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> Tue., Aug. 17, 2004
FSRN
FREE SPEECH RADIO NEWS
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Today's lead stories:
Potential Reform to Intelligence Agencies
Canada-US Missile Defense
Aids and Condoms in Burundi
Citizen Inspection at Los Alamos Lab
Commemoration of DC Transgender Woman
FSRN Headlines
Calling the policy a backdoor draft, lawyers for an unnamed
California Army Reservist is suing the government’s
so called “stop loss” plan. The decorated combat
veteran referred to as “John Doe” in the legal
papers is challenging the program that requires reservists
to remain in the military beyond their terms of enlistment
and be prepared to take part in the occupation of Iraq. His
attorney’s say this is the first case challenging the
Bush administration policy. As many as 40-thousand other soldiers
have been prevented from retiring or leaving the military
as Pentagon leaders fear there will be fewer soldiers able
to fill their boots.
Today, the U.S. Army announced that they will hold 15-percent
of Halliburton’s payment on future invoices for troop
service. Renee Feltz explains from KPFT in Houston.
The state of Illinois will become the first state to allow
the importation of prescription drugs from Canada and the
United Kingdom over strong objections from federal government
officials. Tom Robb reports from WZRD in Chicago.
India's Supreme Court today ordered the Gujarat police to
review some 2,000 cases in the state, which were earlier dismissed
as closed without proper investigation. Binu Alex reports
from Ahmedebad.
More than 100 journalists in the Philippines demonstrated
at the national police headquarters yesterday calling for
justice for their slain colleagues. At least 13 reporters
have been killed since the beginning of last year, 4 since
July. Most are still open cases. Many of the broadcasters
killed offered commentary or reported on corruption and the
illegal drug trade. Both the Committee to Protect Journalists
and the International Federation of Journalists condemned
the killings and called on the Philippines government to do
more. President Arroyo ordered the police and justice department
to work with media organizations to help solve the murders
and prevent more attacks. Police are also considering easing
gun permits for journalists, even though there is currently
a national debate over whether a rise in unlicensed guns is
leading to increasing crime.
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Potential Reform to Intelligence Agencies
On Capitol Hill today, top Pentagon and CIA officials testified
on potential reforms to intelligence agencies proposed by
the 9/11 Commission. Mitch Jeserich reports.
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Canada-US Missile Defense
In early August, the Canada-U.S. North American Aerospace
Defense Command, or NORAD, was amended toward what critics
say pushes Canada toward directly participating in US led
plans for a North American Missile Defense Shield. Involvement
in Missile Defense and the increased militarization of space
as part of the "War on Terror" has become an issue
of national debate in Canada. FSRN's Stefan Christoff reports
from Montreal.
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Aids and Condoms in Burundi
In recent years much of the debate about prevention and
treatment of HIV/AIDS has focused on the issue of widespread
accessibility to medication such as anti-retrovirals. Yet,
in some countries, the much-publicized infusion of new funding
for the global fight against AIDS will for now remain a far-off
dream. For such nations, most pressing is the increasing trend
of donors to withhold funds for AIDS prevention programs which
involve sometimes sensitive issues like condom supply or distribution.
Rupert Cook reports from Burundi.
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Citizen Inspection at Los Alamos Lab
Los Alamos National Laboratory in New Mexico remains on
stand down, with employees on site doing little to no work
in the midst of the Department of Energy Inspector General's
reports criticizing the nation's nuclear weapons labs. Specifically,
the inspector general has determined that Los Alamos National
Laboratory's controls over its extensive computer inventory
are inadequate and that the lab, along with the four other
nuclear weapons labs across the US, has not developed sufficient
emergency preparedness plans. KUNM's Leslie Clark toured Los
Alamos National Lab with a group of citizen inspectors and
files this report.
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Commemoration of DC Transgender Woman
As Washington DC is rocked by a summer of youth murders,
including almost ten in the past two weeks, community members
gathered in the city to commemorate the life and death of
Bella Evangelista. Evangelista's murder was the first in a
wave of violence against DC's transgender community last summer
that made headlines across the nation. FSRN's Darby Hickey
was there one year ago, and brings us this report from the
vigil last night.
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