Voice of America, 00-01-12

Voice of America: Selected Articles Directory - Previous Article - Next Article

From: The Voice of America <gopher://gopher.voa.gov>

CONTENTS

[01] OCALAN / SENTENCE BY AMBERIN ZAMAN (ANKARA)

[02] RUSSIA / CHECHNYA (S) BY EVE CONANT (MOSCOW)

[03] RUSSIA / CHECHNYA (S-UPDATE) BY EVE CONANT (MOSCOW)

[04] E-U FOOD SAFETY (L-ONLY) BY RON PEMSTEIN (BRUSSELS)

[05] FRANCE TRUCK PROTEST (L-O) BY PAUL MILLER (PARIS)

[06] CLINTON - NORTHERN IRELAND (L) BY DEBORAH TATE (WHITE HOUSE)

[07] POPE / HOLY LAND (L-O) BY SABINA CASTELFRANCO (ROME)

[08] NY ECON WRAP (S & L) BY ELAINE JOHANSON (NEW YORK)

[09] WEDNESDAY'S EDITORIALS BY ANDREW GUTHRIE (WASHINGTON)

[10] BRITAIN - PINOCHET (L-ONLY) BY PAMELA MCCALL (LONDON)

[11] BRITAIN - PINOCHET (L-UPDATE) BY LOURDES NAVARRO (LONDON)

[12] CHILE-PINOCHET IMPACT BY BILL RODGERS (SANTIAGO)

[13] CHILE-PINOCHET REACT (L) BY BILL RODGERS (SANTIAGO)

[01] OCALAN / SENTENCE BY AMBERIN ZAMAN (ANKARA)

INTRO: Turkey's government announced late Wednesday that it had decided to suspend the execution of Kurdish rebel leader Abdullah Ocalan until the Strasbourg based European Court of Human Rights delivered its verdict on the case. From Ankara, Amberin Zaman has the details.

TEXT: After meeting for seven straight hours the three leaders who share power in Turkey's ruling coalition announced their decision at a news conference. Turkey's left wing prime minister Bulent Ecevit was very brief. He merely said the leaders had decided that it was in their country's best interest to await the decision of the European Court for the time being. He warned however that if any negative developments affecting Turkey's security occurred then Ocalan's case would be sent to the Parliament. Analysts say the outcome of the meeting was a resounding victory for Mr. Ecevit who has long argued that hanging Ocalan would damage Turkey's chances of joining the European Union. The execution would also likely provoke Ocalan's outlawed Kurdistan Workers' Party known as the PKK. Clashes between the army and the PKK in Turkey's largely Kurdish southeast provinces have sharply declined since Ocalan's capture by Turkish special forces in Kenya last February. Four months later a Turkish court handed Ocalan the death sentence by hanging on treason and separatism charges. Under Turkish law it is up to the Parliament to approve the death sentence. The Ultra-nationalist national action party led by Deputy prime minister, Devlet Bahceli has been pressing for Ocalan's case to be brought before the 550 member Turkish legislature. One of the party's campaign slogans in the run up to nationwide elections last year was "Hang Ocalan". Mr. Bahceli insisted up until Wednesday's meeting that the PKK leader's case could not be kept at the Prime Ministry and that the European Court's injunction was not binding. In an apparent bid to placate the nationalist leader, Mr. Ecevit warned that if what he termed any negative developments affecting Turkey's security occurred then Turkey reserved the right to refer Ocalan's case to the Parliament without waiting for the European Court's verdict on his case. (Signed)
NEB/AZ/TVM/PT 12-Jan-2000 16:18 PM EDT (12-Jan-2000 2118 UTC)
NNNN
Source: Voice of America

[02] RUSSIA / CHECHNYA (S) BY EVE CONANT (MOSCOW)

INTRO: Russia's top military is on the defensive as Chechen rebels threaten to stage more surprise counterattacks on Russian troops. V-O-A Moscow correspondent Eve Conant reports that refugees returning to Russian-controlled areas of Chechnya still face great dangers.

