BBC Monitoring International Reports articles from January 2002, page 4

BBC Monitoring International Reports archives from January 2002

Belarus to tackle trade in women for foreign prostitution.
January 31, 2002... Text of report in English by Russian news agency Interfax Minsk, 31 January: The La Strada Programme, which is aimed at preventing trafficking in women in Central and Eastern Europe, has been set up in Belarus. The problem of...

Iran's supreme leader says USA itself is "the greatest evil".
January 31, 2002... Text of report in English by Iranian news agency IRNA Tehran, 31 January: Supreme leader of the Islamic revolution Ayatollah Ali Khamene'i here Thursday [31 January] denounced US President George W. Bush's calling Iran as part of the...

Russia's food and agriculture minister fears discrimination in WTO talks.
January 31, 2002... Text of report in English by Russian news agency ITAR-TASS Moscow, 31 January: Russian Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Agriculture and Food Aleksey Gordeyev believes that there are "elements of discrimination" at Russia's talks with...

Uzbek, Russian presidents discuss cooperation over phone.
January 31, 2002... Text of report as received in English by Uzbek UzReport.com web site on 31 January President of the Russian Federation Vladimir Putin and President of the Republic of Uzbekistan Islam Karimov discussed several actual issues of bilateral...

Uzbekistan denies transit visa for Afghans in Kazakhstan - TV.
January 31, 2002... [Presenter] Afghans in Kazakhstan demand the green light - they want to return to their motherland. However, to get an Uzbek transit visa is as difficult as to win the main prize in a lottery. [Correspondent] Sergey Tonkikh has the report....

Iran: Paper on events since 11 September.
January 31, 2002... Text of editorial by Abbas Behruzi in English published by Iranian newspaper Iran Daily web site on 31 January The global grievances over the 11 September terrorist incidents have almost settled. The war in Afghanistan conveyed the...

New deputy head of Kazakh president's bodyguard service appointed.
January 31, 2002... Mukhtar Ayubayev has been appointed deputy head of the Kazakh presidential bodyguard service, the official Kazakh newspaper Kazakhstanskaya Pravda reported on 31 January. "Mukhtar Akatovich Ayubayev has been appointed deputy head of the...

Chinese spokesman confirms Jiang, Bush talks during China visit.
January 31, 2002... Text of report in English by official Chinese news agency Xinhua (New China News Agency) Beijing, 31 January: Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Kong Quan confirmed Thursday [31 January] that Chinese President Jiang Zemin and US...

China: Party officials urged to go out among people to issue directives.
January 31, 2002... Party officials should go out among the people when issuing directives in a move to overcome bureaucracy and formalism, the Chinese party paper has said. Going out "to the frontline" brings the cadres in touch with the people's needs and the...

Papua New Guinea Media Council pledges to expose corruption.
January 31, 2002... The Papua New Guinea Media Council (PNGMC) yesterday declared war on corruption and corrupt leaders in the lead-up to the coming general elections. "The media is on a warpath. We are at war against corruption, perpetrators of corruption...

Iran: Paper on development of South Pars gas field.
January 31, 2002... Text of report in English by Iranian newspaper Iran Daily web site on 31 January Iran's marine borders are stretched over 2,700 km along the Persian Gulf and Sea of Oman to the south, and the Caspian Sea to the north. Despite possessing...

Burundi: Hutu rebel leader said killed in combat in northwest.
January 31, 2002... Text of report by Burundi news agency Azania on 30 January Violent clashes between the Burundi army and FDD [pro-Hutu Forces for the Defence of Democracy] took place in Zina locality [northwestern Burundi] on Friday [25 January]. ...

Philippine police find terrorist suspect group linked to Al-Qa'idah.
January 31, 2002... Text of report in English by Philippine newspaper The Philippine Star web site on 31 January Indonesian police investigators are still questioning at Camp Crame in Quezon City suspected terrorist Fathur Rohman Al-Ghozi to determine his...

Israeli sources say PNA doing nothing to foil "terrorism".
January 31, 2002... Text of report by Israel radio on 31 January Defence establishment sources say the PNA activity against terrorism has almost completely stopped, in a pointed contrast to last month, after Arafat's cease-fire call. The sources noted,...

