Interpress Service articles from July 2003

Interpress Service archives from July 2003

MIDEAST: CAUTIOUS OPTIMISM AMID 'ROADMAP' TRUCES AND PULLOUTS.
July 1, 2003... by Peter Hirschberg JERUSALEM, Jul. 1 (IPS/GIN) -- Is it possible that after a thousand days of trying to bludgeon one another into submission, Israelis and Palestinians, battered and bloodied, have realized that neither side is about to...

POLITICS-EUROPE: ITALY HAS BIG PLANS FOR ITS 6-MONTH EU PRESIDENCY.
July 1, 2003... Analysis - by Stefania Bianchi BRUSSELS, Jul. 1 (IPS/GIN) -- Italy plans to focus on the new European Constitution, economic integration and immigration when it takes over a six-month presidency of the European Council from Greece on...

U.S.: MCDONALD'S CURB ON ANTIBIOTICS HAILED BY ACTIVISTS.
July 1, 2003... by Katherine Stapp NEW YORK, Jul. 1 (IPS/GIN) -- An order by mega-fast-food chain McDonald's to its farm suppliers to phase out most antibiotics by the end of next year could signal a major step in addressing the problem, activists say....

VIETNAM: 'EXPORTED' LABORERS RUNNING INTO ABUSES.
July 1, 2003... by Tran Dinh Thanh Lam HO CHI MINH CITY, Vietnam, Jul. 1 (IPS/GIN) -- The government's effort to fight unemployment at home by encouraging Vietnamese to work in neighboring countries seems to be backfiring in the wake of reports of workers...

RIGHTS-LATAM: SOME GAINS, MUCH RESISTANCE FOR SAME-SEX UNIONS.
July 1, 2003... by Gustavo Gonz?lez SANTIAGO, Jun. 30 (IPS/GIN) -- Most of Latin America is still resistant to same-sex unions, which are now legal in countries like Denmark, the Netherlands, Britain and Canada. But in a few countries in the region,...

ARGENTINA: PROVINCIAL ELITES LITERALLY GETTING AWAY WITH MURDER.
July 1, 2003... by Viviana Alonso BUENOS AIRES, Jun. 30 (IPS/GIN) -- Powerful families that have held sway in several Argentine provinces for half a century remain virtually untouchable despite public demands for justice after a spate of murders in which...

ENERGY-SAO TOME AND PRINCIPE: OIL DISCOVERY RAISES HOPES AND FEARS.
July 1, 2003... by Lansana Fofana SAO TOME, Jun. 30 (IPS/GIN) -- The discovery of oil on the rugged, forested islands of Sao Tome and Principe has excited both hopes and fears in the former Portuguese colony off the west coast of Africa. "We in Sao...

ART-ITALY: WHEN THE VIEWER IS DICTATOR.
July 1, 2003... by Ernesto Ferrini VENICE, Italy, Jun. 30 (IPS/GIN) -- 'Dreams and Conflicts: The Dictatorship of the Viewer' is the theme of the 50th edition of the Biennale di Venezia, Europe's most prestigious international exhibition of contemporary...

ART-PAKISTAN: IT'S A HARD LIFE (AND DEATH) BEING A FAKE MUMMY.
July 1, 2003... by Zofeen Ebrahim KARACHI, Pakistan, Jun. 30 (IPS/GIN) -- Save for a decent Muslim burial, the 'mummy' that created a furor among archaeologists around the world in 2000 when it was discovered in Pakistan, lies in a cold, uneasy slumber,...

ART-CHINA: ONCE DERIDED, CONTEMPORARY ART IS HOT.
July 1, 2003... by Antoaneta Bezlova BEIJING, Jun. 30 (IPS/GIN) -- Hip and avant-garde are hardly the qualities that Chinese cultural mandarins consider when deciding which Chinese contemporary art is worth presenting to the world. Underground art is...

