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| Afghans say don’t think militants have UN hostages KABUL, Nov 17: Three UN workers abducted almost three weeks ago in Afghanistan are probably still being held in the.....more An apple a
day does keep WASHINGTON, Nov 17: An apple a day really does keep the doctor away, thanks to strong antioxidants that fight cell....more Indo-US
hi-tech cooperation WASHINGTON, Nov 17: Keen to carry forward their strategic partnership, India and the US will hold the next round of....more Catholic
Church adjusts to PARIS, Nov 17: Now that it is often treated like a maligned minority, the Roman Catholic Church in western Europe has.......more |
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NASA test flight nears 7,000 mph, breaks record LOS ANGELES, Nov 17: An unmanned experimental jet broke a world record for speed, cruising over the Pacific Ocean.....more Schwarzenegger
STOCKTON, CALIF, Nov 17: Declaring that past criticism of California’s juvenile prisons was justified, Gov Arnold......more Beach boy
brian Wilson SAO PAULO, BRAZIL, Nov 17: Considering that once upon a time he would spend weeks on end lying in bed at home......more Taliban
kill six in raid KABUL, Nov 17: Taliban gunmen raided a police post near an Afghan hydro-power dam and killed six policemen........more |
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Afghans say don’t think militants have UN hostages KABUL, Nov 17: Three UN workers abducted almost three weeks ago in Afghanistan are probably still being held in the Kabul area and not by a Taliban splinter faction that has threatened to kill them, the Interior Ministry said today. "We don’t think Jaish-e-Muslimeen has control over them," said ministry spokesman Lutfullah Mashal. "You can tell by the deadlines and the demands which keep being broken and relaxed." "We think they are being held by some armed robbers who abducted them. Our reports suggest that the hostages are still in or around Kabul." Annetta Flanigan from northern Ireland, Kosovan Shqipe Hebibi and Filipino diplomat Angelito Nayan were abducted by armed men in central Kabul on Oct 28 after helping run Presidential elections won by US-backed incumbent Hamid Karzai. The Jaish-e-Muslimeen (army of Muslims), a Taliban splinter faction, says it holds the three and has demanded the release of 26 Taliban prisoners in return for the hostages. However, it has gradually relaxed its demands and successive deadlines have passed without apparent incident. Mashal said Jaish might be in contact with the group whose men in camouflage uniforms snatched the workers from their car. "We think the gang may have been trying to make contact with groups that were interested in them," he said. "But we don’t think that Jaish has control over them — they are just a small group trying to make publicity." While there has been speculation the hostages were not in the hands of the militants, the Interior Ministry has previously declined to comment or give any details of efforts to free the hostages. Some diplomats have speculated that the kidnapping could have been carried out by men loyal to a rival of President Karzai, disgruntled by the handling of the Oct 9 election and its aftermath, who have tried to profit from the abductions. Mashal said security forces believed Jaish-e-Muslimeen bought a video showing the frightened hostages and a kidnapper with his face hidden by a scarf that appeared on Arabic Al-Jazeera television three days after their abduction. He said Jaish chief Akbar Agha did not have the resources to stage a kidnapping in Kabul. "We are sure they are not far away," he said of the hostages. If Jaish militants were holding them, they would have released another video, he said. The hostages have not been heard of since the beginning of last week when two were allowed to make calls home. Mashal said security forces had tight control over routes in and out of Kabul immediately after the kidnapping. "We don’t think they have gone out of Kabul province." "We are keeping our fingers crossed, we are trying our best to find the hostages with intelligence, surveillance and raids. "We hope the kidnappers come to realise that it is not just the international community against them, but Afghans as well, and there will be no place for them in Afghanistan or for their families if they don’t give up the hostages." Mullah Sabir Momin, one of several men claiming to speak for Jaish, said earlier the group’s Shura, or council, met yesterday to discuss the fate of the hostages. He said no decision had been taken but a majority favoured executing them. He said a decision would be taken by leader Akbar Agha, who has said he did not favour killing them. A Government official said authorities were considering offering a ransom, but Jaish has said it would not accept that and was insisting on the release of at least 15 prisoners. Momin said the group had become frustrated with talks through intermediaries with the Government and would not continue them, but it was willing to talk to the United Nations. (AGENCIES) |
