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Bush not to press India WASHINGTON, Oct 15: Republican Presidential candidate George Bush has said that if elected he.....more
Gates scholarships at LONDON, Oct 15: The 210 billion-dollar Gates scholarships set up at the Cambridge University last ......more Internal unity awaits BERLIN, Oct 15: Ten years since the unique historical achievement of German unification, the.......more Hijack drama ends DUBAI, Oct 15: The hijack of the Jeddah-London Saudi Airline which also had an Indian......more |
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Lanka headed for fresh COLOMBO, Oct 15: Sri Lanka is headed for yet another bout of confrontation over President Chandrika Kumaratunga’s Constitutional reforms proposals and escalation of war with ltte as the country this week ....more India-centric foreign ISLAMABAD, Oct 15: A Pakistani weekly has sharply criticised the foreign policy of military ruler General Pervez Musharraf saying it remained "negative matrix of India" and has led to Islamabad’s international isolation...more Afghan opposition ISLAMABAD, Oct 15: Afghanistan’s anti-Taliban alliance said it recaptured two strategic districts in the northern Takhar province today after intense fighting overnight, killing at least 40 Taliban soldiers, but the Taliban rejected the claims. ....more Iranian Foreign Minister visits Iraq to normalise relations DUBAI, Oct 15: Iranian Foreign Minister Kamal Kharrazi is on a a visit to Iraq, in what is seen as a significant development aimed at normalisation of.........more |
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Bush not to press India to sign CTBT, against sanctions WASHINGTON, Oct 15: Republican Presidential candidate George Bush has said that if elected he would not press India to sign the CTBT and favoured immediate lifting of all US sanctions against New Delhi. "Bush understands the security needs of India. He is against CTBT and will not pressure India to sign the CTBT," visiting Indian Congress leader Murli Deora and Chairman of Ethnic Republican in Detroit, Raj Bothra, who met the Presidential candidate in Detroit yesterday, said. Bush said he was for immediate lifting of US sanctions against India, imposed in the wake of Pokharan nuclear tests, as he does not believe in the reasons given by the Clinton administration for continuing them. Clinton administration has put signing of CTBT by India as a precondition for lifting the sanctions. On Kashmir, Bush said it was a flashpoint in Indo-Pak relation, and agreed with the Indian stand that the solution to the problem has should be found in accordance with the Simla accord through bilateral negotiations between two countries. Bush said he was for global reduction of nuclear weapons but realised that India and Pakistan were not going to give up their nuclear weapons for their security reasons. Deora and Bothra said bush emphasised that testing of nuclear weapons ensured their safety. "If you are going to have nuclear weapons they must be safe", Bush said. Bush, who is also the Texas Governor, praised Indian democracy and said US shares the common values of democracy and the rule of law with India. Reffering to Pakistan, Bush said Indian democracy and tolerence of various religious faith would have a moderating influence on the Muslim world. Emphasising the importance of India as a trading partner and its growing influence in information technology, Bush pointed out that there are a million and a half Indians living in US and they are playing an important role. (PTI) |
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Gates scholarships at Cambridge to help Indian students LONDON, Oct 15: The 210 billion-dollar Gates scholarships set up at the Cambridge University last week on the pattern of the Nehru scholarships will help gifted students from all over the world and particularly from India to pursue higher studies here. "The newly instituted Gates scholarships will be done very much like the Nehru Scholarships," William H Gates, Senior, Co-chairman of the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation told PTI in an interview. Under the scheme there will be not less than 225 Gates Cambridge scholars in residence every year from 2001, Gates said. He said graduate students from every country in the world outside UK would be able to apply now for the scholarships for entry in 2001. The last date for application would be next month end and the scholarships would cover all costs, including tution, maintenance and travel. As regards India, William Gates said Micrsoft Chief Bill Gate, had already announced a donation of five million dollars for computer access and another 50 million dollars for polio vaccine which would help tackle lack of medical care in poorer countries. "We (the foundation) spend about 500 million dollars a year and some of the projects touch a number of countries and a fair amount of money goes to the people of India," he said. "With these programmes, Bill Gates hopes that the young people, we select, will