MUSIC: MEXICO HAS ITS FIRST ALL-WOMEN'S SYMPHONY ORCHESTRA.
July 1, 2003... by Diego Cevallos MEXICO CITY, Jun. 30 (IPS/GIN) -- Female classical musicians in Mexico, who must swim against the tide in a field dominated by men, are now auditioning for the country's first all-women's symphonic orchestra. Since...

ART-CANADA: NATIONAL GALLERY HONORS ABORIGINAL ART.
July 1, 2003... by Mark Bourrie OTTAWA, Jun. 30 (IPS/GIN) -- Canada's National Gallery has become the first major fine arts institution in North America to permanently incorporate Canadian aboriginal art into its displays. The gallery has revamped its...

LABOR-ASIA: HIV TEST OF MIGRANT WORKERS MAY BACKFIRE, EXPERTS SAY.
July 2, 2003... by Marwaan Macan-Markar BANGKOK, Jul. 2 (IPS/GIN) -- A practice common in some Asian countries - forcing migrant workers to face mandatory HIV/AIDS tests - could hasten the spread of the disease rather than curb it, say experts and...

POLITICS-CHINA: PARTY CHIEF'S REFORMS DELAYED AMID INFIGHTING.
July 2, 2003... by Antoaneta Bezlova BEIJING, Jul. 2 (IPS/GIN) -- Reports of political infighting in the upper echelons of the Chinese Communist Party -- which have surfaced over the last weeks -- suggest that new boss Hu Jintao has been tamed in his...

EDUCATION-NEPAL: SCHOOLS CLOSED IN DISPUTE WITH STUDENT UNIONS.
July 2, 2003... by Damakant Jayshi KATHMANDU, Jul. 2 (IPS/GIN) -- More than 1.5 million children in Nepal are having what promises to be a long break, although school vacation is over. Nearly all of the up to 10,000 private schools in this Himalayan...

ECONOMY: TEN YEARS AFTER APARTHEID'S END, BLACKS STILL OWN LITTLE.
July 2, 2003... by Farah Khan JOHANNESBURG, Jul. 2 (IPS/GIN) -- What does political power matter if it is not matched by economic power? This is the question torturing South Africa ten years after the end of apartheid. For policymakers now the...

RIGHTS-EUROPE: AID FOR THE ROMA PLEDGED AT CONFERENCE.
July 2, 2003... by Bla Ladanyi BUDAPEST, Jul. 2 (IPS/GIN) -- A long-term program was launched this week to integrate the Roma minority into European society. Government leaders from central and east Europe, the European Commission and the World Bank...

RIGHTS: ICC ANNIVERSARY AND MEXICAN EXTRADITION HAILED.
July 2, 2003... by Diego Cevallos MEXICO CITY, Jul. 1 (IPS/GIN) -- The first anniversary of the International Criminal Court (ICC) on Tuesday and Mexico's extradition last week of an alleged former Argentine torturer to Spain on charges of crimes against...

POLITICS: U.S. CUTS OFF ARMS AID TO 35 COUNTRIES THAT BACKED ICC.
July 2, 2003... by Jim Lobe WASHINGTON, Jul. 1 (IPS/GIN) -- Raising its war against the International Criminal Court to a new level, the administration of President George W. Bush Tuesday cut off military aid to 35 friendly countries in retaliation for...

MEDIA-VENEZUELA: ATTACKS ON PRESS INCREASE, RIGHTS GROUP SAYS.
July 2, 2003... by Katrin Dauenhauer WASHINGTON, Jul. 1 (IPS/GIN) -- Continuing violence against journalists in Venezuela is threatening the right of freedom of expression in that country, Human Rights Watch said today. Repeated assaults on reporters,...

POLITICS-U.S.: SUPPORT FOR IRAQ CAMPAIGN FADING, POLLS SHOW.
July 2, 2003... by Jim Lobe WASHINGTON, Jul. 1 (IPS/GIN) -- Public support for the U.S. military operation in Iraq has eroded significantly over the past two months, as has confidence in President George W. Bush and his administration's credibility,...

