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> Fri., Apr. 14, 2006
FSRN
FREE SPEECH RADIO NEWS
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Today's lead stories:
The Tax Pie Chart
Independent Committee Says Prisoners in Jordan are Humiliated
and Tortured
Iraq Border Porous
Attack on Academic Freedom in the UK
FEMA Imposes House Elevation Requirements in New Orleans
Mass Student March to Honor Anthony Soltero
Goodbye to Jade Paget Seekins
FSRN Headlines
RETIRED GENERALS SLAM RUMSFELD
A total of six former generals have now come forward to call
for the resignation of Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld,
citing dismal job performance. The former head of the 1st
Infantry Division in Iraq, retired Army Major General John
Batiste, appeared on the 3 major networks this morning. Batiste
told audiences of CBS's Early Show (quote): ¨We went to
war with a flawed plan that didn't account for the hard work
to build the peace after we took down the regime. We also
served under a secretary of Defense who didn't understand
leadership, who was abusive, who was arrogant, who didn't
build a strong team.¨ Batiste retired in November after
turning down a third star and an offer to become the second-in-command
in Iraq.
GRENADE ATTACKS IN KASHMIR
Serial blasts rocked Srinagar city in Indian administered
Kashmir today. Shahnawaz Khan has more.
Five persons were killed and 20 injured in Srinagar today
when suspected guerrillas lobbed grenades at five separate
locations in a coordinated attack. Unofficial reports put
the death toll at seven. Two more blasts occurred later in
the downtown area with 20 more injuries reported. The blasts
targeted Indian troops and created widespread panic among
the residents. Four separate militant groups claimed responsibility
for the attacks. Serial blasts are rare in the region but
violence has continued despite a two year old peace process
between India and Pakistan. Observers say guerrillas launch
these attacks mainly to assert their presence in the region.
KING GIVES LIP SERVICE TO DEMOCRACY
Amidst ongoing political strife, Nepal's King Gyanendra made
a short televised address to the nation today to mark the
occasion of the new year as per the Nepalese Hindu lunar calendar.
PC Dubey reports from Kathmandu.
The King spoke of the need to re-energize multi-party democracy
through elections without delay, but did not show any inclination
to comply with the demand of the political parties for a constituent
assembly to draft a new constitution. The Nepalese monarch
instead harped on the democratic values and goals enshrined
in the 1990 Constitution of the Kingdom of Nepal and preached
to the political parties to show commitment to achieve them
through constitutional means. But the political parties are
adamant to dump the 1990 Constitution because it gives the
King unrestricted powers in the event of a so-called constitutional
crisis. Asha Chaturvedi, chairperson of the Women Forum of
Sadbhawana Party, does not believe that the King has the political
will to call for a meaningful dialogue. (sound) "We have
only one agenda. If the King invites us for a dialogue with
the proposal to hold a Constituent Assembly, only then are
we ready for talks with him." King Gyanendra, however,
does not appear willing to discuss changes to the constitution.
CHAD SEVERS DIPLOMATIC TIES WITH SUDAN
Chad's President Idriss Deby cut diplomatic ties with Sudan
today after a rebel attack killed some 350 people in the capital
city yesterday. Deby accuses neighboring Sudan of backing
an insurgency against his rule. Chad has also threatened to
expel some 200,000 refugees from Sudan's troubled Darfur region
currently living in makeshift camps along the border.
UNEQUAL ACCESS TO EDUCATION
Access to college for students of color, and those from low-income
backgrounds, is decreasing according to a recent study by
the Institute for Higher Education Policy. Ingrid Drake has
more from Washington, DC.
Colleges are not recruiting or retaining low income students
or people of color as equally as higher income and white students.
At the same time, financial aid is shifting towards academic
achievement and away from students with the most economic
need. Jamie Marasotis from the Institute for Higher Education
Policy. [TAPE} In 2003, 80 percent of high-income students
enrolled in college, compared to only 53 percent of low-income
students. Although Congress is preparing to reauthorize the
Higher Education Act, the House version does not include any
support to close the gap.
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The Tax Pie Chart (3:43)
As this year's tax deadline has arrived, the IRS expects
to collect about $1-trillion in individual income taxes. FSRN's
Leigh Ann Caldwell will tell you where exactly your tax dollars
are going.
[top]
Independent Committee Says Prisoners in Jordan are
Humiliated and Tortured (3:05)
One prisoner has been killed and several police officers
wounded in unrest in a Jordanian prison. Reports say the unrest
at the Qafqafa prison in the north of the country began after
prisoners resisted being searched for knives. But an independent
committee announced that prisoners in Jordan were treated
with humiliation and torture. FSRN’s Oula Farawati has
more from Amman.
[top]
Iraq Border Porous (2:33)
2 bombs detonated at separate Sunni mosques in Baquba, Iraq
today, killing at least 4 people, and injuring 8 others. As
mosques continue to be the targets of sectarian violence between
the Sunnis and the Shias, Iran’s influence in Iraq has
been a subject of international tension since the invasion
of Iraq in 2003, when Iranian pilgrims responded to the fall
of Saddam's Hussein's government by pouring across the border
to visit Iraq's Shiite shrines. Three years later, the border
remains anything but secure. David Enders files this report
from outside Penjuen in northern Iraq
[top]
Attack on Academic Freedom in the UK (3:52)
As government policy has made the survival of higher education
in Britain increasingly difficult, their cash-starved universities
have been accepting and soliciting more and more corporate
funding. Many academics say there’s been little open
debate on this; one recent court case has shown just how far
universities have shifted in their tolerance of dissent over
this issue. From London, Naomi Fowler reports.
[top]
FEMA Imposes House Elevation Requirements in New
Orleans (3:14)
The Federal Emergency Management Agency has released long-awaited
elevation advisories for rebuilding in New Orleans and surrounding
areas this week. While the new recommendations are a relief
to some, many are still confused about what these advisories
mean, and whether or not it is safe to rebuild. FSRN’s
Christian Roselund is in New Orleans with more.
[top]
Mass Student March to Honor Anthony Soltero
(4:30)
The United Students Coalition, which has been planning the
pro-immigration Mass Student March scheduled in Downtown Los
Angeles for tomorrow, will dedicate that event to 14-year-old
Anthony Soltero – an 8th grade student from Ontario,
California who recently committed suicide after participating
in a student walkout. Samuel Paz is an attorney representing
Soltero's family, and says that threats from a school administrator
drove the young man to suicide. From Los Angeles, Aura Abogado
reports.
[top]
Goodbye to Jade Paget Seekins
And as we wrap up this week, we also say goodbye to our
technical producer Jade Paget Seekins. Jade began volunteering
with us in January 2001: a year after FSRN began as a weekly
news magazine; she was hired when the program went daily on
May 21, 2001, and has been one of the people working hard
behind the scenes to make this independent newscast possible,
and we will miss her and her technical expertise. From all
of us on the editorial crew, THANK YOU for working deadline
after deadline all these years – and making the rest
of us sound great. We wish you the best in the future. Eric
Klein will be taking Jade’s place as our new technical
producer.
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