be motivates to use their education to put something back into society for the benefit of a much wider community," William Gates said. For Cambridge, the benefaction is the largest single sum that the university has ever received, chairman of the Gates Cambridge Trust Sir Alec Broers said. The 210 million-dollars given by the Seattle-based Foundation set up by Bill Gates, will fund the 225 Gates Cambridge scholars each year and will run in perpetuity. Sir alec said "we have always tried to bring in as wide a range of international students as possible through our independent trusts. "However, this amazingly generous benefaction takes things to an entirely new level and will bring 225 more students a year here to study, primarily at graduate level". The scholarships are for a tenure of one to three years, with the possible extension of a fourth year. Scholarships will be awarded on the basis of the candidates’ intellectual abilities, leadership capacity and commitment to use their knowledge to contribute to the benefit of society throughout the world. Sir Alec is the Chairman of the Gates Cambridge Trust and William Gates, Senior, Co-Chairman. Other members include former President of the University of Washington, William Gerberding, Anne Lonsdale, Pro-Vice-Chancellor and President of New Hall, Sir Robert May, incoming President of the Royal Society, Baroness O’ Neill, Principal of Newnham and Viscount Runciman, President-elect, British Academy. (PTI) |
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| Internal unity awaits Germany despite 10
yrs of unification BERLIN, Oct 15: Ten years since the unique historical achievement of German unification, the internal unity of the country is apparently far from being achieved amid a perception that several East Germans see themselves as "second class citizens." Problems regarding mutual acceptance and the development of a "common german identity" still exist since East and West Germany became a single entity on October three, 1990, even as the grand vision of a "flourishing landscape" in the erstwhile communist ruled East Germany came true only in parts, according to political commentators and analysts. Europe’s biggest renewal effort since the post-war era has become a long, hard struggle with most Easterners still put up with lower wages, pensions and living standards than their Western compatriots. Economic growth is slower and unemployment stubbornly stuck at about 17 per cent, more than twice the Eastern rate. Analysts said it had been a "costly experience" for Germany since West Germany has pumped in nearly 1.6 trillion marks (about 800 billion dollars) into East German region after reunification hasten the collapse of state factories and collective farms. It is felt that the coming together of two different social systems, two different political and cultural methods of education and two different systems of governing society and of thinking would take some more time. While some analysts say the overall challenge of bringing Germans together often seems to be an "insurmountable" challenge, a leading political commentator Roger Weck of the `Die Ziet’ weekly says two more generations will be needed to bring about a healthy, organic unification process. "Ten years after reunification, East and West remain two unequal parts of germany," said Weck. According to Prof. Max Kaase of the Berlin Science Centre, although the two sides have grown close together in many ways, there are "still major differences." Kaase cited the example of how people in Eastern Germany tend to judge their standards of living by looking at levels in the West and so when comparisons show that income are still higher or unemployment is lower in the West, they tend to feel discontented and unfairly treated. Average incomes in the East German areas is about 30 per cent less than in West Germany. "The East Germans still sometimes call themselves `second class citizens’ and as a result of this feeling they have a negative attitude towards their fellow citizens in the West," Kaase said. Some studies have shown that as much as 50 per cent of erstwhile Eastern Germans see themselves primarily as East Germans and also as "second class citizens", he said. In macroeconomic terms, Eastern Germany has achieved quite a few successes like creation of an efficient public administration, modernisation of public infrastructure, and development of the statutory social security system which were listed among the primary tasks for it after reunification, Dr Rudolf Hickel of the Bremen University and a leading expert on public finance said. Examples of successful development policy measures included far more than just rail networks, roads, urban renewal projects and telecommunications networks. Smooth ‘autobahns’ (highways) have replaced crumbling roads and new factories, many of them in the promising high-tech fields, stand in place of huge and wasteful state enterprises. The development of "educational and scientific infrastructure" policy has also been highly successful, and educational