Interpress Service articles from March 2008

Interpress Service archives from March 2008

U.S.: BUSH STRUGGLES TO PUSH THROUGH TRADE PACT WITH COLOMBIA.
March 3, 2008... By Charles Davis WASHINGTON, Mar. 3, 2008 (IPS/GIN) -- President George W. Bush has made the passage of a free trade agreement with Colombia one of his administration's top priorities, arguing that a failure to do so would harm U.S....

RUSSIA: PUTIN'S FAVORED CANDIDATE WINS ELECTION BY A LANDSLIDE.
March 3, 2008... By Kester Kenn Klomegah MOSCOW, Mar. 3, 2008 (IPS/GIN) -- First deputy prime minister Dmitry Medvedev won Russia's presidential election with an overwhelmingly wide margin in the first round Sunday. Medvedev, who was nominated...

SYRIA: VIOLENCE IN IRAQ DETERS REFUGEES FROM RETURNING HOME.
March 3, 2008... By Maki al-Nazzal and Dahr Jamail* DAMASCUS, Syria, Mar. 3, 2008 (IPS/GIN) -- More Iraqis are continuing to flee their country than returning, if the migration flows to and from Syria are any indication. Many refugees say security is as...

CHINA: ACADEMICS PRAISE INDIA'S NEW FARMER-FRIENDLY BUDGET.
March 3, 2008... By Antoaneta Bezlova BEIJING, Mar. 3, 2008 (IPS/GIN) -- China's land privatization lobby has been showering accolades on India's new populist budget, which promises much more government support for indebted farmers. The budget, which...

AUSTRALIA: STATE REPORT CALLS FOR URGENT ACTION ON CLIMATE.
March 3, 2008... By Stephen de Tarczynski MELBOURNE, Australia, Mar. 3, 2008 (IPS/GIN) -- An interim report on Australia's ability to combat climate change has called on the government to take action immediately. Developments in mainstream scientific...

THAILAND: THAKSIN'S RETURN DEPLETES PRIME MINISTER'S POWER.
March 3, 2008... By Marwaan Macan-Markar BANGKOK, Thailand, Mar. 2, 2008 (IPS/GIN) -- Thai citizens have increasingly begun debating who the "real" political leader of their country is since Thursday, when ousted prime minster Thaksin Shinawatra returned...

CONGO: VIOLENCE IN EAST LEAVES THOUSANDS DISPLACED, HUNGRY.
March 3, 2008... By Michael Deibert KIBUMBA, Democratic Republic of Congo, Mar. 1, 2008 (IPS/GIN) -- Nearly 3,000 people are stranded in a mist-shrouded valley between the Mount Nyiragongo volcano and a pair of its dormant cousins to the east, having fled...

MIDEAST: ISRAELI AIR STRIKES KILL 9 PALESTINIAN CHILDREN IN 3 DAYS.
March 3, 2008... By Mohammed Omer GAZA CITY, Gaza Strip, Mar. 1, 2008 (IPS/GIN) -- Nine-year-old Tamer wanted to become a doctor when he grew up, but his dream was cut short when he was shot in the head by an Israeli soldier. Just over the past three...

U.S.: EMBATTLED VETERANS OFFICIAL RESIGNS UNDER PRESSURE.
March 3, 2008... By Aaron Glantz* SAN FRANCISCO, Feb. 29, 2008 (IPS/GIN) -- Daniel Cooper, the Department of Veterans Affairs' Undersecretary for Benefits, stepped down Thursday amid mounting criticism about the six-month backlog that injured veterans are...

BRAZIL: INDIGENOUS GROUPS INVOKE CONSTITUTIONAL RIGHT TO LAND.
March 3, 2008... By Mario Osava MIRANDA, Brazil, Feb, 29. 2008 (IPS/GIN) -- Thousands of indigenous people in the west-central Brazilian state of Mato Grosso do Sul lack the land they need to grow the food needed to overcome high levels of malnutrition....