TEXT: Russian generals say troops have restored control over several federally occupied towns that suffered a series of rebel counterattacks. But there are conflicting reports of fighting in Russian-controlled areas supposedly cleared of rebels weeks ago. Russian news agencies say troops fired artillery at targets near Argun, Shali, and Urus-Martan. There were also conflicting reports of fighting in Achkhoi-Martan and Gudermes, Chechnya's second largest city. Clashes continue in the capital, Grozny and in the southern mountains and rebels report progress in Chechnya's eastern lowlands. Russia's Defense Ministry says tens of thousands of refugees have returned to Chechnya. But news reports tell of civilians killed or injured in artillery attacks in what Russia's military calls "liberated" areas. (Signed)
NEB/EC/GE 12-Jan-2000 04:55 AM EDT (12-Jan-2000 0955 UTC)
NNNN
Source: Voice of America

[03] RUSSIA / CHECHNYA (S-UPDATE) BY EVE CONANT (MOSCOW)

INTRO: Russia's military says it is making advances in Chechnya's mountainous regions and has retaken towns overrun by Chechen counterattacks. Moscow Correspondent Eve Conant reports Russian officials deny charges by Georgian security officials that Russian troops stationed in Georgia sold arms to Chechen rebels.

TEXT: Russian generals say they once again control several towns overrun by rebel counterattacks. But there are conflicting reports of fighting in occupied zones such as Argun and Shali, which were said to have been cleared of rebels weeks ago. Border guards say Chechen men of fighting age are now blocked from crossing in or out of Chechnya. Fighting raged in Grozny and the southern mountains where forces say they seized strategic heights near a rebel base. In other developments, Russia's Defense Minister denied charges by Georgian officials that Russian troops sold weapons to rebels. Chechnya's President is reiterating calls for peace talks. But his appeal comes as Russia's Security Council says troops uncovered evidence of Chechen involvement in a series of Russian apartment bombings a charge rebels have consistently denied. (SIGNED)
NEB/EC/GE/RAE 12-Jan-2000 12:59 PM EDT (12-Jan-2000 1759 UTC)
NNNN
Source: Voice of America

[04] E-U FOOD SAFETY (L-ONLY) BY RON PEMSTEIN (BRUSSELS)

INTRO: The European Commission has approved plans for an independent food safety authority to be established over the next three years. V-O-A correspondent Ron Pemstein reports from Brussels that the move is designed to restore European consumers' confidence in the food they buy.

TEXT: The European Union's (E-U) 15 countries are the world's largest importers and exporters of food products. Issues of food safety have dominated the European Commission over the last six months. Food contamination forced chickens, eggs, pork and beef off the grocery shelves in Belgium. European scientists agreed to lift the three-year-old ban against British beef imposed because of fears of Mad Cow disease. However, France refuses to import British beef because of continued food safety scares. The European Commission opened this year by filing a legal case against France with the European Court of Justice for violating European law. A number of E-U members have been criticized by the Commission for using sewage sludge in their production of animal feed. That's why the new Commission President Romano Prodi originally suggested Europe needs an authority like the American Food and Drug Administration (F-D-A) to restore Europeans' confidence in the food they buy. The new policy document calls for a similar European authority to be established by the end of 2002. Unlike the American F-D-A, the proposed European authority will not be given decision-making or law making powers. That power remains with the European Commission, the European Parliament and the member states. The European Health and Consumer Protection Commissioner, David Byrne, says what has worked in the United States does not work for Europe with its institutions.

[05] FRANCE TRUCK PROTEST (L-O) BY PAUL MILLER (PARIS)

INTRO: French trucking companies have lifted their blockade of border crossings and ports after reaching an agreement with the French government. Paul Miller reports from Paris that the trucking companies demanded - and received - concessions that they say are essential if they are to be competitive with other European haulers.

TEXT: For two-days, the number of trucks waiting to cross into or out of France grew into the thousands, as back ups stretched for kilometers. The European Commission demanded that France certify that it was not restricting international trade. The French trucking companies whose drivers had blocked the border crossings threatened an indefinite stoppage. Then late night talks with France's Transportation Minister produced an agreement that met much of what the truckers had demanded. French drivers will not be subject to the new 35-hour workweek that the French government is requiring as a way of creating more jobs. The companies had argued they could not compete with foreign haulers, especially on longer routes, if drivers' hours were restricted. Now drivers on major routes will be able to work 56-hours a week. Because the French Socialist government will not abandon its goal of a shorter work week, there will be something in the deal for the drivers as well - the companies will pay them an overtime premium for all hours over 36. The companies will also get a partial rebate on the tax on diesel fuel. They had complained that rising oil prices and a falling Euro had increased their operating costs by more than 20-percent. French Transportation Minister Jean-Claude Gayssot said he thought he had been able to balance the economic vitality of the trucking industry with the social objective of promoting a shorter work week. The transportation minister also met with the drivers' union to sell it on the deal. Union drivers are talking about organizing their own blockade at the end of the month to protest their working conditions. (SIGNED) NEB/PM/GE/ENE/RAE 12-Jan-2000 10:35 AM EDT (12-Jan-2000 1535 UTC)
NNNN
Source: Voice of America