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An apple a day does keep doctor away: US study WASHINGTON, Nov 17: An apple a day really does keep the doctor away, thanks to strong antioxidants that fight cell damage, US researchers reported. Rat Brain cells exposed to the antioxidant — in this case quercetin — resisted damage much better than those not treated, the team at cornell university in New York found. Antioxidants are compounds that counteract the damage done by chemicals known as free radicals — generated by sunlight, chemical reactions and the stress of day-to-day living. The researchers say their study adds strength to the theory that the risk of developing Alzheimer’s and similar brain diseases might be reduced by eating plenty of fresh fruits and vegetables. Writing in the Dec 1 issue of the Journal of Agricultural and Food Chemistry, the Cornell team said they soaked rat brain cells in either quercetin or Vitamin C — another potent antioxidant. The cells were then exposed to hydrogen peroxide to mimic the type of oxidative cell damage that is believed to occur with Alzheimer’s disease. Brain cells that were treated with quercetin had significantly less damage than the cells treated with Vitamin C and cells that were not treated with antioxidants. "On the basis of serving size, fresh apples have some of the highest levels of quercetin when compared to other fruits and vegetables and may be among the best food choices for fighting Alzheimer’s," C Y Lee, a Professor and Chairman of the Department of Food Science Technology at Cornell university, who led the study, said in a statement yesterday. "People should eat more apples, especially fresh ones," he added. Lee said the skins of apples contain the highest levels of quercetin so juice is not necessarily the best source. In general, red apples tend to have more of the antioxidant than green or yellow ones, he said. Other foods high in quercetin include onions, blueberries and cranberries. (AGENCIES) |
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Indo-US hi-tech cooperation group to hold talks today WASHINGTON, Nov 17: Keen to carry forward their strategic partnership, India and the US will hold the next round of talks on high technology here tomorrow. The Indian delegation of the Indo-US high technology cooperation group is being led by Foreign Secretary Shyam Saran while the American side for the two-days talks will be headed by under Secretary for Commerce Kenneth Juster. The visit is expected to give Saran an opportunity to meet with the new Bush administration officials and discuss the general road map for further consolidating Indo-US relations. With National Security Adviser Condoleezza Rice all set to take over as the next secretary of state succeeding Colin Powell and her deputy Stephen Hadley ready to replace her, the talks on the ‘Next Steps in Strategic Partnership’ (NSSP) is expected to gain added momentum. Rice and Hadley have been key interlocutors in taking forward the NSSP. The two have helped revitalise civilian nuclear and space cooperation with India and ease high-technology transfers. Saran was here in September ahead of Prime Minister Manmohan Singh’s visit to New York for the UN General Assembly session when the two sides concluded the first phase of the NSSP. In January this year, Bush and then Prime Minister Atal Bahari Vajpayee had agreed to expand cooperation in civilian nuclear activities, civilian space programmes and high technology trade. In addition, the two countries agreed to expand their dialogue on high technology trade. During their maiden meeting on September 21, Bush and Manmohan Singh decided to embark on the second phase of the NSSP. Phase one included implementation of measures to address proliferation concerns and to ensure compliance with US export controls. American officials said these efforts have enabled Washington to make modifications to export licensing policies that will foster cooperation in commercial space programmes and permit certain exports to power plants at safeguarded nuclear facilities. They said these modifications, including removing the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) headquarters from the entity list of the Commerce Department were fully consistent with US Government non-proliferation laws, objectives and obligations. US proposals for container security initiative and maritime security initiative, which essentially entail greater cooperation in screening and transport of high risk cargo may figure during the parleys. (PTI) |