COLOMBIA: HOSTAGES URGE URIBE NOT TO ATTEMPT MILITARY RESCUE.
March 3, 2008... By Humberto M rquez CARACAS, Venezuela, Feb. 29, 2008 (IPS/GIN) -- The four hostages released Wednesday by Colombia's FARC guerrillas made a speech this week in the Venezuelan capital, urging the Colombian government to "demilitarize" an...

SOUTH AFRICA: DAIRY FARMERS LOOK TO COW PIES FOR BIOFUEL.
March 3, 2008... By Stephanie Nieuwoudt CAPE TOWN, South Africa, Feb. 29, 2008 (IPS/GIN) -- Millions of dollars worth of agricultural produce have been lost due to the electricity crisis in South Africa, but many industry players have remained optimistic...

IRAQ: TENSIONS RISE BETWEEN SAHWA AND GOVERNMENT FORCES.
March 3, 2008... By Ahmed Ali and Dahr Jamail* BAQUBA, Iraq, Feb. 29, 2008 (IPS/GIN) -- U.S.-backed Sahwa forces are threatening to destabilize U.S.-backed Iraqi government forces in Iraq's volatile Diyala province. The "Awakening Councils," known...

RIGHTS-PAKISTAN: 'LOST' DEATH ROW PRISONER FREED AFTER 35 YEARS.
March 3, 2008... By Zofeen Ebrahim KARACHI, Feb. 29, 2008 (IPS/GIN) - Pakistan's new human rights minister took a first step towards clearing out the backlog of hundreds of Indian prisoners held for decades in hellish conditions including solitary...

ENVIRONMENT: GALAPAGOS ISLANDS IN SEARCH OF CLEAN ENERGY.
March 3, 2008... By Stephen Leahy /Tierramrica * TORONTO, Feb. 29, 2008 (IPS/GIN) - Ecuador has taken the first step towards ending the oil dependence of its Gal pagos Islands, in the eastern Pacific Ocean, with the official opening of a 10.8 million...

IRAQ: SPREAD OF PLANT DISEASES BLAMED ON U.S. OCCUPATION.
March 3, 2008... By Ahmed Ali and Dahr Jamail* BAQUBA, Feb. 29, 2008 (IPS/GIN) - New plant diseases, attacks by occupation forces and escalating fuel prices are strangling farmers in Diyala province. Prior to the U.S.-led invasion of March 2003,...

RIGHTS-CUBA: HAVANA SIGNS TREATIES - WITH RESERVATIONS.
March 3, 2008... By Dalia Acosta HAVANA, Feb. 29, 2008 (IPS/GIN) - The United States' hostile policy towards Cuba will remain a hurdle to recognition and respect for certain rights enshrined in the first two international treaties signed by the government...

AFGHANISTAN: REFUGEES COME HOME TO SCARCITY, DISCONTENT.
March 4, 2008... By Anand Gopal KABUL, Mar. 4, 2008 (IPS/GIN) - The return of thousands of refugees to Afghanistan from neighbouring countries is causing tremendous stress to the Afghan government and society, government officials here say. According...

EUROPE: CIVIL LIBERTIES IN TURKEY LOSING GROUND.
March 4, 2008... By David Cronin BRUSSELS, Mar. 4, 2008 (IPS/GIN) - Reforms allowing freedom of expression in Turkey are "badly overdue", the European Commission has warned. Although talks on Turkey's bid to join the European Union opened more than...

DEVELOPMENT: NGOS WARY OF DOOMSDAY SEED VAULT.
March 4, 2008... By Keya Acharya BANGALORE, Mar. 4, 2008 (IPS/GIN) - Agricultural non-governmental organisations (NGOs) working in India and elsewhere are criticising the newly-opened Global Seed Vault (GSV) at Svalbard in Norway as fundamentally unjust in...

LABOR-MIDEAST: MISSILE GOES DOWN A UNION'S THROAT.
March 4, 2008... By Mohammed Omer GAZA CITY, Mar. 4, 2008 (IPS/GIN) - Two F-16 missiles were all it took to bring down the five-storey headquarters of the Palestinian General Federation of Trade Unions (PGFTU). The Union, established in 1965, is one of...

