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| Wednesday, August 2, 2000, Chandigarh, India   
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France refuses to pay ransom |
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Republicans nominate Bush for presidentship Speight charged with civil unrest USA removes 2 Indian entities Fuel spill grounds King’s flight Jagger watches Jerry Hall strip
Air France to keep Concordes grounded
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23 Christians massacred in Indonesia JAKARTA, Aug 1 (AFP) — Muslim assailants killed at least 23 Christians fleeing from an attack on their village into the jungles of the
Indonesian island of Maluku, a Christian activist said today. The dead were among some 4,000 people who had fled the village in fear of their lives, he said. The killings were the latest incident in a wave of Muslim-Christian violence that has swept the Maluku islands since January 1999, leaving more than 4,000 dead. “A surviving witness whom our men have questioned in Suli village, said there were at least 23 bodies in the forests, where some 4,000 villagers had fled to escape attacks by Muslims on Waai village,” said Mr Sammy Weileruni of the joint Christian coordination post in Ambon city. Mr Weileruni said a 27-year-old witness, Ishak Bakarbessi, said Waai village, which had been under attack since Sunday, was now completely obliterated and that all the villagers had left it for the jungles. “But the Muslim attackers and some soldiers from the Kostrad 321 battalion are now occupying the village and have set up tents and makeshift shelters,” Mr Weileruni said quoting the witness. He was referring to members of the army strategic reserve command (Kostrad) battalion, which had been assigned to safeguard the area covering
Waai. Mr Weileruni said the 23 victims may have been killed between Monday and yesterday morning, and added that because of conditions there, the bodies were left lying where they fell, and could not be retrieved. |
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Envoy hurt in Jakarta blast JAKARTA, Aug 1 (AP) — A powerful bomb killed three persons and ripped apart a car carrying Philippines ambassador as it entered his official residence in central Jakarta today, the police said. Ambassador Leonides Caday and his chauffeur survived but were hospitalised, said Menteng police chief, Superintendent Paulus Waterpauw. At least 15 others were also injured in the car bombing which shook the capital’s downtown at about 12.30 p.m., the hospital officials said. Witnesses said the blast came from the envoy’s Mercedes car and blew it apart as it turned into the entrance of his residence on Imam Bonjol Street near several government offices and the homes of other foreign diplomats and senior government officials. Mr Caday was conscious but was profusely bleeding as passers-by pulled him out from the back seat of the wrecked limousine and took his driver from the front. The official Antara news agency quoted an embassy official as saying the ambassador sustained head and hand injuries, but was in good condition. Condemning the incident, Philippine Vice-President Gloria Arroyo today said the bombing was an act of
terrorism. |
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France refuses
to pay ransom PARIS, Aug 1 (AFP) — France said yesterday that it had refused to pay a ransom for the release of French hostages being held by Muslim rebels in the Philippines as one of the families had criticised the French Government. “We have never paid a ransom for any hostage ... and paying a ransom would endanger all French people who travel in troubled parts of the world,” said Foreign Minister Hubert
Vedrine. However, Paris said everything was being done to secure the release of the six French persons among 17 hostages held for more than three months by the Abu Sayyaf group on Jolo island. |
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Republicans nominate Bush for presidentship PHILADELPHIA, Aug 1 (Reuters) — The Republican national convention struck a relentlessly upbeat tone on its first day nominating Mr George W. Bush for President, stressing diversity and hearing a personal testimonial from his wife, Laura. In a stage-managed, feel-good evening yesterday that featured a series of appearances from black and Hispanic speakers, the Republican Party hoped to paint itself and the Texas Governor as moderate and mainstream and give him a boost in the November 7 presidential race against Vice-President Al Gore. A new Reuters/Zogby poll released yesterday showed Mr Bush leading Democrat Al Gore by only four percentage points among likely voters, a narrower lead for the Texas Governor than in several other polls by other organisations issued last week. Retired Gen Colin Powell, the first black to serve as head of the US armed forces, summed up the message of the first night, describing Mr Bush as a fighter for civil rights. “He has been successful in bringing more and more minorities inside the tent by responding to their deepest needs. Some call it compassionate conservatism. It’s just about