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Strike hits life in Kathmandu
Follow path of moderate Islam, Jamait leader tells B’desh Muslims
New UK Home Secy to push ID cards plan
Iran arrests eight Israeli spies
Israel to release 170 Palestinians
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PPP’s street power intact, says Zardari
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Strike hits life in Kathmandu
Kathmandu, December 20 The start of the two-day strike in Kathmandu followed attacks by suspected rebels near the capital over the weekend that left 13 security forces and three insurgents dead. Maoist rebels have become increasingly bold in their attacks over the past year and are targeting Kathmandu more. The insurgents ordered all vehicles off the street to press the government to free detained rebels. Both public and private drivers declined to work for fear of attacks by the rebels, who have a reputation of being ruthless. At the capital’s main bus terminal, hundreds of passengers were stranded with no buses or trucks leaving or entering Kathmandu. People were forced to walk to work, while schools declared a two-day holiday because there were no buses to transport the students. Private vehicles also stayed off the road, fearing attacks by rebels. The airport, however, was open with most domestic and international flights operating on schedule. Passengers were picked up by buses with armed police escorts. In August, the rebels used the threat of violence to shut down road links to Kathmandu to press their demands for the release of government-held guerrillas.
— AP |
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Follow path of moderate Islam, Jamait leader tells B’desh Muslims
Dhaka, December 20 In recent years Bangladesh has witnessed the rise of radical Islam which has created uncertainty in a number of areas bordering India. Against such a backdrop Madni’s visit is the first such visit in recent years of an Islamic scholar from India who is carrying the Indian Muslim experience to the Bangladeshi Muslims. In what is being read as a landmark visit Maulana Madni is spreading the message of moderation and peaceful co-existence to Bangladesh’s Muslims. Speaking at a gathering at Dhaka’s Sheraton Hotel he said: “Islam is being mostly misunderstood, and we need to dispel this misconception through education”. Some vested sections across the globe held Islam responsible for all the problems, he added. “But, it is not true. Islam is the religion of peace, and it never allows any form of discrimination,” he said adding that the problem of misunderstanding over Islam was not localised. It had become a global problem. In saying so he outlined the Indian experience and said not a single Indian Muslim was held post 9/11 and the war against Taleban. He opined that moderation and consensus ensured that Islam in India had become a religion of accommodation rather than one of confrontation. Maulana Madni was invited by the Islahul Muslimeen, Bangladesh, a non governmental organisation run by Islamic donations. Maulana Madni’s speech was heard by a number of Islamic scholars from home and abroad, lawmakers, retired bureaucrats and students of Islamic studies. Opposition Awami League lawmaker Faruk Khan, general secretary of Islahul Muslimeen Parishad Moulana Farid Uddin Masuod, Maulana Moosa Hajat and Moulana Irfan Ismail Sange of the United Kingdom also spoke at the gathering. Earlier, Madni who is on a four-day visit to Bangladesh made trips to Sylhet and central Brahmanbaria district where he addressed a number of gatherings inviting people to follow the path of moderate Islam, which he said was the best way of life. He visited a number of Madarsas in the districts and laid the foundation stone for an orphanage in Dhaka. Asked about the significance of Madni’s visit to Bangladesh, Moulana Farid Uddin said it enlightened the Islamic community in Bangladesh. “He tried to motivate root level people towards a ‘true’ Islam which is all accommodating”.
— ANI |
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New UK Home Secy to push ID cards plan
London, December 20 Writing in the Times newspaper, he blasted critics of the proposals as being guilty of “liberal woolly thinking” and said ID cards would carry advantages beyond their use as a security tool. Britain abolished ID cards more than 50 years ago but the Labour government under Prime Minister Tony Blair plans to reintroduce them in 2007, after the next General Election. The cards, anathema to some British civil liberties groups, are not expected to be made compulsory until about 2013. “My commitment to the principle of ID cards is very strong and will not waver, mainly because I think that these will help to make everyone a bit safer, at no real cost to civil liberties,” Mr Clarke wrote. “I believe some critics ... are guilty of liberal woolly thinking and spreading false fears when they wrongly claim that ID cards will erode civil liberties ... will usher in the ‘Big Brother’ society’. The ID Cards Bill was introduced by former Home Secretary David Blunkett, who resigned last week over a scandal involving charges he abused his position to speed up a visa for a Filipin nanny of his former lover. The issue has also divided the Opposition Conservatives, but party leader Michael Howard said the Tories would back the plans. “I have listened to the police and security chiefs. They have told me that ID cards can and will help their efforts to protect the lives of British citizens against terrorist acts,” Mr Howard wrote in today’s Daily Telegraph newspaper. “The Conservative Party will vote for the Identity Cards Bill”.