MEXICO: NATIVE AMERICAN CIVILIZATION IN PERIL, U.N. AIDE SAYS.
July 2, 2003... by Diego Cevallos* MEXICO CITY, Jul. 1 (IPS/GIN) -- Native South Americans who shun contact with modern civilization are facing cultural genocide, a United Nations official warns. While governments guarantee the existence of isolated...

ARGENTINA: PUTTING AN END TO "JUSTICE MADE TO ORDER".
July 2, 2003... by Viviana Alonso BUENOS AIRES, Jul. 1 (IPS/GIN) -- The overhauling of Argentina's unpopular Supreme Court is putting the new government of Nstor Kirchner to the test, presenting it with the opportunity to make good on the president's...

DEVELOPMENT-EU: FARM 'REFORMS' SEEN HELPING FRANCE STAY A WINNER.
July 2, 2003... by Julio Godoy PARIS, Jul. 1 (IPS/GIN) -- France opposed reform of the EU Common Agriculture Policy most strongly because it gained the most from it, observers say. But the reform as its stands still leaves France a winner, in the experts'...

POLITICS-AFRICA: TERRORISM AND OIL LIKELY TO DOMINATE BUSH VISIT.
July 2, 2003... Analysis - By Anthony Stoppard JOHANNESBURG, Jul. 1 (IPS/GIN) -- The war on terror and oil are behind the visit of President George W. Bush to Africa next week, say analysts. John Stremlau, the head of international relations at the...

RIGHTS: RICH NATIONS REBUFF TREATY PROTECTING MIGRANT WORKERS.
July 2, 2003... by Thalif Deen UNITED NATIONS, Jul. 1 (IPS/GIN) -- A new United Nations convention, which came into force Tuesday, is aimed at protecting over 175 million migrant workers worldwide, deprived in large measure of their basic legal and human...

RIGHTS-BOSNIA: REVISITING AN EXPERIMENT WITH ETHNIC CLEANSING.
July 2, 2003... by Vesna Peric Zimonjic BRCKO, Bosnia-Herzegovina, Jul. 1 (IPS/GIN) -- Arriving in this town by bus is quite an experience for someone who has been away for many years. The old clock tower at the railway station still stands. But it...

POLITICS-U.S.: INCREASE SOUGHT FOR PIPELINE PROTECTION PROGRAM.
July 2, 2003... by Katrin Dauenhauer WASHINGTON, Jul. 1 (IPS/GIN) -- The Bush administration is planning to significantly expand U.S. commitments in Colombia, with a 2004 budget request for up to $147 million to protect a private oil pipeline in the South...

HEALTH-PAKISTAN: CRITICS SAY LAW ON TOBACCO SALES HAS NO TEETH.
July 2, 2003... by Muddassir Rizvi ISLAMABAD, Jul. 1 (IPS/GIN) -- Pakistan is starting to enforce an anti-tobacco law that will ban smoking in public places and the sale of cigarettes to juveniles, but skeptics say the government lacks an effective plan...

TRADE-ASIA: EU'S FARM REFORMS DON'T GO FAR ENOUGH, ACTIVISTS SAY.
July 3, 2003... by Marwaan Macan-Markar BANGKOK, Jul. 3 (IPS/GIN) -- The European Union's (EU) recent reforms in its agricultural policy are being called a charade by activists across Asia. Opinion across the region suggests that the changes are only...

MEDIA-IRAQ: U.S. CENSORSHIP IS 'RAMPANT,' TOP BROADCASTER SAYS.
July 3, 2003... by Gorill Hus and Guri Wiggen OSLO, Jul. 3 (IPS/GIN) -- If the reality in Iraq is one thing and the reporting of it another, that is because much of the media wants it that way, say two leading journalists who have been reporting the...