caring for people,” he said. “He will bring to the White House that same passion for inclusion,” said General Powell, who commanded US forces under Mr Bush’s father, former President George Bush, during the 1991 Gulf war against Iraq. The Texas Governor appeared by satellite from the campaign trail in Ohio and assured delegates he would win the election. “I’m on my way to Philadelphia and we are on our way to victory come November,” he declared. His wife, Laura Bush, a teacher and librarian, preceded General Powell to the podium for a speech that touted her husband’s achievements in education. She noted that Mr Gore sometimes spent the night with teachers before visiting their schools on campaign trips. “Well George spends every night with a teacher,” she said, to laughter from delegates. Mrs Bush, who shies away from public speaking, was clearly nervous but won over the crowd with her evident sincerity. Still, it was a far different performance than the tour de force by the last Republican nominee’s spouse, Elizabeth Dole, in 1996, who waded into the crowd to talk about her husband, Bob, with a microphone in her hand like a TV talk show hostess. “I watched my husband make a difference as Governor, not by giving one speech about reading but by giving 100 speeches about reading, directing time, money and resources to our schools,” Mrs Bush said. “And that’s the kind of discipline and commitment George will bring to the presidency. He will set great goals and work tirelessly to achieve them,’’ she said. Mr Bush was hoping that by offering a new, inclusive image to the nation, he would reap a handsome bounce in the polls. But the major TV networks mostly ignored the proceedings, tuning in only for the final hour. The day began at 10
am when Republican Chairman JIM Nicholson called the convention to order. Almost four hours later, Mr Bush’s name was formally placed into nomination for president of the USA. No other names were offered. By the end of the evening, Mr Bush had received 293 votes from delegates in a rolling vote that will stretch over four nights. Conservative talk radio host Alan Keyes received five votes from the Arkansas delegation. As the first evening got under way, a series of black, Hispanic and Asian-American speakers paraded to the platform to drive home the message that the Republican Party had become a haven of tolerance and compassion. After Mr Paul Harris, a black Virginia legislator who occupies the seat once held by founding father Thomas Jefferson, the convention heard from single mother Pilar Gomez, El Paso Mayor Carlos Ramirez, Texas representative Henry Bonilla and Oklahoma representative J.C. Watts, who is black. “Under Governor Bush’s leadership, we’ve made tremendous strides reaching out to minorities,” said Bonilla. |
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Speight charged with civil unrest SUVA, Aug 1 (AP) — Rebel leader George Speight has been charged with crimes related to a wave of civil unrest in Fiji which followed his coup in May, the police said today. The charges against Speight and a small group of key advisers did not include treason, although an investigation into that charge was still underway, Assistant Police Commissioner Moses Driver said. “Speight has been charged with minor charges only but we are of course investigating the major crime of treason,” Driver told The Associated Press. The charges also fell outside an amnesty period granted between the time rebel gunmen stormed Parliament on May 19 and the date that the last of their 12 hostages were released on July 13, Driver said. Speight and his group were charged yesterday with unlawful assembly, a minor crime which carries a maximum penalty of one year in prison. Speight also was charged with assisting in the illegal burial of the body in Parliament — he was among mourners when a rebel killed in a gunbattle was buried on July 18 — and consorting with people who were illegally armed. The maximum sentences for those crimes were not immediately clear. Today’s announcement came a day after scores of rebel supporters, many with black eyes and bandaged wounds, were hauled into the court as prosecutors pressed the first charges stemming from the coup. The suspects’ injuries were believed to have been incurred during arrest. Almost all were charged with unlawful assembly and pleaded innocent. They were released on bail on condition they do not gather for political purposes and were ordered to reappear in four weeks. All face a maximum year in prison. Politini also said seven other of Speight inner circle were arrested today. |
