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| Saturday, December 16, 2000, Chandigarh, India    |
Last rites of Chernobyl nuclear plant US Govt transition
begins Pak heads for presidential
govt? 5 Chinese Muslims
die in police firing |
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Israel-Palestine
talks next week Kuchma ordered newsman bumped off
? Silk Air plane crash was deliberate Clinton forgets
to pay bill |
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Russian tactics in
Chechnya changed Foundation warning
on US aid to India
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Last rites of Chernobyl nuclear
plant KIEV (Ukraine), Dec 15 (AP, PTI) — With the flip of a switch today, operators shut down the Chernobyl nuclear power plant, 14 years after the world’s worst nuclear accident spawned a tragedy that will be felt for generations. Ukrainian President Leonid Kuchma gave the shutdown order from Kiev over a video link-up with the plant, located some 135 km away. An operator pushed a switch activating the automatic safety system of the plant’s only working reactor sending containment rods sliding into the reactor core. “To fulfil the state decision and Ukraine’s international obligations, I hereby order to start work for the premature stoppage of the operation of reactor No. 3 at the Chernobyl nuclear power plant,” Mr Kuchma said. The shutdown, which came after intense international pressure, should erase the danger of future accidents at the plant. Yet Ukraine will suffer the effects of the 1986 accident for years to come, with millions of citizens affected by radiation-related ailments. The leaders of this former Soviet republic said they were undertaking a historic mission in closing down the last functioning reactor at Chernobyl. “The world will become a safer place. People will sleep in peace,” Mr Kuchma said during a ceremony to commemorate the shutdown. The Soviet-made RBMK reactor has been running at one per cent of capacity. It was restarted yesterday after a malfunction caused a shutdown. But it was considered too unsafe to be brought to full output. The Kremlin tried to conceal the reactor No 4 explosion of April 26, 1986, contaminating vast areas in Ukraine, Russia and Belarus and spewing a radioactive cloud over Europe and delay evacuation of people from nearby towns for days. Firemen and other workers who were the first at the destroyed reactor had little or no protection from radiation. More than 4,000 cleanup workers have died and 70,000 were disabled by radiation in Ukraine alone. About 3.4 million of Ukraine’s 50 million people, including about 1.26 million children, are considered to have been affected by Chernobyl. Chernobyl has experienced numerous malfunctions since. Many Ukrainians, tired of living with radiation scares, were relieved by its closure. For others, the shutdown represents lost electricity and lost jobs. Mr Kuchma, who toured the ill-fated plant and tidy slavutych, the town of Chernobyl workers, was confronted by dozens of gloomy protesters wearing black armbands. Thousands from among the plant’s 6,000 workers will be laid off. For years, the energy-strapped government faced pressure from environmental groups and foreign leaders but refused to close the plant, citing the electricity it provided and demanding foreign aid in return. Kuchma finally pledged to shut down Chernobyl during a visit by US President Bill Clinton earlier this year. In the meantime, the Russian Atomic Energy, Minister, Mr Yevgeny Adamov, has criticised the decision of formally shut down Chernobyl atomic power plant. Mr Adamov told reporters here said there were no “technical or economic grounds” for the closure of the plant. He alleged that Ukraine’s decision to close it was “purely politically motivated”. Refusing to attend the formal closing ceremony at Kiev, Mr Adamov said there were 11 Chernobyl-type reactors operational in Russia after their modernisation and Ukraine never approached the Russian manufacturers for consultations. |
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US Govt transition
begins WASHINGTON, Dec 15 — A day after Mr George W. Bush emerged as the next President of the USA, the transition of the government got underway in Washington yesterday when Clinton administration officials handed over the keys of the transition office to Vice President-elect Dick Cheney along with $5.3 million to facilitate the changeover. Mr Bush is likely to name next week former Joint Chiefs of Staff Chairman Colin Powell, an African American, as Secretary of State, with the avowed objective of putting in place his Cabinet before his inauguration on January 20. Reports here say the new 14-member Cabinet is expected to have an equal number of new faces and those who had worked in earlier Republican administrations, particularly that of his father George Bush Sr. between 1988 and 1992. They say his immediate attention is on filling sensitive positions associated with international affairs and defence. Along with Gen. Powell, Mr Bush intends to announce Stanford Provost Condoleezza Rice as his national security adviser. Like Mr Powell, Ms Rice is also African American and had served in the earlier Republican governments. She served as an expert on the Soviet affairs during the Ronald Reagan and George Bush administrations. Mr Powell led the Joint Chiefs of Staff during the senior Bush administration. They will be the first blacks in the US history to occupy such top and prestigious positions in the administration. Sources say Mr Bush will begin announcing Cabinet postings after his meeting next Tuesday with President Clinton and Vice President Al Gore, whom he defeated in the election. He is arriving here from Austin, Texas, on Sunday. Those mentioned for the post of Defence Secretary include Mr Sam Nunn, former Democratic Senator, and Mr Paul Wolfowitz, Dean of Johns Hopkins