CAMBODIA: ACID ATTACKS LEAVE MORE THAN SCARS.
March 4, 2008... By Rithy Heng - Newsmekong* PHNOM PENH, Mar. 4, 2008 (IPS/GIN) - Seconds after his jealous wife threw acid at him, Soum Bunnarith could hear nothing. He could not see it, but his eyes and his right ear had turned a dark, burnt shade. ...

PAKISTAN: OPPOSITION CALLS FOR MUSHARRAF TO STEP DOWN.
March 4, 2008... Analysis by Amir Mir ISLAMABAD, Mar. 4, 2008 (IPS/GIN) - The leaders of Pakistan's two main political parties that emerged victorious in the Feb. 18 general elections, are accusing President Pervez Musharraf of trying to subvert the...

SOUTH AMERICA: BRAZIL UNDER PRESSURE TO MEDIATE CONFLICT.
March 4, 2008... By Mario Osava* RIO DE JANEIRO, Mar. 3, 2008 (IPS/GIN) - Colombia's military incursion into Ecuador is at the centre of the current crisis between three Andean nations, which must be resolved within the framework of the Organisation of...

POLITICS: SECURITY COUNCIL PASSES NEW SANCTIONS ON IRAN.
March 4, 2008... By Erkan Kaptan UNITED NATIONS, Mar. 3, 2008 (IPS/GIN) - After several weeks of closed door negotiations, the 15-member U.N. Security Council decided Monday to impose a third set of sanctions on Iran to pressure Tehran to halt its ongoing...

BRAZIL: KEEPING INDIGENOUS IDENTITY INTACT IN "URBAN VILLAGE".
March 4, 2008... By Mario Osava CAMPO GRANDE, Brazil, Mar. 3, 2008 (IPS/GIN) - "I desperately want to go back. I feel like I'm living in a prison here, but I stay on because I love my children," says Concei o Gonalves, who misses the indigenous village of...

ECONOMY: U.S. IN A RECESSION AND PAIN IS SPREADING.
March 4, 2008... By Abid Aslam WASHINGTON, Mar. 3, 2008 (IPS/GIN) - New government data and business surveys show the world's biggest economy falling into -- and possibly already in -- recession. Investors fearful of a U.S. slump have driven down...

CARIBBEAN: IS ALBA MORE THAN A STORM IN A TEACUP?
March 4, 2008... By Peter Richards PORT OF SPAIN, Mar. 3, 2008 (IPS/GIN) - When he visited Jamaica last year, Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez urged Caribbean Community (Caricom) countries to join his Bolivarian Alternative for the Americas (ALBA), seen as...

RIGHTS: WOMEN OUT IN THE COLD AT PEACE TALKS.
March 4, 2008... By Thalif Deen UNITED NATIONS, Mar. 3, 2008 (IPS/GIN) - As the United Nations continues its two-week long discussions on the status of women worldwide, there is one nagging fact hovering around the conference rooms in the Secretariat:...

POLITICS: SUNNI INSURGENTS EXPLOIT U.S.-SPONSORED MILITIAS.
March 4, 2008... Analysis by Gareth Porter* WASHINGTON, Mar. 3, 2008 (IPS/GIN) - For months, U.S. President George W. Bush and Gen. David Petraeus have been touting the programme of recruiting tens of thousands of Sunnis into U.S.-financed "Awakening...

Q&A: "PLAN BY TNCS TO CONTROL SEEDS BOUND TO FAIL".
March 4, 2008... Interview with Tewolde Berhan Egziabher NEW DELHI, Mar. 3, 2008 (IPS/GIN) - An attempt by a handful of developed countries and trans-national corporations (TNCs) to monopolise and control the world's seeds is doomed to failure, says Tewolde...

COLOMBIA: HOSTAGE TALKS "STILL ALIVE," DESPITE DIPLOMATIC CRISIS.
March 4, 2008... By Constanza Vieira BOGOTA, Mar. 3, 2008 (IPS/GIN) - European envoys met over the weekend with members of the FARC rebel group's central leadership to discuss how to move ahead in the efforts to negotiate a humanitarian exchange aimed at...

