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Anti-govt protest in Malaysia, 21 arrested
Jamiat opposed to woman PM in Pak
Atlantis launch called off again
Global Climate Talks
S.Korea Oil Spill Clean-up
Pak EC allots symbols to 42 parties
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Reverse Racism
20 rebels killed in Lanka
Suicide bomber kills 9 in Pak
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Anti-govt protest in Malaysia, 21 arrested
Kuala Lumpur, December 9 A group of 50 persons, including lawyers and activists, wearing surgical masks, staged a “Peace Walk” at Kuala Lumpur’s landmark Independence Square, to mark the World Human Rights Day, which is tomorrow, but were stopped by over 300 policemen. The local police chief Che Hamzah Che Ismail said eight persons, including four lawyers, were detained for illegal assembly after defying an order to disperse,
the state-run Bernama agency reported. The protesters, who held banners that read, “freedom of assembly” and “Government that abuses human rights is terrorist”, gathered outside the Sogo Shopping Complex before walking to the Bar Council building, about 2 km away. The Bar Council, which represents some 12,000 lawyers, had earlier called of a planned march after it was denied permission by
the police. Accusing the police of high-handedness and of resorting to “bullying tactics,” Bar Council president Ambiga Sreenevasan told the reporters, “This is a sad day for human rights
in Malaysia.” Justifying the police’s action, Prime Minister Abdullah Badawi, who is also internal security minister, said the government does not practise double standards when taking action against the lawbreakers even if they were lawyers.
— PTI
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Jamiat opposed to woman PM in Pak
A component of the six-party religious grouping, the Muttahidas Majlise Amal, has said it was opposed to a woman becoming the President or the Prime Minister of Pakistan. Releasing his party manifesto at a news conference here, Maulana Samiul Haq, chief of the Jamiat Ulema-e-Islam (JUI-S), said only male Muslims should become the President and Prime Minister of the country. The JUI-S, in its manifesto, also demanded a ban on the appointment of the non-Muslims to all-important posts in the country, including the Chief Justice of Pakistan. It said all non-Muslims would be allowed to run religious educational institutions. However, no foreign missionary institutions would be allowed to set up their institutions in the country. The manifesto said the JUI-S would discourage co-education in the country and set up separate women universities for the purpose. The Arabic language would be introduced as a compulsory subject whereas English would be an elective subject. Interest-based banking would also be stopped across the country. The party also promised to repeal the 17th Amendment of the Constitution.
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Atlantis launch called off again
Cape Canaveral (Florida), December 9 The decision, taken by flight managers at 5:54 hrs IST (7:24 am), marks the fourth delay in the launch of the spacecraft that was to head for the International Space Station with a European laboratory on board. “The mission management team has officially scrubbed the launch for today,” National Aeronautics and Space Agency TV commentator George Diller announced. Under NASA rules, all four fuel sensors have to be working properly for the launch to proceed. There are only a few days left in which conditions will be right for the shuttle to launch from earth to reach the space station. Shuttle programme manager Wayne Hale said a launch might be possible up until Friday. Atlantis’s launch, initially scheduled for Thursday, was initially postponed after fuel two of the sensors gave false readings during fueling, requiring engineers to investigate what NASA described as a very complex problem. The Atlantis crew of seven is preparing for an 11-day mission to fly the European Columbus laboratory to the space station, orbiting hundreds of miles above earth. Until now, only the United States and Russia have had their own laboratories at the ISS. “We have never had a permanent base in space before and I see that like a first step for Europe in the real spaceflight activities compared to what we had in the past,” said Leopold Eyharts, a French astronaut who works for the European Space Agency. — AFP
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Patience is the key, says UN climate chief
Nusa Dua, December 9 Prominent figures, including former US Vice-President Al Gore and UN Chief Ban Ki-moon are expected in Indonesia in the coming days, along with environment ministers, who come to Bali with expectations piled on their shoulders. “The whole year has been pointing at the Bali process,” said John Coequyt, a climate campaigner from Greenpeace. “We have been here for a week now and there is not a lot of difference in discussion, tone and energy from previous summits. Things are going to have to change when ministers get here.” Government delegates from some 190 countries, ranging from the poorest to the richest in the world, have gathered for the 11-day conference under the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC). “This conference is not about delivering a fully negotiated climate change deal, but it is to set the wheels in motion,” said UN climate chief Yyo de Boer, as presidents, prime ministers and environmental ministers prepared to join discussions on how to head off the impacts of rising temperatures, from expanding oceans to deadly droughts and diseases. “Reaching a conclusion even in two years is going to be very ambitious, let alone trying to achieve that kind of result in two weeks.” The main negotiating text for the December 3-14 meeting, which was obtained by The Associated Press (AP) yesterday, mentions targets for reducing the amount of pollutants pumped into the atmosphere, but in a nonbinding way. Its preamble notes the widely accepted view that industrial nations’ emissions should be cut by 25 per cent to 40 per cent below 1990 levels by 2020. But even those numbers are likely to set off renewed debate at the Bali talks, which are meant to launch a two-year negotiation for a post-Kyoto Protocol agreement. — Agencies
