herbicide is also a part of the package for herbicide tolerant GM crops like Roundup Ready Soybean. The inert ingredients of Roundup Ready Soybeans can kill human cells, particularly embryonic, placental and umbilical cord cells. Such cases have already occurred in Argentina were Roundup Ready Soybeans are extensively grown.
Â
Seralini’s papers have been published in two leading scientific research journals and one such paper has been referred in Scientific American. His findings are relevant, in the context, as the Genetic Engineering Approval Committee (GEAC) in India is in the process of approving several herbicide tolerant GM crops for field trials.
Â
Another European geneticist, Prof Michael Antoniou , reader in the department of medical and molecular genetics in King’s College, London said : “The only responsible use of genetic engineering is in a contained clinical laboratory setup. The extreme complexity with which genomic regulation works has not been understood by the best of geneticists and it should be remembered that GMOs released in the environment cannot be recalled. Precautionary approach is the only way forward with this technology.�
Â
Seralini and Antoniou are presently in India addressing conferences of health experts, environmentalists and agriculture scientists.
Â
The new Indian minister of state for environment and forests, Jairam Ramesh after assuming his office had expressed apprehensions about health and environmental hazards of GM crops and assured to take necessary action before final approval for its commercial release.
Â
Seralini, who is also directly associated with the France-based Committee for Independent Research and Information on Genetic Engineering (CRIIGEN), said : “99% of all GM crops are actually sponges of pesticides â€" they are either engineered to produce a pesticide or to tolerate a pesticide. This is the case with insect resistant crops like Bt cotton, Bt brinjal and herbicide tolerant crops like GM corn. Given such a technology, the adverse effect on human and animal health is often neglected by developer seed companies and regulatory authorities and this is unacceptable since we are dealing with an irreversible technology.â€�
Â
He said that his findings based on the dossiers of Mahyco on biosafety of Bt brinjal showed that it was unsafe for human and animal consumption. His study noted, “The parameters affected in animals fed with Bt brinjal are in blood cells or chemistry, but in different manners according to the period of measurement during the study or sex. In goats, the prothrombin time is modified and biochemical parameters such as total bilirubin and alkaline phosphates are also changed, as well as feed consumption and weight gain. For rabbits, less consumption was noted and also prothrombin time modification, higher bilirubin in some instances, albumin, lactose dehydrogenase and the hepatic markers alanine and aspartate aminotransferases. Sodium levels were also modified, as well as glucose, platelet count, mean corpuscular haemoglobin concentration and haematocrit value. In cows, milk production and composition changed by 10%-14%.�
Â
“Rats which were GM-fed had diarrhoea, had higher water consumption, suffered from decrease in liver weight as well as decrease in the relative liver to body weight ratio. Feed intake was modified in broiler chickens with glucose in some instances. Average feed conversion and efficiency ratios are changed in GM-fed fish. All that makes a very coherent picture of Bt brinjal to be potentially unsafe for human consumption. It will be also potentially unsafe to eat animals who have these problems. These differences are most often not reported in the summaries of different experiments, but are present in the raw data, �the study added.
Â
According to the study, these differences were, when discussed, disregarded often on the grounds that they were within the range of a wide “reference� group. The reference group represents a wide range of brinjal types and is not a strict comparison. Other reasons for disregarding the differences were that they did not show linear dose response or time response, or that they were only present in either males or females, but not both. Such declarations that the differences seen were not of biological relevance and unsubstantiated by the data presented from the feeding trials.
Â
Clear and significant differences were seen to increase food safety concerns and warrant further investigation. Bt brinjal cannot be considered as safe as its non-GM counterpart, the study concluded.#
------------ --------- --------- --
Â
Run-up to Copenhagen climate conference
Â
India against environment barriers in tradeÂ
Â
Hails President Obama's appeal to Senate to reject anti-trade Green Bill
Â
http://www.mynews. in/fullstory. aspx?storyid= 20568
Â
ASHOK B SHARMAÂ
Â
Publication Date 1/7/2009 1:05:14 AM(IST) Â
Â
India has made clear that it would oppose the move by the developed countries to impose penalties in global trade on developing countries that do not agree to make cuts in greenhouse gas emissions.
Â
The Union minister of state for environment and forests, Jairam Ramesh on Tuesday told mediapersons that India very much appreciated US President Barack Obama’s recent appeal to the Senate to reject the Bill passed by the House of Representatives for imposing trade penalties on countries that do not accept limits on greenhouse gas emissions.Â
Â
Ramesh, who is a former Union minister of state for commerce and industry, said that such an initiative would further create trade barriers and would be detrimental to the interests of the developing world.Â
Â
He said : “we would also like free trade in green goods and free flow of green technology. We expect the world community to address the intellectual property regime relating to green technology so that it becomes affordable to the developing countries.�
Â
Regarding clean development mechanism (CDM), he said that India has benefited in the process and that it should be further expanded to cover more areas. He however criticized trade in climate derivatives and said “such a mechanism would invite another crash in the global market after the recent financial meltdown.�
Â
India has also decided to propose introduction of re-forestation for benefits under the agenda of the UNFCCC CoP-15 scheduled in Copenhagen from December 7 to 18, this year.
Â
Ramesh reiterated India’s position on the principle of common but differentiated responsibilities and respective capabilities â€" a principle that the entire global community has enshrined in UNFCCC concluded in 1992 at the historic Rio Summit. He said that India was for fixing per capita emission limits of countries. He said that India’s per capita emission level was low at 1.2 tonne of carbon dioxide as compared to 20.6 tonne in US, 20 tonne in Canada, 9.8 tonne in UK and Germany, 9.9 tonne in Japan.