and research facilities in the `new lander’ (new states or the former East German states) are of exceptional quality, Hickel said. There are indeed success stories in the East after the "Aufschwung Ost" (economic upturn in the East), started to take off in 1990. However, the East has not been able to keep pace with the West and its growth rate was far behind, analysts say. Political commentators point out that problems in development of a common identity seem to be a consequence of the great speed at which reunification took place. The social changes, the necessary changes in people’s attitude and orientation, have simply not been able to keep pace with the legal and institutional changes, they said, adding that it will take some time before the East Germans become fully adapted to the new social situation. (PTI) |
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Hijack drama ends in Baghdad, all passengers released DUBAI, Oct 15: The hijack of the Jeddah-London Saudi Airline which also had an Indian passenger on board ended in Baghdad late last night after all the 103 passengers and crew members were released unharmed and the two hijackers, both Saudis, arrested in Baghdad. The hijackers who commandeered the flight shortly after leaving Egyptian airspace first tried to land in Damascus but then ordered the flight to be taken to Saddam international airport where they surrendered and sought political asylum in Iraq. The passengers most of whom were British also included Pakistanis and Saudis. "We are grateful to the Iraqi Government" an unidentified pakistani told Al Jazeera satellite television as he stepped down from the plane. Speaking before the release, an Iraqi Interior Ministry official Taher Haboush, said the hijackers had said they seized the plane because they were upset over an investigation into the Saudi human rights situation that was too favourable to the Government. The hijackers also said they ordered the plane to fly to Baghdad becaused Iraq rejects "US hegemony," Haboush said. State television and airport officials said that the nearly 7 1/2-hour crisis ended late yesterday after high-ranking Government officials negotiated with the two hijackers, who then surrendered peacefully. The 103 passengers and crew members were reported safe after they were freed. They were spending the night at a Baghdad hotel and were expected to leave Iraq today, officials said. No other details were immediately available as to how the hijacking ended. The two hijackers were later allowed to speak briefly with reporters. They praised Iraqi authorities and criticized their own Government. "We carried out the operation because we believe in the principles of justice and equality," one said. The other said the Saudi people were against the presence of US troops in their territory. The hijackers, who refused to give their names, said they haven’, countering an earlier report. They also said they don’t intend to stay in Iraq. Al-Jazeera, a Qatar-based station that broadcasts to the Middle East, also showed a few women, children and several other men descending the ramp surrounded by plainclothes security agents. It wasn’t immediately clear if the hijackers were armed or what other means they used to seize control of the aircraft. A hijacker had at one point threatened to blow up the plane unless it was allowed to fly to Baghdad, Saudi officials said on condition of anonymity. Word of the hijacking first emerged in Cairo, Egypt. Egyptian Civil Aviation officials said the pilot radioed them at 3:55 p.m. local time to say the plane had been commandeered and the hijackers were insisting that it fly to Damascus, the Syrian capital. But the plane was denied permission to land as it neared that airport, Air Traffic Controllers on the island of Cyprus said. The hijackers then asked to fly through Syrian airspace to Iraq, the Cypriots said. Syria initially refused but later allowed the plane to pass, Damascus Air Traffic Controllers said, and the plane flew on to Baghdad. Damascus airport officials speaking on condition of anonymity had said the plane landed in Damascus, but they later backed off of that statement, saying it was erroneous. The official Syrian Arab news agency reported that the plane never landed in Damascus, but flew over Syria to Iraq. After the plane landed in Baghdad, airport security was tight, with guards turning away journalists. Ambulances, buses, a fire engine and a fuel tanker went into the airport as reporters watched. Saudi Arabia and Iraq have had no relations since Iraqi troops invaded Kuwait in 1990. But the Iraqi Ministry of Culture and Information issued a statement saying "the safety and security of the Saudi plane’s passengers concerns us as if they were Iraqi citizens." Saudi Arabian airlines officials in Jiddah said the plane had 90 passengers and 15 crew, led by an ethiopian captain. The passenger figure included the two hijackers. The airline officials said the passengers included 40 Britons, 15 Saudis, 15 Pakistanis, four Yemenis, four South Africans, two Kenyans, and one each from France, India, Lebanon, Nigeria, Oman, the Palestinian territories, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland and the United States. (PTI) |
