From nymhm at lists.artsandmedia.net Wed Mar 7 19:40:04 2007 From: nymhm at lists.artsandmedia.net (nymhm@lists.artsandmedia.net) Date: Wed Mar 7 19:42:23 2007 Subject: NYMHM: Libraries under the gun; a bad time to be a fish Message-ID: ============================================================================= NEWS YOU MIGHT HAVE MISSED * March 7, 2007 * Vol. 6, No. 10 Important but overlooked news from around the world. NYMHM is a free service of Newsdesk.org. ----------------------------------------------------------------------------- - Online this week: http://newsdesk.org/archives/004208.html - RSS: http://newsdesk.org/news/atom.xml - Donations: http://artsandmedia.net/contribute/ - Store: http://cafepress.com/newsdesk/ ----------------------------------------------------------------------------- THIS WEEK: Libraries are under the gun in Oregon, top secret documents blew the NSA's cover, the FCC payola payoff may be a mixed blessing, fish stocks decline as profits hit new heights, Putin's popularity is unchecked by deaths, extremism gains new footholds worldwide ... and religious minorities are outnumbered but united in Germany and Pakistan. QUOTED: "The Women's Protection Bill has focused attention on the issue. Women have become the target because it's a victory for women." -- Kamila Hyat of the Human Rights Commission of Pakistan, on rising violence against women there. (See "Extremism," below.) ----------------------------------------------------------------------------- TOP STORIES ............................................................................. > Closing the Books in Oregon All 15 of the public libraries serving Jackson County, Ore., are scheduled to close after Congress failed to reauthorize a $400 million subsidy for rural economies. The libraries were recently rebuilt or remodeled, and residents blame the pending closures on local mismanagement, the declining timber industry, and indifference on Capitol Hill. > Secret Wiretap Snafu Blew NSA's Cover Experts are watching a $1 million lawsuit against the government, filed by an attorney who was accidentally given a top secret document tracking his phone conversations with an Arab charity. The suit is unique because it is the only one, out of more than 50, with proof of government spying on U.S. citizens. Wired News reports that the Washington Post had been given a copy of the document, but turned it over to the FBI without covering the story. > Payola Payoff's Mixed Blessing For Indie Music A $12.5 million settlement for accusations of payola against CBS Radio, Clear Channel and others has independent music producers hopeful for new exposure. But an agreement to ensure thousands of hours of air time for small labels is strictly voluntary, and not covered by the FCC settlement. Sources: "Largest library closure in U.S. looms / Federal funding dries up, leaving 15 branches in Oregon county on brink" San Francisco Chronicle, March 4, 2007 http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2007/03/04/MNGC7N6Q3M1.DTL "Top secret: We're Wiretapping you" Wired.com March 5, 2007 http://www.wired.com/news/technology/0,72811-0.html?tw=wn_index_1 "FCC payola probe boosts indie music" Hollywood Reporter, March 6, 2007 http://www.hollywoodreporter.com/hr/content_display/music/news/e3i495a511f6d7e8199e3e87e60aac8b9b2 ----------------------------------------------------------------------------- THE OCEANS ............................................................................. > Record Earnings From Endangered Ocean Harvest The fishing industry brought in a record $71.5 billion last year, most of it from ocean fisheries that lack ecological oversight. Now, a new report from the U.N. Food and Agriculture Organization finds that 25 percent of ocean fisheries are virtually depleted, and 52 percent "fully exploited." This comes on the heels of a study last year that predicted a complete collapse of ocean fisheries worldwide by 2050 without reform of fishing practices and curtailing pollution. Fish Farmer Magazine reports that with the record harvest, wild fisheries have "levelled off" even as aquaculture becomes the "world's fastest growing food production sector." Sources: "Record high for global seafood trade" Fish Farmer Magazine, March 5, 2007 http://www.fishfarmer-magazine.com/news/printpage.php/aid/939/Record_high_for_global_seafood_trade.html "Ocean fisheries maxed out" Inter Press Service, March 5, 2007 http://www.ipsnews.net/news.asp?idnews=36811 ----------------------------------------------------------------------------- PUTIN ............................................................................. > A Good Time to Be President, But Not a Critic Russian President Vladimir Putin's approval ratings top 70 percent, and most citizens say that they'll vote for whomever he chooses as a successor after his last constitutional term in office. This, along with Putin's intolerance of dissent and the ongoing, unsolved and usually fatal attacks on his critics, have cemented fears of resurgent authoritarianism. The Telegraph reports on two recent incidents: the shooting of a "vocal" critic of Putin in Maryland in an apparent robbery, and the death of a journalist in Russia after he fell from the fourth floor of his apartment building. The