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Saturday,
May 12, 2001, Chandigarh, India   |
Chinese PM arrives in Pak
Tigers deny Lanka
claim |
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Israeli army moves into Palestinian area
‘Bush would have won hand recount’ |
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79 beauties get ready for big
night Final push by
Macedonia Estrada allowed to vote
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Chinese PM arrives in Pak Islamabad, May 11 Mr Zhu, who is accompanied by his wife Lao An and a 15-member delegation, was accorded a 19-gun salute as he was received at the Pakistan Air Force base by military ruler Gen Pervez Musharraf and his wife. Signalling the importance Islamabad attaches to the visit, the arrival was telecast live on the state-owned television. “It is very important visit...It is the first visit of our Prime Minister to a foreign country this year and also the first visit of the Prime Minister in the new century,” Chinese Ambassador to Islamabad Lu Shulin said shortly before Mr Zhu’s arrival. Mr Lu, speaking to journalists at the airport, said bilateral economic cooperation would be a very important subject of discussion between Mr Zhu and the Pakistani leaders. He said Sino-Pakistan relations were not only in the interest of the people of the two countries but were also conducive for peace and stability in the region. Foreign Minister Abdul Sattar said the two countries would sign a number of “significant” economic agreements reflecting their desire to further consolidate “the exemplary bonds of friendship.” He said the two countries had established a tradition of mutual understanding and support and were now looking towards a future of “continued cooperation in strengthening Pakistan’s own industrial base.” Mr Zhu and his delegation were driven to General Musharraf’s office in a cavalcade where formal welcome ceremonies, including a tri-services guard of honour, took place. Mr Zhu, who is accompanied by Foreign Minister Tang Jiaxuan and Foreign Trade and Economic Cooperation Minister Shi Guangsheng, besides senior officials from various ministries and departments, will also visit Nepal, the Maldives, Sri Lanka and Thailand during his five-nation tour. Relations between Pakistan and China have always been close and today, China is one of the largest trading partners of Pakistan, the two-way trade during 1999-2000 estimated at over Rs 23 billion. General Musharraf, in an interview with Chinese journalists on the eve of Mr Zhu’s visit, said Pakistan-China friendship was essential for regional and international peace. He said the four-day visit of the Chinese leader was reflective of the close ties between the two countries and added the current changes in the international strategic situation had lent further importance to their ties.
IANS |
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Tigers deny Lanka claim Colombo, May 11 Foreign minister Lakshman Kadirgamar said in a statement last night that he had written to his Norwegian counterpart Thobjoern Jagland that “the parties had decided to take steps to alleviate any hardships and dangers to civilians hit by the ongoing conflict, and contribute to building understanding and a foundation on which negotiations can take place”. Mr Kadirgamar, who did not elaborate on the measures, but described them as “humanitarian”, said this was in pursuance of the common objective of the parties to find a negotiated settlement with Norway’s help. However, LTTE’s London-based chief negotiator Anton Balasingham denied having arrived at any such agreement. “It is recklessly premature and factually incorrect”, he was quoted as telling an expatriate Tamil website that contacted him for his reaction. “The discussions on several sensitive and protracted matters have been ongoing for a considerable period with the facilitation of the Norwegians. The talks are definitely not at a stage where agreement can be said to have been reached and we are surprised at Kadirgamar’s statement”, he said. Mr Kadirgamar said his letter “outlines the matters on which agreement has been reached” and that these “humanitarian measures were to be embodied in a document”. He said in view of the “fruitful work” done by all concerned towards getting the process of direct political negotiations going, he had requested Norway to renew urgently its efforts to get the peace process moving. However, Balasingham said the LTTE was concerned at the “sudden development” as Norwegian peace envoy Erik Solheim did not want the discussions to be made public until an agreement was secured. It was only yesterday that Mr Kadirgamar had been quoted in a website as saying there could be some understanding on commencement of talks, but he specified no timeframe. Norway is believed to be working for a bilateral cessation of hostilities, as distinct from the LTTE’s earlier unilateral ceasefire, to prepare the ground for direct negotiations. The rebel group also wanted a preliminary understanding that the government would lift its restrictions on movement of essential goods to the northern part of the war-torn island. The government’s known reluctance to agree to a ceasefire was probably reflected in Mr Kadirgamar’s letter to Norway, as it avoided any reference, direct or indirect, to a truce. It mentioned only alleviation of hardships and danger to civilians — a clear reference to an agreement that the LTTE will stop attacks and bombings in the Sinhala-majority south in exchange for the government lifting the economic embargo.