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USA removes 2 Indian entities WASHINGTON, Aug 1 (PTI) —The Clinton Administration has removed two Indian entities — the Nuclear Science Centre and the uranium recovery plant — from the entities list but added the Indian Space Research Organisation Telemetry, Tracking and Command Network to the list. While the Nuclear Science Centre is located in New Delhi, the uranium recovery plant is based in Cochin. The announcement was made by the US Commerce Department’s Bureau of Export Administration in a release which recalled that on November 18, 1998, it added certain Indian and Pakistani entities to the list, removed 51 Indian entities and modified one entity’s listing. In addition, the bureau categorised certain items from a presumption of denial to a presumption of approval and corrected two inadvertent errors. After consultations between the bureau and the State Department, the release said, it also transferred some subordinates of Indian and Pakistani organisations on the entities list to different appendixes, which would “increase the number of licence applications submitted to the bureau.” The entities list or black list as it is commonly called, makes it difficult for US companies to export items that can be used for missile and nuclear weapon programmes of India. As most items imported by India are dual purpose items, Congress members have unsuccessfully urged President Bill Clinton to scrap the list altogether. The waivers Mr Clinton has issued relate to what are called basic human needs or where US companies will be at a competitive
disadvantage. |
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Fuel spill grounds King’s flight PHNOM PENH, Aug 1 (DPA) — A fuel spill on board the plane scheduled to carry Cambodia’s King Norodom Sihanouk to Beijing for medical treatment put an abrupt halt to departure ceremonies as the King and several diplomats were hustled off the airport tarmac amid the odour of fuel. An enraged Prime Minister Hun Sen vowed to fire the Head of the National Airline, Royal Air Cambodge, over the leak, which he said endangered the life of the beloved monarch. “We will remove the chief and deputy chief of this company this morning,’’ Mr Hun Sen told DPA shortly after the incident. The Prime Minister also said an investigation committee led by national police chief Hok Lundy was being formed to investigate the incident, implying that it might have been a case of sabotage against the royal family. “We suspect that this is not a normal technical problem, but it could be another problem related to the non-stop attacks on the King and the royal family and the royal government,’’ Mr Hun Sen said. |
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Jagger watches
Jerry Hall strip LONDON, Aug 1 (Reuters) — Texan model Jerry Hall stripped off last night in front of her ex-husband Mick Jagger — and hundreds of eager London
theatre-goers. Hall made her long-awaited debut as the middle-aged seductress Mrs Robinson in the “The Graduate’’, taking over from
Hollywood star Kathleen Turner who caused a sensation when she bared all on the stage in the hit play. Hall, who prepared for her performance with acting lessons, yoga and weightlifting, appeared nervous before her appearance at London’s Gielgud Theatre, The Times newspaper reported. It said she had cut her waist-length blonde hair as part of her transformation into a theatrical temptress. Rolling stone Jagger, who split with Hall in 1999, showed up to watch his ex-wife in her first stage appearance for 10 years. Yesterday’s performance was the first in a run of previews before the official opening night next week. Hall, reported to have fought off stiff competition from film stars Sharon Stone and Goldie Hawn to land the part, had tried to play down her nude scene: “It is a bit daunting. But it’s just a little strip scene.’’ British actress Joan Collins, who shot to fame with scantily clad performances in “The Stud’’ and “The Bitch’’ in the 1970s, reportedly turned down an opportunity to take over the role when hall finishes her run because she did not want to shed her clothes. |
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Air France to keep Concordes grounded PARIS, Aug 1 (Reuters) — France’s Civil Aviation Authority said today that Air France Concorde flights would remain suspended until further notice following last week’s disaster. "The decision by the Transport Minister to suspend Concorde flights remains in force", said a spokesman for the authority, the DGAC. Transport Minister Jean Claude Gayssot had asked the DGAC and other experts to draw up additional safety measures that would allow the flag carrier to resume operations with its five remaining Concordes, grounded since last Tuesday’s accident. The DGAC spokesman said earlier that technical experts had not been able to draft such measures, given that accident investigators were so far unable to establish the chain of events that led the supersonic airliner to crash in flames. All 109 persons on board and four on the ground were killed when the Concorde crashed in flames within two minutes of take off on a flight from Roissy-Charles de Gaulle airport of New York and plunged into a hotel in the town of Gonesse. Most of the dead from the crash, the first of a
Concorde in more than 20 years of service, were German tourists. The
French investigators have established that one or possibly two tyres
of the plane had burst, that there was intense fire probably caused by
a major fuel leak and that there were problems with the landing gear
and two of the four engines.  |
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