[06] CLINTON - NORTHERN IRELAND (L) BY DEBORAH TATE (WHITE HOUSE)

INTRO: Irish Republican leader Gerry Adams is urging pro-British Unionists not to allow a dispute over disarmament to disrupt progress in the Northern Ireland peace process. Correspondent Deborah Tate reports Mr. Adams, leader of the Sinn Fein party, made his comments following a meeting with President Clinton at the White House. Text: Six weeks after Catholic and Protestant leaders established a power-sharing government in Northern Ireland, the Irish Republican Army (IRA) is under increasing pressure to disarm to ensure the coalition's survival. Protestant leader David Trimble, head of the Ulster Unionists, has threatened to pull his party out of the coalition if the I-R-A does not begin handing in its weapons from its decades-long war against British rule by next month. Speaking outside the White House Wednesday, Mr. Adams told reporters the I-R-A would not bow to pressure.

[07] POPE / HOLY LAND (L-O) BY SABINA CASTELFRANCO (ROME)

INTRO: Pope John Paul, the head of the Roman Catholic Church, will travel to the Holy Land from March 20th to 26th. The visit will include stops in Jordan, Israel, and the Palestinian territories. Sabina Castelfranco has this report from Rome.

TEXT: Less than two-months before his 80th birthday (May 18), Pope John Paul will fulfil his dream of tracing the footsteps of Jesus Christ in a trip to the Holy Land at the end of March. The Vatican says the Pope will first travel to Jordan to visit the Monastery of Mount Nebo, where Moses saw the Promised Land, and then celebrate Mass in the Amman Stadium.

[08] NY ECON WRAP (S & L) BY ELAINE JOHANSON (NEW YORK)

INTRO: Stock prices in the United States were mixed today (Wednesday), as investors turned cautious about those high-flying - many say over-valued - Internet stocks. V-O-A correspondent Elaine Johanson reports from New York:

TEXT: The Dow Jones Industrial Average gained 40 points, or one-third of one percent, closing at 11- thousand-551. The Standard and Poor's 500 index dropped six points. And the technology-weighted Nasdaq composite slid for a loss of almost two percent. Some market-watchers believe many Internet companies are destined for a fall. Investors are starting to ask about company profits, or the lack thereof.

[09] WEDNESDAY'S EDITORIALS BY ANDREW GUTHRIE (WASHINGTON)

INTRO: Comments on the largest corporate merger in history -- between America Online and Time Warner -- fill Wednesday's editorial pages in the United States. Running a close second are more thoughts on the increasingly complicated story of a young Cuban boy who was rescued from the waters off the Florida coast and is now the subject of a diplomatic feud between the United States and Cuba. There are also comments on the Israeli Syrian peace talks, the AIDS pandemic in Africa, sentencing juveniles to the death penalty, and the morale of the U-S armed forces. Now, here is ___________ with a few quotes and a synopsis in today's Editorial Digest.

TEXT: Monday's merger of the big Internet service provider American Online and the Time Warner communications conglomerate is provoking a flood of editorials, mainly wondering about the effects of this one-hundred-sixty-billion dollar plus joining of new and old communications firms. Much of the press expresses cautious optimism about the merger, mixed with a good deal of apprehension as well. The Milwaukee [Wisconsin] Journal calls this "Megamerger" a "sobering reminder" and warns readers:

VOICE: Pay attention. Pay attention to the merger; to what the varied and sometimes contradictory analyses argue; to what the company's leaders say and . do; to the hearings . in Washington . because what's happening now in corporate board rooms will have a decided impact on your office, your living room and your computer room.

TEXT: In Colorado Springs [Colorado], the Gazette greets the news with this reservation:

VOICE: While one can see possible advantages for both companies - - A-O-L gets access to Time Warner's 20 million cable customers and a way to leapfrog into . Internet service, while Time Warner gets New Media savvy [knowledge] and 20 million potential customers for its products - - the deal might not work. . There are potential corporate culture problems and three strong personalities involved.

