NYMHM: Dire ending for Iraqi widows; Electric car buzz short-circuits

Wed Mar 28 14:48:10 PDT 2007

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 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.

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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).  

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TOP STORIES
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 > 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

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INDIA
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 > 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 

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RWANDA
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 > 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 

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THE ELECTRIC CAR
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 > 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 

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Editors: Julia Scott, Josh Wilson
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