Daily Excelsior... World

S Korea Air Force
shoots down Lotte
skyscraper plan

SEOUL, Feb 21: South Korea's Air Force said it will not permit construction of what would have been the country's tallest building because the proposed . . .......more

China warns of fresh
bird flu outbreaks
this spring

BEIJING, Feb 21: China has warned of fresh outbreaks of bird flu this spring and has banned imports of pet and wild birds from 10 countries recently hit by the disease, state media said today............more

Thailand considers
World Heritage status
for 'Death Railway'

BANGKOK, Feb 21: A top official of the Tourism Authority of Thailand welcomed the initiative of a former Japanese military interpreter, involved in . .....more

Nissan to release four
new commercial vehicles

TOKYO, Feb 21: Nissan Motor, Japan's second- largest carmaker, will release four new commercial vehicles by March 2008 to double the division's profit . ...........more

Singapore Air denied access to Australia-US route

SYDNEY, Feb 21: Australia rejected Singapore Airlines's request to fly to the US, protecting Qantas Airways from further competition on the route, transport minister Warren Truss said...........more

Europe gets poor marks
in halting species loss

OSLO, Feb 21: Europe is doing poorly in safeguarding a range of wildlife from Iberian lynxes to Arctic lemmings and has to do more to reach a goal of halting ........more

Most teenage boys with cancer can bank sperm

NEW YORK, Feb 21: Sperm banking is possible for most teens with cancer who must undergo fertility-impairing treatment, British researchers report..........more

Australia wheat mission
to Iraq to leave this week

SYDNEY, Feb 21: The Australian Government's high level delegation to Iraq to save one of its biggest wheat markets is expected to leave around the weekend, just ahead of Baghdad's plans to sign new contracts next week. The mission will leave after Australian monopoly wheat exporter .... ...........more

Ovarian cancer survival influenced by MD specialty ..........

Docs more apt to pen headache script for women ........

"Ties can spread superbugs," UK doctors told .........

US removing documents from public access: NYTimes ...........

S Korea Air Force shoots down Lotte skyscraper plan

SEOUL, Feb 21: South Korea's Air Force said it will not permit construction of what would have been the country's tallest building because the proposed 555-metre (1,820-foot) structure could interfere with flight routes.

Lotte Group has been looking to build a 112-storey structure as part of the expansion of an area near its amusement park in Seoul called Lotte World. Currently the tallest building in South Korea is 63 storeys high.

''We do not think it is appropriate to construct the building, because the plan cannot ensure the safety of flights,'' the Air Force said in a statement yesterday.

The Air Force said the skyscraper had been proposed for a zone where height limits would bar such a tall structure.

In 1994, Lotte proposed expanding development around the amusement park, which stands near the main stadium used in the 1988 Seoul Olympics.

In October 2004 it proposed building a skyscraper housing a hotel, stores, business areas and a cultural centre. Lotte has already begun construction on the foundations.

''We cannot accept the Air Force's assertions because the skyscraper will be located outside the flight-restriction zone,'' Kim Myung-soo, vice president of a Lotte-affiliated company, told local broadcaster YTN.

(AGENCIES)

China warns of fresh bird flu outbreaks this spring

BEIJING, Feb 21: China has warned of fresh outbreaks of bird flu this spring and has banned imports of pet and wild birds from 10 countries recently hit by the disease, state media said today.

China has reported more than 30 outbreaks of the H5N1 strain of bird flu in both poultry and wild birds in a dozen provinces in the past year, along with 11 human cases in recent months, eight of whom have died.

''There is still the possibility of bird flu epidemics across a large area (of the country) this spring,'' Agriculture Minister Du Qinglin was quoted by the China Youth Daily as telling a conference.

Du cited increased movement of migratory birds after the winter and more shipping of poultry as the new raising season begins, the newspaper said.

''The protection given inoculated birds last autumn is waning and vaccination work for family-raised poultry in remote rural areas is difficult,'' Du said.

''The situation is still very grave.''

A team of scientists in Asia published a paper in 2004 saying that H5N1 virus had been circulating in China since 2001, with winter the peak season.

