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> Wed., Aug. 16, 2006
FSRN
FREE SPEECH RADIO NEWS
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Today's lead stories:
International Indigenous Peoples Satellite at the International
AIDS Conference
Tamil Tigers and Sri Lankan Government Resume Hostilities
New Report Indicates Rich Cities Face Water Shortages
Indigenous Community on Hunger Strike in Chaco, Argentina
Anti-War Cartoon Sparks Fury of Protest
Mumia Abu Jamal Commentary: "Black August"
FSRN Headlines
E-voting Lawsuit
Pennsylvania voters have filed a lawsuit against the State
for allegedly violating its own election laws with faulty
electronic voting machines. Dante Toza reports from Philadelphia:
The lawsuit filed yesterday is a legal complaint against
paperless electronic voting machines. Co-counsel for the voter
plaintiffs, Marian Schneider says the use of these machines
violates the election statute code of Pennsylvania, which
requires a permanent physical record of elections. Also according
to the law, the machines should have absolute accuracy, but
multiple independent tests have encountered serious security
issues and faults in electronic voting machines. The non-partisan
legal group, Voter's Action found evidence of the loss of
votes in four precincts in Pennsylvania's Berks County last
year, 10,000 votes in three Pennsylvania counties that were
not counted in the 2004 Presidential election, and that 200
machines in Philadelphia experienced problems in the May 2006
primary.
Israeli Army Focuses on Gaza
As the Israeli military begins its pullout from Lebanon, the
army's main focus has returned to Gaza, where over 200 artillery
shells have been fired into Palestinian neighborhoods since
last night. Saed Bannoura reports:
Palestinian factions are again taking steps toward the formation
of a national unity government. Palestinian President Mahmoud
Abbas and Prime Minister Ismail Haniyya met today to discuss
the options. The Hamas and Fatah factions had agreed to a
national unity document that implicitly recognized the state
of Israel just one day before Israel's June 25th invasion
of Gaza. Meanwhile, the United Nations has issued a report
warning of a severe humanitarian disaster in the Gaza Strip.
The Palestinian Health Ministry reported that 193 Palestinians
have been killed, including 58 children and 25 women since
the beginning of the latest Israeli operation known as "Summer
Rain". Gaza remains without power for the sixth straight
week and hospitals are running out of medicine. The Rafah-Egypt
crossing has been closed for more than 55 days, except for
a brief opening last week. Thousands of Palestinians are stranded
at the border - at least seven have died. For FSRN, this is
Saed Bannoura reporting from imemc.org in Beit Sahour, Palestine.
Peacekeeping Force in Lebanon
Diplomats continue to discuss the number and makeup of the
international peacekeeping force that will soon deploy to
Lebanon. France, Spain, Greece, Italy, Malaysia, Indonesia
and the Scandinavian countries have committed to sending troops.
An initial force of 3,500 is expected to arrive by the middle
of next week. The Lebanese army will begin deployment in the
south tomorrow with the support of the 2000 United Nations
troops already in the country. These UN troops evacuated their
southern posts during the first week of the war after Israel
bombarded one of their buildings, killing 4 peacekeepers.
UN Renews Peacekeeping Mission in Haiti
In other news on peacekeeping forces, the UN Security Council
voted unanimously yesterday to extend its peacekeeping mission
in Haiti for another 6 months.
Rift between Nepal's Parliament and Maoists
Nepal's prospects for peace are rocky as a rift opens between
the political parties and the Maoist rebels. PC Dubey reports.
Nepal's Prime Minister Girja Prasad Koirala said today that
Maoist guerrillas must relinquish their arms before they can
participate in an interim government. Maoists want the dissolution
of the present Parliament and the creation of an interim government
because they consider Parliament an extension of the old feudal
royal structure and claim that true democracy would be ushered
in the country only with its total eclipse. Though they are
vowing not to return to jungle, they are not willing to relinquish
arms till the Constituent assembly poll in April 2007. They
argue that Nepal's Army remains loyal to the king and could
stage a coup once their guerrillas are disarmed. Maoists,
however, say they could agree to a simultaneous disarmament
of both their guerrillas and the Nepalese Army, but government
leaders decline to disarm the Army - contending it is the
legitimate force of a sovereign country...but they insist
on Maoists' disarmament. They fear guerrillas with arms would
terrify voters and tilt the electoral outcome in their own
favor, which would make a mockery of the democratic process.
