Interpress Service articles from January 2007

Interpress Service archives from January 2007

IRAQ: 'ILLEGAL' EXECUTION ENRAGES ARAB WORLD.
January 2, 2007... By Dahr Jamail and Ali Al-Fadhily BAGHDAD, Jan. 2, 2007 (IPS/GIN) -- The execution of former Iraqi dictator Saddam Hussein at the start of the Muslim festival Eid al-Adha has angered Iraqis and others across the Middle East. Hussein...

CHALLENGES 2006-2007: BLOODY TIMES FOR JOURNALISTS IN IRAQ.
January 2, 2007... by Mohammed A. Salih ARBIL, Iraq, Jan. 2, 2007 (IPS/GIN) -- A report released by the Paris-based Reporters Without Borders (RWB, also known as Reporters sans Frontieres), on the last day of 2006 described Iraq as "the world's most...

RIGHTS: BRITAIN HAS IT BOTH WAYS ON DEATH PENALTY FOR SADDAM.
January 2, 2007... by Sanjay Suri LONDON, Jan. 2, 2007 (IPS/GIN) -- The British government has found a simple way to welcome the execution of Saddam Hussein while saying it opposes the death penalty. Speaking for the government after the former Iraqi...

SOUTH PACIFIC: MIGRATION THINNING ISLAND POPULATIONS.
January 2, 2007... by Shailendra Singh SUVA, Fiji, Jan. 2, 2007 (IPS/GIN) -- "Hi all; just to let you know that I will be leaving end of this week and migrating to Australia in early February. This is just a small farewell note to you all." So read an...

CHALLENGES 2006-2007: IRANIANS SEE TOUGHER TIMES AHEAD.
January 2, 2007... by Kimia Sanati TEHRAN, Iran, Dec. 31, 2006 (IPS/GIN) -- As 2006 came to an end, Iranians witnessed two events that will impinge on their lives in the new year. The hard-line government of President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad lost ground in two...

BENIN: COTTON AT THE HEART OF THE ECONOMY - AND OF DESERTIFICATION.
January 2, 2007... by Miche Boko COTONOU, Benin, Dec. 31, 2006 (IPS/GIN) -- Cotton production forms a key part of the Beninese economy. However, Armande Zanou-Aivodji, point person for desertification in the Ministry of the Environment, says this production...

LEBANON-2007: DESTROYED, DESTABILIZED, DESPERATE FOR CHANGE.
January 2, 2007... by DAHR JAMAIL BEIRUT, Lebanon, Dec. 31, 2006 (IPS/GIN) -- The 34-day war between Israel and Hezbollah has left Lebanon heavily damaged and politically destabilized, with hopes for a better future dimming as the New Year approaches. ...

CHALLENGES 2006-2007: BRAVE NEW PLANS FOR MIDEAST FALL APART.
January 2, 2007... by PETER HIRSCHBERG JERUSALEM, Dec. 31, 2006 (IPS/GIN) -- Israelis had been captivated by the idea: They could withdraw from Palestinian areas, which they realized they could no longer control, without having to negotiate with the...

RIGHTS GROUPS: SADDAM HANGED WITHOUT A FAIR TRIAL.
January 2, 2007... by Sanjay Suri LONDON, Dec. 30, 2006 (IPS/GIN) -- Saddam Hussein was convicted and hanged without fair trial, leading human rights groups said after his execution Saturday. "Amnesty International believes the whole process was deeply...

ENVIRONMENT-WEST AFRICA: NIGER RIVER ARTERIES CLOGGED.
January 2, 2007... by SALIOU SAMB CONAKRY, Dec. 30 (IPS/GIN) -- The Niger river snakes through nine countries in West Africa before emptying into the Atlantic Ocean. It is an epic 4,200 kilometers in length, provides sustenance to millions of people - and...