Vietnamese premier calls for positive changes in economic restructuring.
January 31, 2002... Text of report in English by Vietnamese news agency VNA web site Hanoi, 30 January: Prime Minister Phan Van Khai on Wednesday [30 January] urged all ministries, agencies and localities to press ahead with stronger efforts to increase...

Slovak members of Convention on Europe's future appointed.
January 31, 2002... Text of report by Slovak commercial Radio Twist on 31 January [Announcer] A new body of the EU - a 105-member Convention on the future of Europe - will be convened at the beginning of March. Slovakia will be represented by three...

Pakistan says India linked to US reporter's kidnapping.
January 31, 2002... Text of report by Pakistan TV on 31 January [Foreign Office spokesman Aziz Ahmad Khan] The government of Pakistan is making every effort possible for the recovery of the journalist. The interior minister personally is supervising the...

Colombia: Government-ELN peace "summit" begins in Cuba.
January 31, 2002... Text of report by Colombian newspaper El Espectador web site on 29 January The first meeting between the Colombian government and the National Liberation Army [ELN], following the resumption of peace talks with this guerrilla group, will...

Vietnam receives Internet management equipment from South Korea.
January 31, 2002... Text of report in English by Vietnamese news agency VNA web site Hanoi, 31 January: The Vietnam Internet Network Information Centre (VNNIC) of the General Department of Post and Telecommunications has received equipment from the Republic...

Albanian Socialist leader promises government reshuffle, end to crisis.
January 31, 2002... Chairman of the ruling Socialist Party Fatos Nano has told a news conference that all steps have been taken to set up a governmental team that will restore solidarity, put an end to the crisis and guarantee the stability of institutions in...

Bulgaria: Official says more is needed in Turkish minority rights protection.
January 31, 2002... Text of report by Bulgarian radio on 31 January The official working visit of Turkish Prime Minister Bulent Ecevit to Bulgaria continued on 31 January with a series of meetings with representatives of the Rights and Freedoms Movement...

Japan: Embassy blueprints seized in Germany, attack suspected.
January 31, 2002... Text of report in English by Japanese news agency Kyodo Berlin, 30 January: Germany has told the Japanese government that German authorities have seized blueprints of the Japanese embassy building in Berlin from the house of a Sudanese...

Kenya: Two opposition parties forge alliance.
January 31, 2002... Text of report by Kenyan KTN TV on 31 January Ford-People [Forum for the Restoration of Democracy-People] have made a pact with Safina party and launched an agenda that distances them from the National Alliance for Change. ...

Economic accord signed during Ukrainian minister's visit to Hong Kong.
January 31, 2002... Text of report by Ukrainian news agency UNIAN Kiev, 31 January: Ukrainian Foreign Minister Anatoliy Zlenko has visited the chamber of industry and commerce of the Hong Kong special administrative region of the People's Republic of China....

US troops can fight if Philippine army, police not able to - senator.
January 31, 2002... Text of report by Philippines GMA television on 31 January; passages within slantlines in English Senator Rodolfo Biazon, a former military general, said that based on the so-called /terms of reference/, it appears that the American...

Bosnian Foreign Ministry says it is unacceptable to brand Arafat a terrorist.
January 31, 2002... Sarajevo, 31 January: The Bosnia-Hercegovina Foreign Ministry today said that it was unacceptable to brand Yasir Arafat and his movement as terrorists as that would lead to their exclusion from the Middle East peace talks. The Bosnian...

Japan: High Court upholds prison term for former Aum cult lawyer.
January 31, 2002... Text of report in English by Japanese news agency Kyodo Tokyo, 31 January: The Tokyo High Court on Thursday [31 January] dismissed an appeal by Yoshinobu Aoyama, a former lawyer of the Aum Shinrikyo religious cult [responsible for sarin...

Georgia's new budget has 220m-lari deficit.
January 31, 2002... Text of report by Georgian news agency Prime-News Tbilisi, 31 January: At a special session on Thursday [31 January], the Georgian parliament passed the 2002 state budget. The draft budget, previously criticized by many parliamentary...

