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> Fri., Apr. 30, 2004
FSRN
FREE SPEECH RADIO NEWS
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Today's lead stories:
John Kerry Lays Out Iraq Plan
American Treatment of Iraqi Prisoners
Vietnamese Americans Compare the Wars
Ireland to Host Official EU Expansion
Everyone Celebrating the EU Expansion? A May Day look at labor
in the EU
Remembering a Courageous Mexican Journalist
FSRN Headlines
UN Peace Keeping Mission to Haiti
Today, the United Nations Security Council agreed to send
as many as 8-thousand soldiers and police officers to Haiti
for a so-called peace keeping mission. Secretary General Kofi
Annan requested a 2 year commitment, but the Council only
approved the mission for 6-months. Brazil is expected to lead
the force that will replace U.S. troops who went into the
country in February. The consortium of Caribbean nations,
known as CARICOM, has so far refused to acknowledge the current
government in Haiti. They are calling for an investigation
into the removal of democratically elected Jean Bertrand Aristide.
Ethnic Violence in Nigeria
More than a hundred people have been killed in fresh ethnic
and religious fighting in central Nigeria. Thousands of others
have fled their homes to escape the fighting. Sam Olukoya
reports from Lagos.
TV Censorship Mandated on Iraq Casualities
A television syndicate is ordering their ABC-affiliated stations
to censor tonight’s presentation of Nightline, hosted
by Ted Koppel. The show’s producers plan to recite the
names and show the photos of the hundreds of U.S. soldiers
who have died in Iraq. The Sinclair Broadcast Group’s
website said, “the action appears to be motivated by
a political agenda designed to undermine the efforts of the
United States in Iraq.” Nightline producers countered
the statement by writing “the broadcast is an expression
of respect which simply seeks to honor those who have laid
down their lives for this country.” Producers also point
out that the show had previously broadcast the names of those
who died in the September 11th 2001 terrorist attacks. Sinclair
stations were directed to read on-air statements supporting
the Bush administration’s efforts against terrorism
-- an edict that was rejected by on air news anchors at Sinclair
stations. The Baltimore based company owns 62 television stations.
The Center for Responsive Politics reports that the Sinclair
company and its executives are heavy contributors to the Republican
party and its candidates.
Diesel Spill in San Francisco
Emergency crews near San Francisco are struggling to contain
a massive diesel spill from a ruptured pipeline. Brian Edwards-Tiekert
report from KPFA.
Violent Clashes at Jakarta Prison
30 people were injured and 40 arrested in a clash between
Indonesian police and Muslims at the gate of a prison in Jakarta
this morning. The clash erupted when police tried to re-arrest
Alqaeda-linked cleric Abu Bakar Ba’asyir after one and
half year imprisonment for immigration violations. Andrew
Stelzer files for Meggy Margiyono reporting from Jakarta.
[top]
John Kerry Lays Out Iraq Plan (3:45)
Today Brigadier General Mark Kimmitt said the U.S. will
not fully withdraw its troops out of the Iraqi city of Fallujah
despite the transfer of security to an Iraqi force headed
by a former General who served under Saddam Hussein. Kimmitt
said the new Iraqi force will be integrated with the U.S.
Marines who will maintain a strong presence in and around
Fallujah. Also today Democratic Presidential Candidate John
Kerry laid out his plan for Iraq, which includes staying the
course in the occupied country while attempting to increase
an international presence there. Mitch Jeserich reports.
[top]
American Treatment of Iraqi Prisoners (4:16)
Meanwhile, with the US Marines not leaving Fallujah, air
patrols over the besieged city where 600 Iraqis have been
killed in the last month look likely to continue. At the same
time, the occupation authority has begun defending itself
against allegations of severe prisoner abuse raised in a report
by CBS's 60 Minutes II program. As Aaron Glantz reports from
Baghdad, the report is nothing new for families of the 20,000
Iraqi's incarcerated in American prisons.
[top]
Vietnamese Americans Compare the Wars (4:45)
Today marks the 29th anniversary of the Fall of Saigon,
when South Vietnam fell under communist control. Following
that historic day, hundreds of thousands of South Vietnamese,
mainly military men and their families, fled a government
they opposed. These refugees boarded helicopters and boats
and headed to many other countries, including America. US
troops had already left South Vietnam two years earlier, with
the signing of a cease-fire that ended America's longest and
most unpopular war that claimed 58-thousand US soldiers and
as many as 3 million Vietnamese. The cost of the war was estimated
at 150 billion dollars. Now, some are pointing to Iraq as
another US quagmire. As comparisons between the Vietnam and
Iraq wars keep are growing, residents in Little Saigon, Los
Angeles, are expressing their perspectives. Ngoc Nguyen reports.
[top]
Ireland to Host Official EU Expansion (:56)
The heads of state of 25 European countries will meet in
Ireland tomorrow to mark the accession of 10 new countries
to EU. The Irish government and police are mounting a security
operation on a scale never before seen in the country. Maeve
Conran reports from Dublin.
[top]
Everyone Celebrating the EU Expansion? A May Day
look at labor in the EU (4:21)
Celebrations are already underway across Europe to welcome
10 central and eastern European countries to an expanded European
Union of 25 nations as of tomorrow. It's the biggest expansion
thus far of the EU and will create the world's largest economic
trading bloc with some 450-million citizens. And with the
entry of mostly former communist states, the political division
of the Cold War in Europe has finally come to an end. But
while European leaders are hailing the occasion as an historic
achievement that will bring economic benefits to new and old
EU members, not everyone is celebrating. Jennifer Macey reports
from Bonn in Germany.
[top]
Remembering a Courageous Mexican Journalist
(1:21)
Amado Avendanio, a Mexican journalist who often described
himself as an attorney by profession, a journalist by choice
and a politician by accident, passed away this week in his
native state of Chiapas. FSRN's Fernando Velasquez has more.
[top]
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