People Before Profit blog

US slammed for biased rights agenda

Sat, 28 Feb 2009 14:26:00 +0000

Original source: Venezuela, Bolivia and Russia condemned the latest politically motivated US criticisms of their human rights record on Thursday.

The three nations were scathing in their rejection of the US State Department's latest report on human rights around the world, which hypocritically charged their governments with many of Washington's own crimes.

The State Department accused Venezuela of politicising the judiciary and harassing the political opposition and the news media, among other problems.

But Venezuelan Foreign Minister Nicolas Maduro said that the report was 'plagued with lies.'

He added: 'No government in the world has the right to use a report to meddle in, judge or qualify the situation in other nations.

'We've called for the current US administration to halt the attacks. What they do is batter and push back the possibilities of establishing new political relations.'

Bolivia also took issue with the US report which, while admitting that the Bolivian government generally respected human rights, alleged abuses by security forces, harsh prison conditions, arbitrary arrests and threats to legal rights and press freedoms.

'It's a gross simplification of the national reality that is politically motivated,' said Sacha Llorenti, a vice-minister and government liaison to Bolivian social movements.

The minister pointed out that the US, which stands accused of a catalogue of abuses in the name of its 'war on terror,' lacked the moral authority to raise human rights criticisms.

'It's important to have sufficient moral principles to be able to talk about the subject of human rights,' he said.

The State Department also alleged human rights abuses in Russia's North Caucasus region, where separatist guerillas are still active, and decried the deaths of five journalists.

The Russian Foreign Ministry denounced the 'biased' report's conclusions about the war last summer between Russia and US-ally Georgia as 'odious' and unable to 'stand any criticism.'

It accused the US of using double standards 'depending on the loyalty of a certain state to Washington's foreign policy course.'

Protectionism, an answer to the crisis?

Sat, 28 Feb 2009 02:53:00 +0000

Translated by Laure Tallot (lHumanite)

Recall the facts :

The latest World Economic Forum in Davos at the end of January was the scene of alarmist statements about an alleged protectionist danger. At the origin of the fear displayed by the world leaders is a clause in the American stimulus package planning to cut back on steel imports.

To attempt to reassure his partners the President of the US, Barack Obama in person, had to disown this steel clause, calling it “a mistake”. Since then the Senate has watered down the infamous clause by subjecting it to the rules of the WTO, which actually means that it cannot become effective. The anti-protectionist hysteria spread to the European Union after Nicolas Sarkozy declared during his televised speech on Feb.5, that a public stimulus package for the motor industry was not intended to finance relocations “in the Czech Republic or anywhere else”. Prague, which currently holds the revolving presidency of the EU, immediately condemned this “massive protectionism”, thus almost turning the French President into a champion of the wage-earners of his country !

However, as in the US, the name of the game is to ask only for some light compensation from the companies which were given public money thanks to the “stimulus packages”, without claiming any involvement in their strategic choices, ... and there’s the rub. A case in point is the French motor company Peugeot which, allegedly out of necessity “to cut back on costs” in a context of a falling consumer market, is planning to axe 10 000 to 12 000 jobs while retaining its project to bring out nine new models in 2009 !

Isn’t the aim of the media and political hype about protectionism simply to dish up once more the old myth of a self-regulating market, whilst the working-classes are more and more harshly affected by the crisis ? After decades of deregulations and privatisations, all in the name of free-trade, not only are protections not dangerous for the economy, but they are vital, provided of course the genuine aims are agreed upon ; what must be protected : profits or jobs ? Multinationals or the people ?

French government considers 5bn euros bail-out after bank's losses double

Fri, 27 Feb 2009 16:35:00 +0000

Original source: The French government was poised to intervene on Thursday after the country's fourth-largest investment bank reported that its net losses had almost doubled in the last quarter of 2008.

Natixis claimed that it had been a victim of the alleged fraud scheme by Wall Street speculator Bernard Madoff and that the value of its assets had been hit by the financial crisis.

News of the losses prompted French President Nicolas Sarkozy to seek to speed up the merger plans of lenders Caisse d'Epargne and Banques Populaires, which jointly own Natixis.

The government said on Thursday that it is ready to inject as much as €5 billion (£4.4bn) in cash into the group in exchange for a 20 per cent stake in the bank.

Mr Sarkozy's chief economics adviser Francois Perol is expected to take over as its new head.

Natixis posted a net loss of 1.62bn euros (£1.44bn) in the three months to December, compared with a net loss of 900m euros (£800.5m) a year earlier.

For the full year, the bank posted a net loss of 2.80bn euros compared with a net profit of 1.01bn euros a year earlier.

Natixis has been among the French banks hardest hit by the US subprime mortgage crisis.

Chief executive officer Dominique Ferrero said that it had already restructured its corporate and investment bank and cut back on jobs.

The bank has already received 1.9bn euros (£1.7bn) from the French government in the first tranche of its bank rescue

Britain admits terror suspects given to US

Fri, 27 Feb 2009 16:29:00 +0000

Defence Secretary John Hutton admitted on Thursday that British forces in Iraq handed over two terror suspects to the US who were then rendered to Afghanistan for interrogation and possible torture.

The disclosures contradict government claims that Britain has never been complicit in extraordinary rendition, whereby detainees are transferred to states where torture is legal.

In a statement to MPs that will reignite the row over torture, shameless Mr Hutton made a feeble apology after revealing that officials knew about the incident in 2004.

The US has now told Britain that it is not 'possible or desirable' to move the two men, who are still in Afghanistan, either back to Iraq or their home countries.

The incident came to light after a lengthy review of detentions in Iraq and Afghanistan which has thrown up a series of other errors in details previously released to Parliament.

