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| Saturday, February 3,
2001, Chandigarh, India   
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Can Arroyo stem the rot? France backs India on SC
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India backs Palestinian
homeland ‘Kanishka’ case Ershad shifted to hospital
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Censured Wahid in no
mood to step down JAKARTA, Feb 2 — Besieged Indonesian President Abdurrahman Wahid, facing the worst crisis of his rule, vowed today to fight on in the job despite a parliamentary censure that could trigger his eventual impeachment. “There is a question about whether I am going to resign. I will not resign until my term (ends in 2004)...,” Wahid told Muslim worshippers at a mosque in Jakarta. Calls for Wahid to quit or stand aside pending investigations mounted today after Parliament censured him over two multi-million-dollar graft scandals. Nearly 2,000 student protesters demanding the frail Muslim cleric quit were camped out at a major Jakarta intersection late on Friday, causing traffic chaos. There were no clashes. And in a sign cabinet would not block further investigations, Justice Minister Yusril Ihza Mahendra said prosecutors should go ahead with Parliament’s order to probe Wahid over the scandals, worth a total of $6.1 million. “From a legal basis, because there has been a decision from Parliament to continue the probe into the President, then it should begin,” Antara news agency quoted Mahendra as saying. Indeed, the taciturn and untested vice-president Megawati Sukarnoputri holds the fate of the embattled President in her hands. The woman who became the icon of democracy in the dying days of the Suharto regime leads the country’s largest party, the Indonesian Democratic Party-Struggle. The party supported Thursday’s censure of Wahid for acting improperly over the two scandals, but senior party officials said Megawati did so to avoid even tougher action against a President whose shaky grip on power is getting weaker by the day. Megawati, who does not want to be seen to be pushing out Indonesia’s first democratically-elected President and an old friend, has maintained her usual silence. The head of the top legislative body, the People’s Consultative Assembly (mpr), wants it to be convened immediately to consider sacking Wahid, local media reported today. Mpr Speaker Amien Rais, a Wahid ally turned foe, said the normally slow process of calling a special session should be bypassed to avoid instability after Thursday’s censure. Rais’ party was one of several that joined to engineer Wahid’s surprise rise to power 15 months ago but has since deserted him. Parliamentary Speaker Akbar Tandjung, another former ally, urged Wahid to stand aside while authorities investigate the scandals. Tandjung also heads the former ruling Golkar Party, the country’s second largest. Analysts said the censure was a devastating blow to Wahid’s legitimacy, although his political death could be slow and painful for the world’s fourth most populous country. They also warn that the political tensions are scaring off investors and undermining a nascent economic recovery. The censure caps mounting frustration over Wahid’s erratic rule which has largely failed to pull Indonesia out of years of political and economic turmoil or end communal bloodshed. It has cleared the way for possible impeachment, but the formal process would take more than four months and requires at least one more formal parliamentary reprimand. Wahid has consistently refused to resign, saying that he has the support of Vice-President Megawati Sukarnoputri, who heads the country’s largest party. Under the Constitution, Megawati would automatically replace Wahid if he goes. — Reuters |
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Can Arroyo stem the rot? THE sordid saga of President Ferdinand Marcos and his wife Imelda may be over in Philippines. But its memories had lingered. The first couple who were backed by the USA during the early days of the presidency had bled the small, struggling republic white and siphoned off huge amounts of money abroad. While brutally suppressing dissent, the former President backed his wife to amass a huge personal fortune which included precious real estate in the USA, accounts in foreign banks and of course, the notorious 3000 pairs of shoes which caught the media attention the world over. Filipinos, a gentle lot, could not stand it any further and deposed the President. It was felt that the nation had learnt a lesson and its future rulers would have their hands clean. This was not to be. Within 10 years, another President Joseph Estrada, who had been elected with the largest-ever majority had been found guilty of corruption and to quit office. As Estrada was succeeded by his Vice-President, Gloria Arroyo, the nation was once again in turmoil. There must be something inherently wrong in the political systems of most Asian nations where rulers freely indulged in corruption and betrayed the confidence of the people who had imposed their trust in them. In the case of Philippines, there was a silver lining. As in the case of Marcos, the corrupt ruler had to quit because of the commoners. But there were several hiccups even while Estrada was tried for corruption and Ms Arroyo readied herself for her new responsibilities. The Senate Committee which was holding the trial suddenly cancelled the proceedings on the ground that confidential documents in the case would create further unrest in the country. This clearly hinted that that Senators were more keen on a cover up job for reasons of their own. The Senate Committee ignored the fact that the government prosecutors in charge of the trial had resigned en masse. To start with, the Estrada trial had plenty of drama. The evidence clearly pointed out that Estrada had accumulated more than $ 10 million from payoffs from gambling syndicates. These