Â
Quoting the World Bank’s report describing India as a low carbon economy, Ramesh said that India’s share of global carbon dioxide emission was only 4.6% as compared to 20.9% by US. He said that under circumstances India was not committed to reduce its greenhouse gas emissions and have already assured that its per capita emission would never exceed that of the developed countries. The developing countries have the right to take up development projects to fight poverty , he said.
Â
Ramesh said that India would not accept global monitoring of its domestic climate projects, except in areas where international finance and technology transfers were involved. India would demand that the developed countries drastically cut their emission levels by at least 40% by 2020 and the base year for monitoring emission levels should continue to remain at 1990, he said.
Â
Referring to the country’s National Action Plan on Climate Change, he said that India has voluntarily taken up the responsibility of containing climate change. “India’s primary focus is on adaptation with specific niches for mitigation, “ he said and added that India would continue to cooperate with G-77 and China to evolve a common position on negotiation. India has planned consultations with member countries of the South Asia region in October, this year to evolve a common strategy.
------------ --------- --------- -----
Â
In BUSINESS STANDARD
Â
MNCs will dominate if Seeds Bill adopted: Farmers' Associations
Â
http://www.business -standard. com/india/ news/mncs- will-dominate- if-seeds- bill-adopted- farmers-associat ions/65912/ on
Â
New Delhi, June 29 :Several farmers associations, including the Bharat Krishak Samaj, have raised concerns over the Seeds Bill saying it would increase the domination of multi-national seed companies in India and may force farmers to pay royalty on hybrid seeds.        Â
Â
"The Indian farmers will lose their rights on using seeds of their choice and it would mainly promote interests of the multi-national firms," BKS Chairman Krishan Bir Chaudhary said.   Â
Â
The bill would serve the interests of firms producing genetically modified (GM) seeds in the country, he added, saying the bill may force farmers to pay royalty on hybrid seeds.    Â
Â
The government tabled the controversial Seeds Bill in the Rajya Sabha in December 2004 and later it was referred to the parliamentary standing committee on agriculture for review. The standing committee took about two years to review the Bill and had submitted its report in 2006.    Â
Â
The report is still pending with the government and is expected to be intoduced in the coming session of Parliament.     Â
Â
Chaudhary said the bill would also jeopardise the country's food security. "By continous use of hybrid seeds, the farmers would be gradually obliged to buy seeds from the MNCs," he warned. There is no traditional seed for cotton available in the market, he added.
 Â
However, supporting the Bill, a former Member of National Commission on Farmers, R B Singh, said it would check illegal selling of hybrid seeds, sold by private players with their own brand names but actually developed by state-owned companies.    Â
Â
"As per the bill, there is a provision to do DNA test of the seeds which will help identify the real developer," Singh noted.    Â
Â
Greenpeace (India) campaign manager Rajesh Krishna said, "The new bill will promote and facilitate the business of multi-national seed companies."Â Â Â Â Â
Â
The real motive of the bill is not to provide quality seeds to the farmers. Instead it could result in scarcity of natural seeds, he said, adding that it would lead to a lot of litigation as multi-national seed firms can claim intellectual property rights to the seeds that farmers use.    Â
 Â
On the litigation issue, Chaudhury added that as per the World Trade Organisation obligations, India had passed Plant Variety Protection and Farmers Rights Act (PVPFRA) under which interests of breeder and farmers have been protected.
Â
Chaudhary said in India 'Bt gene' is being used in hybrid varieties, but in countries like China it has only been used to improve the natural seeds so that farmers are not dependent on private companies for hybrid seeds always.
------------ --------- --------- -
Looking for local information? Find it on Yahoo! Local http://in.local. yahoo.com/
- 15.
-
BANGLADESH Bangladesh, a minor pregnant after rape: beaten and force
Posted by: "marco.pertoni@libero.it" marco.pertoni@libero.it sitrep_comalp
Wed Jul 22, 2009 3:26 am (PDT)
07/21/2009 12:03
BANGLADESH
Bangladesh, a minor pregnant after rape: beaten and forced to marry her torturer
by William Gomes
For months, the imam of a village in the district of Faridpur abused the girl, who did not denounce the man for "fear and shame." The young girl is seventh months pregnant, a premature birth is likely. The local council has condemned both to 101lashes with a cane.
Dhaka (AsiaNews) - The victim of repeated rapes who has become pregnant is being forced by local leaders to marry the man who abused her and sentenced to a beating for the "crime" committed. This is the story of a teenager in the village of Char Padma in Faridpur district of central Bangladesh.
Omar Faruk is a teacher from the "Maktab", the village Islamic school. The imam has long abused the minor, taking advantage of the position of prestige within the local community. The girl is in the seventh month of pregnancy, her physical and mental health are not good, and she risks a premature birth.
For several months she hid the violence and pregnancy, for fear and shame. When her belly started to grow, the news spread throughout the village. On July 18 last the Arbitration Council met, consisting of a group of experts led by Fazlur Rahman Fazal, to discuss the matter and issue a verdict. The meeting ended with a conviction of 101 lashings a head for the young girl and the imam, author of the violence.
Local sources revealed that both have already received 25 beatings, pursuant to the decision. The girl will even have to marry her torturer, who has two previous marriages behind him. In Bangladesh, women are often victims of violence and abuse, most of which goes unpunished. AsiaNews in recent years has repeatedly documented instances of women and young girls raped, disfigured, victims of family feuds, excluded because they convert to Christianity and repudiated by their family.