The allegations first surfaced in February 2008 when former SAS soldier Ben Griffin revealed that hundreds of Iraqis and Afghans captured by British forces in Iraq had been transferred to US detention facilities, tortured and unlawfully removed from Iraq.

Mr Griffin, who left the British army in 2005 in disgust at the 'illegal' tactics of occupation forces, said at the time: 'I have no doubt in my mind that non-combatants I personally detained were handed over to the Americans and subsequently tortured.'

The government responded by obtaining a gagging order in the courts to prevent him from revealing any more.

Foreign Secretary David Miliband admitted last year that two such flights landed on British territory in 2002 when US planes refuelled on the British dependent territory of Diego Garcia, but ministers have consistently denied any direct British involvement with the practice.

But the minister is still refusing to disclose documents which lawyers of Binyam Mohamed argue will prove that the former Guantanamo detainee, who was released and flown back to Britain on Monday, had been tortured with the full knowledge of MI5.

Stop the War Coalition convener Lindsey German wondered what other 'war crimes' the government will be forced to admit later after denying now.

She added: 'On top of all of this, US President Barack Obama, while closing Guantanamo, is expanding the notorious Afghan prison Bagram.

'The only way for Britain to extract itself from torture crimes is to pull out of Iraq and Afghanistan, stop treating Muslims as suspects who deserve to be tortured and change its warmongering foreign policy.'

GM employees rally to save jobs

Fri, 27 Feb 2009 16:26:00 +0000

Original source: Tens of thousands of workers at General Motors Europe's factories demonstrated on Thursday in the battle to save their jobs at Adem Opel AG and other European divisions.

Opel's factory in Ruesselsheim provided the backdrop for the main rally, where thousands of workers fear losing their jobs as GM scrambles to survive the global economic downturn.

Rallies and strikes were also held at Opel factories in Eisenach and Kaiserslautern, as well as at the GM Saab division in Sweden and units in Austria, France, Spain and Hungary.

Opel's works council has called for General Motors to be open to new partners and government support.

Opel employs about 25,000 workers in Germany and builds cars in Belgium, Poland, Portugal and Britain.

GM has announced that it will cut 47,000 jobs or 19 per cent of its workforce globally by the end of the year, with jobs outside the US accounting for 26,000 of the reductions.

The company has sought some £5 billion in support from foreign governments to help its operations outside the US.

But Stockholm has rejected a plea for public funding for Saab, which filed for bankruptcy protection last week.

Is Communism for the birds?

Fri, 27 Feb 2009 07:39:00 +0000

(Vietnam News) NAM DINH — Three years ago, farmer Dinh Van Hoe of Giao Ha Village in Nam Dinh Province, 160km south of Ha Noi, woke up one morning to find the green leaves of his bonsai farm had been replaced by the white feathers of a thousand storks.

Hoe rented a 10ha farm in the village to start a bonsai business in 2004, but soon found he got more than he bargained for when a flock of storks descended on the farm that winter.

A staff member at Xuan Thuy National Park, a protected wetlands area located 10km from the farm, said that storks often nest on bamboo and search for quiet places where they feel safe.

'The farm is favourable site for the birds after a long day searching for food on the surrounding aquaculture farms. I know that storks here are not listed in the International Red Book of Endangered Species, but it’s a sign of an improved environment,' said Nguyen Xuan Anh, a staff member at Xuan Thuy National Park.

From September to April, it is possible to glimpse rare birds at Xuan Thuy Park, a wintering sight in the East Asian-Australian flyway.

'Some birds catch fish and shrimp for food at farms around the park and shelter in bushes and trees. Naturally, the bonsai farm has been a good site for storks over the last three years,' Anh said.

Green farm

Hoe has planted nearly 4,000 ornamental trees and dug a number of fish ponds. He also raises pigs and chickens on his large farm, which bring in a good income.

'Fish and livestock bring me a profit of nearly VND700 million (US$40,000) per year, while bonsai gardens are a long-term investment. However, birds flocking to the farm brings peace to my life and business,' Hoe said.

He plans to grow bamboo to create more favourable conditions for the storks and to shield them from the poachers he has caught trying to sneak into his garden.

'It’s a gift from heaven and I am committed to protect the birds, not only for me, but for everyone in the village.'

Born in neighbouring Giao Xuan Village, Hoe saved up the money he earned oyster farming to begin the ornamental garden.

Land policy

However, the 41-year-old farmer worries that the commune’s policy on land use will be detrimental to the birds.

Hoe said he needs a longer land use contract, from 20 to 50 years, which will give him enough time to make a bigger investment and protect the storks.

'I want a long-term contract rather than a contract renewed every five years, as the village administration requires. I’ve invested VND4 billion ($230,000) in the farm since 2004, but I do not dare to increase the figure because of the change in land policy,' he said.

Vice chairman of Giao Ha Commune, Cao Xuan Truong, said the farm is the only site in the commune where the birds shelter.

He said the local administration will protect the birds, but they need support from the higher administration in terms of planning and funding.

The local administration planned a 42ha area on a 20 year lease to help boost the village population’s average income of VND7 milion (US$400) per capita per year.

'We want to help households in the village get a chance to enrich their life with farming, but we need a master plan from the district and province,' Truong said.

He also said that the commune is requiring farmers to protect the birds by any means possible.

Over the past three years, the commune has been supported by an SIDA Environmental Fund project to enhance awareness about environmental protection.

In an effort to save the birds, Xuan Thuy National Park Director Nguyen Viet Cach contacted Birdlife, an international non-governmental organisation, and the Nam Dinh Provincial Department of Natural Resources and the Environment to solve the problem of Hoe’s garden.