PTI |
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Israeli army moves into Palestinian area Gaza, May 11 Palestinian sources said tanks and bulldozers moved up to 800 metres into Palestinian territory near the Jewish settlement of Gush Katif and demolished three buildings. These included a building under the command of the head of “national security” in the Gaza Strip, Gen Abdel Rasek Mujaida. Reports said Palestinian militants threw grenades at two Israeli soldiers on a road between the Jewish settlement Neve Dekalim and the refugee camp Khan Younis in the southern Gaza Strip. The soldiers were slightly injured in the attack. Meanwhile, Israeli Minister without portfolio Dani Naveh said the latest proposals by former US Senator George Mitchell to end the West Asia conflict could be used as the basis for a new peace initiative. He told Israeli radio that prerequisites for the continuation of the peace process were “an end to Palestinian violence, a cooling off phase and confidence-building measures”. He did not mention a moratorium on Jewish settlement construction in the Palestinian territories which is also recommended in the Mitchell report and in an Egyptian-Jordanian mediation proposal. According to an opinion poll published today in Maariv newspaper, 55 per cent of Israelis would accept a moratorium on Jewish settlement construction if this contributed to the end of the conflict. A total of 39 per cent of the 850 persons asked were against a moratorium. Prime Minister Ariel Sharon has rejected a halt to construction but has pledged not to build any new settlements.
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‘Bush would have won hand recount’ Washington, May 11 The newspaper said the study of 171,908 ballots also found that errors by Democratic voters probably cost former Vice-President Al Gore as many as 25,000 votes, enough to have decisively won Florida and the 2000 election. The findings were the result of a study of the state’s disputed ballots by USA Today, The Miami Herald, Knight Ridder newspapers and six other Florida newspapers. The study found that Mr Gore might have won a narrow victory if lenient standards that counted every mark on a ballot had been used, the newspaper said. But Mr Gore could not have won without a hand count of overvote ballots, which he did not request, the report said. Mr Bush won the state’s crucial 25 electoral college votes only after a ferocious court battle with Mr Gore that was ultimately decided by the US Supreme Court. The divided high court halted hand recounts that Mr Gore had hoped would produce enough votes to overturn Mr Bush’s 537-vote margin of victory. The study analysed 60,647 undervotes — ballots that registered no vote in vote-counting machines. It also examined 111,261 overvotes — ballots marked with more than one presidential choice. Under Florida law, overvotes are disqualified. USA Today said the study found that Democratic voters made far more overvotes than Republican voters. “Mr Gore would likely have won if all overvote ballots had been properly marked,” said Mr Anthony Salvanto, a political scientist at the University of California-Irvine who assisted the news organisations on the study. He said people who cast overvotes were clearly confused by the presidential portion of the Florida ballot and had few problems casting votes in other races. The paper said voters were confused by a long list of minority-party presidential candidates on the ballot. USA Today said Florida’s controversial “butterfly” ballot was a key problem for many voters. The ballot put candidates’ names on facing pages with punch holes in the middle. The alignment confused some voters, who punched holes for candidates they did not intend to choose. Florida Governor Jeb Bush, the President’s younger brother, signed a sweeping election reform law on Wednesday that ended the use of butterfly ballots and punch-card machines in the state. The Governor signed the reform measure in Palm Beach County, where Mr Gore supporters believe the butterfly ballot cost their candidate the presidency.
