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> Tue., May. 16, 2006
FSRN
FREE SPEECH RADIO NEWS
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Today's lead stories:
Senate Continued Debate Surrounding Final Immigration Legislation
Ethiopians in Washington DC Urge Sanctions Against Current
Ethiopian Administration
Native Leaders Call for Outcry over Lagging Indian Health
Care Improvement Act
Women on African Continent Seek to Bolster Campaign for Female
Condom Use
The Impact of Aid Sanction to the Palestinian Authority
Social Audit Findings Make Administration Nervous
Mumia Abu-Jamal Commentary: Octavia E. Butler 1947-2006
FSRN Headlines
COMPLETE GUANTANAMO LIST RELEASED
The Pentagon has finally released a full list of all prisoners
who have been held and who are currently imprisoned at the
detention center at the US Naval base in Guantanamo Bay, Cuba.
The list includes the name, age, and country of origin of
759 detainees. The Pentagon had previously released a list
of only current detainees. The information was made public
after the Associated Press filed suit under the terms of the
Freedom of Information Act.
PHONE RECORDS UNDER SCRUTINY
ABC News is reporting that a senior government official has
acknowledged the increasing use of National Security Letters
to seek reporters' telephone records to investigate leaks
of sensitive information. Under the terms of the Patriot Act,
National Security Letters serve to subpoena information from
a third party, such as a telecommunications company. National
Security Letters also act as gag-orders, as they prohibit
the recipient from discussing anything relating to the letter
- including its receipt.
BELLSOUTH DENIES COMPLICITY IN SPY PROGRAM
Meanwhile, telecom company, BellSouth has denied handing over
bulk customer telephone records to the National Security Agency.
An article published last week by USA Today listed BellSouth,
along with Verizon and AT&T, as complying with a massive
NSA domestic surveillance program.
SAO PAULO CALMING DOWN
In Brazil, the situation in the streets of São Paulo
is much calmer today, after four days of intense violence.
Natalia Viana reports.
Panic spread through the city yesterday due to false stories
that the First Command of The Capital criminal gang, or PCC
in Portuguese, would next target shopping centers and schools.
The stores shut their doors, schools released their students
and 60% of the bus lines stopped. The streets were completely
empty last night in São Paulo. The police insist the
situation is now under control. All the prison rebellions
have ceased – some sources say due to an agreement between
the government and the leaders of the PCC. Police hunted suspects
in the streets of São Paulo last night. Since Friday,
91 people have been arrested, and 38 suspects have been killed
– more than the number of police officers killed by
the criminals, which was 31. Some sources told FSRN that many
civilians were shouted at, threatened and even punched by
the police officers who were patrolling the city outskirts
during the weekend. For FSRN, I am Natalia Viana in São
Paulo, Brazil.
NO CONFIDENCE VOTE IN FRANCE
A motion of no-confidence in France's government failed to
get through the National Assembly today... but Prime Minister
Dominique de Villepin looked on the defensive in the face
of accusations of abuse of power in the service of his presidential
ambitions. Tony Cross in Paris followed the debate.
(de Villepin sound, fade) Dominique de Villepin accuses his
opponents in parliament and the news-media of speculation
and playing politics ahead of next year's presidential election
at the end of his defense against the no-confidence vote.
But that was pretty much all he had to say on the scandal
that's rocked his government ... the rest of his speech was
a defense of government policy. (applause) The left booed
and his own side applauded ... but on the right there were
perhaps varying degrees of enthusiasm. Villepin's main rival
to be the right-wing presidential candidate, Interior Minister
Nicolas Sarkozy, is still in the government ... even though
the motion is about an alleged attempt by Villepin to wreck
his political career. Back in 2004 Villepin allegedly ordered
a top spy to look into claims that Sarkozy, along with other
public figures, had a secret bank account with the Luxembourg-based
finance house, Clearstream. There are also claims that some
ministers knew the charges were untrue back then but didn't
say so in public. In parliament today, Socialist leader Francois
Hollande accused the government of taking the state hostage
with its factional fights. The left attracted the support
of Francois Bayrou, the leader of a small center party, the
UDF, although not another member of the party who's in the
government. It wasn't enough ... the no confidence motion
only attracted 190 of the 289 votes it needed. For FSRN, I'm
Tony Cross in Paris.