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Catholic Church adjusts to minority status in Europe PARIS, Nov 17: Now that it is often treated like a maligned minority, the Roman Catholic Church in western Europe has decided to start acting like one too. Taking a page from pressure group tactics, the Church is increasingly staging "Catholic pride" events in public and training members to stand up for their faith on the world’s most secularised continent. This new self-confidence marks a sharp departure from the defensive stand the once-powerful Church had taken since the 1960s in Europe, where religious practice has collapsed and catholicism is often the butt of cruel jokes. With such vital signs as Baptisms, Sunday mass attendance and new priestly vocations having fallen so low, some in the Church think the only way it can go now is up. "Something is changing," Brussels cardinal godfried Danneels told at a week-long conference in Paris aimed at rekindling the faith in the not very religious French capital. "The Church had descended into the Catacombs and was afraid of public manifestations. Now Catholics are a minority and, like all minorities, they don’t have complexes. They are much less afraid of professing their faith than they were 20 years ago." French sociologist Marcel Gauchet saw the change as a way for the Church to remake itself as a counter-culture. "No religion can exist anymore without some way of displaying its identity," he told the Catholic weekly La Vie. Europe’s younger generation has also changed, Danneels said during the "urban mission" drive attended by Catholics from around Europe in late October. "They are completely ignorant of most things about the Christian faith, but they are open to listen," he said. The Paris "urban mission" effort, a mix of conferences and concerts attracting Catholics from around Europe, was part of a five-year drive launched in 2003 in Vienna and due to continue in coming years in Lisbon, Brussels and Budapest. This campaign to strengthen Catholicism in Europe is a telling turn-around for a region once so solidly Christian that it sent missionaries around the world. Cathedrals grace its cities, but only 10-15 percent of Catholics worship regularly. John Paul II appealed for a "new evangelisation" as far back as 1979, during his first trip as pope to his native Poland, and has made this "proud to be Catholic" theme a trademark of his globe-trotting mission. But he was clearly ahead of his time. Paris cardinal Jean-Marie Lustiger, a Jewish-born convert, first suggested the "urban mission" idea to fellow cardinals as they discussed the Church in the new millennium. Like the world youth days, the pope’s bi-annual Jamborees often described as a "Catholic woodstock," "urban mission" events are strong on popular attractions such as theatre or rock, Reggae and Gospel music concerts. There was also a "happy hour" for young single Catholics. The cardinals sponsoring the event, aged between 52 and 78, seemed a bit defensive. "We are not televangelists," insisted lustiger as he explained why they staged the shows. Cardinal Christoph Schoenborn, whose city Vienna has a long history of art, architecture and music created for the Church, said contemporary culture was an important means to address youths he said were "practically religious illiterates." "The Church has always appealed to the senses with liturgy, theatre and music," he said. "The sensory means are different but the sensory perception remains." Budapest’s Peter Erdo, at 52 Catholicism’s youngest cardinal, admitted his tastes were more classical but added: "Young people communicate much less with the printed word and more with audiovisual methods. We have to recognise this." The message is not divorced from the music. At a Christian rock concert outside the Church of saint sulpice, tents were set up to offer information about Catholicism and space to sit down for a quiet talk with a priest. Inside, confessions were heard. Diocesan priests in Roman collars, Franciscans in their Brown Robes and nuns in pastel habits easily mixed and chatted with the crowds ranging from children to grandparents. "So many people are looking for meaning in their lives," said Christophe, a Paris seminarian enjoying the music. "If the Church doesn’t come out in public, where will they find us?" "This is great," said Eloi Sardin, a 16-year-old from limoges in southwestern France who knew all the groups on stage. "it’s a different approach to our religion." The main focus of the week was the "international Congress on the new evangelisation," a series of workshops aimed at helping Catholic activists to better know and live their faith. In parish Churches and Catholic school classrooms, they discussed how to talk about their faith with others, help the homeless or strengthen marriages when so many end in divorce. The meetings buzzed with the whispers