'The garden is out of our range of control. The farm’s storks are not migratory waterfowls, but they have an ecological importance to the people,' Cach said.

'We are in discussions with Birdlife to assist the commune and save the birds as soon as possible.'

The director also suggested that the farm become an eco-tour site in order to protect the birds and give them a long-term home. — VNS

AUSTRALIA: New drive against racism

Fri, 27 Feb 2009 02:00:00 +0000

MELBOURNE, Feb 26 (IPS) - With new figures showing that 44 percent of Australians were either born overseas or have at least one parent who was, community organisations have welcomed a stepped-up government programme to tackle racial, cultural and religious intolerance.

The Diverse Australia Programme (DAP), as the initiative is called, was launched earlier this year by Laurie Ferguson, federal parliamentary secretary for multicultural affairs and settlement services.

The DAP will seek to address problems at a local level by providing funding support to organisations that deal directly with issues of intolerance and prejudice, with small one-off grants available in addition to year-round financial assistance.

'The activities funded are aimed at bringing Australians from all backgrounds together in a positive and productive way,' said Ferguson on Jan.28.

Around 4.4 million people born across more than 200 countries now call Australia home.

Data from the 2006 census, the country’s latest, shows that Asian-born people accounted for 44 percent of all arrivals between 2002 and 2006, yet make up only 24 percent of longer-standing migrants.

China, Vietnam and the Philippines are all in the top ten countries of origin for migrants who arrived in Australia before 2002. Likewise for more recent arrivals, China, India, Malaysia, the Philippines and South Korea are among the top ten.

Under the country’s refugee and humanitarian program, some 13,000 Sudanese have also arrived here since 2002, along with 9,000 Iraqis, 8,000 Zimbabweans and 6,000 people from Afghanistan.

The current government is keen for the increasing diversity to be viewed as a positive for all. However, racism has long-been a factor in Australian life.

Indigenous Australians continue to suffer from racial prejudice, while the 'White Australia' policy was the dominant immigration policy of Australian governments until the 1970s. Local media outlets also continue to report on brawls, bashings and assaults that are alleged to be racially motivated.

Essentially a replacement for the Living in Harmony programme established under the previous conservative government in 1998 - a recent review of Living in Harmony by the immigration department recommended that although the program promoted the benefits of cultural diversity as well as Australia’s 'democratic values', local groups required strategies to better deal with issues of intolerance - the DAP has received initial support from community organisations.

'I think it’s a great initiative and I think the way that they’ve developed it, with it being longer-term and with money being given to communities, is fine,' says Carmel Guerra, director of the Centre for Multicultural Youth (CMY), an organisation advocating on behalf of young people from migrant and refugee backgrounds across metropolitan Melbourne.

The new program has also been backed by the Federation of Ethnic Communities’ Councils of Australia (FECCA), the nation’s peak body representing Australians from diverse cultural and linguistic backgrounds.

The DAP 'shows that the government recognises that it needs to deal with racism and its causes. To retain its status as one of the world’s leading multicultural democracies, Australia needs to continue to drive policies and programmes that support cultural diversity, social inclusion and non-discrimination,' said acting FECCA Chair Beryl Mulder.

That racism does appear to exist in Australia is backed up by preliminary findings from a project by researchers at two Australian universities.

Data provided to IPS by the Anti-Racism Research Project - researchers at the University of Western Sydney and Macquarie University are looking at whether racism is more prevalent in some Australian locations than it is in others - shows that in each state and territory at least 82 percent of respondents believe that there is racial prejudice in Australia.

An average of 11.9 percent of respondents believe that they are prejudiced against cultures other than their own, with the Northern Territory having the highest figure at 16.7 percent and the Australian Capital Territory, with 8.1 percent admitting that they are prejudiced, the lowest.

While a majority of people in all states and territories - from a low of 73.6 percent in Queensland to a high of 88.1 percent in Tasmania - report feeling 'secure' with different ethnic groups, more than a third, on average, say that some cultures and ethnic groups do not fit into Australian society.

Carmel Guerra told IPS that while Australia is 'a highly tolerant society on many levels', the people that the CMY works with do experience prejudice.

'Young people and families tell us all the time that they will often be called names, or people feel they’ve been treated differently because they have darker skin or speak with an accent,' she says.

Although Guerra says that incidents of physical attack do take place but verbal abuse and innuendo are apparently more common.

'It seems to be young people who look quite different, particularly if they’ve got darker skin or are young women who wear the hijab, who say that often they will get comments made about them,' says the CMY director.

The experiences of African-Australian youth in the outer-Melbourne area of Dandenong - where a large proportion of Victorians with African origins live - was the subject of a report released in December by the Victorian Equal Opportunity and Human Rights Commission.

The Rights of Passage report found that the young people experienced racism in both overt and indirect ways from a range of sectors in the community, despite efforts by government, police and community organisations - as well as by the youth themselves - to aid their participation in their new home.

In Sydney, Se Gun Song from the Canterbury-Bankstown Migrant Resource Centre (CBMRC), which provides support to newly-arrived migrants, refugees and humanitarian entrants to Australia, says that he also sees evidence of racial intolerance on a daily basis.

Song told IPS that racial prejudice is particularly evident in areas of housing and employment for the people that the CBMRC works with, who are mainly from Africa and South-east Asia.

'Over the years we have seen a large number of cases where African refugee families cannot find accommodation in the private rental market or people with an accent or Muslim last name cannot find jobs,' he says.

Nuclear Doomsday Clock may finally stop ticking

Thu, 26 Feb 2009 13:29:00 +0000

UNITED NATIONS, Feb 23 (IPS) - The Barack Obama administration’s apparent resolve to take U.S. foreign policy in a new direction is creating ripples of hope for an enhanced U.N. agenda on nuclear nonproliferation and disarmament.

Observers and diplomats who are due to take part in a major meeting to discuss progress on the implementation of the 1970 Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT) told IPS they had never before so optimistic about the U.N.-led negotiation process.

'I think he [Obama] is sincere about what he is saying,' said David Krieger, president of the Nuclear Age Peace Foundation, an advocacy group that works closely with the U.N. 'I think he is willing to stand up against the vested interests.'

Many peace activists, like Krieger, believe that the threat of a possible nuclear catastrophe is not going to go away so long as the major nuclear powers remain reluctant to take drastic steps towards dismantling their nuclear arsenals.

Countries that rolled back their weapons programmes, as well as those that never produced such arms, have long been calling for the elimination of nuclear weapons, but the response they received from the major nuclear powers has always been disappointing. In addition to actions against the spread of nuclear weapons, the NPT requires the five declared nuclear states - the United States, Russia, Britain, France, and China - to engage in 'good faith' negotiations for disarmament. Until now that task has remained elusive.

The United States and Russia are the world’s largest nuclear weapon states. They possess no less than 93 percent of the total number of nuclear weapons in the world, according to Sipri, a Sweden-based think tank that tracks weapon production and export worldwide.

Among others, China has 400 warheads, France 348, and Israel and Britain about 200 each. India is believed to have more than 80 and Pakistan about 40 nuclear weapons.

Critics see the United States as the most irresponsible member of the nuclear club, for it not only failed to meet the NPT obligations, but also contributed, at great length, to block, and even derail, the international discourse on nuclear disarmament.

The Ronald Reagan administration, for example, looked the other way when Pakistan was developing its illegal nuclear programme in the 1980s. Similarly, the George W. Bush administration decided to make a nuclear trade deal with India that remains outside the fold of the NPT.

The Bush administration is held responsible by many for sabotaging the U.N. agenda on disarmament by its decision to abrogate the 1972 Anti-Ballistic Missile Treaty and to install controversial missile defences in countries located next to Russia’s borders.

During the past eight years, the former U.S. administration also refused to endorse the Comprehensive Test Ban Treaty (CTBT), which is considered by experts an integral part of the international framework to achieve the goal of disarmament.

'We have been through the dark ages,' Krieger told IPS. 'It was a death plan for humanity.'

During his two terms, Bush never spoke of nuclear disarmament. He rather fully supported the move to generate new kinds of nuclear weapons. In March 2007, his administration declared plans to make new kinds of nukes, a move considered as controversial by many.

Bush argued that the existing warheads had become obsolete, but many experts saw his line of reasoning as out of step with reality because in their conclusion, the U.S. stockpile was already 'safe and reliable' for at least 50 years.

At the time, many independent think tanks in Washington warned that such a move would prove provocative and counter-productive because countries like Iran and North Korea would use it as justification to possess nuclear weapons.

In contrast to the Bush administration, however, the message from the new administration in Washington appears to be radically different.

'A world without nuclear weapons is profoundly in America’s interest and the world’s interest,' said the new U.S. president in a recent statement. 'It is our responsibility to make the commitment, and to do the hard work to make this vision a reality.'

Currently, a coalition of peace advocacy groups is running a nationwide signature campaign to press Obama to take immediate, effective, and practical measures for the elimination of nuclear weapons.

'Nuclear weapons could destroy civilization and end intelligent life on the planet,' said the campaign in a letter to Obama. 'The only sure way to prevent nuclear proliferation, nuclear terrorism and nuclear war is to rid the world of nuclear weapons.'

Krieger told IPS that so far over 50,000 people, including some Noble laureates, have signed the letter. He expects that by next month when the letter is due to be delivered to the White House, at least one million people would have endorsed it.

An international group, known as 'Global Zero,' is proposing deep cuts in U.S. and Russian nuclear arsenals, a verification and enforcement system, and phased reduction leading to the elimination of all stockpiles.

Supporters of the Global Zero campaign includes many distinguished international figures and former statesmen, such as former U.S. President Jimmy Carter; former Secretary of State Lawrence Eagleburger; former Defense Secretary Frank Carlucci; former Soviet leader Mikhail Gorbachev; and Shaharyar Khan, a former Pakistani foreign minister.

The launching in Paris follows 18 months of consultations among diplomats and military leaders and in effect established Global Zero as a participant in mobilising efforts to eliminate nuclear weapons.

Last July Obama said, 'as long as nuclear weapons exist we will retain a strong deterrent,' but added in the same breath:' We will make the goal of eliminating all nuclear weapons a central element in our nuclear policy.'

According to unconfirmed reports, the Obama administration is already engaged in negotiations on the proposal to reduce the number of nuclear weapons to 1,000 in the first phase and that it is possible that the reaction from Moscow is likely to be positive.

However, in Krieger’s view, that would happen only if the Obama administration takes a different position on the deployment of the U.S. missile defense systems in Eastern Europe, which Russia perceives to be a threat to its sovereignty.

Building the missile defence systems has cost U.S. taxpayers hundreds of thousands of dollars, although it’s still not clear that it would be especially effective.

'The defense contractors in the United States will continue to put pressure,' he told IPS. 'But he [Obama] has to understand that this system is not going to work.'

While Krieger and many others seem satisfied with the gradual and phased reduction of nuclear weapons on both sides, some nuclear abolitionists remain skeptical about the outcome of such measures and would rather like to see dramatic results in a short span of time.

'Cutting down to 1,000 nuclear weapons each? 1,000 are too many. It’s the same kind of slow process as it was during the cold war,' said Zia Mian, a nuclear physicist and peace activist at Princeton University. 'It’s about restoring the process, not breaking away from the process.'

Mian, who plans to attend the upcoming NPT preparatory meeting in May, added: 'If Obama wants a real change, he must say: We are going to negotiate a treaty now to eliminate the nuclear weapons.'

Iran 'tests' first nuclear power station

Thu, 26 Feb 2009 12:41:00 +0000

Original source: Iran declared on Wednesday that its technicians have started a test run of the country's first nuclear power station.

The power plant in the southern port city of Bushehr was built with Russian help and it is the first in a planned series of nuclear power plants.

But the opening of the 1,000-megawatt light-water reactor has been delayed by construction and supply problems and pressure from the US on Russia to pull out of the project.

Iranian vice-president and nuclear-power chief Gholam Reza Aghazadeh said that the tests - using lead dummy fuel rods instead of uranium - began 10 days ago and 'could take between four and seven months.'

'Today was one of the most important days for the Iranian nation,' he proudly said. It was not known how long after the tests the reactor could start up.

Israeli Foreign Ministry spokesman Yigal Palmor said: 'This should be understood as very bad news for the whole of the international community.'

He called for 'immediate and very determined steps in order to prevent Iran from becoming a nuclear power.'

Iran denies that it is aspiring to become a nuclear-armed state, asserting its right to peaceful nuclear-energy generation like many other countries.

Mr Reza Aghazadeh also announced that the Persian nation now had 6,000 uranium enrichment micro-centrifuges running, up from 5,000 in November.

The fat-cat controller

Thu, 26 Feb 2009 12:37:00 +0000

Original source: Rail workers heaped scathing criticism on their 'Fat Controller' bosses on Wednesday for plotting to award each other hundreds of thousands of pounds of taxpayers' cash in bonuses.

Network Rail executives were revealed to be preparing the lavish handouts in a leaked letter from the chairman of the company's renumeration committee.

He claimed that the government's rail watchdog had raised 'no objections' to the state-funded firm making the payouts.

Network Rail chief executive Iain Coucher stands to pocket a colossal £600,000 'incentive payment' - worth more than his entire year's salary of £583,000 - under the plans, while director Peter Henderson will rake in £219,000 on top of his £399,000 wages.

Other wealthy managers will get handouts of up to £400,000, despite the firm being deluged by criticism from rail unions and passengers for the state of the network.

Network Rail, which was taken back into effective public ownership in 2002 after privatisation proved a failure, maintains Britain's track, signals and stations.

Rail workers' union RMT leader Bob Crow accused Network Rail executives of 'presiding over a massive and dangerous squeeze on track work and a lowering of standards' despite receiving a £3 billion grant from the taxpayer each year.

'What crazy system is it that contemplates rewarding bosses for this?' he stormed.

'There should be no question of bonuses for bosses when the people out there trying to do the work are being stretched to breaking point, there are cuts in frequency of track inspections and cuts in routine signals maintenance.

'It beggars belief that NR should be allowed to even contemplate paying these bonuses,' Mr Crow insisted.

A Network Rail spokesman bizarrely tried to counter the criticism by claiming that the leaked letter was 'not about bonuses but all about proposed changes to next year's management incentives.'

But white-collar rail union TSSA general secretary Gerry Doherty challenged the company to explain the difference.

'Mr Coucher and the Fat Controller have one thing in common - neither of them are living in the real world,' he asserted.

Mr Doherty denounced the directors for their 'unjustified, gigantic bonuses' and demanded that Prime Minister Gordon Brown intervene to call them to account.

He pointed out that Network Rail is 'wholly funded by the taxpayer.

'It is a farce to talk about profits and financial added value at such a company - NR maintains our tracks and signalling on behalf of the taxpayer and no-one else,' said Mr Doherty.

'Mr Coucher already earns three times more than the Prime Minister. He should not need to earn huge bonuses on top of that for running a public monopoly.'

The TSSA leader insisted: 'If the Prime Minister can stop bonuses at banks that we partly own, he should certainly do something about a company which we wholly own. It is time to stop this gravy train.'

Iran: Verdict against five union leaders of Haft Tapeh expected in next few days

Thu, 26 Feb 2009 05:02:00 +0000

(Reposted from www.iuf.org) The court hearing against the five union leaders of Haft Tapeh in the southern city of Shush concluded yesterday at 2.30pm local time. The Revolutionary Court said that the verdict will be issued in a few days. All five men are trailed for 'propaganda against the government'. During the hearing, the union's lawyer argued against this allegation citing that it is too vague and the court has not followed the proper legal procedure.

The verdict against Ali Nejati, Feridoun Nikoufard, Mohammed Heydari Mehr, Ghorban Alipour and Jalil Ahmadi were scheduled to be delivered on 17 February but was forced to be delayed after the defendants and the lawyer demanded the presence of the plaintiff who did not even bother to make his appearance before the judge that day. Nor was there any serious 'evidence', they argued successfully.

After this session, another Executive Board member of the union, Rahim Beshag, was arrested on 22 February by the secret police and taken into the custody. His charges are not known. This is a part of the on-going attack by the authorities to crack-down the union activities at Haft Tapeh. Today, the Ministry of Labour pushed for an election of Islamic Labour Council at the factory. Much to their dissatisfaction, a small minority of the workers took part in the voting.

The IUF and the unions around the world have been supporting the Haft Tapeh workers union and this court case over the past few weeks. Upon hearing this brave news of the defendants challenging the Revolutionary Court procedure, they stepped-up their campaign by organising mass protest mails to the Iranian leadership. More than 8,000 people have accessed to the online protest sites set by the IUF and LabourStart in less than a week. Mailing lists by the ITF and Amnesty International were used to support the campaign.

In the past, the court has 'issued' verdicts in other cases involving the leaders of independent workers' movement such as Mansour Osanloo but have often failed to produce anything in writing. In some cases, it has taken a few months for the verdict to be delivered.

IUF members stand ready to support our members in Iran and we will provide updated information as this case progresses.

Afghanistan: Civilian deaths up 40 percent

Thu, 26 Feb 2009 04:55:00 +0000

KANDAHAR, 25 February 2009 (IRIN) - Last year was the worst for Afghan civilians since the end of major hostilities in 2001 as more than 2,100 non-combatants lost their lives in conflict, according to the United Nations Assistance Mission in Afghanistan (UNAMA).

Civilian deaths increased by 40 percent in 2008 on the year before as warring parties, particularly insurgent groups, paid little heed to the safety of non-combatants, UNAMA said in a report.

Suicide attacks and the use of improvised explosive devices by insurgent groups inflicted heavy losses on civilians, as did aerial bombardments by international forces, UNAMA said.

'In addition to fatalities as a direct result of armed hostilities, civilians have suffered from injury, loss of livelihood, displacement, destruction of property, as well as disruption of access to education, healthcare and other essential services,' states UNAMA's report on the protection of civilians in armed conflict.

UNAMA's concerns were echoed by the Afghanistan Independent Human Rights Commission (AIHRC), whose spokesman, Ahmad Zia Langary, said: 'The impact of war on civilians cannot be limited to fatality figures, they are broad and numerous.'

Aid agencies have warned that conflict has spread lawlessness and insecurity across the country and humanitarian operations have been especially squeezed.

Thirty-eight aid workers were killed and 147 kidnapped, and 198 security incidents involving NGOs were recorded in 2008, the UN said.

'Unseen victims'

In conflict-affected areas, mostly in the south and east, women and children are particularly harmed by conflict.

'Women and children have, to a significant extent, been the unseen victims of the armed conflict in Afghanistan,' said the UN report.

Financial burdens resulting from the loss of a breadwinner mostly deprive children and women of education, healthcare, food security and many other opportunities.

Dozens of schools and health centres were attacked and many school-children targeted by insurgent elements throughout 2008.

It is unclear how many of the reported 2,118 civilian deaths in 2008 were women and children but UNAMA said it would introduce a new electronic database to provide disaggregated information on the gender and age of civilian casualties of war.

Bearded Woman Pharoh statue discovered in Egypt

Thu, 26 Feb 2009 02:12:00 +0000

(Xinhua) Egyptian archaeologists on uncovered a statue of pharaoh and a bust of the famous woman pharaoh Hatshepsut in the southern city of Luxor, the state MENA news agency reported.

The three-meter Amenhotep statue was 'dug out with only one damage in the nose and one in the teeth,' said Moustafa el-Waziri, director of the archaeological mission, adding that more antiques would be unearthed in the future.

Amenhotep III, or Amenophis III, was the ninth pharaoh of the eighteenth dynasty of ancient Egypt. He ruled the country from 1411 B.C. to 1375 B.C. after his father Thutmose IV died.

Hatshepsut, or Hatchepsut, generally regarded as one of the most successful pharaohs, was the fifth monarch of the eighteen dynasty which dates back to 15th century B.C.

Being a woman, she wore a false beard to reinforce her authority while acting as the regent of her son, Thutmose III.

New Shaolin Temple to rival Disneyland?

Thu, 26 Feb 2009 01:49:00 +0000

After the article about the Shaolin Temple planning to build a branch in Hong Kong was published on February 23, it drew attention from readers nationwide. Over 50 websites in China quoted the full text.

How do netizens feel about Songshan Shaolin Temple's plan to build another Shaolin Temple in Hong Kong? To understand their opinions, Sohu.com launched a large-scale opinion poll on its website, entitled 'Do you support the Shaolin Temple building a branch in Hong Kong costing 420 million HKD?'

The supporting side argues to 'support the construction of the Hong Kong Shaolin Temple' in order to better promote Shaolin culture among the people of Hong Kong, and so they can learn the secrets of Shaolin kung fu right on their doorstep. At the same time, it will become a new scenic spot to attract tourists and garner economic benefits. One netizen in Shanghai said, 'Now that western culture is spreading everywhere, building a Shaolin Temple in Hong Kong means that Asian culture, represented by Shaolin, can fully rival Disneyland, which represents western culture.'

Those who 'oppose the construction of the Hong Kong Shaolin Temple' say forking out such a huge sum of money to build a branch temple is an expensive waste. The significance of the Shaolin Temple lies in Buddhist spirituality, not in martial arts tips and commercial expansion.

By 7:00 pm on February 23, a total of 7,703 people have participated in the opinion poll. According to the results, 6,679 people voted in favor of the Shaolin temple plan, while merely 1,024 people voted against it. The results showed a great disparity between the two opinions, which shocked even Abbot Shi Yongxin of the Shaolin Temple. 'That is not easy! (Zhen bu rong yi!),' Shi commented using four Chinese characters when he was informed of the results.

Considering the plan for the Shaolin Temple and opinions from netizens, Xia Wanqun, Vice Chairman of the Chinese Folk Literature and Art Society, said, 'After reform and opening-up, traditional Chinese culture has continuously been on the defense. The Shaolin Temple, however, has actively spread traditional Chinese culture to the world while revealing the value of traditional Chinese culture. Their efforts are worthy of praise.' He added that Shaolin culture implies universal values, which are a part of traditional Chinese culture. The construction of a branch temple in Hong Kong is not only an opportunity for the Shaolin Temple to spread its culture to the whole world, but also a platform for it to spread the culture of China's central plains. 'I believe most netizens are aware of this point. That is why they support the Shaolin Temple's plan to build a branch temple in Hong Kong.'