mayor of the Arkhangelsk, the sole contender so far in next year's presidential elections, said that since declaring his candidacy he has come under police investigation, and expects to be jailed despite testimony in his favor. Bloomberg reports that pro-Kremlim parties are expected to sweep regional elections later this month, since the reformist Yablinko Party and the pro-business Union of Rightist Forces have both been barred. And in Moscow last weekend, one of the largest pro-democracy rallies in years was violently broken up by riot police. Sources: "Are Putin's agents behind shooting?" The Telegraph (U.K.), March 7, 2007 http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/main.jhtml?xml=/news/2007/03/06/wputin06.xml "I am victim of dirty tricks, says man who aims to replace Putin" The Telegraph (U.K.), March 3, 2007 http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/main.jhtml?xml=/news/2007/03/03/wrussia03.xml "Putin Squeezes Opposition as 2008 Presidential Election Looms " Bloomberg, March 8, 2007 http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=20601085&sid=aJcud5tqVFGU&refer=europe "Kasparov says violently dispersed weekend protest showed Russians overcoming their fear" Associated Press, March 5, 2007 http://www.iht.com/articles/ap/2007/03/05/europe/EU-GEN-Russia-Protest.php ----------------------------------------------------------------------------- EXTREMISM ............................................................................. > Intolerance Seeks, and Gains, New Footholds Extremists worldwide are harnessing unemployment, social unrest, gender conflict and simple bigotry to advance their crusades. In France, Jean-Marie Le Pen -- an accused racist who calls for an end to immigration and tax cuts for native French only -- may again be set to upset the presidential elections. Though he has not yet declared his candidacy, his support in the polls is greater than ever. Hungary, shocked by riots last year after its socialist president confirmed that he had lied during the election, faces renewed violence with an attack on a police station, and mobilization of "skinheads and football hooligans" in advance of its March 15 independence holiday, Inter Press Service reports. In Pakistan, a woman social welfare minister was shot to death in front of a crowd by an unrepentant religious fanatic. According to the Christian Science Monitor, attacks on women, particularly those working in government and education, are on the rise there. And the Associated Press reports that some officials in the western United States, afraid of being targeted by a growing white supremacist prison gang known for identity theft, are going to court to remove their names from public records. Sources: "Extremist Le Pen strikes chord in France, again" Deutsche Welle, March 5, 2007 http://www.dw-world.de/dw/article/0,,2373906,00.html?maca=en-rss-en-top-1022-rdf "Something's Rotten in the State of Hungary" Inter Press Service, February 27, 2007 http://www.ipsnews.net/news.asp?idnews=36738 "Violent debate on women's rights in Pakistan" Christian Science Monitor, March 6, 2007 http://www.csmonitor.com/2007/0306/p06s01-wosc.htm "White Supremacist gang gains clout" Associated Press, March 5, 2007 http://www.napavalleyregister.com/articles/2007/03/05/news/national/doc45ec28e9c6114049757362.txt ----------------------------------------------------------------------------- RELIGIOUS MINORITIES ............................................................................. > Outnumbered, But United, in Germany and Pakistan The more than three million Muslims living in Germany are on the brink of overcoming ethnic and religious differences to form a new advocacy group that would give them, for the first time ever, a "united voice," Deutsche Welle reports. In Pakistan, one of the heartlands of Islam, Hindus are taking similar steps, forming the Sindh Minority Alliance in the face of "growing incidents of kidnapping, extortion and other torture cases," the Times of India reports. Sources: "German Muslims want unified voice" Deutsche Welle, March 5, 2007 http://www.dw-world.de/dw/article/0,2144,2373643,00.html "Pakistani Hindus form party in Sindh" The Times of India, March 5, 2007 http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/articleshow/msid-1724181,prtpage-1.cms ============================================================================= Editor: Josh Wilson ............................................................................. SUPPORT PUBLIC-SERVICE MEDIA Newsdesk.org and News You Might Have Missed are commercial-free, and available at no charge. We welcome your tax-deductible contributions: https://secure.groundspring.org/dn/index.php?id=695 ............................................................................. News You Might Have Missed and Newsdesk.org are free services of Independent Arts & Media: http://artsandmedia.net/ ............................................................................. E-mail list powered by Group D Communications: http://www.groupd.com/ ............................................................................. DISCLAIMER: All external links are provided as informational resources only, consistent with the nonprofit, public-interest mission of