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Lanka headed for fresh bout of
confrontation COLOMBO, Oct 15: Sri Lanka is headed for yet another bout of confrontation over President Chandrika Kumaratunga’s Constitutional reforms proposals and escalation of war with ltte as the country this week voted for a hung Parliament, with large representation to political parties with divergent political interests and affiliations. Though the two mainstream parties, the ruling Peoples Alliance (PA) and its archrival and opposition United National Party (UNP), marginally improved their seats in the election, the rest of the new Parliament consisted of extreme left and right wing parties with varied political backgrounds. From the majority Sinhalese south, the ultra left-wing Jantha Vimukti Perumuna (JVP), which led a bloody armed revolt 12 years ago, emerged as a third force by winning 10 seats. Similarly the rapidly right-wing Sinhala Urumaya, backed by Buddhist monks, made its debut winning one seat. Also a completely unwidely combination of political parties emerged from the Tamil dominated North and East. Under such a scenario, the stability of Chandrika’s new Government entirely deepened on two pro-reform and anti-LTTE Tamil and Muslim parties. The PA which has won 107 seats in the 225-member Parliament, formed the ministry with the backing of a self proclaimed anti-LTTE political party, Eelam Peoples Democratic Party (EPDP) and Sri Lanka Muslim Congress (SLMC) and the National Unity Alliance (NUA). The SLMC and the EPDP, which have won 12 and five seats respectively, would provide a three seat majority to the PA. Interestingly both SLMC and the EPDP have made adoption and implementation of the new Constitution, incorporating a package of proposals to devolve powers to the north and east and a host of political and administrative reforms to improve democratic environment in the country, as their main demand to support the Government. SLMC leader, Rauff Hakeem threatened to withdraw support to PA if it failed to bring in the new constitution before its first 100 days in the office. EPDP spokesman, Thavarajah too said that his party’s main demand was to bring the new Constitution, which his party believed could considerably improve the living condition for Tamils. Change of Constitution was prime issue when Chandrika disolved the last Parliament and declared elections in August this year. Her new draft constitution evoked the ire of the UNP, JVP and Buddhist monks, who conducted a bitter campaign against it stating that its implementation would result in the division of the country as it promised autonomy to Tamils. Significantly barring EPDP, other Tamil parties, who won the elections were not concerned about the Constitution. The Tamil United National Front (TULF), which has won five seats from the north-east said the Constitution was not a main issue as it was already opposed by the LTTE. The party which was previously an ally of Chandrika said it would oppose her new Government as she permitted EPDP to rig the polls in Jaffna. "Our main campaign will be to oust this Government, which is formed with the support of an armed Tamil group, namely EPDP," vice president of TULF Anandasangari said. The other two Tamil parties, Tamil Eelam Liberation Organisation (TELO) and All Ceylon Tamil Congress (ACTC), which won three and one seats respectively on a pro-LTTE platform, rejected the Constitution stating that it fell far short to meet the aspiration of Tamils. To make matters worse, Chandrika’s newly appointed Prime Minister Rathnasiri Wickramanayake campaigned during elections stating that the draft Constitution was dead and gone along with previous Parliament and the new draft would be brought only after consultation with the monks. Hakeem said lack of two thirds majority in Parliament would no longer be an issue as Chandrika has an option to convert the Parliament into a constituent Assembly and then approve the draft with a simple majority. UNP leader, Ranil Wickramasinghe said any attempt to bring the Constitution through back door would be opposed tooth and nail and predicted that PA itself would split if chandrika pursued that option. Though perceived to be a left party, JPV was firmly opposed to devolving power to Tamil provinces and was for equal treatment to all races and communities. Sinhala Urumaya, which has the backing of monks, said it would launch a nation-wide stir against the new Consitution. In this back drop, Sri Lanka appears to be heading for a period of political uncertainty with defence official predicting more military strikes by the LTTE to regain control of the Jaffna peninsula. (PTI) |
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India-centric foreign policy