of participants summarising the discussions in English, German, Portuguese or Hungarian for friends who couldn’t follow them in French. "This kind of meeting shows what richness there is in the Catholic Church," said Vienna teacher Birgit Knott. "it’s interesting to come and see how parishes work here," said Margit Schmatzer, one of the six pupils who came to Paris with her. Guy Gilbert, a long-haired French priest who has worked with juvenile delinquents for over 30 years, was clearly pleased with the new way the Church was presenting itself. "All the media says about the Church is that the Pope is against condoms and dribbles into the microphone," he said. "It’s good the Church shows a smiling face and tries to understand the world." (AGENCIES) |
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NASA test flight nears 7,000 mph, breaks record LOS ANGELES, Nov 17: An unmanned experimental jet broke a world record for speed, cruising over the Pacific Ocean at just under 7,000 miles per hour in a NASA test of cutting-edge "scramjet" engine technology. The X-43a aircraft yesterday flew at a speed of around mach 9.6 — nearly ten times the speed of sound — after a booster rocket took it to around 110,000 feet and then separated. A modified b-52 airplane had carried the experimental plane and booster aloft. It was the last of three test launches for the X-43a series and its supersonic-combustion ramjet or "scramjet" engine. The scramjet scoops up oxygen from the air rather than carrying liquid oxygen in a tank like an ordinary rocket. Scramjet technology, NASA has said, could open the way to cheaper, safer and faster flights into the upper atmosphere, with smaller and lighter craft. "I think it’s easier than people think it is. We can really do this stuff. I don’t mean to make it sound too easy, but it’s definitely doable," said Randy Voland, a senior research engineer on the project, at a news conference after the test. The eight-year, 230 million program got off to a rough start in June 2001 when the first X-43a and its booster rocket had to be destroyed in mid-air. The second attempt, in March of this year, successfully reached a speed of mach 7. That mach 7 flight set the previous world record for a jet-powered vehicle, NASA said. The silvery-black scramjet, just 12 feet long by five feet wide, took off from Edwards Air Force base in the desert north of Los Angeles perched below NASA’s b-52 in the early afternoon yesterday. After reaching launch altitude over the Pacific, the modified bomber dropped the scramjet and its booster rocket for a run at the speed record. NASA video images showed the scramjet rising sharply, powered by the booster rocket, before the booster separated at about 110,000 feet and the scramjet kicked in. After a few seconds, the X-43a entered a glide, quickly losing speed toward a crash-landing into the ocean following a total journey of around 800 miles. Along the way, the scramjet was expected to encounter temperatures of about 3,000 degrees fahrenheit, roughly one-third hotter than a test in march that reached mach 7. Engineers said the scramjet cruised after the separation, neither gaining nor losing speed during its operation. The 20 seconds of operation, they said, gave them far more research than they have had before on jet functions at those speeds. "We have quite a lot to look at for quite a long time to come," said Laurie Marshall, Chief Engineer on the flight. NASA said it had no plans to recover the craft, which has been standard procedure with the scramjet tests. The flight on tuesday had been delayed from the previous day owing to electronics problems. (AGENCIES) |
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Schwarzenegger vows reform of brutal youth prisons STOCKTON, CALIF, Nov 17: Declaring that past criticism of California’s juvenile prisons was justified, Gov Arnold Schwarzenegger settled a lawsuit aimed at improving conditions for the state’s 3,600 youth offenders. The settlement yesterday which aims to strengthen the California youth authority’s focus on rehabilitation, follows years of negative publicity following videotapes of beatings by guards and public outcry over the use of small cage/s for the most violent offenders in places such as prison classrooms. "The lawsuit said California should have done a better job with our youth offenders. It was right," Schwarzenegger said at a high-security youth detention facility in Stockton, east of San Francisco. "We want to correct the people that come in there," he said in a room overlooking a yard fenced in by double rows of Concertina wire. "It’s like a hospital. If you go and take a patient in the hospital, you correct the illness and then you release them." A group of prison reform advocates first brought the lawsuit against the youth authority, which oversees California’s