Round Table For Religion

Found at: http://shadow.libertymagazine.org/article/articleprint/620/-1/97/

Round Table For Religion
Author: Lincoln Steed
Publishing date: 03/01/2007 6:16 pm





Rome has long cultivated an image as a gathering point for religious power. And of course that power at times has been biased toward a single viewpoint. Not so the “Fourth Interparliamentary Conference on Human Rights and Religious Freedom,” organized by the Washington, D.C. based Institute on Religion and Public Policy and its president Joseph K. Grieboski. Almost 80 parliamentarians and a handful of nongovernmental organizational representatives (the Liberty editor among them) met at the Pontifical Gregorian University November 28-30, 2006, for a dynamic exchange of views on some of the major freedom issues facing churches and governments today.





While the conference drew heavily on the university and Catholic officials in Rome, including Cardinal Renato Martino, president of the Pontifical Council for Peace and Justice, its genius was the dynamic between the various parliamentarians and the wide array of diplomats representing their national viewpoint in Rome. Countries such as South Africa, the United Kingdom, the United States of America, Turkey, Russia, Slovakia, Sudan, Taiwan, Lithuania, Liberia, Kazakhstan, Morocco, Kenya, Togo, and Burkina Faso interacted in a dialogue that revealed both common concerns and real differences in handling sensitive issues of religious freedom and public morality.





Day one included an extensive discussion on how faith and politics need to respond to the global AIDS crisis—a crisis more and more seen as a security issue, since it leads to societal instability. There is an admirable agreement by all faith groups to make a practical contribution to civil efforts to educate and treat. However, I was struck by how reticent all are to express their very real theological views on the underlying behaviors that lead to AIDS. It was left to Archpriest Vsevolod Chaplin from the Moscow Patriarchate (Eastern Orthodox) to remind all that while his church offers the Communion cup to all, and all freely kiss the icons without concern about AIDS transmission, they are very clear about the fact that sinful behavior often lies behind transmission of the disease. For this intrusion of morality he was roundly condemned by all, even from the lectern. Not a good omen for the continuing moral voice of faith communities.

Day two discussion centered on freedom of religion and religious expression in the aftermath of the Danish cartoon furor and the ongoing war on terror. This is a serious dynamic, and much more than freedom of the press is at stake. Michael Marshall, editor in chief for United Press International, said the debate is just beginning and that we are on the slippery slope of regulating all religious expression, not just dangerous manifestations. On the defensive, Ahmed Younis, national director for the Muslim Public Affairs Council in Washington, D.C., posited that the answer to Islamic violence is not less religiosity and looking to so-called moderates who may be seen as secularists by fellow Muslims, but instead a reclaiming of correct Islamic views. How effective this might be we shall see; but Liberty must always argue for the right of religious expression and decry a limiting of core religious views. Naturally all religious expression is subject to civil laws against violence and other abuses of the rights of others, but there must not be arbitrary restriction of religion or inhibition to its free expression.





The ambassador from Serbia warned against a developing threat to religion in many ostensibly democratic states, where a religious tyranny of the majority can easily develop. This is a real threat today, even in the United States. We must be on guard. The stakes are very high. But as Ambassador Oded Ben Hur from the State of Israel said, referencing his own country’s situation, “We don’t have the luxury of being pessimistic.”





By Lincoln E. Steed, Liberty Editor

Addis Ababa Meeting on Small Arms - Final Communique

The 2nd Regional Parliamentary Forum on the Implementation of the Nairobi Protocol for the Prevention, Control and Reduction of Small Arms and Light Weapons in the Great Lakes Region and Horn of Africa



21-22 February 2007, Sheraton Addis Hotel

Addis Ababa, Ethiopia



COMMUNIQUE



We Parliamentarians from the Member States Signatory to the Nairobi Protocol, National Focal Point Coordinators, the East African Community Secretariat, and related partners, having attended the 2nd Regional Parliamentary Forum on “The Implementation of The Nairobi Protocol for the Prevention, Control and Reduction of Small Arms and Light Weapons in the Great Lakes Region and Horn of Africa”; Organized by Regional Centre on Small Arms in collaboration with the Great Lakes Parliamentary Forum on Peace-AMANI Forum and Saferworld, held in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia; at Sheraton Addis Hotel; February 21st-22nd 2007;





Hereby acknowledge that the rationale for the 2nd Regional Parliamentary Forum on the implementation of the Nairobi Protocol for the prevention, control and reduction of small arms and light weapons has been quite timely.



WE noted that the 1st Forum held in Mombasa, Kenya; December 8th-9th, 2005 sought to expose Parliamentarians to the problem of SALW in the region, the existing strategies to combat it and the urgent need for their individual and, or group involvement in tackling the problem through their parliamentary roles. Since then, a number of activities have, either directly or indirectly related to the recommendations of the Forum, taken place in and outside the region. Some of these activities have had great successes. Similarly, certain Forum recommendations may not have received relative success on implementation due to a number of factors. Other issues may have also emerged that call for change of strategies or improved partnerships among various actors as a means of stepping up positive outcomes.



WE noted further that the objectives of the 2nd Forum were to:

· Review the progress made by Parliamentarians, Parliaments and other parliamentary and non-parliamentary bodies in the GLR/HA in supporting prevention, control and reduction of SALW in the region since the 1st Parliamentary Forum held in Mombasa , Kenya in December 2005.



· Assess and strengthen national partnerships and collaborative mechanisms involving parliaments, Parliamentarians and relevant government agencies, especially the National Focal Points in the management of SALW.



· Mainstreaming small arms control initiatives in existing peace building and conflict resolutions mechanisms in parliaments as well as national, regional and continental platforms.



Workshop deliberations



WE acknowledge that the workshop deliberations which were highly participatory, graced by Chief Guest Hon. Ambassador Teshemo Tegao, Speaker of the National Assembly of Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia and facilitated by experts Ms. Salome Katia , Messrs David de Beer, Francis K. Sang, Alex Nyago, Richard Nabuddere and Leonard Onyonyi; Honorables Manuel de Araujo, Charles Kakoma and Norbert Mao, focused on Parliamentary initiatives and activities in supporting control and management of SALW. High premium was attached on the extent to which Parliamentarians are involved in putting small arms control top on their political agenda.



Underpinning the discussions were the following issues and questions:

* Do Parliamentarians understand the dynamics in the concept of Small Arms and Light Weapons in their countries and in the region?



* To what extent are Parliamentarians involved in the search for knowledge and solutions to the proliferation of SALW in the region?



* Given that parliamentarians as a policy making group are aware of the impact of regional and international terrorism, what effort do they ever make to ensure free and safe lives for their citizens?



* Since parliamentarians are part of the Government, to what extent do they participate in influencing decision-making through legal drafting committees on the control and prevention of the proliferation of SALW in the region?



* Given that Parliamentarians are leaders, how much does each one of them participate in the leadership process of managing SALW in his/her country?



* How should each Member State act on the management of SALW before the last bullet?



* Must we dispose of all de-commissioned, recovered or surrendered weapons?



* To what extent are the governments of RECSA member States involved in providing a common “take off” in order for all of them to achieve the Nairobi Protocol best practices at the same rate?



* Is it not possible that some industrialized nations in the West are continuously investing in the proliferation of SALW in the GLR/HA?



* Since the region suffers from lack of effective National Focal Points and poor database management, how much should members of Parliament help their governments to speed up the Action Plan on Best Practices?



Specific Concerns in the Deliberations



We emphasized, among other concerns, the need for:

· Every Government in the region to institutionalize legislative frameworks relevant to the Nairobi Protocol, especially the prevention, control and reduction of small arms and light weapons in the Great Lakes Region and Horn of Africa.



· Parliamentarians to be empowered with target knowledge on the risks of the proliferation of SALW, and be challenged to show readiness, commitment and personal participation in campaigning, lobbying, and advocating for a safer region, through contributing to legislative drafting committees of their governments.



· The region (RECSA) to offer opportunities for National Focal Points and Parliamentarians to get exposed to, participate in, contribute to, and help implement regional, sub-regional and international protocols on the proliferation of SALW.



· National Focal Points, Parliamentarians, law enforcement agencies and the related partners to seek more avenues for sustainable collaboration, negotiation, integration, and agreement on demand and supply of SALW in the region, sub-region, and internationally.



· Inter-Governmental transparency and accountability be secured and manifested in the effort to investigate, understand, develop legislative frameworks, and initiate cross-border activities aimed at disarmament and control of SALW. To achieve this other stakeholders should be involved



· Formation of intra and inter-Parliamentary should be linked with other networks such as AMANI Forum, the UN firearms Protocol, the African Union, the European Union, the East African Community, the ECOWAS, and the SADC, for purposes of collaboration and solidarity; strengthening interpretation, support and implementation of legislative frameworks on the manufacture, import, export, transfer, and use of SALW.









Resolutions for the Way Forward



WE hereby resolve as a way forward that:

1. All the signatories of the Nairobi Protocol and the related partners should endeavor to increase their network through research, communication and interaction on matters of prevention, control and reduction of SALW in the GLR/HA.



2. The complexity of the world we live in today, especially the political economy of SALW, proposes the need for a more holistic and multi-dimensional approach to the fight against the proliferation of SALW. This requires that the governments, civil society, and target partners be brought on board for a comprehensive and participatory decision-making at all levels of the community and government.



3. Implementation of the regional, sub-regional, and international protocols on the best practices with regard to the manufacture, import, export, transfer and use of SALW, requires focused and organized collaboration, solidarity and trust of the National Focal Points especially in the search, choice and use of resources, strategies and techniques.



4. Parliament, Parliamentarians and the Executive should be made more responsible and accountable to their citizenry in the region and sub-regions, through drafting, funding, implementing, harmonizing, monitoring and evaluating appropriate legislature on the prevention, control and reduction of SALW in the GLR/HA.



5. Members of Parliament and parliamentary committees should endeavour to research (through visits, consultative outreach activities), find and put to practical use information on the risks of the proliferation of SALW, only then will they be empowered to campaign, lobby, advocate and influence their governments in the construction, funding and implementation of effective legal frameworks and procedures in the fight against the proliferation of SALW.



6. Members of Parliaments should endeavour to marshal, motivate and encourage community participation in target protocols through identification and circulation of translated and simplified data; and explain to them the core values through different practical media for every member of the community to understand and appreciate.



7. There is evidence that not all signatories of the Nairobi Protocol are proceeding with the implementation of the Best Practices at the same rate due to diverse factors. However, there is the need for results at regional and sub-regional levels, to prove that all member states are committed to developing and implementing National Action Plans.



8. The responsibility of monitoring and evaluating the rate at which every member state is implementing the Best Practices still rests with RECSA. However, every country’s Parliament, Parliamentarians and Executive have a duty to determine the standard of their National role-play in alignment with regional, sub-regional and international standards.



9. Parliamentarians impress upon their respective Governments the need to respond to the UN Secretary General’s letter of 16th January 2007, seeking views on the feasibility, scope and draft parameters for a comprehensive legally binding instrument establishing common standards for the import, export and transfer of conventional arms before 30th April 2007.

Copyright peacejournalism.com

Scott Twp. native’s group nominated for Nobel Prize

BY CHRIS BIRK
STAFF WRITER

Joseph K. Grieboski believes freedom of religion is the foundation of all others.

The Scott Township native has spent the last six years working to ensure religious freedom around the world as founder and president of the Institute for Religion and Public Policy in Washington, D.C.

“Religion is the only one of the fundamental rights that’s internal. If there’s a violation of that, there can be a violation of any of these other rights,” he said. “Without freedom of religion, there are no other freedoms.”

Over the past five years, his nonprofit organization has carved out a unique path for collaboration among dozens of countries interested in issues pertaining to human rights and religious freedom. His work has culminated in a nomination for the 2007 Nobel Peace Prize.

The institute’s Interparliamentary Conference on Human Rights and Religious Freedom brings together parliament members from more than 50 countries to find common ground on issues from AIDS and human trafficking to religious freedom and national security. The annual forums give members an avenue for joint action on rights issues by enacting parallel legislation in their countries, instead of relying on the traditional and sometimes heavily politicized processes of crafting formal treaties.

The Nobel nomination came earlier this month from a parliament member from the West African nation of Burkina Faso.

“The Interparliamentary Conference on Human Rights and Religious Freedom is constantly in the process of resolving issues of rising tension — religious and others — and moving the world in such a collaborative, parliamentary means to peace,” Ousseni Tamboura wrote in his nominating letter to the prize committee.

The prize committee is expected to whittle down a list of contenders in the next month. It is awarded in October.

Humbled by the nomination, Mr. Grieboski said it also serves as motivation for a group of people who want to make sure the recognition is earned.

“We’ve been nominated. Let’s be worth it, let’s actually do enough that we deserve to get it,” said Mr. Grieboski, a 1992 graduate of Scranton Preparatory School.

The institute has another Scranton tie — chief administrator Matthew Mullock also graduated from Prep before moving to Washington to attend American University. He graduated in May 2004 and joined the institute in December 2005, four years after interning for the organization. Mr. Grieboski’s mother, Pat, lives in Peckville.

Contact the writer: cbirk@timesshamrock.com

©The Times-Tribune 2007

News Form Parliaments Around the Globe -- February 26, 2007

Iraqi Cabinet approves draft oil law, sending it to parliament
Iraqi Cabinet approves draft oil law, sending it to parliament

BAGHDAD, Iraq -- The Iraqi Cabinet approved draft legislation Monday to manage the country's vast oil industry and divide its wealth among the population, a key U.S. benchmark for progress in this country. The legislation now goes to parliament for approval.

Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki announced the decision after the Kurds accepted the draft oil bill over the weekend -- nearly two months after the government's own deadline for enacting a new oil law.

Al-Maliki said the measures would be "another foundation stone" in building a new Iraq, which relies on oil revenues for about 90 percent of its national budget.

It was unclear when 275-member parliament will vote on the measure. The legislature reconvenes early next month.

All major parties have agreed to work for approval of the measure by May, but there are no guarantees in Iraq's fractious, sectarian political system.

"The draft law represents a major breakthrough for Iraq's economic and political transition," said Deputy Prime Minister Brahma Sale, a Kurd. "I very much hope the main political groups will rise to the occasion" and approve the bill in parliament.

Iraq has some of the world's largest petroleum reserves, and supporters hope the legislation will encourage major oil companies to invest billions -- if the security situation improves.

Under the measure, revenues will be distributed to all 18 provinces based on population size -- a concession to the Sunnis whose central and western homeland has relatively few proven reserves. Most of Iraq's oil is in the Kurdish north and Shiite south, and many Sunnis fear they would be cut out of a fair share.

However, the bill had been bogged down for months in infighting between al-Maliki's Shiite-led government and the self-ruled Kurdish administration of northern Iraq over who had the final say in negotiating contracts and managing the revenues.

In Washington, White House spokesman Tony Snow called a new oil law the "key linchpin" in Iraq's recovery because it gives "everybody a shared economic interest in working together."

The haggling went to the heart of the Iraqi crisis -- the failure of religious and ethnic parties to compromise in the interest of saving the nation. Without such compromises, U.S. commanders doubt that military crackdowns and the current U.S. and Iraqi security operation can produce long-term stability.

The Bush administration, facing growing pressure to end the Iraq conflict, has been urging the Iraqis to finish the new oil law -- one of the benchmarks that al-Maliki's government had pledged to meet by the end of last year.

"That being done, then the Iraqis can turn to other things, such as constitutional reform, election reform" and allowing many Sunnis to return to public life, Snow said.

The Iraqis also missed a year-end deadline to establish provincial elections, reverse regulations that exclude many Sunnis from government posts, and grant limited political amnesty to some insurgents.

Under the oil legislation, regional administrations will be empowered to negotiate contracts with international oil companies. The contracts will be reviewed by a central government committee in Baghdad headed by the prime minister.

A new law is needed, most outside experts believe, to encourage international companies to pour billions into Iraq to repair pipelines, upgrade wells, develop new fields and begin to exploit the country's vast petroleum reserves, estimated at about 115 billion barrels.

According to Iraqis familiar with the deliberations, the draft law would offer international oil companies several methods to invest, including production-sharing agreements. Those would give U.S. and other international companies a substantial share of the oil revenues to recover their initial investments and then allow them big tax breaks.

That angers some Iraqis, who believe foreigners will get too much control of the nation's wealth.

Some critics of the law believe the draft gives the regions too much control. The Kurds currently have the only self-governing region in Iraq, although the 2005 constitution allows other areas to form them too, such as the Shiites in the oil-rich south.

If implemented, "The balance of power in the management of Iraq's oil and gas resources would have shifted alarmingly from the center to the regions," former oil official Tariq Shafiq, who helped draft an early version, told an oil seminar in Amman, Jordan, this month.

The tortuous negotiations are reminiscent of the intense American arm-twisting, public pressure and backroom dealmaking that have pushed nearly every step in Iraq's political transformation since the U.S.-led invasion nearly four years ago.

The process sometimes has produced agreements that enabled Washington to declare success but ultimately created a new set of problems -- such as a divisive 2005 election that invigorated the Sunni insurgency, and a new constitution that the U.S. now acknowledges must be amended substantially to bring peace.

Some critics fear the oil law will become the latest example.

"The draft law is very dangerous," former oil official Faleh al-Khayat told the Amman seminar. "It should not be implemented at this time."

(Copyright 2007 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.)


Armenian parliament passes dual citizenship bill, expected to increase clout of vast diaspora

The Associated Press
Monday, February 26, 2007


YEREVAN, Armenia: Parliament on Monday gave final approval to legislation allowing dual citizenship, a move that could vastly increase the sway that Armenia's vast diaspora holds over political life in the tiny ex-Soviet republic.

In the second and final reading, ruling party lawmakers in the 131-seat National Assembly voted 66-5 to back amendments to several laws. Opposition lawmakers boycotted the vote, saying it will increase potential for corruption, though most of the opposition parties support the overall concept.

President Robert Kocharian is expected to sign the measure into law, which allows dual citizenship for Armenians 18 years or older who have lived in the country continuously for three years; who marry Armenian citizens; who have a child who is an Armenian citizen or other new stipulations.

Justice Minister David Arutyunian told lawmakers that dual citizens would also be able to vote in elections but only if they physically cast their ballots in Armenia. Dual citizens will not be able to run for the presidency, parliament or the Constitutional Court.

The issue is an important change for the small country of about 3.3 million that has a massive ethnic diaspora worldwide — estimated at between 9 million and 12 million — with particularly large communities in the United States and France.

Expatriate Armenians send massive amount of humanitarian and financial aid back to their homeland, and often subscribe to a harder political line on key issues of national interest, such as relations with neighboring Azerbaijan and Turkey.






Indian Parliament rocked over Quattrocchi's extradition

IANS


New Delhi: Parliament was yesterday rocked by the opposition parties creating a ruckus in both the Houses over what it called delays in extraditing Italian businessman Ottavio Quattrocchi.

Quattrocchi was arrested in Argentina on February 6 for his alleged role in the Bofors gun payoff scam.

Railway Minister Lalu Prasad had a tough time presenting his railway budget as MPs belonging to Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and some of its allies disrupted the proceedings by hooting and loud slogan shouting.