In recent weeks, Annie Halder, a Catholic activist, denounced a continued growth in the instances of violence, especially against "anyone who decides to convert to Christianity" . Among others, the woman recalled the case of Christina Gomez Goni, "killed by extremists" for apostasy.
http://www.asianews .it/index. php?l=en& art=15836& size=A
- 16.
-
IRAN Ahmadinejad now wants control of who uses the internet
Posted by: "marco.pertoni@libero.it" marco.pertoni@libero.it sitrep_comalp
Wed Jul 22, 2009 3:29 am (PDT)
07/21/2009 14:11
IRAN
Ahmadinejad now wants control of who uses the internet
In the power struggle within the Iranian leadership, the President shall implement a law requiring the storage of all that people send or receive on the net. But Khatami calls for a referendum and Mousavi wants the release of all those who have been imprisoned for taking part in demonstrations.
Beirut (AsiaNews) - The Iranian government is trying to put a stop to the internet, monitoring users and the Supreme Guide Ali Khamenei has warned against those who cooperate with the plans of "enemies of the homeland", but the "reformists" respond: Former President Khatami and his Association of Combatant Clerics want a referendum to restore peoples confidence shaken by the presidential elections and the opposition leader, Mir Hossein Mousavi, has called for the release of those who have been arrested. In a further sign of deepening contrast, the Vice-President Esfandiar Rahim Mashaie - whose appointment by Ahmadinejad was criticised by the hardest Conservative wing - has denied that he had given his resignation, which had been announced Sunday.
"The exchanges between the opposition on one side and supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei and his core of hard-line supporters on the other - notes Arab News, a Saudi daily particularly attentive to what happens in Tehran -appeared to be heating up, reflecting how the month-long conflict over Iran's disputed presidential election is entering a new level - a struggle within the leadership itself". "The opposition - it continues - has been energized by a show of support last week from former President Ali Akbar Hashemi Rafsanjani, a key figure within the ruling hierarchy. On Monday, opposition leader Mir Hossein Mousavi made some of his harshest comments yet at hard-liners and, implicitly, Khamenei himself".
Who is certainly not slow to respond. The announcement by the Government Press TV that the President has ordered Ahmadinajad to "execute" the recently approved law to fight cyber-crime and offer navigators "greater security" appears aimed at the opposition. Taking into account that in the post election period the opposition and demonstrators were able to exchange news and make known what was happening in the country abroad only through the net, the requirements of Article 24 of the Act, for which Internet providers must retain for three months, "all data sent or received by each of their customers", is particularly significant. For the Attorney General, Qorban-Ali-Najafaba d Dorr, quoted by Al Jazeera, the law is to protect the rights of people and help to attack pornography and other "prohibited content".
Reporters Sans Frontieres said that the Iranian government "recognizing the growing influence of blogs is trying to reduce their space, filtering and trapping sites that host them".
In this context, Khatami called for the referendum in these terms: "As millions of Iranians have lost confidence in the electoral process, the Association of Combatant Clerics insist on the organisation of a referendum ... by independent bodies". The last sentence is an attack on Khamenei, seen that, according to Iranian law, a referendum can be called only by the Supreme Guide. Khatami added that the Rafsanjani proposal for an agreement between reformists and conservatives to solve the crisis is "the minimum required to exit the current situation." For his part, Mousavi yesterday asked for the "immediate release" of those who were imprisoned for taking part in the demonstrations in protest against the results of the vote". (PD)
http://www.asianews .it/index. php?l=en& art=15841& size=A
- 17.
-
TIBET - CHINA Lawyer ejected because of "no use": monk sentenced to
Posted by: "marco.pertoni@libero.it" marco.pertoni@libero.it sitrep_comalp
Wed Jul 22, 2009 3:29 am (PDT)
07/21/2009
TIBET - CHINA
Lawyer ejected because of "no use": monk sentenced to life
by Nirmala Carvalho
Tibetans are stopped from employing a trusted lawyer, lawyers are removed and they denied access to clients. In closed door trials, without a trusted defence, Tibetans who dared to protest or praise to the Dalai Lama, are handed down heavy sentences.
Dharamsala (AsiaNews) - The Court does not allow the lawyer, because the client already has one appointed by the court: Sentenced to life imprisonment.
Beijing lawyer, Li Dunyong, along with others have repeatedly declared they are ready to defend Tibetans. He was named by relatives to defend the monks Tsultrim Gyatso and Thabkey Gyatso from the monastery of Labrang (Gansu), arrested for taking part in a political protest. Li says that the authorities have responded that his work was not necessary, because the monks "already had a lawyer."
The two monks, after they were denied defence, were sentenced to life and 15 years in prison for "having attempted to divide the country."
Radio Free Asia yesterday reported a number of cases in which the court has not accepted the legal representation of Tibetan defendants. Officials of the court in Xining (Qinghai) refused Li permission to defend documentary producer Dhondup Wangchen.
Wangchen has been held since March 2008 for having interviewed two Tibetans about their political ideas, for the film "Leaving Fear Behind". The film, which collects testimonies of the Tibetans on the Dalai Lama, Chinese policy in Tibet and the Olympic Games in Beijing, has been translated into seven languages and screened in over 30 countries. Li has been appointed by the family of Wangchen, who only discovered the arrest after a year.
Meanwhile, the Tibetan Centre for Human Rights and Democracy reports that the court of Kardze (Sichuan) on July 3 sentenced Tibetan monk Jamyang Tenzin to 3 years in prison for having protested against the campaign of "Patriotic Education" launched in Lithang 2007.