IRAQ: EXECUTION DEEPENS POLITICAL AND RELIGIOUS DIVISIONS.
January 2, 2007... by Dahr Jamail and Ali Al-Fadhily BAGHDAD, Iraq, Dec. 30, 2006 (IPS/GIN) -- New divisions appear to be opening up between Iraqi political and religious leaders following the execution of Saddam Hussein. Deposed President Hussein was...

POLITICS-U.S./IRAQ: EXECUTION LEAVES UNANSWERED QUESTIONS.
January 2, 2007... by Aaron Glantz SAN FRANCISCO, Dec. 30, 2006 (IPS/GIN) -- Iraqi-Americans reacted to the execution of Saddam Hussein with sadness, calling the former Iraqi president's death by hanging early this morning Baghdad time a missed opportunity...

POLITICS-THAILAND: JUNTA SLIPS ON COUP PROMISES.
January 2, 2007... by Marwaan Macan-Markar BANGKOK, Thailand, Dec. 30, 2006 (IPS/GIN) -- The political temperature in Thailand is poised to rise in the new year as the country's military leaders scramble to retain their fast eroding legitimacy following the...

MEXICO: MAZAHUAS CHOOSE JAIL OVER GOING WITHOUT WATER.
January 2, 2007... by Diego Cevallos for Tierramrica MEXICO CITY, Dec. 30, 2006 (IPS/GIN) -- Although they live near a gigantic water distribution system, the indigenous Mazahuas lack access to water and live in deep poverty. Since Dec. 11, when they shut off...

CHALLENGES 2006-2007: LIVING DANGEROUSLY IN THE MIDDLE EAST.
January 2, 2007... by Adam Morrow CAIRO, Egypt, Dec. 30, 2006 (IPS/GIN) -- Following the execution of former Iraqi dictator Saddam Hussein, almost four years after the U.S.-led invasion and occupation of Iraq, the Middle East stands at a crossroads. The...

ECONOMY-FIJI: "SANCTIONS COULD HURT THE WRONG PEOPLE".
January 2, 2007... by Shailendra Singh SUVA, Dec. 30, 2006 (IPS/GIN) -- With the international community clamping a range of sanctions on Fiji's military regime, there have been warnings that such action could harm the civilian population, or lead to further...

CHALLENGES 2007: SAHARA DESERT SWALLOWS MORE FERTILE LANDS.
January 2, 2007... by Kaci Racelma ALGIERS, Dec. 29, 2006 (IPS/GIN) -- Two hundred kilometres. A long distance to some, perhaps, but in the context of desertification in Algeria, alarmingly short. Going in to 2007, the Sahara will have advanced to within...

U.S.: BIPARTISAN EFFORT WILL CONFRONT BUSH FOR EARLY END TO WAR.
January 2, 2007... by Jim Lobe WASHINGTON, Dec. 29, 2006 (IPS/GIN) -- If U.S. President George W. Bush is serious about pursuing a foreign policy that can command bipartisan support, the basic elements of one already exists, according to a new analysis of...

RIGHTS-MEXICO: REPORTS LOOK TO PIN BLAME FOR OAXACA UNREST.
January 2, 2007... by Diego Cevallos MEXICO CITY, Dec. 29, 2006 (IPS/GIN) -- A number of thick files contain the details of human rights abuses committed in the southern Mexican state of Oaxaca, where a social uprising lasting more than six months was put...

CHALLENGES 2007: CUBA - ON THE THRESHOLD OF A CRITICAL YEAR.
January 2, 2007... by Dalia Acosta HAVANA, Dec. 29, 2006 (IPS/GIN) -- After a year marked by great uncertainty as to the future, Cubans are awaiting 2007 with a sense that it will bring major changes to the lives of every one of the 11.2 million people who...

CHALLENGES 2006-2007: BLAIR WILL LEAVE, BUT HOW.
January 2, 2007... by Sanjay Suri LONDON, Dec. 29, 2006 (IPS/GIN) -- Looking back, not just to 2006 but a few years more, it would seem that thousands of children marching by the house of the British Prime Minister were right, and the Prime Minister was...

