 |
|
|
Obama signs Border Security Bill
Fonseka set to lose rank, medals
|
|
|
Wikileaks to release more info on Afghan war
Indian cabbie in Oz claims racial abuse
Cash-for-degree probe: UK college under lens
Report: Pak in talks to recognise Israel
|
|
Obama signs Border Security Bill Washington, August 13 The money thus raised by this steep increase in the visa fee would be used to strengthen security along the porous US-Mexico border, by deploying an additional 1,500 National Guards, unmanned drones and other measures. The Senate held a rare meeting — coming out of its recess — to approve the Bill unanimously, which was done by the House of Representatives a few days ago. A summary of a Senate version of the Bill named Indian firms Wipro, Tata, Infosys and Satyam, which use hundreds of these visas for their employees coming to the United States to work at their clients' locations as technicians and engineers. The fee increase would apply only to companies with more than 50 employees and for whom the majority of their workforce is visa-holding foreign workers. Obama, in a statement, welcomed the passage of the Bill, saying the resources made available through this legislation will build upon US' successful efforts to protect communities along the Southwest border and across the country. He said the action by Congress answers his call to bolster the essential work of federal law enforcement officials and improve their ability to partner with state, local, and tribal law enforcement. "So these steps will make an important difference as my administration continues to work with Congress toward bipartisan comprehensive immigration reform to secure our borders, and restore responsibility and accountability to our broken immigration system," the President added. Meanwhile, India's software industry body Nasscom said the US Border Security Bill has logical flaws and is discriminatory in nature. "From India's perspective, I think it has been done ahead of November Congressional elections. It is based on flawed logic and is discriminatory in nature. But it did clarify that it is not targeting any particular nation... "It (this Bill) shows the fact that Indian IT industry is posing significant competition to the US companies," Nasscom President Som Mittal told the media. The Bill seeks to increase application fee for H-1B and L-1 visas by at least $2,000 for the next five years. "We are in talks with the US authorities to make separate visa categories for the services sector," he added. Similarly, top industry body CII also termed the US move as "protectionist" that could be detrimental to the economic interests of both countries.
— PTI
|
|
|
Fonseka set to lose rank, medals
A Sri Lankan military court on Friday stripped the country’s war hero and former Army chief Sarath Fonseka of his rank and medals after finding him guilty of dabbling in politics while in service. The 59-year-old General was convicted by the first court martial against him, which began deliberations five months back. He faces another military court on charges of corruption in defence deals. The three-member military court ruled that the General, who is now a Parliamentarian, be “cashiered,” which means he will be stripped off his rank, medals and decorations won during his 40-year long span in the Sri Lankan Army. The sentence of dishonourable discharge from rank has to be ratified by President Mahinda Rajapaksa in his capacity as the Commander-in-Chief of the armed forces. “Although he has been convicted, the punishment is subject to the approval of the Sri Lankan President,” a source said. The military court pronounced the judgment in the absence of Fonseka’s lawyers as they had told the court that they would not attend the proceedings during the current court vacation and would be present only from next week. Fonseka is currently an MP from the opposition Democratic National Alliance party though he remains under arrest. His supporters allege that these accusations are politically motivated. Fonseka has the right to appeal the verdict in a civilian court. The General is also being tried by another court martial on corruption in deals to procure military equipment for the army. As a battlefield commander, Fonseka has been hailed by Lankan media as the architect of the country’s decisive military victory over the Tamil Tigers after a 37-year long insurgency. Fonseka was once close to President Rajapaksa and the two fell apart when he challenged him in the Presidential election race. The veteran General has been publicly charged by the ruling party leaders of plotting a coup, though no such formal charges have been brought against him. Fonseka has also been hauled up in civilian courts on other charges, which his supporters describe as a ‘witch-hunt’. He was taken into military custody shortly after he lost the Presidential election in January. His Democratic National Alliance rejected his sentencing, saying that the court martial was flawed from the beginning. “He could not be charged before a court martial after he retired from the Army,” the DNA spokesman Anura Kumara Dissanayake said. He also charged that Fonseka’s lawyers were not present when the verdict was delivered and some witnesses cross-examined. International rights groups have sharply criticised the continued detention of the former Army chief and condemned the use of closed door military courts to try him instead of civilian courts. (With inputs from PTI)
|
|
Wikileaks to release more info on Afghan war
