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Another earthquake jolts BEIJING, Sept 26: A fresh earthquake rocked Taiwan .....more Clergies’ bid to bring COLOMBO, Sept 26: Unhappy with the peacemaking efforts....more China in favour NEW DELHI, Sept 26: China has strongly advocated reforms...more Croatia slams UN tribunal UNITED NATIONS, Sept 26: Croatia, taking the offensive against...more |
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Chinese Gen says
Sino-Indian treaty promotes stability BEIJING, Sept 26: Chinas has said that the confidence building treaties....more Fresh Sri Lanka COLOMBO, Sept 26: Renewed fighting between Government forces....more Jet Airways to augment TOULOUSE (FRANCE), Sept 26: Stealing a march over Indian Airlines, ......more Japan agrees to implement WASHINGTON, Sept 26: Major industrial nations expressed concern yesterday....more |
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Another earthquake jolts Taiwan, brings more misery BEIJING, Sept 26: A fresh earthquake rocked Taiwan in early hours today causing more deaths and destruction, just five days after a similar catastrophe struck the island killing over 2000, an official report said here. The temblor measuring 6.8 on the richter scale with its epicentre at 23.9 degrees north latitude and 121.1 degrees east longitude between Hualian and Nantou in Taiwan shook the area at 0752 hrs (0522 ist), Xinhua news agency quoting China’s seismological network said. Today’s quake originated close to the epicentre of Tuesday’s quake, the reports said adding that most of the damage was also reported from the same mountainous region of Central Taiwan. The shockwave causing landslide killed two persons, a man and a woman on a road linking Nantou County with Yunlin County to the South, local radio in Taiwan said. Two more deaths were reported from other towns in Nantou. Several buildings have also collapsed, the radio added. Some 15 peoples were reported injured in the latest jolt which forced people to come out of their homes to safety in the open. The quake left numerous landslides across the country and forced the suspension of ongoing rescue and reconstruction operations. Local television showed a 12-storey damaged apartment block collapsed on a road in Nantou city and neigbouring building in flames. It was not known whether anyone was inside. The 40 flats were evacuated after last Tuesday’s quake measuring 7.6 on richter scale that killed at least 2,100 people and caused extensive damage. Meanwhile, rescuers pulled out two brothers alive from a 12-storey building in downtown Taipei that had collapsed in the first quake. The two, sun Chi-Kwang (20) and Sun Chi-Feng survived their 130-hour ordeal by drinking their own urine, eating rotten apples and keeping each other’s morale, the report said. Earlier, aftershocks measuring 5.0 and 5.4 on the richter scale were recorded on Friday and yesterday respectively, Xinhua said. A formal decree granting the Government emergency powers for six months to help thousands living in open space after on of the most powerful quakes worldwide this century was issued by Taiwan’s President Lee Teng-Hui. (PTI) |
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Clergies’
bid to bring Lankan Govt, LTTE COLOMBO, Sept 26: Unhappy with the peacemaking efforts of the political and business leadership, the clergies of Sri Lanka have come to the forefront to try their turn in bringing the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) and the Government to the negotiating table to end the 18-year old ethnic conflict. If the local media is to be believed, the LTTE is ready for talks with the Government and this has been conveyed to a delegation of catholic bishops who met the rebel leaders recently. Sundaranayagam, Mannar Bishop Rayappy Joseph and Eastern Province Bishop Kingsley Swamipillai met LTTE’s Karikalan, Thamilchelvam and their assistants last week in Mullaitivu. The Bishop delegation had also visited Puthukudiyiruppu where 22 Tamil cicilains were killed following an air raid by the Sri Lankan Air Force and the susequent gongalaincident in which 54 Sinhala villagers were massacred. The bishops, while condemning both the armed forces and the LTTE for killing innocent civilians, called on the LTTE to return to the negotiating table, which the tigers accepted, the reports said. The bishops said they offered themselves to function as channels of peae. "We said that we could help them to convey any message to the Government if they wanted. We offered ourselves even in the negotiating process," quoted one of the bishop as having said. The members of the association of clergy for peace in the North said it will reactivate its role as peace advocates and even visit wanni to meet LTTE leaders. The move comes following the massacre of 54 innocent civilians in Eastern Amapara last week. Ven K Vajira Thera of the clergy for peace said the association would meet at the earliest to discuss a strategy to defuse the unrest that had arisen during the past few weeks. The association will also submit a peace appeal to the Government in what it terms as an ‘urgent need of the moment.’ Pointing out that the sporadic peace demonstrations in Colombo will serve no purpose if there is no serious and genuine move to end the 18-year-old ethnic conflict, Mr Thera was emphatic that the association doesnot condone any of the atrocities committed. ‘Peace cannot be achieved by war,’ he said. (UNI) |