Bird flu is endemic among China's estimated 14 billion poultry, many of which are raised in family backyards close to humans.

China's top quarantine office issued an urgent notice yesterday to ban the import of pet birds, wild birds and their products from 10 countries that have reported outbreaks in recent weeks, including Germany, France, Italy, Egypt and Kuwait.

Poultry and poultry products from the countries could only clear Customs after tests, the China Youth Daily said, adding officials would also screen people from the same countries for fever symptoms.

The H5N1 strain, which has killed 92 people globally, had been largely confined to Asia before spreading recently to birds in Middle East, Europe and Africa, a continent experts fear would be the flashpoint for disastrous outbreaks in humans. (AGENCIES)

Thailand considers World Heritage status for 'Death Railway'

BANGKOK, Feb 21: A top official of the Tourism Authority of Thailand welcomed the initiative of a former Japanese military interpreter, involved in the construction of the Thailand-Burma railway during World War II, to have the ruins of the railway designated as a World Heritage site.

"It is a very good idea. However, we need to secure cooperation from other countries to win approval for the World Heritage designation," TAT's Executive Director of Product Promotion Department, Charubun Pananon told 88-year-old interpretor, Takashi Nagase on Monday.

Charubun stressed Thailand would have to consult with Britain, the Netherlands and Australia, whose thousands of nationals perished while they were forced to construct the 415-kilometer railway linking Thailand and Burma, now Myanmar.

The railway is known as the 'Death Railway' as about 16,000 Allied prisoners-of-war died along with 80,000 to 100,000 Asian forced laborers while building it.

The railway was completed in October 1943 after about 18 months of construction work.

But most of the railway was abandoned after the war due to high maintenance costs, and currently the railway operates along only a 130-km portion in Thailand.

When the railway was being constructed, Nagase acted as an interpreter for the Japanese military.

The railway was the subject of the famous 1957 film 'The Bridge on the River Kwai'. (AGENCIES)

Nissan to release four new commercial vehicles

TOKYO, Feb 21: Nissan Motor, Japan's second- largest carmaker, will release four new commercial vehicles by March 2008 to double the division's profit margins.

The unit will make more model variations using the same chassis-and-engine platforms, said Andy Palmer, global head of the unit, speaking to journalists in Yokohama.

The company will cut the number of commercial vehicle platforms to two from 11 by 2010, lowering development and production costs.

Nissan, 44.3 percent owned by France's Renault, is aiming for an operating profit margin at the light commercial vehicles unit of 8 percent. It plans to increase sales by 40 percent to 434,000 units in the year ending in March 2008. The automaker expects the four new vehicles to add sales in China, the Americas, Russia and Africa.

Nissan, which is releasing 28 new or redesigned models during the three years to March 2008, will introduce two new commercial vehicles in the six months from Oct. 1, 2006, and another two a year later.

Nissan set up a US unit on Feb 1 to sell light commercial vehicles and heavy-duty pickup trucks, while it plans to open 100 outlets in Japan. (AGENCIES)

Singapore Air denied access to Australia-US route

SYDNEY, Feb 21: Australia rejected Singapore Airlines's request to fly to the US, protecting Qantas Airways from further competition on the route, transport minister Warren Truss said.

The Government also urged Singapore Air and Qantas Airways to consider merging.

"The boards of Qantas and Singapore Airlines should consider the strategic advantage to be gained from such an alliance in our region," Truss said in Canberra today.

The decision is a victory for Qantas Chief Executive Officer Geoff Dixon, who had lobbied against giving Singapore Air, the world's second-biggest carrier by market value, access to the U.S. Route.

For Singapore Air's Chew Choon Seng, the rebuff stymies his push to gain access to more international routes as he faces increased competition from full-service airlines and the region's 15 low-cost carriers.

UAL Corp.'s United Airlines is the only other carrier to fly non-stop between the US and Australia.