RIGHTS-BRITAIN: 'WALL OF SILENCE' AROUND KENYAN RAPE CHARGES.
July 3, 2003... by Sanjay Suri LONDON, Jul. 3 (IPS/GIN) -- Attempts to investigate complaints that at least 650 Kenyan women were raped by British army soldiers over three decades have run into "a wall of silence," according to Amnesty International. ...

ENVIRONMENT-BANGLADESH: DHAKA'S GREEN SPACES ARE FADING TO GRAY.
July 3, 2003... by Tabibul Islam DHAKA, Jul. 3 (IPS/GIN) -- Once the bustling capital of Mughal Bengal and lavishly embellished with the lush gardens so beloved of those puissant emperors, Dhaka today is seeing the steady destruction of its parklands and...

DEVELOPMENT: MALAYSIA AND IRAN WEIGH USE OF GOLD DINAR FOR TRADE.
July 3, 2003... by Kalinga Seneviratne KUALA LUMPUR, Jul. 3 (IPS/GIN) -- Malaysia's efforts to use the gold dinar for trade with Iran is Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamad's latest attempt to overhaul the international financial system, one he has long...

POLITICS-GHANA: DOMESTIC VIOLENCE BILL FOCUSES ON MARITAL RAPE.
July 3, 2003... by Isabella Gyau ACCRA, Jul. 3 (IPS/GIN) -- "How can my wife tell me I have raped her?" Atsu Nutor, a carpenter asked while sipping the locally prepared gin popularly known as Akpeteshie. "That would be the end of the marriage," his...

POLITICS-TANZANIA: WOMEN STILL FACE POLITICAL BARRIERS.
July 3, 2003... by Ananilea Nkya DAR ES SALAAM, Jul. 3 (IPS/GIN) -- As the deadline to achieve at least a 30 percent inclusion of women in politics and decision-making in the Southern Africa Development Community, SADC, draws closer, women in Tanzania...

POLITICS-UGANDA: REBELS REFUSE TO NEGOTIATE, AND FIGHTING GOES ON.
July 3, 2003... by Joyce Mulama NAIROBI, Jul. 3 (IPS/GIN) -- Efforts by the government of Uganda to bring Joseph Kony of the Lord's Resistance Army to the negotiating table for peace are proving difficult. According to Father Carlos Rodriguez of the...

INDONESIA: FIGHT TO END SEX TRAFFICKING FOCUSES ON ENDING POVERTY.
July 3, 2003... by Richel Dursin JAKARTA, Jul. 3 (IPS/GIN) -- Thirteen-year-old Yati was robbed of her childhood when she was sold into bonded labor and now she sells both tea and her body. Yati (not her real name) was sold by her parents, in...

SOUTH AFRICA: MAJOR BANK DIVERSIFIES ITS BOARD.
July 3, 2003... by Varsha Gupta D'Souza JOHANNESBURG, Jul. 3 (IPS/GIN) In a move that sets up Standard Bank's leadership structure for the next four to five years, bank officials yesterday appointed six new directors, bolstering the board to 17 and...

AFRICA: UGANDA BREWS UP NEW VALUE-ADDED COFFEE STRATEGY.
July 3, 2003... by Varsha Gupta D'Souza NAIROBI, Jul. 3 (IPS/GIN) -- With the aim of getting better prices on its export champion, Uganda has embarked on a campaign to cease exporting raw coffee and add value to its beans. Among the significant...

SIERRA LEONE: 'DEEPER CAUSES' OF WAR TRACED TO DIAMOND SMUGGLING.
July 3, 2003... by Varsha Gupta D'Souza FREETOWN, Jul. 3 (IPS/GIN) -- Sierra Leone's just-ended conflict was 'essentially a mercenary' campaign which 'became pre-occupied with the illegal exploitation and smuggling of the country's diamond resources, much...

SOUTH AFRICA: MINING VICTIMS' WOES FINALLY HEARD.
July 3, 2003... by Varsha Gupta D'Souza JOHANNESBURG, Jul. 3 (IPS/GIN) -- After a long wait of more than a year, Gencor miners suffering from asbestos-related illnesses, in particular mesothelioma and lung cancer, should receive compensation over the next...