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China in favour of reforms in UN NEW DELHI, Sept 26: China has strongly advocated reforms in the United Nations saying the world body should be rechristened taking into account the new world order. Over 50 years have passed since the formation of U.N. It is time now for some reforms in the world body taking into consideration various changes in international affairs, Chinese Ambassador to India Zhou Gang told here yesterday. When specifically asked whether China would back India’s candidature in the UN Security Council like France, Zhou said we are friends and we favour mutual consultations on the issue. Chinese stand is that there should be reforms in the UN by consultations among all member countries democratically, he said. (PTI) |
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Croatia slams UN tribunal on prosecutions UNITED NATIONS, Sept 26: Croatia, taking the offensive against complaints it had not co-operated with a UN war crimes tribunal, told the UN General Assembly yesterday the court had not moved aggressively against perpetrators of crimes against Croatians and Bosnian croats. Foreign Minister Mate Granic also called for the end of a small UN observer mission in the Prevlaka Peninsula and announced Croatia would contribute peacekeepers to a UN operation in Sierra Leone. Mr Granic said no one had been charged by the Hague-based UN Tribunal for crimes against Bosnian croats or had been sentenced for terrorism in Croatia, itself. He also said that the "unusual delay in bringing persons in custody before the court, in some cases more than two years, despite the initial assurances of speedy trials, has not strengthened the tribunal’s credibility." Most of those indicted by the international criminal tribunal for the former Yugoslavia for crimes during the Croatian and Bosnian wars have been serbs but the tribunal has also complained to the Security Council about Zagreb’s refusal to handover indictees and documents. The tribunal is also investigating human rights violations during Zagreb’s 1995 military operations that drove Serbian troops as well as civilians from Croatia, an offensive hailed as a national victory at home. Mr Granic said that the indictments did not "reflect the true nature and scope of war crimes committed by different sides in the conflict." No one, he said, had been charged for crimes against Bosnian croats and no one had been sentenced for crimes in Croatia itself despite ample evidence and 14,000 deaths. Yugoslavia, he said, continued to harbour perpetrators of heinous war crimes committed in the Danube City of Vukovar in 1991, a major obstacle to any reconciliation process. Mr Granic also said again that the United Nations should end its small observer mission on the disputed Prevlaka Peninsula bordering the Yugoslav republic of Montenegro, charging Yugoslavia with refusing to recognise borders. "Further prolongation of the mandate will only serve those who wish to stall negotiations indefinitely, which is contrary to good neighbourly relations and the interests of stability in the wider region." The Security Council has renewed until January 15 its 27-member observer mission in Prevlaka, which is to monitor sections of the Peninsula until its boundaries are decided in a future settlement. (REUTERS) |
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Chinese Gen says Sino-Indian treaty promotes stability BEIJING, Sept 26: Chinas has said that the confidence building treaties signed by Beijing since 1994 with bordering countries like India has promoted stability and prosperity in the region. Since 1994, China was signed several treaties with bordering countries like Russia, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan and India aimed at increasing mutual trust, safeguarding border security, which in turn promoted stability and prosperity in each country, China’s Defence Minister General Chi Haotian told the official Xinhua news agency. Gen Chi was referring to the November 1996 China-India agreement on Confidence Building Measures (CBM) in the military field along the Line of Actual Control in the China-India border areas which was signed during the historic state visit to New Delhi by Chinese President Jiang Zemin of ex-sericeman, Ghulam Ahmad Shah at Warildan-Asham late last night and killed him and his daughter. Shah, a former state police inspector, was shot from point blank range while his daughter was killed when she tried to rescue here father, the spokesman said. A few hours later, they struck again in the area killing Gulshan Akhter in her house at Waripora, he said. A Special Operations Group (SOG) camp was also attacked by militants again in the area at at around 0300 hours today. The policemen present in the camp returned the fire and the shootout lasted for nearly half-an-hour. However, no one was injured in the shootout after which the militants fled the scene. Meanwhile, an unidentified militant was killed in an encounter with security forces at Tangdhar in Kupwara district today. Some arms and ammunition were seized from the militant. (PTI) |