CLIMATE-SWAZILAND: POOR FARMERS FACE RELOCATION - BUT WHERE?
March 4, 2008... By James Hall MBABANE, Mar. 3, 2008 (IPS/GIN) - Climate change appears to have permanently altered certain areas of east and southern Swaziland, where good harvests have not been achieved for over a decade. Agriculture officials and...

Q&A-INDIA: STATE SUBSIDIES FUEL CAR-CENTRIC URBAN GROWTH.
March 5, 2008... By Ann Ninan NEW DELHI, Mar. 5, 2008 (IPS/GIN) -- Pollution and road congestion are already at crisis proportions in India's cities, according to Anumita Roychowdhury of the nongovernmental Center for Science and Environment. Even so,...

MALAYSIA: ELECTION WILL LIKELY BE RIGGED, OPPOSITION PARTIES SAY.
March 5, 2008... By Anil Netto PENANG, Malaysia, Mar. 5, 2008 (IPS/GIN) -- Malaysia's Election Commission has provoked a storm of protests by scrapping its plan to prevent voters from casting multiple ballots through the use of indelible ink. ...

U.S.: PERUVIAN CAPTAIN APPLIES FOR ASYLUM, IN BID TO EVADE JUSTICE.
March 5, 2008... By ngel P ez LIMA, Peru, Mar. 5, 2008 (IPS/GIN) -- Retired Peruvian army captain David Casta[currency]eda is seeking political asylum in the United States, in a desperate attempt to keep out of the reach of his country's justice system....

IRAQ: SAHWA FORCES GAIN POWER THROUGH CLASHES WITH STATE.
March 5, 2008... By Ahmed Ali and Dahr Jamail* BAQUBA, Iraq, Mar. 5, 2008 (IPS/GIN) -- The conflict between Sahwa forces and the Iraqi government in Diyala has -- within the last month -- resulted in more power for the Sahwa. Tensions rose in early...

UZBEKISTAN: NGO URGES STATE TO RELEASE IMPRISONED ACTIVISTS.
March 5, 2008... By Kester Kenn Klomegah MOSCOW, Mar. 5, 2008 (IPS/GIN) -- Uzbek human rights activists recently sent a letter to President Islam Karimov challenging the unlawful detention of several of their colleagues. "We, the opposition of...

GERMANY: TAX FRAUD IS RIFE NATIONWIDE, PROSECUTORS SAY.
March 5, 2008... By Julio Godoy BERLIN, Mar. 5, 2008 (IPS/GIN) -- The revelation that hundreds of wealthy Germans have made illegal investments in Liechtenstein to avoid taxes has shaken the public's trust in the integrity of German capitalism. ...

MIDEAST: ISRAELI ATTACKS PRODUCE GRUESOME CARNAGE IN GAZA.
March 5, 2008... By Mohammed Omer JABALYIA, Gaza Strip, Mar. 5, 2008 (IPS/GIN) -- These days ambulances frequently race through the Jabalyia refugee camp in Gaza to pick up critically injured Palestinians and the body parts that are so often strewn across...

ASIA: MALNUTRITION EPIDEMIC LOOMS AS RICE PRICES CONTINUE RISING.
March 5, 2008... By Marwaan Macan-Markar BANGKOK, Thailand, Mar. 5, 2008 (IPS/GIN) -- Soaring global rice prices are forcing some of Asia's poorest citizens to go hungry. Among the worst hit are the people of East Timor, where nearly 40 percent live on...

U.S.: COLD WEATHER SERVES AS FODDER FOR CLIMATE CHANGE DENIERS.
March 5, 2008... Analysis by Stephen Leahy BROOKLIN, Canada, Mar. 4, 2008 (IPS/GIN) -- Climate change deniers descended on New York City this week for a conference organized by the Heartland Institute, a right-wing lobby group that has accepted thousands...