Although the initial slogans like "The whole world is shouting that Quattrocchi is a thief", did not provoke the treasury benches, the Congress and Lalu Prasad's Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD) MPs reacted when the opposition started targeting Congress chief Sonia Gandhi.

A firm-faced Sonia tried to calm them, pleading that the railway minister be allowed to complete his speech. "Let them shout", Sonia was heard telling her partymen.

Walkout

The Samajwadi Party MPs, who have just withdrawn their support to the federal United Progressive Alliance (UPA) government, were in the well of the House for the initial 10 minutes and then walked out of the House.

The BJP MPs, who were in the well when the proceedings resumed at 12 noon, started targeting Sonia after half-an-hour, during which Lalu Prasad single-handedly tried to overcome the loud slogan shouting.

"Talk about the nation," Lalu Prasad told the opposition, adding: "They do not want to hear anything good.

"You keep shouting.. I will read on till 5pm," Lalu Prasad was heard saying. His bravado against the opposition's unrelenting shouting earned him pat from Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and Sonia.

Immediately after he read out his 31-page budget speech, a smiling Manmohan Singh went up to railway minister's seat and shook hands with him.


CoE, OSCE, CIS and European Parliament invited to observe Armenian parliamentary election
23 February 2007

/PanARMENIAN.Net/ February 23 Armenian National Assembly Speaker Tigran Torosian sent invitations to a number of international organizations to observe the Armenian parliamentary election scheduled for May 12, 2007, reports the RA NA press office. Invitations were addressed to the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe, the OSCE Parliamentary Assembly, the European Parliament and the CIS Parliamentary Assembly.



Polish FM to visit Armenia February 25-27
23 February 2007

/PanARMENIAN.Net/ A Polish delegation led by Foreign Minister Anna Fotyga will be visiting Armenia February 25-27, reports the RA MFA press office. The Polish FM is scheduled to meet with RA President Robert Kocharian, Catholicos of All Armenians Garegin II, Prime Minister Andranik Margaryan and Foreign Minister Vartan Oskanian. The Polish delegation will attend the Matenadaran, the Depositary of Ancient Manuscripts, and lay a wreath to the Memorial to the Armenian Genocide victims.

NATO Week to be held in Armenia mid March
16 February 2007

PanARMENIAN.Net/ U.S. Defense Secretary Deputy Assistant James McDougal attended the NATO information center in Yerevan. He showed interest in the center activities as well as educational programs and initiatives. The center employees informed James MacDougal of the NATO Week to be held in Yerevan in mid March, reports Mediamax.


European Parliament to seek compromise on Kashmir report
From correspondents in Brussels, Belgium, 12:37 PM IST

The Committee on Foreign Affairs of the European Parliament (EP) will discuss the compromise amendments to its draft report on Kashmir Monday.

Some of the proposed 450 amendments to the 15-page report 'contradict each other, some strengthen the report, some want to make it vanish completely,'' rapporteur of the report, Baroness Emma Nicholson, told INEP in an interview.

Baroness Nicholson said she has been working with shadow rapporteurs form other political groups on the compromise proposals to the report titled 'Kashmir: Present situation and future prospects.'

'It is a complex and difficult process. It is hard to find compromises that will accommodate both sides,'' she admitted .

'So many amendments repeating the same point make a very slow voting process,'' said the British MEP, adding that the job of the rapporteur is to bind the different opinions through 'compromise amendments.''

The draft report was due to be adopted by the committee on Jan 30, but following two-day discussions last month the debate was postponed to Feb 26.

Pakistan and Pakistani-supported Kashmir groups had launched a campaign against the draft report and termed it as a 'one-sided and unrealistic document' because it criticizes the democracy-deficit in Pakistan and the human rights situation in the Pakistani-administered part of Kashmir.

'India is the world's largest democracy and has a functioning democracy at local level, whereas Pakistan still has to show that it is respecting democratic principles in a great many areas,'' said the draft report.

Islamabad is particularly irked over the report's dismissal of calls for plebiscite to resolve the Kashmir issue.

'Continuing calls for a plebiscite on the final status of Jammu and Kashmir are wholly out of step with the needs of the local people and thus damaging to their interests,'' asserts the report.

Pakistani Prime Minister Shaukat Aziz, during his visit to the EP in January, welcomed the engagement by the EP on Kashmir and in a veiled criticism of the draft report said he encourages 'unbiased ' report for a constructive solution to the Kashmir issue.

Baroness Nicholson noted that the EP works very differently from national parliaments of European Union member states.

'Our mission is peace-building and cooperation... not to have shouting matches.''

It is a unique body, the only elected international parliament in the world 'based on 100 percent keeping the peace,' she said.

The EP is the only directly-elected body of the European Union. The 785 Members of the European Parliament (MEPs) are elected once every five years by voters right across the 27 member states of the European Union on behalf of its 492 million citizens.

After Monday's debate, the committee is expected to vote on the amended report on March 21 and, if adopted, the report will go before the plenary session of the EP, probably in May, for approval.

'It will be then our obligation to support the will of the parliament,'' underlined Baroness Nicholson.

Meanwhile, another British member of the European Parliament, Richard Howitt, who has hallenged the report, visited Jammu on Friday after having visited Pakistan-administered Kashmir and the Kashmir Valley.

In a related development , British MEP of Indian origin Neena Gill, chairperson of the Delegation for relations with the countries of South Asia and the SAARC, will present her

report on Monday on the 6th inter-parliamentary meeting EP/National Assembly of Pakistan held in Pakistan in December.





Kashmir Observer Interview with Richard Howitt, Member European Parliament
"Liberal Democrats should be ashamed to have published such a prejudiced report"

European Union parliamentarian Richard Howitt visited Kashmir this week to investigate the findings of EU rapporteur Emma Nicholson's report "Kashmir: present situation and future prospects," which had been released in December. Raising questions about the democratic credentials of the Pakistani government and its commitment to the people and institutions in Pakistan-occupied Kashmir, the report generated considerable heat both here in Kashmir as well as across the border. In a wide-ranging interview with KO correspondent M. Farooq Shah at the Grand Palace Hotel, Mr. Howitt reflected on the failures of colonial powers, considered the effectiveness of Europe’s liberal democrats, and commented on the progress of the Indo-Pak peace process.

Kashmir Observer:How concerned is the European Union about the problem of Kashmir?

Richard Howitt: The European Union is very much concerned about the problem of Kashmir and it's resolution. The EU has over a period of time been actively engaged in trying to work out what exactly is happening on the ground in Kashmir, which is why I'm here on a fact-finding mission: so that we're able to frame a Kashmir policy.

Kashmir Observer: A few years ago in an interview with a British Magazine, the former British Foreign Secretary said, I quote: "The British Government had been complacent about Kashmir at the time of Indian independence, when it quickly became the most contentious issue between India and Pakistan." Do you also believe that Kashmir problem has its genesis rooted in the British Colonial Rule?

Richard Howitt: I've no problems in confessing that a lot of the problems we have to deal with now are a consequence of our colonial past and due to some serious mistakes especially during the last decades of the British Empire. Many territorial disputes that exist today are on the illogical borders created by colonial powers. The Balfour Declaration of 1917 - in which Britain pledged support for a Jewish homeland in Palestine - and the contradictory assurances given to Palestinians were not entirely moral.

Kashmir Observer: Kashmiri families have been divided by a ceasefire line for 57 years, one of the longest standing disputes since the end of the WWII. How do you view this situation from a human angle that loved ones cannot meet freely amongst themselves?

Richard Howitt:I've been trying to meet a maximum number of people directly or indirectly affected by the conflict. From individuals, lawyers, victims of violence and statistics gathered from different sources - including different human-rights bodies such as Amnesty International, etc. - suggest quite an appalling human tragedy as far as the LoC is concerned. Behind these statistics are people with thousands of stories to tell of the tragedy that has come to symbolize the line of control that runs over hundreds of kilometres of forested hill and inhospitable terrain, defying logic in some places as it splits families and divides villages. From any angle, not to talk of a human one, the LoC is some thing that touches my heart.

Kashmir Observer: Of late, the EU has been having a proactive role in international affairs, specifically in conflict areas. However, Kashmiris feel let down that EU could have played a more meaningful role in having the conflict resolved. How do you react to that?

Richard Howitt: Traditionally any suggestions with regard to Kashmir dispute is not accepted by the two sides and so the important thing for the international community is that any problem that we undertake - that includes my own visit to Kashmir - is undertaken with a due humility, with a respect to the sovereignty of the countries involved and with a motivation of friendship and working constructively to bring positive influence to the problem. However, it is right that we are all subject to international law, to international human rights standards and humanitarian laws and it is essential that international visitors to Kashmir and to any conflict in the world ask hard questions about the observance of human rights and advocate for the strongest compliance with international law. I want to express my profound concerns about the consequences of the conflict. I met victims of violence who've told me heartfelt stories about how they have lost their loved ones and it is important that each of them is given justice. There can be no compromise ever in complying with international standards of human rights.

Kashmir Observer: Emma Nicholson's report on Kashmir is in sharp contrast to the European Parliament's Adhoc Delegation Report adopted by the committee on foreign affairs in November 2004 which accepted Kashmiris were a party to the dispute. That seems nowhere in the Emma's report?

Richard Howitt: I'm here because of the European Parliament to debate about the future policy of Kashmir. The report that has been drafted is the work of one person that has never been subject to any vote of European parliament. I understand and I know that that report does not reflect the ground realities in Kashmir. I know from very many consultations that have taken place with international organisations and with governmental sources, but I felt that this issue is so important that I did not want to rely on second-hand sources before we undertake our debate and that is why I'm here and although my own movements have been restricted, I've met with victims, lawyers, NGOs, government and the army and I'll be meeting with politicians across the political spectrum and I believe that I would be able to go back to the European Parliament and to engage in debate and help shape the European Parliament policy that does reflect the ground realities and the proper aspirations of the Kashmiri people. We want to come clean on the Kashmir issue and address what is actually happening on ground.

Kashmir Observer: You've rejected Emma's report, saying: "The Liberal Democrats should be ashamed to have published such an appallingly prejudiced report that, if passed by the European Parliament, would actually be counterproductive in holding back the peace process currently underway between the governments of India and Paksitan."

Richard Howitt: I stand by all of those words. I'm on an international visit here not to criticise another political party or politician individually during this visit. I can do that in European Parliament and it would not be appropriate for me to do that here in Kashmir but I do not believe that the draft report produced is fair or accurate or unbiased and that is one of the reasons that I'm here to make sure that I understand the ground reality.

Kashmir Observer: It's believed that her report goes contrary to the aspirations of Kashmiri people as it is alleged that she didn't go for collecting her data from original sources and put into words whatever was told to her by a group of retired officials of Indian Army. What've you to say to that?

Richard Howitt: I can't comment on what her sources are but I've met representatives today from civil society and members of the legal community who wanted to see her but did not.

Kashmir Observer: Europe is emerging as a super-market which has its stakes in India as far as trade goes. How do you think this should affect EU's intervention in Kashmir vis-à-vis Indian standpoint considering Emma's report which is believed more in favour of India than Pakistan?

Richard Howitt: Of course, we want trade to flourish between Europe and the rest of the world. We want tourism, environmental changes but having said that Europe is foremost in the world holding principles of democracy and justice but we would never compromise on the principles of human rights and the international law.

Kashmir Observer: As a result of the conflict, the collateral damage to the environment, ecology, wildlife, education, healthcare in Kashmir etc has been phenomenal. Do you take up these issues with Indian officials at any level?

Richard Howitt: Our concern at Europe about environmental issues is very much real. We've not talked about it as yet with the local or the Delhi government. We're very passionately concerned about the humanitarian aspect of the conflict. First of all my concern is motivated by promotion of peace and conflict resolution. Nevertheless, this morning I'll be looking at the Dal Lake project and I think it'll give us the idea about the environmental destruction here.

Kashmir Observer: India has time and time again shown its unwillingness to engage international mediation on Kashmir. Do you think that international intervention could have facilitated a speedy resolution to the conflict?

Richard Howitt: I believe that international engagement is one of the confidence building measures that should take place that people like me visiting out of friendship and supporting the principles of peace, a conflict resolution and human rights that can only be a positive influence in the Kashmir dispute. We are not seeking to preach or to determine or to interfere. We're seeking to foster friendship and reflect our own experiences, including my own country experiences of Northern Ireland, where we had a deep and difficult dispute over many years, and I hope in the next period it would be possible for European and international NGOs to work more freely across Jammu and Kashmir and for international visitors like myself to be able to travel and work more freely. We respect the security threats locally. We respect the challenges that exist for the state and I believe the international engagement can help be a part of the solution.

Kashmir Observer: There're several options being discussed with regard to the Kashmir conflict. As you've mentioned your experiences of Northern Ireland, do you think some thing close to that could be worked out here?

Richard Howitt: Each conflict is individual and there's no readymade solution and I certainly don't suggest that Northern Ireland nor any other conflict in the world can provide an intermit answer to the problems in Kashmir. But I do believe that our experiences in Northern Ireland can assist people here in moving towards conflict resolution. In that arena the border has been made less significant. There's been significant joint working between two sovereign governments. We've seen a process of demilitarisation take place slowly, reduced terrorist violence, reduced army presence step by step and we've seen former terrorists ultimately disarm and join the democratic process and if any of those things were to take place here then I think Northern Ireland can be one example that can help find a solution.

Kashmir Observer: Isn't it possible for the European Union to get people holding different views on Kashmir on board to work for a lasting solution to the problem?

Richard Howitt: I've discussed ways as how to get people on board representing different thoughts on Kashmir. I'm not suggesting in any sense that there'll be any formal European mediation in this regard but what I do know as far as my work on Israeli- Palestinian conflict is that the European Parliament, European research bodies and non-governmental organisations have been instrumental in getting people on both sides in the Israeli-Palestinian divide to gather in private--sometimes unofficially, sometimes with people who've recently retired but still have good links and contacts with their respective governments and just as that the back channel or the track-II diplomacy in the Indo-Pak peace process and dialogue, and may be these sort of informal gatherings can take place in Europe or facilitated by Europe which will then play a more formal role that can perhaps increase the mutual understanding in the dialogue process.

Kashmir Observer: European Union is well aware of the unprecedented build-up of armies on both sides of the line of control. Among several confidence building measures being discussed and implemented, demilitarisation is one tricky issue. How does European Union understand demilitarization?

Richard Howitt: First of all I don't believe to the best of knowledge that there's any official position of the European Union on that. India is a sovereign country, whatever grievances and aspirations people have in Kashmir, India has a right to protect itself as all sovereign countries. However, I'm going to discus all these issues in private, not least with the army but with the Indian government through the course of my visit. Some of these questions are best addressed in private. There're are large armies on both sides of the line of control and I'm not saying that their activities are the same or the numbers are the same either absolutely or relatively, but clearly having and maintaining large military forces on both sides of the line of control is a big drain economically to the government of both sides and most of the people have told me while I've been here that the very presence of the military itself produces all sorts of problems. So clearly, if it is possible to create an atmosphere of peace, trust and confidence to enable troops to be withdrawn from both sides, that is some thing that I'd be discussing with the Indian government.

Kashmir Observer: Are you aware of the human rights situation in Kashmir? How do you see it?

Richard Howitt: I want to express that I'm profoundly concerned by what I've heard about the human rights record here based on meeting victims of violence here. As vice-president of the European parliament human rights sub-committee, I've gathered a lot of valuable data and statistics, individual stories and testimonies that I'll be taking back with me to Brussels to ensure that all of this is heard in the highest echelons of the European decision making bodies.

Kashmir Observer: There's a travel advisory against visiting Kashmir. The government of Jammu and Kashmir has been trying hard to have the advisory lifted, though without success. What role can you play as an important member of the EU in this regard?

Richard Howitt: Well the travel advisory is a statute order by individual governments including my own government in United Kingdom for some one who informally came to Srinagar as tourist. What I've experienced is that Kashmir is a very beautiful place in the whole world as I took a walk around without anybody with me. If you're successful - which I really hope you are - in restoring peace to your society, I'm sure that European visitors would come and that would definitely help in the economic reconstruction of Kashmir after years of conflict.

__________________________________________________________________________

European official's visit to 'redraft' Kashmir report?

Srinagar | February 24: A senior British politician ended his two-day long visit to Jammu and Kashmir Saturday - a trip that, sources say, was aimed at redrafting a European Parliament report that had been highly critical of Pakistan. Richard Howitt, the spokesman of the British Labour Party and a European Parliament member, apparently visited Kashmir for "acquainting himself with the ground realities and to find out what was happening here".

Highly placed sources indicate that his visit was actually a mission to redraft the report that had been filed on Kashmir by Baroness Emma Nicholson, the chairperson of European Parliament's foreign relations committee last year.

The report by Nicholson had slammed Pakistan for what it called "gross and blatant violations of human rights in the Pakistan administered part of Kashmir".

The report had in fact praised India for its role on various fronts in Kashmir.

Howitt's Kashmir visit is being seen here in the backdrop of pressure mounted on European Union members by scores of Kashmiri lobbyists and Pakistani intellectuals in Europe who had called Nicholson's report "highly uneven".

When asked what he thought of the previous report, Howitt labelled it "as Emma Nicholson's personal views on the situation based on perceptions she had gathered here".

Howitt met representatives of many NGOs like the Orphans' Welfare Trust, Aga Khan Foundation, Action Aid India, Helpage India etc during his stay at the Grand Palace Hotel in summer capital Srinagar.He interacted with some local journalists and academicians.

Howitt also met Kashmir Divisional Commissioner Basharat Ahmad Dhar and Inspector General of Police S.M. Sahai. He left for the state's winter capital Jammu, where he was to meet a number of other delegations. (IANS)




Iran's parliament speaker's Rumi published in Turkey

Service: Literary
1385/12/06
02-25-2007
13:50:08
News Code :8512-03342

ISNA - Tehran
Service: Literary

TEHRAN, Feb.25 (ISNA)-Iran's parliament speaker has published a book on Rumi which is released in Turkey.

The Turkish translation of "Rumi's Face and His Personal Writing Album" written and authorized by Gholam Ali Hadadeadel is published in Turkey with the coordination of the Iranian embassy cultural section in Ankara.

This translation narrates the scientific, cultural and political biography of Rumi along with a detailed essay by Hadadeadel written under the impression of his visit to Turkey on the occasion of Rumi's 800th birthday anniversary.

Also the translation of another book by Iran's parliament speaker entitled "The Culture of Nudity and the Nude Culture" is published in Turkey.

The book aims at Hejab (Islamic cover for women) and its side issues in the modern world today.

End Item




Somali parliament approves a new security plan

Aweys Osman Yusuf

Mogadishu 25, Feb.07 ( Sh.M.Network) -The Somali parliament based in Badoa, south of the country, has today ratified a temporary law regarding the restoration of the national security after the security situation in the capital was going out of control.

After a long debate, 150 Somali MPs, who came to the parliament session on Sunday, approved that the Somali National Security Agency (NSA) should officially be on duty.

Osman Elmi Boqore, the second acting chairman of the Somali interim parliament, who was chairing the session concluded 143 MPs endorsed that NSA should be operational immediately.