Jamyang was arrested on 3 October 2007 because he objected to a peaceful campaign of "education" underway in Yonru monastery, County Lithang. Since then he has been held in prison but his family knew nothing about the arrest and hence no one has been able to go and visit him. It is not known whether he had legal advice in the trial.
In September 2007 the Chinese authorities imposed campaigns of indoctrination on the monasteries of Lithang. The "instructors" have also demanded monks to write complaints against the Dalai Lama and to show loyalty to the Chinese government. Janyang protested and shouted slogans like "May the Dalai Lama live thousands of years." He was taken away one night, at the end of the education campaign.
http://www.asianews .it/index. php?l=en& art=15839& size=A
- 18.
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FRANCE: 2,000 JEWS TO LEAVE COUNTRY FOR ISRAEL IN 2009
Posted by: "marco.pertoni@libero.it" marco.pertoni@libero.it sitrep_comalp
Wed Jul 22, 2009 3:30 am (PDT)
FRANCE: 2,000 JEWS TO LEAVE COUNTRY FOR ISRAEL IN 2009
(ANSAmed) - PARIS, JULY 21 - Some 2,000 Jews in France will make Aliyah this year. Making Aliyah means going to live in Israel. This is 150 more people than in 2008 when 1,850 left France for Israel. According to data from the Jewish Agency, those leaving are chiefly young people, pensioners and families with children. Today 250 Jews will leave on a special flight from Paris following months of preparation and the blessing of the Chief Rabbi of France, Gilles Bernheim. France has the most consistent Jewish community in Europe with 500,000 people, and it is the country with the greatest number of departures for Israel. For Orean Toledano, director of the Aliyah department for the Jewish Agency, this can be explained because French Jews "are very Zionist, a factor linked to their culture, to their history, to their religious practice. Israel is a fundamental value for them." The phenomenon is not new in France (departures in 2007 were 2,659, and 2,802 in 2006) and it has seen peaks linked to moments of particular tension for the Jewish community. The most recent incident which shocked France was the kidnapping and murder of a young Jewish man, Ilan Halimi, near Paris in 2006. Halimi was brutally tortured for three weeks by the so-called "Barbarians" gang, before being found dead in the street. The case, which led to a life sentence for the gang leader, Youssouf Fofana, is now under appeal. (ANSAmed).
2009-07-21 14:50
http://www.ansamed. info/en/news/ ME03.@AM52083. html
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LEBANON: ANTI-UNIFIL TERROR CELL DISMANTLED
Posted by: "marco.pertoni@libero.it" marco.pertoni@libero.it sitrep_comalp
Wed Jul 22, 2009 3:30 am (PDT)
LEBANON: ANTI-UNIFIL TERROR CELL DISMANTLED
(ANSAmed) - BEIRUT, JULY 21 - Lebanese army security services have dismantled a terrorist cell preparing attacks against the UN peace-keeping force in Lebanon, the Lebanese army said in a statement. The network smashed, consisting of 10 people from different Arab nations, "aimed at creating terror cells charged with planning the monitoring of UNIFIL forces and the Lebanese Army with a view to carrying out terrorist operations against them." The statement, which did not specify when the network was dismantled, said the group planned to carry out "security operations against foreign objectives, starting from Lebanon." Lebanese army intelligence also announced in May that they had dismantled since the start of the year other terrorist cells operating in the south of the country. In October 2008, the Beirut press sounded the alarm about possible attacks by unidentified terrorist groups against Unifil, which includes some 200 Italian service personnel. Until today, since the creation of the Unifil-2 contingent, after the summer 2006 war between Israel and the Shiite Hezbollah movement, three attacks have been carried out against the "blue helmets" - the bloodiest was on June 24, 2007 when six soldiers from the Spanish contingent were killed. (ANSAmed).
2009-07-21 14:23
http://www.ansamed. info/en/news/ ME03.@AM50719. html
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MIDEAST:PRESS, ISRAELI ARMY PREPARE TO DISMANTLE 23 OUTPOSTS
Posted by: "marco.pertoni@libero.it" marco.pertoni@libero.it sitrep_comalp
Wed Jul 22, 2009 3:31 am (PDT)
MIDEAST:PRESS, ISRAELI ARMY PREPARE TO DISMANTLE 23 OUTPOSTS
(ANSAmed) - TEL AVIV - The Israeli army has put together a plan to clear out 23 illegal outposts, where 1,200 Jews live, in the West Bank in just one day. The news is reported by the daily newspaper Haaretz today. According to the paper, a large-scale exercise was carried out last week involving units from the army, the police and the border patrol. The paper added that the army has been finalising logistical plans over recent days. If confirmed, it would be the largest operation by the Israeli army against the settler movement since the summer of 2005 when, on Ariel Sharon's order, 8,000 settlers were evicted from the Gaza Strip. But in a first comment on the issue, military radio has denied any such plans being put together. The broadcaster confirmed that an exercise was carried out last week but added that it was a small-scale operation. The settler movement has already announced that it will resist any attempt to forcefully dismantle outposts. ''Blood will be shed,'' warned extreme-right MP Arieh Eldad. Yesterday army units demolished several prefabricated buildings in three outposts in the West Bank. No incidents were reported as a result of these operations. But in other areas of the West Bank, groups of settlers have resorted to violence against Palestinians, such as arson attacks on fields and throwing rocks, as a sign of protest.(ANSAmed) .
http://www.ansamed. info/en/top/ ME12.WAM20130. html
- 21.
