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| Wednesday, March 22, 2000, Chandigarh, India  
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Israel
hands over more West Bank land Taiwan
drops trade ban with China Uganda
suicide toll up to 500
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| Cholera threat looms over
Mozambican towns MAPUTO, March 21 — Health authorities have warned of a serious outbreak of cholera here and in the nearby industrial city of Matola where the water-borne disease has already killed eight persons. Pressler criticises
Clinton’s Pak visit
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Israel hands over more West Bank land BEITOUNIA (West Bank), March 21 (Reuters) — Israel handed over more West Bank land to the Palestinians today as fresh violence overshadowed renewed progress in their peace efforts. Israeli and Palestinian officials held a ceremony to mark the handover of 6.1 per cent more of the West Bank after stones and signs were installed to demarcate new borders, said witnesses at Beitounia, one of the areas being transferred to Palestinian control. “The handover has started, and it went smoothly,” said Palestinian security officer Fouaz Dawoud. The Israeli official at the ceremony showed maps to Mr Dawoud and said the new borders had been marked. They then shook hands. The handover of villages near Ramallah, Bethlehem, Hebron, Jerichg and Jenin gives Palestinians full control over more of the West Bank, where along with Gaza the Palestinians hope to establish an independent state this year. Bloodshed marred the land transfer when gunmen, in an apparent Palestinian militant attack in the West Bank, wounded three Israelis, one seriously, late yesterday, the eve of an historic visit by Pope John Paul. Israeli forces then opened fire on a Palestinian car that ran a roadblock near the first shooting, killing a 50-year-old woman and wounding her husband, Palestinian sources said. BEIT EL (West Bank): The handover decision paved the way for the revival this week of Israeli-Palestinian peace talks, which broke down weeks ago as a result of the dispute over the land transfer. The US-brokered talks
are to reopen on Tuesday in a Washington-area air force
base. |
Taiwan drops trade ban with China TAIPEI, March 21 (Reuters) — Taiwan’s parliament today dropped a five-decade-old ban on direct trade and transport links between the island and mainland China, a legislator said. Direct links would be approved between Taiwan’s offshore islands of Quemoy and Matsu and the Chinese cities of Xiamen and Mawei facing them across the narrow Taiwan Strait. The measure was approved at a parliament session and does not need government approval. Parliament also approved
direct postal links. It was a dramatic goodwill gesture
following the election as President on Saturday of Mr
Chen Shui-Bian, whose party openly advocates
independence. |
Uganda suicide toll up to 500 KANUNGU, (Uganda), March 21 (Reuters) — Ugandan officials yesterday said up to 500 doomsday cult members died in a fire set deliberately inside their church and the police found even more bodies inside the cult’s pit latrine and vegetable garden. “From examining the bodies, we estimate there are between 400 and 500 in the church,’’ said Mr Richard Opira, District Public Health Officer in the remote village where the mass suicide took place on Friday. He said investigators found several pit latrines close to the church that had been covered in fresh cement and, when they opened the first one, discovered more bodies. “We found five bodies on the surface and when we shone a torch there were more underneath,’’ he told Reuters. “They haven’t been wounded so we think they were strangled or maybe poisoned.’’ The grim discoveries, which were expected to reinforce speculation that many of those killed were murdered rather than willing participants, stretched all around the church. “We are now digging
up bodies in the vegetable patch,’’ Mr Opira
said as investigators prepared to uncover the other pit
latrines and labourers dug a long pit to bury the cult
members. |
Peace process must go on: Pope AMMAN, March 21 (DPA) — Calling for the peace process to continue, Pope John Paul II arrived in Jordan yesterday on the first leg of his pilgrimage to the holy land which will also take him to Israel and the Palestinian areas. On arrival at Amman airport, the Pope emerged unsteadily from his Alitalia aircraft, making the sign of the cross in blessing the waiting dignitaries from the top of the steps as Jordanian troops fired a military salute. He blessed a bowl of
Jordanian soil before being greeted by King Abdullah II
and members of the Jordanian royal family. |
Lankan Govt, Oppn agree on Governors' appointment COLOMBO, March 21 (UNI) — The government and the Opposition in Sri Lanka reached an agreement on the appointment of Governors of regions even as contentious issues like the abolition of executive presidency were postponed during the third round of discussions held today. The meeting chaired by President Chandrika Kumaratunga, was attended by UNP leader Ranil Wickremesinghe and senior leaders of both the ruling Peoples’ Alliance and the UNP. A joint communiqué issued after the meeting said both the groups discussed in detail the provisions of the government’s 1997 draft constitutional proposals in relation to the mode of appointment of Governors of regions. An agreement was reached with regard to the procedures to be followed by the Head of State in achieving a balance and giving due importance to the wishes of the regions and the overall responsibility of the central executive in making the appointment of Governors with full accountability to Parliament. It was also agreed that the procedure recommended by the two groups would be discussed by the ruling party with representatives of the minority Tamil parties before finalisation. The next round of meeting will be held in the coming week. The government and the Opposition held two rounds of meetings on March 9 and 16 earlier, the government had talked to minority Tamil parties. Sources said the
government-LTTE talks with Norway as a facilitator, were
likely to be held after the talks with the Opposition
were over sometime in April. |
Cholera threat looms over Mozambican towns MAPUTO, March 21 (DPA) — Health authorities have warned of a serious outbreak of cholera here and in the nearby industrial city of Matola where the water-borne disease has already killed eight persons. Further outbreaks of cholera were also expected in the town of Buzi in the country’s central province of Sofala. Epidemiologist Avertino Barreto said yesterday that 450 cholera cases were registered here and in Matola last week. This, he said, was almost double the number of cases registered the previous week. Since the start of the devastating floods in the country in February, cholera has claimed eight lives here and in Matola, Mr Barretto told a meeting of aid agencies. Mr Barreto, however, claimed that the situation was under control “because we have sufficient medicine”, but added that the country’s health services experienced a serious shortage of foreign nurses to work in cholera emergency treatment rooms. Torrential rains caused the Buzi river to burst its banks last week, flooding the town of Buzi. During the last 48 hours the level of the river has continued to rise substantially. The National Water Board said the situation around the town remained critical and could worsen further over the next few days because of more water being discharged from the local Chicama Dam. In the south of the country, the Umbuluzi and Incomati rivers continued to rise while the Limpopo has continued to recede although it remained above the critical level. Although the levels of
the Pungue and Save rivers in Central Mozambique
continued to drop, water board officials have warned
people to stay away from the river banks. |
Pressler criticises Clinton’s Pak visit NEW DELHI, March 21 (PTI) — Former US Senator Larry Presseler, author of the legislation that banned arms sales to Pakistan, yesterday criticised President Bill Clinton’s visit to Islamabad saying the trip would ‘legitimise’ the military regime in that country. “I have a great concern that the President is going to Pakistan which will legitimise that government and I think Pakistan will stop its task of moving towards normalcy if the US Government was supportive of what it does,” Mr Pressler, told the Star News yesterday. He also flayed the “ revealing of most of the Pressler amendments against Pakistan... which would help Pakistan to start an arms race in the sub-continent. About President Clinton’s visit to India, Mr Pressler was hopeful of a positive outcome. The TV network showed
Senator Pressler splashed in colour from head to toe when
he spoke on camera during a Holi celebration here. |
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