SRI LANKA: TSUNAMI RECOVERY SKEWED BY SECTARIAN STRIFE.
January 3, 2007... by Amantha Perera COLOMBO, Jan. 3, 2007 (IPS/GIN) -- Mohideen Ajeemal is determined to put the dark days of the 2004 tsunami behind him. "I am looking forward, not behind," he told IPS as he sat in the rebuilt premises of his wholesale...

ENVIRONMENT: INDOOR AIR POLLUTION - SILENT KILLER OF WOMEN.
January 3, 2007... by T.V. Padma NEW DELHI, Jan. 3, 2007 (IPS/GIN) -- Over 1.5 million women and girls die every year from inhaling poisonous fumes as they cook or heat their homes with traditional stoves that burn wood, leaves or dung. Although use of...

MEDIA-US: NETWORKS FOCUS FOREIGN NEWS COVERAGE ON IRAQ.
January 3, 2007... by Jim Lobe WASHINGTON, Jan. 2, 2007 (IPS/GIN) -- For the fourth straight year, Iraq dominated foreign affairs coverage on the evening news in the U.S. In its annual review, the Tyndall Report said the three major networks gave top billing...

POLITICS: NEW U.N. CHIEF FLUBS POSITION ON DEATH PENALTY.
January 3, 2007... by Thalif Deen UNITED NATIONS, Jan. 2, 2007 (IPS/GIN) -- As he walked into a group of waiting reporters on his first day as Secretary-General of the United Nations, Ban Ki-moon declined to express his personal views on the death penalty....

COTE D'IVOIRE: RURAL WOMEN IN NEED OF A HELPING HAND.
January 3, 2007... by Fulgence Zambl ABIDJAN, Cote d'Ivoire, Jan. 2, 2007 (IPS/GIN) -- Every morning, Thrse Allangba begins checking on members of the Cooperative of Women Farmers of Marahou ("Cooprative des femmes exploitantes agricoles de la Marahou,"...

CHALLENGES 2006-2007: FIVE PERCENT GROWTH IS LULA'S BIG TASK.
January 3, 2007... Analysis by Mario Osava RIO DE JANEIRO, Jan. 2, 2007 (IPS/GIN) -- Brazilian President Luiz In cio Lula da Silva began his second term in office on Monday, with the goal of nearly doubling the average gross domestic product (GDP) growth...

MEXICO: THE GRAYING OF THE ZAPATISTAS.
January 3, 2007... by Diego Cevallos MEXICO CITY, Jan. 2, 2007 (IPS/GIN) -- Mexico's Zapatista guerrillas celebrated the 13th anniversary of their brief uprising. Although the group's prominence has faded in the intervening years, the New Year's day event...

POLITICS: ANNAN LEAVES A MIXED LEGACY.
January 3, 2007... by Thalif Deen UNITED NATIONS, Jan. 2, 2007 (IPS/GIN) -- When Kofi Annan completed his 10-year tenure as U.N. secretary-general on Dec. 31, he left behind a mixed legacy: his acknowledged successes in promoting peace, development, gender...

POLITICS-THAILAND: BLAME GAME OVER BOMBINGS BEGINS.
January 3, 2007... by Marwaan Macan-Markar BANGKOK, Thailand, Jan. 2, 2007 (IPS/GIN) -- It is the hour of the scapegoat in the Thai capital, as the government points fingers at its political adversary for having a hand in a string of bomb explosions in...

CHALLENGES 2006-2007: WILL FRENCH ELECTION MEAN NEW POLICIES?
January 3, 2007... by Julio Godoy PARIS, Jan. 2, 2007 (IPS/GIN) -- This year French citizens will elect a new president and a new government. Whether that will bring new policies is an entirely different question. Socialist presidential nominee Sgolne...