The ratification of the new law comes as insecurity alarmingly rages in Mogadishu. Thousands of people deserted the capital after scores of civilians were killed by mortar explosions and crossfire while unidentified armed men and Ethiopian soldiers positioned in the capital exchanged mortar bombs and missiles, hitting residential areas in the past two weeks.

MPs threatened
Meanwhile, Asho Ahmed Abdalla an MP, who spoke at the parliament pointed out that her personal security was threatened by government forces. “I have been harassed because of my freedom of expressions and thoughts,” she told the parliament.

She indicated that she and other MPs were intercepted and threatened while entering the presidential house in Baidoa.

“The government should not use the emergency laws against the MPs,” she said. “I will defend myself if I am threatened again,” she added.






Somali parliament bans 42 MPs from partaking future meetings

Aweys Osman Yusuf

Mogadishu 25, Feb.07 ( Sh.M.Network) - The Somali parliamentarians have supported that 42 absent Somali MPs could not participate the upcoming sessions.

Sharif Hassan Sheik Aden, former parliament speaker, who was ousted, was among those banned from the parliament session.
Three of the MPs that were in Baidoa on Sunday were denied entry to the parliament building today. The government accused those absent MPs of not coming to the parliament meeting several times in the past, Abdalla Haji, a Somali MP, has told Shabelle on Sunday.

The MPs have always opposed the views of Somalia’s two top leaders and the presence of Ethiopian troops in the country. Somali president Abdulahi Yusuf and Premier Ali Mohammed Gedi blamed former speaker Sharif Hassan Sheik Aden for sympathizing with the defeated Islamists.

Mr. Yusuf said his government would hold a national reconciliation conference in which all clan and sub-clan leaders would take part.
While speaking to the Chatham House international affairs think –tank in London on Thursday, Yusuf said: “We hear about the existence of moderate elements of the Islamic Courts. I say: where are they, and we shall look for them and talk to them.”
“We will not talk to the armed groups who are determined to destroy the peace and stability that we are seeking,” he told an audience of academicians, journalists and visiting Somali government officials.

More than 40 Somali MPs and the speaker Aden are believed to be lingering in Djibouti.








Tamil Nadu MPs to discuss Parliament debate on Cauvery award

Chennai, Feb 25. (PTI): The Tamil Nadu Government has convened a meeting of MPs from the State at Delhi tomorrow,to seek their opinion on a debate in the Parliament on the Cauvery Water Disputes Tribunal's final award.

In a statement here, State PWD Minister K Duraimurugan said Chief Minister M Karunanidhi had instructed him to convene a meeting of Tamil Nadu MPs in the wake of demands for a Parliament debate on the final award.

He appealed to MPs of all the parties to attend the meeting and convey their views.

On February 22, MPs from Karnataka, cutting across partylines, decided to seek a debate in the Parliament over the Cauvery Water Disputes Tribunal's final award. The State MPs had also met Speaker Somnath Chatterjee seeking his permission for such a debate.





Nepal: Bill on Constituent Assembly Court tabled in parliament

The government on Sunday tabled a bill in the parliament on Constituent Assembly Court, a proposed high-level legal body for deciding matters related to forthcoming constituent assembly elections.

The bill defines the composition and protocol of the CA Court. As stated in the bill, the three-member CA Court will be chaired by a sitting judge of the Supreme Court and its decisions shall not be challenged in any court of law.

The interim constitution has a provision for such a court to look into the complaints regarding the CA elections and the election candidates.

Responding to the queries of MPs, Minister for Law Justice and Parliamentary Affairs, Narendra Bikram Nemwang, said the government would consider the suggestions made during the parliamentary debate.

Once approved by the parliament, the government will immediately start process to constitute the CA Court after consultation with the Judicial Council, he said. nepalnews.com mk Feb 25 07





Radar base to strengthen NATO - American in Czech Parliament
Prague- The project of the U.S. anti-missile base in the Czech Republic and Poland was not created behind NATO's back and the planned defence shield is to protect the European allies of the USA and strengthen the alliance's cohesion, Cameron Munter from the U.S embassy told the Chamber of Deputies foreign affairs committee.

However, deputies for the opposition Social Democrats (CSSD) and the Communists (KSCM) were not satisfied with his explanations.

They said that the USA circumvented NATO and mainly had in mind the protection of its military installations in Europe.

What the USA is doing, is not behind NATO's back, Munter said.

An alliance study says that the anti-missile system is an efficient defence against the threat that will be faced, Munter added.

The Americans want to extend the anti-missile shield to Europe to protect the whole area of the alliance, Munter said.

If the system only covered the USA, Europe could become more easily a target of blackmail and the link between the USA and European NATO members would be weakened, he added.

Social Democrat shadow foreign minister Lubomir Zaoralek said that Americans were circumventing NATO.

"If it is defence of alliance countries, talks ought to have been held with them. However, no one has addressed us in the alliance with the suggestion that we should defend him in this way," Zaoralek said.

Zaoralek and Jan Hamacek, Social Democrat chairman of the Chamber of Deputies foreign committee, said that U.S. military experts were submitting different arguments to U.S. Congressmen and Czech deputies.

The documents for the U.S. lawmakers clearly say that the planned base in Central Europe is mainly devised to protect the existing anti-missile facilities in Britain and Greenland, Zaoralek and Hamacek said.

The threat with which the USA argues when it advocates the extension of the anti-missile shield is doubtful, too, Zaoralek said.

"It is inconceivable that Iran or North Korea would attack Europe or America as this would be a suicide," Zaoralek said.

Terrorist groups at which the system is targeted do not have the intercontinental ballistic missiles, he added.

Munter said that within 10-30 years, the USA and Europe would face a real threat of attack by ballistic missiles from the "rogue states."

The USA is also afraid of proliferation of nuclear weapons, he added.

Munter repeated that the new system was not directed against Russia and that Russian senior officials had been well informed about its enlargement.

The Americans want to build the radar system in the Brdy military grounds, some 70km southwest of Prague, as part of the plan to protect the United States and allies against possible ballistic attacks by Iran and North Korea. Besides the radar base, the USA also wants to build a defence missile base in Poland.

On Monday, Czech and Polish prime ministers expressed preliminary support to the deployment of parts of the U.S. defence shield on their soil, although much of the public in both countries is against the plan.



State-church dispute over Prague Cathedral continues
Prague- The long dispute between the Czech state and the Catholic Church over the ownership of Prague St Vitus Cathedral continues as the Supreme Court cancelled decisions by lower instance courts according to which the church owned the cathedral, Supreme Court spokeswoman said.

Spokeswoman Marika Komonova said that the case will thus return to a Prague district court.

The dispute between the state and church for the rare Gothic national heritage site has been lasting more than 13 years.

The Prague Castle Administration handed the cathedral to the church last September. The Prague City Court made its final decision on the cathedral in June 2006.

Judges concluded that the church has never ceased to be the cathedral's owner and that no legal act transferred its ownership to the state under the totalitarian regime.

But the Prague Castle Administration argued that the court should not have dealt with the church's complaint because the church filed a suit to determine ownership, not a restitution complaint.

The Supreme Court today in fact accepted the argument.

"A state aspiring for the rule of law must correct its anti-constitutional and unlawful acts of its unfortunate past through the legislative means of a correction process, or through restitutions," the court's ruling says.

However, under the restitution laws, the church could not file a complaint because this can only be done by an individual.

Karel Sticha, economist of the Prague Archdiocese, said in reaction that the church has not yet received the verdict. He added that it was shameful that the court proceedings took nearly 14 years and were likely to continue.






Italy: One more shot at power for Prodi

By Peter Popham

ROME - Normal service seemed likely to be restored in Italy yesterday after the head of state, President Giorgio Napolitano, told the Prime Minister, Romano Prodi, to go back to Parliament and ask for a vote of confidence. If he obtains a majority in both houses, he will be back in power.

Napolitano's reprieve came at the conclusion of a desperate week in Italian politics. On Thursday the centre-left coalition led by Prodi lost a vote in the upper house on foreign policy by two votes, plunging the political world into chaos. Hours later the Prime Minister told the President that he was resigning. Napolitano, the first ex-communist ever to be President, said he accepted it "with reserve".

Two days of intensive talks followed. Napolitano announced yesterday he was returning Prodi's resignation and giving him another chance to obtain a working majority.

"It was clear that at the moment there is no concrete alternative to sending the present Government back to Parliament to verify through a confidence vote that it has the necessary majority," he told the press.

Ever since winning last April's general election by a mere 25,000 votes, Prodi has been dreading a disaster of the sort that befell him on Thursday.

The proportional voting system fashioned by Berlusconi's outgoing Government gave him a healthy majority in the Camera, the lower house, but a tiny one in the Senate.

His centre-left coalition is composed of a wild assortment of parties, ranging from former Christian Democrats in the centre to two communist parties on the left; it includes Greens and Trotskyites, close allies of the Vatican, and anti-church secularists.

Silvio Berlusconi claims that the only thing they have in common is their desire to keep him out of power.

But last week that was not enough. The Government angered left-wing MPs by refusing to reconsider a Berlusconi agreement with the United States permitting the US to build a second military base in the north-eastern city of Vicenza.

It angered them further by agreeing to keep around 1200 troops in Afghanistan. Last weekend a huge but peaceful demonstration in Vicenza galvanised the left into pressing the Government harder on the bases issue, as well as on the Afghan mission.

The Foreign Minister, Massimo d'Alema, a firm friend of the US, warned the left that if they did not vote for the government in the Senate, "we will all go home". Only two left-wing MPs abstained in the vote but three "senators for life", including 87-year-old Giulio Andreotti, a dominant figure since the 1950s, also failed to support the Government and that was enough to send it down.

Yesterday Prodi said: "I will go to Parliament as soon as possible with the support of a cohesive coalition determined to help the country at this difficult stage and speed up the economic recovery that is under way."

Earlier, he had induced all parties in the coalition to sign up to a 12-point policy programme and promise to back it. But the Opposition was rubbing its hands in the expectation of another humiliation for the left.

Professor's troubled times

* Romano Prodi is the only person to have beaten media tycoon Silvio Berlusconi at the polls, and he has done it twice - once in 1996 and again in April last year.

* Both times he faced difficulties with his hard-left allies. In 1998, he lost a confidence vote when the communists deserted him over social policy. This time he lost a vote on a resolution backing Italian foreign policy, including its mission in Afghanistan, opposed by many on the left.

* Prodi has no party of his own but is a figurehead for the splintered centre-left.

* He has served a five-year term as President of the European Commission.

* A law graduate who taught at Harvard, he is referred to as "the professor".

- INDEPENDENT ON SUNDAY





Turkey: Turkish Parliament Speaker Bulent Arinc met Iranian Islamic Advisory Council President Gholam Ali Haddad Adel in Ankara on Monday.

"There are good relations between the two governments and parliaments," Arinc told a meeting between Turkish and Iranian delegations, reminding that this was the first time Council President Haddad Adel visited Turkey.

Arinc also said that good neighborly relations between Turkey and Iran have improved since the 1639 "Kasr-i Sirin" agreement that delineated the border between the two countries.

"We will continue to improve our relations with the Iranian parliament," Arinc said.

Stating that his visit would further improve relations between the two countries, Haddad Adel said it would also contribute to peace in the region as well as the world.





Yemen to partake in Arab Parliament Union meeting
SANA'A, Feb. 25 (Saba) - Vice-speaker of the Parliament Yahya al-Ra'ai headed on Sunday along with a delegation for Jordan to
represent Yemenin the 49th round for the council of the Arab Parliament Union.
The meeting will be held during the period from 24th to 27th February.

Al-Ra'ai said that the meeting would discuss a number of issues associated with the current Arab situation and the Arab parliament
members' rolein supporting struggle of Arab peoples, particularly in Palestine, Iraq and Lebanon.
He added that the parliament members would approve the agenda of the round, the general secretary's report about the activities of the
union sincethe 47th round, the Arab parliament's role in fighting corruption and the union action plan for 2007.
AF/AH




Malta: SmartCity motion to be presented in Parliament
By MaltaMedia News
Feb 25, 2007 - 6:55:26 PM

A motion to give the go-ahead for the SmartCity project will be presented in Parliament next week, Prime Minister Lawrence Gonzi said during a PN activity in Gozo on Sunday.

Talks with Tecom Investments of Dubai on SmartCity Malta were concluded last month after the Cabinet approved terms of the agreement, authorizing the Minister Austin Gatt to close negotiations and proceed with the completion of the documentation required for Parliamentary scrutiny.

SmartCity Malta will transform the current Ricasoli Industrial Estate into an ICT and Media City on the models of Dubai Internet City and Dubai Media City devised, owned and operated by Tecom Investments. A minimum investment of Lm110 million (US$ 300 million, €231 million) makes this project the largest ever foreign investment initiative ever to be undertaken in Malta generating a guaranteed 5,600 jobs concentrated in the private sector in the knowledge-based environment.

Meawhile on Saturday, Minister Austin Gatt announced three government schemes for Gozo which total an investment of Lm 1 million. The schemes are an Investment Aid Grant Scheme, an Employment Aid Grant Scheme and a Tax at Source Clustering Scheme.

On Sunday, Prime Minister Lawrence Gonzi said that the government's incentives are aimed at creating jobs for Gozitan youths, women and disabled persons.

"Finances are secure and therefore it is possible for the government to give incentives to small and medium-sized businesses," he said.

The government will also be allocating more funds for cultural activities to help promote tourism in Gozo.





Turkey: Spate of suicides at ASELSAN to be discussed in Parliament

The Republican People’s Party (CHP) on Sunday filed a motion requesting the prime minister inquire into what could be the reason behind frequent and mysterious suicides among workers of Turkish defense-industry giant Aselsan.
“Is the current atmosphere in the Aselsan company supportive of such suicides,” CHP’s Mehmet Tomanbay asked in his motion statement. The statement recalled that three acts of suicide had occurred in Aselsan in the past six months on Aug. 7, Jan. 16 and Jan 26.
The statement briefly mentioned the history of Aselsan and highlighted that military equipment and devices was one of the most important production areas of the company. Tomanbay also highlighted his belief that Aselsan’s place in the Turkish defense industry, the country’s economy and its technological background made the company an irreplaceable asset.
“Aselsan, which is of strategic importance for our country’s defense industry and technology employs the most valuable brains of our country, the alumni of Turkey’s most precious educational institutions. The fact that three engineers who all graduated from the Middle East Technical University (ODTÜ) committed suicide in six months does strike curiosity.”
Tomanbay expects Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdoğan to answer whether Aselsan’s board was doing anything to investigate the recent suicides, whether there were any ties between the three suicides and whether the atmosphere at Aselsan was pressuring employees into suicide.




New Zealand: Disappointed with PM’s ‘don’t care’ approach
Monday, 26 February 2007, 11:59 am
Press Release: New Zealand National Party
Phil Heatley MP
National Party Housing Spokesman

26 February 2007

Heatley disappointed with PM’s ‘don’t care’ approach

National Party Housing spokesman Phil Heatley is disappointed that Helen Clark appears to have dismissed a select committee inquiry into home affordability without adequate consideration.

“I had thought that all political parties were supportive of New Zealanders’ home ownership ambitions. Miss Clark needs to make it clear whether she’ll allow Labour members to support an inquiry or not.

“After Dr Cullen’s flirtation with the fatally flawed mortgage tax, you do have to start wondering whether Labour has any real commitment to delivering on the Kiwi home ownership dream.”

Mr Heatley has written to the Commerce Select Committee seeking a wide-ranging inquiry on home affordability. He’s asked for issues including land availability, regulatory matters, building material costs, rent-to-buy programmes and home equity initiatives to be looked at.

Mr Heatley says today Helen Clark has finally acknowledged the impact of the cumbersome regulatory regime on house prices, saying that ‘we’re looking at whether the RMA or some of the development issues the councils face can be tackled effectively’.

“This admission is better late than never – although Labour’s always defended the RMA and steadfastly rejected meaningful reform.

“The Prime Minister claims Labour is ‘looking at a whole range of things’. If that’s really the case, I’d expect her to embrace the prospect of a select committee inquiry exploring alternative solutions.”

ENDS





India: NDA to stall Question Hour in Parliament

New Delhi, Feb. 26 (PTI): The opposition NDA today decided to stall the Question Hour in both Houses of Parliament on the Quattrocchi issue and not allow the Rail Budget to be read out in the Lok Sabha.

This was decided at a meeting of NDA leaders chaired by Leader of the Opposition in the Lok Sabha L K Advani.

Briefing reporters after the meeting held in Advani's chamber in Parliament House, BJP's Deputy Leader in Rajya Sabha Sushma Swaraj said the Question Hour would not be allowed to function in both the Lok Sabha and the Rajya Sabha.

"We will raise the issue right from the word go," she said.

On the presentation of Rail Budget in the Lok Sabha, Swaraj said the NDA would not allow Railway Minister Lalu Prasad to read out the document. "We will allow him (Yadav) only to lay the Budget," she said.

"We will request the Lok Sabha Speaker in this regard. If he accepts our request, we will remain quiet. But we will not allow the Railway Minister to read out the Budget," she said.

Swaraj said the Opposition protest would continue till the Government came out clean in the Quattrocchi issue.

"The next meeting of the NDA leaders will be held on February 28 (General Budget day)," she added.

The BJP leaders have questioned the "delay" in announcing the detention of the Italian businessman in Argentina.

They have decided to demand that the Prime Minister should explain the position and that Quattrocchi be brought to India for trial.

Besides NDA Convenor George Fernandes, those present at the meeting included BJP leaders Jaswant Singh, Yashwant Sinha and V K Malhotra.

Leaders of other NDA parties present at the meeting included B J Panda (BJD), Manohar Joshi and Anant Geete (Shiv Sena), Sharad Yadav and Digvijay Singh (JD-U), Dinesh Trivedi (Trinamool Congress), Virendra Singh Bajwa (Akali Dal) and Sharad Joshi (Swatantra Bharat Paksh).






India: Oppn stalls Parliament over Quattrocchi issue

HT Correspondents

New Delhi, February 25, 2007

Related Stories [X] close
Feb 25 | Bofors echoes on House session eve »
SC seeks details on Quattrocchi's extradition »











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Both houses of the Parliament were disrupted on Monday after the BJP, BSP and Samajawadi Party (SP) charged the Congress-led UPA government with deliberately delaying the extradition of Italian businessman Quattrocchi because of his alleged involvement in the Bofor’s pay off case.

Soon after the Rajya Sabha and Lok Sabha met for the day, BJP and SP members rushed to the well, raising slogans against the Congress party.

The Lok Sabha was adjourned soon after for an hour and the Rajya Sabha proceedings were suspended till 2 pm.

The Lower House again met at 12 noon and the Speaker called on Union Railway Minister Lalu Prasad Yadav to present the budget for 2007-08. Members of the Opposition parties, however, continued their slogan-shouting and tried to again stall proceedings.

The railway minister, however, went ahead with his ministry’s budget in spite of the din all around him. His budget speech lasted for 90 minutes.

The Upper House reconvened at 2 pm but disruptions and slogan-shouting continued. As Deputy Chairman A Rahman Khan called on the minister to lay a copy of the budget, BJP members rushed to the well once again.

The BJP members said that the government should make efforts to extradite the Italian businessman to stand trial in India. As the din persisted, the Deputy Chairman adjourned the House for the day.






Kuwait: Some groups trying to defuse row between govt, Parliament; ‘ICM plans to withdraw call for no-confidence’
KUWAIT CITY: A few political groups are trying to diffuse the tension between the Parliament and the government, which increased many-fold after MPs called for a no-confidence motion against Minister of Health Sheikh Ahmed Abdullah Al-Ahmed Al-Sabah. Sources say Parliamentary Speaker Jassem Al-Khorafi has expressed his willingness to mediate between both the authorities to reduce the tension but so far, he has not been invited to do so. According to sources, relations among MPs too have soured over the issue and the Islamic Constitutional Movement (ICM) is trying to withdraw the application for no-confidence.

Also, there are indications that the call for no-confidence against the health minister has further damaged the relationship between the Salafist Movement and ICM, who were recently at loggerheads with each other over the State Property Law. Sources say Chairman of the Parliamentary Committee for Finance and Economic Affairs MP Ahmed Baqer, who is also a member of the Salafist Movement, believes that ICM made amendments to the State Property Law only to settle scores with the Salafist Movement.
Meanwhile, Undersecretary at the Ministry of Health Essa Al-Khalifa has not submitted his resignation and he has not been asked to submit a resignation either, say sources.

Al-Khalifa is currently on a visit to the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia to attend the annual meeting of a medical company, which was referred to during the grilling of the health minister. MP Waleed Al-Tabtabaei had accused Al-Khalifa of owning the company but it was later reported that the company was established by Arab League and Al-Khalifa was merely Kuwait’s representative in the company.

Grilling
In a surprising twist of events after the grilling of Health Minister Sheikh Ahmad Abdullah Al-Ahmad Al-Sabah, sources close to the Islamic Constitutional Movement (ICM) said the government was shocked when the Parliament decided to cast a vote of no confidence on the Minister during the grilling session, reports Al-Qabas. Reliable sources, however, disclosed the government was officially informed three days before the grilling about the plan of ten MPs to sign an application for the vote of no confidence on the health minister in case the Parliament will prove there was an agreement made between ICM and the government. Government sources, on the other hand, denied allegations on the deal between ICM and the government but the MPs have coordinated in arriving at a decision to forward their application for the vote of no confidence on Sheikh Abdullah.

The deal allegedly includes an agreement on maintaining the services of Deputy Premier and State Minister of Cabinet Affairs Dr Ismail Al-Shatti in the event of a dissolution of the incumbent Cabinet, say sources, indicating both parties had also agreed on finalizing the list of Health Ministry employees that are up for promotion to top positions such as Ministry undersecretary and hospital directors. “The government has ignored warnings issued by the parliamentary and political blocs on the repercussions of making such deals with any party,” sources added.

By Salim Al-Wawan, Raed Yousef, Khalif Al-Hajeri and Faisal Al-Qahtani - Special to the Arab Times






Somalia: Parliament Approves a New Security Plan

Shabelle Media Network (Mogadishu)
NEWS
February 25, 2007
Posted to the web February 26, 2007

By Aweys Osman Yusuf
Mogadishu

The Somali parliament based in Badoa, south of the country, has today ratified a temporary law regarding the restoration of the national security after the security situation in the capital was going out of control.

After a long debate, 150 Somali MPs, who came to the parliament session on Sunday, approved that the Somali National Security Agency (NSA) should officially be on duty.

Osman Elmi Boqore, the second acting chairman of the Somali interim parliament, who was chairing the session concluded 143 MPs endorsed that NSA should be operational immediately.

The ratification of the new law comes as insecurity alarmingly rages in Mogadishu. Thousands of people deserted the capital after scores of civilians were killed by mortar explosions and crossfire while unidentified armed men and Ethiopian soldiers positioned in the capital exchanged mortar bombs and missiles, hitting residential areas in the past two weeks.

MPs threatened

Meanwhile, Asho Ahmed Abdalla an MP, who spoke at the parliament pointed out that her personal security was threatened by government forces. "I have been harassed because of my freedom of expressions and thoughts," she told the parliament.

She indicated that she and other MPs were intercepted and threatened while entering the presidential house in Baidoa.

"The government should not use the emergency laws against the MPs," she said. "I will defend myself if I am threatened again," she added.




Turkey: Parliament to tackle censure motion against ;Premier and Interior Minister

The New Anatolian / Ankara
26 February 2007

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The censure motion against Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan and Interior Ministry Abdulkadir Aksu, will be the primary topic before Parliament this week.

The ruling party-dominated Parliament on Tuesday will vote on launching an investigation into the premier and interior minister with a closed vote. The two are accused of neglecting their duty as well as concealing and distorting evidence and interfering in the judicial process in a motion submitted by the main opposition party, which highlighted several security-related issues during the Justice and Development (AK) Party's term, such as illegal wire tapping, the murder of Necip Hablemitoglu, terror attacks in Istanbul in 2003, bomb attacks against daily Cumhuriyet, last year's deadly Council of State attack, the killing of Priest Andrea Santoro in northern Trabzon in February last year, illegal Islamic group Hizb-ut Tahrir's mass demonstration at Istanbul's Fatih Mosque, Ismailaga Mosque murder and journalist Hrant Dink's assassination just last month.

Last week Aksu escaped from a censure motion filed by another opposition party, the Motherland Party (ANAVATAN). The ANAVATAN motion accused Aksu of neglecting his duty in relation to journalist Hrant Dink's murder in particular and overlooking a sharp rise in crime in general.

The CHP motion is the first motion that directly target Erdogan but given the AK Party's majority in Parliament, even if the proposal is not dropped, the investigation commission to be established would likely be dominated by ruling party members.

On Wednesday, Parliament is expected to evaluate some international agreements and a draft bill seeking change in Television and Radio broadcasts. The bill aims to add "The international science and medical rules on individual and public health should be followed in broadcasts," clause to related bill. The draft also calls for an obligatory broadcast of health programs.

The Parliament will be evaluating draft bill which regulates the tax, fund and share taken from lottery games.

Parliament Justice Commission Wednesday will discuss the draft bill on Internet crimes as well as another bill seeking change in Supreme Court of Appeals. Same day Interior Ministry will evaluate a draft bill seeking a change in Highway Traffic Law.





Ziyafet Asgarov: Azerbaijani Parliament recognizes Khojaly genocide

[ 26 Feb 2007 13:41 ]

“The Parliament doesn’t need to adopt an additional law on the Khojaly genocide. The decision adopted in 1994 confirms the recognition of Khojaly tragedy as a genocide and marking of February 26 as a day of genocide”, vice-speaker Ziyafet Asgarov told the APA.

He stated that the Parliament had adopted decision not a law on relevant issues in 1990-1995.
“Some announce it to gain additional points and others because they don’t understand it. We cannot raise the issue again in Parliament after 15 years amid world-wide recognition of Khojaly genocide. It is a pity that such groundless ideas occur. Azerbaijani Parliament has recognized the Khojaly tragedy as a genocide”, he said.
Ziyafet Asgarov noted that after the debate today, the Parliament will adopt a statement addressed to the world community. He stressed that they work regularly for the recognition of the Khojaly genocide in the parliaments of world countries. /APA/





Greek Parliament Speaker visits Bulgaria
26 February 2007 | 10:56 | FOCUS News Agency
Sofia. Greek Parliament Speaker Anna Benaki-Psarouda is on an official visit to Bulgaria, the Greek agency ANA-MPA reported. It’s the first official visit of a Greek Parliament Speaker to Bulgaria. On Sunday, Benaki met with representatives of the Greek community in the southern city of Plovdiv, with Plovdiv’s district mayor and mayor.
On Monday she is to meet with Bulgarian President Georgi Parvanov, Prime Minister Sergey Stanishev, and Parliament Speaker Georgi Pirinski. Anna Benaki-Psarouda will also visit St. Kliment Ohridski Sofia University, the National Academy of Arts and St. Alexander Nevski Cathedral.




Greece will continue supporting Bulgarian nurses in Libya: Greek Parliament Speaker
26 February 2007 | 12:14 | FOCUS News Agency
Sofia. “Anna Benaki-Psarouda reaffirmed the support of the Parliament of the Republic of Greece for the Bulgarian nurses in Libya”, Bulgarian Parliament Speaker Georgi Pirinski said after he met with his Greek counterpart Anna Benaki-Psarouda, who is on an official visit to Bulgaria, a journalist of FOCUS News Agency reported.
Anna Benaki-Psarouda stated that Greece would continue supporting the Bulgarian nurses, their families and the whole Bulgarian people.
“A just solution is needed that is based on the international law and respect for humanitarian principles”, the Greek Parliament Speaker said.
During their talks, Pirinski and Benaki-Psarouda expressed hope for deepening the cooperation between the two parliaments.
“The two countries’ parliaments may play a very important role for the Bulgarian and Greek citizens and companies to cooperate as citizens of two EU member states”, Pirisnki stated.






Australia: Parliament approves new citizenship laws

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February 26, 2007 - 9:09PM
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Australian citizenship will be harder to obtain after federal parliament approved the biggest overhaul of citizenship laws in almost 60 years.

The Australian Citizenship Bill, the biggest revamp of arrangements since the Nationality and Citizenship Bill came into effect in 1949, aims to tighten security over who becomes a citizen.

The changes are partly a response to security concerns raised in the wake of the London train bombings of July 2005.

Migrants now must spend four years in Australia before being eligible for citizenship - double the previous requirement of two years, and up from the three years the government had initially proposed in the legislation.

The Australian Security and Intelligence Organisation will be able to veto a person's citizenship application if it deems him or her to be a direct or indirect security risk.

The bill also makes it easier for anyone who renounced their Australian citizenship to regain it, providing they are of good character.

But it raises the age at which people become exempt from having to pass a basic English test, from 50 to 60 years.

The changes passed the Senate on Monday night after the House of Representatives approved them in November.

The government softened the laws slightly from the original proposal, so that there will be ministerial discretion over whether to grant citizenship to a person holding a criminal record.

Without the change, the legislation would have meant a person convicted of a crime in another country would be likely to have their application for Australian citizenship denied.

Labor had pointed out this would have meant former South African president Nelson Mandela could have been refused Australian citizenship if he had applied.

Human Services Minister Ian Campbell said there was also a right of review of any decision to refuse citizenship.

"I think it instills an amount of fairness which the opposition is seeking," Senator Campbell said.

More debate on citizenship is due later this year when the government moves to introduce tough measures requiring migrants to pass general knowledge tests before being granted Australian citizenship.

© 2007 AAP






Botswana: Skelemani asks Parliament to approve State President budget
26 February, 2007

PARLIAMENT-Parliament has been requested to approve a total of P4.36bn to be used by the Ministry of State President during the 2007/8 financial year.

Minister in the Office of the President, Mr Phandu Skelemani requested approval of P2.43bn under the recurrent budget and P1.9bn under the development budget.

He said 66 per cent of the total budget was allocated to the Botswana Defence Force, 26 per cent to Botswana Police Service while the remaining 8 per cent will be distributed among the State House, Office of the President, Directorate of Public Service Management, Office of the Former President, National Aids Coordinating Agency (NACA) and Directorate of Corruption and Economic Crime (DCEC). Minister Skelemani said the budget represented an increase of 14 per cent over the 2006/2007 budget estimates.

Under the development budget ,he requested P43.5m for the Directorate of Public Prosecutions for construction of offices and residential accommodation.

About P215m would be used for procurement of the presidential jet, which is estimated to cost P314m.

Mr Skelemani said the current jet was 15 years old and had had frequent mechanical problems hence the decision to purchase another one.

He also requested P11million for the completion of construction of kitchen, dining hall and hostel block at Botswana Institute of Administration and Commerce.

Under Botswana Police development budget, ,he requested P152m to carry out construction of new houses for police at Kasane, Molepolole, improvements of existing houses at Maun, Serowe, Mochudi, Ghanzi and Masunga.

The funds would also be used on renovations of some of existing police houses, construction of police station at Kachikau and for pre-construction processes of some police stations and residential houses.

On the new Police Air wing, the minister said a taskforce of five officers from BDF and Police had been appointed to undertake preliminary work including production of statement of user requirements and the necessary tender documentation.

He said an upfront payment for the Air Support Wing would be required during 2007/8. He also informed the House that the police service needed an additional 50 vehicles to supplement the other 50, which were acquired during the 2006/7 financial year.

For the upfront payment of the air wing project and the 50 additional vehicles Minister Skelemani requested P40.7million.

He further requested P25 million for networking of 53 police stations, roll out of Human resource, Global system for monitoring networks and the installation of Automated finger print identification system, upgrade of standby generators from Jwaneng to Nata, VHF trunking from Mochudi-Sikwane-Olifantdrift and the introduction of incident Management System.

Botswana Defence Force would be allocated P488 million, 51 per cent of which would be allocated for building projects and other infrastructural developments.

About P100 million would be used on the accelerated housing project arranged between BDF and Botswana Housing Corporation to address accommodation shortage.

The rest of the funds would be used for transportation and defence equipment needed by the force.

Procurement of a regional office for the DCEC in Francistown, expansion of the headquarters and development of DCEC website would require P10.4m.

For NACA, Minister Skelemani requested approval of P986m for implementation of ARV programme, orphan care, Community Home Based Care, Prevention of Mother To Child Transmission of HIV and other prevention activities. BOPA






Ukraine: Yanukovych: Parliament might elect President in 2009

The Prime Minister of Ukraine Viktor Yanukovych does not exclude that in 2009 the President will be elected by the parliament. He told yesterday in an interview, answering the question whether next presidential elections are national or takes place in the parliament.

“Both variants are possible,” Yanukovych told, having noted that it is hard to answer this question now.

“I suppose much will depend on position of the President and the opposition,” he added.

As to the coalition on this question, according to Yanukovych, it sticks only to one principle – retention of stability in society and state.

“If it is against the President’s wish, it means destabilization of the situation. We won’t do so,” Yanukovych said.

At the same time, according to Yanukovych, if the President becomes a destabilizing factor, then one should not exclude union of coalition and opposition “after all, it is known that BYuT aspires to propose its leader for next presidential elections,” he added.

But Yanukovych noted that coalition “casts aside” such scenario development at all.

“If the elections are national, the Party of Regions will propose its candidature, who has corresponding rate,” Yanukovych said.

As to possibility of early parliamentary elections, Yanukovych noted that both he and the Party of Regions stand against them as any early elections destabilize situation in the country and do not bring any use.
ForUm





India: `Q` rocks Parliament, both Houses adjourn for day
New Delhi, Feb 26: Charging the government with dragging its feet on the Quattrocchi issue, BJP, Samajwadi Party and other Opposition groups on Monday stalled proceedings in Parliament demanding immediate extradition of the Italian businessman for questioning in Bofors pay-off case.

Proceedings in the Lok Sabha and the Rajya Sabha were disrupted as the two Houses assembled for the day for the presentation of Railway Budget.

BJP and Samajwadi Party members rushed to the Well in both the Houses raising slogans.

The Lok Sabha was adjourned for an hour and the Rajya Sabha till 1400 hours amdist pandemonium.

As the Lok Sabha met again at noon and the Speaker called on Railway Minister Lalu Prasad Yadav to present the budget for 2007-08, the Opposition members continued their slogan-shouting.

Unmindful of the din, the Railway Minister went ahead with his new proposals in the 90-minute speech.

The scene was no different when the Rajya Sabha assembled at 1400 hours. As Deputy Chairman A Rahman Khan called on the Minister to lay a copy of the budget, BJP members rushed to the Well.

They said government should make efforts to extradite the Italian businessman, a key accused in the Bofors case, to stand trial in India.

As the din persisted, the Deputy Chairman adjourned the House for the day.

Bureau Report





Dubai: Al Tayer receives Austrian member of Parliament
H.E Mattar Al Tayer, Chairman of the Board and Executive Director of the Roads and Transport Authority (RTA) received Austrian memeber of Parliament Mr. Herbert Scheiber.

* United Arab Emirates: 3 hours, 44 minutes ago
* PRESS RELEASE



H.E Mattar Al Tayer with Mr. Herbert Scheiber.
H.E Mattar Al Tayer with Mr. Herbert Scheiber.

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The visit falls in line with RTA's goals of establishing its cooperation and expertise as an entity locally, nationally and internationally.

With a common vision of developing new concepts and services that optimize traffic flow, maximize safety and minimize expenses, this meeting proved to be promising. It facilitated an exchange of bilateral views on transport and technology, emphasizing on Austria's contribution to the development and upcoming projects of roads and the infrastructure in Dubai.

Mr. Scheiber was given an overview of the RTA and its projects currently implemented which exceed costs of AED 21 billion; like the Dubai Metro project which costs AED 15.5 billion and is one of the longest driverless Metro trains in the world. Al Tayer said that the first phase of the Metro called the Red Line would be completed in September 2009 while the second phase called the Green Line would be completed in March 2010. Details on the stations and the operations of the project were shared.

Al Tayer also shed light on major road projects like the expansion of Garhoud Bridge, the Floating Bridge which will ease the traffic on Maktoum Bridge by 37%, the Fourth Crossing, expansion of Emirates road from three to five lanes and the new toll system called 'Salik' which reflects RTA's commitment to implement cutting-edge traffic management solutions that will improve mobility and save time and energy.

The toll system is set to contribute to traffic management and reduction of congestion by 25% as it will encourage wider use of public transport, enhancing the use of single car occupancy within same family and/or institution, strengthening car pooling, using alternative routes, and bringing down pollution levels by reducing the number of cars on the roads and driving time.

It also reflects the operational strategy of the system, wherein motorists do not have to pay the toll manually but through a card from which the toll will be deducted electronically. In the absence of a card, the commuter will be fined. Mattar added that the entity has prepared a program that includes awareness campaigns catering to all segments of society through various media.

Mr. Scheiber thanked Al Tayer and praised the entity for its achievements. He said that Austrian companies would definitely like to participate in tenders and work in Dubai. He lastly expressed his gratitude for the hospitality he experienced in the UAE in general and in Dubai in particular, and spoke of the strong diplomatic and trade relations between Dubai and Austria, and praised the comprehensive development including economic, social, and all aspects in Dubai.



Kenya: Karua opposes plan to alter Parliament rules

Story by NATION Corerspondent
Publication Date: 2/24/2007

Justice and constitutional affairs Minister, Matha Karua yesterday opposed plans to overhaul parliament’s system.

She said the new proposals which will radically change the long standing rules and traditions of the National Assembly were not acceptable.

Ms Karua said in particular the role of Vice President as the leader of the Government business could not be changed.

‘’Government business in parliament is a priority and the VP ensures that all the bills the executive has interest in - were pushed and passed for the benefit of all Kenyans,’’ she said.

She said the speaker of the National Assembly could not be allowed to direct Government business because he was not in the Government.

The Minister said they were waiting for the motion to be tabled in Parliament for debate.

‘’We are waiting for the motion to be brought to the floor of the house and it shall be shot down,’’ she said.





Four Guatemalans arrested in killing of Central American Parliament members

By: JUAN CARLOS LLORCA - Associated Press

GUATEMALA CITY -- Four Guatemalan men were arrested Thursday in connection with the killing of three Central American Parliament members, including the son of the alleged founder of El Salvador's death squads.

The assailants repeatedly shot Eduardo D'Abuisson, son of El Salvador's late right-wing leader Roberto D'Abuisson, two other Salvadoran officials and their driver before setting them on fire while they were still alive, officials said. Their charred bodies were found Monday along a road about 20 miles southeast of Guatemala City.

Radio Sonora reported the suspects are two high-ranking police officials and two police investigators. All four, the radio said, were assigned to a special unit to combat youth gangs.

On Thursday, police spokeswoman Maria Jose Fernandez told The Associated Press four suspects were being held, but declined to confirm if they were members of the police department or give any details until officials hold a press conference later in the day.

The three slain politicians -- D'Abuisson, William Pichinte and Ramon Gonzalez -- represented El Salvador at the Central American Parliament, which is based in Guatemala City and has 132 members representing five of the seven Central American nations. They were all members of El Salvador's ruling party, ARENA.

Officials, including El Salvador's president, said they suspect the slayings were politically motivated. Investigators have not given a motive.

President Tony Saca and other leading members of the ARENA party received D'Abuisson's body Wednesday. D'Abuisson, whose father founded ARENA, was to be buried Thursday.

"This is one of the saddest days in the history of the ARENA party, and one of the saddest days in the history of El Salvador," said Saca, who is to meet with President Bush next week. Saca said the FBI has been asked for help in the investigation.

D'Abuisson, 32, was serving his first term in public office and was not viewed as a controversial figure.

His late father was embroiled in scandals as the alleged founder of El Salvador's death squads during its civil war from 1980-92. The death squads were responsible for the kidnap, torture, and murder of tens of thousands of civilians.

His father, who died of throat cancer in 1992, was accused by a U.N. truth commission of having ordered the killing of Archbishop Oscar Arnulfo Romero, but an amnesty granted at the end of the war prevented him from going to trial.

Pichinte, 49, was a ruling party federal legislator before being elected to the Central American Parliament. The owner of a successful hat factory, his hats were a trademark of ARENA supporters at party rallies.

Gonzalez, 57, was a ruling party founder and worked closely with the elder D'Abuisson in organizing rallies.

The escorts had followed the men -- who were traveling in three cars -- from the Salvadoran border to the capital's edge, where the vehicles took different roads into the city, officials said. They were believed to have been kidnapped and then taken to a farm to be executed.

Guatemalan politician Leonel Sisniega said the farm "was a common meeting spot for Guatemalan anti-Communists who sympathized with Roberto D'Abuisson."

-- Associated Press Writer Diego Mendez contributed to this report from El Salvador.






Ukraine parliament rejects pro-Western FM

KIEV: Parliament rejected Ukrainian President Viktor Yushchenko’s proposed candidate as foreign minister on Thursday, casting new doubt on the increasingly isolated leader’s pledges to seek entry to the European Union and Nato. Yushchenko, swept to power on a wave of “Orange Revolution” protests in 2004, has all but lost control of the legislative agenda since he appointed arch-rival Viktor Yanukovich as prime minister last year.

Beaten by Yushchenko in the 2004 election, Yanukovich staged a comeback after the president’s “orange” allies scored badly in a later parliamentary poll and were unable to form a government. The president’s popularity has sunk to single figures.

Only 196 members backed Volodymyr Ohryzko, a career diplomat who had vowed to uphold Yushchenko’s foreign policy, cornerstone of a liberal programme promised during the revolution’s euphoric rallies. That was far short of the 226 needed to pass in the 450-member assembly.

The chamber later rejected in a similar vote the president’s proposed candidate to head the SBU intelligence service. In the debate leading up to the vote, parliament’s majority coalition, including Yanukovich’s Regions Party and the pro-Russian Communists, denounced Ohryzko as too pro-Western. “This is a very unfortunate candidate and we hope that Yushchenko will come up with another person,” Yuri Boldyrev of the Regions Party, told the chamber.

“You have destroyed everything there was to destroy in foreign policy,” said Communist Oleksander Holub. “Step aside and let others take over.” But Yushchenko’s representative in parliament said the president intended to submit Ohryzko’s name again for approval.

The president said this week that he saw no alternative to Ohryzko, 50, a diplomat since 1978 who held senior positions under Yushchenko’s long-serving predecessor, Leonid Kuchma. The president’s powers were reduced under constitutional changes approved at the height of the protests and they were further limited by a law passed by parliament last month.

He retains some control over defence and foreign policy and is challenging the constitutional changes in court. Before being appointed last August, Yanukovich signed under takings to leave intact the president’s foreign policy.




India: Budget Session of Parliament begins
New Delhi, Feb 23: The Budget Session of Parliament began on Friday, with a heavy legislative agenda, amid speculation that the third budget of the UPA government will be growth-oriented.

The session opened with President APJ Abdul Kalam`s address to the joint sitting of both Houses in the Central Hall of Parliament.

The spiralling prices and terrorist attacks in various parts of the country has given enough ammunition to the BJP and supporting Left Parties to corner the government.

The BJP has already announced that it would move an adjournment motion on the issues of failure of the government to curb inflation which is seeing an upward trend and a dismal performance on the national security front.

The Left Parties, too, had stated that they would raise issues of price rise, internal security, agrarian crisis and farmer suicides, indicating a tumultuous budget session.

The outcome of the assembly polls in Punjab, Manipur and Uttarakhand will also have a bearing on the session.

Incidentally, the poll outcome on 27th February in Punjab, Uttarakhand and Manipur will come a day ahead of the presentation of the Union Budget.

While the Railway Budget will be presented on 26th February, the Economic Survey will be out the following day.

The two key legislations - the Unorganised Social Security Bill and the Women`s Reservation Bill will also surface in the three-month-long session of Parliament.

The BJP has accused the government of pursuing a soft policy on terrorist activities, which has seen a surge in the recent past and the latest example in the series was that of bomb blasts in Samjhauta Express.

The BJP said on the one hand the Government failed to curb inflation and check price rise, while on the other there was an increase in subversive activities across the country.

The BJP feels that the spurt in terrorist activities was due to the soft anti-terrorist policy of the UPA government.

The rising interest rate scenario has also upset the applecart of the Economic policy and will become a subject of attack of Opposition parties.

Incidentally, the BJP will formalise its joint strategy with its allies tomorrow at a meeting to nail the government on various issues.

On the international relations front, the upcoming SAARC summit, the ongoing peace process with Pakistan and Indo-US nuclear deal would find a place in the budget session.

Traditionally, the Budget Session is packed with legislative business. The session beginning Friday will be no exception and many of the bills will be relating to economic and financial business.

Bureau Report





Tear gas canisters cause panic at Kenyan parliament
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Unused tear gas canisters were found within Kenyan Parliament buildings on Wednesday, the local Daily Nation reported.

The find immediately threw into panic officers responsible for securing the buildings and left members of Parliament raising question marks about their security.

National Assembly Speaker Francis ole Kaparo immediately issued a circular to all MPs telling them they will now have to undergo security checks before entering Parliament.

Although the Clerk of the National Assembly, Samuel Ndindiri, maintained that the six unexploded canisters were found "inside the perimeter fence of the main Parliament Buildings", sources said they were found in one of the pigeonholes where letters to MPs are dropped.

A parliamentary employee is said to have stumbled on the canisters in the morning while cleaning the pigeonholes where mail to East African Legislative Assembly members are usually placed.

On being alerted, more police officers were deployed to the two gates to Parliament to inspect vehicles and control visitors to the buildings.

Police ballistic experts were called in to take the canisters and help in unravelling the mystery of who might have taken them to the lobby.

However, the security lapse on Wednesday is not the first. The Parliament was invaded by thieves two years ago when gangsters went to the accounts offices and made away with several computers. No one was ever arrested in connection with the theft.

A few months later, during the official state opening of Parliament, a stranger strolled into the Chamber and sat near President Mwai Kibaki. The man later claimed he was an old friend of Kibaki.

Source: Xinhua






Scotland: Final bill for Parliament is £414m

Comment

THE final cost of the Scottish Parliament is £16million less than expected - but it still cost the taxpayer more than £414million.

Presiding Officer George Reid revealed the figures today as he announced the "closure" of the Holyrood building project.

Mr Reid said the cost had fallen £16.1m from an estimated £430.5m to £414.4m.

He also revealed that "after extensive investigation" the Corporate Body - the committee of politicians and officials which runs Holyrood - had decided not to take legal action on issues about the construction.

However, moves are being made to recover the £400,000 repair costs arising from the collapse of a strut in the chamber last year.

Mr Reid agreed with Lord Fraser, who led the inquiry into the spiralling costs of the building, that "everyone engaged in the project - consultants, contractors, MSPs, staff - might have managed it better".

He said: "In making our announcement today, we are not trying to sweep past problems out of the way. The most we can claim is a steely determination to get a grip on the project, to move us on, and never to give up on our dedication to get back what we could for the public purse.

"I use the word 'closure' in its full double meaning today. Closure in the sense of finalising the accounts. But closure also in the psychological sense of finally letting go of a problem."
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Publication date 21/02/07





Iran's Parliament will review budget bill in Mar.

Friday, February 23, 2007 - ?2005 IranMania.com
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Archived Picture - First Vice Speaker of the Majlis Mohammad-Reza Bahonar said that Majlis will begin reviewing the budget bill for the Iranian year (March 2007-2008) on March 3.

LONDON, February 23 (IranMania) - First Vice Speaker of the Majlis Mohammad-Reza Bahonar said that Majlis will begin reviewing the budget bill for the Iranian year (March 2007-2008) on March 3.

According to IRNA, Bahonar, who was speaking at an open session of the Majlis, said there will be no open session of parliament next week.

President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad submitted his proposed 229,000-bln-rial annual budget for the Iranian year 1386 to the Parliament on January 21.

The proposed budget, the second to be submitted to Majlis by President Ahmadinejad, shows a 19.6% increase over the figure in the current budget.

As in previous years, Majlis will review the bill and propose whatever amendments it deems necessary.

The MPs will have 10 days to study the proposed budget and inform the Majlis? Budget Commission of their findings and recommendations.






Bulgaria: Non-Confidence Vote Submitted for Discussion in Parliament

Updated on: 23.02.2007, 11:33

Published on: 22.02.2007, 12:46

Author: Dimitar Tabakov

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55 MPs from the opposition including the 'Democrats for Strong Bulgaria' party, the United Democratic Forces, the Bulgarian People's Union and the nationalist party 'Attack' demand a vote of non-confidence for the Cabinet led by socialist Sergey Stanishev.

Chaos in the healthcare, low pensions and high taxes on rakia are driving people to the streets but the government seems not to care, the opposition says.

Protests have been taking place in the Bulgarian capital on a daily basis for the last couple of weeks.

On Thursday, pensioners gathered once again in front of parliament building but started bickering and many just left.

Yane Yanev, from the "Law, Order, Justice" party said they are organized a big protest on March which they hope will unite pensioners, doctors, and anyone else who is not satisfied with their government.





Ukraine: Opposition to withdraw from electrical fuse room in parliament

Kyiv, February 23 (Interfax-Ukraine) - On Friday, after the parliamentary plenary meeting is over, the representatives of the opposition will withdraw from the electrical fuse room in the parliament, deputy BYT leader Oleksandr Turchynov reported on Friday.

"When this session week is over, there is no sense in us blocking electricity supplies to an empty parliament," he told Interfax-Ukraine.

According to him, opposition does not deal with "electricity issues, we deal with political issues."

13:33:36 EET-2





Afghanistan: Atrocity survivors still wait for justice

February 24, 2007

Hamid Karzai sits on the fence as the warlords take control, writes Paul McGeough in Kabul.

GLORIOUS sun bathed the snow-clad mountains that tower over this city, but a winter chill nipped at the hundreds of people as they trudged the rutted tracks of Afshar to remember just one atrocity in Afghanistan's unending wars.

They came on foot, to scatter rose petals on a rocky mound that is a mass grave for more than 70 victims of just one day in the senseless fighting that reduced Afghanistan to a wasteland over three decades.

They also came to stare down the warlords and to challenge the propensity of the President, Hamid Karzai, to sit on the fence in a time of crisis.

Does Karzai hold to demands by these powerful warlords and their militiamen that they be absolved of their war crimes, or does he back a push by some foreign governments and human rights groups for accountability in a genuine process of national reconciliation?

The mostly Shiite men and boys who came to remember Afshar had the round, Asiatic faces of Afghanistan's long-oppressed Hazara minority. But before visiting the mass grave they gathered to mark this 14th anniversary of the massacre in a nearby mosque.

Rickety old men, some in tears, were guided to their places on threadbare carpets. In silent reverie, they sat cross-legged while the haunting falsetto chants issuing from a tinny PA system reverberated off rubble that once was their homes, shops and offices in the foothills of Kabul's south.

Fourteen years on, the horror lingered. Emotions welled up with the realisation that most who were present had been tortured or had seen relatives die as the mujahideen warlords of the early 1990s decided they would destroy this quarter of the city rather than cede control of just one of their murderous armies.

The speakers rattled off numbing figures - somewhere between 800 and 1000 were killed in a single day; of the 1220 who were detained, just 150 were released, most only because their wealthier families could buy their freedom; hundreds of homes were looted and thousands of people were displaced when their houses were destroyed in the mindless shelling.

A prominent Kabul journalist, Mohammed Qasim Akhgar, spoke in clipped, hypnotic tones as he railed against those whom he described as "butchers".

"They made our blood run like water in the streets and they are still alive, but no one dares to arrest them because of their power," he said.

Wearing a trench coat and scarf against the cold, Ahmad Ali Khargar was as brief as he was blunt: "It was the blackest time for us. We have to know who did this to us and we have to know why our government will not help us now. They treat us as if we are not Afghans."

Starting very quietly, the man introduced simply as Colonel Azidullah urged the congregation to tell their stories: "You are the living witnesses. You know the history of the death and torture of our men and the rape of our women. Only 72 bodies are buried in our mass grave because we could not find the others in the rubble."

His voice cracked, but after pausing to compose himself, he went on: "Apart from having no money, the fear of uncovering the dead is one of the reasons why so few of our homes have been rebuilt. Who will be held responsible for this?" Their stories were so overwhelming that they told them only in the baldest terms. Instead, they asked a simple question over and over. Why?

"Why us? Why did no one help us back then? Why does no one help us now? Why are those who brutalised us allowed to get away with their crimes?"

Amid the black-draped walls of the mosque, their grief was all the more poignant because in recent weeks they have watched as some of their tormenters have hijacked Afghanistan's new Western-backed parliament in a bid to absolve themselves and their allies of any wrongdoing - driven apparently by their alarm at the fate of the former Iraqi dictator Saddam Hussein, who was hanged in December.

On Tuesday the upper house voted overwhelmingly - 50-16 - to endorse a bill passed in the lower house last month that gives immunity to all accused of atrocities in the Afghan wars, dressing it up in an argument that letting them off would be an act of national reconciliation.

Urging Afghans to respect and honour the warlords, the bill states: "All political parties and belligerent groups who fought each other during the past 2½ decades … will not be pursued legally or judicially."

Such is the fear today of the old mujahideen warlords and powerbrokers who have seamlessly taken control of the parliament and much of Afghanistan's new government, that the simple act of attending last Friday's memorial service was an act of courage.

President Karzai is in a bind. He has endorsed a report by the Afghanistan Independent Human Rights Commission that sets out a detailed national reconciliation plan, and he has said that he cannot accept the amnesty bill passed by the parliament. After Tuesday's vote, a presidential spokesman said Karzai would seek advice on the legality of the amnesty bid, but its backers claim they can override a presidential veto if they can muster a two-thirds vote in the parliament.

Karzai has publicly defended some of his most powerful advisers and functionaries who are among the accused, and refused to release or to act on a damning United Nations report on alleged war crimes that was handed to him almost two years ago.

When the New York-based Human Rights Watch named the suspected war criminals in a widely accepted report last year, Karzai dismissed it as "incorrect and regrettable".

The UN's special representative to Afghanistan, Tom Koenigs, told reporters before Tuesday's upper house vote: "Amnesty for gross violations of human rights and for war crimes shouldn't exist."

There is a yearning among Afghans for a South African-style truth-and-reconciliation process to somehow draw a line under the horror of three decades. But there is neither truth nor much hope of reconciliation in the smokescreen bill rammed through the parliament by the warlords and their minions.

The Afghanistan Independent Human Rights Commission's reconciliation plan - the cornerstone of which is acknowledgement of and accountability for wrongdoing - was devised after a remarkable survey of more than 6000 Afghans revealed that 90 per cent wanted all human rights violators removed from public office and that 40 per cent wanted them prosecuted.

As more mass graves are uncovered - the most recent, in December, reportedly contained more than 2000 victims of the 1980s Communist regime - human rights groups fear that Karzai will succumb to pressure from the warlords before going along with international demands, particularly given Washington's silence on the calls for accountability.

As he left Friday's memorial service, the head of the rights commission, Nadir Nadiry, said: "You have just heard the voices of the victims. Granting the blanket amnesty demanded in the parliament would only promote impunity and a personal search by the victims for revenge.

"It is the victims who must decide who was responsible for their suffering - it is their right. We are still waiting for a clear and proper statement by the President, but this amnesty bill endangers all that we have achieved so far."

In Kabul and beyond, there is rising anxiety about how the decisions taken by the governments here and in Washington will influence the reconciliation issue and its implications for Afghanistan's stability.

Human Rights Watch's Asia research director, Sam Zarifi, said from New York before Tuesday's vote: "I think that President Karzai would like to get rid of some of these people but he doesn't have the backing of the US. Until the Americans come out and actively support a genuine process of reconciliation, he will not move against them."

In the 1980s the Russian occupation forces and their Afghan puppets destroyed the countryside, but in the 1990s it was the Afghans themselves who destroyed Kabul.

Human Rights Watch's authoritative 2005 report, Blood-Stained Hands, concludes: "Many Kabulis viewed the Afshar Campaign as a milestone in the post-communist era, a moment when they [finally] realised the real ethnic tensions underlying the fighting in Kabul and the extent to which different mujahideen factions - who had mainly fought the Soviet regime for so long - were now prepared to kill fellow Afghans."

Human Rights Watch argues that many leaders implicated in the abuses now hold key posts in the Afghan defence and interior ministries or act as presidential advisers. A slew of them won seats in parliament and others continue to operate as warlords or regional strongmen, leaning on their proxies in official positions in, what Human Rights Watch describes as "an insult to the victims and an affront to justice".

The abuses at Afshar and elsewhere in Kabul, according to its painstaking research, saw whole sections of the capital reduced to rubble, tens of thousands of civilians killed and wounded, and at least 500,000 people displaced.

"Rival armed factions committed extensive human rights abuses and violations of the laws of war, illegally shelling and rocketing civilian areas, abducting and murdering civilians, and pillaging civilian areas," it says.