Q&A-LATIN AMERICA: URIBE'S ATTACK ON FARC MAY BENEFIT CH VEZ.
March 5, 2008... By Diego Cevallos MEXICO CITY, Mexico, Mar. 4, 2008 (IPS/GIN) -- Colombia's bombing on Saturday of a FARC guerrilla camp in Ecuador is likely to politically benefit the Venezuelan government, according to Heinz Dieterich, a Mexico-based...

CUBA: RUMORS SPREAD ABOUT DEVALUATION OF CONVERTIBLE PESO.
March 5, 2008... By Dalia Acosta HAVANA, Mar. 4, 2008 (IPS/GIN) -- Cuba's new government appears prepared to take urgent action on complex problems such as the country's dual monetary system and the prevalence of wages too low to stimulate production. ...

RIGHTS: U.N.'S MAIN WOMEN'S BODY REMAINS LEADERLESS.
March 5, 2008... By Thalif Deen UNITED NATIONS, Mar. 4, 2008 (IPS/GIN) -- When women activists lash out against gender discrimination, one of their longstanding complaints is also directed at the U.N. Secretariat, where senior level posts are still largely...

CHINA: GOVERNMENT WARNS TAIWAN NOT TO FOLLOW KOSOVO'S PATH.
March 6, 2008... By Antoaneta Bezlova BEIJING, Mar. 6, 2008 (IPS/GIN) -- China is seeking international allies in its campaign to prevent Taiwan from declaring its independence in the wake of Kosovo's similar move. The Chinese government is also...

EGYPT: IRE OVER ISRAEL'S ATTACKS ON GAZA REACHES BOILING POINT.
March 6, 2008... By Adam Morrow and Khaled Moussa al-Omrani CAIRO, Egypt, Mar. 6, 2008 (IPS/GIN) -- Fury erupted on Egypt's streets and in its parliament this week following violent Israeli military operations in the Gaza Strip. But as protests were...

SERBIA: ARSON ATTACKS AGAINST EMBASSIES DRAW OFFICIAL PRAISE.
March 6, 2008... By Vesna Peric Zimonjic BELGRADE, Serbia, Mar. 6, 2008 (IPS/GIN) -- The torching of a foreign embassy is not often praised by government officials, but Serbian leaders nevertheless praised young rioters for setting fire to the U.S. and...

IRAQ: BESET BY MILITIAS, WOMEN ABANDON PUBLIC SPHERE.
March 6, 2008... Analysis by Dahr Jamail WASHINGTON, Mar. 6, 2008 (IPS/GIN) -- Women in Iraq once had more rights and freedom than most others in the Arab world, but the country has now turned deadly for women who dream of education and a professional...

BULGARIA: ANEMIC RALLY ILLUSTRATES WANING POWER OF FAR RIGHT.
March 6, 2008... By Claudia Ciobanu SOFIA, Bulgaria, Mar. 6, 2008 (IPS/GIN) -- Fewer than 10,000 sympathizers attended a March 3 national rally for Ataka, Bulgaria's extreme-right party, illustrating the degree to which support for the group has dwindled....

MEKONG: SUMMIT WILL ASSESS PROS, CONS OF REGIONAL INTEGRATION.
March 6, 2008... Analysis by Johanna Son BANGKOK, Thailand, Mar. 6, 2008 (IPS/GIN) -- Leaders of the six Mekong countries are planning to review the benefits and burdens of regional integration and the opening of their borders at the end of this month in...

BURKINA FASO: NGO ACCUSES STATE OF ABUSING PROTESTERS' RIGHTS.
March 6, 2008... By Brahima Oudraogo OUAGADOUGOU, Burkina Faso, Mar. 5, 2008 (IPS/GIN) -- It appears that rights abuses are being committed against people detained while protesting against the rising cost of living in Burkina Faso, according to the...

COLOMBIA/ECUADOR: OAS RESOLUTION EASES DIPLOMATIC CRISIS.
March 6, 2008... By Gloria Helena Rey BOGOTA, Colombia, Mar. 5, 2008 (IPS/GIN) -- Politicians and business leaders in Colombia collectively breathed a sigh of relief Wednesday as the Organization of American States began addressing the diplomatic crisis...

COLOMBIA: U.S. LOYALTY TO URIBE UNDERMINES ITS ROLE AS MEDIATOR.
March 6, 2008... By Jim Lobe WASHINGTON, Mar. 5, 2008 (IPS/GIN) -- Washington's strong backing for President Alvaro Uribe appears to have more or less prevented the U.S. from playing a significant diplomatic role in defusing the crisis sparked by...

Q&A: U.N. AIMS TO BACK SOUTH-SOUTH COOPERATION EFFORTS.
March 6, 2008... By Mithre J. Sandrasagra UNITED NATIONS, Mar. 5, 2008 (IPS/GIN) -- South-South cooperation has become an increasingly important focus of the United Nations Development Program, according to Kemal Dervis, the program's administrator. ...

PERU: U.S. JUDGE AWARDS MILLIONS TO MASSACRE SURVIVORS.
March 6, 2008... By Angel P ez LIMA, Peru, Mar. 5, 2008 (IPS/GIN) -- A U.S. federal judge has ordered retired Peruvian Army Maj. Telmo Hurtado to pay $37 million to two survivors of a 1985 massacre that left 69 indigenous peasants dead. The massacre --...

U.S.: RIGHT-WING HERITAGE FOUNDATION MARKS ITS 35TH ANNIVERSARY.
March 6, 2008... By Bill Berkowitz* OAKLAND, Calif., Mar. 5, 2008 (IPS/GIN) -- The Heritage Foundation, one of Washington's most influential conservative think tanks, recently celebrated its 35th anniversary. Though quite old in relation to most other...

U.S.: HOMELESSNESS IS ON THE RISE, SERVICE PROVIDERS SAY.
March 6, 2008... By Mark Weisenmiller TAMPA, Fla., Mar. 5, 2008 (IPS/GIN) -- Direct-service groups in five major U.S. metropolitan areas have all noted an increase in the number of homeless people in their respective areas, according to an informal survey...

CANADA: NATIVE LEADER TO SERVE 6 MONTHS FOR ANTI-MINE PROTEST.
March 6, 2008... By Chris Arsenault HALIFAX, Nova Scotia, Mar. 5, 2008 (IPS/GIN) -- When a uranium company began prospecting for radioactive ore on unceded native land near Ottawa -- without engaging in consultation -- Algonquin community leader Robert...

COLOMBIA: ANTI-WAR MARCH BEGINS WITH HOMAGE TO VICTIMS.
March 6, 2008... By Helda Mart nez FLANDES, Colombia, Mar. 5, 2008 (IPS/GIN) -- Indigenous activist Manuel Bautista and others affected by Colombia's civil war threw thousands of flowers into the Magdalena River Tuesday in a "national homage to the victims...

KENYA: GENDER PAY GAP PERSISTS, DESPITE STATE EFFORTS.
March 7, 2008... By Kwamboka Oyaro NAIROBI, Kenya, Mar. 7, 2008 (IPS/GIN) -- Both the Kenyan government and the established private sector endorse the principle of equal pay for equal work, but women in Kenya nevertheless receive considerably less for...

GAZA: RISE OF FANATICISM COMPOUNDS VIOLENCE ENDURED BY WOMEN.
March 7, 2008... By Mohammed Omer GAZA CITY, Gaza Strip, Mar. 7, 2008 (IPS/GIN) -- Mahasen Darduna, 30, has sat day and night by her son's hospital bed for a whole week. The boy, 9-year-old Yahiya, was hit by an Israeli missile while playing football on a...

KOSOVO: BELIEVERS IN MULTI-ETHNIC STATE LOOK TO MITROVICA.
March 7, 2008... By Zolt n Dujisin MITROVICA, Kosovo, Mar. 7, 2008 (IPS/GIN) -- The divided city of Mitrovica -- the only urban center in Kosovo still inhabited by Serbs -- has become a high-stakes site for those who believe in a multi-ethnic state. ...