— Reuters |
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Iran arrests eight Israeli spies
Jerusalem, December 20 Eight Iranian citizens have been arrested on suspicion of having connection with the alleged espionage racket, Israel Radio’s Persian language programme said. An Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesman reportedly said that the affair was serious, but did not disclose whether or not those arrested were Jewish.
— PTI |
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Israel to release 170 Palestinians
Jerusalem, December 20 Yesterday, Prime Minister Ariel Sharon neared agreement with the moderate Labor Party to expand his coalition government and ensure approval of next year’s pullout from Gaza. The developments added impetus to a drive towards ending the four years of bloody Israeli-Palestinian violence and moving back to the negotiating table in the post-Yasser Arafat era. Mr Sharon called the decision a “goodwill gesture” and spoke of “deep friendship” for Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak.
— AP |
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PPP’s street power intact, says Zardari
Karachi, December 20 He was speaking at the convention of the People’s Students Federation (Sindh) outside Bilawal House. Mr Zardari said after coming into power again, the PPP would provide jobs and land to landless peasants to improve the lot of the common man. He said Zulfikar Ali Bhutto’s policy of ‘Roti, kapra aur makan’ was still valid and formed the basis of the common man’s struggle. The party, he said, was still struggling for the same ideals. Amid slogans of ‘Jiye Bhutto’, ‘Jiye Benazir’ and ‘Jiye Zardari’, he said the general was becoming weaker with each passing day and that turncoats, who had abandoned the party for narrow vested interests, would not be taken back into the party fold. He said the government had been compelled to talk about democratic dispensation because of mounting pressure of people. Speaking like a seasoned politician, Mr Zardari tried to build a personal rapport with the youth cadre and said the PPP’s street power was in tact but the party had not used it deliberately. “We are exploiting the regime’s weakness and ruthlessness to our advantage to frustrate conspiracies against the Country,” he said, adding that Ms Benazir Bhutto’s living in exile was also part of a well-thought-out strategy. “Had there been no 9/11 tragedy, the PPP would have shown its real power in the last elections which were rigged, despite the fact the Benazir Bhutto was not allowed to contest those elections and I was kept in detention,” he said. He reiterated that no matter what the rulers said, elections would be held in 2005 and Ms Bhutto would return to lead the people. Referring to what he termed acrimonious water crisis, Mr Zardari said the problem had been deliberately created by the establishment to pit people of different provinces against one another to extend its rule. However, Mr Zardari, who acknowledged the seriousness of the water issue, stressed the need for employing better water conservation and management techniques to meet the needs of swelling population. Mr Zardari paid rich tribute to the party’s student cadre whom he said formed the vanguard of the struggle for democracy, adding that he himself had to endure eight-year-long detention while many activists had to pay with their lives. The PPP leader said his detention and Ms Benazir Bhutto’s going into exile were part of the struggle to protect people’s rights, despite temptations and torture. Reiterating his unflinching faith in Zulfikar Ali Bhutto’s ideals, Mr Zardari urged the PSF cadre to organise on scientific basis and exploit the communication boom. Assuring the youth of providing them with modern information technology, Mr Zardari said he would visit every district to acquaint himself with problems being faced by students. He said the late Zulfikar Ali Bhutto gave the ultimate sacrifice for upholding the people’s rights and democracy. The PPP leader said that if he wanted to strike a compromise, he could have done it long ago. |
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