N Korea prepares to launch satellite

Wed, 25 Feb 2009 23:31:00 +0000

Pyongyang announced on Thursday that it is preparing to fire a communication satellite into orbit, its clearest reference yet to an impending launch that the US has described as 'provocative action.'

The DPRK Committee of Space Technology (CST) released a statement which read: 'The preparations for launching experimental communications satellite Kwangmyongsong-2 by means of delivery rocket Unha-2 are now making brisk headway' at a launch site in Hwadae in the north-east.

It did not say when the launch would take place, but analysts say that the launch may take place around the time of North Korea's parliamentary elections on March 8.

A CST spokesman emphasised that, if this launch proves successful, 'it will be possible to say that our country has made a stride in the development of space technologies and the building of an economic power.'

He added that North Korea is following its own 'peaceful use policy' in developing such technology.

South Korean intelligence officials reported a flurry of personnel and vehicle activity at the Hwadae launch site, but they said that the North has not yet placed a rocket on the launch pad.

After mounting the satellite or missile, it would take five to seven days to fuel the rocket.

Hwadae is also the launch site for North Korea's longest-range missile, the Taepodong-2, with the potential to reach Alaska.

Pyongyang tested one of the missiles in 2006, but it failed 40 seconds after launch.

The US and South Korean media have repeatedly speculated in recent days that North Korea was going to test-fire a Taepodong-2 with a maximum estimated range of 4,200 miles and South Korea, Japan and the US have warned Pyongyang not to fire a missile.

Last week, US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton urged North Korea to stop its 'provocative actions,' saying that a missile test would 'be very unhelpful.'

A UN security council resolution adopted after the North's first-ever nuclear test in 2006 bans Pyongyang from conducting any future ballistic missile tests.

South Korea's Foreign Ministry repeated warnings yesterday that a North Korean missile launch would violate that resolution, but Seoul University professor Yang Moo Jin pointed out that a satellite launch would not.

Pakistan extends Swat Valley truce

Wed, 25 Feb 2009 10:40:00 +0000

Original source: Islamist guerillas indefinitely extended a ceasefire in Pakistan's Swat Valley on Tuesday after the army suspended operations in the region.

Islamabad and pro-Taliban fighters have observed a truce in the district of North-West Frontier Province since February 15, when Pakistani authorities offered to introduce sharia law there if the Pashtun tribesmen, who are loyal to militant cleric Maulana Fazlullah, laid down their arms.

The ceasefire was due to expire today, but spokesman Muslim Khan said that guerillas had decided to extend it 'for an indefinite period' after Mr Fazlullah convened a consultative council in Swat's Matta district.

'Today, the shura met under Maulana Fazlullah and decided to hold a ceasefire for an indefinite period,' Mr Khan reported.

'We are releasing all prisoners unconditionally. Today, we released four paramilitary soldiers and we will release all security personnel in our custody as a goodwill gesture,' he vowed.

He added: 'From our side, there will be no hostility against the government and the army and we expect the same from them.'

The status of ongoing peace talks between Islamabad and the Islamists is not clear.

Forces loyal to Mr Fazlullah have reportedly blown up 200 girls' schools in the two years that they have been fighting the government and the right of girls to attend school in Swat is still under discussion.

The Islamists apparently want to determine the type of sharia that is introduced and they are demanding that the Pakistani army completely pull out of the area, which is located just 80 miles north of Islamabad, and release all Taliban prisoners.

Pakistan says that it is committed to regaining control of the valley, which was a thriving tourist destination until recently.

But US officials have expressed scepticism about the willingness and ability of its security forces and have intensified missile strikes on alleged al-Qaida targets there.

About 1,200 civilians have been killed in the Pakistanconflict and an estimated 350,000 people have fled the district.

Its army chief and foreign minister are holding talks in Washington this week as the new US administration hammers out a new policy for the region.

Western governments have criticised the Swat truce, saying that it could create a safe haven for al-Qaida and the Taliban.

And Amnesty has expressed concern that the agreement could legitimise human rights abuses in the region.

Guadeloupe workers sustain wage protest

Wed, 25 Feb 2009 10:19:00 +0000

Original source: Workers in Guadeloupe rebuilt roadblocks on Monday and vowed to maintain their 35-day-old general strike after Paris went back on a pledge to boost the lowest-paid wages.

Representatives of the French government left the negotiating table after hours of talks with strike leaders, declaring that they were not prepared to meet the strikers' demand for a 200 euros (£176) monthly raise for those making 900 euros (£794) a month.

Last week Prime Minister Francois Fillon vowed that Paris would make 'support payments' to low wage earners totalling almost 200 euros a month.

But, on Monday night, Guadeloupe Prefect Nicolas Desforges said: 'The state doesn't believe that it should finance or reimburse wage increases for private employers.'

Leaders of the Collective Against Exploitation (LKP), which is leading the strike, said that they had reached a tentative agreement with small business groups to meet half the requested raise, but that the rest would have to come from the government.

Protesters prepared to take the dispute back to streets where riots raged last week, pushing burnt-out cars back into intersections and erecting new roadblocks on major roads.

LKP activist Patrice Tacita said: 'If they don't want to talk, we will put the popular pressure on the streets and make them share their fortune with the people of Guadeloupe.'

The collective of unions and left-wing groups has a list of nearly 140 demands including the wage increase, covering issues from lowering the cost of imported goods and breaking up monopolies to environmental and judicial reform.

