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> Tue., Feb. 1, 2005
FSRN
FREE SPEECH RADIO NEWS
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Today's lead stories:
Nepalese King Declares State of Emergency
Alberto Gonzales Senate Hearing
Kurdistan Update
International Human Rights: Spain and Guatemala
Longterm Prisoners in South Korea
FSRN Headlines
Security in Gaza
Another Palestinian child dies as Israeli and Palestinian
leaders negotiate control of and security for the area. Laila
El-Haddad reports from Gaza City.
NAACP Rejects IRS Investigation
The NAACP is refusing to cooperate with an IRS investigation
triggered by anti-Bush remarks made by the chairman of the
civil rights organization. Reporting from D.C., is Linley
Smith.
African Union on Sudan
Peace talks in Nigeria continue over the war-torn Darfur region
of Sudan while a United Nations report details war crimes
and calls for the trials of the accused. Sam Olukoya reports
from Lagos.
Serial Killings in Haiti
U.S. installed Haitian leaders say they are preparing for
national elections at the end of this year as a string of
killings allegedly by police officers continues. Reed Lindsay
has more from Port-au-Prince.
Juvenile Justice Overhaul in California
The juvenile justice system in California is about to undergo
a drastic overhaul in response to lawsuits that exposed draconian
conditions for incarcerated youth. Brian Edwards-Tiekert has
more.
[top]
NEPALESE KING DECLARES STATE OF EMERGENCY
For the second time in three years, Nepal's King Gyanendra-
who came into power in 2001 after a bloody palace massacre
left his ruling brother dead- dismissed the multiparty government
and declared a state of emergency. Communication lines, including
all mobile and land phones in the capital have been shut down,
online and print newspapers have been closed, and all commercial
flights in or out of the country, have been grounded. State-run
radio and television continues to rebroadcast the king's state
of emergency and his calling for a new government under his
"chairmanship", while armored vehicles are constantly
patrolling the streets. Rudra Nepal, Deputy Ambassador for
the Nepalese Embassy in Washington, told FSRN that he "had
no idea what is going on" in his country. The Nepalese
government, which has no parliament since 2002, is split between
the king, political parties and Maoists rebels. The Maoists
uprising has claimed the lives of over 11,000 people since
1996, and King Gyanendra is accusing the political parties
of not solving the insurgency. The Royal Nepalese Army, which
is commanded by the king, has surrounded the homes of Prime
Minister Sher Bahadur Deuba and other political leaders, placing
them under house arrest. Today, the government of India reacted
strongly to the developments in neighboring Nepal. Our correspondent
Binu Alex has more.
[top]
ALBERTO GONZALES SENATE HEARING
Today the Senate took a major step towards confirming Alberto
Gonzales to become the next Attorney General. Human rights
and anti-torture groups are picking up their advocacy against
Gonzales in these final days, although his confirmation appears
likely. During debate today, Democrats called Gonzales unfit
to become the nation's top law enforcer due to his involvement
in the so called torture memos and his stand that there may
arise a time that the President is not bound by law. Despite
their impassioned speeches, Democrats express doubt that they
will attempt to block his confirmation with the use of a filibuster.
Mitch Jeserich has more from Capitol Hill.
[top]
KURDISTAN UPDATE
Kurdish politicians said they were ahead in elections in
Iraq's ethnically divided northern oil center of Kirkuk as
well in its far-northern stronghold. Sources in the area's
two ruling parties did not specify what proportion of Sunday's
votes had been counted so far but their comments were likely
to cause concern in neighboring Turkey, which has repeatedly
spoken out against Kurdish ambitions to control Kirkuk. Yesterday,
Turkey's Foreign Minister Abdullah Gul warned his country
- which commands the largest army in the Middle East - would
exercise what he called "a historical responsibility
towards the region," if Kurdish leaders try to make Kirkuk
part of Iraqi Kurdistan. But, as Aaron Glantz reports from
Arbil, the statement has not provoked much concern in Kurdish
circles.
[top]
INTERNATIONAL HUMAN RIGHTS: SPAIN AND GUATEMALA
It's been 25 years since 37 peasants, university students
and embassy employees were killed in a fiery blaze at the
Spanish embassy in Guatemala City. Now a Spanish judge has
issued an arrest warrant for a former Guatemalan Interior
Minister believed to be responsible for the 1980 incident.
The move makes Guatemala the latest country to be the object
of justice probes in Spain and puts it at the center of a
growing tendency towards international justice. Catherine
Elton has more from Guatemala City.
[top]
LONGTERM PRISONERS IN SOUTH KOREA
The U.S. says that it is ready for six-party talks on North
Korea's nuclear weapons programs - after three rounds in 2003,
North Korea boycotted a fourth round, saying it would keep
a watch on US foreign policy before returning to the talks.
This week, the government of North Korea accused the U.S.
of executing more than 180 cases of aerial espionage in the
month of January. The Korean Central News Agency says that
the espionage took place on the border and costal areas of
North Korea. Meanwhile, it's been five years since the historical
South-North Koreas Summit occurred and 63 long-term political
prisoners were sent back to North Korea. But there are still
28 prisoners in South Korea who request that government send
them back to North Korea as well. There had been 33 prisoners-
one gave up since he has family in South Korea, the other
four passed away while waiting. Their request go back has
been rejected because they refuse to "convert" out
of communism. There are also 9 prisoners of war, who were
supposed to be sent back 60 days after the Korean War. In
Seoul, Eunji Kang from Seoul has more.
[top]
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