TEXT: Honolulu's Star-Bulletin suggests: "New measures may be needed to protect consumers from corporate actions in the emerging world of communications technology," while in Nebraska, The Omaha World Herald also urges readers to pay attention since:

VOICE: . by any reasonable standard [the new company] will be speaking with the loudest media voice in the world. Therefore, continuing the Internet tradition of open access for everybody to everything will be of paramount importance.

TEXT: In California, the San Jose Mercury News calls the merger "an epochal event" and wonders "Who's next" in terms of mergers:

VOICE: . [the merger] could be worrisome if a few media conglomerates gained control and narrowed the number of entry points to the Internet. Such a concentration of power could lead to . freedom sacrificed to the interests of capitalism.

TEXT: In Georgia, the Augusta Chronicle suggests that government scrutiny is called for, adding: "History teaches that bigness is not always goodness," while the San Francisco Chronicle sums up this way:

VOICE: The frenzy has churned up an array of predictions that boil down to one word: change. Other cable, media and Internet firms are expected to pair up for survival. Boundaries between online services and so-called content companies are coming down fast. It's not over yet.

TEXT: For a final word on this merger, we turn to The Miami Herald:

VOICE: Consider a single conglomerate that could control the films and television programs we see, the music we hear, the magazines we read, the news we receive and the access we have to the Internet . Is this the arrival of Big Brother, or an exciting New World of interconnectedness, where journalism, entertainment, communications and the Internet merge into one? This question is fundamental to judging the proposed merger ... Is this a good deal for consumers? Not if it triggers other mergers so that information gathering and delivery is further concentrated into the hands of two or three giant corporations.

TEXT: The day's other popular topic is the diplomatic controversy over the six year-old Cuban boy, Elian Gonzalez, rescued from the sea off Florida. The young boy's mother died in the attempt to flee Cuba, but his father, in Cuba, is demanding his return. The young boy is now the center of a dispute between, on the one hand, some members of Congress and the Cuban-American community of South Florida and, on the other, the Immigration and Naturalization Service, which has ruled that the boy should be returned to his father. The Anchorage [Alaska] Daily News says:

VOICE: The boy should be with his father . but the political battle . is as ugly as it gets. What a cast of rogues and gasbags has intervened in the name of the best interest of the child, from Cuba's Fidel Castro to members of Congress and political activists in Florida. . A decent father should not be deprived of his son for solely political reasons.

TEXT: In Florida, The Orlando Sentinel asks:

VOICE: "Must we divide Elian? . If all parties to the .tragedy would allow family values to prevail, Elian would be home already. . Elian . [is] a child turned into a political pawn. He should be with his father.

TEXT: And in Oklahoma, the Tulsa World says of "Poor Elian:"

VOICE: The decision by the I-N-S [Immigration and Naturalization Service] was the right one. Any judge in a child custody case would have placed Elian with his only surviving parent, a father who by all accounts loves him and is able to care for him, instead of great aunts and uncles.

TEXT: On now to the day's other editorials, including comments from the Chicago Tribune on the now recessed Syrian Israeli peace talks. The paper says that setting the talks near the Antietam battlefield, scene of the bloodiest single battle of the U-S Civil War, was a masterstroke of the Clinton administration.

VOICE: "It is amazing that more people died here in one day than in all of Israel's wars," Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Barak, himself a former general, remarked on Sunday as he toured the site where more than 23-thousand people were believed killed or wounded in 1862. On [Prime Minister] Barak and Syria's chief negotiator, Foreign Minister Farouk Sharaa, the lesson was not lost: Peace is in the best interest of both their countries for various reasons, but none more important than to avoid the awful human cost of more war.

TEXT: Today's Beacon Journal, in Akron Ohio, says of the first face to face meeting in several years: "In the Middle East, talking can be as important as agreement." While the Los Angeles Times, less patient, warns: Mideast Gains Must Come Soon. And the New York Times sums up:

VOICE: Progress in the first round was mainly limited to getting Israelis and Syrians to meet and refine their disputes about the negotiating agenda. . Despite substantial opposition in Israel to a Golan deal, Mr. Barak's ultimate willingness to compromise is not in serious doubt. On his return to Israel last night, he offered a relatively optimistic assessment of the talks. But . to succeed, Mr. Shara's boss, President Hafez al-Assad, must prove equally willing to make trade-offs in the interest of peace.