were handled by Estrada under a false name, ‘Jose Velarde’. Another piece of evidence was the admission of the Governor of Bocos Sur province, Luis Singson that, he had passed on nearly $ 8 million of the illegal gambling funds to the President over the past two years. The Governor’s testimony shook the nation which realised that it was only the tip of the iceberg. It was clear that the Senate had a vested interest in the proceedings when it decided to abort the trial. But the people seemed to be a tough lot. The groups which had come out on the streets protesting against Marcos and his wife were not to be held back. The groups had the backing of the clergy, the armed forces, ministers and the police chief. Estrada was cornered. Sections of the masses which still believed by the actor image and that Estrada would fulfil his poll pledges were sullen and held an occasional demonstration in his favour. But these were lost in the overwhelming anti-Estrada sentiment. Political observers in the country pointed out that the military entered the proceedings to curb any further public outburst from these sections for their favourite public hero. The Vice-President was sworn in amidst thunderous applause. But there was an interplay of the nation’s political forces before this. As the new President chose her Cabinet which included former Defence Secretary, Orlando Mercado and retained the military chief, Gen Angelo Reyes, there were murmurs of a secret deal which had intended the swearing in of the new President. As one group of the Arroyo supporters moved the Supreme Court on the issue, it declared the post of the President ‘vacant’ enabling Ms Arroyo to take over. It was a clear cut verdict in her favour and the judiciary was backing her to the hilt. Yet, the former President had some parting shots for his successor. In a statement before leaving office, he said that he doubted the ability of Ms Arroyo to hold the nation together. But at the same time, he would not do anything to stand in the way of the new order taking over. For most of the people, it was only a face-saving statement. If Estrada thought he did have some bargaining power, he was wrong. The new government barred him from going abroad, and froze his bank accounts. He was not expected to get any help from the courts which clearly indicated they had enough of the actor-President. The Supreme Court, in fact, acted with extraordinary swiftness in paving the way for the new President’s swearing in and did not even bother to listen to arguments from Estrada’s lawyers while declaring the post of the President as ‘vacant’. But there was some scepticism among the people on the role of the Generals who finally turned against the President. It was felt that the armed forces should have acted much sooner in getting rid of Estrada. For several months, the Generals had enjoyed the largesse from the previous government. It was only when Estrada was totally expected that they switched their loyalties. It was expected that Ms Arroyo’s approach to national issues would be more sober and practical. To her advantage, her election had been supported by two former Presidents who had retired from office with grace, Ms Corazon Aquino and Mr Fidel Ramos. Ms Arroyo was fully backed by the strong Roman Catholic Church. Unlike her predecessor who was the quintessential public hero, Ms Arroyo belonged to the blue blooded society. She was hard headed and not given to make promises which could not be implemented like a magician bringing out rabbits from out of his hat. In a region which is acquiring more and more economic clout, the Philippines was still a poor nation though its per capita income was higher than India’s. Yet it is remarkable that the nation had staged mostly peaceful revolutions to get rid of corrupt leaders. Going by Asian standards, Estrada’s corruption was on a lower scale. Yet the system brought him to trial and got rid of him, without violence and bloodshed. When some of the institutions conspired to abort the corruption trial of the former President, the people came on the streets. This was a healthy development particularly after the experience of Ferdinand Marcos and his imperial lady. But the new President had a tough job. She must win over the masses which stood sullenly by while their ‘hero’ was ousted. While the intelligentsia backed the Estrada ouster, the masses which were carried away by Estrada’s charisma and glib tongue had their own reservations. These had to be removed. She also had to deal with the nation’s Muslim population and Communist rebels. One hopes that her personal integrity would see her through these problems. |
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France backs India on SC seat PARIS, Feb 2 (PTI) — France has promised to take “initiative” in seeking India’s inclusion as a permanent member of the UN Security Council even as the two countries shared a “better understanding” of the “implications” of the controversial National Missile Defence (NMD) programme. French President Jacques Chirac reiterated France’s unequivocal support for India’s permanent membership as and when the UN reforms take place and went a step further in pledging to take the initiative on the matter. This position was outlined when National Security Adviser Brajesh Mishra called on Mr Chirac here on the sidelines of the sixth round of the strategic dialogue between India and France which ended here yesterday. Mr Mishra told newsmen at the end of the two-day talks that the Indo-French strategic dialogue initiated in 1998 had brought about a “broadening and continuing” cooperation in economic, defence, commercial fields as well as in foreign office matters. While the five-member Indian delegation included Rakesh Sood, Ambassador to the Geneva-based Conference on Disarmament (CD), the French delegation was led by Chirac’s special envoy Gerrad Errera. He said India and France were agreed on the need for cooperation in combatting international terrorism, drug trafficking, and organised crime. He specifically referred to how a joint working group on terrorism involving India and the EU had been activated recently to tackle this problem. |