Congo: New political party formed.
January 31, 2002... Text of report by Gabonese Africa No 1 radio on 30 January The political circle is expanding in Congo-Brazzaville with the March presidential election drawing closer. A political party has just emerged from the ashes of the National...

Russian Duma deputy optimistic about alternative military service.
January 31, 2002... Text of report by Russian NTV on 31 January [Presenter Olga Belova] The draft law on alternative military service was the focus of attention today. Chairman of the Russian State Duma defence committee Andrey Nikolayev has expressed his...

Aide to Yugoslav leader says police wiretapping, threatening party members.
January 31, 2002... Text of report by Serbian news agency Beta Novi Sad, 31 January: Dragan Marsicanin, the deputy chairman of the Democratic Party of Serbia (DSS) [led by Yugoslav President Vojislav Kostunica], has accused the Serbian Interior Ministry of...

Kazakh premier issues resolution on organization of government.
January 31, 2002... Text of report in English by Russian news agency Interfax Astana, 31 January: Kazakh Prime Minister Imangali Tasmagambetov signed a resolution today defining the functions of cabinet members. The prime minister shall supervise the...

Cuba: Highlights of Cubavision TV news 0100 gmt 31 Jan 02.
January 31, 2002... Programme: "NTV" Television newscast Reception: good Duration of broadcast: 56 minutes; figures in brackets indicate length of time of each item 1. Headlines. (1 min) 2. Mexican President Vicente Fox will visit Cuba on 3-4 February...

Ex-Philippine president, officials alarmed at Bush's address on terrorism.
January 31, 2002... Former president Ramos and other Philippine government officials and MPs have expressed their concern at US President Bush's inclusion of the Philippines as one of 12 countries he mentioned in his State of the Union address as harbouring...

Indonesia: Regional leaders group rejects revision of Law on Regional Autonomy.
January 31, 2002... Jakarta: The All Indonesia Regional Municipal Government Association (Adeksi) rejected the planned revision to Act No 22/1999 on Regional Government if there was no public consultation, supervision and evaluation of the implementation of the...

Burundi: President leaves for Tanzania.
January 31, 2002... The president, Pierre Buyoya, this morning, left for Tanzania, to join the National Assembly Speaker so as to discuss with Tanzanian officials some Burundi concerns, including the cease-fire and the repatriation of many Burundi refugees...

Russian tax police chief briefs Putin on legislative proposals.
January 31, 2002... Text of report in English by Russian news agency ITAR-TASS Moscow, 31 January: President Vladimir Putin received Director of the Federal Tax Police Service Mikhail Fradkov in the Kremlin on Thursday [31 January]. Fradkov told the...

New Kazakh government members sworn in.
January 31, 2002... Text of report by Kazakh Khabar TV on 31 January The members of the new government took an oath of loyalty to the people and the president of Kazakhstan [Nursultan Nazarbayev] today. Imangaly Tasmagambetov [the new prime minister] was...

Kosovo police arrest two Albanians for opening fire at Serb school.
January 31, 2002... Text of report by Serbian news agency Beta Pristina, 31 January: Members of the Kosovo police service have arrested two Kosovo Albanians suspected of opening fire at the students of a Serb school in Plemetina, Kfor [Kosovo Force] has...

Vietnamese premier warns against corruption, wastefulness.
January 31, 2002... Text of report in English by Vietnamese news agency VNA web site Hanoi, 30 January: Prime Minister Phan Van Khai has put state employees on notice: corruption, wastefulness and the misuse of state assets will no longer be tolerated. Khai...

Yemen: President Salih urges USA to end Palestinian suffering.
January 31, 2002... Text of report in English by Yemen News Agency Saba web site Sanaa, 30 January: President Ali Abdallah Salih demanded on Wednesday [30 January] the United States to look fairly and seriously to the sufferings of the Palestinian people....

Iran: Conservative paper on new US agenda.
January 31, 2002... Text of report in English by Iranian newspaper Kayhan International on 31 January US President George W. Bush's harsh statements against Iran, Iraq and North Korea, in his State of Union address on Tuesday, are neither strange nor...