From Kathmandu, I am PC Dubey for Free Speech Radio News.
Oil Spill
The Philippines is scrambling to contain the worst oil spill
in the country's history. Girlie Linao in Manila reports.
The massive oil spill has threatened not only marine life,
but also the health and livelihood of tens of thousands of
residents in the affected area. Coast Guard officials are
seeking international help as the spill spread from Guimaras
island in the central Philippines to nearby provinces. The
spill has already affected or damaged 10 square miles of coral
reefs, over 125 miles of coastline, 2,470 acres of marine
reserves, at least two resort islands and 124 acres of seaweed
plantations. Health officials warned more than 20,000 residents
of Guimaras face hazardous toxic fumes from the spill, which
could envelop the area within the next few days. Residents
are also at risk of various illnesses due to contaminated
water and even food. The Coast Guard, which has been overseeing
the clean-up, said it needed urgent help to salvage the tanker
that sank last Friday since fuel was still leaking from the
vessel. The tanker was carrying two million liters of industrial
fuel when it sank. Officials said it could take up to more
than two years to clean up the spill. For Free Speech Radio
News, I'm Girlie Linao in Manila.
[top]
International Indigenous Peoples Satellite at the
International AIDS Conference (1:55)
The 16th International AIDS Conference continues this week
in Toronto. A special feature of this year's conference is
the International Indigenous Peoples Satellite. It was organized
to address the increasing rates of HIV/AIDS, and the lack
of resources for prevention and treatment, in native communities
around the world. LaVerne Monette is Executive Director of
the Ontario Aboriginal HIV/AIDS Strategy. She is a two-spirit
Ojibway woman.
[top]
Tamil Tigers and Sri Lankan Government Resume Hostilities
(3:00)
Sri Lankan officials said fighter jets bombed Tamil Tiger
rebel positions Wednesday as troops hunted rebel infiltrators
in the northern Jaffna peninsula. Fierce fighting broke in
north Frida when the Tiger rebels launched a multi-thronged
advance into the army held areas. Dozens of combatants and
civilians were killed in the recent clashes. Ponniah Manikavasagam
reports from Northern Sri Lanka.
[top]
New Report Indicates Rich Cities Face Water Shortages
(4:04)
The World Wildlife Fund has issued a report, indicating
that rich countries are facing increasing water shortages,
due to climate change, coupled by inadequate water management.
The report, made public just a few days before the start of
World Water Week, discloses that some of the world richest
cities use up more water than needed, and that those cities
often deplete the resource for still developing countries.
We’re joined on the line by Chris Williams with the
Global Freshwater Program at the World Wildlife Fund.
[top]
Indigenous Community on Hunger Strike in Chaco, Argentina
(2:52)
Nine representatives from the Wichí indigenous community
complete their 27-day hunger strike in Argentina's north eastern
province of Chaco today. For nearly two months, hundreds of
indigenous people from rural areas have camped out in front
of the provincial government building to demand land distribution,
education and health care for Chaco's indigenous communities.
FSRN’s Marie Trigona reports.
[top]
Anti-War Cartoon Sparks Fury of Protest
(2:29)
An anti-war cartoon, displayed in the window of a package
store in a Connecticut town, has stirred the wrath of some
pro-military groups. The store owner's refusal to remove the
cartoon has also caused an outpouring of support of free speech
defenders. Melinda Tuhus reports from Milford, Connecticut.
[top]
Mumia Abu Jamal Commentary: "Black August"
(6:30)
From his cell on Pennsylvania’s Death Row, a commentary
from Mumia Abu Jamal.
[top]
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