Independent Arts & Media. Independent Arts & Media does not exercise any editorial control over the information you may find at these locations and does not have a copyright on any of the content located at these sites. ============================================================================= From nymhm at lists.artsandmedia.net Wed Mar 14 09:25:09 2007 From: nymhm at lists.artsandmedia.net (nymhm@lists.artsandmedia.net) Date: Wed Mar 14 09:27:32 2007 Subject: NYMHM: SoCal hazmat scofflaws; Pakistan chief justice arrested Message-ID: ============================================================================= NEWS YOU MIGHT HAVE MISSED * March 14, 2007 * Vol. 6, No. 11 Important but overlooked news from around the world. NYMHM is a free service of Newsdesk.org. ----------------------------------------------------------------------------- - Online this week: http://newsdesk.org/archives/004215.html - RSS: http://newsdesk.org/news/atom.xml - Donations: http://artsandmedia.net/contribute/ - Store: http://cafepress.com/newsdesk/ ----------------------------------------------------------------------------- THIS WEEK: Haiti rapes defy U.N. intervention, SoCal scofflaws dump hazmat waste deep in canyon country, Pakistani's chief justice is under house arrest, immigration officials are in the spotlight at home and abroad, Muslims face discrimination from Massachusetts to Mindanao ... and apartheid aftershocks shake up South Africa. QUOTED: "Previously we were too black to own the land where we lived and worked, and now it seems we're too white." -- Willem Diergaardt of the Richtersveld Sida !hub Communal Property Association, on a bitter dispute over diamond mine claims in South Africa (see "Apartheid," below). ----------------------------------------------------------------------------- TOP STORIES ............................................................................. > Haiti Rapes Defy U.N. Intervention Kidnappings and rape went hand-in-hand during Haiti's years of political repression. But even as U.N. peacekeepers crack down on gangs in the slums of Port-au-Price, rapes there are on the rise. Social workers say at least 800 women there were raped in the past 12 months, and estimate that many never tell police or their families out of shame or fear. > SoCal Scofflaws Take Hazmat to the Hills The forested canyons of San Bernardino County, California, are full of construction debris, old computers, TV sets, and other refuse dumped by people trying to avoid increased landfill fees. Much of it is hazardous waste, and subject to new, strict recycling regulations. Forest Service officials say that as a result, illegal dumping has massively increased. > Pakistan's Overrule of Law Pakistani lawyers were rioting in the streets last week after President Musharraf suspended Chief Justice Iftikhar Mohammad Chaudhry for "misconduct and misuse of authority." Critics say the judge, who was appointed in 2005, is being punished for enforcing laws against human rights abuses and illegal detentions, and for blocking privatization plans. Two TV stations that broadcast the protests went off the air temporarily, and did not show the footage thereafter. The BBC reports that the conflict is exacerbating election-year tensions between the civilian government and Musharaff's military regime. Sources: "Haiti kidnap wave accompanied by epidemic of rape" Reuters, March 8, 2007 http://www.signonsandiego.com/news/world/20070308-1002-haiti-rape-.html "San Bernardino National Forest trashed by dumpsites" Press-Enterprise (CA), March 10, 2007 http://www.pe.com/localnews/inland/stories/PE_News_Local_B_trash10.ad2108.html "Violent protests in Pakistan over chief judge's suspension" Indo Asian News Service, March 12, 2007 http://story.malaysiasun.com/index.php/ct/9/cid/b8de8e630faf3631/id/233628/cs/1/ "Pakistan panel quizzes top judge" BBC, March 13, 2007 http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/south_asia/6444355.stm ----------------------------------------------------------------------------- IMMIGRATION ............................................................................. > Immigration Officials in the Spotlight The Immigration and Customs Enforcement agency's "Operation Return to Sender" has arrested 18,000 undocumented immigrants since June, provoking an inquiry by the ACLU into reports that agents illegally entered homes, posed as police officers, and racially profiled suspects. In McHenry County, Indiana, activists accuse county jail officials for dehumanizing treatment of 36 Mexican detainees by writing numbers on their hands instead of using their names, shackling them in cells and jailing them with criminals. The practices stopped when the Mexican Consulate stepped in, and I.C.E. disavowed any knowledge of it. And Mexican federal police detained 22 immigration agents suspected of accepting bribes to help 81 Chinese nationals, who were found "hiding" in the Cancun airport, sneak into the United States, the Associated Press reports. Sources: "Immigrant sweeps rouse ACLU" San Mateo County Times, March 7, 2007 http://www.insidebayarea.com/sanmateocountytimes/localnews/ci_5373306 "Enraged activists: Jail marked illegal workers' hands" NBC5 (Chicago), March 9, 2007 http://www.nbc5.com/news/11215998/detail.html "81 Chinese immigrants arrested" Associated Press, March 10, 2007 http://www.mexiconews.com.mx/miami/23726.html ----------------------------------------------------------------------------- DISCRIMINATION ............................................................................. > Muslims Targeted, From Massachusetts to Mindanao Four Muslim truck drivers for FedEx in Massachusetts are suing over claims that upper management ignored racist verbal abuse and unfair work assignments. A judge has ruled that the suit can proceed because the men are employees and not independent contractors -- a finding that also undermines the company's case against a unionization bid by its 15,000 truckers. On the overwhelmingly Christian island of Mindanao in the Philippines, Muslims say they have been barred from working at malls over fears that they might be suicide bombers. Critics say this increases tensions in a province with a decades-old Islamic independence movement, where Muslims tend to be poorer, and have shorter life expectancies than average. Sources: "Arab Americans charge harassment by FedEx" Reuters, March 10, 2007 http://www.arabamericannews.com/newsarticle.php?articleid=7863 "Philippines: Muslims 'banned' from working in malls in Mindanao" ADNKRONOS International (March 9, 2007) http://www.adnki.com/index_2Level_English.php?cat=Religion&loid=8.0.393394051&par= ----------------------------------------------------------------------------- APARTHEID ............................................................................. > South Africa's Mining Laws: A Divisive Legacy Two Italian companies are suing South Africa over a law that requires firms to sell to black investors to redress abuses of black laborers under the apartheid system. The companies say that their purchase of granite operations there occurred in 1994, after the fall of apartheid. The legacy of institutionalized racism has also taken a particularly bitter turn in the struggle over South Africa's diamond mines, where the ethnically mixed residents of the diamond-rich Richtersvelders province are enraged by a government deal to sell mine holdings there to de Beers. The land, which was appropriated by the state in the 1920s, is claimed by residents in lieu of a $26 million settlement. But South Africa's public enterprises minister says his primary concern is the well-being of the government-owned Alexkor mining company. Sources: "Italian firms sue SA over mining law" Mail & Guardian (South Africa), March 9, 2007 http://www.mg.co.za/articlePage.aspx?articleid=301479&area=/breaking_news/breaking_news__business/ "Erwin's 'get lost' to Richtersvelders" Mail & Guardian (South Africa), March 10, 2007 http://www.mg.co.za/articlePage.aspx?articleid=301474&area=/insight/insight__national/ "Richtersveld talks back on track" South African Press Association, March 14, 2007 http://www.sundaytimes.co.za/News/Article.aspx?id=411953 ============================================================================= Editors: Julia Scott, Josh Wilson ............................................................................. SUPPORT PUBLIC-SERVICE MEDIA Newsdesk.org and News You Might Have Missed are commercial-free, and available at no charge. We welcome your tax-deductible contributions: https://secure.groundspring.org/dn/index.php?id=695 ............................................................................. News You Might Have Missed and Newsdesk.org are free services of Independent Arts & Media: http://artsandmedia.net/ ............................................................................. E-mail list powered by Group D Communications: http://www.groupd.com/ ............................................................................. DISCLAIMER: All external links are provided as informational resources only, consistent with the nonprofit, public-interest mission of Independent Arts & Media. Independent Arts & Media does not exercise any editorial control over the information you may find at these locations and does not have a copyright on any of the content located at these sites. ============================================================================= From nymhm at lists.artsandmedia.net Wed Mar 21 15:09:07 2007 From: nymhm at lists.artsandmedia.net (nymhm@lists.artsandmedia.net) Date: Wed Mar 21 15:14:21 2007 Subject: NYMHM: Who is Rafsanjani?; Food crops feel climate change Message-ID: EDITOR'S NOTE: We are experiencing some Web site discombobulation, and are not able to provide an online version of NYMHM at this time. Stay tuned for an update, and thanks for your support! ============================================================================= NEWS YOU MIGHT HAVE MISSED * March 21, 2007 * Vol. 6, No. 12 Important but overlooked news from around the world. NYMHM is a free service of Newsdesk.org. ----------------------------------------------------------------------------- - RSS: http://newsdesk.org/news/atom.xml - Donations: http://artsandmedia.net/contribute/ - Store: http://cafepress.com/newsdesk/ ----------------------------------------------------------------------------- THIS WEEK: Pipeline politics are aflow in Central Asia, Venezuela is a new hub for cocaine traffic, Yahoo! is blamed for the arrest of Chinese dissidents, food