Truss said keeping Singapore Air off the service will give Virgin Blue Holdings, Australia's second-biggest airline, an opportunity to fly Australia to US Services. (AGENCIES)

Europe gets poor marks in halting species loss

OSLO, Feb 21: Europe is doing poorly in safeguarding a range of wildlife from Iberian lynxes to Arctic lemmings and has to do more to reach a goal of halting a loss of species diversity by 2010, an international report said.

Lacking the spectacular range of nature of South America's Amazonian rainforest or Africa's plains, Europe often underrated its own diversity, from polar bears to storks, from Alpine meadows to Irish peat bogs, it said yesterday.

The report, commissioned by the UN Environment Programme and Council of Europe ahead of a species diversity conference in Croatia on February 22-24, said Europe was faring badly on eight of nine counts set in 2003 to halt a loss of biodiversity by 2010.

Global warming, urbanisation and pollution were all threats for extinctions on a densely-populated continent. Europeans, for instance, paved over an area three times the size of Luxembourg with roads, car parks, shopping centres and other buildings in the 1990s alone.

''It is clear that achieving the 2010 biodiversity target in Europe requires not only a redoubling of efforts in implementing the objectives...But more specifically, a firm commitment by the parties to act,'' the report said.

It gave Europe a green light on one measure -- parks. About 17 percent of Europe's land area was in 18,000 nature sites, it said. The figure exceeds a global average of about 12 per cent.

The report gave a red light to eight of nine areas, such as ensuring the diversity of farmland or forests, halting the introduction of alien species, promoting better funding, education and monitoring of biodiversity.

HALT SPECIES LOSS

Fifty-three European nations agreed in 2003 to ''halt the loss of biodiversity'' on the continent by 2010 -- tougher than a global goal set in 2002 of a ''significant reduction of the current rate of biodiversity loss'' by 2010.

''Europe is probably doing better than most continents in protecting diversity but is not yet doing enough,'' Jeff McNeely, chief scientist at the World Conservation Union (IUCN), told Reuters.

One IUCN plan launched in 2004 is to create a ''green corridor'', perhaps 10-15 km (6-9 miles) wide, along the route of the Iron Curtain that divided the Soviet bloc from Western Europe from the Arctic to the Black Sea.

Slowing the arrival of invasive species -- such as crop-eating beetles or seeds from other parts of the world -- was becoming harder with the expansion of the European Union to 25 nations from 15.

''The border controls that used to be available are now only at the port of entry,'' McNeely said.

Ladislav Miko, a director at the European Commission, said that Europe did relatively well when species were under threat of extinction.

''But some other species which have been more common before, like farmland birds, are declining,'' he told Reuters.

The report also said Europe should try to preserve patchworks of small farms with a diversity of crops, rather than allowing bigger farms likely to grow single crops on bigger fields with no hedgerows that are home to many species.

Miko said that one key was to ensure that protected areas were connected so that habitats did not get isolated. ''Most conservation work does not make sense unless it's done in a pan-European context,'' he said.

The Croatia talks, in Lake Plitvice, are a prelude to a meeting by environment ministers from around the world in Curitiba, Brazil, on March 20-31 on biodiversity loss.

Some scientists say that global warming could wipe out thousands of species in coming decades, perhaps the worst spate since the dinosaurs died out 65 million years ago. (AGENCIES)

Most teenage boys with cancer can bank sperm

NEW YORK, Feb 21: Sperm banking is possible for most teens with cancer who must undergo fertility-impairing treatment, British researchers report.

Several types of chemotherapy can damage the sperm-producing portion of the testes, while radiation of the testicular area can also lead to infertility, For this reason, infertility is very common among male survivors of childhood cancer.

Freezing sperm obtained by masturbation is the most widely available method for fertility preservation, and patients as young as 13 are capable of producing semen samples with normal sperm counts, report Dr Guy Makin of the University of Manchester and colleagues in the journal, Archives of Disease in Childhood.

A 2002 study found 77 percent of childless male cancer patients aged 14 to 40 said they would like to father children in the future, they note. But the same investigation found just half of these patients had been given the option of banking sperm, and less than a quarter had done so successfully.