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Afghanistan: Italian defence minister rules out troop withdrawal
Posted by: "marco.pertoni@libero.it" marco.pertoni@libero.it sitrep_comalp
Wed Jul 22, 2009 3:32 am (PDT)
Afghanistan: Italian defence minister rules out troop withdrawal
Abu Dhabi, 21 July (AKI) - Italian defence minister Ignazio La Russa has said that Italy will not withdraw its soldiers from Afghanistan despite calls from some leftwing politicians for it to do so amid rising international troop casualties. He made the remarks in the aftermath of the death of an Italian soldier last week.
"I have tried to respect as much as possible points of view that are not represented in parliament - those calling for the withdrawal to troops which are in my view mistaken," La Russa said late on Monday.
He was speaking to journalists on his way to the capital of the United Arab Emirates, Abu Dhabi, before on Tuesday heading to Afghanistan to visit Italian troops stationed there.
La Russa was due to visit Italian troops stationed at a base located in the western Afghan city of Herat. The surrounding province of Herat and the other three western provinces of Farah, Ghor and Baghdis are under Italian command.
La Russa was then due to visit the town of Farah in southwestern Farah province, where more Italian troops are stationed.
On 14 July, Lance Corporal Alessandro Di Lisio, 25, was killed and three other Italian paratroopers injured while on patrol some 50 kilometres from Farah.
Italy currently has 3,250 troops in Afghanistan, the sixth largest deployment after the United States, Britain, Canada and Germany. It recently deployed 500 troops to the conflict-wracked country to boost security ahead of presidential elections due in August.
"One of the objectives of my visit to to verify the actual security conditions on the ground, that is to say our capacity and the possibility of increasing this," La Russa told journalists.
There are currently some 58,000 international troops from 42 nations stationed in Afghanistan. The United States has approved sending 68,000 troops to Afghanistan by the end of 2009, including 21,000 that were added this spring.
The US troop surge is aimed at curbing the increasingly violent insurgency being fought by an emboldened Taliban, and the US would like other nations to contribute more troops.
http://www.adnkrono s.com/AKI/ English/Politics /?id=3.0. 3567951886
- 22.
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FW: What Christians (and others) Don't know About Israel by Grace Ha
Posted by: "Alex James" alexjamesnews2@gmail.com
Wed Jul 22, 2009 3:34 am (PDT)
From:
Subject: What Christians Don't know About Israel
What Christians Don't Know About Israel
June 14, 2009
Image removed by sender. CHRSTN-ZIONIST- MAIN
By Grace Halsell
American Jews sympathetic to Israel dominate key positions in all areas of
our government where decisions are made regarding the Middle East. This
being the case, is there any hope of ever changing U.S. policy? American
Presidents as well as most members of Congress support Israel - and they
know why. U.S. Jews sympathetic to Israel donate lavishly to their campaign
coffers.
The answer to achieving an even-handed Middle East policy might lie
elsewhere - among those who support Israel but don't really know why. This
group is the vast majority of Americans. They are well-meaning, fair-minded
Christians who feel bonded to Israel - and Zionism - often from atavistic
feelings, in some cases dating from childhood.
I am one of those. I grew up listening to stories of a mystical,
allegorical, spiritual Israel. This was before a modern political entity
with the same name appeared on our maps. I attended Sunday School and
watched an instructor draw down window- type shades to show maps of the Holy
Land. I imbibed stories of a Good and Chosen people who fought against their
Bad "unChosen" enemies.
In my early 20s, I began traveling the world, earning my living as a writer.
I came to the subject of the Middle East rather late in my career. I was
sadly lacking in knowledge regarding the area. About all I knew was what I
had learned in Sunday School.
And typical of many U.S. Christians, I somehow considered a modern state
created in 1948 as a homeland for Jews persecuted under the Nazis as a
replica of the spiritual, mystical Israel I heard about as a child. When in
1979 I initially went to Jerusalem, I planned to write about the three great
monotheistic religions and leave out politics. "Not write about politics?"
scoffed one Palestinian, smoking a waterpipe in the Old Walled City. "We eat
politics, morning, noon and night!"
As I would learn, the politics is about land, and the co-claimants to that
land: the indigenous Palestinians who have lived there for 2,000 years and
the Jews who started arriving in large numbers after the Second World War.
By living among Israeli Jews as well as Palestinian Christians and Muslims,
I saw, heard, smelled, experienced the police state tactics Israelis use
against Palestinians.
Image removed by sender. PALESTINIAN TORTURES
Monstrous evils are being committed on the Palestinians by the Israelis -
who do everything possible to get Christians to believe "End Times"
Evangelists and support "the people of the Old Testament" (they are NOT the
Israelites of the Bible). They wine and dine - possibly even bribe and
threaten - these preachers in the US to keep up this non-stop EVIL charade.
You think Jesus would want you to keep silent? [INCOG]
My research led to a book entitled "Journey to Jerusalem." My journey not
only was enlightening to me as regards Israel, but also I came to a deeper,
and sadder, understanding of my own country. I say sadder understanding
because I began to see that, in Middle East politics, we the people are not
making the decisions, but rather that supporters of Israel are doing so. And
typical of most Americans, I tended to think the U.S. media was "free" to
print news impartially.
`It shouldn't be published. It's anti-Israel. '
In the late 1970s, when I first went to Jerusalem, I was unaware that
editors could and would classify "news" depending on who was doing what to
whom. On my initial visit to Israel-Palestine, I had interviewed dozens of
young Palestinian men. About one in four related stories of torture.