POLITICS-IRAN: STILL DEFIANT BUT WEIGHING COST OF SANCTIONS.
January 8, 2007... by Kimia Sanati TEHRAN, Jan. 8, 2007 (IPS/GIN) -- While the world awaits a response to Resolution 1737 passed by the U.N. Security Council, officials in Iran are calling for a review of its adherence to the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation...

CHILE: MAPUCHE INDIANS WANT RESPONSE TO THEIR DEMANDS.
January 8, 2007... by Daniela Estrada SANTIAGO, Chile, Jan. 8, 2007 (IPS/GIN) -- The Mapuches, Chile's largest indigenous group, met with President Michelle Bachelet to propose a new working relationship. Mapuche leaders said they are tired of the...

BURMA: DEFIANT PUBLIC BLITZES JUNTA WITH LETTERS.
January 8, 2007... by Marwaan Macan-Markar BANGKOK, Thailand, Jan. 8, 2007 (IPS/GIN) -- A handwritten letter to a military dictator may sound like an ineffective and risky way to voice defiance, especially in the Internet age. But in Burma, where access...

HEALTH-BURKINA FASO: WELLS AND TOILETS MAKE BAD NEIGHBORS.
January 8, 2007... by Brahima Ouedraogo OUAGADOUGOU, Burkina Faso, Jan. 7, 2007 (IPS/GIN) -- The cost of linking a home to the potable water network here may have come down, but not enough to benefit Alexis Kabor, a resident of Pizzy, a suburb of Burkina...

POLITICS-BANGLADESH: ARMY SET TO BREAK ANTI-POLL BLOCKADE.
January 8, 2007... by Farid Ahmed DHAKA, Bangladesh, Jan. 7, 2007 (IPS/GIN) -- Political parties pushing for cancellation of national elections, set for Jan. 22, began a three-day transport blockade on Sunday. In response, the caretaker government of...

RIGHTS: SADDAM HANGING BOOSTS CASE FOR INTERNATIONAL COURT.
January 8, 2007... Analysis by Praful Bidwai NEW DELHI, Jan. 6, 2007 (IPS/GIN) -- The manner in which former Iraqi President Saddam Hussein was hanged has provoked revulsion and criticism in many countries around the world. Those who oppose the death...

CHALLENGES 2007: NARCOS DOING BRISK BUSINESS IN LATIN AMERICA.
January 8, 2007... by Diana Cariboni MONTEVIDEO, Uruguay, Jan. 6, 2007 (IPS/GIN) -- The drug business is no longer concentrated in just a few hands in Latin America. Coca continues to flourish in the Andean region, with production reduced somewhat in one...

CULTURE-JAPAN: CASH REGISTERS RINGIN THE NEW YEAR.
January 8, 2007... by Suvendrini Kakuchi TOKYO, Jan. 6, 2007 (IPS/GIN) -- Akiko Ozaki started the new work year rushing around the capital bowing and greeting, and even downing glasses of sake, with clients loyal to her travel company. "Most often I feel...

POLITICS-SUDAN: "I AM STAYING BECAUSE THIS IS MY HOME".
January 8, 2007... by Noel King KHARTOUM, Sudan, Jan. 5, 2007 (IPS/GIN) -- In recent weeks, violence has flared again in the western Sudanese region of Darfur, forcing the largest-scale evacuation of humanitarian workers since aid operations in the war-torn...

POLITICS-US: BUSH'S SURGE STRATEGY FACES HEAVY OPPOSITION.
January 8, 2007... by Jim Lobe WASHINGTON, Jan. 5, 2007 (IPS/GIN) -- If, as expected, George W. Bush next week announces his intention to "surge" some 20,000 additional U.S. troops to Iraq to pacify Baghdad and Sunni-dominated al-Anbar province, he may find...

WORLD SOCIAL FORUM-EL SALVADOR: FINANCIAL CAPITAL ON THE OFFENSIVE.
January 8, 2007... by Ra[pounds sterling]l Gutirrez SAN SALVADOR, El Salvador, Jan. 5, 2007 (IPS/GIN) -- International financial consortia have already squeezed local shareholders out of banks in El Salvador, and now they are expected to sideline the state,...

