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NATO renews attacks, WASHINGTON, Apr 25: NATO missiles pounded targets across Yugoslavia today, halting television broadcasts...more Swedish PM murder STOCKHOLM, Apr 25: The murder-weapon used to assassinate Swedish Prime Minister Olof Palme is now on...more NATO approves new WASHINGTON,
Apr 25: The North
Atlantic Treaty Organisation (NATO) has approved a new...more WASHINGTON, Apr 25: It is not easy to fit the leaders of 42 countries, their retinues and.....more |
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Thousands
besiege China leadership compound BEIJING, Apr 25: Thousands of followers of a Chinese martial arts master besieged Beijing’s leadership....more China keen on BEIJING, Apr 25: China is keen on normalising relations with India on .....more
Rumblings of dissent COLOMBO, Apr 25: Tn the first major sign of dissent in President ....more Quilts from rural India WASHINGTON, Apr 25: Reviving an ancient craft with a modern...more |
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NATO renews attacks, Clinton backs blockade WASHINGTON, Apr 25: NATO missiles pounded targets across Yugoslavia today, halting television broadcasts and hitting an Army barracks and chemical factory as US President Bill Clinton defended alliance plans to choke oil supplies fuelling Serb forces in Kosovo. Risking possible confrontation with Russia — Serbia’s major oil supplier before air strikes started on March 24 —NATO said it was drawing up plans to visit and search ships bound for Yugoslavia. At NATO’s 50th anniversary summit which has been overshadowed by the Kosovo crisis, Clinton said an oil embargo against Yugoslavia was the next important tactical step. How can we justify risking the lives of the pilots to go up and destroy the refinery and the supply capacity of Serbia and then say but it’s ok with us if people want to continue to supply this nation and its outlaw actions in Kosovo in another way? The President asked at a news conference. NATO planes attacked Yugoslavia’s third largest city Nis for the second successive night, and Serbian State Television (RTS satellite transmissions went off the air after an attack on a key transmitter near Belgrade. The Yugoslav news agency Tanjug said NATO aircraft had attacked the Avala area in the hills above Belgrade, but had not hit the country’s largest transmitter there. RTS transmissions were interrupted, but radio Belgrade resumed broadcasts on a new frequency, it said. NATO planes also attacked a chemical factory in central Serbia and hit an Army barracks and industrial sites in Nis, Yugoslav media and internet websites said. At the end of the second day of the three-day summit, Clinton sought to justify allied tactics. He said NATO was not drifting into a Vietnam war but the conflict would not end swiftly like the Gulf war. I think the important thing for everyone to understand is that in order for this strategy to succeed, we need two things — one, vigorous execution, and, two, patience, Clinton said. More than 1,000 people wearing target signs that symbolise Serbian protest at NATO air strikes and chanting stop the bombing rallied noisily outside the White House as the summit met nearby. Splits over the oil blockade emerged in the 19-nation bloc at the summit, originally called to map NATO’s mission into the next century but which has turned into a council of war. Stopping Russian tankers from delivering oil could antagonize Moscow at a time when NATO leaders want Russia to help mediate a settlement with Belgrade and contribute troops to a force to protect ethnic Albanians returning to Kosovo. French President Jacques Chirac said France had already raised legal reservations about the proposed searches. Stopping a ship on the high seas would be an act of war, he said. But Italian Foreign Minister Lamberto Dini said a blockade is preferable to destruction...Of terminals in the port of bar or further destruction of bridges and other facilities in montenegro. (REUTERS) |
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in open black-market STOCKHOLM, Apr 25: The murder-weapon used to assassinate Swedish Prime Minister Olof Palme is now on sale in the black market carrying an exorbitant price tag. The Swedish Police, after having spent multi-million Kronors searching for it in depths of seas and lakes, on the most fatuous tip-offs, are now too broke to bid for it. "I have the weapon in question," claims a junk-dealer in Borlange, Central Sweden. "And I will rather hand it over to the PG — if they pay the price I ask." "The palme (investigation) group (PG) have offered me 100,000 Swedish Kronor for the weapon," the dealer told the press on Thursday. "But I want a half-a-million Swedish Kronor for it, or I will sell it to someone else." The dealer’s lawyer, Mr Tore Noreberg, assures that it is the right weapon and the chief of the PG, Inspector Stig Edqvist, declares that the investigators interest in the weapon is undoubtably very big. The PG have, since long, sought after what has become known as the Mockfjard’s-weapon, a smith and wesson that was used in a post-office hold-up in Mockfjard in 1983. The police technicians have established that the same type of unusual ammunition that was used in the hold-up also killed Mr Palme — and moreover, that the bullets were fired from the same magnum revolver. The PG admit interviewing the man and also that he has shown them pictures of the revolver. "We are most certainly interested in the weapon and we are trying every possible way to get it," says Mr Edqvist. But circumstances are such that we are in the hands of this man, he adds. The junk dealer has hidden the weapon but allowed his advocate to examine it. The junk dealer claims that he found the "elusive weapon" while fishing on a sea shore in 1994. Since then the PG admit of negotiating with him on several occasions. (UNI) |