Israeli police had come in the night, dragged them from their beds and
placed hoods over their heads. Then in jails the Israelis had kept them in
isolation, besieged them with loud, incessant noises, hung them upside down
and had sadistically mutilated their genitals. I had not read such stories
in the U.S. media. Wasn't it news? Obviously, I naively thought, U.S.
editors simply didn't know it was happening.
On a trip to Washington, DC, I hand-delivered a letter to Frank Mankiewicz,
then head of the public radio station WETA. I explained I had taped
interviews with Palestinians who had been brutally tortured. And I'd make
them available to him. I got no reply. I made several phone calls.
Eventually I was put through to a public relations person, a Ms. Cohen, who
said my letter had been lost. I wrote again. In time I began to realize what
I hadn't known: had it been Jews who were strung up and tortured, it would
be news. But interviews with tortured Arabs were "lost" at WETA.
The process of getting my book Journey to Jerusalem published also was a
learning experience. Bill Griffin, who signed a contract with me on behalf
of MacMillan Publishing Company, was a former Roman Catholic priest. He
assured me that no one other than himself would edit the book. As I
researched the book, making several trips to Israel and Palestine, I met
frequently with Griffin, showing him sample chapters. "Terrific," he said of
my material.
The day the book was scheduled to be published, I went to visit MacMillan's.
Checking in at a reception desk, I spotted Griffin across a room, cleaning
out his desk. His secretary Margie came to greet me. In tears, she whispered
for me to meet her in the ladies room. When we were alone, she confided,
"He's been fired." She indicated it was because he had signed a contract for
a book that was sympathetic to Palestinians. Griffin, she said, had no time
to see me.
Later, I met with another MacMillan official, William Curry. "I was told to
take your manuscript to the Israeli Embassy, to let them read it for
mistakes," he told me. "They were not pleased. They asked me, "You are not
going to publish this book, are you?" I asked, "Were there mistakes?" "Not
mistakes as such. But it shouldn't be published. It's anti-Israel. "
Somehow, despite obstacles to prevent it, the presses had started rolling.
After its publication in 1980, I was invited to speak in a number of
churches. Christians generally reacted with disbelief. Back then, there was
little or no coverage of Israeli land confiscation, demolition of
Palestinian homes, wan ton arrests and torture of Palestinian civilians.
The Same Question
Speaking of these injustices, I invariably heard the same question, "How
come I didn't know this?" Or someone might ask, "But I haven't read about
that in my newspaper." To these church audiences, I related my own learning
experience, that of seeing hordes of U.S. correspondents covering a
relatively tiny state. I pointed out that I had not seen so many reporters
in world capitals such as Beijing, Moscow, London, Tokyo, Paris. Why, I
asked, did a small state with a 1980 population of only four million warrant
more reporters than China, with a billion people?
I also linked this query with my findings that The New York Times, The Wall
Street Journal, The Washington Post - and most of our nation's print media -
are owned and/or controlled by Jews supportive of Israel. It was for this
reason, I deduced, that they sent so many reporters to cover Israel - and to
do so largely from the Israeli point of view.
My learning experiences also included coming to realize how easily I could
lose a Jewish friend if I criticized the Jewish state. I could with impunity
criticize France, England, Russia, even the United States. And any aspect of
life in America. But not the Jewish state. I lost more Jewish friends than
one after the publication of Journey to Jerusalem - all sad losses for me
and one, perhaps, saddest of all.
In the 1960s and 1970s, before going to the Middle East, I had written about
the plight of blacks in a book entitled Soul Sister, and the plight of
American Indians in a book entitled Bessie Yellowhair, and the problems
endured by undocumented workers crossing from Mexico in The Illegals. These
books had come to the attention of the "mother" of The New York Times, Mrs.
Arthur Hays Sulzberger.
Image removed by sender. new-york-times- 0905-01
The Jews behind the New York Times, from left to right: Adolph S. Ochs (1896
to 1935); Arthur Hays Sulzberger (1935-61); Orvil E. Dryfoos (1961-63);
Arthur Ochs Sulzberger (1963-92); and Arthur Ochs Sulzberger Jr.
(1992-present) .
Her father had started the newspaper, then her husband ran it, and in the
years that I knew her, her son was the publisher. She invited me to her
fashionable apartment on Fifth Avenue for lunches and dinner parties. And,
on many occasions, I was a weekend guest at her Greenwich, Conn., home.
She was liberal-minded and praised my efforts to speak for the underdog,
even going so far in one letter to say, "You are the most remarkable woman I
ever knew." I had little concept that from being buoyed so high I could be
dropped so suddenly when I discovered - from her point of view - the "wrong"
underdog.
As it happened, I was a weekend guest in her spacious Connecticut home when
she read bound galleys of Journey to Jerusalem. As I was leaving, she handed
the galleys back with a saddened look: "My dear, have you forgotten the
Holocaust?" She felt that what happened in Nazi Germany to Jews several
decades earlier should silence any criticism of the Jewish state. She could
focus on a holocaust of Jews while negating a modern day holocaust of
Palestinians.
I realized, quite painfully, that our friendship was ending. Iphigene
Sulzberger had not only invited me to her home to meet her famous friends
but, also at her suggestion, The Times had requested articles. I wrote op-ed
articles on various subjects including American blacks, American Indians as
well as undocumented workers. Since Mrs. Sulzberger and other Jewish
officials at the Times highly praised my efforts to help these groups of
oppressed peoples, the dichotomy became apparent: most "liberal" U.S. Jews
stand on the side of all poor and oppressed peoples save one - the
Palestinians.