EDUCATION: CUBA AIDS CHAVEZ LITERACY PROGRAM AIMED AT A MILLION.
July 3, 2003... by Humberto M?rquez CARACAS, Jul. 2 (IPS/GIN) -- Over one million illiterate Venezuelans are the focus of Mission Robinson, a literacy drive launched by the government of President Hugo Ch?vez with support from Cuba and the participation...

HEALTH-U.S.: BUSH'S CHOICE FOR AIDS CZAR EVOKES CONCERN AND ANGER.
July 3, 2003... by Jim Lobe WASHINGTON, Jul. 2 (IPS/GIN) -- President George W. Bush's surprise pick of a former top executive of a major U.S. pharmaceutical company and major Republican contributor as his global AIDS coordinator has drawn expressions of...

POLITICS: DESPITE DOUBTERS, U.N. PEACEKEEPING WILL FOCUS ON AFRICA.
July 3, 2003... by Thalif Deen UNITED NATIONS, Jul. 2 (IPS/GIN) -- The United Nations has earmarked nearly 60 percent of its just-approved 2003-2004 peacekeeping budget for a continent largely in political and military turmoil -- Africa. Of the $2.1...

FINANCE-SOUTH AMERICA: BANK FAILURES SPOTLIGHT LAX CONTROLS.
July 3, 2003... by Alejandro Sciscioli and Dar!o Montero ASUNCION, Jul. 2 (IPS/GIN) -- A chain of bank failures in Argentina, Paraguay and Uruguay, the latest of which involved Multibanco in the Paraguayan capital, has highlighted problems of lax oversight...

RIGHTS-LIBERIA: HUMANITARIAN DISASTER FOLLOWS NEW FIGHTING.
July 3, 2003... by Abdullah Dukuly MONROVIA, Jul. 2 (IPS/GIN) -- Three days of bloodletting in Liberia's capital, Monrovia -- the second outburst in 10 days -- left "tragic humanitarian consequences with people still suffering and dying of hunger,...

ENVIRONMENT-GEORGIA: COURT OK'S LAWSUIT TO HALT 3-NATION PIPELINE.
July 3, 2003... by Jim Lobe WASHINGTON, Jul. 2 (IPS/GIN) -- A lawsuit to halt a controversial $3 billion oil pipeline in the former Soviet republic of Georgia overcame its first major hurdle, with a Georgian district court granting an environmental group...

ENVIRONMENT-CENTRAL AMERICA: THE SILENCING OF THE JAGUARS.
July 3, 2003... by Pilar Franco - Tierramerica* MEXICO CITY, Jul. 2 (IPS/GIN) -- When the jaguar roars, silence pervades the jungle. But that roar is itself in danger of being silenced as increased hunting and a reduction in forest cover in Central America...

IRAQ: EGYPTIAN CONSTRUCTION FIRMS WARY OF GETTING INVOLVED.
July 3, 2003... by Cam McGrath CAIRO, Jul. 2 (IPS/GIN) -- Egyptian firms are keen to bid for building subcontracts in Iraq, but do not know what they could rebuild and where. There have been words of encouragement from the U.S. "We strongly support...

MEDIA-JAMAICA: PUBLIC BROADCASTING TO GET A NEW LIFE.
July 3, 2003... by Dionne Jackson Miller MONTEGO BAY, Jul. 2 (IPS/GIN) -- Mindful of the problems public broadcasting is facing in other countries, and its own history of politicized programming, Jamaican authorities have decided to restore state radio...

AFRICA: AFRICAN UNION MAY NEED DONOR HELP TO COVER COSTS.
July 3, 2003... by Anthony Stoppard CAPE TOWN, Jul. 2 (IPS/GIN) -- Operating costs of the African Union are expected to reach as much as $100 million a year, once all of its structures are up and running. The high tab is raising concern that African...

