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Sweden awards Nobels but shy writer stays home STOCKHOLM, Dec 11: Scientists and economists from the United States, Israel and Norway received their Nobel prizes at a ceremony marked by the .....more Aamir Khan in Pak to raise funds for Imran’s hospital ISLAMABAD, Dec 11: Bollywood star Aamir Khan, currently touring Pakistan to ......more US says Iraqi hospital used by rebels in ambush BAGHDAD, Dec 11: US forces trying to take back control of Ramadi, a rebellious city west ....more Cambodia police probe brothel abduction, shelter closed PHNOM PENH, Dec 11: Cambodian police are investigating a raid on a US-funded women’s shelter in which gunmen abducted 93 ...more |
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Taiwan votes for Parliament, focus on China ties TAIPEI, Dec 11: Taiwan voters went to the polls to pick a new Parliament today in an election viewed as a referendum on pro-Independence President . ....more Portugal reporter sentenced to jail over source LISBON, Dec 11: A Portuguese reporter who refused in a court case to reveal a.....more US seeks UN session marking Auschwitz anniversary UNITED NATIONS, Dec 11: The United States, backed by 30 other nations, asked the .....more Spain’s Bishops rally to promote Catholic marriage MADRID, Dec 11: Spain’s Catholic Bishops launched a counter-offensive to promote traditional heterosexual marriage, barely two, ........more |
Sweden awards Nobels but shy writer stays home STOCKHOLM, Dec 11: Scientists and economists from the United States, Israel and Norway received their Nobel prizes at a ceremony marked by the conspicuous absence of literature laureate Elfriede Jelinek of Austria. Kenyan Wangari Maathai, the 2004 Nobel peace laureate, received her prize in Oslo, becoming the seventh African and the first African woman to win that award. Jelinek, a feminist author who suffers from a social Phobia, declined to receive her prize from Sweden’s King Carl XVI Gustaf saying the public spotlight was "like a physical violation" for her. She will receive the prize at the Swedish embassy instead. The Nobels, widely regarded as the world’s most prestigious accolades in science and literature, have been awarded since 1901. The 2004 prizes are worth 10 million crowns (1.5 million dollars) each and bring the winners instant fame. Israeli chemistry laureate aaron ciechanover said earlier in the week in stockholm that his world had been turned upside down from the moment he was told he had won the prize in October. "I answered the phone and my plain, orderly life was turned into chaos in 10 seconds," he told reporters. Five of the prizes — Medicine, Physics, Chemistry, Literature and Peace — were founded in the will of Swedish 19th century industrialist Alfred Nobel, the inventor of dynamite. "Alfred Nobel realised the importance of science in the evolution of our world," Prof Bengt Samuelsson, chairman of the Nobel foundation, said in a speech at the awards ceremony. "Modern society has become so dependent on science that its very foundation is based on scientific progress," he said. The economics prize established by Sweden’s central bank has been awarded since 1969 despite recurring criticism that economics is not an exact science in the same league as Physics, Chemistry or Medicine. In the recent past most science laureates have been Americans and 2004 was no exception with US scientists sweeping the Physics and Medicine awards. David Gross, David Politzer and Frank Wilczek won in Physics for showing how tiny quark particles interact inside atoms. Linda Buck and Richard Axel earned the Medicine prize for discovering how the human sense of smell works. When the pair were asked at a news conference this week what was their favourite smell, buck pointed to a Flower and Axel said: "My favourite smell is the scent of a woman." Israel got its first Nobel science prize laureates, Avram Hershko and ciechanover sharing the honours with American Irwin Rose for research into how the body defends against disease by marking undesirable proteins for destruction. American Edward Prescott and Norwegian Finn Kydland picked up the economics prize for studies that laid the groundwork for more independent Central banks. Her tree-planting movement, led mostly by women, aims to produce firewood, building materials and to slow deforestation. Kenya has lost about 90 percent of its forests in the past 50 years. The movement also works for women’s rights, democracy and peace. Maathai said a stream where she used to see frogs and tadpoles as a child 50 years ago had dried up. "The challenge is to restore the home of the tadpoles and give back to our children a world of beauty and wonder," she said. Maathai dismissed critics who say environmentalism has too little to do with peace to warrant the Nobel accolade. "The state of any country’s environment is a reflection of the kind of governance in place, and without good governance