How handily these liberal Jewish opinion-molders tend to diminish the
Palestinians, to make them invisible, or to categorize them all as
"terrorists. "
Interestingly, Iphigene Sulzberger had talked to me a great deal about her
father, Adolph S. Ochs. She told me that he was not one of the early
Zionists. He had not favored the creation of a Jewish state.
Yet, increasingly, American Jews have fallen victim to Zionism, a
nationalistic movement that passes for many as a religion. While the ethical
instructions of all great religions - including the teachings of Moses,
Muhammad and Christ - stress that all human beings are equal, militant
Zionists take the position that the killing of a non-Jew does not count.
Over five decades now, Zionists have killed Palestinians with impunity. And
in the 1996 shelling of a U.N. base in Qana, Lebanon, the Israelis killed
more than 100 civilians sheltered there. As an Israeli journalist, Arieh
Shavit, explains of the massacre, "We believe with absolute certitude that
right now, with the White House in our hands, the Senate in our hands and
The New York Times in our hands, the lives of others do not count the same
way as our own."
Israelis today, explains the anti-Zionist Jew Israel Shahak, "are not basing
their religion on the ethics of justice. They do not accept the Old
Testament as it is written. Rather, religious Jews turn to the Talmud. For
them, the Talmudic Jewish laws become "the Bible." And the Talmud teaches
that a Jew can kill a non-Jew with impunity.
In the teachings of Christ, there was a break from such Talmudic teachings.
He sought to heal the wounded, to comfort the downtrodden.
The danger, of course, for U.S. Christians is that having made an icon of
Israel, we fall into a trap of condoning whatever Israel does - even wanton
murder - as orchestrated by God.
Yet, I am not alone in suggesting that the churches in the United States
represent the last major organized support for Palestinian rights. This
imperative is due in part to our historic links to the Land of Christ and in
part to the moral issues involved with having our tax dollars fund
Israeli-government- approved violations of human rights.
While Israel and its dedicated U.S. Jewish supporters know they have the
president and most of Congress in their hands, they worry about grassroots
America - the well-meaning Christians who care for justice. Thus far, most
Christians were unaware of what it was they didn't know about Israel. They
were indoctrinated by U.S. supporters of Israel in their own country and
when they traveled to the Land of Christ most all did so under Israeli
sponsorship. That being the case, it was unlikely a Christian ever met a
Palestinian or learned what caused the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.
This is gradually changing, however. And this change disturbs the Israelis.
As an example, delegates attending a Christian Sabeel conference in
Bethlehem earlier this year said they were harassed by Israeli security at
the Tel Aviv airport.
"They asked us," said one delegate, "Why did you use a Palestinian travel
agency? Why didn't you use an Israeli agency?" The interrogation was so
extensive and hostile that Sabeel leaders called a special session to brief
the delegates on how to handle the harassment. Obviously, said one delegate,
"The Israelis have a policy to discourage us from visiting the Holy Land
except under their sponsorship. They don't want Christians to start learning
all they have never known about Israel."
About the Author
Grace Halsell (1923-2000) was a distinguished American journalist, war
correspondent, author and columnist. She was the author of 13 books,
including Journey to Jerusalem and Prophecy and Politics.
<http://www.ihr. org/leaflets/ what_christians. shtml> SOURCE
Institute for Historical Review
P.O. Box 2739 - Newport Beach, CA 92659 - USA
Please pass out this information to any Christian (and anyone else) you
know!
- 23.
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Pakistan: Swat Taliban leader vows to seize assets of pro-army 'trai
Posted by: "marco.pertoni@libero.it" marco.pertoni@libero.it sitrep_comalp
Wed Jul 22, 2009 3:34 am (PDT)
Pakistan: Swat Taliban leader vows to seize assets of pro-army 'traitors'
Mingora, 21 July (AKI) - By Syed Saleem Shahzad - As thousands of people continued to return to Pakistan's troubled northwest Swat region, local Taliban chief Mullah Fazlullah vowed to seize property belonging to families who have backed the ongoing military operation in Swat.
Militant sources told Adnkronos International they have been waiting for the refugees to return to Swat so they can use them as human shields against the military.
The militants have also been waiting for the onset of winter when snowfalls will cut off military supplies, the sources said
"Once these two things happen, militants will once again occupy 90 percent of the valley," a militant told AKI.
According to the Pakistani military, more than 2,000 Taliban have been killed and the local Taliban have been completely defeated in the three-month- long offensive to quash insurgents in the restive region.
Some three million people fled the conflict, which began earlier this year in Swat district and spread to the neighbouring districts of Buner and Lower Dir. Militants are fighting to introduce strict Islamic law in Swat and several surrounding areas.
Earlier this month, the Pakistani army said Fazlullah had been seriously injured in the military offensive and another militant leader, Abu Jandal, had been killed.
But residents of Mingora, the largest town in Swat said Fazlullah had been heard last week making illegal FM radio transmissions. It could not be confirmed if the broadcast was a live or a pre-recorded one. Some residents were quoted as saying Fazlullah sounded unwell in the broadcast and that his voice lacked its previous energy.
Pakistani military forces reportedly killed over suspected 50 Islamist militants in a two-day battle on Sunday and Monday in the Lower Dir district.
The Taliban however claimed their command and control structure had remained by and large intact during the military operation in the northwest.
Only two Taliban commanders, Daud and Shah Doran, had been killed, while command of the Swat militants is in the hands of Bin Yameen, according to the Taliban.