PAKISTAN: PATRIARCHAL NORMS PREVENT MANY WOMEN FROM VOTING.
March 7, 2008... By Ashfaq Yusufzai PESHAWAR, Pakistan, Mar. 7, 2008 (IPS/GIN) -- Saeeda Anwar, 38, labors as a schoolteacher in the capital of Pakistan's North West Frontier Province, but she is not allowed to exercise her right to vote. "My family is...

ITALY: CATHOLIC DOCTORS GROUPS SEEK TO LIMIT ABORTION RIGHTS.
March 7, 2008... By Sabina Zaccaro ROME, Mar. 7, 2008 (IPS/GIN) -- Female scientists, intellectuals and professionals are fighting for abortion rights in the face of an effort by center-right politicians and Catholic doctors associations to ban all...

IRAQ: FESTIVALS ONLY DEEPEN SENSE OF DEPRESSION IN BAQUBA.
March 7, 2008... By Ahmed Ali and Dahr Jamail* BAQUBA, Iraq, Mar. 7, 2008 (IPS/GIN) -- The fifth anniversary of the U.S.-led invasion of Iraq is approaching, with many Baquba residents feeling particularly depressed by their inability to share the joy of...

ASIA: JAPAN AND SOUTH KOREA STRENGTHEN MARITIME TIES WITH U.S.
March 7, 2008... Analysis by John Feffer WASHINGTON, Mar. 7, 2008 (IPS/GIN) -- Japan and the United States have worked together to build regional approaches to terrorism and piracy, but they have not always seen eye to eye on missile defense issues or on...

JAPAN: ALLEGED ABUSE OF INMATES REVIVES CALL FOR JAIL REFORMS.
March 7, 2008... By Catherine Makino TOKYO, Mar. 7, 2008 (IPS/GIN) -- A complaint of medical abuse in one of Japan's high-security jails has revived the wider issue of penitentiary reforms in a country that emphasizes rigorous discipline for repeat...

NICARAGUA: ORTEGA BREAKS OFF TIES WITH COLOMBIA AFTER RAID.
March 7, 2008... By Gloria Helena Rey* BOGOTA, Colombia, Mar. 6, 2008 (IPS/GIN) -- Nicaragua elicited concern but not surprise Thursday when it announced that it was breaking off diplomatic ties with Colombia over the recent bombing raid carried out on a...

U.S.-REPORT: PENTAGON INCREASINGLY DIRECTS FOREIGN POLICY.
March 7, 2008... By Jim Lobe WASHINGTON, Mar. 6, 2008 (IPS/GIN) -- U.S. foreign policy is increasingly being controlled by the Pentagon rather than the State Department, and Congress is doing virtually nothing about it, according to a report released...

COLOMBIA: THOUSANDS TAKE PART IN ANTI-PARAMILITARY MARCH.
March 7, 2008... By Helda Mart nez* BOGOTA, Colombia, Mar. 6, 2008 (IPS/GIN) -- Protesters gathered this week in more than 20 Colombian cities and another 100 other cities around the world to demonstrate peacefully against state-sanctioned paramilitarism,...

U.N.: WOMEN'S FUND SEEKS $100 MILLION A YEAR TO FIGHT VIOLENCE.
March 7, 2008... By Thalif Deen UNITED NATIONS, Mar. 6, 2008 (IPS/GIN) -- The United Nations Development Fund for Women has set an ambitious goal: It's hoping to raise about $100 million a year by 2015 for the U.N.'s Trust Fund to End Violence against...

RIGHTS: GLOBAL POLL SHOWS STRONG SUPPORT FOR GENDER EQUALITY.
March 7, 2008... By Jim Lobe WASHINGTON, Mar. 6, 2008 (IPS/GIN) -- Large majorities of people around the world agree that women should enjoy all the same rights as men, according to a survey of nearly 15,000 respondents in 16 developed and developing...