there can be no peace," she said. ‘’this year, the norwegian nobel committee has evidently broadened its definition of peace still further,’’ said committee chairman Ole Danbolt Mjoes, noting past prizes to politicians, anti-communist dissidents or human rights workers. In an interview , Maathai brushed aside her past suggestions that the deadly aids virus might have been the result of a laboratory experiment gone awry. "I really don’t know. I really don’t have any idea. I’m not an expert in this field," she said. She also denied suggesting that scientists might have created the virus as a biological weapon against Africans. Prizes for Physics, Chemistry, Medicine, Literature and Economics were handed out in Stockholm last night. (AGENCIES) |
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Aamir Khan in Pak to raise funds for Imran’s hospital ISLAMABAD, Dec 11: Bollywood star Aamir Khan, currently touring Pakistan to raise funds for a cancer hospital built by former cricketer Imran Khan in Lahore, has emphasised the need for building trust and friendship between the two countries. "Let the prejudices go by building trust and faith," Aamir told the media after receiving a rapturous welcome on arrival in Lahore yesterday. "Millions of people across the divide are hoping for the best," he said, referring to the rapprochement between India and Pakistan. Like all other Indians visiting Pakistan, Aamir too had to confront questions on Kashmir issue but much to the chagrin of the local scribes Imran intervened to say that war could never resolve the issue. People of both the countries had decided that they could not live with their neighbours in a state of tension, Imran said. "Now it is the duty of political leaders to resolve the issue," he was quoted in the local media as saying. When asked whether there was any discrimination against Muslims in India, Aamir said he was never subjected to bias in his country for being a Muslim. Stressing the importance of friendship, Aamir, whose close relatives live in Karachi, said the two countries should look at what they could achieve together than persisting with hostilities. Both countries could significantly move ahead in developing cordial relations through the media, he said adding arts, sports and culture had no boundaries and could bring people closer. Aamir said half of his mother’s family still lived in Karachi, that included his maternal uncle. To questions about anti-Pakistan movies in India, he said personally he would not act in any film which would create hatred against any country. "I am glad that such movies are no more in demand and producers and directors are now compelled to make movies that promote love and peace between the two neighbours," he said. When asked who was the superstar of the Hindi film industry, Aamir said he has heard Shahrukh Khan calling himself the ‘Baadshah’ of Bollywood. "Well, if he is Baadshah (king) then I am ikka (ace)." To another question, he said he would love to perform in a Pakistani movie if the theme and story were strong and the project had the consent of Pakistani and Indian Governments. He said people in Pakistan loved to watch Hindi movies, while Indians like Pakistani TV serials, comedy and music. Aamir said he had started avoiding award ceremonies as his early experiences at such functions were not good. "As I lost value of awards, I opted not to attend such gatherings." He said he was more than happy to come to Pakistan when an invitation came from Imran. "The hospital which was created with the personal efforts of Imran Khan, has now become a focus of struggle for all the people of Pakistan." Aamir also said he had read Quran twice and had hired a tutor to learn Urdu. "The first Urdu lesson will begin in Mumbai on Dec 19." As part of the fund-raising for the hospital, Aamir will be featuring along with Imran, who plans to build one more hospital in Karachi, in a three-hour live ‘Telethon’ show being organised by local GEO TV. He would also attend two fund-raiser dinners at Lahore and Karachi. (PTI) |
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US says Iraqi hospital used by rebels in ambush BAGHDAD, Dec 11: US forces trying to take back control of Ramadi, a rebellious city west of Baghdad that is effectively in insurgent hands, said they were fired at by guerrillas hiding out inside Ramadi’s main hospital. "Soldiers from the 1st marine division ... Were ambushed by insurgents operating in and near the Ramadi general hospital and medical college," the military said. A statement said the attack took place yesterday. "Some of the muzzle flashes of insurgent firing positions were observed as originating from windows within the hospital." The military said rebel fighters had turned off all the lights in the hospital and surrounding buildings as the soldiers approached, before unleashing rocket-propelled grenades and small arms fire as soon as the lights were turned back on. "Soldiers