EU's Prodi sees Britain warming to the euro.
January 31, 2002... EU Commission President Romani Prodi has praised the successful introduction of the euro. He said that public opinion on the new currency in Britain and other countries is changing, and that it is exerting "a great power of attraction". He...

BP likely to get licence for Sakhalin-5, says Russian Far East governor.
January 31, 2002... Text of report in English by Russian news agency ITAR-TASS Moscow, 31 January: Foreign investments in the development of the oil shelf under the Sakhalin-1 and Sakhalin-2 projects will top 1bn dollars this year, Sakhalin Region governor...

No threat to broadcasts in Russian Far East as electricity debts cancelled.
January 31, 2002... Text of report by Russian news agency ITAR-TASS Moscow, 31 January, ITAR-TASS correspondent Andrey Baturin: Information to the effect that disconnections of the transmission centres of the All-Russian State Television and Radio...

New UN envoy in Vietnam hails country's "impressive progress".
January 31, 2002... Text of report in English by Vietnamese news agency VNA web site Hanoi, 31 January: Newly-accredited UN Resident Coordinator in Vietnam, Jordan Ryan, said that he believed that Vietnam will advance firmly towards industrialization and...

Tibet's Dalai Lama to be discharged from Indian hospital "very soon".
January 31, 2002... Mumbai [Bombay], 31 January: Tibetan spiritual leader the Dalai Lama is "feeling much better" and could be discharged from a hospital in western Indian city "very soon". "His Holiness is feeling much better, and is almost back to...

Belgian premier won't attend World Social Forum.
January 31, 2002... Text of report by Belgian RTBF radio on 31 January Prime Minister Guy Verhofstadt has finally abandoned his plan to go to the World Social Forum, which is currently taking place in Porto Alegre in Brazil. Yesterday the organizers...

China: Four hurt in Guangzhou bus explosion.
January 31, 2002... This morning, a bus in Guangzhou suddenly exploded when it was passing Zhuihai Square, leaving four persons injured, one seriously. This was the second bus explosion in Guangzhou in three days. A witness at the explosion site told this...

Arafat sends message to Namibian president on Israeli "escalation".
January 31, 2002... Text of report by Palestinian news agency Wafa web site Ramallah, 31 January: President Yasir Arafat, chairman of the PLO Executive Committee and president of the Palestinian National Authority, sent a message on the situation in...

Defence minister briefs Putin on threat to Russian peacekeepers in Georgia.
January 31, 2002... Text of report by Russian news agency ITAR-TASS Moscow, 31 January, ITAR-TASS correspondent Sergey Ostanin: Russian Defence Minister Sergey Ivanov today briefed Russian President Vladimir Putin on the situation facing Russian peacekeeping...

Antiglobal campaigners to conduct non-violent action in Russian capital.
January 31, 2002... Text of report by Russian news agency Ekho Moskvy "Actions devoted to the process of globalization and its social impact will take place in Moscow on 15-17 February", Sotsprof [trade union] and Russian Party of Labour leader Sergey...

US military delegation, Tajik border service discuss security, mine clearing.
January 31, 2002... Text of report by Tajik news agency Asia-Plus Dushanbe, 31 January: A meeting has been held between the chairman of the State Border Protection Committee under the government of Tajikistan, Abdurahmon Azimov, and a US military delegation...

Kazakhstan, France to set up joint oil research and training centre.
January 31, 2002... Text of report by Russian news agency ITAR-TASS Astana, 31 January, ITAR-TASS correspondent Oral Karpishev: A Kazakh-French oil centre is to be set up in Kazakhstan, the ITAR-TASS correspondent was told today at the press service of the...

US court orders handover of scandalous Ukrainian recordings.
January 31, 2002... Text of report by Ukrainian television on 31 January California's southern district court has obliged a former Ukrainian state guard, Maj Mykola Melnychenko, to hand over to the US justice ministry the recordings which Melnychenko said he...

Belarusian upper house agrees to electoral chief's reappointment.
January 31, 2002... Minsk, 31 January: The Council of the Republic of the Belarusian National Assembly [upper house of parliament] today unanimously acceded to the presidential appointment of Lidziya Yarmoshyna as chairwoman of the Belarusian Central Commission...