juvenile prisons, in 2001. A videotape taken earlier this year of guards beating young inmates at the Stockton prison sharpened public concern. "The world’s sixth largest economy, i.e. The state of California, allowed its youth authority to fall to basically third world standards," said Richard Ulmer, one of the lawyers who had sued California over the issue. The legal settlement, which follows a decision in April to end the use of cages for the most violent inmates, established a court-appointed expert to oversee promised improvements. California’s youth prisons house about 3,600 offenders aged 11 to 25. Of this group, in 2003, a total of 210 were in for murder, youth authority statistics show. The state’s youth prisons were once seen as a national model for rehabilitation, but fell onto hard times over the years. Allen Breed, who headed the youth authority under Governors Ronald Reagan and Jerry Brown in the 1960s and 1970s, cited a number of reasons for the decline. "Politics began to enter the picture," he said in an interview. "People were brought in that had some political reason for having the appointment." Budget cuts eventually hit the department’s research staff which was focused on aiding in rehabilitation, and unionization of the guards also changed the nature of the juvenile prisons, he said. "The more they began to make these places look like prisons, the more the youth began to act like inmates," said Breed, who is now retired at age 84. Although he welcomed Tuesday’s agreement, he said far more fundamental changes were needed to fix California’s youth prisons, including closing down large facilities such as the one in stockton in favor of smaller community centers. Schwarzenegger vowed to do whatever it takes to improve conditions in California’s juvenile prisons. (AGENCIES) |
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Beach boy brian Wilson has reason to smile at last SAO PAULO, BRAZIL, Nov 17: Considering that once upon a time he would spend weeks on end lying in bed at home in California too addled to stir, it’s a surprise to find rock legend Brian Wilson topping the bill at a festival in far away Brazil at the age of 62. But here he is, the man described by the rock and roll hall of fame as an "undisputed genius" and the creator of some of the most sublime pop songs ever written. Against the odds, the mastermind behind the beach boys has become one of rock’s great survivors. Wilson was pushed to the brink of insanity by the pressure of fame and his efforts to explore new musical frontiers in the 1960s. He spent many years in a virtual wilderness, gripped by drugs, obesity, manipulative doctors and feuding band mates. Tales abound of his quirks. He once had his Piano placed in a sandpit in his living room so he could write songs while dreaming he was on the beach. His brothers carl and dennis, who provided sunny california harmonies to his songs, both died prematurely. Dennis drowned in 1983 having emerged unscathed from a friendship with mass murderer Charles Manson and Carl succumbed to cancer in 1998. Wilson’s renaissance only adds to the strange saga. "I would never have guessed it in my life," he said in an interview in Sao Paulo. "I feel healthy now. It feels very good. I like being Brian Wilson. I like performing for people, making music for people, making people happy." Traces of his psychological problems linger. He comes across like a sweet but slightly eccentric favourite uncle. His eyes look a bit Bewildered, his speech is occasionally slurred. But he is friendly and looks in good physical shape despite the rigours of this road trip. "I want to write songs that make people feel loved," he said, listing "don’t worry baby", "God only knows", and "Caroline, no" as his favourites of his own compositions. The current excitement among Wilson-watchers is over the September release of the 1967 album "smile" nearly 40 years after it was conceived. Long considered one of rock’s legendary lost albums, it’s appearance now has prompted comment even in such button-down organs as the Wall Street journal. It was intended to be the follow-up to 1966’s "pet sounds", Wilson’s answer to the beatles’ groundbreaking "revolver" and "rubber soul". But after marathon recording sessions and opposition from the other beach boys who wanted to stay with the surf, cars and girls formula, it was abandoned. A few songs appeared, including "heroes and villains" and "good vibrations", but for decades it lay dormant. Then nine months ago, Wilson said, his wife suggested he resurrect it. It was debuted live in London this summer to standing ovations. For the album, Wilson and his original collaborator Van Dyke Parkes and his band leader Darian Sahanaja rerecorded the original songs, pulled together some scraps and completed unfinished parts. The critics have raved. "Those