pushed through the ambush, returning defensive fire, some of which was aimed at insurgents in the hospital," the statement said. It said no US soldiers were wounded or killed in the fighting, but did not give any information about insurgent casualties. The US military’s account could not be confirmed. Ramadi and nearby Falluja have been two of the most violent and rebellious cities over the past 18 months of uprising against US forces in Iraq, forming insurgent bastions. US marines and soldiers stormed Falluja last month to quell the insurgency there, killing an estimated 1,600 fighters and capturing around 1,000 more as they crushed the stronghold in two weeks of fierce fighting. Some areas remain volatile. One of the first objectives in that offensive was Falluja’s main hospital. US officials said it was being used as an insurgent base and said doctors were working with the rebels, giving out false information about Iraqi civilian casualties. Some Iraqi doctors were briefly taken into detention and us forces retain a presence at the hospital. The doctors strongly denied any links to the insurgency and said US forces were trying to suppress news of civilian deaths. During days of aerial bombardment of Falluja ahead of the offensive, Iraqi doctors said scores of civilians were killed and at least one clinic was bombed, killing patients and doctors. The US military denied the attack. While the insurgent threat in Falluja may have been quashed, Ramadi remains a problem for the US military, which has pledged to retake all rebel-held areas of Iraq before the end of the year so elections can be held on time on Jan 30. There has been frequent fighting in the streets and outskirts of the city in recent days and a heavily fortified US camp in the city is regularly mortared. Car bombs are frequently detonated alongside US patrols. The marines said they would return to speak with staff at Ramadi’s hospital to assess the damage caused in yesterday’s firefight and investigate the incident. In a separate incident in the city, the 1st marine division said it had destroyed a large weapons cache discovered in a suburb of Ramadi late last night. (AGENCIES) |
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Cambodia police probe brothel abduction, shelter closed PHNOM PENH, Dec 11: Cambodian police are investigating a raid on a US-funded women’s shelter in which gunmen abducted 93 women and young girls a day after police had rescued them from a brothel, officials said today. Washington has demanded a full probe into the incident which began on Tuesday when the victims were rescued from the Chhay Hour 2 hotel, a reputed brothel in the capital Phnom Penh, and taken to the shelter. A day later 30 armed gunmen abducted the group in a raid on the shelter, which has closed temporarily after its employees were threatened by the intruders. Police said they did not know who had stormed the shelter and no arrests had been made. "We cannot ignore this and we need further investigation," General Heng Peov, Phnom Penh’s Police Chief, told . About 50 of the women had shown up at the US embassy in Phnom Penh early today to say they were not prostitutes but worked at the hotel as bar or massage girls, Heng Peov said. He said the group, aged 18 to 28, had either returned to work at the hotel or had gone home. "They were not sex workers. They just worked as massage or Karaoke girls," said Heng Peov. Embassy officials were unavailable for comment, but in Washington a top US diplomat in charge of combating human trafficking demanded a full investigation. "What the Government of Cambodia has to do is arrest the traffickers, free the victims and stand behind the police chief who made the raid," said John Miller, Director of the State Department’s Office to monitor and combat trafficking in persons. Cambodia’s anti-human trafficking and juvenile protection department, headed by General UN Sokunthea, had rescued the women and children and arrested operators of the brothel hotel on Dec 7, the state department said in a statement. The statement said eight brothel operators were reportedly released a day later and went back armed to seize the victims from a shelter run by the NGO Agir Pour Les Femmes En Situation Precaire —acting for women in distressing situations (AFESIP). The group receives US funding, but it has closed its doors after its workers received death threats. "If they could storm into our office, they could also kill us," said AFESIP president Mam Somaly. "We have closed our office until the Government brings the perpetrators to justice. If they fail to do so we will shut our office forever," she added. She said many of the girls were under 18, the age of consent in Cambodia, and might have been pressured to say they were not involved in prostitution. "We did our job and leave it to the Government to handle it". Cambodia emerged in the early 1990s from decades of war and the death of an estimated 1.7 million people under pol pot’s 1975-79 "killing fields" regime. But the country remains one of the world’s poorest. Cambodia and neighbouring southeast Asian states such as Myanmar and Thailand are considered sources and transit routes for women and children trafficked for sex. Miller said the incident was a disappointing setback because Cambodia had made some headway in fighting trafficking in people in recent years. (AGENCIES) |