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Fresh Sri Lanka fighting kills 19 COLOMBO, Sept 26: Renewed fighting between Government forces and LTTE militants left at least 17 rebels and two security personnel killed, the Defence Ministry said here today. The military shot dead 12 members of the separatist Liberation Tigers of the Tamil Eelam (LTTE) in the Northern Wanni region yesterday in four separate clashes, the ministry said. It said another five rebels were killed by troops in the North of the country on Friday while the rebels shot dead a policeman and a Navy sailor. The LTTE is leading a drawn out campaign for independence in the island’s Northern and Eastern regions. (AFP) |
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Jet Airways to augment its countrywide network TOULOUSE (FRANCE), Sept 26: Stealing a march over Indian Airlines, domestic private airline Jet Airways will begin operating next month a new generation of short haul aircraft to further augment its countrywide network with the first of its ATR 72-500 turbo-prop planes, complete with the Airways’ Insignia, being test flown here today. The first of the five contracted 70-seater ATRs, manufactured by aerospatiale of France and Alenia of Italy, is scheduled to touch down in India on October 3 and the Airways would begin the commercial operations on the regional network from October 15. The ATRs, being purchased at a price of US dollars 17 million a piece, have been acquired by the Airways under an operating lease through US company Aircraft International Renting Ltd, an airways spokesperson told newspersons here. Indian Airlines has been holding negotations with ATR for purchase of these highly fuel efficient passenger planes with a range of 900 nautical miles but the deal has yet to go through. The IA-ATR negotiations also included manufacture of the 40 seater and 70 seater versions of the aircraft at Hindustan Aeronautics Limited for use by Border Security Force and other agencies to replace the ageing fleet of HS-748 turbo-prop planes. The phased delivery of the five ATRs, which have been selected after a long evaluation process, will be completed by March next year, the spokesperson said. The first ATR would allow the airways to add Udaipur, Keshod, Porbandar, Chandigarh, Bhavnagar, Diu, Vishakhapatnam and Tirupati on to its route network and also provide new connections from its major hubs in Mumbai, Delhi, Banglaore and Hyderabad on a daily basis. With the induction of the fifth aircraft, the private airline would provide over 200 flights daily to 39 destinations across the country. The airways is already having a tie up with airline giant British Airways to bring passengers flying destinations abroad from regional stations to international airports in Delhi, Calcutta, Mumbai and Chennai. At present, the airways has 155 flights to 30 destinations. The ATRs would be in addition to 25 boeing 737 planes being operated by the airways which commenced flying in May 1993 and is a now direct competitor of Indian Airlines on domestic routes. The airways has also bought four brand new boeing 737-800 aircraft, two of which have been inducted recently. They would replace leased boeing 737-400 jets. Powered by two Pratt and Whitney turbo-prop engines, the number of ATRs serving across the globe are 188 in North America, 256 in Europe, 31 in Latin America, 37 in Africa and the Middle-East and 93 in the Asia Pacific region, ATR Chief Executive Officer Antoine Bouvier said. (PTI) |
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Japan agrees to implement fresh
stimulus measures WASHINGTON, Sept 26: Major industrial nations expressed concern yesterday about the effect a rising yen could have on world economic growth, adding that Japan had agreed to implement additional stimulus measures to boost its economy. In a statement released after a meeting of Finance Ministers and Central Bankers from the Group of Seven (G7) major industrial nations, the group said Japan had pledged to inject more money into its economy, which should help cap the yen’s recent rise. But the statement gave no indication whether Japan’s G7 partners are willing to support its recent efforts to rein in the yen by selling it on the open market. The outlook for Japan’s economy, the second largest in the world, and the impact of the rising yen on its fledgling recovery figured high on the agenda of the G7 — Britain, Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan and the United States —at their Saturday meeting. "We shared Japan’s concern about the potential impact of the yen’s appreciation for the Japanese economy and the world economy," the statement said. Japanese authorities had pledged to "implement stimulus measures until domestic-demand-led growth is solidly in place and, in the context of their zero interest rate policy, to provide ample liquidity until deflationary concerns are dispelled," the G7 added. The yen has risen about 14 per cent against the dollar since early July, a gain large enough to spark fears it could make Japanese exports too expensive and throw Japan’s recovery off track. Japan wanted the support of its G7 partners in its battle to tame the high flying yen. But the United States has been reticent about the idea of joint intervention in currency markets and wanted Tokyo to go further to reflate its economy and boost domestic demand. The G7 statement — which in large parts reflected language recently used by US officials — also said economic prospects for major industrial nations had improved. But it added that "we still face a number of challenges" to make the world economy a better and more stable place. (REUTERS) |
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