London/Washington, August 13 Wikileaks spokesman Julian Assange has said his organisation is preparing to release the rest of the Pentagon documents it has on file. Speaking over video link to media here, Assange brushed aside the Pentagon’s demand that he hand over the intelligence documents, but gave no time frame for the release of the 15,000 remaining files he claims are with his portal. The spokesman said his personnel had combed through about “7,000 files” to ensure that no names were published to put lives of US servicemen or Afghans at peril. “We absolutely would go ahead and publish them”, Assange said, but did not indicate that whether he would hand over these files to prominent media outlets. Slamming WikiLeaks’ announcement the Pentagon termed it as the height of irresponsibility. “The only responsible course of action for them is to immediately remove all the stolen documents from their website and expunge all classified material from their computers,” the Pentagon spokesman, Geoff Morrell, said. “If they were to publish any additional documents after hearing our concerns about the harm it will cause our forces, our allies and innocent Afghan civilians, it would be the height of irresponsibility,” Morrell said. Last week, the Defense Department demanded that WikiLeaks return all documents belonging to the Pentagon and delete any records of the documents. “The only acceptable course is for WikiLeaks to take steps immediately to return all versions of all of these documents to the US government and permanently delete them from its website, computers and records,” Morrell said. However, the WikiLeaks has not responded to the call of the Pentagon. “We have made very clear that we view the publishing of these communications very seriously and as a very serious breach and a security breach to our soldiers and diplomats overseas,” the State Department Deputy Spokesman, Mark Toner, said. — PTI
|
|
Indian cabbie in Oz claims racial abuse
Melbourne, August 13 Gurpreet Singh Ashreja (29) said he was stunned that the police did nothing as they listened to passengers racially abuse him outside Chelsea police station. He said he drove to the police station for support when his passengers refused to pay $47 in fares. Instead, he alleges, he received a loud dressing down, The Age reported. "I have no doubt that I was discriminated against because of my race," he was quoted as saying by the newspaper. He took the six passengers to the station on the advice of the cab company, hoping to get the rest of his fare. The police had been alerted and were waiting for him outside, but one told him it was a civil matter and the police only dealt with criminal matters, the paper said. Ashreja claimed that he was also ridiculed for not wearing the proper taxi uniform outside the cab, which the fare evaders thought was funny. He said one officer then shouted at him about the way he had parked his cab. Ashreja said the passengers got out of the cab and started shouting abuses at him., he claimed. The policeman was "watching this and I could see a smile on his face". The police are said to be investigating the matter. — PTI
|
|
Cash-for-degree probe: UK college under lens
London, August 13 The cash-for-qualifications investigation was launched after The Times discovered that recent students of Oxford College of Management Sciences appeared to have little or no knowledge of what, when and where they had studied to gain their certificates. The man believed to have been running the college, Rizwan Ahmed Kiyani, is a 38-year-old Pakistani who appears to have spent much of the past seven years posing as a student while working in a series of full-time jobs, the report said. Kiyani has twice been detained by British immigration authorities and has been due for deportation since May 2008, yet remains free and is applying for indefinite leave to remain in the country. His business partner Mohamed Amer, another Pakistani citizen and a director of the college, is living in the UK under one identity but uses another name, Amer Masood Mir, on his Pakistani passport to make regular trips to his home city of Rawalpindi. He apparently has no legal right to be in the UK, The Times report said. — PTI
|
|
|
Report: Pak in talks to recognise Israel
Islamabad, August 13 Quoting top-level diplomatic sources, the Nation said Pakistan was said to have opened its “camp office” in Tel Aviv, and is engaged in covert talks to find out possibilities to establish direct links. The paper said Pakistan might even following in Turkey’s footsteps to recognise Israel in the near future. Reacting to the report the Foreign Office spokesman Abdul Basit said in a statement: “There was no change in Pakistan’s policy (on Israel), nor is any change under consideration”. Such reports “based on mere speculation and hearsay” are “irresponsible, to put it mildly,” he said. The paper said a prominent politician who is also the chief of a religious party, has played a vital role in the talks. In September 2006, Musharraf had said Pakistan’s government would have to recognise Israel only after an independent Palestinian state was established. “We cannot do something that sidelines us from the Muslim world,” Musharraf had said at that time.
— PTI
|
|
| HOME PAGE | |
Punjab | Haryana | Jammu & Kashmir |
Himachal Pradesh | Regional Briefs |
Nation | Opinions | | Business | Sports | World | Letters | Chandigarh | Ludhiana | Delhi | | Calendar | Weather | Archive | Subscribe | Suggestion | E-mail | |
A Sri Lankan military court on Friday stripped the country’s war hero and former Army chief Sarath Fonseka of his rank and medals after finding him guilty of dabbling in politics while in service.
The move is expected to badly hurt Indian IT firms which may have to shell out an additional $250 million annually for the next five years.