NYMHM: Pakistan's democracy, G8 warm-up, nuclear terrorism

Wed May 30 11:33:52 PDT 2007

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 NEWS YOU MIGHT HAVE MISSED * May 30, 2007 * Vol. 6, No. 22

 Important but overlooked news from around the world.
 NYMHM is a free service of Newsdesk.org.

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QUOTED: 

   "If I had my way, the DNA we now take from newborn babies to 
   check for genetic disorders would be added to the national 
   database in the national interest."

   -- Brian Mackenzie, a peer in the House of Lords, on security
   concerns in the United Kingdom (see "Homeland Security," below.)

CONTENTS:

   *Top Stories* 
     Mexico's "Sahara" only growing
     Protestors in a G8 warm-up bring riot police
     Pope acknowledges colonial woes

   *Pakistan*
     Fears of Islamism Grow as Democracy Retreats

   *Nigeria*
     An election gives, and takes

   *Homeland Security*
     Disaster "contingencies" provoke privacy fears and follies

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TOP STORIES
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 > Mexico's "Sahara" Only Growing

   Chicken and dairy moguls, a Coca-Cola plant and clearcutting are
   turning arid but habitable land in northern Mexico into desert 
   at a rate of 150,000 hectares each year. The San Francisco Bay 
   Guardian reports that dozens of villages and indigenous tribes
   are threatened, even as developers turn to the Cuatro Cienegas 
   biosphere, "Mexico's Galapagos," for more water. 

 > Protestors in a G8 Warmup Bring Riot Police

   Hamburg's session of the Asia-Europe Meeting addressed Darfur,
   nuclear proliferation and climate change, setting the stage for
   next week's G8 meeting in the Baltic town of Heiligendamm. The 
   Hamburg meeting also saw throngs of protestors come out for 
   their own "warm up" for the G8, which is expected to draw as 
   many as 100,000 dissidents from June 6-8. 

 > Pope Acknowledges Colonial Woes

   The Los Angeles Times reports that Pope Benedict XVI is back-
   pedaling -- but not apologizing -- for claiming that the 
   conversion of South American Indians to Christianity did not 
   involve the "imposition of a foreign culture." 

   Speaking in Rome, Benedict later affirmed "sufferings and 
   injustices" had occurred, but didn't detract from the 
   achievements of missionaries during the colonial era.  

Sources: 

"An American Sahara / Mexico is milking its northern deserts dry"
SFBG.com, May 15, 2007
http://www.sfbg.com/entry.php?entry_id=3663&catid=4

"Leftists Target EU-Asia Meeting in Preparation for G8 Demos"
Deutsche Welle, May 28, 2007
http://www.dw-world.de/dw/article/0,,2560053,00.html?maca=en-rss-en-top-1022-rdf

"Asia-Europe Meeting Serves to Flesh Out G8 Priorities"
Deutsche Welle, May 29, 2007
http://www.dw-world.de/dw/article/0,2144,2559894,00.html

"Pope recognizes colonial injustices"
Los Angeles Times, May 24, 2007 
http://www.latimes.com/features/religion/la-fg-pope24may24,1,6200822.story?track=rss

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PAKISTAN
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 > Fears of Islamism Grow as Democracy Retreats

   Even as President Pervez Musharraf's dismissal of Chief Justice 
   Iftikhar Mohammed Chaudhry continue to shake up Pakistan, 
   Islamists along the fractious border with Afghanistan are 
   extending their territory and evading government efforts to 
   bring them to heel ... 

   GET THE WHOLE STORY: 

   http://www.newsdesk.org/archives/004288.html

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NIGERIA 
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 > An Election Gives, and Takes

   Labor unions across Nigeria went on a two-day strike in protest of
   the recent presidential election, which was condemned by observers
   as "massively rigged." The BBC reports that results were announced 
   even for regions where no voting took place ...

   GET THE WHOLE STORY:

   http://www.newsdesk.org/archives/004289.html

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HOMELAND SECURITY
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 > Disaster "Contingencies" Provoke Privacy Fears and Follies

   Even as President George W. Bush authorized a controversial 
   plan to centralize government powers in the White House following
   any large-scale national disaster, a closed group of government 
   officials and scholars drew up "contingencies" for dealing with
   nuclear terrorism in the United States ... 

   GET THE WHOLE STORY:

   http://www.newsdesk.org/archives/004290.html

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Editor: Josh Wilson
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