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India backs Palestinian homeland CAIRO, Feb 2 (PTI) — India has told the Arab League that it wholly supported the Palestinian right to a homeland within the parameters of international boundaries. External Affairs Minister Jaswant Singh who called on Arab League Secretary-General Esmet Abdel Magid after arriving here yesterday reiterated India’s support to the Palestinian cause. He told Magid that “India backs the Palestinian demand for a homeland within the parameters of international boundaries”. Magid acknowledged India’s support on Palestinian issues in international forums. It was Minister’s first meeting with Magid. The Minister, who was accompanied by Deputy Chief of Mission S.K. Goyal, said India firmly stood by the un resolutions on Palestine. During his four-day tour, he is scheduled to meet his counterpart Amr Moussa who will call on him tomorrow at his hotel in a deviation from protocol as a mark of cordiality. This will be followed by bilateral talks in the Foreign Office. |
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‘Kanishka’ case VANCOUVER (British Columbia), Feb 2 (Reuters) — Canadian prosecutors have said they want to file charges against a third suspect for the 1985 bombing of an Air India jet that killed 329 persons in history’s deadliest act of aviation sabotage. Canada has requested permission from the UK to file charges against Inderjit Singh Reyat, who is already serving term in a Canadian prison for his role in a related bombing that killed two Tokyo airport workers. Canada needs approval from the British authorities because Reyat was extradited from the UK, and under the terms of the 1989 extradition order he was returned to Canada only on charges related to the Tokyo bombing. Reyat had been named in October as a unindicated conspirator in the Air India bombing, and a prosecution spokesman yesterday declined to say why Canada had now chosen to move forward with criminal charges. " To get into that i will have to get into the facts of the actual prosecution, and that I cannot do,’’ Geoffrey Gaul of the British Columbia criminal justice branch said yesterday . Canada has already charged two suspects, Ripudaman Singh Malik and Ajaib Singh Bagri, in connection with the June 23, 1985, destruction of air India flight 182 over the Irish sea while on a flight from Canada to India. Malik and bagri are charged with murder for the flight 182 and Tokyo bombings. The Canadian authorities would not specify on Thursday what charges they wanted to file against Reyat but said they dealt with flight 182 and another Air India flight that the Tokyo bombs were scheduled to be loaded on. Reyat, 48, of Duncan, British Columbia, was convicted of manslaughter in 1991 and sentenced to 10 years in prison for building the bomb that exploded at Tokyo’s Narita airport. He was scheduled to be released later this year. Reyat admitted he purchased electronic parts used in the bomb that killed two luggage handlers, but said he gave the parts to another person and denied knowing what they were to be used for. Reyat, who holds both Canadian and British citizenship, has denied any involvement in the flight 182 explosion. " We’re not going to take this lying down,’’ said Kuldip Singh Chaggar, his attorney. Chaggar questioned why prosecutors took so long to file the request since police have said for years that Reyat was a prime suspect. "Why now? ... Where on earth is he going to get a fair trial?’’ Chaggar asked. |
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Ershad shifted to hospital DHAKA, Feb 2 — Former President, H M Ershad has been shifted from Dhaka Central Jail to the Institute of Cardeovascular Diseases, popularly known as Sohrawardy Hospital, here last evening. The Jatiya Party chief is under treatment at the Coronary Care Unit (CCU) of the hospital and a board of 10 physicians are taking care of his health. Two doctors of the jail on call attended on him at his solitary cell in the prison on Thursday and the jail authority moved the government to shift him to the specialised heart hospital. He suffered a mild heart attack in 1977 while on bail. The Supreme Court has recently rejected his petition to allow him to go to the USA for treatment on parole. Meanwhile, a Division Bench of the Dhaka High Court comprising Mr Justice Syed J R Modassir Hossain and Mr Justice Arayeshuddin took up hearing of the writ petition by two leaders of his rival factions of the Jatiya Party challenging the authority under which Gen Ershad was retaining his membership of Parliament. Having been convicted in a criminal corruption case, Parliament declared his seat vacant last August. Ershad preferred a writ against the Parliament order and it is pending before another Bench of the High Court. His wife, a legislator and leader of Jatiya Party quietly left on Sunday for Washington to attend a breakfast meeting at the White House. Her move seems to lobby with the US administration for Ershad’s release and brief them on Bangladesh situation. Her sudden departure has created mistrust between the JP and other partners of the four party alliance. She could not attend a joint rally of the alliance held at Bandarban in Chittagong Hill Tracts on January 30. Lanka poll put off COLOMBO, Feb 2 (AFP) — The Sri Lankan Government has announced plans to indefinitely postpone local council elections that were due to be held by June this year, officials said. They said a government panel had recommended the move to allow a change in the electoral system. The panel wanted a first-past-the-post instead of the existing proportional representation system, officials said. |
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