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NATO approves new strategic concept WASHINGTON, Apr 25: The North Atlantic Treaty Organisation (NATO) has approved a new strategic concept which for the first time embraces military missions in volatile regions beyond their own borders. The concept adopted at the 50th summit of the 19-nation alliance here yesterday will guide it in the coming years. The 1999 strategic concept is the sixth such document to be approved by NATO. Later talking to newspersons, US President Clinton said the new blueprint — updated for the first time since 1991 — would permit the alliance to "advance security and freedom for another 50 years by enhancing our capacity to address conflicts beyond our borders, by protecting our citizens from terrorism and weapons of mass destruction, by deepening our partnerships with other nations and helping new members enter through NATO’s open doors." "We have reaffirmed our readiness to address regional and ethnic conflicts beyond the territory of NATO members," he added. NATO secretary general Javier Solana called it "a road map to navigate the security challenges" of the next millennium. NATO leaders reached a compromise to recognise the leadership of the United Nations in brokering international disputes — but insisted that it did not explicitly require NATO to seek UN approval before taking military action. The compromise followed a dispute between the United States and France over the NATO authority to launch offensive military actions. They agreed to eventually expand NATO beyond its current 19 members. Only recently it has admitted three members - Hungary, Polland and Czech Republic. The blueprint is also designed to improve the coordination of intelligence among the 19 NATO allies, as well as the sharing of technology, so forces from different countries can be better integrated during joint military operations. Mr Solana said NATO leaders also signed an initiative that allowed European nations "to conduct security operations that are separable but not separate" from NATO. The United States has opposed efforts to require the UN Security Council to approve NATO military strikes, such as the ongoing action gains Yugoslavia. But France and some other NATO countries have maintained the alliance needs UN approval. American officials say that would undermine the authority of the alliance and they note that Russia and China would have exercised their Security Council vetoes to block the strikes on Yugoslavia. The compromise language used in the NATO agreement yesterday recognises the Security Council as the leading authority for upholding international peace and security, and and it commits NATO to act within the principles of the UN charter. But it does not explicitly require the United Nations to sanction any NATO military action. (UNI) |
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White House hosts largest gathering of leaders WASHINGTON, Apr 25: It is not easy to fit the leaders of 42 countries, their retinues and some 300 other distinguished guests into the White House for dinner, so nobody even tried. Instead, US President Bill Clinton and first lady Hillary Rodham Clinton held a party out back. They hosted leaders from NATO, Neutral Europe and the former Soviet Bloc — comprising the Euro-Atlantic partnership council — in an elegantly decorated but slightly tilted tent on the White House South lawn to commemorate NATO’s 50th anniversary. It is a great honour for Hillary and me to welcome the largest group of world leaders ever to assemble in Washington here to the White House on this beautiful spring evening, Clinton said in his toast to the dinner. Tonight we remember that the burden of defending freedom and peace is lighter when it is shouldered by so many, and we remember that the cause of freedom and peace is stronger when it is embraced by a group of nations as those that are joined together in this council, Clinton said. The 800 or so guests, many in town for the three-day NATO summit which ends today, had mingled inside the White House before trooping out to the tent with a billowy light blue ceiling and vaguely French wall decorations. They saluted the NATO alliance with a dinner of grilled bison, orange and mango salad and NATO 50th anniversary cake. But in keeping with the serious tone that the Kosovo conflict has cast over their summit, the guests spoke of the weighty issues of war and mutual support. (REUTERS) |
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Thousands besiege China leadership compound BEIJING, Apr 25: Thousands of followers of a Chinese martial arts master besieged Beijing’s leadership compound today in the biggest demonstration in the Chinese Capital for a decade. Thousands of people, smartly dressed in their best on a warm, spring day, demanded to see Premier Zhu Rongji to expres anger over media criticism of their discipline. It was the biggest demonstration in Beijing since 1989 when students led pro-democracy protests in the Capital’s Tiananmen Square. The movement was ended by a military crackdown on June 4 that year in which hundreds of people were killed. The demonstrators, mostly middle aged or elderly, stood or sat cross-legged on the ground opposite the high walls of the Zhongnanhai leadership compound. They were packed up to eight deep along the West and North sides of the vast compound. Many were reading a book written by the martial arts master, Li Hongzhi. We want to practice our belief in a less restricted environment, said one protester who described himself as a disciple of Li. One protester said the authorities had ignored their earlier demand to rebuff media criticism of their martial arts. Police were posted at intervals to stop them spilling into the streets and to keep traffic flowing. They were taking no other action. (REUTERS) |