crops show the effects of global warming, doubts follow the HP and marijuana verdicts, "democracy" is easy to say but difficult to do ... and just who is Rafsanjani, anyway? QUOTED: "If we were talking about people stealing identities and doing crystal meth, they'd have gotten 25 to life. But doing it as an established business practice will let you off easy." -- Privacy consultant Ray Everett-Church, on the verdict in the Hewlett Packard spying scandal (see "Law & Justice," below). ----------------------------------------------------------------------------- TOP STORIES ............................................................................. > Pipeline Politics Aflow in Central Asia A new pipeline is expected to bring more than $200 billion into Azerbaijan in the next 20 years, but with such a windfall comes claims of birth defects caused by pollution, accusations of profiteering, lawsuits and conflicting land claims in the impoverished villages that line the pipeline's course. > Yahoo! Blamed for Chinese Dissident's Arrest The wife of a Chinese dissident says her husband was jailed after Yahoo! gave his personal information to government security forces, and is now in the United States preparing to sue the company. A spokesman says Yahoo! is "required to follow the laws" of its host nations, Wired News reports. Human rights groups accuse Yahoo! of enabling the arrest of at least three other activists in China. > Cocaine Traffic Finds New Hubs Under pressure at home, Colombian smugglers have a new route through Venezuela, which ended cooperation with U.S. anti-drug programs. Cocaine increasingly comes to the United States via Haiti and the Dominican Republic, and to Europe via West Africa, where gangs take advantage of lawlessness and poverty to set up front companies and illegal air strips, and use locals as "mules." Sources: "Life along the pipeline: BTC's impact on Azerbaijan" Eurasianet.org, March 19, 2007 http://www.eurasianet.org/departments/insight/articles/eav031507.shtml "'Yahoo Betrayed My Husband'" Wired.com, March 15, 2007 http://www.wired.com/news/technology/0,72972-0.html "Drug smugglers blaze new trail" Miami Herald, March 16, 2007 http://www.miamiherald.com/582/story/43128.html "West Africa becomes a hub for cocaine traffic to Europe" Los Angeles Times, March 18, 2007 http://www.baltimoresun.com/news/nationworld/bal-te.cocaine18mar18,0,3303527.story?coll=bal-nationworld-headlines ----------------------------------------------------------------------------- FARMING FUTURES ............................................................................. > Food Crops Struggle With Climate Change, "Green" Cred Climate change over the past 20 years has already impacted production of staple grain crops, a new report finds. Wheat, barley and corn yields around the world have declined about 40 million metric tons per year due to changes in temperature and rainfall patterns. In Australia and New Zealand, farmers are being warned that their future success may depend on their "green" credentials, the Australian Broadcasting Corporation reports. Analysts say that farmers there need to prove that their exported crops are just as environmentally friendly as locally produced crops increasingly favored in Europe. Sources: "Cereal crops feeling the heat" Environment News Service, March 16, 2007 http://www.ens-newswire.com/ens/mar2007/2007-03-16-03.asp "Farmers warned to emphasise green credentials" Australian Broadcast Corporation, March 19, 2007 http://www.abc.net.au/news/newsitems/200703/s1875911.htm ----------------------------------------------------------------------------- LAW & JUSTICE ............................................................................. > Doubts Follow Hewlett Packard, Marijuana Verdicts Former HP chair Patricia Dunn had spying charges against her dismissed, in part to ease her battle with ovarian cancer. On the same day, Angel Raich, a California resident suffering from a brain tumor, lost her appeal in a suit against federal drug laws that make her use of doctor-prescribed marijuana a prosecutable offense. San Francisco Chronicle columnist David Lazarus says the dismissal of Dunn's charges, and the sentencing of three other defendants to 96 hours community service, amounts to a slap on the wrist for commonplace business spying. Critics said the case was shaky, and that then-California Attorney General Bill Lockyer pursued the HP spying scandal to boost his campaign for state treasurer -- a charge Lockyer's camp denies. The Raich case is equally convoluted. She has not been accused of a crime, and instead sued to exempt from federal law her use of marijuana as cancer therapy. She lost, but the ruling "left open the possibility" that, if arrested, Raich and other patients could claim that the drug is a life-saving last resort, the Chronicle reports. Sources: "Medical pot user loses again in federal court" San Francisco Chronicle, March 15, 2007 http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2007/03/15/MNG2EOLGPU1.DTL "Court dismisses charges against former HP chair" San Francisco Chronicle, March 15, 2007 http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2007/03/15/BUG2IOL3JG46.DTL "Lesson learned by lenient sentences for HP defendants" San Francisco