The Pakistani army earlier claimed Yameen had died in the military operation.
http://www.adnkrono s.com/AKI/ English/Security /?id=3.0. 3568901510
- 24.
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CHINA China takes hard line against Uyghurs, local authorities to ad
Posted by: "marco.pertoni@libero.it" marco.pertoni@libero.it sitrep_comalp
Wed Jul 22, 2009 3:35 am (PDT)
07/21/2009 18:10
CHINA
China takes hard line against Uyghurs, local authorities to adopt special anti-separatism law
The authorities in Xinjiang are preparing a special law. In China special law and order legislation means more powers to the police and less freedom to the people.
Beijing (AsiaNews/Agencies) - Xinjiang wants to quickly pass special laws to deal with separatism in the autonomous region, Chinese newspapers reported yesterday without any explanation. This is a sign that the protests that broke out on 5 July will be met with harsh measures. Officially 197 people died during the violent clashes and more 1,700 were wounded.
Analysts note that China already has some of the toughest anti-secession laws on the books; any new law will simply give more powers to the police and increase already harsh penalties, thus further limiting civil liberties.
Speaking to Xinhua Eligen Imibakhi, chairman of the Standing Committee of the Xinjiang Regional People's Congress, said that this month's protests were caused by the "three forces," namely "extremism, separatism and terrorism".
For years China has used this unholy trinity to justify its persecution of Uyghurs, charging them with being dangerous terrorists.
Chinese authorities insist that demonstrations in early July were organised by secessionist groups, not the spontaneous action of ordinary people.
The mouthpiece of the Communist Party, the People's Daily, yesterday blamed foreign groups like the Munich-based World Uyghur Congress (WUC) and exiled Uyghyr leader Rebiya Kadeer for masterminding the violence, an accusation which Xinhua reprinted today.
Uyghurs have dismissed Chinese charges, saying the protests were peaceful until police intervened.
Instead WUC representative in Japan Ilham Mahmut called on China to allow a third party to hold an independent investigation into the incidents.
Meanwhile Xingjian's capital of Urumqi remains an ethnically-divided powder keg.
Uyghurs have become a minority in their own city, restricted to the poorest neighbourhoods.
Ethnic Han Chinese now make up more than 70 per cent of the city's 2.3 million residents, encouraged to settle in this faraway outpost through incentives and promises of positions of power.
The violent demonstrations have traumatised both groups; each claiming that media coverage of the events has distorted what actually happened.
Officially, 1,400 Uyghurs have been arrested for their involvement in the protests, a figure treated with scorn by Uyghurs, some of whom claim that as many 20,000 have been detained, including innocent passers-by caught up in the events.
http://www.asianews .it/index. php?l=en& art=15845& size=A
- 25.
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Elephant stampede causes torture
Posted by: "Harshi Perera" pereraharshi@yahoo.com
Wed Jul 22, 2009 3:36 am (PDT)
My name is M.F.M.Isthikar. I am a businessman and father of two children. On 09.06.2008 around 5pm to 5.30pm I went to the pharmacy. I saw people were running on the road .I asked somebody why? He told me an elephant in the temple was stampede. So I also went to the temple and was standing near the post of the temple. The elephant was chained. The mahout was trying to calm down the elephant.
 After few minutes a person came from my back slapped on my ear. All the people turned back and looked at me. I also looked back. I saw a policeman in uniforms. He told me to go and tell anybody. The people were also remaining silent. I was upset and couldn’t think what was happened to me, I was ashamed and angry. Then the policeman asked my name and where do I live. I told. I told that I am a resident of Attalugama, Bandaragama. He then told me he assaulted me because of my own good.
Â
 The chained elephant was taken out of the temple. The crowed gathered around me. Both the Sinhalese and Muslims came closer to me and said you were assaulted without any reason and we must take some action against this injustice. They also mentioned that police couldn’t assault people without any valid reason. I felt courageous. After that I came home.
Â
 When I came home my mother also knew that I was assaulted. She too blamed the policeman. She cried and praised him bad luck. All the people in the village were against the injustice caused to me. At night there was a pain in both my ear and cheek. Whole night I was not sleep. Next day I put a small piece of cloth inside the ear and I saw blood in it. I didn’t feel any sense in the ear. The sound like ho ho came through it. I got the feeling that I want to do something for this. I went to the shop. The villagers came to me and accompanied me to the Janasansadaya. There we made complaints to the relevant authorities.
Â
 After that we went to the Kalubowila hospital. They said there was damage in my ear. They gave me medicine for a month period. The ENT surgeon also inspect me and advice me to attend clinic. Next we complained to the Panadaura police. The police officer who inquired my case took a telephone call to the perpetrated police officer and questioned. The name of the alleged perpetrated police officer is Mahesh.
Â
 I heard that he was saying that I was closer to the elephant and there was a danger to my life. He said that he assaulted me because of my own sake. Then the police officer who had taken the telephone call said any danger may cause to him why did you assault him and injure his ear? He further asked that could you assault people like that way. After that I went home.
Â
 Up to date I have pain in my ear. I filled a Fundamental rights case before the country’s highest court and case is still pending. I have the attitude to stop such type of police assault against innocent people.
Â
 After I sue, the alleged perpetrator Mahesh telephoned me. He is attached to the Bandaragama police station. He begged me not to take further actions with the case. He also proposed me to come to a settlement. He too promised with money and further said this was happened with out any common sense. He gave me telephone calls number of occasions. His wife to telephoned me and asked me to pardon her husband and also promised to give money.
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