who wish to heap gravitas upon smile will offer up comparisons to Charles Ives and Aaron Copeland but they might just as well have cited Hoagy Carmichael and Cole Porter," enthused a reviewer in the British magazine uncut. Wilson said he had wanted to capture the mood of early America, the wild west and Hawaii. "Pet sounds’ is not as good as ‘smile’. Pet sounds was an emotional experience but ‘smile’ is a jovial, up experience for people, especially young people who need that kind of thing. And old people too," he said. A shy man, Wilson had stopped performing regularly with the beach boys in 1964. But encouraged by a new regime of psychiatric care, he has toured relentlessly in the last few years with a crack band made up of seasoned session players and incorporating the IA alternative pop band the wondermints. Asked how he feels about playing live, he said: "Well, it’s a thrill," then he added: "I don’t want them to throw things at me from the stage. Now and then people throw things at entertainers and that’s why I get scared." There was a slight air of anxiety as the Sao Paulo concert began. Wilson sat centre stage behind a keyboard which he hardly played. His voice cracked at certain times and he marked time rather awkwardly with his arms. Yet the show was a triumph. It was a joyous celebration of timeless music rather than an embarrassing exercise in Nostalgia. The band’s harmonies cascaded from the stage as they powered through the Brian Wilson Songbook, the big beat echoing the sound of his idol, Phil Spector. "Obrigado, Obrigado," Wilson shouted at a crowd of delirious Brazilians. Next on the agenda for Wilson is shows in Australia and Japan. In January he will record an album of new rock ‘n’ roll songs on which he hopes Paul Mccartney will play. Many years ago, Mccartney’s praise of "God only knows" as the best love song ever written left Wilson crushed with anxiety and Paranoia. Four decades later, he says: "He’s going to return my call and we’re going to talk about recording together in a studio." (AGENCIES) |
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Taliban kill six in raid on Afghan hydro dam KABUL, Nov 17: Taliban gunmen raided a police post near an Afghan hydro-power dam and killed six policemen, including their commander, a provincial official said today. The Kajaki dam, which supplies power to southern Afghanistan’s main city, Kandahar, was not damaged in the late-night attack, said Haji Mohammad Wali, spokesman for the Governor of Helmand province, where the dam is located. One Taliban fighter was killed and two wounded when police returned fire, he said. "We have the body of the Taliban fighter," Wali said. Taliban fighters opposed to Afghanistan’s US-backed Government and the presence of foreign forces have tried to attack the Kajaki dam before. Part of the hydro-power system was damaged in US bombing in late 2001, launched after the then ruling Taliban refused to hand over Osama bin Laden and other Al-Qaeda leaders behind the Sept 11 attacks. The Taliban were ousted in November 2001 and have been waging a guerrilla insurgency ever since, particularly in the south and east of the country. (AGENCIES) US marines pound Falluja with mortars FALLUJA, IRAQ, Nov 17: US marines pounded the restive town of Falluja with mortars today in a bid to remove remaining pockets of guerrillas, a reuters witness said. Marines began firing mortars late at night and intensified the attacks to facilitate what they called clean up operations to clear the city of weapons and insurgents who survived a weeklong offensive. US forces which launched the offensive on the rebel Bastion say they have taken control of the town but scattered resistance remains. US officials say more than 1,000 insurgents have been killed and more than 1,000 arrested in the battle to take the mainly Sunni Muslim city. (AGENCIES) Pentagon unveils proposed arms deals with Pakistan WASHINGTON, Nov 17: The Pentagon notified Congress about three proposed arms deals with Pakistan, a key ally in the US-led war on terror, including the sale of eight P-3c orion surveillance aircraft valued at up to 970 million. The defense security cooperation agency, which handles foreign arms sales for the Pentagon, said it also planned to sell Pakistan 2,000 tow-2a missiles and 14 tow-2a fly-to-buy missiles in a deal valued at 82 million. Pakistan had also requested the sale of six Phalanx rapid-fire 20-millimeter guns for Pakistan surface ships, and the upgrade of six additional gun systems, a contract worth up to 155 million, the agency said yesterday. Lawmakers now have 30 days to block the proposed arms sales, but defense officials and Congressional sources said that was considered extremely unlikely. The Pentagon said the proposed arms agreements would help "improve the security of a friendly country that has