Chronicle, March 16, 2007 http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2007/03/16/BUG9OOM1FL1.DTL ----------------------------------------------------------------------------- POLITICAL CRISES ............................................................................. > "Democracy": Easy to Say, Difficult to Do Riots flared up and victims traded sides in Nepal, as young Maoists were first set upon by minority separatists, then teamed up with ruling party members to attack supporters of the former kingdom's monarchy. In Egypt, parliament approved new constitutional amendments that would ban religious parties, boost government security powers, and eliminate judicial oversight of ballot boxes. The vote provoked a walkout by Islamist lawmakers, who said it would encourage dictatorship. Pakistan's President Musharraf continues to feel the heat for his suspension of the country's chief justice, which one analyst says results from a disdain for inclusive politics that dates back to the British Raj. Writing in Gulfnews.com, Boston University academic Husain Haqqani says that without real democratic reform, Pakistan will "continue to hurtle forward from crisis to crisis," ultimately at Musharraf's -- and America's -- expense. And Zimbabwe's downward spiral continues, with the opposition claiming that the government is now using "hit squads" to target dissidents. South Africa is feeling pressure to intervene, most staple food crops have failed, and even the head of Zimbabwe's central bank admits that the system there is almost irredeemably corrupt. Sources: "Political attacks flare in Nepal" March 18, 2007 http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/south_asia/6463515.stm "Egyptian MPs in protest walk-out" BBC, March 18, 2007 http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/middle_east/6463757.stm "Crisis for Musharraf over justice chief's sacking" The Telegraph (U.K.), March 17, 2007 http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/main.jhtml?xml=/news/2007/03/17/wmush17.xml "Southern African nations feel pressure to act on Zimbabwe" Associated Press, March 20, 2007 http://www.cnn.com/2007/WORLD/africa/03/20/zimbabwe.nations.ap/ "Mugabe using 'hit squads' - MDC" Agence France-Presse, March 20, 2007 http://www.news24.com/News24/Africa/Zimbabwe/0,9294,2-11-1662_2086249,00.html "Zimbabwe says drought will worsen food shortages" Reuters, March 20, 2007 http://www.alertnet.org/thenews/newsdesk/L20505331.htm "Our corrupt system is failing, admits bank chief" The Telegraph (U.K.), March 19, 2007 http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/main.jhtml?xml=/news/2007/03/18/wzim218.xml ----------------------------------------------------------------------------- IRAN ............................................................................. > Rafsanjani: A Pragmatist With Plans of His Own Ali Akbar Hashemi Rafsanjani's landslide election to Iran's powerful Council of Experts was widely considered a rebuke to President Ahmadinejad, his fundamentalist backers, and his nuclear brinksmanship. But is he a gift to the West, or a canny, ambitious politician with his own agenda for Iran and the Middle East? As Iran's former president, Rafsanjani calls for Sunni and Shia cooperation, including stronger ties with Syria, Iraq and Saudi Arabia. He says the United States is deliberately destabilizing the Middle East -- but compared it to a "wounded tiger" that is being dangerously provoked by Ahmadinejad. He is also one of the wealthiest men in a nation that is struggling economically. The Sydney Morning Herald notes that the "Shah of Pistachios" is secretive about his financial holdings, which include caviar, airlines, agriculture, real estate and mining. One journalist who tried to dig into the issue is still in jail, and a rival businessman was also jailed during Rafsanjani's presidency, the newspaper reports. Rafsanjani was recently implicated by Argentinean prosecutors in the 1994 bombing of a Jewish community center in Buenos Aires, which killed dozens. Interpol issued arrest notices for several Iranian and Lebanese militants at Argentina's request, but excluded Rafsanjani from the list. Sources: "Iran's mullahs don't spend all day praying - they make money" Sydney Morning Herald, March 19, 2007 http://www.smh.com.au/news/business/irans-mullahs-dont-spend-all-day-praying--they-make-money/2007/03/18/1174152882005.html?page=fullpage#contentSwap1 "Iran & Hezbollah will get Interpol red arrest notices" Associated Press, March 17, 2007 http://yalibnan.com/site/archives/2007/03/iran_hezbollah.php "U.S. behind all problems in Mideast: Rafsanjani" Mehrnews.com, March 16, 2007 http://www.mehrnews.ir/en/NewsDetail.aspx?NewsID=461955 "Iran determined to strengthen convergence among Muslims: Rafsanjani" Tehran Times, March 15, 2007 http://www.turkishweekly.net/news.php?id=43479 "Iran: Rafsanjani presses political offensive against president, stressing moderation" http://www.eurasianet.org/departments/insight/articles/eav022107.shtml "Paper: Iran Criticizing Ahmadinejad" MEMRI Blog, February 28, 2007 http://www.thememriblog.org/blog_personal/en/761.htm ============================================================================= Editors: Josh Wilson | Consulting Editor: Virgil Ward