Kyrgyz police seize nearly one kilo of heroin.
January 31, 2002... Text of report by Kyrgyz public educational TV on 31 January Yesterday the Osh Regional internal affairs department for preventing drug trafficking found 930 grams of heroin in a bag of a passenger who was going to Almaty [former Kazakh...

Indonesian navy welcomes US Pacific commander's comments.
January 31, 2002... Text of report by Eko Warijadi, attributed to Antara news agency, carried by Indonesian Satunet news web site on 31 January The TNI-AL [Indonesian navy] has admitted that it has insufficient maritime assets to properly patrol all of its...

Vietnamese vice-president, Iraqi agriculture minister discuss ties.
January 31, 2002... Text of report by Vietnamese radio on 30 January Vice-President Nguyen Thi Binh received Iraqi Agriculture Minister Abd-al-Illah Hamid Muhammad Salih at the Presidential Palace on the afternoon of 30 January. She praised the Vietnam-Iraq...

Sweden says Bush speech a warning to rogue states.
January 31, 2002... Text of report by Swedish newspaper Dagens Nyheter on 31 January Swedish Foreign Minister Anna Lindh does not believe George W. Bush formulated a new policy in his speech to the nation. Several American commentators have said Bush hinted...

Georgian defence minister denies reports on bombing incident in Abkhazia.
January 31, 2002... Georgian Defence Minister Davit Tevzadze has denied reports about a bombing incident in the Kodori gorge, an area in northeastern Abkhazia which is under the Georgian authorities' jurisdiction. A Georgian radio correspondent quoted Tevzadze...

Middle East: Islamic media forum ends with statement in support of Intifadah.
January 31, 2002... An Islamic media conference has concluded in Iran and a statement issued in support of the Palestinian Intifadah uprising, Iranian TV has reported. The statement said it was the responsibility of media in the Islamic world to raise...

China to provide emergency aid to Nigeria.
January 31, 2002... Text of report by Chinese news agency Zhongguo Xinwen She Beijing, 31 January: Answering a question on the blast in Lagos City, Nigeria, today, Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Kong Quan said: China is very concerned with the major...

Exploratory wells drilled in northeastern Turkmen gas field.
January 31, 2002... Text of report by Turkmen TV on 31 January Exploratory wells are being drilled by using an intensive method in Northern Nayyp [a gas field in northeastern Turkmenistan]. Specialists believe that the drilling of new wells will give an...

Albania: Power cuts return despite increased electricity imports.
January 31, 2002... Text of report in English by Albanian news agency ATA Tirana, 31 January: As the political crisis goes on in Albania, the situation of the electric power becomes aggravated. Since two days, the prolonged power cuts have resumed for...

Middle East: IRNA, KUNA agencies declare support for Palestinians.
January 31, 2002... Text of report in English by Iranian news agency IRNA Tehran, 30 January: IRNA Managing Director Abdollah Naseri here on Wednesday [30 January] urged the media in Islamic countries to support the Palestinian cause. In a meeting with...

Russia puts curbs on Ukrainian caramel imports.
January 31, 2002... The resolution of the Russian government "On measures to protect Russian caramel producers" has recently come into force. The resolution envisages sanctions against the import of caramel, primarily Ukrainian caramel. The documents...

Somalia: Second Internet provider now operating in Mogadishu.
January 31, 2002... Text of report by UN regional information network IRIN on 31 January Nairobi, 31 January: The NationLink Telecommunications Company of Somalia has established a second Internet company in Mogadishu, a senior manager of the company told...

Senior Russian MP downplays military impact of US withdrawal from ABM.
January 31, 2002... US withdrawal from the ABM treaty and Washington's determination to build a missile defence system was largely prompted by the desire to offer the nation reliable protection against terrorism and give a boost to the country's ailing economy,...

Argentine stance on Cuba leads Fidel Castro to repeat his "US bootlicker" jibe.
January 31, 2002... Text of report by Argentine newspaper Ambito Financiero web site on 30 January Cuba has responded to the position stated by [Argentine Foreign Minister Carlos] Ruckauf in Washington about Argentina voting to condemn Havana at the next...

