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Zardari re-arrested at airport
PPP to defy ban on rally in Pindi
Pak, Russia hold talks on security
US closely monitoring Bajaj case
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It’s only fiction, defends theatre company
Sonia among Guardian’s Women of the Year
US airstrikes kill 4 in Iraq
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Zardari re-arrested at airport
Islamabad, December 21 Mr Zardari was arrested on arrival by air from Karachi after an anti-terrorism court there withdrew the bail granted to him earlier in connection with a 10-year-old murder case of a Judge and his son, which was one of the several criminal and corruption cases faced by him. Karachi court Judge Pir Ali Shah, while ordering the withdrawal of the bail also issued a non-bailable arrest warrant against Mr Zardari, who was released on bail last month after spending eight years in prison. Apparently he could not be arrested in Karachi as he had already boarded a plane to make his first visit to the Capital after his release. Before alighting from the plane, Mr Zardari told TV networks over the telephone that the aircraft was held up for over two hours during which he learnt that his bail was withdrawn, a move described by him as a pressure tactic by the government to make his Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) support it. The plane was later allowed to travel to Islamabad where he was arrested after he alighted from it. As Mr Zardari got into police vehicle, he told his supporters to look after his children, local Geo TV reported, adding he also told his party workers not to worry and that he would be back soon. Mr Zardari is expected to be flown back to Karachi, Geo TV quoted officials as saying. Thousands of PPP workers, who had gathered outside the airport as well as in many other routes leading to airport, clashed with the police. Local television reports said police resorted to lathi charge and used water canons to disperse the crowds. The PPP has alleged that many of its leaders had been either prevented from going to the airport or detained. Adding to the drama, the Sindh High Court has transferred Shah, the anti-terrorism court Judge, from his post to the Sindh judiciary. The transfer was affected after the PPP lawyers approached the high court, reports from Karachi said. Mr Zardari faced a host of civil and criminal cases instituted against him during the regime of former Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif, who himself was exiled to Jeddah after the military coup. — PTI
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PPP to defy ban on rally in Pindi
Islamabad, December 21 Political secretary to the PPP chairperson MNA Naheed Khan told Dawn that a large number of party activists and leaders would go to airport to receive Mr Zardari, who, she said, had spent eight years in detention for the cause of democracy. The ban on all kinds of rallies and processions in Rawalpindi was imposed by the Punjab Government minutes after a meeting between PPP secretary-general Raja Pervez Ashraf and party’s Punjab president Qasim Zia with the provincial Chief Minister Chaudhry Pervez Ilahi in the Punjab House on Monday evening. Ms Khan said the party had advised its workers to remain peaceful as it was not a protest rally. However, she said, the Punjab Government and the local administration would be responsible in case of any untoward incident. Earlier, speaking at a joint press conference, Raja Pervez Ashraf and Qasim Zia said that they had met the Punjab Chief Minister only to inform him about the party’s programme. They said they had informed the Chief Minister that it was not a political gathering and they would be gathering only to welcome Mr Zardari. “We told the Chief Minister if the MMA can hold a public meeting in the city only a day before then why not the PPP,” Mr Zia said. He said they had reminded the Chief Minister that providing security to Mr Zardari as well as to the participants of the rally was the responsibility of the provincial government. Meanwhile, at least 10 PPP activists, including Amarpura UC nazim, were taken into custody by the police in Rawalpindi, while more arrests are expected after midnight, sources said. |
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Pak, Russia hold talks on security
Islamabad, December 21 “The two sides discussed bilateral and regional issues of mutual concern during the meeting,” Foreign Ministry spokesman Masood Khan said in a statement. Mr Kislyak, who is leading the Russian delegation at the second session of Pak-Russia Consultative Group on Strategic Stability, told Mr Kasuri that there had been a qualitative improvement in the relations between the two countries since the visit of President Pervez Musharraf to Moscow in February, 2003.
— UNI |
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US closely monitoring Bajaj case
The
incarceration of Baazee.com CEO Avnish Bajaj in New Delhi has become a cause of “concern at the highest level in the U.S. Government” and Secretary of State Colin L. Powell is “closely” monitoring the situation, a State Department official said on Monday.