Porter ............................................................................. SUPPORT PUBLIC-SERVICE MEDIA Newsdesk.org and News You Might Have Missed are commercial-free, and available at no charge. We welcome your tax-deductible contributions: https://secure.groundspring.org/dn/index.php?id=695 ............................................................................. News You Might Have Missed and Newsdesk.org are free services of Independent Arts & Media: http://artsandmedia.net/ ............................................................................. E-mail list powered by Group D Communications: http://www.groupd.com/ ............................................................................. DISCLAIMER: All external links are provided as informational resources only, consistent with the nonprofit, public-interest mission of Independent Arts & Media. Independent Arts & Media does not exercise any editorial control over the information you may find at these locations and does not have a copyright on any of the content located at these sites. ============================================================================= From nymhm at lists.artsandmedia.net Wed Mar 28 14:48:10 2007 From: nymhm at lists.artsandmedia.net (nymhm@lists.artsandmedia.net) Date: Wed Mar 28 14:52:09 2007 Subject: NYMHM: Dire ending for Iraqi widows; Electric car buzz short-circuits Message-ID: EDITOR'S NOTE: Our Web site volunteers are still grappling with database issues, but we hope to provide online versions of all NYMHM materials from the past two weeks as soon as possible. You can help strengthen Newsdesk.org's production infrastructure by making a tax-deductible donation today: http://artsandmedia.net/contribute/ ============================================================================= NEWS YOU MIGHT HAVE MISSED * March 28, 2007 * Vol. 6, No. 13 Important but overlooked news from around the world. NYMHM is a free service of Newsdesk.org. ----------------------------------------------------------------------------- - RSS: http://newsdesk.org/news/atom.xml - Donations: http://artsandmedia.net/contribute/ - Store: http://cafepress.com/newsdesk/ ----------------------------------------------------------------------------- THIS WEEK: Tainted blood fuels Kazakhstan's HIV scandal, Iraqi widows seek to become al Qaeda suicide bombers, a refugee in limbo may lose his American home, gender bias drives an abortion boom in India, critics take aim at Rwanda's genocide trials ... and GM short- circuits the buzz about its new electric car. QUOTED: "It is easy to accuse the tribunal of one-sided justice." -- Alison Des Forges of Human Rights Watch says Rwanda's genocide trials are deliberately avoiding a hard look at the ruling party and its president (see "RWANDA," below). ----------------------------------------------------------------------------- TOP STORIES ............................................................................. > Blood Transfusions Behind Kazakh HIV Scandal Doctors at a state-run Kazakh hospital are on trial for allegedly approving transfusions using illicit blood infected with HIV. Eight young children died of AIDS-related illnesses and 102 were infected with HIV through blood transfusions in a scandal that brought down the country's health minister. The children's families now face a societal stigma against HIV-infected patients, and many Kazakhs now no longer trust the medical system, reports Transitions Online. > Widowed by War, Iraqi Women Seek Martyrdom Iraqi widows who have lost their entire families to the U.S. occupation "surrender easily to the pressure" to become suicide bombers, a local women's advocate told the U.N. news service. An al-Qaeda spokesman said the women "look for our help" to become martyrs. Others struggle with unemployment, rape, and lack the means to resettle elsewhere. > Iraqi Refugee in Limbo A 76-year-old Iraqi refugee and his family have been in the United States since 1998 waiting to become citizens, but now may lose their home due to an indefinite delay in their FBI background check. Officials say it has nothing to do with ethnicity, but critics insist similar applications that were approved in as little as a day prior to September 11 now face frequent delays. Sources: "Bad blood" Transitions Online (Czech Republic), March 22, 2007 http://www.tol.cz/look/TOL/article.tpl?IdLanguage=1&IdPublication=4&NrIssue=210&NrSection=1&NrArticle=18406 "U.S. killings drive Iraqi women to become suicide bombers" IRIN (United Nations), March 24, 2007 http://www.middle-east-online.com/english/?id=20128 "Iraqi political refugee sees his income shrink while citizenship bid is on hold" NorthJersey.com, March 23, 2007 http://www.northjersey.com/page.php?qstr=eXJpcnk3ZjczN2Y3dnFlZUVFeXkzNTcmZmdiZWw3Zjd2cWVlRUV5eTcwOTc5NjEmeXJpcnk3ZjcxN2Y3dnFlZUVFeXkz ----------------------------------------------------------------------------- INDIA ............................................................................. > Gender Bias Drives Abortion Boom Up to a million Indian mothers illegally abort their female fetuses every year in India, and police are discovering the remains in toilets or gutters. Effects on the sex ratio have been dire, with 817 females to every 1,000 males in