RIGHTS-US: WASHINGTON ROLLS OUT BIG BROTHER DATABASE.
July 3, 2003... by Gabriel Packard* NEW YORK, Jul. 2 (IPS/GIN) -- The Hollywood movie "Minority Report" starred Tom Cruise as a cop in a world where a trio of omnipotent psychics predict crimes before they happen and suspects are punished before they can...

HEALTH-CANADA: HEALTH CARE WORKERS FAULTED IN NEW IMMIGRANT STUDY.
July 3, 2003... by Paul Weinberg TORONTO, Jul. 2 (IPS/GIN) -- Canadian healthcare professionals need to be better trained to handle the stress, depression and even trauma experienced by immigrant and refugee women in an increasingly diverse Canadian...

KENYA: GOVERNMENT CRITICIZED FOR IGNORING ENVIRONMENTAL CONCERNS.
July 3, 2003... by Varsha Gupta D'Souza NAIROBI, Jul. 2 (IPS/GIN) -- The Kenyan authorities have been accused of approving a controversial titanium mining venture along the country's Indian Ocean coast without addressing the economic and environmental...

AFRICA: LIBYA BECKONS TOURISTS, DRAFTS MULTIBILLION DOLLAR PLAN.
July 3, 2003... by Varsha Gupta D'Souza TRIPOLI, Jul. 2 (IPS/GIN) -- In a bid to woo three million tourists a year to shake off the effects of years of an international economic embargo Libya has drafted an ambitious multibillion dollar plan, economic...

SOUTH AFRICA: KUMBA, ANGLO FAVOR SINGLE OPERATOR MODEL.
July 3, 2003... by Varsha Gupta D'Souza JOHANNESBURG, Jul. 2 (IPS/GIN) -- World number four and South Africa's largest iron ore producer Kumba has finally revealed its strategy in the battle for the Northern Cape's iron ore industry, coming out strongly...

RIGHTS-CHILE: TORTURE VICTIMS AWAIT REPARATIONS.
July 5, 2003... by Gustavo Gonz?lez SANTIAGO, Jul. 3 (IPS/GIN) -- Nearly three decades after the military coup that initiated the 17-year regime of Gen. Augusto Pinochet, torture victims have not received any reparations, unlike the families of victims of...

LABOR-U.N.: WORKERS CONDEMN SUDDEN SUSPENSION OF STAFF UNION.
July 5, 2003... by Haider Rizvi UNITED NATIONS, Jul. 3 (IPS/GIN) -- The United Nations, which champions the cause of labour rights around the world, has shut down its own staff union, causing deep feelings of anger and resentment among hundreds of...

ENVIRONMENT: EU DRAWS CLOSER TO U.S. OVER BIOTECH FOODS.
July 5, 2003... Analysis by Stefania Bianchi BRUSSELS, Jul. 3 (IPS/GIN) -- New genetically modified foods may be sold in the European Union for the first time, bringing the 15-nation grouping a step closer to ending a trade row with the U.S. But the...

POLITICS-U.S.: BUSH AFRICA TRIP MORE SPIN THAN SUBSTANCE?
July 5, 2003... Analysis by Jim Lobe WASHINGTON, Jul. 3 (IPS/GIN) -- Will President George W. Bush's first trip to Africa as president amount more to spin than to substance? That's what most Africa specialists are waiting to find out, and the betting...

PERU: SENDERO LUMINOSO GUERRILLAS STAGE A COMEBACK.
July 5, 2003... by Abraham Lima LIMA, Jul. 3 (IPS/GIN) -- The recent brief occupation of the village of Huran Marca in northern Peru by Sendero Luminoso guerrillas, who after routing the police brought the local residents together to listen to a political...

LABOUR-CANADA: MIGRANT FARM WORKERS SUE GOV'T FOR UNION RIGHTS.
July 5, 2003... by Mark Bourrie LEAMINGTON, Canada, Jul. 3 (IPS/GIN) -- A union that wants to represent migrant farm workers in Ontario has filed a court challenge to the repressive farm labour laws in Canada's largest province. The United Food and...