POLITICS: NEW U.N. CHIEF TO DISCLOSE FINANCIAL ASSETS.
January 8, 2007... by Thalif Deen UNITED NATIONS, Jan. 5, 2007 (IPS/GIN) -- The U.N.'s new secretary-general, Ban Ki-moon, has moved swiftly to hold himself up as a model international civil servant by voluntarily declaring his financial assets to the...

DRUGS-BOLIVIA: THE FRIENDLY FIGHT.
January 8, 2007... by Franz Ch vez and Diana Cariboni COROICO, Bolivia, Jan. 5, 2007 (IPS/GIN) -- Bolivia's anti-narcotics police have changed tactics under President Evo Morales. Instead of forcibly eradicating coca crops, they now bring vaccines and...

CHALLENGES 2007: ARGENTINA'S ECONOMIC GROWING PAINS.
January 9, 2007... by Marcela Valente BUENOS AIRES, Argentina, Jan. 9, 2007 (IPS/GIN) -- Just five years ago, the economy of Argentina was on the edge of the abyss. Today it is one of the leaders of economic growth in Latin America. The intervening years...

PAKISTAN: BY-ELECTION TEST FOR MUSHARRAF'S AFGHAN POLICY.
January 9, 2007... by Ashfaq Yusufzai PESHAWAR, Pakistan, Jan. 9, 2007 (IPS/GIN) -- A parliamentary by-election is turning out to be a test for Pakistan President Pervez Musharraf's policy in the tribal areas that border Afghanistan. The election is...

POLITICS: SUPPORT FOR U.S. WANES AMONG LATIN AMERICAN ELITES.
January 9, 2007... by Jim Lobe WASHINGTON, Jan. 8, 2007 (IPS/GIN) -- Elites in the major countries of Latin America are increasingly bullish about their nations' economies and increasingly alienated from the United States, according to a new survey by Zogby...

POLITICS: U.N. PLAYS POLITICAL FOOTBALL WITH BURMESE JUNTA.
January 9, 2007... by Thalif Deen UNITED NATIONS, Jan. 8, 2007 (IPS/GIN) -- The military junta in Burma (Myanmar) received mixed a review from new U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon. In the background, the U.S. face off with other members of the Security...

RIGHTS-ARGENTINA: JUSTICE FOR 'TRIPLE A' DEATH SQUAD VICTIMS?
January 9, 2007... by Marcela Valente BUENOS AIRES, Argentina, Jan. 8, 2007 (IPS/GIN) -- Three decades after the crimes committed by the ultra right-wing Triple A paramilitary group in Argentina, two of the group's heads have been arrested. The media played...

POLITICS-U.S.: GOODE GRIEF OVER KORAN JIBE.
January 9, 2007... by William Fisher NEW YORK, Jan. 8, 2007 (IPS/GIN) -- More than 20 prominent religious leaders have launched an online petition demanding that Rep. Virgil Goode, a Virginia Republican, rescind his negative comments about newly elected Rep....

BRAZIL: CELL PHONES KEY IN DEMOCRATIZING COMMUNICATIONS.
January 9, 2007... by Mario Osava RIO DE JANEIRO, Brazil, Jan. 8, 2007 (IPS/GIN) -- Rapid expansion in the poorer sectors of society caused the number of mobile phones in Brazil to skyrocket to over 100 million, equivalent to more than 53 percent of the...

POLITICS-U.S.: MORE SUBPOENAS COME DOWN IN WATADA CASE.
January 9, 2007... by Aaron Glantz SAN FRANCISCO, Jan. 8, 2007 (IPS/GIN) -- In a case that could have repercussions for free speech and press freedom in the United States, subpoenas have been served on subpoenaed two peace activists and a journalist in the...