School of Advanced International Studies who served in the Reagan State Department and as Under Secretary of defence during the Bush administration. Sources say Mr Bush is keen to have a democrat on a top position in his Cabinet as part of his efforts to provide a healing touch to the nation’s troubled polity. Talking to newsmen, Mr Cheney, who is in charge of the transition, said the transition team had “made significant progress” in putting in place a list of cabinet and staff appointments. In all, some 7,000 slots have to be filled. At least 1,000 of them would need congressional approval. So far some 25 applications have been received. Mr Bush began his first day as President-elect by attending a morning service of worship and music at an Austin church yesterday. “The Governor decided that he wants to start this on a message of prayer and healing,” said his aide Karen Hughes. President Clinton, who is on a European tour, called from Britain to congratulate Mr Bush on his success and urged the nation to “follow Vice President Gore’s lead” and unify behind Mr Bush and his new administration. “I pledged to President-elect Bush my efforts and the best efforts of every member of our administration for a smooth and successful transition,” Mr Clinton said. Mr Clinton also spoke with Mr Gore but the latter did not mention his name in his speech last night conceding election to Mr Bush. Top Democratic lawmakers praised Mr Bush’s conciliatory approach but at the same time asked the Republican leader to address the voting problems that gave rise to the disputed Florida election “if he wants the country to rally behind him.” Mr Gore’s running mate Joseph Lieberman who resumed his duties in the Senate said Mr Bush and Mr Cheney “are in my prayers.” He was the country’s first Jew to run for national office. In Florida, Governor Jeb Bush, the President-elect’s younger brother, announced the appointment of an election reform commission to study the state’s widely varying voting technology, which played a key role in Mr Gore’s challenge of ballot in the state.
— IANS |
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Pak heads for presidential govt? ISLAMABAD, Dec 15 (UNI) — The Pakistan military regime has in principle decided to introduce a presidential form of government, to be headed by Chief Executive Gen Pervez Musharraf. A legal draft is being given the final touches to make the necessary amendments to the Constitution, the Dawn reported today. President Mohammed Rafiq Tarar is expected to request the government to relieve him of his responsiblities on medical grounds, the report said. An unscheduled meeting of the army top brass last night is also reported to have discussed the issue. General Musharraf would be moved to the position of President and his Cabinet would include political figures. However, the National and Provincial Assemblies, which were suspended by the military regime, are likely not to be restored, the report said. The paper said soon after becoming President, General Musharraf would appoint a caretaker government and the names of Illahi Baksh Soomra and Wasim Sajjad are already under consideration for the posts of acting Prime Minister. Mr Ijaz-ul-Haq, son of former President Zia-ul-Haq, Mr Fakhir Imam and Mian Azhar may also be included in the Cabinet. According to the report, General Musharraf has already started consultations with various political leaders. A number of members of the suspended National Assembly are being contacted by government agencies and are being asked to join the Mian Azhar camp. Mian Azhar is a dissident of the Pakistan Muslim League and enjoys the support of all members who broke away from the party when the Nawaz Sharif group decided to join an alliance with the People’s Party. |
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5 Chinese Muslims die in police firing BEIJING, Dec 15 (PTI) — Five Chinese Muslims were shot dead and over 40 injured in a violent clash with the police in Shandong province which erupted over an “insult” to the minority community, a media report said today. Members of the Hui Muslim minority had protested over an “insulting” banner hung in front of a meat shop on September 20 claiming to sell “Muslim pork”. The community protested earlier on a number of occasions demanding its removal which led to continued clashes with the police in Yanxin county in the province, Hong-Kong-based South China Morning Post reported. Quoting the Hong Kong-based Information Centre for Human Rights and Democracy, it said, Muslims petitioned the local government demanding the removal of the banner. Officials, however, issued a public notice in October saying that the protests constituted “illegal activities” and held three members of the community, it said. The situation exploded last Saturday when a pig’s head was hung in front of a mosque. Violent confrontation broke out on Wednesday between the Han Chinese and the Muslims. The police fired into the air but failed to disperse the mob and had to resort to firing at the crowd in which five Muslims were killed. |
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Israel-Palestine talks next week JERUSALEM, Dec 15 (AFP) — Israel’s Foreign Minister Shlomo ben Ami announced today that talks with the Palestinians would resume next week, Israeli military radio reported. Ben Ami’s comments came after surprise overnight talks with Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat in the Gaza City held in a bid to end weeks of bloodshed and set the West Asia peacemaking process back on track. “The Palestinians understand that nothing but peace talks can help them achieve their goals,” Ben Ami said following three hours of talks, according to the radio station. The report said Ben Ami had agreed that Israel would withdraw its forces from advanced positions in the Palestinian autonomous territories and lift the blockade on Palestinian towns, in line with the moribund Sharm el-Sheikh accord concluded in Egypt in October. Meanwhile, Israeli soldiers on Friday shot dead three Palestinians near the West Bank village of Burin, Palestinian security officials said. Palestinian officials said the three were killed in separate incidents near Burin, a village near the West Bank city of Nablus, but gave no further details. |