TEXT: On the issue of AIDS in Africa and the month- long discussion of AIDS at the United Nations, the Detroit Free Press applauds, noting:

VOICE: The sheer magnitude of the AIDS problem [in Africa] has made it an issue not only of health care, but international security. Richard Holbrooke, the U- S ambassador to the United Nations, is wise to use his term as Security Council president to raise the world body's awareness of this tragedy.

TEXT: The Chicago Tribune is upset that the United States continues to be one of only six nations that executes juvenile offenders. "A shameful way to welcome the year," says The Trib.

VOICE: At the dawn of the year two-thousand, there are 36-hundred prisoners on death row in the United States, 69 of whom were kids when they committed the crimes for which they are to be executed. . Though their youth in no way mitigates the seriousness of their crimes, it should have great bearing on their punishment, particularly when that punishment is death.

TEXT: The Oklahoman from Oklahoma City is worried about a pair of recent reports that suggest members of the U-S armed forces are frustrated with the military's current roles.

VOICE: A common theme running through both studies is dissatisfaction with the Clinton administration's frequent use of the military for humanitarian peacekeeping missions. The military's best and brightest are leaving, and not necessarily because of the strong civilian economy as many in the administration contend. . A second study . found complaints about frequent deployments, lack of training, lack of equipment and workload. . Bill Clinton and Al Gore inherited a military fresh from winning the Gulf War. In seven years they've let it wither in neglect, driving many capable, duty- conscious men and women out of the services with inept leadership and a faulty concept of the military's proper role.

TEXT: On that note, we conclude this sampling of editorial comment from Wednesday's U-S press.
NEB/ANG/KL 12-Jan-2000 12:10 PM EDT (12-Jan-2000 1710 UTC)
NNNN
Source: Voice of America

[10] BRITAIN - PINOCHET (L-ONLY) BY PAMELA MCCALL (LONDON)

INTRO: Former Chilean military ruler General Augusto Pinochet may be set free on health grounds. General Pinochet has been fighting attempts to extradite him to Spain to face charges of crimes against humanity. Pamela McCall reports from London. Text: Former Chilean military ruler Augusto Pinochet is unfit to stand trial on torture charges and could be released. That statement from British Home Secretary, Jack Straw. It follows an independent medical examination of the eighty-four-year-old General. Three doctors and a consultant neuropsychologist came up with the conclusion that Mr. Pinochet is not well enough to be extradited to Spain. Former Conservative cabinet minister Norman Lamont, says the findings are fair.

[11] BRITAIN - PINOCHET (L-UPDATE) BY LOURDES NAVARRO (LONDON)

INTRO: British Home Secretary Jack Straw says (Wednesday) he will make a final decision on the fate of the former Chilean dictator Augusto Pinochet within seven days. Lourdes Navarro reports from London.

TEXT: In a statement read in Britain's House of Commons, Home Secretary Straw said that he would be open-minded about the case and will consult with interested parties such as human rights groups before making his final decision. He also told the House of Commons that after reviewing the report given to him by a team of doctors who examined General Pinochet, he believed him too sick to stand trial for alleged human rights abuses.

[12] CHILE-PINOCHET IMPACT BY BILL RODGERS (SANTIAGO)

INTRO: There is mixed reaction in Chile to the medical determination by a group of doctors in Britain that former dictator Augusto Pinochet is unfit to stand trial in Spain for atrocities committed during his rule. At the same time, Chilean analysts are assessing the possible impact this latest development will have on Sunday's runoff presidential election. From Santiago, VOA's Bill Rodgers reports.

TEXT:

[13] CHILE-PINOCHET REACT (L) BY BILL RODGERS (SANTIAGO)

INTRO: In Chile, there is mixed reaction to the news former dictator Augusto Pinochet has been ruled unfit to stand trial in Spain over human rights abuses committed during his 17-year rule. But as V-O-A's Bill Rodgers reports from Santiago, the Chilean Government expressed satisfaction over the recommendation by the medical team that examined Mr. Pinochet.

TEXT: Officials at the Pinochet Foundation in Santiago expressed satisfaction at the news from Britain; but also caution. Foundation Vice President Hernan Guiloff told reporters Tuesday the development does not represent a victory.

Voice of America: Selected Articles Directory - Previous Article - Next Article