W O R L D

Neutral expert on Baglihar
World Bank suggests three names
Islamabad, April 28
Pakistan on Tuesday formally received from the World Bank names of three internationally renowned experts on water issues in the first step towards the appointment of a neutral expert for arbitration on the Baglihar dam dispute with India, Foreign Ministry officials confirmed on Wednesday.

Did Tony Blair lie to Parliament on Iraq war?
A leak, last night, about a confidential advice given by the Attorney-General, Lord Goldsmith, to the British Prime Minister, and not shown to the Cabinet, casting doubt about the legality of going to war against Iraq, brought the Iraq issue to the forefront of the election campaign.

J&K saw decline in infiltration in 2004
Washington, April 28
Infiltration into Jammu and Kashmir significantly declined in 2004 due to the fence put up by India along the LoC and an effective security mechanism, the US State Department has said.

Giant plane still faces evacuation test
It took off without a hitch. Airbus’ new giant double-decker, the largest airliner ever built, made a successful first flight on Wednesday with just six crew members aboard in orange flight suits.

Iraqi cabinet gets approval
Baghdad, April 28
Iraq's Parliament approved a cabinet of ministers today, forming Iraq's first democratically elected government in more than 50 years. By an overwhelming majority, the 275-seat National Assembly approved the list of names put forward by Shi'ite Islamist Prime Minister Ibrahim Jaafari.

Bush rushed to bunker after false alarm
Washington, April 28
US President George W Bush was rushed to a secure underground White House bunker and Vice-President Dick Cheney was whisked outside the compound because of a "radar anomaly" - perhaps a flock of birds or a pocket of rain - that was mistaken for a plane flying in the restricted airspace.

Neutral expert on Baglihar
World Bank suggests three names
Qudssia Akhlaque
By arrangement with The Dawn

Islamabad, April 28
Pakistan on Tuesday formally received from the World Bank names of three internationally renowned experts on water issues in the first step towards the appointment of a neutral expert for arbitration on the Baglihar dam dispute with India, Foreign Ministry officials confirmed on Wednesday.

The list of experts was communicated simultaneously to Pakistan and India on Tuesday evening, it is learnt. The World Bank has already dispatched the procedure of appointing a neutral expert to the two governments.

According to informed sources, the bank has asked the governments of Pakistan and India to choose their nominee from the three-member panel of experts within two weeks.

In case Pakistan and India differ in their choice of expert then the bank will first ask them to select a consensus candidate by themselves. If the two countries fail to do so, the bank will use its discretion to appoint the expert.

An inter-ministerial meeting will be convened in Islamabad soon to select Pakistan’s nominee, government sources said.

The bank’s move comes three months after Pakistan formally requested it to appoint a neutral expert under the 1960 bilateral Indus Waters Treaty to resolve the dispute.

Pakistan maintains that the design of the Baglihar dam being built by India on the Chenab River in occupied Kashmir violates the treaty as it would block large quantities of water meant for it. India claims the project is within the parameters of the treaty.

India has been dragging its feet on the issue since 1999 when the project was launched. It has ignored Pakistan’s repeated demands for suspension of work till the issue is settled. The 450-megawatt hydro-power project is expected to begin generation by 2006.

Did Tony Blair lie to Parliament on Iraq war?
K.N. Malik writes from London

A leak, last night, about a confidential advice given by the Attorney-General, Lord Goldsmith, to the British Prime Minister, and not shown to the Cabinet, casting doubt about the legality of going to war against Iraq, brought the Iraq issue to the forefront of the election campaign.

The Attorney-General had advised the Prime Minister that if Britain joined the US plan to invade Iraq without a specific resolution authorising an invasion of Iraq, by the UN Security Council, the courts could regard the military action as unlawful.

The advice was changed after 10 days and the second note from the Attorney-General became the basis for Parliament authorising the invasion of Iraq.

While the disclosure by a TV channel, jolted the Prime Minister, provided credence to the Tory campaign that Mr Blair told a lie to Parliament and could not be relied on about anything, he said, a Liberal Democrat foreign Spokesperson said had the Attorney-General's earlier advice had been known to Parliament, it would not have sanctioned the war. He further maintained that the Cabinet was given the note, some more Cabinet ministers, had joined the then Foreign Secretary, Mr Robin Cook in resigning from the Cabinet.

Mr Cook resigned to protest against Britain joining the Americans in the invasion of Iraq.

The Tory Leader, Mr Michael Howard, two days ago, said the Prime Minister was a liar. Such a word had never been used by any major political leader against the Prime Minister, in the past, said political commentators and political historians.

In a poll conducted by a pro-Labour daily newspaper today confirmed that a large percentage those polled considered Mr Blair a Liar and slippery. A majority ,however ,maintained Mr Blair remained Charismatic figure and would make a better Prime Minister than his two other Tory and liberal Democratic rivals. The polls conducted, last week gave the Labour party almost 7 per cent lead in the May 5 elections.

The disclosure of the Attorney -General's first note is bound to make the task of the Labour campaign teams harder to convince those who doubt Iraq war and undecided voters in the marginal seats.

Yesterday, a Labour Party private poll had revealed that the party was under mounting pressure in marginal seats due strong voter scepticism and intense Tory pressure. In some marginal seats, it revealed the Labour lead of 2 per cent to 3 per cent. Even though most pollsters predicted a decisive lead in the polls, the Labour campaigners faced sceptical voters during campaigning.

Mr Blair, it may be recalled, was asked by Opposition leaders to disclose fully the advice he got from the Attorney-General which became the basis for Britain joining the war he did not want to disclose such an advice on the plea that there was no such precedence.