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100 ships, thousands of troops pitch in
South Korea, December 9 The slick has washed up in an area of about 17 km (11 miles) of the west coast, about 100 km southwest of Seoul, that is home to popular tourist beaches, a national park and oyster beds. The spill is threatening to become a major environmental disaster. The slick extends about 20 km from the Hong Kong-registered tanker that began leaking an estimated 10,500 tones of crude oil on Friday, after a barge carrying a crane punched holes in its hull, while it was anchored, the coast guard said. The leak was patched early today, he said. “We have approximately 5,600 persons, who have been working since 5 am today ... doing all they can to prevent the situation from growing worse,” said Ryu Hung of the Taean coast guard. “It will likely take more than one month to clean up the mess,” maritime minister Kang Moo-hyun told reporters. Volunteers and government personnel have been scooping oil with buckets and absorbent cloth, treating birds covered in oil and scrubbing blackened rocks. Large numbers of fish and waterfowl have been killed. Ships deploying containment fences and oil skimmers have been trying to lessen the spill. The leak is about a third the size of the Alaska’s 1989 Exxon Valdez crude oil spill, the costliest on record. — Reuters
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Pak EC allots symbols to 42 parties
The Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) on Sunday allotted election symbols to 42 political parties but reserved its decision on allocating book to the Muttahida Majlise Amal.
Among major parties, the Pakistan Muslim League (PML-Q) was allotted bicycle, the PPP arrow, PML (Nawaz) lion, MQM kite and PML-Function flower. The commission, which met under Chief Election Commissioner (CEC) Justice (retd) Qazi Muhammad Farooq, heard objections by Pakistan People’s Party and the Awami National Party against allocation of book, which they said, was misused by the religious grouping in previous elections to mislead people. Both parties said the MMA secured voted by telling illiterate voters that the book symbolised Holy Quran and sought vote on that basis. The symbol has also become bone of contention within the MMA itself. One of its dominant components, the Jamiat Ulema Islam, led by Maulana Fazlur Rehman has requested that it be allotted the book separately while the rest of the MMA be assigned some other symbol. It asserted that the book was originally opted by the JUI in 1970 elections long before the MMA was formed in 2002 and adopted this symbol. He acceptance of JUI’s claim depends on a no objection letter from MMA chief Qazi Hussain Ahmed because the party has sought this symbol on a second thought after the expiry of the day for seeking a particular symbol.
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It’s Arab-hating by Jews now
Jerusalem, December 9 The Association for Civil Rights in Israel’s (ACRI) in its annual report has said that racism against Israel’s Arab citizens has dramatically increased in the past year, including a 26 per cent rise in anti-Arab incidents. “Israeli society is reaching new heights of racism that damages freedom of expression and privacy,” author Sami Michael, president of ACRI was quoted by daily Ha’aretz as saying. “We are a society under supervision under a democratic regime whose institutions are being undermined and which confers a different status to residents in the centre of the country and in the periphery,” he added. The number of Jews expressing feelings of hatred toward Arabs has doubled, the report states. The report quotes June 2007 Democracy Index of the Israel Democracy Institute findings which said that only half the public believes that Jews and Arabs must have full equal rights. — PTI
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20 rebels killed in Lanka
Colombo, December 9 “In a confrontation in Kallikulam of northwestern Mannar four militants were killed and many were severely injured yesterday,” the Media Centre for National Security (MCNS) said quoting ground troops. In another incident yesterday, troops confirmed that 10 LTTE cadres were killed when the security forces retaliated to LTTE mortar fire. The MCNS said troops confirmed that two tiger militants were killed last evening when the Army observed some LTTE movements and launched an attack in the Killali forward defence lines. In another incident in Jaffna yesterday, the defence ministry said troops launched an attack on a LTTE bunker in Killali, gunning down four rebels.
— PTI
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Suicide bomber kills 9 in Pak
Mingora, December 9 The attack, near Swat’s main town of Mingora, came a day after the military said it had cleared the valley of most militants, led by a pro-Taliban cleric, whose insurgent followers had clashed with troops in the area for weeks. The attacker was driving from Matta, a town known as a militant stronghold, to Mingora. “Two children, three civilians and a policeman were killed. One policeman was wounded,” said Amjad Iqbal, a military spokesman in Swat. He said the head of the bomber had been found at the site of the blast. In a separate incident, residents said three decapitated bodies had been found near the town of Matta.
— Reuters
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