POLITICS: 'TRANSPARENCY' PLEADS FOR STRONG U.N. CONVENTION.
July 5, 2003... by Jaya Ramachandran BERLIN, Jul. 3 (IPS/GIN) -- Transparency International has called upon governments around the world to commit themselves to signing the U.N. Convention against Corruption and ensure that forthcoming Vienna negotiations...

ARGENTINA: ACTIVISTS ALARMED BY ANTI-TERRORISM BILL.
July 5, 2003... by Viviana Alonso BUENOS AIRES, Jul. 3 (IPS/GIN) -- Human rights groups in Argentina say passage of a counter-terrorism bill submitted by a right-wing senator of the governing Justicialista (Peronist) Party would have grave consequences...

POLITICS-CARIBBEAN: REGION FACING U.S. RETALIATION OVER ICC VOTE.
July 5, 2003... by Peter Richards PORT OF SPAIN, Jul. 3 (IPS/GIN) -- Caribbean Community (CARICOM) leaders opened their annual summit in the Jamaican resort city of Montego Bay on Wednesday faced with a decision by the United States to blacklist Caribbean...

POLITICS-LIBERIA: PRESSURE MOUNTS ON PRESIDENT TAYLOR TO RESIGN.
July 5, 2003... by Lansana Fofana FREETOWN, Jul. 3 (IPS/GIN) -- An abrupt exit of President Charles Taylor could leave behind a power vacuum and plunge Liberia into chaos, warned a senior government official. The official, Sam Jackson, said this week:...

ENVIRONMENT: EU LAUNCHES SUSTAINABLE TRADE FORUM.
July 5, 2003... by Stefania Bianchi BRUSSELS, Jul. 3 (IPS/GIN) -- The European Commission has launched a Sustainable Trade Forum, which will allow civil society groups to voice their concerns over growing market pressures. The forum will be monitored...

HEALTH-ROMANIA: A NEW CHANCE FOR CHILDREN WITH AIDS.
July 5, 2003... by Marian Chiriac BUCHAREST, Jul. 3 (IPS/GIN) -- Fifteen-year-old "Nicu" has written a long list of gifts he wants, including new shoes and a football T-shirt. He also wants to be an airplane pilot. Nicu, with big, blue eyes and thick,...

ECONOMY-CUBA: LANDLORDS ON THE VERGE OF A NERVOUS BREAKDOWN.
July 5, 2003... by Patricia Grogg HAVANA, Jul. 4 (IPS/GIN) -- "We live in a state of permanent stress, worrying about whether we'll have enough guests, or waiting for more restrictions to be slapped on," complained a 58-year-old Cuban woman who rents out...

HEALTH: PREVENTABLE DISEASES CLAIM 11 MILLION CHILDREN EACH YEAR.
July 5, 2003... by Katherine Stapp* NEW YORK, Jul. 4 (IPS/GIN) -- Nearly 11 million children do not live to see their fifth birthday each year due to a lethal combination of malnutrition and mostly preventable diseases, according to a new article in the...

IRAQ: SHIITE LEADERS NOT A THREAT, FOR NOW.
July 5, 2003... by Peyman Pejman BAGHDAD, Jul. 4 (IPS/GIN) -- Long before the U.S.-led coalition forces entered Iraq, one of their first concerns was how Iraq's Shiite majority would react to their presence, how combative Shiite religious leaders would...

POLITICS-ZIMBABWE: TALKS WITH OPPOSITION HIT SNAG.
July 5, 2003... by Eunice Mafundikwa HARARE, Jul. 4 (IPS/GIN) -- The delicate nature of bringing the long-running crisis in Zimbabwe to an end has produced varying public statements, which in some instances make it hard for any meaningful dialogue to take...