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79 beauties get ready for big night San Juan (Puerto Rico), May 11 The host was hoping its own Miss Puerto Rico, Denise Quinones, might win the title of 50th Miss Universe — which would be a fourth crown for the island — after an evening of glamour on the outskirts of the Capital, San Juan. “We’ll all enjoy it, and Puerto Rico will win by just having the world look at the island,’’ Quinones said on last night. The Caribbean island, a US territory of 3.8 million people, prides itself on its strong national identity and its home-grown celebrities and has eagerly embraced the chance to parade its attractions. Latin heartthrob Ricky Martin is making a rare visit home to perform two songs at the ceremony in the suburb of Bayamon, and Puerto Rican singer Marc Anthony and his wife, Dayanara Torres, Miss Universe in 1993, are among the judges. Supermodels Elle Macpherson and Naomi Campbell will co-host the show, which kicks off at 9 p.m. EDT on Friday 6.30 a.m. IST tomorrow) and which organisers say will be seen by television audiences in about 130 countries. The competition, which was launched in Long Beach, California, in 1952, by a swimsuit company, is run by the Miss Universe Organisation, jointly owned by property tycoon Donald Trump and CBS Television. Trump flew in yesterday and told reporters he was looking forward to “a really amazing” event. Pageantry was not the biggest of his businesses, but it was one “I really enjoy,” Trump said, adding that Puerto Rico had been so keen on organising this year’s event it was already lobbying to host next year’s contest. Friday’s show is the culmination of three weeks of rehearsals and side competitions in San Juan, including the preliminary round last Sunday featuring the women in swimsuits and evening attire, and personality interviews with contestants this week. “It’s exhausting for them. They’re up until late every night and they have to look their best all day,’’ said an organiser. All 77 women — swaths of the globe such as China and many African countries are not competing — are on show again initially on Friday evening, but then the winners of the first round are announced and the competition is down to the final rounds featuring the last 10 competitors. The Puerto Rican public seems to favour mostly other Latin American candidates, among them Miss Peru, Viviana Rivas, and Miss Colombia, Andrea Noceti, although Miss Nigeria, Agbani Darego, is also seen as having a good chance. While the pageant may look like pure show business, it is taken more seriously by some Latin American, Caribbean and Asian nations. For some developing countries, producing a winning beauty queen can be a source of national pride and a chance to put themselves on the map. Beauty pageants have traditionally faced criticism from feminists that they display women as objects, but the miss Universe Organisation has sought in recent years to stress it is seeking women with poise and “savvy” as well as beauty. The woman who succeeds India’s Lara Dutta, Miss Universe 2000, takes on a role that is not just looking good but involves becoming a spokeswoman for charitable causes such as combating HIV-AIDS.
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Final push by Macedonia Skopje, May 11 “There is a chance we will join the government,’’ said an official of the ethnic Albanian Party of Democratic Prosperity (PDP) before going into a meeting of PDP leaders in the northwestern city of Tetovo. He declined to be named. The opposition PDP, which shared power with socialists for seven years after Macedonia broke away from Yugoslavia in 1991, has come under heavy pressure from the West to join. A Western diplomat said it could still bring it round. “They have been offered tantalising positions, meaning ministries, in the government,’’ the diplomat said. A government official in Skopje, who also did not want his name to be used, was cautiously optimistic. “Even if the whole PDP does not enter, a part of it will surely support us, because there is a divide in the party on the issue,’’ he said. Local media have reported rifts in the PDP on joining the coalition government after heavy pressure by the West which fears that the tiny Balkan state could slide into civil war which would destabilise the Balkans again. “When the nation’s very survival is at stake, there is no room for playing politics,’’ NATO chief George Robertson said in Madrid, repeating what diplomats have told the PDP in Skopje. Macedonian forces did not resume shelling of rebel-held mountain villages after the official daily deadline of 10 a.m. for civilians to leave the area expired. The police closed all the roads leading to the rebel-held areas, making it impossible for reporters to verify government charges that the “National Liberation Army’’ guerrillas were holding civilians hostage there. Yesterday, Prime Minister Ljubco Georgievski gave the PDP a final chance to back the plan when he meets party leaders at 10 a.m. GMT but rejected its call for a lasting ceasefire. Mr Georgievski said a new government would be formed tomorrow regardless of who signs up. “The PDP will be asked for the last time: ‘Are they ready?’’’
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Estrada allowed to vote Manila, May 11 The court, however, left the decision on where the Estradas must vote to the Commission on Elections (Comelec) and the police authorities. Mr Estrada’s lawyer Rene Saguisag said: “The place does not matter as long as they are able to vote.’’ Mr Estrada and his son were arrested on April 25 on a charge of economic plunder, a non-bailable capital offence, but the former President had asked the court to allow them to vote at their home city of San Juan in Manila.
Reuters |
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Islamabad, May 11
Seventyseven women from around the globe are poised for their big night — the Miss Universe pageant that crowns the woman with the most beauty and “savvy” in a show business extravaganza that draws a huge global television audience.