E.U. EMISSIONS DATA
Figures on carbon dioxide emissions just released by the European
Commission show that pollution by big corporations may be
rendering other environmental efforts almost worthless. From
London, Naomi Fowler reports.
The figures are disappointing; in Britain alone, five companies
are producing more carbon dioxide pollution together than
all the motorists on UK roads combined. Campaigners say it
means that until and unless there is the real political will
to impose tighter restrictions on industry, efforts by individuals
and households to cut their carbon footprints will make little
difference. Worse still, the carbon trading scheme that was
intended to reduce global emissions may be making things worse.
The scheme is supposed to work using market forces so that
companies failing to hit an emissions target must buy permits
to pollute from companies that have successfully cut emissions.
However, the evidence so far is that European companies were
granted too many permits. That means there are large shortfalls.
Those costs will be passed on to the customers in higher bills.
The pressure's now on to reform Europe's carbon emissions
trading scheme. This is Naomi Fowler in London for Free Speech
Radio News.
[top]
Senate Continued Debate Surrounding Final Immigration
Legislation (3:36)
President Bush’s proposal to send 6,000 National Guard
troops to the border has received positive reaction from many
lawmakers on Capitol Hill, although some critique deploying
already overloaded troops. Meanwhile, the Senate is debating
and voting on amendments that will shape their final immigration
bill. FSRN's Leigh Ann Caldwell reports.
[top]
Ethiopians in Washington DC Urge Sanctions Against
Current Ethiopian Administration (1:14)
Ethiopia held national elections one year ago today, and
hundreds of Ethiopians living in Washington DC marched from
the White House to the Capitol to mark the anniversary. Hundreds
of demonstrators denounced the current Ethiopian administration
and are demanding the US government and the World Bank stop
providing economic and military aid to Ethiopia – a
country that has told the US they will help in the so-called
War on Terror in exchange for aid. Elias Asapha participated
in today’s March in Washington.
[top]
Native Leaders Call for Outcry over Lagging Indian
Health Care Improvement Act (3:12)
Native leaders are at the US Capitol today, calling for
a national outcry against the 6-year delay in passing the
Indian Health Care Improvement Act, which would provide health
care for American Indian tribes and Alaska Natives. FSRN’s
Ingrid Drake has more from DC.
[top]
Women on African Continent Seek to Bolster Campaign
for Female Condom Use (3:16)
Women activists on the African continent are asking their
respective governments to bolster campaigns for female condom
use. At an annual conference held in Kampala, Uganda, several
women delegates were bitter that in most African countries,
priority has been given to the male latex condoms. They say
if effectively marketed, the female condom could work miracles
in reversing the trend of unwanted pregnancies and sexually
transmitted infections. Emmanuel Okella reports from Uganda,
where women say they want control over their own health and
argue that contraceptives are more effective when controlled
by the woman.
[top]
The Impact of Aid Sanction to the Palestinian Authority
(3:07)
The Middle East Quartet (made up of the US, Russia, the
European Union and the United Nations) concluded its meeting
in New York last week to discuss the impact of aid sanction
to the Palestinian Authority. The US softened its stance and
approved sending aid to Palestine, which is under severe financial
crisis. FSRN’s Manar Jibrin reports from Bethlehem.
[top]
Social Audit Findings Make Administration Nervous
(3:14)
A follow-up campaign by right to information activists,
and social audits by the people in the western Indian state
of Rajasthan, is unearthing financial irregularities in the
village development funds. The administration is nervous over
the findings, which began after the Right to Employment and
Right to Information Acts were passed. FSRN Correspondent
Binu Alex has more from Dungarpur.
[top]
Mumia Abu-Jamal Commentary: Octavia E. Butler 1947-2006
(2:23)
[top]
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