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> Tue., Mar. 21, 2006
FSRN
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Today's lead stories:
Bush spars with reporters in unscripted press conference
New report ranks businesses on global warming
Portrait of the antiwar movement: Portland, Oregon
New Orleans Mayor embraces controversial rebuilding plan
NGOs question Coca Cola’s influence at World Water Forum
Dropping water in Lake Victoria puts millions at risk
FSRN Headlines
Abu Ghraib Abuse Conviction
A Maryland court martial found Sgt. Michael Smith guilty on
six of 13 charges for using dogs to terrify detainees at Abu
Ghraib in Iraq from year 2003 to 2004. The government contended
that Smith used his black Belgian shepherd to intimidate five
prisoners for fun and competed with another canine handler
trying to make detainees soil themselves. While Smith could
face up to 8 years in prison, human rights activists like
Avi Cover, a lawyer with Human Rights First, say that its
important that individual perpetrators are not the scapegoats
for, for what they call, a system that allows for such abuses.
Investigating Civilian Deaths
The US military is investigating allegations that its marines
killed 15 Iraqi civilians last November in Haditha, including
seven women and three children. The military's initial claim
that the civilians died in a roadside blast was disproved
by an earlier investigation. It will now be investigated whether
the civilians died in crossfire or were targeted deliberately
in a potential war crime.
More Violence in Nepal
In Nepal Maoist rebels have ended a blockade, but violence
continues. P C Dubey has more from Kathmandu.
As Bad as the Dinosaur Years
As the UN Convention on Bio-Diversity gets underway in Brazil,
a new report by the Global Biodiversity Outlook says all key
indicators on the future of diversity of life are heading
in the wrong direction. The report says the abundance and
variety of species continue to fall across the globe as rates
of specie extinctions surge to their highest levels since
the demise of the dinosaurs 65 million years ago.
Supreme Court Says No to Puerto Rico Vote
The US Supreme Court refused to hear a case to give residents
of Puerto Rico the right to vote in US presidential elections.
It is the latest development in a long-running debate on the
Puerto Ricans constitutional rights.
Rice Meets with CARICOM
Today Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice is in the the Bahamas
for a meeting with CARICOM foreign ministers. Caribbean ministers
are expected to question her about the US's effort in Congress
to widen the criminal net against undocumented immigrants
and the implications such policies will have on immigrants
and their countries of origin. Subhash Kateel, with Families
For Freedom, spoke on WBAI's Wake Up Call this morning.
Progressive Youth Writers Denied at Libraries
New York City Public Libraries are allegedly refusing to distribute
a youth publication put out by Indymedia. Kat Aaron has the
story.
[top]
Bush spars with reporters in unscripted press conference
(3:51)
Today President George W. Bush gave the press a rare opportunity—the
chance to ask him questions. This last-minute, unscripted
news conference comes came one day after the third anniversary
of the invasion of Iraq, amid increasingly negative public
opinion polls for the President and his policy there. leigh
ann caldwel reports.
[top]
New report ranks businesses on global warming
(1:40)
Northeastern Australians are still recovering from the devastation
of this weekend's category 5 cyclone. Australian conservationists
say that global warming is increasing the severity of cyclones
and the Australian government must not ignore environmentally
friendly policies aimed at limiting climate change. Meanwhile,
in the United States , a report issued on tuesday ranks 100
of the world's largest businesses on their handling of global
climate change. Selina Musuta reports from Washington, DC.
[top]
Portrait of the antiwar movement: Portland, Oregon
(2:07)
Joining millions around the globe, 10-12,000 people took
to the streets in Portland , Oregon Sunday to demonstrate
their opposition to the war in Iraq . On Monday, the third
anniversary of the invasion of Iraq , several people staged
a sit-in at Senator Ron Wyden's office inside Portland 's
federal building. FSRN's Julie Sabatier [sah-bah-tee-ay] reports
from Portland. (opens with protest sound)
[top]
New Orleans Mayor embraces controversial rebuilding
plan (3:41)
Last night the Bring Back New Orleans Commission ended its
term with the presentation of a formal plan for rebuilding
the city. Critics say the planning process was dominated by
developers and powerful business interests. New Orleans Mayor
Ray Nagin accepted most of the commision’s findings,
but did reject some of the more controversial proposals for
neighborhood restructuring. Christian Roselund has more.
[top]
NGOs question Coca Cola’s influence at World
Water Forum (4:44)
The fourth World Water Forum continues this week in Mexico
City . It was inaugurated last week by Mexican president Vicente
Fox, the former head of Coca-Cola in Mexico. The 4th World
Water Forum lists the Coca-Cola company in Mexico as one of
the leading sponsors of the event. But non-governmental organizations
working on water issues are questioning the influence that
the beverage company should have at the gathering. Shannon
Young and Vladimir Flores file this report from Mexico City
[top]
Dropping water in Lake Victoria puts millions at
risk (3:38)
The falling water levels of lake victoria, the largest lake
in Africa and the world's second-largest freshwater lake is
hampering the supply of water to millions of Africans who
depend on the lake.Environmentalists blame the falling water
levels largely on human factors and poor policies by some
East African governments.
[top]
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