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| One killed,
7 injured in Bangla strike violence DHAKA, Nov
9: One person
was shot dead and seven others sustained bullet injuries
in sporadic incident of violence and bomb blasts during
the opposition-led 48-hour nation-wide general strike
today....more WASHINGTON,
Nov 9: They
can be more powerful than Governments. They distribute
more aid than the World Bank or any country. Some have
bigger budgets than large corporations. A few readily put
themselves at higher risk than the world’s greatest
armies.....more BONN,
Nov 9: For
the fist time, an estimated 35,000 Muslim children in
Berlin have been allowed to receive Islamic education in
schools following a significant German Court ruling.....more LOS ANGELES, Nov 9: Nicotine-like compounds can improve memory and might one day be used in pills to treat disorders like Alzheimer’s disease, according to research on laboratory animals. But while the finding supports smokers’ contention that cigarettes ........more |
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Six Indian
tourists killed in mishap KATHAMANDU,
Nov 9: At
least six people have been killed and 43 injured, four of
them "critically", when an Indian tourist bus,
carrying mostly tea -estate workers from Darjeeling, met
with an accident in Eastern Nepal......more LONDON,
Nov 9: John
Hunt, leader of the British expedition which first
climbed Mount Everest, has died at age 88.......more MOSCOW,
Nov 9: Russia
should have a strong centre even as its countrymen should
enjoy the fruits of a democratic set-up, according to
former President Mikhail Gorbachev....more ISLAMABAD,
Nov 9: Buoyed
by the lifting of economic sanctions Pakistan premier
Nawaz Sharif will ask US President Bill Clinton to ease
military embargo when the two leaders meet in Washington
on December 2.......more DHAKA, Nov 9: Thailand’s prompt extradition of a former army officer to face execution raised hopes today of bringing home more fugitives from the United States and Canada who were sentenced to death for plotting the 1975 assassination ......more |
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| One killed,
7 injured in Bangla strike violence DHAKA, Nov 9: One person was shot dead and seven others sustained bullet injuries in sporadic incident of violence and bomb blasts during the opposition-led 48-hour nation-wide general strike today. A passer-by Omar Farooq (15) succumbed to bullet wounds following clashes between opposition Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP) supporters and the ruling Awami League while two others identified as Zahid and Salam were admitted to the hospital with bullet injuries, witnessess and hospital sources said. They said the clashes took place when BNP activists shouted slogans against the Dhaka city Mayor Mohammad Hanif in front of his house, the Awami league supporters who were nearby protested and a clash ensued. Three persons including a policeman were among those injured following stone-throwing and hurling of bombs during a clash between the police, BNP activists and Awami League supporters at Dholaikhal in old Dhaka, witnesses said. Meanwhile, in Raisabazar area in old Dhaka two persons were injured in a bomb attack by picketers, witnesses said. Nearly 5,000 police and
paramilitary troops wee deployed throughout the city to
ensure peace during the strike amid fears of sabotage
after the court sentenced 15 former Army-officers to
death yesterday for killing Bangladesh’s founding
father Sheikh Mujibur Rehman and his family in a coup in
1975. (PTI) |
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| Big Govt, big business give
way to big non-profit WASHINGTON, Nov 9: They can be more powerful than Governments. They distribute more aid than the World Bank or any country. Some have bigger budgets than large corporations. A few readily put themselves at higher risk than the world’s greatest armies. In dealing with global crises, big business and big Government are often left in the dust by big nonprofit, which now spends more than one trillion billion a year. The movement, if viewed as a nation, would rank eighth in economic power, according to a study to be released yesterday. Named for what they’re not business and not part of any Government thousands of nonprofit, Non-Government Organizations, or NGOs, are booming around the globe. NGOs have played key roles in negotiating trade and environmental treaties and now sit in on Government and corporate decision-making. They tread where Government and business cannot, dare not or will not go, into the world’s hottest trouble spots and biggest disasters Kosovo, Honduras, Bosnia, Somalia, Chechnya, Afghanistan and often suffering more casualties than the Government agents and soldiers they precede. "Nonprofit aid organisations do the hardest work for the littlest pay under the greatest risks with the least support," said Sen. Sam brownback, a Kansas Republican, in a call for greater protections for private aid workers. Casualties among aid workers rarely have the political impact of military deaths, said Jim Moody, head of interaction, a coalition of 150 nonprofit groups. "We go where Governments are often loath to see official persons in harm’s way," Mr Moody said. "It’s sort of ironic that NGO workers are seen by Governments as more expendable." NGOs