BRAZIL: OYSTER FARMING OFFERS FINANCIAL STABILITY TO FISHERMEN.
March 7, 2008... By Fabiana Frayssinet FLORIAN POLIS, Brazil, Mar. 6, 2008 (IPS/GIN) -- In a modest beachside restaurant at the southern tip of the Brazilian island of Floriancentspolis, a couple recently celebrated "one more year of vacations and love"...

NIGERIA: STATE FAILS TO TAKE ELDERLY PRISONERS OFF DEATH ROW.
March 7, 2008... By Tolu Samuel LAGOS, Nigeria, Mar. 6, 2008 (IPS/GIN) -- Several thousand Nigerians continue to live in fear of the gallows, three months after the U.N. General Assembly called on states that practice capital punishment to adopt a...

INDIA: STATE PUSHES FOR RESOLUTION OF NUCLEAR DEAL WITH U.S.
March 7, 2008... Analysis by Praful Bidwai NEW DELHI, Mar. 6, 2008 (IPS/GIN) -- The Indian government appears to be heading for a showdown with the domestic opposition over the stalled nuclear cooperation deal with the United States. U.S. officials...

BURMA: EU HAS LITTLE CLOUT AGAINST JUNTA, ASIAN DIPLOMAT SAYS.
March 11, 2008... By David Cronin BRUSSELS, Belgium, Mar. 11, 2008 (IPS/GIN) -- Economic sanctions imposed by the European Union on Burma are unlikely to have any effect on its military junta, according to a former Singaporean diplomat. After Burmese...

IRAN: WARY ACTIVISTS HOLD CLANDESTINE EVENTS ON WOMEN'S DAY.
March 11, 2008... By Kimia Sanati TEHRAN, Iran, Mar. 11, 2008 (IPS/GIN) -- Celebrations of this year's International Women's Day in Iran were confined to small gatherings in private residences, due to the hard-line government's refusal to allow women to...

EGYPT: CONDOLEEZZA RICE WAIVES STRICTURES PLACED ON U.S. AID.
March 11, 2008... By Adam Morrow and Khaled Moussa al-Omrani CAIRO, Egypt, Mar. 11, 2008 (IPS/GIN) -- U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice announced the release of $100 million in suspended financial assistance to Egypt, while visiting the country last...

CHINA: LEADERS SEEK TO STREAMLINE CABINET, CENTRALIZE POWER.
March 11, 2008... By Antoaneta Bezlova BEIJING, Mar. 11, 2008 (IPS/GIN) -- China's leaders are poised to unveil a proposal for creating super-ministries in order to push forward their plans for more moderate growth and better environmental protection. ...

BURMA: JUNTA REBUFFS OVERTURE FROM U.N. ENVOY.
March 11, 2008... By Marwaan Macan-Markar BANGKOK, Thailand, Mar. 11, 2008 (IPS/GIN) -- It's not surprising that the third visit of United Nations special envoy Ibrahim Gambari to Burma ended in failure, seeing as he was informed on arrival that the junta...

CUBA: EU AID COMMISSIONER HOLDS EXPLORATORY TALKS IN HAVANA.
March 11, 2008... By Patricia Grogg HAVANA, Mar. 10, 2008 (IPS/GIN) -- EU Aid Commissioner Louis Michel just spent a few days holding exploratory talks with Cuban Foreign Minister Felipe Prez Roque, rekindling hopes on both sides for an eventual...

SURVEY: GLOBAL PUBLIC PREFERS GENTLER MEASURES AGAINST IRAN.
March 11, 2008... By Jim Lobe WASHINGTON, Mar. 10, 2008 (IPS/GIN) -- Public support for strong measures to curb or destroy Iran's nuclear program has declined significantly in most countries around the world compared to 18 months ago, according to a survey...

TANZANIA: MAJORITY OF BURUNDIAN REFUGEES ARE HOPING TO STAY.
March 11, 2008... By Sarah McGregor DAR ES SALAAM, Tanzania, Mar. 10, 2008 (IPS/GIN) -- All three settlements established in western Tanzania for Burundian exiles -- Ulyankulu, Katumba and Mishamo -- will close by 2010, Tanzanian President Jakaya Kikwete...