Of the period since the US-led invasion, the rights group concludes: "For the past five years, the Afghan Government, the UN and the international community, led by the United States, have pursued a counter-productive policy of relying on war criminals, human rights abusers and drug traffickers instead of prosecuting them - Karzai mistakenly tried to bring [them] under his umbrella, while the US worked with many as part of its 'war on terror'."

At Afshar, those who attended the memorial service queued to tell their stories to the Herald despite appeals by other community members that they not name individuals who abused them.

Among them was Merza Hussein, a wizened and wispy-bearded 77-year-old. Throwing caution to the wind, he accused the fighters of strongman and powerful presidential adviser, Abdul Rabb al-Rasul Sayyaf, of arresting and torturing him.

"They held me for six months and beat me on the back of the neck with lengths of electrical cable," he said.

A 38-year old medical technician, Shukrullah Safdar Ali, called for public executions: "They are in government and in the parliament now. They must be hanged and we must always remember.

"They took the wealthy as prisoners and they killed the poor. They made me carry the loot they took from my family's home and then they made me carry ammunition supplies to the top of the mountain so that they could fire the bullets and rockets back into my community.

"I saw 500 people die in the six months before I escaped by jumping from a second-floor window."

Despite his accusations of butchery, the journalist Mohammed Qasim Akhgar urged the mosque gathering to cease their annual commemoration of the dreadful days of 1993.

The warlords and their political allies organised a rally in support of themselves in Kabul on Friday - predicting that as many as 50,000 Kabulis would come to support them.

But in Afshar at least, today there is no sense that the people are ready to move on — pain does not forget.







India: Unanimity among parties on 100 sittings of Parliament
New Delhi, Feb 23: Prospects of throwing open proceedings of Parliamentary Committees to the media dampened Friday with an all-party meeting on the issue witnessing conflicting views.

The meeting, convened by Lok Sabha Speaker Somnath Chatterjee, however, saw unanimity on the issue of having at least 100 sittings of Parliament in a year. At present there are less than 80 sittings.

The issue of opening of Parliamentary Committees is being debated for quite some time with a section feeling that such a move would bring greater transparency in the working of Parliament.

After the meeting, Chatterjee told reporters that since "conflicting views" were aired on the issue, it would be taken up separately.

On the demand for having 100 sittings, Parliamentary affairs minister P R Dasmunsi said there was no objection to it but maintained that it should be right of the government to fix the number of sittings and that there should be no Constitutional amendment to ensure it.

He said the government was prepared to have a minimum of 100 days' sitting of Parliament, but suggested that state assemblies too should increase their number of sittings and at the same time it should be ensured that the proceedings were conducted smoothly and more legislative business transacted.

While expressing the hope that there will be 100 days sitting of Parliament, the Speaker appealed to the political parties to see that the sittings were "utilised properly".

Gurudas Das Gupta (CPI) and Basudeb Acharya (CPI-M) said if the number of sittings were increased, important issues could be discussed threadbare.

Bureau Report







Azerbaijani Press Council appeals to Parliament on Khojali genocide

[ 23 Feb 2007 17:04 ]

Azerbaijani Press Council held a roundtable on the 15th anniversary of Khojali genocide, APA reports.

Press Council chief Aflatun Amashov stressed the importance of covering Khojali genocide in Azerbaijani press. He suggested the journalists to appeal to the Parliament for the recognition of this tragedy as Khojali genocide.
Bakhtiyar Sadigov, editor-in-chief of Azerbaijan newspaper, member of Managing Staff of the Press Council said that the press does not cover this subject well enough.
“Some opposition newspapers publish very few materials on Khojali genocide,” he said.
Sadigov also noted the importance of cooperation of the press with Diaspora.
Vusala Mahirgizi, APA Director General called on Azerbaijani press to be delicate with regard to this problem. The editor-in-chief especially regretted that the reports about the Azerbaijani Army are ignored.
“While using facts against Azerbaijan, Armenian press mostly quotes to Azerbaijani press,” she said.
Elchin Mirzabeyli, editor-in-chief of Khalg Jebhesi newspaper suggested the mass media to post a special link about the genocide on the Internet, to publicize Khojali genocide simultaneously and to visit Khojali monument.
Vugar Rahimzadeh, editor-in-chief of Iki Sahil newspaper said that Azerbaijani press should express identical position while informing the world community of the Khojali genocide.
At the end of the event the participants appealed to the Parliament for the recognition of Khojali tragedy as genocide. /APA/






Botswana: Parliament autonomy must be emphasised MP
23 February, 2007

PARLIAMENT - Gaborone Central MP, Mr Dumelang Saleshando, has emphasised the need to ascertain the autonomy of Parliament to enable it to carry out its oversight role.

In his contribution of the budget for the National Assembly, Mr Saleshando regretted that studies and recommendations on the independence of Parliament had long been submitted to the powers that be, who had not taken any positive step towards achieving that.

We are not making any progress towards making this House fully independent and it appears the status quo would not be changed in the foreseeable future, he said.

Mr Saleshando also decried the laxity in implementing the law on MPs declaration of assets after the adoption of a motion advancing the issue long ago.

He also urged that the process of taking Parliament to the people be revived with much vigour as it helps the public to appreciate the role of MPs as well as what to expect from them.

Such a step would enhance our democracy as it makes our electorate informed. It will also frustrate populists who often gain political mileage by promising the electorate material things outside their mandate, he said.

He further decried that if we continue to perpetuate this myth about the role of MPs in our country we are not doing our people any good.

He also called on the equipping of Parliamentary staff on issues of research and economics so as to boost their capacity and ultimately that of MPs in debating such issues in various forums.

Serowe South MP Pelonomi Venson-Moitoi called for the revision of laws and regulations governing the debates in Parliament, saying they were susceptible to abuse by opportunists.

She said the intention of the privileges and immunity accorded MPs during their debates was unfairly being manipulated by some MPs.

Mr Shaw Kgathi of Bobirwa urged the House to move towards being an e-Parliament by being wary and conscious of the developments in the information technology arena.

Mr Kgathi said portfolio committees must be introduced so as to heighten the level of debates and save time for other issues of concern to Parliament.

He also criticised the system of catching the speakers eye when one intends to debate, saying it has since been overtaken by events.

We should instead be using machines that would record who pressed first because even our speakers do not have excellent sight to capture the first MP to rise, he said.

Kgalagadi North MP Obakeng Moumakwa noted that the core duty of Parliament was to make legislation that would ensure efficient running of the republic.

As such he called for capacity building for staffers at Parliament, plus the resourcing of the House library so that MPs could easily carry out their mandate.

He criticised the system of seconding employment of constituency officers to politicians, saying it frustrates productivity and continuity as each new MP comes with his own staff.

Mr Isaac Mabiletsa of Kgatleng East said equipment at MPs offices was not up to scratch, a move that demeans the status of the House.

He also said constituency offices must be given fully equipped vehicles with a public address system so as to end the dispute between MPs and the Department of Information Services.

Meanwhile, in his proposal for Parliament budget approval, Minister Phandu Skelemani requested P61.8 million for the recurrent budget and P8.9 million for the development budget.

The funds were for outsourcing security and gardening services as well as replacing all curtains in the Parliamentary flats.

They will also pay for construction of a gymnasium at the Parliamentary village as well as networking constituency offices to the government data network.

Skelemani added that a website for Parliament that was separate from that of government was being developed by some local IT consultants and should be completed by March/April this year.

For this years proposal P57 million has been allocated to Parliament while Ntlo ya Dikgosi gets P4.3 million. BOPA







Top Canada court strikes down anti-terror law
Sat Feb 24, 2007 12:37 AM IST20

By David Ljunggren

OTTAWA (Reuters) - Canada's Supreme Court struck down on Friday a controversial anti-terror law that allows foreign suspects to be detained indefinitely on the basis of secret evidence.

The court ruled unanimously that the government had broken Canada's Charter of Rights and Freedoms by issuing so-called security certificates to imprison people, pending deportation, without giving them a chance to see the government's case.

"Before the state can detain people for significant periods of time, it must accord them a fair judicial process," Chief Justice Beverley McLachlin wrote on behalf of all nine judges.

"The secrecy required by the (certificates) scheme denies the named person the opportunity to know the case out against him or her, and hence to challenge the government's case."

The court suspended the ruling for a year to allow Parliament time to rewrite the relevant part of the Immigration and Refugee Protection Act, under which the certificates are issued.

The court ruled on cases brought by three Arab Muslim men who were detained between 2001 and 2003 on suspicion they were part of al Qaeda.

Ottawa says the men can leave the country at any time but must remain in detention or very close watch until then because they pose too much of a threat. The men say they could be tortured if they are sent back to their countries of birth.

"What Parliament needs to do is come up with alternatives that strike a better balance, a fairer balance between security and liberty," said Sujit Choudhry, a lawyer for Human Rights Watch.

The men argued that it was unfair that they were being treated differently from Canadian citizens suspected of terror links, who have more legal rights. Two of the men have since been released on bail with very strict conditions.

"It's an almost total victory," said Johanne Doyon, a lawyer for Adil Charkaoui. "I've told Mr Charkaoui the good news. He was very happy to learn that his (legal) arguments had been accepted."

The court decision is likely to provoke an angry response from Canada's minority Conservative government, which is unhappy with what it sees as a court system too soft on crime.

Prime Minister Stephen Harper this week criticized the opposition Liberals over their refusal to renew some provisions of anti-terror laws passed in the wake of the Sept. 11 suicide attacks in the United States.

The court said that while it fully recognized the state had the duty to protect citizens against acts of terror and other threats, the certificate system was too intrusive on the rights of individuals.

"I would declare the procedure to be inconsistent with the Charter, and hence of no force or effect," McLachlin wrote.

The government says Charkaoui, a Moroccan, trained at an al Qaeda camp in Afghanistan in 1998. It says another appellant, Syrian Hassan Almrei, arrived on a false passport and was in an Osama bin-Laden-linked forgery ring that produced false documents.

A lower court judge has found that Mohamed Harkat, an Algerian, to have lied about al Qaeda ties and about having assisted Islamic extremists.

The Supreme Court ruling said one way to improve the system of certificates would be to appoint a special advocate to challenge the security evidence.

Last year Charkaoui denied all the accusations against him and said that if the government had a case it should try him in a public trial for the crime of being a terrorist.





Guinea parliament rejects extension of martial law
Michael Sung at 1:55 PM ET

Photo source or description
[JURIST] Members of Guinea's National Assembly voted unanimously Friday to reject the request of Guinean President Lansana Conte [BBC profile] for an extension of martial law in the Republic of Guinea [government website, in French; US State Dept. backgrounder]. Conte declared [JURIST report] martial law in the country last week, and the measure is set to expire at midnight Friday. Conte said Thursday that he would seek an extension [Reuters report] from parliament.

Hundreds of civilians have been arrested [JURIST report] for opposing the government since Conte announced martial law February 12 in response to protests and strikes in opposition to Conte's continued rule. In addition to the lifting of martial law, opposition leaders are demanding a new prime minister before unions will end the strike. The emergency declaration instituted a strict curfew and authorized the military to monitor phone calls and to put under house arrest anyone who engages in activities "against the state." Guinea's military has been accused of firing upon unarmed protesters [HRW report] as well as beating and raping civilians. In November of 2006, Guinea was ranked as one of the world's most corrupt nations [JURIST report] by the annual Transparency International Corruption Perceptions Index





Guinea parliament rejects prolonging martial law
23 Feb 2007 22:52:58 GMT
Source: Reuters
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Background
Guinea unrest
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(Updates with army chief broadcast, unions, paragraphs 7-11)

By Saliou Samb

CONAKRY, Feb 23 (Reuters) - Guinea's parliament on Friday refused a request from President Lansana Conte to extend martial law in a rare act of defiance against his autocratic rule over the West African country.

The period of martial law, imposed nationwide 11 days ago to quell violent protests accompanying a general strike, was due to expire later on Friday, but the president had asked the National Assembly to prolong it, citing security concerns.

"The assembly deputies present unanimously refuse to renew martial law," National Assembly President Aboubacar Sompare told parliament after a vote on Conte's request.

This meant the martial law measures, which gave the military sweeping powers of search and arrest and imposed a dusk-to-dawn curfew, would cease at midnight on Friday.

Union leaders say Conte, a reclusive diabetic in his 70s who has ruled since 1984, is unfit to govern. They are demanding he appoint a new, neutral head of government with powers to hire and fire his own ministers.

They had argued Conte's plan to extend martial law would serve only to radicalise popular opposition to him and said their strike would continue until he named a new prime minister.

Later on Friday, Guinea's army chief of staff, Kerfalla Camara, ordered an end to the labour stoppage.

"The military authority decides that work should restart on Monday, February 26 ... and that (school and university) classes should restart on Thursday, March 1," he said in a broadcast on state television and radio.

"Businessmen and administrative authorities are invited to resume their activities," he added, saying the armed forces would protect people and property.

Union leaders rejected the military chief's order.

"The chief of staff wants to take the place of the unions. We are continuing our strike movement until a consensus premier is named," union negotiator Boubacar Biro Barry said.

OPPOSITION HAIL VOTE

Earlier, the opposition hailed the parliament vote as a historic victory. "It is the first time that such a controversial decree has been rejected unanimously," parliamentary opposition leader Ousmane Bah told Reuters.

Strike leaders relaunched their stoppage after Conte chose a close ally, Eugene Camara, as prime minister despite having agreed to name a consensus figure as part of an earlier deal.

More than 120 people, mostly unarmed civilians, have been killed since the beginning of the year in clashes between security forces and protesters.

The imposition of martial law restored some calm to the former French colony, keeping protesters off the streets by giving the army the right to shoot looters and troublemakers.

The unrest in Guinea has raised concerns that growing protests could shatter a fragile peace in the wider region, particularly in neighbouring Sierra Leone and Liberia, which are just starting to recover from civil wars.

Nigeria's former military ruler General Ibrahim Babangida, who is leading a delegation from the West African regional body ECOWAS for the second time in a week, met union leaders on Friday to push for a negotiated settlement.

Liberian President Ellen Johnson-Sirleaf told Reuters during a visit to Rwanda that Conte must work with all parties to stop the political crisis deteriorating into bloodshed and threatening neighbour states like her own country. (Additional reporting by Arthur Asiimwe in Kigali)







Western Equatoria parliament removes State Governor
Sunday 25 February 2007 03:30.
Printer-Friendly version

Feb 24, 2007 (LONDON) — The Western Equatoria state assembly voted, in an unprecedented move on Tuesday 20 February, to oust the current incumbent Governor Lt Gen. Samuel Abujohn, press release stated.

The move came after the stalemate in Western Equatoria State which has been going on for about six months now since the appointment of the new Governor in a controversial decree last September 2006. The former governor Patrick Zomai had been suspended on 16 June 2006 over corruption and incitement to tribal conflict accusations.

Governor Abujhon was ousted by the State parliament “because of incompetence and a series of failures.” The decision was taken by the state lawmakers during debate on the bill of finances for 2007, on 20 February.

Abujhon was at odds with ministerial team and was often absent from his office and delaying the function of the institutions of the state.

(ST)

For further details, please read the press release hereunder by chairman of Western Equatoria Azande Community , Eng. Charles B. Kisanga, Who is a credible source in Wetern Equatoria affairs:
Azande Community World-Wide Organisation

Press Release

Western Equatoria state parliament voted to remove Governor Abujohn

Feb 24, 2007 — Reports from the ground in Western Equatoria seem to suggest that the state assembly voted, in an unprecedented move on Tuesday 20 February 2007, to oust the current incumbent Governor Lt Gen. Samuel Abujohn.

The move came after the stalemate in Western Equatoria state which has been going on for about six months now since the appointment of the new Governor in a controversial decree last September 2006 by Lt Gen. Salva Kiir Mayardit, the President of Government of Southern Sudan.

After his appointment Lt. Gen. General Samuel Abujohn wanted to dismiss most of the ministers from the previous state Government on trumped up corruption charges. The charges were said to be baseless after a GoSS committee/officials had a look at them and so Abujohn had been instructed to continue working with those ministers including the Finance minister who had been sometimes under house arrest and on continued suspension.

Hence when it came to the making and passing of Western Equatoria budget for 2007 it were mostly the State Assembly committees to draw up the budget and present it with some directives from the Governor himself. Recently before the budget was passed by the state assembly the Governor had rushed to Juba to follow up his continued request for dismissing people from his cabinet. The deputy Governor also followed suit. However due to the urgency of the need to pass the budget of 2007 since most departments were going unpaid, his acting Government led by Mrs Jasmine Samuel had no alternative but to present the budget for passing before the state legislature. They were also forced by the civil servants and the public who were threatening to go on demonstrations unless something was done about the none-payment of salaries whereby some departments in Western Equatoria state had gone for months without pay.

Hence on 20th February 2007, the state assembly convened to discuss the budget and during that debate the assembly decided to slash most of the amounts on the state ministries budget proposals. After that the assembly also raised a motion of no confidence in the Governorship of Lt. Gen Samuel Abujohn. The state assembly then proceeded to debate that they no longer recognise Samuel Abujohn as governor and they would inform Juba of their decision to strip the Governor, Samuel Abujohn, because of incompetence and a series of failures. Some of the reasons said to be cited were like the lack of his appearance in the office. Some members claimed that ever since taking office and especially more recently, the Governor Samuel Abujohn cannot afford to stay in his office for more than 30 minutes. They claim that even at home where he might claim to work from he is accused of always lying in bed all the time and he cannot afford to sit upright for more than half an hour in order to discuss matters with visiting officials. Also the issue of security and of non-payment of salaries of civil servants as well as the stalemate in the government of Western Equatoria . The issue had been the Governor, Samuel Abujohn had suspended some ministers without being able to replace those he suspended thereby rendering his Government ineffective. Also suspending the finance minister also meant that funds and cash were being handled only by the Governor himself whereby he has resorted to the abuse of power by choosing to pay only those whom he may wish to pay since he is the only man who can sign payments to officials.

On hearing of the action taken by state Assembly while he was in Juba , the Governor Samuel Abujohn ,rushed back to Yambio where he yesterday hurriedly convened a meeting of the SPLM Party from 7:00 pm until 1:00 am in the morning. He blasted the SPLM members for siding with other parties to oust him and he is now claiming that all SPLM members who took part in the vote will be dismissed from the assembly with immediate effect. He has also asked for the detention of Mr. Simon Kayang, an MP of the state assembly because the Governor said he is one of masterminds of the plot to impeach and oust him.

The Western Equatoria Intellectuals and the Diaspora would like to inform the Governor that dismissing or suspending MPs it is not the best way to solve problems as it is the MPs constitutional rights to take action if it is deemed the Government is failing the people. In the recent past the Assembly of Eastern Equatoria also did vote to impeach their Governor and in such cases members of parliament are immune from persecution and so the Governor has no right to suspend or dismiss MPs. Also the Governor is said to be refusing to pay some MPs their salaries claiming that they are bad people who took part in a plot against him. This is not the right way forward as the MPs are not supposed to be hindered by the Governor from practicing their constitutional rights of discussing the effectiveness of the Government of the day.