often clash with Governments, even democratic Governments. In South Africa, US support for NGOs was criticised because Nelson Mandela’s Government wanted direct aid. Other Governments accuse nonprofits of stirring up trouble or spying. China has welcomed some NGOs but still views religious groups and strong advocacy organisations such as greenpeace with suspicion. North Korea, Myanmar and Cuba are all tough places for NGOs to work, although they often are the only foreigners on the ground where diplomats are unwelcome. "The end of the cold war has changed the climate for nonprofit organizations. The need for a nuclear deterrent, secrecy and close government control, Mr Moody said, is replaced by a need to mobilise any significant resources we can, involve as many people as possible, be as open as possible.’’ It’s a climate in which NGOs thrive. With rapidly expanding communications media, including the Internet, nonprofit groups now have highly effective way of sharing their goals, multiplying, organising and mobilising across borders. In addition to dispensing charity, NGOs take surveys, dig wells, fix bad teeth, stop epidemics, house refugees, protect natural resources, lend money, sue polluters and sometimes demonstrate against Governments. They range from huge operations like the nature conservancy, which buys and protects vast acreage, to one-issue groups like solar cookers international. They often set the agenda in world conferences. The World Bank and International Monetary Fund is tailoring criticised agendas to recognise NGO contributions. British Prime Minister Tony Blair calls it the "Third way" in world affairs. German Chancellor Gerhard Schroeder dubs it the new middle. To academics it’s an emerging civil society. Salamon’s study of 22 countries, including the world’s richest, dispels any notion the movement is dominated by Americans. Western Europe emerges as a seedbed of nonprofit activity. Ngos employ scientists, social workers, researchers and professional campaigners of all nationalities, often paying highly competitive salaries to attract the best in a variety of fields. In the countries studied, 19 million people draw salaries from nonprofits, and the number is growing four times faster than overall employment. The largest nonprofits in the United States operate on budgets approaching 500 million dollars. More than seven per cent of the US workforce is with nonprofits, and the Johns Hopkins study estimates 28 per cent of people in the countries studied either do volunteer work or are employed by nonprofits. They handle 30 per cent of all US foreign aid, and Vice President Al Gore predicts that will soon rise to 40 percent. "The growth of NGOs is one of the most positive phenomena that has occurred in the world," said Brian Atwood, head of the US agency for international development. Charles Lichenstein,
alternate UN ambassador under President Ronald Reagan and
now a fellow at the conservative heritage foundation,
said, "I think the proliferation of NGOs is, on
balance, a healthy sign of pluralism in human societies.
I don’t want Governments to decide who can ride the
horse and who can’t ride the horse." (AP) |
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| Six Indian tourists killed
in mishap KATHAMANDU, Nov 9: At least six people have been killed and 43 injured, four of them "critically", when an Indian tourist bus, carrying mostly tea -estate workers from Darjeeling, met with an accident in Eastern Nepal. According to delayed reports received here today, the illfated bus, bearing registration number WB-73/1818, was enroute to Itahari from Dharan when the mishap occurred as it was crosssing a bridge yesterday. While three of the victims died on-the-spot, another three succumbed to injuries while undergoing treatment at the B P Koirala institute of health sciences at Dharan. Of the 43 injured, also being treated for their injuries at Bpkihs, the condition of four was stated to be "critical," the reports said. Most of the bus passengers
were reported to be tea-estate workers from Sipahidhura
Darjeeling, so far four of the dead had been identified
as C B Rai, 28, Jitendra Rai, 26, Roman Rai, 16, and bus
driver Navaraj Chhetri. (UNI) |
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| Leader of first Everest
conquest is no more LONDON, Nov 9: John Hunt, leader of the British expedition which first climbed Mount Everest, has died at age 88. Hunt died at his home in Henley-On-Thames on Saturday night, said his daughter, Sally Nesbitt. The family’s announcement yesterday said only that Hunt died following a brief illness. As leader of the expedition in 1953, Hunt decided it was his responsibility to remain at base camp while Edmund Hillary and Tenzing Norgay climbed the last 400 feet to the summit. Hunt was a colonel in the British Army when he was tapped to lead the everest expedition. He retired in 1956 to become the first director of the Duke of Edinburgh Award scheme promoted by Prince Philip. He was knighted in 1953
and elevated in 1966 to the House of Lords, where he took
the title of Baron Hunt of Llanfairwaterdine. He was a
personal adviser to Prime Minister Harold Wilson during
the Nigerian civil war in the late 1960s and directed
British relief missions to that country. (AP) |
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