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> Wed., June 16, 2004
FSRN
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Today's lead stories:
Final 9/11 Commission Hearings Begin
Civil Liberties Restoration Act Introduced in Congress
Ecomonic Woes in the Khadmiya Distric of Iraq
Hate Crimes Expanded Under Military Spending Bill Ammendment
Pakistan/India Relations told thru Pakistani Woman's Story
Berkeley City Council Bans Corporate Personhood Challenged
FSRN Headlines
French Workers Protest Privitization
Electrical supply-workers protesting in France cut power to
the country homes of some government ministers and the headquarters
of the employers' federation as parliament debated the partial
privatization of their publicly owned company. Tony Cross
reports from Paris.
Bush's Foreign Policy Challenged by Former Leaders
Former military leaders and diplomats are challenging the
dramatic shift in U.S. foreign policy under the current Bush
adminstration. Nicolas Ferreyros reports from D.C.
Halliburton Scrutinized for Conduct in Nigeria
Nigerian government officials have formally complained to
the United States and the International Atomic Energy Agency,
IAEA, over the conduct of Halliburton. Halliburton is under
investigation for losing radioactive materials it imported
into Nigeria. Sam Olukoya has more from Lagos.
New Round of Peace Talks in Colombia
Representatives of Colombian President Uribe and the nation's
main paramilitary federation announced yesterday they're ready
to begin formal peace negotiations. Chip Mitchell reports
from Bogotá.
Didn’t make it for time:
Voting rights activist Granny D will be running for a U.S.
Senate seat in New Hampshire. Doris Haddock, known as Granny
D, stepped up to challenge two-term incumbent Republican Judd
Gregg when the Democratic contender’s campaign manager
disappeared along with the campaign kitty of an estimated
200-thousand dollars. Granny D gained national notoriety when
she walked across the country to raise awareness for campaign
finance reform. The 94 year old candidate said she only plans
to serve one term and that she has “a lot of energy
left, to get us back our democracy.”
[top]
Final 9/11 Commission Hearings Begin (4:01)
Today the 9/11 Commission began its 12th and final two-days
of hearings before it issues its final report in July. FBI
and CIA officials testified about the origins of Al-Qaeda
and the 9/11 plot to attack the United States, which, according
to a commission report, originally included 10 planes to crash
into U.S. nuclear power plants, the CIA headquarters, and
high rise buildings on the west coast. All officials testifying
said they believe that Al-Qaeda is still actively planning
on striking the U.S. again. Mitch Jeserich brings us this
report.
[top]
Civil Liberties Restoration Act Introduced in Congress
(2:09)
A coalition of civil liberties and immigrant rights groups
held a series of events today announcing the introduction
of the Civil Liberties Restoration Act into both houses of
Congress. Democratic Senators Ted Kennedy of Massachusetts,
Jon Corzine of New Jersey, and California Congressman Howard
Berman are among the co-sponsors of the legislation that seeks
to rollback what they call the most eggregious post 9-11 policies.
Max Pringle reports.
[top]
Ecomonic Woes in the Khadmiya Distric of Iraq
(3:11)
Saboteurs continued attacks on Iraq's oil pipleline today,
setting off explosions near Basra and disrupting the flow
of oil from the south. In the northern oil city of Kirkuk,
fighters killed a security chief for the northern oil company.
The instability in the country continues to frustrate economic
growth at all levels, and country's middle class, at first
insulated from economic fallout, are increasingly blaming
the U-S. Salam Talib and David Enders have this report from
Baghdad's Khadmiya district, the city's second largest Shiite
area after the restive Sadr City.
[top]
Hate Crimes Expanded Under Military Spending Bill
Ammendment (3:49)
An amendment to the Senate Defense Appropriations bill passed
yesterday that would expand categories covered under federal
hate crimes legislation to include "real or perceived
sexual orientation, gender and disability." The same
proposal passed in the 2000 military-spending bill –
only to be removed from the final bill during negotiations
with the House. While many lesbian, gay bisexual and transgender
organizations and individuals are applauding the passage of
the amendment, others are critical. Some say the bill does
not cover transgender people, while others criticize it as
an inadequate response to violence against their communities,
reports Darby Hickey of the D.C. Radio Co-op.
[top]
Pakistan/India Relations told thru Pakistani Woman's
Story (3:37)
In the first such meeting after India’s Congress-led
government took over, officials today finished talks with
their Pakistani counterparts on ways to prevent cross-border
drug trafficking and smuggling. The two nations decided to
cooperate in court proceedings regarding narcotics cases.
While this cooperation may suggest further warming between
the two countries - the division over Kashmir remains strong.
Observers continue to express concern regarding the human
rights of the Kashmiri people. One case that illustrates the
plight of those stuck between the two nations is that of a
Pakistani woman and her Indian daughter. The woman was imprisoned
in India for seven years after trying to commit suicide by
throwing herself into a river. Rather than drown, she was
carried by the river's swift current into Indian Territory,
where border guards rescued her and turned her over to Indian
police. As Shanawaz Khan reports, while in prison she was
raped and bore a child conceived during the assault.
[top]
Berkeley City Council Bans Corporate Personhood Challenged
(2:19)
Last night, the city of Berkeley officially became part
of the movement against corporate personhood when the City
Council passed a resolution against corporate constitutional
rights. More from KPFA's Kellia Ramares in Berkeley.
[top]
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