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Taiwan votes for Parliament, focus on China ties TAIPEI, Dec 11: Taiwan voters went to the polls to pick a new Parliament today in an election viewed as a referendum on pro-Independence President Chen Shui-Bian’s policy towards arch-rival China. Chen is seeking to wrest the Parliamentary majority from an opposition that is more conciliatory towards China, and promises Taiwan’s 23 million people a new constitution if he succeeds. Such pledges enrage China, which claims the self-governing democratic island as part of its territory and says a new constitution is a dangerous declaration of Independence by a renegade province that can lead to war. Under sunny skies, eligible voters queued up in schools and temples to cast their ballots. "The race will decide who has control of Parliament. I urge every voter not to give up their chance because it is about our future," said Taipei Mayor Ma-Ying-Jeou after casting his vote. Ma is vice chairman of the main opposition nationalist party that ruled Taiwan for more than 50 years before being routed by Chen in Presidential polls in 2000. An opposition alliance led by the Nationalist party now holds 51 per cent of the legislative yuan’s 225 seats. "Let us win a majority and a stable parliament," Chen said on the eve of the election as thousands of supporters waved green party flags and shouted "unite and love Taiwan" at a rally. Chen’s Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) wants to grab 101 of Parliament’s 225 seats and, with its ally, the Taiwan solidarity union, win a mandate to push through policies which analysts say are likely to antagonise Beijing. The legislative campaign, following on the heels of a hotly contested Presidential vote, has deepened bitter divisions in Taiwan, between people who seek formal statehood and those who do not want to rule out eventual unification with China. "I’ve lived here for decades. The nationalists gave me a house to live and I will never vote for anyone else," 79-year-old retiree Chao Fu-Chu-Lan, whose family fled with nationalist troops to Taiwan after a civil war ended in 1949 on the mainland. Some analysts expect neither side to score a clear majority today, forcing coalitions with independents. "Parliament is so chaotic and we need to put chaos to an end. I voted for the DPP because I don’t want to see continued chaos," said Eddy Chen, 32, referring to how opposition control of Parliament has brought lawmaking to a virtual standstill. Chen has proposed to drop China from the names of state-owned companies and from overseas representative offices in two years. However, he has stopped short of supporting pro-Independence demands that Taiwan scrap its official title, the republic of China, in a new constitution. Chen has promised not to hold a referendum on Independence and reiterated yesterday his desire for talks with China. But his olive branches are likely to be ignored by China, which has pointed over 600 missiles at the island in preparation for a possible conflict if Taiwan declares formal Independence. China refuses to deal with Chen and most analysts say a DPP election win would be likely to fuel tension in the Taiwan Strait, one of the most dangerous flashpoints in Asia. "If we win, people can expect peace across the Taiwan Strait," Lien told reporters after walking out of voting booths. Voting booths will close at 1600 hrs (1330 hrs ist) and the first results are expected to trickle in within an hour, starting with the thinly populated islands of quemoy and matsu off the coast of mainland China. (AGENCIES) |
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Portugal reporter sentenced to jail over source LISBON, Dec 11: A Portuguese reporter who refused in a court case to reveal a source received a suspended jail sentence of 11 months in a decision condemned by a journalists’ union leader. Jose Luis Manso Preto, a freelance reporter for the weekly expresso newspaper, was sentenced by a Lisbon Judge because he declined to reveal a source in a drug-trafficking case, said Alfredo Maia, chairman of the journalists’ union. Manso Preto said he was saddened by the decision and called it excessive. He vowed to appeal. "I think this sentence ... Could put freedom of the press at risk in Portugal and create a very serious and dangerous precedent," he told private TSF radio. The 11-month sentence was suspended for three years. Manso Preto had declined to name a source when called in 2002 as a defence witness for two brothers charged with drug trafficking. He had cited a journalist’s obligation to keep the names of sources secret. "This is unprecedented. We had expected a more favourable decision," Maia told . (AGENCIES) |