been and continues to be an important force for economic progress in south Asia and the global war on terrorism." It said the P-3c aircraft, built by lockheed martin corp. , would improve Pakistan’s ability to restrict the movement of militants along its southern border, in particular, and improve border security everywhere. The Raytheon Co Tow missiles had recently been employed in the tribal areas of Pakistan, giving the Pakistani Government new tools in its fight to combat terrorism, DSCA said. Raytheon, based in Waltham, Massachusetts, also produces the phalanx gun systems, which DSCA said Pakistan would use to beef up the defenses of its surface ships against inbound aircraft, missiles, and fast-moving surface craft. The United States dropped sanctions against Pakistan after the country backed the US invasion of Afghanistan in the aftermath of the Sept 11, 2001, hijacking attacks. This past March, Pakistan was named a major non-NATO US ally, making it easier for it to acquire US weapons. (AGENCIES) Australians face buffeting from climate change SINGAPORE, Nov 17: Australians are in for a rough ride from global warming and will have to cope with a warmer, drier world swinging wildly between extremes of drought and flood, bushfires and dust storms. Few people know this better than Tony Coleman, one of the country’s top insurance executives. "Climate change represents a significant threat to our community," said Coleman, chief risk officer and group actuary for insurance Australia group. "By increasing the frequency and ferocity of severe weather events, climate change will impact all areas of our lives." Shifting rainfall patterns and rising farm and other economic losses from natural disasters would be part of the price of global warming, he said. So, too, will more damage to homes and businesses and health threats from heat waves and the spread of insect-borne diseases such as dengue fever and ross river fever, debilitating illnesses normally restricted to the warmer, tropical north of the country. "We can already see evidence of climate change in Australia," he said. "We are experiencing heavy rainfall events, yet declining rainfall in metropolitan and agricultural regions. The severity of our droughts and bushfires are increasing and we’re experiencing more intense cyclones," said Coleman, who is also a member of the Australian climate group, which comprises scientists, experts from industry and green groups such as WWF. On a per-capita basis, Australia is one of the world’s top emitters of greenhouse gases such as carbon dioxide from burning fossil fuels and methane from land clearing and farming. The country is also a major exporter of oil and natural gas as well as a large consumer of coal. Emissions from its 24 coal-fired power stations are equivalent to those from 40 million average cars, a report by WWF Australia says. (AGENCIES) Queen urges Thais to help govt fight Muslim unrest BANGKOK, Nov 17: Thailand’s revered Queen Sirikit has urged all Thais to work with the Government in its fight against the violence in the country’s largely Muslim south, where almost 500 people have been killed since January. "Please don’t dump everything on the Government. Every Thai has a duty to work for the country," the 72-year-old Queen told an audience of 930 people led by Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra, military brass, lawmakers and journalists. Thailand’s constitutional monarchy has few formal powers but the reverence in which the royal family is held means their rare comments on politics must be heeded. "I would like to ask everyone here to help your Thai citizens who are clean, honest, but couldn’t make a living because their lives have been under threat," sirikit said in a 50-minute address televised late yesterday. Relating gruesome incidents she had been told by relatives of those killed in the violence, Sirikit asked human rights advocates critical of the Government to think of the rights of innocent people killed by militants. "I would like to tell those human rights advocates that those people did not do anything wrong. They should have had rights in their lives to make an honest living," she said. Queen Sirikit said she had asked the southern army commander to train female Buddhist Thais to use guns and she herself would learn soon. "I promise that at the age of 72, I will learn how to shoot guns without using my glasses," she said. Saying Muslims in the region she had known for 30 years were good people, the Queen said she was worried about the security of Thai Buddhists who make up of 20 percent of the 1.8 million population in the three southernmost provinces. "I don’t know where we would evacuate 300,000 Thais, but we can’t allow them to be killed daily like this," she said. (AGENCIES) |
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