Punjab. The procedure has become a moneymaker for thousands of private doctors, who allegedly use ultrasounds to determine the sex of the child and encourage women to abort if it is a girl. Officials are trying to educate people about the issue, and gain control of private hospitals and clinics where such procedures are performed. Sources: "Foeticide issue continues to rock Rajasthan" Indo Asian News Service, March 23, 2007 http://www.indianmuslims.info/news/2007/march/23/india_news/foeticide_issue_continues_to_rock_rajasthan.html "A cry to save the girl child" Indo Asian News Service, March 20, 2007 http://www.indiaenews.com/india/20070320/43977.htm ----------------------------------------------------------------------------- RWANDA ............................................................................. > Legacy of a Genocide Rwanda's genocide ended 13 years ago, but some Hutus still target Tutsi survivors with "arson, stone throwing, uprooting of crops and threats," according to a mayor who recently presided over a ceremony to bury the remains of 554 victims. A human rights expert also says the International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda has failed to fulfill its mandate by neglecting to investigate Rwanda's Tutsi president, Paul Kagame, for the killing of "hundreds of thousands" by his forces as they battled for control of the country in 1994. Western nations would rather have Kagame in power to maintain stability in the region -- or so the theory goes. Andre Ntagerura and Emmanuel Bagambiki, both acquitted of charges in the genocide, remain trapped in Tanzania for fear of retribution elsewhere in Africa, and have been barred by Belgium and Holland from visiting their families there. Sources: "'One-sided justice' at Rwanda genocide court, expert witness says" Deutsche Presse Agentur, March 18, 2007 http://jurnalo.com/jurnalo/storyPage.do?story_id=24097 "Free Rwanda genocide suspects wait in limbo" Deutsche Presse Agentur, March 21, 2007 http://www.kuwaittimes.net/read_news.php?newsid=MTE1MTg0NTc3Mg "Rwanda: 554 genocide remains accorded decent burial" The New Times (Rwanda), March 24, 2007 http://allafrica.com/stories/200703240098.html ----------------------------------------------------------------------------- THE ELECTRIC CAR ............................................................................. > GM, Ford Pay the Price for Hype GM is trying to lower expectations that their much-anticipated plug-in electric car, the Volt, will reach consumers soon. A prototype was unveiled at an automotive show in January, but the real deal depends on a breakthrough in battery technology that may take years to achieve, despite the infusion of millions of dollars in federal research funding. Critics say that GM overhyped the Volt, creating more skepticism about electric cars. Ford also took a PR drubbing when it recently backed out of a promise to build 250,000 plug-in hybrids by 2010, according to the Detroit News. Environmentalists hope a commercially viable battery-powered car, capable of traveling 40 miles before recharging, will take the edge off rising corn prices as demand for ethanol spikes across the country. But other eco-minded experts say a plug-in car could, ironically, fuel demand for coal-burning power plants. Sources: "GM tries to unplug Volt hype" Detroit News, March 23, 2007 http://www.detnews.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20070323/AUTO01/703230356&theme=Autos-Green-tech-hybrids&imw=Y "Spartan cars could ease ethanol's corn price boost" Reuters, March 21, 2007 http://www.reuters.com/article/scienceNews/idUSN2116429320070321 ============================================================================= Editors: Julia Scott, Josh Wilson ............................................................................. SUPPORT PUBLIC-SERVICE MEDIA Newsdesk.org and News You Might Have Missed are commercial-free, and available at no charge. We welcome your tax-deductible contributions: https://secure.groundspring.org/dn/index.php?id=695 ............................................................................. 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Independent Arts & Media does not exercise any editorial control over the information you may find at these locations and does not have a copyright on any of the content located at these sites. ============================================================================= From nymhm at lists.artsandmedia.net Fri Mar 30 10:20:36 2007 From: nymhm at lists.artsandmedia.net (nymhm@lists.artsandmedia.net) Date: Fri Mar 30 10:22:26 2007 Subject: Newsdesk.org: Web site updates Message-ID: This is to let you know that we've repaired the Newsdesk.org Web site's database problems; all entries and photos from the past three weeks have been fully updated. Specific pages that have been updated: Front Page: http://www.newsdesk.org/news/ Photos: http://www.newsdesk.org/archives/photos/index.html NYMHM topic summaries: http://www.newsdesk.org/archives/news_you_might_have_missed/index.html Top Stories * March 22-28 http://www.newsdesk.org/archives/004228.html Top Stories * March 15-21 http://www.newsdesk.org/archives/004222.html Thank you for your patience! -- Newsdesk.org News You Might Have Missed: Subscribe: