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> Thur., July. 6, 2006
FSRN
FREE SPEECH RADIO NEWS
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Today's lead stories:
Public Concern Over Mexican Electoral Fraud Remains High
Israel Continues Offensive and Re-Occupation of Gaza Strip
Turkey’s Deputy Prime Minister Wraps Up Trip to United
States
Students To Pay More for College Loans
Focus in Nepal Turns to Integrating Maoists
Oil Discovery in Uganda Cause for Concern
FSRN Headlines
NORTH KOREA
President George W. Bush is calling on the presidents of Russia
and China to join an international effort to condemn the North
Korean missile tests. President Vladimir Putin has reportedly
said that the situation will be on the agenda of next week's
G8 meeting in St. Petersburg, Russia.
SRI LANKA
In Sri Lanka, the differences between the government and the
Tamil Tiger rebels keep both sides away from the negotiating
table and increasing violence threatens to break a 4 year
old cease-fire that ended almost two decades of civil war.
Ponniah Manikavasagam has the latest from Sri Lanka.
Sri Lankan Tamil Tigers today rejected the government's new
attempt to address the demands of the minority Tamils in the
country. President Mahinda Rajapakse said Wednesday that a
committee has been appointed to advise the government on giving
more autonomy to Tamil-majority areas in the island. The rebels
say the government is insincere and only attempting to appear
serious about the peace process. The multi-ethnic 12-member
committee is to meet the President next week for discussions.
A top-level rebel leader said if the president is serious
he should implement the 2002 truce in full as agreed at the
Geneva peace talks in February. Critics say the political
situation in the country is rapidly deteriorating. Political
observers point out a dedicated attempt to resolve differences
between the two parties is the urgent need of the hour. For
Free Speech Radio News, I am Ponniah Manikavasagam from Vavuniya,
Sri Lanka.
INDIA PUTS PRIVATIZATION ON HOLD
Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh today put on hold all
proposals to privatize state-owned industries after pressure
from workers and coalition parties. Vinod K. Jose reports
from New Delhi.
Privatization has been the buzzword for over 15 years in
India. India, an earlier socialist country switched over to
a World Trade Organization-friendly regime in 1991, opening
its market to foreign direct investments. Soon, it started
selling off shares in the government controlled companies.
They called it, "disinvestment". But now, public
sector workers' patience is running out. Their demand is raised
by the mainstream left parties and smaller regional parties,
whose support is crucial to the present ruling coalition government.
After a meeting at high level, Prime Minister Manmohan Singh
announced his government is putting on hold all the privatization
plans. The pro-reformists called the move as a set back. But
some still believe the decision is just superficial. From
New Delhi, this is Vinod K. Jose for FSRN.
CHARGES AGAINST WATADA
The US Army filed formal charges yesterday against Lt. Ehren
Watada for refusing deployment to Iraq. Charges include missing
troop movements to Iraq, engaging in conduct unbecoming of
an officer, and of speaking contemptuous words against the
president. Watada says the war in Iraq is illegal under domestic
and international law and that soldiers have a duty to question
unlawful orders. The army officer could face up to 7 years
in prison if convicted.
RECRUITING CENTER PICKETED
Elsewhere in the country, opponents of the war in Iraq continue
to make their case outside of military recruitment centers.
Some protesters have been arrested outside of the centers,
while others have faced threats of physical violence. Melinda
Tuhus reports from New Haven.
More than 60 people turned out late Wednesday afternoon next
to the armed forces recruiting station in New Haven, Connecticut
to protest the treatment last week of a smaller group of anti-war
activists on the same site. Last week, a Marine recruiter
threatened more than a dozen people with a baseball bat as
they picketed on the sidewalk near the station. When police
arrived, they said nothing to the Marine but ordered the protesters
to move across the street. At the rally yesterday, attorney
Peter Goselin, a member of the National Lawyers Guild, talked
about the fight at home. [Goselin]"The front line in
the defense of First Amendment freedom in this country is
not in Baghdad, and it's not in Kabul. It's right here on
this sidewalk and on sidewalks just like it all over the United
States." The guild is considering what legal action,
if any, to take in defense of those rights. The protesters
had originally gathered in support of Lt. Ehren Watada, the
first U.S. officer to refuse deployment to Iraq, based on
his contention that the war is illegal.
BULLDOZERS AT THE SOUTH CENTRAL FARM
Ten people were arrested yesterday as bulldozers rolled over
the South Central Farm in Los Angeles. Marco Amador has the
story.
Bulldozers arrived yesterday morning to continue to raze
what was once the nation's largest urban farm. The 14-acre
South Central Farm has been at the center of a pitched legal
battle between the over 300 families who grow crops there
and land developer, Ralph Horowitz. The bulldozing began last
month, on the day police evicted farmers and their supporters
who had been camping at the farm in an effort to preserve
the community space. Ten people were arrested yesterday when
the bulldozers returned...but the South Central Farmers can
no longer afford to post bail. About half of the farm has
already been destroyed and bulldozers are back on the scene
today to flatten what remains. The South Central Farmers will
be in court on July 12, challenging the city's sale of the
14-acre lot to developer Horowitz. In Los Angeles, I'm Marco
Amador for FSRN.
[top]
Public Concern Over Mexican Electoral Fraud Remains
High
Questions of inconsistency, statistical anomalies and uncounted
votes have lead Mexican presidential candidate Andres Manuel
Lopez Obrador to question the entire vote counting process.
Mexico’s Federal Elections Institute has announced that
conservative candidate Felipe Calderon has a minute advantage
for the country’s presidential post. But as public concern
over fraud continues to be high, Lopez Obrador supporters
are planning a massive demonstration this Saturday. Norman
Stockwell reports from Mexico City.
[top]
Israel Continues Offensive and Re-Occupation of Gaza
Strip
An Israeli Army undercover unit has fired rounds of live
ammunition on Al Aqsa Brigade resistance fighters in a West
Bank refugee camp. Al Aqsa Brigade leader Zakareya Zubiedi
was among those ambushed in the attack in the West Bank. Meanwhile,
the Israeli re-occupation of Gaza has left at least 12 Palestinians
dead – 8 of them civilians. Swiss diplomats have already
denounced Israel’s actions, as the Hamas-led Palestinian
government continues to call on the international community
to pressure Israel to stop its offensive and occupation of
areas it already evacuated last summer. Israel’s attacks
on the Gaza Strip are in response to the kidnaping of an Israeli
soldier by Palestinian militants nearly 2 weeks ago. Neighboring
Egypt, meanwhile, says it is still making effort to return
the soldier. Manar Jibrin reports from Bethlehem.
[top]
Turkey’s Deputy Prime Minister Wraps Up Trip
to United States
Turkey's deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs,
Abdullah Gul, ended his three day U.S. visit today with a
strategic blueprint that outlines what issues the U.S. and
Turkey will work on together. The visit comes at a time when
the United States needs Turkey's strong relationship with
neighboring Muslim countries like Iran and Syria. Iran announced
today that they would not give an early reply to a package
of technology, trade and other incentives offered by the U.S.
and other major powers in exchange for ending their nuclear
plans. From Washington, DC, Selina Musuta reports on Gul's
visit.
[top]
Students To Pay More for College Loans
A federal commission on higher education is expected to
recommend that the government create a national database of
college students. This database would compile the personal
information of all students who enroll in both public and
private colleges. The plan is cause for concern throughout
the university system, where critics say, if carried out,
the move would create an unnecessary violation of privacy
to create yet another national tracking system. Rebecca Thomas
is the Legislative Director of the US Student Association.
The Commission on the Future of Higher Education is expected
to release their recommendations to the Department of Education
in August. The Commission was created to assess the state
of higher education and address how to better meet the needs
of the work force. The group is also looking college accessibility.
The cost of tuition has risen 32% since 2001 and over the
weekend, student loan interest rates rose an average of 2
percent. FSRN's Leigh Ann Caldwell reports.
[top]
Focus in Nepal Turns to Integrating Maoists
Maoist rebels in Nepal rejected an official letter yesterday
requesting UN assistance in ceasefire monitoring and arms
management. As the effort continues to try to bring the Maoist
rebels into mainstream politics, the issue of how and whether
the rebels would lay down their weapons has become increasingly
crucial in the past few weeks. From Kathmandu, Carey Biron
reports.
[top]
Oil Discovery in Uganda Cause for Concern
Uganda will soon be an oil exporting nation after the discovery
of the first commercial quantities of oil in East Africa in
the Lake Albert basin. 2 London-based firms have been prospecting
for oil in the area, along with Uganda’s energy ministry,
have reported positive test drilling results from their joint
venture. The oil find is receiving mixed reactions in this
impoverished East African nation, with some citing that the
black gold will only serve to aggravate human rights violations
in Uganda, and be the cause of regional conflicts in the future.
FSRN’s Joshua Kyalimpa reports.
[top]
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