To investigate what obstacles exist to sperm banking among these patients, the researchers surveyed 55 males aged 13 to 21 at their cancer diagnosis who had undergone potentially infertility-producing treatment and had been offered the option of banking their sperm.

Of the forty-five who completed the questionnaire, 67 per cent had banked their sperm successfully. Three of the 15 who did not bank their sperm were too sick to do so, while one patient had not reached puberty.

The remaining men who were unable to obtain a sperm sample were younger than the men who succeeded in doing so (15.3 years vs. 17.8 years). They also showed higher levels of anxiety, more difficulty in discussing fertility, and tended to be less knowledgeable about sperm banking.

The findings suggest that giving these patients better-quality information on sperm banking, as well as training medical professionals to discuss this issue with patients, could help more young patients bank their sperm, the researchers conclude. (AGENCIES)

Australia wheat mission to Iraq to leave this week

The mission will leave after Australian monopoly wheat exporter AWB Ltd.'s <AWB.AX> holds its Thursday annual meeting, which will be headed by the group's executive chairman, Brendan Stewart, a Government source said today.

Stewart is expected to travel to Iraq on the mission, despite calls by private traders hoping to export to Iraq that AWB be excluded.

Private Australian traders are lining up to sell wheat to Iraq after the Australian Government convinced AWB to suspend its veto power over private sales if necessary for Australia to win sales.

Iraq said earlier this month it would suspend business dealings with AWB until after a Government-appointed inquiry into alleged kickbacks to the former Government of Saddam Hussein is concluded. The inquiry is due to report by March 31 on whether AWB broke any Australian laws.

A U.N. Report last year alleged that AWB paid up to 222 million dollars in kickbacks to Saddam's regime through the now-defunct United Nations oil-for-food programme, which allowed Iraq to export limited amounts of oil as an exception to sanctions to pay for imported food.

The Iraqi Grain Board told Reuters in Baghdad yesterday that it planned to buy wheat from Canadian, German and U.S. Suppliers and would sign contracts next week.

Khalil Assi, head of the Iraqi Grain Board, said Iraq could also buy Australian wheat from firms other than AWB.

Private Australian traders are keen to sell to Iraq, but supplies of available Australian wheat are limited because of previous purchases by AWB for its national export pool.

The Iraqi Grain Board cancelled a 1 million tonne tender for US wheat earlier this month, complaining that prices offered were too high at 190 dollars to 200 dollars per tonne.

Iraq is one of the largest wheat import markets in the world, and Australian silos are brimming with wheat for export markets after a bumper harvest completed last month. (AGENCIES)

Ovarian cancer survival influenced by MD specialty

NEW YORK, Feb 21: The survival rate of women with ovarian cancer is improved when surgery is performed by a gynecologic oncologist rather than by a general gynecologist, according to the findings of a new study.

The results also indicate that gynecologic cancer specialists (oncologist) are more likely to follow surgical guidelines for cancer surgery and are more likely to completely remove the tumor.

The findings are based on a study of 512 women from the Netherlands who were diagnosed with ovarian cancer between 1994 and 1997. The subjects included 184 whose surgery was performed by a gynecologic oncologist and 328 who were operated on by a general gynecologist.

The five-year survival rate was higher for patients treated by a gynecologic oncologist, senior author Dr Ate G J Van der Zee, from the University Medical Center Groningen, and colleagues note.

In patients treated by gynecologic oncologists, 5-year survival rates for less advanced cancers was 86 percent and for more advanced cancers was 21 per cent. The corresponding rates for patients treated by general gynecologists were significantly lower, at 70 per cent and 13 per cent.

When other factors that can influence patient outcome were considered, researchers found that the overall risk of death was reduced by 21 per cent and the risk of death among patients younger than 75 years of age was reduced by 29 per cent if a gynecologic oncologist performed the surgery.

As noted, gynecologic oncologists adhered to surgical guidelines more often than did general gynecologists. For example, in patients with stage I-II disease, 55 percent of gynecologic oncologists followed guidelines compared with 33 percent of general gynecologists.

In patients with stage III disease, complete tumor removal was achieved by gynecologic oncologists more often than by general gynecologists.