Hence we call upon the Governor to reverse all his punishments levied against MPs for discussing his incompetence since he has no legal bases for suspending MPs for exercising their legal rights. Also we call upon the MPs of Western Equatoria state to conduct their impeachment procedure following the right steps such as writing an official letter to the effect with their resolutions and sending an official delegation to Juba to explain to the GoSS president the reasons why they think Lt Gen Samuel Abujohn must go and why they now want a new governor. We argue everybody to conduct themselves according to the rule of law so that these problems are solved amicably as much as it is guaranteed under the constitution of the state and that of Southern Sudan ..

Charles B. Kisanga M.Sc, MBCS, MIET

Eng. Kisanga is former SPLM NLC member and chairman of Western Equatoria Azande Community World-Wide Organisation. He is currently living and working in exile in the UK and he can be reached on cbkisanga@yahoo.co.uk






Uganda: Parliament Rejects Loan Bid

The Monitor (Kampala)
NEWS
February 25, 2007
Posted to the web February 24, 2007

By Yasiin Mugerwa

A fairly divided Parliament on Thursday temporarily halted the government's bid to borrow $26.4 million from the World Bank, citing glaring loopholes in the proposal.

The loan is part of the East African trade and transport facility intended to develop infrastructure, transit transport, customs and trade facilitation in the region.

Buyaga MP Barnabas Tinkasimire demanded that the government proposal to put administration costs of the project at 37 per cent instead of 10 per cent contravened normal practice. Other MPs demanded that the $26 million be reduced to $18 million.

"We cannot borrow money for the sake of borrowing when Mulago Hospital needs only $6 million for a heart machine. We have components within the loan request, which do not need to be funded. We cannot budget for a feasibility study when the government is already aware of what is on the ground," Mr Tinkasimire said.

Defending government, Finance minister Ezra Suruma said the World Bank loan terms were standard and could not be reversed by orders of Parliament. He said: "We complied with all the procedures and there is no loophole in the request. We included a feasibility study component because it is necessary and is a professional way of undertaking serious projects."

Butambala MP Ibrahim Kadunabbi, who is also the National Economy Committee chairperson, however agreed to the credit facility. "Our border posts are in a sorry state and should immediately be repaired to create a fair working environment as part of the implementation of the project process. We need to boost our regional integration through this loan facility," he said.

But Budadiri West MP Nandala Mafabi and Erute South lawmaker Simon Odit, among others, advised the government to reconsider the loan request. "We want to facilitate our regional trade, but this loan request would have been analysed by the committee on infrastructure. This was not done because the government wants us to just approve," Mr Nandala complained.

Following the impasse between most MPs and the government side, Speaker Edward Ssekandi deferred the debate to Tuesday this week.

"It seems this issue has become controversial. We shall continue with this debate next week when the minister will be able to defend his request," Mr Ssekandi ruled.

If approved by Parliament, the project is expected to address trade and transport related problems in the region. In Uganda, the project will be implemented by two agencies; one will be under the Ministry of Works and Transport, and another under the Uganda Revenue Authority.






Zambia: European Parliament Backs EU Policy On Poverty Purge

The Times of Zambia (Ndola)
NEWS
February 24, 2007
Posted to the web February 24, 2007

THE European parliament says it is committed to the European Union (EU) policy on poverty alleviation and achievement of the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) in developing countries.

The parliament's committee on development said the parliament adopted resolutions in 2005 on the impact of the lending activities of the European community in developing countries.

Head of unit for the committee, Michael Wood, said this in a letter to the Citizens for a Better Environment (CBE) executive director, in response to CBE's request for EU support for the Government's proposal for upwardly-adjusted mineral royalty tax.

CBE contended that it was aware the EU and associated states had provided approximately 60 per cent of the Highly Indebted Poor Countries (HIPC) debt initiative's financing and that they had pledged to go beyond HIPC targets by officially providing 100 per cent bilateral pre-COD debt relief for all claims under HIPC.

Mr Sinkamba said this was because there was too much unsustainable exploitation of natural resources by multinational corporations, including those sponsored by the EU.

"The price for copper now is close to US$4.0 per pound. Increasing mineral royalty tax to a marginal 2.5 per cent is a positive measure which the Government needs to undertake to enhance positive benefits for the local people and environmental protection," read the letter.

He said the increase was likely to meet resistance, especially from multinational mining corporations. Mr Sinkamba said his organisation was aware that EU through its European Investment Bank (EIB) sponsored three multinational corporations namely First Quantum Minerals, Glencore and Equinox Mineral Limited.

He said it was likely that the bank would attempt to object to the tax proposals just as the multinational companies would.

"We, therefore, call upon the EU to prevail over these corporations, without exception, to cooperate with the Government over this legitimate case," the letter read.

Mr Sinkamba said there was no cause for any of the multinational corporations operating in Zambia to complain over intended increase in tax.

But Mr Wood said the Parliament had asked the EIB to include in its conditions for support given to enterprises in developing countries, that lending be conditional on relevance of the projects to the attainment of the MDGs.







Italian president urges parliament to vote on PM again

24.02.2007, 18.44





ROME, February 24 (Itar-Tass) -- Italian President Giorgio Napolitano did not accept Prime Minister Romano Prodi’s resignation and asked the parliament to debate the issue again.

The president urged the parliament to vote on the matter as soon as possible.

After a meeting with the president, Prodi headed for the Senate to inform its Speaker, Franco Marini, of Napolitano’s decision.

Rome Mayor Walter Veltroni and MP Oliviero Diliberto, the head of the of Party of Italian Communists, which is part of the centre-left coalition in the parliament, welcomed the president’s decision.







India: BJP to rock UPA in Parliament on Quattrocchi

New Delhi, Feb. 24 (PTI): The BJP today decided to take on the government in Parliament on Monday on the issue of "hiding" information of detention of controversial Italian businessman Ottavio Quattrocchi.

The decision was taken after the meeting of core group - comprising senior leaders such as L K Advani, Sushma Swaraj and Jaswant Singh - held at the residence of NDA Chairperson Atal Behari Vajpayee.

Quoting Advani, senior leader and party's spokesman V K Malhotra said, "This is the most important issue. Why they were silent for 17 days since the arrest of Quattrocchi? We will question the government. They will have to give an explanation."

"We want to ask the Prime Minister, UPA Chairperson Sonia Gandhi, and CBI Director when exactly they got the information," Malhotra told PTI.

He said out of 30 days time required to submit extradition request, 17 precious days were lost while the government waited for State Assembly elections to be over.

"We will also draw attention to the Right To Information (RTI) Act which has been enacted. Hiding information about a criminal itself is a criminal act," Malhotra said, adding before taking up the issue in the Parliament, the party will seek concurrence of its NDA coalition members on Monday.

Earlier in the day the BJP questioned the sincerity of the CBI stating the agency has been instrumental in defreezing Quattrocchi's London account and letting him of by not filing an appeal against the verdict that exonerating him.

Quattrocchi, wanted in the Bofors case for the last 14 years, was detained by the Interpol in Argentina on Feb. 6 while he was on transit to Buenos Aires.






India: After theatres, Parzania in Parliament
ibnlive.com
GOING PLACES: Parzania will be screened during the Budget session of Parliament.

New Delhi: A rather filmi treat awaits Parliamentarians and media when they attend the budget session of Parliament.

Minister for Information and Broadcasting P R Dasmunsi on Saturday announced that Rahul Dholakia's Parzania will be screened for the MPs and media during the Budget session of Parliament.

Parzania, the film which was for long mired in controversy as many organisations feared that its screening would trigger vandalism, was released across India on January 26, 2007.

Dasmunsi added that there would be two special screenings of the film at the Balayogi Auditorium in the Parliament House.

The film starring Naseeruddin Shah and Sarika among others is a story of a Parsi family whose son went missing in the communal clash in Ahmedabad on March 1, 2002.

While the film had been cleared for screening by the censor board, multiplex owners in Gujarat had refused to screen it following alleged threat from organisations close to the BJP.

Defending the multiplex owners’ stand, Gujarat Multiplex Owners Association vice president Mahendra Goswami said, “The censor board has passed the film for the entire country but what people forget is that the issue is based in Gujarat and so should be dealt as a special case.”





New Palestinian government expected by early March: Parliament speaker

The Associated Press
Saturday, February 24, 2007
Click here to find out more!

GAZA CITY, Gaza Strip: The Islamic Hamas group expects to form a coalition government with the rival Fatah movement by early March, a senior official said on Saturday.

Parliament speaker Ahmed Baher told a news conference he expected Prime Minister Ismail Haniyeh of Hamas to present a new coalition government for the legislature's approval "by the first week of March."

Haniyeh's Hamas-led government resigned nine days ago to make way for a unity government with Fatah, in an effort to halt clashes between the two that have left more than 130 dead since May.

Palestinians also hope the international community will resume aid flows to a government moderated by the presence of Fatah, led by the separately elected Palestinian president, Mahmoud Abbas. But the West, which imposed the sanctions to pressure Hamas to recognize Israel, renounce violence and uphold past peace agreements with Israel, has insisted these conditions be met before aid is restored.

Hamas has refused, agreeing in the power-sharing pact only to "respect" past peace accords.





Nepal: Parliament ready to declare republic: Nemwang

Kantipur Report

KATHMANDU, Feb 24 - Speaker of the Interim Legislature-Parliament Subash Nemwang on Saturday said that the Interim Legislature-parliament is ready to declare Nepal a republican state if the parties agree.

Speaking to media persons at Terhathum to inaugurate the 12th anniversary of the Kirant Yakthum Chumlung, Nemwang said that if needed, the legislature was ready to formulate new laws in order to take action against the king for his controversial message on Democracy Day. The king had made an address to the nation defending his February 1, 2005 takeover.

He also added that the present laws were sufficient to initiate actions against the king.

Stating that the government was looking into the Rayamajhi panel's report, he assured everyone that proper actions would be taken against the culprits.

He also said that although the interim constitution had many faults, the government wanted it promulgated for the Constituent Assembly elections scheduled for mid-June.





Kenya: Karua Opposes Plan to Alter Parliament Rules

The Nation (Nairobi)
NEWS
February 24, 2007
Posted to the web February 24, 2007

By Nation Corerspondent
Nairobi

Justice and constitutional affairs Minister, Matha Karua yesterday opposed plans to overhaul parliament's system.

She said the new proposals which will radically change the long standing rules and traditions of the National Assembly were not acceptable.

Ms Karua said in particular the role of Vice President as the leader of the Government business could not be changed.

"Government business in parliament is a priority and the VP ensures that all the bills the executive has interest in - were pushed and passed for the benefit of all Kenyans," she said.

She said the speaker of the National Assembly could not be allowed to direct Government business because he was not in the Government.

The Minister said they were waiting for the motion to be tabled in Parliament for debate.

"We are waiting for the motion to be brought to the floor of the house and it shall be shot down," she said.





Canada: Top court nixes security certificates
The Supreme Court of Canada tells Ottawa to find a new way to deal with suspects born overseas.
By JIM BROWN, CP

OTTAWA -- The Supreme Court of Canada, in a landmark ruling hailed as a victory for civil liberties, has told Parliament to find a new way of dealing with foreign-born suspects accused of harbouring terrorist sympathies.

In a 9-0 judgment yeserday, the court overturned the system of security certificates used by Ottawa to detain and deport non-citizens on public safety grounds, saying the regime violates the Charter of Rights.

But Justice Beverley McLachlin, writing for the unanimous bench, suspended the full legal effect of the ruling for a year.

That will give legislators time to rewrite the law and comply with constitutional principles guaranteeing fundamental justice and banning arbitrary detention.

Peter Van Loan, the Conservative House leader in the Commons said the Tories will work quickly to a way to "reconcile the need to protect the security of Canadians with the directions to Parliament from the court." Public Safety Minister Stockwell Day also promised to respond.




Kenya: Karua opposes plan to alter Parliament rules

Story by NATION Corerspondent
Publication Date: 2/24/2007

Justice and constitutional affairs Minister, Matha Karua yesterday opposed plans to overhaul parliament’s system.

She said the new proposals which will radically change the long standing rules and traditions of the National Assembly were not acceptable.

Ms Karua said in particular the role of Vice President as the leader of the Government business could not be changed.

‘’Government business in parliament is a priority and the VP ensures that all the bills the executive has interest in - were pushed and passed for the benefit of all Kenyans,’’ she said.

She said the speaker of the National Assembly could not be allowed to direct Government business because he was not in the Government.

The Minister said they were waiting for the motion to be tabled in Parliament for debate.

‘’We are waiting for the motion to be brought to the floor of the house and it shall be shot down,’’ she said.





Costa fears bad economic outcome of hung Parliament

New South Wales Treasurer Michael Costa says a hung Parliament after next month's election would be the worst economic outcome for the state.

In a speech to the Property Council in Sydney yesterday, Mr Costa was asked what the Government would do if there was a hung Parliament, meaning it would need to join with independents to form a majority government.

He said it was the worst form of government because it meant being held to ransom by sectional interests.

"Vote decisively and vote Labor," he said.

Mr Costa says while the Government would work with independents if necessary for business and the property sector to get what they are seeking, a clear mandate was needed.

"Investors require an environment that maintains confidence, they like stability and stability requires a decisive government," he said.

He says the State Government's experience in the Upper House where it did not have a majority was difficult, describing some cross-benchers as "strange".








Canada: Top court overturns security certificates, gives MPs year to draft new law
at 18:20 on February 23, 2007, EST.

OTTAWA (CP) - The Supreme Court of Canada, in a landmark ruling hailed as a victory for civil liberties, has told Parliament to find a new way of dealing with foreign-born suspects accused of harbouring terrorist sympathies.

In a 9-0 judgment Friday, the court overturned the current system of security certificates used by Ottawa to detain and deport non-citizens on public safety grounds, saying the regime violates the Charter of Rights.

But Justice Beverley McLachlin, writing for the unanimous bench, suspended the full legal effect of the ruling for a year. That will give legislators time to rewrite the law and comply with constitutional principles that guarantee fundamental justice and prohibit arbitrary detention.

Peter Van Loan, the Conservative House leader in the Commons, said it will take time to study all the implications of the ruling, but he signalled that the Tories will get to work quickly.

"We will be reviewing that decision and seeing if there is a way to - and we are confident we can - reconcile the need to protect the security of Canadians with the directions to Parliament from the court," Van Loan told the House.

Public Safety Minister Stockwell Day, a staunch defender of the certificate system in the past, issued a written statement promising to respond in a "timely and decisive fashion" to the ruling.

But he also hinted at partisan battles to come, branding his Liberal opponents "soft on terrorism" and portraying the Conservative government as "unwavering in its determination to safeguard national security."

At a later news conference, Day appeared to play down the impact of the court decision, suggesting it should be read as upholding the "general principle" of security certificates but requiring some reforms. "We will look at the changes that are necessary," he said.

Johanne Doyon, the lawyer for Moroccan native Adil Charkaoui, one of three men who challenged the certificate system, described the judgment as a "nearly total victory." She predicted the government wouldn't dare try to deport any of the three during the grace period it will take to revise the law.

Chakaoui, at a news conference in Montreal, noted that although he is free on bail he still has to wear an electronic monitoring bracelet and comply with other strict conditions on limit his movements.

"I've never been found guilty of any crime," he said. "I don't know how the Harper government is going to react. Will they continue to harass me, or will they see reason and clear my name?"

Matthew Webber, who represents Algerian-born Mohamed Harkat, saw the judgment as an indication that "for the next year we'll be playing a bit of a waiting game."

He said his client, who is also free on bail, will be going back to court to try to loosen his release conditions that now amount to virtual house arrest.

Harkat's Canadian-born wife Sophie called the ruling far better than she expected. "I've said many times in the past four years that I've been very disappointed in the justice system (and) in Canada itself. But today I'm proud."

John Norris, representing Syrian-born Hassan Almrei, said the ruling couldn't have been clearer. "The court has resoundingly struck down the legislation and found that it is fundamentally flawed."

Unlike the other two men, Almrei remains behind bars at a federal prison in Kingston, Ont. But his legal team intends to return to court, in light of the judgment Friday, to try to win his release on bail.

All three men are accused by the Canadian Security Intelligence Service of having ties to al-Qaida and other overseas terrorist groups. All deny the accusations.

The high court's judgment also applies to two other men who weren't technically part of the appeal - Egyptian natives Mahmoud Jaballah and Mohammad Mahjoub, who also deny any terrorist links and are fighting deportation to their homeland.

Critics have long denounced the security certificate system, which can lead to deportation of suspects on the basis of secret intelligence presented to a Federal Court judge at closed-door hearings.

Those who fight the allegations can spend years in jail while their cases work their way through the legal system. In the end they sometimes face removal to countries with a track record of torture.

The Supreme Court wasn't asked, and didn't offer, a definitive opinion on whether it's ever permissible to send someone to a country where torture is a risk. That issue is being litigated in other proceedings.

But the ruling Friday condemned the practice of presenting evidence behind closed doors, with no lawyer for the accused present and with only a sketchy summary of the allegations made public.

McLachlin acknowledged there may be legitimate reasons for keeping some sensitive material secret. But she concluded the present process "fails to ensure the fair hearing that (the Charter) requires before the state deprives a person of life, liberty and security of the person."

She suggested Parliament could solve the problem in several ways - for example, by allowing special security-cleared lawyers to attend the closed-door hearings, to challenge the government evidence and to protect the rights of the accused.

A similar system of "special advocates"' is used in Britain, and former Liberal justice minister Irwin Cotler was considering it for Canada when his party lost the last election.

Another approach could be to give the Security Intelligence Review Committee, the civilian body that oversees CSIS, a role in the process. The committee used to play such a role, but lost it when the law was amended several years ago to shift the responsibility to Federal Court.

Another possibility, said McLachlin, would be the process used in some criminal trials arising from the 1985 Air India bombing. Lawyers for the defendants were allowed to see some sensitive evidence to help them mount their defence, but had to promise in writing not to share the material with their clients.

Yet another approach was taken by the inquiry into the Maher Arar affair, which used a security-cleared lawyer as a so-called amicus curiae, or friend of the court, to help the presiding judge assess the quality of secret evidence.

McLachlin made no effort to impose any one model, leaving the ultimate decision to Parliament.

On the other key point at issue, she concluded the present detention process for suspects awaiting deportation is too arbitrary, because some have better access to bail hearings than others depending on their precise legal status.

McLachlin solved that problem by "reading into" the law a guarantee that all detainees should be brought before a judge to have their case reviewed within 48 hours. That provision is effective immediately.




Scotland: Clouds hovering over parliament
John Knox
Political reporter, BBC Scotland

"It's not worth it now... but it might be worth it one day." That's how one visitor to Holyrood summed up the final price tag for the new building, £414m.

"We have come to the end of the eight-year Holyrood saga and now we seek closure," said Presiding Officer George Reid as he presented the final accounts for a project which has embarrassed the whole home rule experiment.

The final bill is £16m less than was expected a year ago.

But it's 10 times the original cost stated in Donald Dewar's devolution white paper, which envisaged a more modest building on a cheaper site.

The official inquiry by Lord Fraser found no-one was to blame for the £100m said to have been wasted on constantly changing plans, so no-one is to be sued.

But the parliament is to try to recover the £1m cost of the repairs and disruption caused by the slipped beam in the debating chamber last year.