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Kuchma ordered newsman bumped off
? THE Ukrainian Government is shuddering under the weight of a mounting corruption scandal, involving President Leonid Kuchma, a series of secretly taped foul-mouthed conversations and a headless corpse, believed to be that of a missing journalist. A parliamentary committee yesterday attempted to wade through a mire of allegations to establish the truth at the heart of the case. They were examining the testimony of a former presidential bodyguard who claimed to have placed a digital tape recorder under the President’s sofa, recording conversations in which Mr Kuchma allegedly ordered senior officials to dispose of the journalist. The tapes were made public by the head of the opposition Socialist party, Mr Oleksandr Moroz, who described them as irrefutable evidence linking Mr Kuchma to the disappearance of Georgy Gongadze, Editor of a Ukrainian Internet newspaper which focused on corruption. The President has denied that it is his voice on the tape and has initiated for action slander. “A large-scale provocation is taking place,” a spokesman quoted Mr Kuchma as saying. Dutch experts say the tapes do not appear to have been edited or tampered with, although no one has been able to prove that the voice belongs to the President. Mr Gongadze disappeared on September 16. Amid growing pressure for an investigation, Mr Kuchma said he would oversee the case himself. A headless, disfigured corpse was found near Kiev on November 3. Investigators said it was impossible to identify the body because the head could not be found and its hands had been treated in acid to remove the fingerprints. However, Mr Gongadze’s family is convinced that the body is his. Mr Kuchma has accused his opponents of trying to trigger a national crisis. He has also claimed that the whole affair has been orchestrated by western secret services, alarmed by the new bonds Ukraine is forging with Russia. Other commentators have suggested that Gongadze’s death may have been ordered by powerful business figures, damaged by reports in his Ukrainska Pravda. |
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Silk Air plane crash was deliberate WASHINGTON, Dec 15 (Reuters) — The captain of a Silk Air jetliner that went down in an Indonesian jungle in 1997, killing all 104 persons aboard, probably crashed the jet on purpose, The Washington Post reported today, quoting the US National Transportation Safety Board. In a rare rebuke to a foreign counterpart, the NTSB said investigations showed that Capt. Tsu Way Ming, once a stunt flier with the Singapore Air Force, was in a serious debt from financial market speculation at the time of the crash and had experienced several run-ins with the management of his airline. |
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Clinton forgets
to pay bill LONDON, Dec 15 (DPA) — The U.S. President, Mr Bill Clinton, left a bar in London’s trendy Notting Hill without paying the bill for a lunchtime snack, Britian’s Press Association news agency reported. The Clintons — the President was accompanied by First Lady Hillary and daughter Chelsea — ordered cajun shrimp, a ciabatta sandwich, a glass of organic lager and a cola yesterday. When they left, landlord Mike Bell asked: “who picks up the tab for this?” The President spent 20 minutes at the Portobello Gold on the fashionable Portobello road, where Mr Bell was unable to serve him a hot meal as the electricity had been off since early morning. “We gave him anything we could cook without electricity,” Mr Bell said. While the Clintons were in the bar, oyster deliveryman Jonathan Dunhill was stopped by secret servicemen who wanted to inspect his delivery of shellfish from Strangford Lough in Northern Ireland. The Clintons later went into an antiques shop on the Portobello road. |
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Russian tactics in
Chechnya changed MOSCOW, Dec 15 (Reuters) — Russian generals, weary of cat-and-mouse clashes with Chechen guerrillas, today said they would take their troops out of army bases and deploy them in small contingents across the region. The armed forces chief of staff, Gen Anatoly Kvashnin, said a taskforce would hunt down leading Chechen commanders who form the backbone of rebel resistance 14 months after Russia mounted its second campaign to crush the separatists. “I think that this will be the most resolute stage of the anti-terrorist operation,” General Kvashnin said in an interview with the military daily Krasnaya Zvezda, using Moscow’s preferred term to describe the military drive. |
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Foundation warning
on US aid to India WASHINGTON, Dec 15 (UNI) — The Heritage Foundation has warned the USA against providing assistance to India in developing latter’s satellite and space-launch prowess. It could be misused by Delhi to advance its ambitious strategic missile programme in response to the growing perceived security threat from Beijing, the foundation said. Calling on the Bush Administration to invoke the Cox Congressional Committee’s recommendations on dual-use technology before American companies strike a deal with India, the foundation recalled how the transfer of similar technology by us companies, Loral Space and Communications and Hughes Space and Communications, to China for commerical space launch projects had led to grave security problems. |
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