''Specific surgical training appeared to be important, because a surgeon's patient volume alone had no effect on survival,'' the authors point out in the medical journal Cancer.

''These results imply that every patient who has suspected ovarian carcinoma deserves to undergo surgery performed by a gynecologic oncologist,'' the authors conclude. (AGENCIES)

Docs more apt to pen headache script for women

NEW YORK, Feb 21: Women are more likely to consult their doctor about headaches or migraine, and are more likely to come away with a prescription to treat the problem than are men, according to a study conducted in the UK.

Headache, including migraine, is one of the top 10 reasons for consulting a doctor and is the most common neurological symptom encountered by family doctors and neurologists, Dr Martin Gulliford from King's College London and colleagues report in the Journal of Neurology, Neurosurgery and Psychiatry.

Over a 9-year period in 253 general practices across the UK, there were 570,795 patient-visits for headache made by 413,221 individuals aged 15 or older, the report indicates.

Women were almost three times more likely than men to see their doctor about headache symptoms, and rates for both sexes were highest among people 15 to 24 years old. Visits to the doctor because of headache decreased with age.

During the 9-year study period, doctors wrote a total of 189,065 prescriptions for specific anti-migraine drugs, Gulliford and colleagues report. These drugs were prescribed to about one in three women and to one in four men.

Middle-aged women between 45 and 54 years were most apt to leave the doctor's office with a prescription for an anti-migraine medication, according to the report. In men, prescribing patterns varied little with age.

Six percent of headache patients were referred for tests or for specialist care, and men were more likely than women to be referred.

Over half of these referrals were to neurologists -- something to think about, the authors say, noting that in the neurologist workforce in the UK is roughly one tenth of that in other Western countries.

''Given this lack of capacity, headache referrals compete with other conditions for scarce resources,'' Gulliford and colleagues write. (AGENCIES)

"Ties can spread superbugs," UK doctors told

LONDON, Feb 21: Doctors should stop wearing ties and traditional white coats to work because they might be responsible for spreading deadly hospital superbugs, according to a report.

The British Medical Association (BMA), which represents three-quarters of the country's doctors, said yesterday ties performed no beneficial function in treating patients and, as they were rarely washed, were a potential bug haven.

In Britain alone, up to 5,000 people every year are killed by hospital infections such as MRSA (methicillin-resistant staphylococcus aureus), costing the state-funded National Health Service as much as 1 billion pounds a year, the BMA said.

Washing hands properly was the most important action medical staff could take to help stop the spread of the so-called superbugs.

However other steps, such as doctors abandoning ties and other ''functionless'' clothing, could also help minimise the risk, said Peter Maguire, deputy chairman of the BMA's board of science.

''Hand-washing, wearing clothes that minimise the spread of infection such as clean, closely woven cotton, and stopping wearing ... Functionless clothing such as ties will make a huge difference,'' Maguire added. (AGENCIES)

US removing documents from public access: NYTimes

WASHINGTON, Feb 21: US intelligence agencies have been secretly removing from public access at the National Archives thousands of historical documents that were available for years, The New York Times reported.

The restoration of classified status to more than 55,000 previously declassified pages began in 1999, when the CIA and five other agencies objected to what they saw as a hasty release of sensitive information after a 1995 declassification order signed by President Bill Clinton, the Times said yesterday on its Web site.

The secret program accelerated after the Bush administration took office and especially after the Sept. 11 attacks, according to archives records, the paper said.

It came to light after intelligence historian Matthew Aid noticed dozens of documents he had copied years ago had been withdrawn from the archives' open shelves, the Times said.

Under existing guidelines, Government documents are supposed to be declassified after 25 years unless there is a particular reason to keep them secret.

Some historians say the program is removing material that can do no conceivable harm to national security and note that some of the documents have been published by the Government, the Times said.

Critics say it is part of a marked trend toward greater secrecy under the Bush administration, which has increased the pace of classifying documents, slowed declassification and discouraged the release of some material under the Freedom of Information Act, the paper said. (AGENCIES)