It is now disclosed that in his earlier 13-page note , the Attorney -General had noted that while he could argue a "reasonable "case in favour of the military action, he was not confident that a court would agree. Indeed, a court might conclude that a new UN resolution was needed before a military action could be undertaken, he had said.

The Attorney-General had spelt out the need to demonstrate that Iraq was still in breach of its disarmament obligations.

The day the Attorney-General gave this advice to Mr Blair, on the same day Mr Hans Blix, the Chief UN weapons inspector, had revealed that Iraq had made substantial progress in destroying its long- range missiles. Mr. Blix had not found any evidence of biological and chemical weapons.

He had clearly cast doubt on the American position that it could use force in Iraq on the basis of an earlier resolution of the Security Council for the use of force. He had advised for specific new resolution specifically authorising the use of force.

The Opposition is now asking as to how, why and on whose persuasion the Attorney-General changed his opinion making a definite case for the use of force.

J&K saw decline in infiltration in 2004

Washington, April 28
Infiltration into Jammu and Kashmir significantly declined in 2004 due to the fence put up by India along the LoC and an effective security mechanism, the US State Department has said.

The department made this assessment in its annual “Country Reports on Terrorism 2004” released yesterday where it also noted that “India remains an important ally in the global war on terrorism.”

It said the Indian security forces were increasingly effective, particularly in Kashmir.

The government noted a significant decline in infiltration from PoK during 2004, attributing the drop in large part to the fence it constructed during the year-long ceasefire in Jammu and Kashmir, the report said.

Militants and insurgents staged hundreds of attacks on the people and property in 2004, especially in Jammu and Kashmir and in the northeastern states, it said.

Insurgent and terrorist groups made numerous attempts on politicians’ lives, targeted public areas frequented by tourists and attacked security forces, the report claimed.

More than 500 civilians were killed in the attacks and militant outfits such as Lashkar e-Toiba and Jaish-e-Mohammed claimed responsibility for the strikes, it said.

Indian Parliament, it noted, modified its counter terrorism law in December, “removing controversial elements while maintaining or strengthening provisions essential to fighting the war on terror.

It also cooperated with both Nepal and Bhutan in those countries’ counter-terrorist efforts. The department, however, will not formally be publishing the figures when it presents the annual report on global terrorism to the Congress later this week. — PTI

Giant plane still faces evacuation test
Sylvia Adcock

It took off without a hitch.

Airbus’ new giant double-decker, the largest airliner ever built, made a successful first flight on Wednesday with just six crew members aboard in orange flight suits. When the 22 wheels of the superjumbo touched down nearly four hours after taking off in Blagnac, France, aviation history had been made.

But the real test may come this fall, when the European aircraft manufacturer will have to prove to international regulators that 853 people can get off the plane in a mere 90 seconds, the safety standard. And that’s with only half the doors open, to simulate an emergency in which some doors are blocked.

The test of the giant plane’s emergency evacuation system — which includes 16 inflatable two-lane slides — will be the first such full-scale test ever done on a double-decker plane, according to Airbus.

Airbus originally asked to be allowed to do two tests, evacuating each full-length deck separately. European regulators agreed, but US authorities balked. “We are expecting a full-scale test,” said Les Dorr, a spokesman for the Federal Aviation Administration. “Emergency evacuations are not common, but the important thing is, if you have to do it, that you can do it safely.”

A federal study in 2000 found cases in which passengers died in survivable accidents because they couldn’t get out of a smoke-filled cabin quickly enough. In 1985, 55 of 177 passengers on a Boeing 737 died of smoke inhalation on a runway in Manchester, England.

The A380 test will use volunteers who will fill the big plane as it remains on the ground, buckle their seat belts and wait for a flight attendant to yell the evacuation order, simulating a survivable accident.

Airbus is marketing the jet as a 555-seat er, but it will ask to be certified to carry a total of 853 passengers. Some airlines overseas are expected to use an all-coach-class configuration.

Chris Witkowski, air safety director of the Association of Flight Attendants union, said realistic tests of evacuations are important. “It’s the only way you can test the interactions of the equipment and the people. If you don’t do it prior to launch of aircraft, that first test is going to be with fare-paying passengers,” he said.

One big challenge will be the evacuation of the A380’s full-length upper deck. Some volunteers may hesitate when they look down at the 48-foot slide; others are expected to try to use the stairs to get to the lower level, which could create a logjam.

Gail Warner, a spokeswoman for Goodrich, said the design of the upper-deck slides might be altered to use a sort of hallway, “so that you exit the door, and you’re not looking down and seeing 40 feet of slide in front of you.”

Airlines are expected to start flying the A380 next year, and the manufacturer has orders for 144 planes.

— By arrangement with the LA Times-Washington Post

Iraqi cabinet gets approval

Baghdad, April 28
Iraq's Parliament approved a cabinet of ministers today, forming Iraq's first democratically elected government in more than 50 years.

By an overwhelming majority, the 275-seat National Assembly approved the list of names put forward by Shi'ite Islamist Prime Minister Ibrahim Jaafari.

However, several of the 36 ministries will be occupied by acting ministers until final names are decided. Mr Jaafari will be acting Defence Minister and Mr Ahmad Chalabi acting Oil Minister. — Reuters

Bush rushed to bunker after false alarm

Washington, April 28
US President George W Bush was rushed to a secure underground White House bunker and Vice-President Dick Cheney was whisked outside the compound because of a "radar anomaly" - perhaps a flock of birds or a pocket of rain - that was mistaken for a plane flying in the restricted airspace.

The yesterday morning scare, apparently the first time Mr Bush had been taken to the secure area since September 11, 2001, was determined within minutes to be a false alarm. — AP