Iranian official in Berlin discusses Afghanistan with German counterpart.
January 31, 2002... Text of report in English by Iranian news agency IRNA Berlin, 31 January: Iranian Deputy Foreign Minister for European and American Affairs Ali Ahani, arriving here for a two-day visit, met Wednesday [30 January] afternoon with his...

Singapore mulls extending free trade agreement to Indonesia.
January 31, 2002... Text of report in English by Japanese news agency Kyodo Singapore, 31 January: Singapore is seeking to selectively extend its recently concluded free trade agreement (FTA) with Japan and a planned FTA with the United States to Indonesia,...

Russian defence minister refuses to pay energy debts, jokes about his health.
January 31, 2002... [Presenter] President Vladimir Putin had a working meeting with Defence Minister Sergey Ivanov today. The latter reported in particular on how the Russian-American talks on cutting offensive weapons in the context of weapons for defence are...

Hungary: Government renationalizes prime horse herd.
January 31, 2002... [Presenter] The Hortobagy [on the Great Plain in eastern Hungary, also known as the puszta] without horses is not Hortobagy. This was said at the festive meeting where the Environment Protection Ministry gave back to the Hortobagy the famous...

Indonesian intelligence chief complains about media reports.
January 31, 2002... Text of report by Dedi Junaedi, carried by Indonesian newspaper Republika web site on 31 January Jakarta: The Head of the State Intelligence Agency (BIN) has complained about Tempo and Gatra magazines, because stories by the two weeklies...

Pakistani foreign minister to visit Germany, Belgium 1-4 February.
January 31, 2002... Text of report by Radio Pakistan on 31 January Foreign Minister Mr Abdul Sattar will leave tomorrow for a four-day visit to Germany and Belgium. He will participate in Munich conference about security. He will inform [the conference]...

NKorea: Leader's "great remarks" emphasizes importance of leader.
January 31, 2002... Text of announcer-read remarks by North Korean leader Kim Jong-il from feature entitled "The Great Leader Comrade Kim Jong-il's great remarks", broadcast by North Korean TV on 31 January; first observed to be broadcast on 8 January A...

Over half of Lithuanian population support NATO membership.
January 31, 2002... Text of report in English by Baltic news agency BNS Vilnius, 31 January: The Lithuanian public's support for NATO membership grew significantly over the last half year, a poll found. The pollster and market researcher, Baltijos...

Slovak populist leader says MPs' resignations mark end of Leftist party.
January 31, 2002... Text of report by Slovak commercial Radio Twist on 31 January Chairman of the Smer political party Robert Fico has said that the decision of [former Finance Minister Brigita] Schmoegnerova and [Peter] Weiss to quit the Party of the...

Hungary: Statistics show widening gap between rich and poor.
January 31, 2002... Since the change of regime the gap between the lowest and highest wages has further widened. The Tarki [Social Research Institute] examined the incomes of 2,000 households. In the first of half of the 1980s the difference between the...

Massive turn-out for strikes in central Italy.
January 31, 2002... Text of report in English by Italian news agency ANSA web site Rome, 31 January: Unions boasted a massive turn-out for the second big protest this week against government plans to reform the labour market and pension system. Unions...

Pakistani president to address Kashmir assembly on Solidarity Day.
January 31, 2002... Text of report by Radio Pakistan on 31 January In connection with the programmes on the Kashmir Solidarity Day, President Gen Pervez Musharraf will address a joint session of [Pakistan-administered] Azad Jammu and Kashmir Council and...

Japan: Upper house accepts Democratic Party lawmaker Ohashi's resignation.
January 31, 2002... Tokyo, 31 January: The House of Councillors on Thursday [31 January] approved in a plenary session the resignation of Kyosen Ohashi from the Diet, paving the way for Marutei Tsurunen, a naturalized Japanese from Finland, to become the first...

Chinese spokesman says US official's remarks on arms for Taiwan "erroneous".
January 31, 2002... Text of report in English by official Chinese news agency Xinhua (New China News Agency) Beijing, 31 January: Foreign Ministry Spokesman Kong Quan Thursday [31 January] refuted the recent remarks by the head of the American Institute in...