causing Pak’s ISLAMABAD, Oct 15: A Pakistani weekly has sharply criticised the foreign policy of military ruler General Pervez Musharraf saying it remained "negative matrix of India" and has led to Islamabad’s international isolation. Pakistani weekly "The Friday Times", while commenting on one year of Gen Musharraf’s rule, said "our foreign policies remains anchored in the negative matrix of India alone rather than reflecting the positive global outreach of the fifth most populous country in the world." The Weekly said an India-centric foreign policy has led Pakistan "into the arms of destabilising regional Jehads, an arms race we cannot afford." The Weekly said the foreign policy had also led Pakistan into an international isolation which "renders us incapable of finding the breathing space to restructure our debt-ridden economy." The paper said other impacts of such a policy was an erosion of civil society and human rights and democratic norms at the hands of sectarian and fundamentalists. It said Gen Musharraf, flexing his military might, had been able to increase Government revenues but "it would be good if he were to steer a path that realigns Pakistan’s economy with the prosperous countries of the world". "Will he (Gen Musharraf) heed the call of national history or succumb to the lure of parochial power," the editorial asked and commented "as long as he dithers, he will wear a crown of thorns." (PTI) |
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Afghan opposition claims it recaptured 2 northern districts ISLAMABAD, Oct 15: Afghanistan’s anti-Taliban alliance said it recaptured two strategic districts in the northern Takhar province today after intense fighting overnight, killing at least 40 Taliban soldiers, but the Taliban rejected the claims. The opposition early morning captured Imam Sahib, located on Afghanistan’s northern frontier with the Central Asian state of Tajikistan, opposition spokesman Mohammed Abil told the Associated Press by telephone from the war-ravaged region. The Taliban forces were also pushed out of Hajaghar, 40 kilometers north of Taloqan, the capital of Takhar, he said. But the ruling Taliban rejected the opposition claims. "There was no fighting overnight. Both the districts are under our control," said Abdul Hai Muttmain, a senior Taliban spokesman in Afghanistan’s southern city of Kandahar. No independent confirmation of the contradictory claims could immediately be made because of the remoteness of the area. (AP) |
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Iranian Foreign Minister visits Iraq to normalise relations DUBAI, Oct 15: Iranian Foreign Minister Kamal Kharrazi is on a a visit to Iraq, in what is seen as a significant development aimed at normalisation of relations between two hostile neighbours. The highlight of Mr Kharrazi’s visit to the Iraq capital was his meeting with President Saddam Hussein yesterday. The Iraqi leader reaffirmed to Mr Kharrazi his country’s will and desire to solve all pending issues between the two countries. Mr Kharrazi, on the first visit to Iraq by an Iranian Foreign Minister in a decade, underlined Teheran’s determination to "settle all outstanding problems" between two neighbours. Reports quoted an Iraqi official in Baghdad as saying that " Iraq welcomes all Iranian initiatives for a settlement of unresolved issues and hopes for practical measures for the normalisation of bilateral relations." Observers said a thaw in the frosty relationship between Iran and Iraq would certainly be good for the region as Islamic nations would be able to unitedly face the challenge from Israel, which had unleashed a wave of violence against the Palestinians. Iran and Iraq fought a bitter war for eight years from 1980 to 1988 in which about a million people died. Twelve years later, the two countries are still deeply divided over a whole range of issues. Status of remaining Prisoners of War (PoWs), war reparations sought by Iran and the sheltering of each other’s armed opposition groups are among some of the major disputes between the two neighbours. Teheran decided to send its Foreign Minister to Baghdad after talks between Iranian president Mohammed Khatami and Iraqi Vice-President Taha Yassin Ramadhan on September 29 on the sidelines of the OPEC summit in caracas. Mr Kharrazi’s visit comes close on the heels of many nations sending humanitarian planes to Baghdad, virtually challenging the UN embargo against Iraq. In fact, the Iranian Foreign Minister also arrived in the Iraqi capital on a direct flight from Teheran, despite the air embargo imposed in the wake of the Iraqi invasion of Kuwait in 1990. The observers said Teheran might be willing to resume full diplomatic ties with the Iraqi regime if it abandoned its support for the Iraq-based armed Iranian opposition groups. Meanwhile, an Iranian daily said that at a time when Israel was indulging in large-scale violence against innocent Palestinians, an improvement in Baghdad-Teheran ties was an indisputable need. It said the two former belligerent neihbours were in the process of "drawing the blueprint for future bilateral ties". (UNI) |
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