RUSSIA: CAN PRIVATIZATION PRESERVE THE PAST?
January 9, 2007... by Kester Kenn Klomegah MOSCOW, Jan. 8, 2007 (IPS/GIN) -- Russian authorities are considering a proposal to privatize monuments so they could be preserved better as tourist attractions. "The moratorium on privatization of cultural...

IRAQ: TERRIFIED SOLDIERS TERRORIZE CIVILIANS.
January 9, 2007... by Dahr Jamail and Ali al-Fadhily FALLUJAH, Iraq, Jan. 8, 2007 (IPS/GIN) -- Ten-year-old Yassir aimed a plastic gun at a passing U.S. armored patrol in Fallujah, and shouted "Bang! Bang!" Yassir did not know what was coming. "I yelled...

CHALLENGES 2007: STRUGGLE CONTINUES FOR MOZAMBICAN WOMEN.
January 10, 2007... by Ruth Ansah Ayisi MAPUTO, Mozambique, Jan. 10, 2007 (IPS/GIN) -- The contradictions in Maria's life are typical of many women in Mozambique. On one level, things are improving. At age 33, she attends night school to gain the...

JAPAN: FORGING STRATEGY THROUGH FOREIGN AID.
January 10, 2007... by Suvendrini Kakuchi TOKYO, Jan. 10, 2007 (IPS/GIN) -- Bent on becoming a significant regional player in Asia, Japan is shaping its overseas development aid (ODA) budget to improve the country's global visibility and meet strategic...

FIJI: ECONOMY AND ELECTIONS ARE TOP PRIORITIES.
January 10, 2007... by Shailendra Singh SUVA, Fiji, Jan. 10, 2007 (IPS/GIN) -- Fiji's newly installed interim government may be focusing on improving the economy, but it must also map out a clear path toward democracy if damaging sanctions are to be lifted,...

ENVIRONMENT: GM CROPS SLOW TO GAIN GLOBAL ACCEPTANCE.
January 10, 2007... by Stephen Leahy BROOKLIN, Canada, Jan. 9, 2007 (IPS/GIN) -- Widespread use of genetically modified (GM) crops remains limited worldwide, even as growing weed and pest issues are forcing farmers to use ever greater amounts of pesticides....

POLITICS-US: HARDLINER'S HARDLINER LED BUSH'S IRAQ REVIEW.
January 10, 2007... by Jim Lobe WASHINGTON, Jan. 9, 2007 (IPS/GIN) -- When President George W. Bush's unveils his long-awaited new strategy on Iraq Wednesday night, he will be relying heavily on the counsel of one J.D. Crouch II, perhaps the most hawkish of...

WORLD SOCIAL FORUM: EUROPE LURES BURKINAB WORKERS.
January 10, 2007... by Tiego Tiemtor OUAGADOUGOU, Burkina Faso, Jan. 9, 2007 (IPS/GIN) -- For Mady Dabon, Europe beckons. "Staying here... is misery," the 30-year-old from the village of Begdo in eastern Burkina Faso told IPS. Adding that several of his...

COLOMBIA: TELESUR REPORTER RELEASED, BUT FEARS FOR HIS LIFE.
January 10, 2007... by Constanza Vieira BOGOTA, Colombia, Jan. 9, 2007 (IPS/GIN) -- Telesur correspondent Fredy Mu[currency]oz was released from prison on Jan. 9, 52 days after his arrest. But the 36-year-old journalist faces the risk of new legal maneuvers,...

RIGHTS-CUBA: FEWER POLITICAL PRISONERS, BUT LITTLE PROGRESS.
January 10, 2007... by Dalia Acosta HAVANA, Jan. 9, 2007 (IPS/GIN) -- The number of people in Cuban prisons for political reasons fell last year, but only slightly. According to dissident sources, there is no sign of a change in official policy since the...

RIGHTS-US: GITMO DETAINEES MARK FIVE YEARS IN LIMBO.
January 10, 2007... by William Fisher NEW YORK, Jan. 9, 2007 (IPS/GIN) -- This Thursday marks the fifth anniversary of the arrival of the first detainees at the U.S. naval facility at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba. A growing number of people and organizations -- from...

SPAIN: ETA ADMITS BOMBING, BUT SAYS CEASEFIRE STILL STANDS.
January 10, 2007... by Tito Drago MADRID, Spain, Jan. 9, 2007 (IPS/GIN) -- The Basque separatist group ETA said Tuesday that a "permanent ceasefire" was still in effect, despite its claim of responsibility for the December 30, 2006, explosion in Madrid's...

ENVIRONMENT-CHILE: UV RADIATION, THE DARK SIDE OF THE SUN.
January 10, 2007... by Daniela Estrada SANTIAGO, Chile, Jan. 9, 2007 (IPS/GIN) -- The hole in the ozone layer over Antarctica, which develops each year during the southern hemisphere springtime, is beginning to shrink, as it does each year. Still, all regions...

SOUTHEAST ASIA: RIGHTS ISSUES LOOM OVER ASEAN SUMMIT.
January 10, 2007... by Marwaan Macan-Markar BANGKOK, Thailand, Jan. 9, 2007 (IPS/GIN) -- Can a relic of the Cold War reinvent itself to gain a relevant role on the global stage? The Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) seems to think it can. As...

POLITICS-NICARAGUA: THE SECOND ORTEGA ERA.
January 11, 2007... by Jos Ad n Silva MANAGUA, Nicaragua, Jan. 10, 2007 (IPS) -- Seventeen years after a stinging defeat at the ballot box, former guerrilla leader Daniel Ortega returned triumphantly as president of Nicaragua on Jan. 10, with the support of...

LABOR-UAE: WORKER-FRIENDLY LAWS MAKE A DIFFERENCE.
January 11, 2007... by Meena Janardhan DUBAI, United Arab Emirates, Jan. 11, 2007 (IPS/GIN) -- Faced with criticism from international rights organizations, the United Arab Emirates (UAE) has introduced a series of measures intended to transform the oil-rich...

NEPAL: IN MAOIST CAMPS, WOMEN AND CHILDREN MUST COUNT TOO.
January 11, 2007... by Marty Logan KATHMANDU, Nepal, Jan. 11, 2007 (IPS/GIN) -- United Nations monitors will begin counting weapons and soldiers of the Maoist army in camps across Nepal next week. Human rights groups are concerned that the needs of women and...

POLITICS: U.N. TOP JOBS UNDER SCRUTINY.
January 11, 2007... by Haider Rizvi UNITED NATIONS, Jan. 10, 2007 (IPS/GIN) -- Less than two weeks after taking charge as the new U.N. Secretary-General, Ban Ki-moon has come under fire from civil society groups that work closely with the world body. ...

BOLIVIA: NO SOLUTION IN SIGHT TO UNREST IN COCHABAMBA.
January 11, 2007... by Franz Ch vez LA PAZ, Bolivia, Jan. 10, 2007 (IPS/GIN) -- The streets and highways of Cochabamba, Bolivia's third largest city, remained blocked Wednesday on the third day of protests by pro-government demonstrators demanding the...

MEXICO: HUGE ANTI-DRUG TRAFFICKING OFFENSIVE LAUNCHED.
January 11, 2007... by Diego Cevallos MEXICO CITY, Jan. 10, 2007 (IPS/GIN) -- Military and police have been deployed in two Mexican states, in unprecedented operation against drug traffickers. Critics call it a publicity offensive. Equipped with tanks,...

POLITICS: U.N. FRAUD CASES QUIETLY FIZZLE OUT.
January 11, 2007... by Thalif Deen UNITED NATIONS, Jan. 10, 2007 (IPS/GIN) -- When the United Nations launched a probe into "misconduct and mismanagement" in its procurement operations in January 2006, it moved against eight staffers, placing them "on special...

