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> Mon., Oct. 25, 2004
FSRN
FREE SPEECH RADIO NEWS
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Today's lead stories:
Serbs boycotts Kosovo elections
Election Special: Key Senate Races
Election Special: Overseas voters left out
Poverty to Continue in Afghanistan Whoever Wins
Fishing Community Must Relocate to Make Way for Tourism Trade
in India
FSRN Headlines
390 tons of high explosives are missing from a former Iraqi
military installation. The facility was supposedly being guarded
by U.S. military forces but has been reportedly looted as
recently as Sunday. Military officials say they have been
overburdened with all of the weaponry found in Iraq. White
House officials say senior advisors were made aware of the
missing explosives but are unable to ascertain whether George
W. Bush was notified. Iraqis continually say better security
is needed while Bush administration officials often counter
that upcoming elections in Iraq will put Iraqis in charge
of their destiny. Peace activist Tom Fox, now working in Iraq,
says the Iraqi campaigning process looks too much like a U.S
election.
Fox adds that the United States elections will also determine
the next leader of 25 million Iraqis.
Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon took his Gaza pull out
plan to the Knesset today saying it would make a stronger
country. The plan, that gives the Israeli military control
over the air, sea and border points around Gaza, will face
stiff opposition. Meanwhile, refugee camps in the Gaza Strip
have been hit hard by the Israeli military. George Rishmawi
has more from Bethlehem.
Over public discriminatory statements, European Union leaders
will still consider a controversial candidate for Justice
Minister. Diletta Varlesce reports from Naples.
India’s Prime Minister meets with a leader of Burma’s
military junta. Some say the move legitimizes the oppressive
rule. Binu Alex reports from Ahmedebad.
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Serbs boycotts Kosovo elections
Eligible voters in the Balkan province of Kosovo went to
the polls over the weekend in what was the second parliamentary
election since the United Nations and NATO assumed administrative
control of the region five years ago. Although Kosovo is technically
still part of Serbia and Montenegro, Kosovo’s status
is still unresolved, and the UN administration is touting
the new assembly as the local government to steward Kosovo
towards status discussions, set for mid-2005. But a Kosovo
Serb boycott of the elections threatens the legitimacy of
multi-ethnic governance, which is a condition of the international
community if status talks are to take place. Melik Keramian
of the Kosovo Radio Collective reports from Kosovo’s
capital, Pristina.
[top]
Election Special: Key Senate Races
While the focus during the election campaigning season falls
squarely on the two presidential candidates, voters will also
be choosing who will be part of Congress and serve on Capitol
Hill. In part due to last year’s Texas redistricting,
the GOP will likely continue its 10 year control of the House
of Representatives. The Democrats will have their best shot
of taking power in the Senate, where the GOP maintains a slim
majority. Our Capitol Hill Correspondent Mitch Jeserich takes
a look at some of the key Senate races.
[top]
Election Special: Overseas voters left out
An estimated 7 million US citizens live and work overseas.
There’s been a surge in overseas voter registration
with many more people registered than in previous elections.
Democrats and Republicans alike have worked hard to influence
the overseas vote that could just swing the election. But,
a week before this tight presidential race, thousands of overseas
voters still have not received their ballots and likely won't
be able to get them back in time. Naomi Fowler reports from
a Democrats Abroad meeting in London.
[top]
Poverty to Continue in Afghanistan Whoever Wins
The joint UN-Afghan electoral board announced yesterday
that incumbent Afghan president, Hamid Karzai looks likely
to become the countries president after clinching more than
half the votes cast in the October 9 election. His main rival,
Yunus Qanooni, an ethnic Tajik has said he will accept the
result only if irregularities in the vote were acknowledged
by a panel of foreign investigators. And while the final result
is still pending, some Afghans feel that, whoever wins, they'll
continue to live in poverty. That's certainly true of many
refugees who have returned after fleeing the country during
the long years of war. On the day before the election, Tony
Cross met some of them in the ruins of the former Russian
cultural centre in Kabul.
[top]
Fishing Community Must Relocate to Make Way for
Tourism Trade in India
The world’s biggest mangrove Sunderbans, situated
in the Bay of Bengal is facing the threat of destruction.
This national park inhabited by tribal people IS AN estuarine
mangrove eco-system as it is Situated in the deltaic estuaries
of the Ganges and Brahmaputra rivers. An Indian corporate
company, Sahara, has a 100 million dollar tourism plan to
make this a “global standard tourist destination”.
Recently, forest officials began evicting the fishing community
living there from the island Jambudweep, for the corporatION.
Vinod K. Jose files this report.
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