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US seeks UN session marking Auschwitz anniversary UNITED NATIONS, Dec 11: The United States, backed by 30 other nations, asked the UN General Assembly to convene a special session next month to mark the 60th anniversary of the liberation of the Nazi concentration camps. All 25 nations of the European Union, Russia, Canada, Australia, New Zealand and Israel joined Washington in calling for a UN commemoration of the anniversary on Jan 24, US officials said. Soviet red army troops freed the Auschwitz concentration camp in southern Poland on Jan 27, 1945, and the anniversary of that date is to be observed in 2005 as Holocaust memorial day. An Assembly session on the Holocaust would mark a change in focus for the Assembly which typically meets several days a year to discuss and vote on issues relating to Israel’s occupation of the Palestinian territories. US Ambassador John Danforth, in a letter to UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan, said the 191-nation General Assembly should convene three days before the actual anniversary to avoid conflicting with a similar event in Auschwitz to be attended by several heads of state. "Citizens of many nations were victims of the concentration camps, forces from numerous states participated in their liberation and survivors reside in many countries throughout the world." Danforth said last night. "We believe that it is important that the United Nations, an organization that rose out of the ashes of World War II and the Holocaust, mark this important occasion in a manner fitting its historical significance," he said. Six million Jews were exterminated in Nazi camps and millions of others including poles, homosexuals, Soviet prisoners and gypsies, also known as Roma, were among those killed, imprisoned or used as slave labor in the camps. Under Assembly rules, a majority of UN members must agree to the request within 30 days for the session to be convened. Danforth called for the special session under a rule putting the matter in the hands of Annan rather than Assembly President Jean Ping of Gabon. (AGENCIES) |
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Spain’s Bishops rally to promote Catholic marriage MADRID, Dec 11: Spain’s Catholic Bishops launched a counter-offensive to promote traditional heterosexual marriage, barely two months after the socialist Government approved a controversial draft law to legalise gay unions. The Church campaign, centred on a quote from the Bible, is aimed at promoting men and women as natural partners and does not mention church opposition to same-sex unions. But with the new law yet to pass through Parliament, Bishops’ conference spokesman Juan Antonio Martinez said defending the Catholic stance meant rejecting homosexual marriage. "The reality of marriage is based...On this fundamental difference (between men and women) that forms part of God’s plan as creator," he said at the launch. "Whoever tries to cloud the clear distinction...Between marriage and other forms of unions does serious harm to...Human coexistence." Leaflets featuring a glamorous couple staring lovingly into each others’ eyes and playing with young children have been distributed to Churches across the country. Martinez said the campaign was targeted mainly at believers and the Bishops did not want a showdown with the Government. "We do not want to fight with anyone, we want to spread the good news about marriage...If certain political or legislative agendas go against this, that is their problem." They may face a losing battle to sway public opinion beyond the ranks of the faithful, however. Although over 90 percent of Spaniards describe themselves as Catholic only around a quarter are regular Church-goers, and a recent survey showed over 60 percent of the population backed the gay marriage law. (AGENCIES) Ancient gold mask to be returned to Peru LIMA, PERU, Dec 11: A gold mask dating back more than 1,000 years to a pre-inca civilization in northern Peru will be returned home next year after being turned in to police by a collector in Italy, a museum official said. The well-preserved mask, measuring 35 cm long by 22 cm wide, represents the sea God naylamp from the sican culture, Carlos Elera, Director of the National Sican Museum in Peru told by telephone. "It’s authentic. It’s classic Sican, gold with deep red mercury sulfide which had religious importance in the beliefs of the ancient peruvians," Elera said. The Sican, or Lambayeque, culture flourished on Peru’s northern coast 1,200 years ago. Countless archeological finds made the area a magnet for looters for many years. There is no record of the mask having been stolen from any museum or private collection in Peru and Elera said it could have