IRAQ: THOUSANDS OF CHILDREN THREATENED BY DISEASE, MUNITIONS.
July 5, 2003... by Ricardo Grassi ROME, Jul. 4 (IPS/GIN) -- Disease and unexploded ammunition could kill thousands of Iraqi children unless immediate priority is given to their protection, says the UNICEF chief representative in Baghdad. Hundreds of...

POLITICS: INDIA, CHINA BUILD CONFIDENCE THROUGH MILITARY EXERCISES.
July 5, 2003... by Rahul Bedi NEW DELHI, Jul. 4 (IPS/GIN) -- Asian giants India and China are planning to follow up on recent top-level diplomatic efforts aimed at ending decades of hostility through their first-ever joint naval exercises later this year....

AUSTRALIA: GOV'T DRAWS FIRE FOR TREATMENT OF LATEST ASYLUM SEEKERS.
July 5, 2003... by Bob Burton CANBERRA, Jul. 4 (IPS/GIN) -- The Australian government is being criticised by refugee support groups for sending 54 Vietnamese asylum seekers on a 1,600-kilometre long journey over four days to faraway Christmas Island --...

POLITICS-AFRICA: BUSH TRIP TO FACE GRASSROOTS PROTEST.
July 5, 2003... Analysis - By Farah Khan JOHANNESBURG, Jul. 4 (IPS/GIN) -- Protestors in three African nations are gearing up for marches to coincide with the visit to five countries by President George W. Bush. Putting final touches to posters that...

ECONOMY-JORDAN: PEACE DIVIDEND BRINGS NO GAINS.
July 5, 2003... by Emad Mekay AMMAN, Jul. 4 (IPS/GIN) -- Eight years after Jordan was promised prosperity for signing a peace deal with Israel, many find that economic conditions have worsened. "We were promised floods of money and rivers of milk and...

POLITICS: INDIA-CHINA PACT MAY HAVE DOOMED TIBETAN CAUSE.
July 5, 2003... by Ranjit Devraj NEW DELHI, Jul. 4 (IPS/GIN) -- India and China vaulted over decades of mutual suspicion and hostility through their historic joint declarations signed in Beijing recently, but may have in the process sealed the cause of...

MIDEAST: PALESTINIAN PRISONERS BECOME A STUMBLING BLOCK.
July 7, 2003... by Peter Hirschberg JERUSALEM, Jul. 7 (IPS/GIN) -- Exactly 30 years ago, Hisham Abdel Razeq was caught with explosives on his way to carrying out an attack in the central Israeli town of Rishon Letzion. He was released in 1994, shortly...

PAKISTAN: KASHMIR TEMPERS LATEST HOPES FOR DIALOGUE WITH INDIA.
July 7, 2003... by Muddassir Rizvi ISLAMABAD, Jul. 7 (IPS/GIN) -- The recent arrival of the Pakistani high commissioner in New Delhi has raised hopes here that an initial warming of ties with India will hold, but politicians and security analysts say the...

RIGHTS-MALAWI: WOMEN PUSH FOR REMOVAL OF DISCRIMINATORY LAWS.
July 7, 2003... by Brian Ligomeka BLANTYRE, Jul. 7 (IPS/GIN) -- With domestic abuse and violence against women on the rise, Malawian women activists have drafted several bills aimed at ending the suffering they endure in their lives. The bills, which...

ECONOMY-KENYA: TOURISM INDUSTRY STRUGGLING TO COUNTER LOSSES.
July 7, 2003... by Joyce Mulama NAIROBI, Jul. 7 (IPS/GIN) -- The tourism industry may soon regain its status as Kenya's key foreign exchange earner, following lifting of flight bans and cancellation of travel advisory warning by the British government...

POLITICS: BURMA ON DIPLOMATIC OFFENSIVE, LITTLE EFFECT SO FAR.
July 7, 2003... Analysis By Larry Jagan BANGKOK, Jul. 7 (IPS/GIN) -- Stung by criticism from its Asian neighbors, Burma's junta has launched a diplomatic offensive against mounting international pressure to release Aung San Suu Kyi immediately and resume...