Pointing out that Mr Bajaj was a U.S. citizen, State Department spokesman Richard Boucher said his arrest “is a matter that we’re paying quite a bit of attention to.” Mr Bajaj was arrested on December 17 and accused of violating Sections 292, and 294 of the Indian Penal Code and Section 67 of the Information Technology Act of 2000, which relates to transmission of obscene material through electronic media. Late last month, a 17-year-old public school student created a 2 minute 37 second pornographic videoclip featuring a female schoolmate performing a sex act on him. The clip, made using an MMS (multimedia messaging service)-enabled cell phone, was later sold on Baazee.com, India’s biggest Internet auction site. In San Jose, California, Baazee.com’s parent company eBay issued a statement saying it was “outraged” that Mr Bajaj, who had voluntarily travelled to New Delhi to cooperate with the police investigation of the case, was sent into judicial custody without bail until December 24. “The arrest was unexpected and completely unwarranted. It is unfortunate that the local law enforcement has chosen to misdirect its energies towards Mr Bajaj,” the company said. eBay spokesman Henry Gomez told the Tribune the firm was “working with officials and people in both nations (India and the United States) to secure Mr. Bajaj’s release. For now, that is our top concern.” He noted that the controversial video clip itself was not shown on Baazee.com. The Police in India have also arrested the teenaged boy who made the clip and Ravi Raj, a student at the Indian Institute of Technology (Kharagpur), who allegedly sold the clip. Mr. Raj promised to email a “video of Delhi girls having fun” for a price tag of Rs. 125. The girl involved in the incident reportedly traveled to the U.S. after she was expelled from school. eBay acquired Mumbai-based Baazee.com in August for about $50 million. “The seller offered to email the clip to buyers directly. The listing violated Baazee.com’s policies and user agreement and was removed from the site once it was discovered,” eBay said. “eBay has never experienced anything like this in the 32 countries in which we have websites,” Mr Gomez said. Asked whether the incident would force eBay to rethink its operations in India, he said at this stage Baazee.com continued to “operate normally.” Ms Prasanta K. Biswal, Director of the Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce and Industry’s, Washington office, told the Tribune this incident “is going to scare or send some kind of wrong signal to potential overseas investors who are looking to invest in India in the field of e-commerce.” “A website must have some guidelines on what should and should not be marketed. There are both moral and commerce issues in this case,” he said. Mr Gomez said like eBay, Baazee.com “strives to offer a transparent, trustworthy and safe trading environment and the company takes very seriously any breach of its acceptable use policy.” “Since the clip was removed from the site as soon it was notified, the arrest of Mr Bajaj was not warranted. At the same time the incident should not go unpunished,” said Mr Biswal, adding the incident provided an opportunity for the Indian government to “revisit the Information Technology Act.” A three-member group looking into amendments required to incorporate the needs of the business process outsourcing sector in the IT Act, 2000, will submit its recommendations to the Indian government by 2005. The panel is looking specifically at data privacy and security issues. Meanwhile, a consular officer from the U.S. Embassy in New Delhi has visited Mr Bajaj and was present during the appeal hearing in the case on Monday and Tuesday. Mr Boucher said U.S. officials would continue to provide Mr Bajaj with consular services and “monitor any developments.” |
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It’s only fiction, defends theatre company
Birmingham, December 20 Demonstrations have been held outside the Birmingham Repertory Theatre (BRT), demanding that the play, which runs until the end of December, be stopped. Five policemen were injured and two persons arrested on Saturday night in Birmingham when at least 400 Sikhs stormed the theatre where the play was being staged. The BRT said short of “blatant censorship” and cancelling the production, it could not have done more to appease the Sikh community. “The theatre has taken the lead in consulting with community members about the play over the last few months and, as a result, several changes were made to the show before it went into production,” a spokeswoman added. “The theatre also invited the Sikh community to write a statement expressing its views on the play and this has been given to every audience member and also read out in the auditorium before each performance.” However, Mr Mohan Singh, a Sikh community leader from Birmingham, said: “When they’re doing a play about a Sikh priest raping somebody inside a gurdwara, would any religion take it?” Roman Catholic Archbishop of Birmingham Vincent Nichols said the play was offensive to people of all faiths. “The right to freedom of expression has corresponding duties to common good. “Such a deliberate, even if fictional, violation of the sacred place of the Sikh religion demeans the sacred places of every religion,” he said. The play, written by Sikh playwright Gurpreet Kaur Bhatti, explores issues of sexual abuse, manipulation and relationships inside a gurdwara. The MP for Perry Barr, Birmingham, Mr Khalid Mahmood, said: “This whole thing is very unfortunate, particularly in a place like Birmingham, where we’ve enjoyed a huge amount of religious and racial integration.” Born in Watford, Bhatti went from acting and writing scripts for Eastenders and Crossroads to writing films and plays. She was nominated for a race in the Media award in 2003.
— IANS |
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Sonia among Guardian’s Women of the Year
London, December 21 The British daily said Sonia Gandhi “inspired us in 2004” with her “example of a politician with humility”. Ms Sonia Gandhi shares the honour with US Secretary of State-designate Condoleezza Rice, British Olympic double gold winning athlete Kelly Holmes, rapper Estelle and British aid worker killed in Iraq Margaret Hassan.
— IANS |
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US airstrikes kill 4 in Iraq
Hit, December 21 "At approximately 2 a.m. this morning (2300 GMT Monday), a US Air Force aircraft, in support of troops in contact, engaged an enemy fighting position with precision weapons," he said. Hospital staff said a woman and a child were among those wounded in the strikes on the Jamaiya and Sinai districts, on the eastern edges of the town, about 170 km west of Baghdad.
— Reuters |
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