been taken out of the country in the 1960s or 1970s after being sold to foreign collectors by grave-robbers. Peru’s embassy in Italy said the mask was handed over by its owner after joint diplomatic and police efforts. It gave no further details. "It’s very likely it will be returned at the end of January 2005," Elera said. The mask will then be displayed in the national Sican museum alongside some 250 other gold artifacts. (AGENCIES) Godfather of soul James Brown has prostate cancer NEW YORK, Dec 11: Singer James Brown, the music pioneer known as the Godfather of soul, has prostate cancer and will have surgery next week, his publicist said. The 71-year-old Brown, who just finished a two-week Canadian tour, will have surgery at an undisclosed hospital in Georgia on Dec 15, said publicist simone smalls yesterday. Brown then plans to begin promoting his memoir, "I feel good: A memoir of a life of soul," to be published in January. Brown has had 119 singles make the charts and made more than 50 albums since his debut record, "please, please, please," was released in 1956. Fans wanting to direct well-wishes to Brown can address him at jbzintriguemusic.Com, smalls said. A member of the rock roll hall of fame and honored with lifetime achievement award by the Grammys, brown was recognized at the Kennedy center honors last year where presenter Secretary of State Colin Powell called him the "secretary of soul" and "foreign minister of funk." (AGENCIES) Words fail Balkan leaders when it comes to Kosovo TIRANA, Dec 11: Balkan heads of state said dialogue was the only way to heal the war-ravaged region but could not agree on words for the Kosovo question and had to leave it out their summit statement. The Presidents of Albania, Bulgaria, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Croatia, Macedonia and Serbia and Montenegro met in Tirana for two days to discuss inter-ethnic and inter-religious dialogue in the Balkans. "We are all committed to making use of dialogue as the only way to achieve full stability and overall progress in south-east Europe, leading to the successful completion of the European integration process in the entire region," a statement said yesterday. But there was no mention of Kosovo — the most critical and explosive issue facing the Balkans as ethnic Albanians press for Independence in 2005 against serb determination to recover the province from UN rule. A proposed clause on Kosovo had to be left out because Serbia and Montenegro and Albania could not smooth over their differences even on neutral wording of the problem. "The clause on Kosovo was struck out because Serbia wanted to say the issue should be dealt with through ‘European solutions’ while Albania wanted to say it will happen in the context of a ‘European future’," a diplomatic source said. Albania’s formulation implied negotiations should include the United Nations and the United States, which took the lead in the NATO bombing of Serbia in 1999 over its treatment of ethnic Albanians. Belgrade disagrees. Kosovo is still legally part of Serbia but Belgrade pulled its troops out after the bombing, since when the mainly ethnic Albanian province has been run by the United Nations. (AGENCIES) Schindler’s list producer loses appeal in polish scam WARSAW, Dec 11: Polish filmmaker Lew Rywin, who co-produced "schindler’s list", lost an appeal against his conviction in a bribery scandal which was a major factor in the plunge in popularity of Poland’s ruling left. But the appeals court reduced the gravity of Rywin’s conviction, by saying he was a messenger and not the brainchild in the corruption scandal. Rywin was convicted in April of soliciting a 17.5 million dollars bribe from leading daily Gazeta Wyborcza in return for changes to legislation that would have allowed Gazeta’s publisher Agora to buy a television station. "There are reasons to say that the defendant was acting as a messenger of unknown individuals. The accused didn’t act alone. He was only an assistant," Judge Grzegorz Salamon said, adding that he did not know who used Rywin. The court reduced Rywin’s jail term by six months to two years. Rywin has always said he was innocent. According to a taped conversation of the bribe attempt, Rywin approached Gazeta on behalf of a "group holding power". A Parliamentary investigation was launched to investigate who could be in such a group. In May, Parliament approved a report written by the opposition in which the finger was pointed at several close associates of then Prime Minister Leszek Miller. It also blamed Leftist President Aleksander Kwasniewski of failing to take action even though he was aware of the scandal. "Justice will be served if now the prosecutors go after the people standing behind this, not the messenger," opposition leader Jan Rokita, who gained popularity for his leading role on the investigative panel, told private television TVN24. (AGENCIES) |
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