POLITICS: GLOBAL OUTRAGE HAS LITTLE IMPACT IN DARFUR.
January 11, 2007... by Mithre J. Sandrasagra UNITED NATIONS, Jan. 10, 2007 (IPS/GIN) -- Despite unprecedented global activism on behalf of the people of Darfur, Sudan, in 2006, atrocities continue to occur in the region. Since its start in February 2003,...

POLITICS-VENEZUELA: RE-NATIONALIZING THE WAY TO SOCIALISM.
January 11, 2007... by Humberto M rquez CARACAS, Venezuela, Jan. 10, 2007 (IPS/GIN) -- Venezuelan President Hugo Ch vez began a new six-year term Wednesday, after announcing that the re-nationalization of public enterprises would be the first "line of attack"...

RIGHTS: ITALY LEADS CAMPAIGN AGAINST DEATH PENALTY.
January 11, 2007... by Sabina Zaccaro ROME, Jan. 10, 2007 (IPS/GIN) -- The Italian government is leading a new campaign against the death penalty following the execution of Saddam Hussein. The center-left coalition that came to power in April 2006 has...

RIGHTS-IRAN: BLOGGERS REBEL AT NEW CENSORSHIP.
January 11, 2007... by Omid Memarian BERKELEY, California, Jan. 10, 2007 (IPS/GIN) -- In a bid to clamp down even harder on information disseminated through the Internet, Iran's hard-line Islamic government has demanded that all Web sites and Web logs (blogs)...

MEDIA-SRI LANKA: JOURNALISTS FLEE VIOLENCE, DEATH THREATS.
January 11, 2007... by Amantha Perera COLOMBO, Sri Lanka, Jan. 10, 2007 (IPS/GIN) -- With the simmering conflict between government forces and Tamil rebels threatening to escalate into full-blown civil war, many journalists, faced with death threats and...

EUROPE: A STATUE SPEAKS ANOTHER LANGUAGE.
January 11, 2007... by Julio Godoy PARIS, Jan. 10, 2007 (IPS/GIN) -- Of the more than 30,000 African refugees who landed on the Spanish Canary Islands last year, few had time to see the statue towering above the small port of Garachico. If any did, few could...

IRAQ: MEDIA UNDER GROWING SIEGE.
January 11, 2007... by Dahr Jamail and Ali al-Fadhily BAGHDAD, Jan. 10, 2007 (IPS/GIN) -- The U.S. administration continues to tout Iraq as a shining example of democracy in the Middle East, but press freedom in Iraq has deteriorated badly since the beginning...

POLITICS: ISRAEL LOOKING FOR AN EXTREME MAKEOVER.
January 12, 2007... by Bill Berkowitz* OAKLAND, California, Jan. 12, 2007 (IPS/GIN) -- It hasn't been the easiest year for Israel. There was this past summer's widely condemned attack on Lebanon and the recent disclosure by Israeli Prime Minister Ehud...

RELIGION-CUBA: RECOGNITION FOR AFRO-CUBAN RELIGIOUS SECT.
January 12, 2007... by Orlando Matos HAVANA, Jan. 12, 2007 (IPS/GIN) -- After more than a century of discrimination against the Abaku secret society, a recent episode of a Cuban television detective serial portrayed this sect of African origin in an...

POLITICS-CHINA: PLAYING HONEST BROKER TO BOTH IRAN AND ISRAEL.
January 12, 2007... by Antoaneta Bezlova BEIJING, Jan. 12, 2007 (IPS/GIN) -- Amid reports that Israel might use tactical nuclear strikes to prevent Iran from acquiring nuclear weapons, China has been cast in the role of Middle East negotiator. Over the past...

BANGLADESH: VOTING SUSPENDED, STATE OF EMERGENCY DECLARED.
January 12, 2007... by Farid Ahmed DHAKA, Bangladesh, Jan. 12, 2007 (IPS/GIN) -- In response to persistent street violence and a boycott of the Jan. 22 elections by major political parties, Bangladesh President Iajuddin Ahmed declared a state of emergency...