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China keen on normalising ties with India BEIJING, Apr 25: China is keen on normalising relations with India on the basis of the five principles of peaceful co-existence and strengthening party-to-party ties, a senior Chinese lawmaker has said. There are no problems between India and China that cannot be resolved through dialogue and cooperation, Jiang Chunyun, Vice-Chairman of the Standing Committee of the Chinese National People’s Congress (NPC) told senior CPI leader P K Vasudevan Nair here last night. Nair, leading a five-member team to China, at the invitation of the Communist Party of China (CPC), told here that both sides had agreed on the need to strengthen ties, specially in wake of US attempts to impose its views on the rest of the world. We exchanged views on relations between China and India and the two countries’ Communist Parties as well as matters of regional and global concern, he said. Jiang, who is also member of the political bureau of the CPC Central Committee, also briefed the CPI delegation on China’s political and economic situation, the parliamentary system and the working of NPC Committees at various levels, official Xinhua news agency said. Besides Nair, who is member of the national executive of the CPI, other members of the delegation are Manju Kumar Majumder, Bharati Prasad Dubey Alok, Mrs Sushila Sahay and Pallab Sengupta. (PTI) |
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Rumblings of dissent in Chandrika’s party COLOMBO, Apr 25: Tn the first major sign of dissent in President Chandrika Kumaratunga’s Sri Lanka Freedom Party (SLFP) a senior minister has asked President Chandrika Kumaratunga to probe the party’s falling percentage of vote in the recent provincial polls. In a letter to the President, Mahinda Rajapakse of the SLFP pointed out that although the party had won in all five councils its voting percentage had shown a marked decline and demanded remedial measures. On the contrary the left wing Janatha Vimukthi Perumuna (JVP) had significantly increased it support base, he said. The letter which was seen in ruling party circles as an act of dissent demanded that the party high command specially look into the reasons why Muslims and Tamils deserted the SLFP, which has proposed a landmark autonomy package for the North-East, and voted for the UNP. Similarly a large number of Indian Tamils in the tea estates in Central Sri Lanka voted for UNP. He said of 3.30 lakh votes, about six per cent of the votes polled have been rejected which showed an increasing number of people were deliberately cancelling their votes out of disenchantment with the mainstream parties. Factors that went against the ruling party were a large hike in prices of essential commodities and its failure to initiate development programmes he said. President Chandrika’s alliance has won 45.26 per cent votes in the polls to the five provinces whereas the unp polled 42.55 per cent. (PTI) |
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Quilts from rural India showcase women’s views WASHINGTON, Apr 25: Reviving an ancient craft with a modern twist, women in India’s Bihar state are creating vibrant quilts that tell stories about the rural women who designed them and some of their most pressing concerns from female infanticide to prostitution. The national museum of women in the arts is showcasing 30 such quilts, made communally by women in the Bhusura village in Bihar The narrative thread: Women’s embroidery from rural India’’ reveals how a traditional art form once nearly abandoned has been revived to empower women both economically and socially. The art of embroidering quilts, called "Sujuni Kanthas," belonged to upper-caste women in Bihar and Bengal states in the 18th and 19th centuries. The quilts were known for their exceptionally fine stitching and intricate patterns. But by the mid-20th century, the craft had all but died out. In 1988, a non-profit organisation called Adithi decided to breathe new life into the traditional art as a way of giving rural women a source of income. They have been selling their designs with detailed patterns and brilliantly colored threads to boutiques in India’s major cities. The women, who transcended various social castes to work together, have transformed the quilts into more than just their livelihood. "Stopping the spread of AIDS" depicts village women arming their husbands who are headed to the town brothels with condoms. At the same time, the quiltmakers, who also seek to force social change, use the bottom half of the quilt to show the women breaking up a prostitution ring enslaving young girls. "In too many boys," the women suggest how even one of their village’s bleakest problems female infanticide can correct itself to their advantage. The quilt traces midwives feeding salt to kill baby girls. But men soon outnumber the women, and the males must show their adulation to gain female attention. A 20-minute accompanying video shows the quiltmaking process from sketching on cotton cloth to filling in the designs with embroidery. Stitching one figure alone can take as long as four days, say the women. But some of the women also poignantly express how the project has influenced their lives. One quilt chronicles the life of Phoolan Devi, India’s legendary "bandit queen," who was accused of massacring 20 villagers after being held prisoner and repeatedly raped by men of a higher caste. The quilt captures this traumatic experience in pieces where Devi is shown naked. But it also exults in Devi’s comeback: After serving time in jail, she won a seat in the Indian Parliament. A helicopter symbolises her success. The women celebrate their economic liberation in Sujuni making, a quilt that illustrates the men of the village taking steam trains to the cities along its border. In the centre, the wives are doing their part as breadwinners, busily stitching away. The exhibition is at the national museum of women in the arts until may nine. It later travels to the palo alto cultural center in Palo Alto, California, and the paine art center in Oshkosh, Wisconsin. (AP) |
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