The parliament's reputation for scatter-brained accounting was not exactly helped by the publication of the annual figures for MSPs expenses.

They showed a rise of 8%, to £9.8m, more than double the rate of inflation.

The figures managed to baffle most observers about which of the 129 MSPs was the worse spendthrift.

The Socialists and the Greens appear to account for their spending on staff costs in a different way from everybody else, which has the unlikely effect of putting them top of the league table of shame.

Nor do the figures include spending on office equipment and supplies which, I would have thought, were pretty obvious "expenses".

As over the Holyrood building itself, there must be a better system of keeping accounts.

'Under a cloud'

As George Reid put it: "The men and women who represent Scotland do not deserve to live under a cloud."

There were plenty of other clouds hovering over the parliament this week.

At First Minister's Questions, Jack McConnell found himself in trouble with the SNP over class sizes.

There's been a subtle change in the policy that the maximum size of classes in English and maths for the first two years of secondary school should be 20 pupils.

That's been changed to "an average of 20 pupils" to allow schools a little "flexibility".

"We listened to voices," said Mr McConnell, and he paused.

There was laughter from the SNP who suspected all along perhaps that the first minister was seeking divine inspiration to meet his new "average" target.

The voices turned out to be those of head teachers who, faced with 21 pupils at the beginning of term, were supposed to hire an extra teacher and build an extra classroom for just one pupil.

But the SNP had found out, through official requests under the Freedom of Information Act, that not one mainland education authority had reached the new average target of 20 pupils per class.

"Even when he shifts the goal posts," said Nicola Sturgeon, "the first minister still manages to miss the goal."

Mr McConnell said the target had been set for autumn 2007 and it would be achieved.

An extra 3,500 teachers have been trained this year.

It later emerged, however, that Glasgow and the other city councils were not even collecting the figures.

The Conservatives asked the first minister if he was considering changing the ancient law against "double jeopardy", under which a person cannot be tried for the same crime twice.

The law has been changed in England and Wales, following the murder of the black teenager Stephen Lawrence.

Party leader Annabel Goldie said: "If the Liberal Democrat-Labour pact is really committed to justice, they would be supporting the victims of crime in Scotland and changing the law."

The first minister said the Conservatives often forgot that the Scottish legal system was different from England and Wales.

"We will not be bounced into a change in the double jeopardy law," he said.

"We we will make our own decision in our own time."

The Conservatives also led a debate this week on road tolls.

They are dead against them, though the other parties pointed out that the Conservative leadership in London appear to be in favour of a nationwide scheme.

The Liberal Democrat Transport Minister Tavish Scott told MSPs: "We will consider road pricing as a mechanism to address traffic congestion, both with the UK Government and using own own devolved powers."

Less enthusiastically

But he made it clear that other car taxes would have to come down as part of the deal.

Labour's spokesman Bristow Muldoon reiterated much the same thing but said it much less enthusiastically.

And the SNP declared themselves against tolls, where ever they are, but especially on the Forth Bridge.

On Wednesday, there were debates on community safety and nuclear power.

On Thursday afternoon, we were on to housing, debating a call from the homeless charity Shelter for 30,000 new homes for rent.

The Scottish Executive argued that it was already building 21,500 new affordable homes and Scotland was on target to be the first country in Europe to offer every unintentionally homeless person somewhere to live by 2012.

Inevitably the issue of "seller surveys" came up.

On Monday, the executive announced a formal consultation exercise on how the seller survey will be introduced in Scotland next year.

Anyone who wants to sell a house will have to provide each bidder with a professional survey of the property costing between £300 and £700.

The Housing Minister Des McNulty argued that it would prevent people bidding "blind" and reduce the need for multiple surveys.

It would also simplify the property market by doing away with unrealistic "offers-over" prices, he said.

But the Law Society and the Conservatives argue that it's an unnecessary interference in the free market.

Another important announcement this week was the executive's alcohol strategy.

This turned out to be something of an empty glass.

The only real proposal appeared to be stepping up the checks on shops which sell alcohol to underage children.

Is this the kind of science we should be relying on to safeguard our marine environment?
Robin Harper MSP
Scottish Greens

It disappointed many experts by failing to tackle the problem of cheap drink.

Even as the "strategy" was being published, figures came out from the UK Government showing Scotland has twice the rate of alcohol deaths than any other part of Britain.

A total of 45 people in Scotland die of alcohol-related causes every week.

You may remember that earlier this month, the environment committee carried out an inquiry into the plans by the Norwegian company SPT Marine to transfer oil from Russian ships into large tankers in the Firth of Forth.

The company said in written evidence that it had an excellent record for safety, it had only spilled four barrels of oil in the last 10 years.

What it failed to tell the committee was that 12 year ago, it was heavily fined for a large oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico.

The Green Party, which exposed this interesting fact, accused SPT of misleading the committee and of a lack of integrity.

"Is this the kind of science we should be relying on to safeguard our marine environment?" Green MSP Robin Harper asked at question time.

The first minister replied mysteriously: "There could yet be a role for the Scottish Executive in this."

Ministers have previously said the final decision rests with Forth Ports, which is both a privatised company and the safety authority.

It may be though that that will all change under the review of maritime law now being carried out by the UK Government and the executive.

That, however, will come too late to stop the Russian ships appearing over the horizon.






Indian Parliament Tackles Inflation
Ruth David, 02.23.07, 4:23 PM ET

MUMBAI -

Addressing the opening of a joint session of Parliament to hammer out the coming year’s budget, the first item Indian President A.P.J. Abdul Kalam addressed was one also at the top of most investors minds — inflation.

Kalam said the government was committed to reining in rising prices to ensure that economic growth, currently running at a pace above 9% a year, will benefit the poor.

In a country where the majority of people live below the poverty line, rising costs of essential goods can bring governments down at election time. And with political parties going to the polls in seven states this year, the ruling coalition is fighting to tame inflation.

“As growth and investment accelerate rapidly and income rises, there is bound to be a rising demand for all products, particularly products of day-to-day consumption,” Kalam said.

His remarks came shortly before data was released showing that the rate of inflation had dropped marginally to 6.63% in the week that ended Feb. 10 from a two-year high of 6.73% a week earlier.

To combat inflation, the government has stopped exports of wheat and reduced import duties on capital goods, food oils and industrial raw materials like cement and copper. It also cut the prices of gasoline and diesel.

The central bank has tightened monetary policy to force banks to rein in lending.

The government is expected to further cut duties on edible oils and extend a window for duty-free wheat imports.

On Thursday, Prime Minister Manmohan Singh set up a special unit to monitor prices of essential goods on a daily basis and help the state governments enforce price controls. He also directed state governments to come down heavily on speculators and hoarders who are inflating prices.

The finance minister will present the budget on Feb. 28, and the communist-backed government is likely to ensure there are provisions for the millions in India who haven’t tasted the benefits of a fast-growing economy and rising corporate wages.

Indian Railways, the nation’s largest employer with 1.5 million people on its payrolls, will present a separate budget on Feb. 26. Railway Minister Lalu Prasad Yadav is known for populist measures, and it’s likely he will leave freight charges unchanged for the third time.



Australia: Parliament approves new citizenship laws
Monday Feb 26 21:04 AEDT

Australian citizenship will be harder to obtain after federal parliament approved the biggest overhaul of citizenship laws in almost 60 years.

The Australian Citizenship Bill, the biggest revamp of arrangements since the Nationality and Citizenship Bill came into effect in 1949, aims to tighten security over who becomes a citizen.

The changes are partly a response to security concerns raised in the wake of the London train bombings of July 2005.

Migrants now must spend four years in Australia before being eligible for citizenship - double the previous requirement of two years, and up from the three years the government had initially proposed in the legislation.

The Australian Security and Intelligence Organisation will be able to veto a person's citizenship application if it deems him or her to be a direct or indirect security risk.

The bill also makes it easier for anyone who renounced their Australian citizenship to regain it, providing they are of good character.

But it raises the age at which people become exempt from having to pass a basic English test, from 50 to 60 years.

The changes passed the Senate on Monday night after the House of Representatives approved them in November.

The government softened the laws slightly from the original proposal, so that there will be ministerial discretion over whether to grant citizenship to a person holding a criminal record.

Without the change, the legislation would have meant a person convicted of a crime in another country would be likely to have their application for Australian citizenship denied.

Labor had pointed out this would have meant former South African president Nelson Mandela could have been refused Australian citizenship if he had applied.

Human Services Minister Ian Campbell said there was also a right of review of any decision to refuse citizenship.

"I think it instills an amount of fairness which the opposition is seeking," Senator Campbell said.

More debate on citizenship is due later this year when the government moves to introduce tough measures requiring migrants to pass general knowledge tests before being granted Australian citizenship.





India: An 'adults only' show in Parliament
IANS
JUVENILE BEHAVIOUR: Most of what was said in Lok Sabha on Monday is unprintable.

New Delhi: It was an unforgettable day for Indian Railways that recorded an unprecedented profit of Rs 20,000 crore in its budget, but for those who cover Parliament it turned out to be a day that one would like to forget.

The Lok Sabha, the hallowed lower chamber of Parliament in which 545 individuals represent the dreams and aspirations of a billion plus population, took on the look of a fish market with decorum thrown to the winds and Parliamentary behaviour touching its nadir.

Such were the choice invectives that Parliamentarians hurled at one another that it made a veteran scribe, who has witnessed many a heated Parliamentary debate, remark tongue-in-cheek that the proceedings could have been labelled 'Adults Only' on the Lok Sabha television channel.

Even an otherwise strict Speaker Somnath Chatterjee was helpless in controlling the MPs, who called each other names, displayed provocative gestures and hurled abuses at one another.

The Opposition, which was upset over the delay in seeking extradition of Ottavio Quattrocchi, the Italian businessman accused in the Bofors payoff scandal, did not keep quiet for a moment. Even the ruling MPs tried to match them in lung power and abuses at the end.

It was astonishing to see how even the senior most in the opposition ranks were out of their seats and joined in the din as Railway Minister Lalu Prasad carried on gamely with his budget speech, occasionally raising his voice to a pitch in order to be heard.

There were, however, some exceptions. Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) MP Manvendra Singh was on his legs most of the time but did not join the shouting brigade. So did some of the Shiv Sena MPs.

Looking at Congress chief Sonia Gandhi directly in the face, the MPs called her a "thief" and termed Quattrocchi as "UPA (United Progressive Alliance)'s uncle."

"Whose uncle had eaten the bribe," they asked. "He is your father", retorted a ruling party MP. Most of the other remarks they uttered were unprintable.

However, many journalists noticed the firmness on Gandhi's face. "Let them shout. I am okay," Sonia was heard telling her colleagues, who apparently asked her whether she wanted the railway minister to quickly wind up his speech.

Although the opposition's rhythmic slogan-shouting made his more than an hour-long budget speech almost inaudible, Lalu Prasad's remarks like 'arrey bhai rest lo thoda (dear brothers take some rest)' and 'suno na achhi bathein hein (listen to me there, are many good things to come)' resulted in some comic interludes.




Azerbaijan: » Parliament to adopt decision and statement on Khojaly genocide
26 February 2007 [20:55] - Today.Az
Azerbaijan's Parliament (Milli Majlis) held a debate on the Khojali genocide committed by Armenian forces 15 years ago.

The debate covered statement worked out by the parliament's commission established for Khojaly genocide and draft decisions. The statement considers legal estimation of Khojaly genocide in the world, stresses the importance of finding the ideologists and organizers of the tragedy. Azerbaijani parliament appealed to all international organizations, as well as OSCE, Council of Europe, European Union, CIS and world countries for recognition of the genocide.

Draft decisions state that the attack to Khojaly was led by the commanders of the USSR's 366th Motor Rifle Regiment Seyran Ohoyan, Yevgeni Nobakixa and staff Chief Valeri Chitchyan.

The document notes that the parliamentarians should propagandize truths about the Khojaly genocide. The project envisages establishment of Information-Researches Center under the parliament to gather materials about Armenian aggression, committed acts of genocide in Azerbaijani regions, Khojaly genocide.

Law enforcement bodies should strengthen measures to identify the persons participated in committing the Khojaly genocide and holding the criminals accountable. State organizations and NGOs should be recommended to unite efforts on spreading information about the Nagorno Karabakh conflict and expose false Armenian propaganda.

The parliamentarians made a number of proposals during the debate. They expressed protest against not mentioning Armenia's President Robert Kocharian's name as the main participant of Khojaly genocide in the documents adopted by the Azerbaijani parliament. The parliamentarians wanted Arkadi Gukasyan's, Robert Kocharian's and Zori Balayan's names to be included in the adopted documents.

Some parliamentarians proposed to establish Khojaly museum, Committee for Recognition of the Genocide and find ways for bringing offenders to international court.

The parliament's statement and decision on Khojaly genocide will be adopted in tomorrow's sitting. APA

URL: http://www.today.az/news/politics/37060.html






Ghana: Chief of Staff to face Parliament over Ghana@50 fund disbursement

The Chief of Staff and Minister for Presidential Affairs, Mr. Kwadwo Mpiani is to be invited by Parliament within the week.

Mr. Mpiani will be expected to apprise the House of what uses the National Planning Committee of Ghana’s Golden Jubilee has put the $20 million voted for the celebrations by Parliament.

He chairs the National Planning Committee which disburses and approves projects through the Ghana@50 Secretariat.

The Finance Committee of Parliament originally invited the Chief Executive of the Ghana@50 Secretariat, Dr Charles Wereko-Brobby to provide the answers but he deferred to the Chief of Staff in a letter to the Committee.

The Chairman of the Finance Committee of Parliament, Nii Darku Adu Mantey said the invitation would be directed to Mr. Mpiani.

He however dismissed suggestions by some minority MPs that Dr Wereko-Brobby’s response constituted a disregard for Parliament.

He said the invitation was not the intention of the Committee to audit the Council’s accounts but to be appraised of the uses to which the money approved by Parliament had been put.

The Chief of Staff on Saturday acknowledged that he instructed Dr. Wereko Brobby to write to Parliament to redirect their invitation to his office.






Iraqi Cabinet approves draft oil law, sending it to parliament

The Associated Press
Monday, February 26, 2007

BAGHDAD, Iraq: The Iraqi Cabinet approved a long-awaited draft oil law on Monday, sending it to parliament for consideration, the prime minister said.

Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki hailed the decision as an important step toward encouraging investment in the country's battered oil industry.

"Thanks be to God, the Iraqi government has laid another founding stone in state-building — the law of oil and gas — which will be beneficial to Iraqis of all sects and ethnicity's," he said.

He said the law will be referred to the 275-member parliament for approval.

Al-Maliki's government had promised to enact a new oil law by the end of 2006 but missed the deadline due to objections from the Kurds, and it faced pressure from the U.S. administration to come through. Many of Iraq's vast oil reserves can be found in the Kurdish north and the Shiite south, and the Kurds wanted a greater role in awarding contracts and administering the revenues.

"This law will guarantee for Iraqis, not just now but for future generations too, complete national control over this natural wealth," Oil Minister Hussain al-Shahristani said. "The revenues from this wealth will be distributed among all Iraqis in all parts of the country under the supervision of the Federal Oil and Gas Council that will decide on all contracts and all the regulations governing the development of this wealth."





Motion on Sino-Tibetan dialogue presented to Scottish Parliament
ICT
February 26th, 2007

A motion on the Sino-Tibetan dialogue has been presented to the Scottish Parliament calling for "pragmatic solutions that respect the Chinese constitutional framework and the territorial integrity of China and fulfil the aspirations of the Tibetan people for a unified and genuinely autonomous Tibet."

The motion follows the passing of measures supporting the Dialogue process in both the European and Canadian Parliaments.

Chris Ballance, a Green Member of the Scottish Parliament (MSP) and convenor of the Cross-Party Group on Tibet in the Scottish Parliament, is calling on MSPs to join him in urging the Chinese government to continue its dialogue with the representatives of the Dalai Lama.

In a press statement today Mr Ballance said:

"This motion is just one amongst many similar currently being lodged in Parliaments around the world, urging the Chinese government to make a greater effort in finding a mutually acceptable solution to the challenges facing the Chinese and Tibetan peoples. The Canadian and European Parliaments have already voted on and passed motions along these lines.

"His Holiness the Dalai Lama has twice visited the Scottish Parliament and has expressed interest in our own model of devolution as a possible template for finding a workable solution for Tibet within the Peoples' Republic of China. It would be most appropriate for members of this Parliament to show the unanimity of will which their counterparts in the Canadian and European Parliaments have already done and send a clear message to the Chinese government."

The text of the Motion is below:

S2M-05627 Chris Ballance (South of Scotland) (Green): That the Parliament urges the government of the People's Republic of China and the representatives of Tibet's government in exile, notwithstanding their differences on Tibet's historical relationship with China, to continue their dialogue in a forward-looking manner that will lead to pragmatic solutions that respect the Chinese constitutional framework and the territorial integrity of China and fulfil the aspirations of the Tibetan people for a unified and genuinely autonomous Tibet.






Malawi Parliament rocked by VIP controversy

Feb 26,2007 by Charles Kufa
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Malawi Parliament today started on a rather controversial note with the United Democratic Party (UDF) leader in the House Hon. Dr George Nga Ntafu making a reply to the mid term budget review statement presented by the Finance Minister Goodall Gondwe last week.

Hon. Ntafu started his response by decrying the chaotic scenes that engulfed the city of Blantyre where Malawi Police mounted several roadblocks on all major roads leading into the City and Chileka Airport when UDF supporters wanted to welcome their National Chair from Namibia.

Ntafu told Parliament that UDF was worried that the current government does not respect the rule of law as it deliberately defied court orders invalidating the ban on the rallies at airport premises and use of VVIP lounge.

Cabinet Minister for Foreign Affairs, Joyce Banda rose on a point of order disputing Ntafu's concern saying as far as government is concerned nothing wrong was done urging Ntafu to stop talking about the matter in Parliament as the matter has been referred to the Courts.

Ntafu insisted he had the right to talk about the matter on behalf of UDF as part of his response to the mid term budget review statement because it boarders on good governance and the rule of law.

"Madam, Deputy Speaker, I can't stop commenting on the matter as this is a very serious matter and demonstrates a breakdown of the rule of law. Further to that, Malawi is fast moving towards a dictatorship. The Malawi Police should not be used as a paramilitary wing of the Democratic People's Party (DPP)."

This statement angered the government side and Joyce Banda rising for a second time on point of order categorically declared that the former head of state can not be allowed to use a presidential lounge, which is the VVIP lounge. Muluzi has been using these facilities ever since he retired in June 2004.

On the economic front, Ntafu said while debt cancellation is a positive development, the current government can not claim to have achieved it all alone.

Ntafu said the debt cancellation in Malawi is a process that started way back in 2000 and that it has just reached its finality during this regime.

He also said the economic picture of Malawi is not as rosy on the ground as is being portrayed by government.

"Madan, Deputy Speaker, the macroeconomic complications are only there to impress the donor community but the situation is different on the ground. People would like to see tangible results of these figures such as what they wear, etc."

He added that while donor inflow has improved, the response from investors is not encouraging and that the much touted economic growth figures are only but mere projections.