BBC World Service journalists walk out over outsourcing

Wed, 25 Feb 2009 10:03:00 +0000

Original source: Furious BBC World Service workers will strike for 24 hours on Thursday over the outsourcing of production.

Staff working for the south Asia section are to take part in the strike after the breakdown of talks between the BECTU and NUJ unions and BBC bosses which have lasted more than eight months.

The unions have been seeking substantial changes to BBC plans to outsource production of services broadcast in Urdu, Hindi and Nepali to Pakistan, India and Nepal.

The plans are part of a bigger objective which requires savings of 3 per cent year on year and a move to smaller premises at Broadcasting House in 2012.

BECTU officials have been pressing BBC management to recognise the threat to editorial independence which is implicit in the proposed plans, as broadcasts from south Asia would be subject to domestic laws.

In addition, the disruption to the services caused by the planned relocation is likely to lead to a loss of expertise.

BECTU supervisory official Helen Ryan said: 'It is a great disappointment that more than eight months of talks have culminated in strike action. However, the issues at stake are fundamental to the character of the World Service and to the conditions which staff work to.'

WORLD NOTES

Wed, 25 Feb 2009 09:40:00 +0000

Guadeloupe: Strike forces French concessions

After a month-long general strike against high prices, low wages and 20 percent unemployment shut down public services, shops, fisheries and businesses in the French colony of Guadeloupe, French President Nicolas Sarkozy Feb. 20 announced a $730 million aid package and officials acceded to strikers’ wage demands.

The Collective against Exploitation (LKP), comprising 50 unions and political groups, demanded a monthly wage hike of $257. Some 100,000 strikers -- one-fifth of the population -- demonstrated Feb. 17 in the port city of Point-à-Pitre, as 280 extra police arrived from France.

Meanwhile, strike supporters marched in Paris and Point-à-Pitre in honor of slain union official Jacques Bino. Bino was killed Feb. 17 as he drove home from a meeting with the organizers of protests that have paralyzed the French island for more than a month. 'We are saddened, but we will continue the fight,' Guadeloupe protest leader Elie Domota told mourners in a speech.

Protests also extended to neighboring Martinique. A tiny white minority owns most businesses in Guadaloupe.

Sudan: Darfur negotiations bring hope The rebel Justice and Equality Movement last week agreed with Sudanese government representatives to begin peace talks aimed at ending conflict in Darfur. The agreement reached in Doha, Qatar, had been mediated jointly by the UN and African Union. The talks, the first in two years, led to bilateral commitments to protect refugees, allow humanitarian aid, and exchange prisoners, Afrol News said.

Meanwhile, a judgment from the International Criminal Court is expected soon on genocide charges against Sudanese President Omar al-Bashir. The UN says that in six years of war in Darfur, 300,000 people died and 2.7 million were displaced.

Japan: Workers’ rights threatened The International Trade Union Confederation reported Feb. 18 that protection of workers’ rights in Japan falls short, a finding consistent with criticisms advanced in another report issued last week by the World Trade Organization on trade policies. Public sector employees, for example, may not organize strikes. Their collective bargaining rights are restricted. Privately employed workers performing “essential services” must give 10 days notice prior to any strike. The report on ituc-csi.org also refers to threats to workplace safety from employment of health-impaired workers. Replacement of employer-owners by holding and investment companies frequently undermines collective bargaining. Workplace discrimination against women is prevalent. Japan has ratified International Labor Organization conventions on all these points except discrimination.

Italy: Protesters join European mobilization Rome was a venue for worker reaction to Europe’s plunging economy as 700,000 protesters organized by the CGIL, Italy’s largest labor federation, marched for jobs and “more wages, more rights.” Students, leftist parliamentarians and doctors protesting immigrant repression joined them Feb. 13.

The EU’s third largest economy has gone downhill over nine months. Italy’s per capita anti-poverty outlay is Europe’s lowest, according to rebelion.org. A week earlier, 100,000 students demonstrated in French cities against university privatization plans. Spain’s first labor-organized general strike unfolded in Lebrija, Andalucia Feb. 17. A general strike is set for Rome on April 4.

Iran: Commercial ties expand with Iraq Foreign Minister Manouchehr Mottaki’s visit to Iraq last month brought the announcements that bilateral trade would rise from $3 billion to $5 billion annually. For $1.5 billion, an Iranian company would build 5,000 housing units plus community facilities near Basra and soon, according to Azzaman news, 5,000 Iranian pilgrims will be entering Iraq every day to visit religious sites. Reuters reports that Iran, with reserves second only to Russia’s, is working to supply natural gas to Europe, the Indian subcontinent, and Gulf states.

Cuba: President Colom honors Fidel Visiting Cuba last week, Guatemalan President Álvaro Colom bestowed the Order of the Quetzel with Collar, his country’s highest honor, upon former Cuban President Fidel Castro. He met with Guatemalan medical students studying in Cuba and inspected a joint Venezuelan-Cuban oil refinery. Along the way, he condemned the U.S. blockade of Cuba and apologized for Guatemala’s having supported CIA training of Bay of Pig combatants in 1961. “Latin America has begun to live its best moments and is enjoying new possibilities,” Colom said in Prensa Latina. Colom’s visit and those recently of Russian, Ecuadorian, Argentinean and Chilean presidents represent milestones in Cuba’s long campaign to dispel U.S.-imposed isolation.

World Notes are compiled by W.T. Whitney Jr. (atwhit@roadrunner.com)

UN: Economic crisis will fuel xenophobia

Wed, 25 Feb 2009 02:39:00 +0000

Original source: The UN refugee chief warned on Monday that the global economic crisis will generate more refugees and fuel xenophobia.

UN high commissioner for refugees Antonio Guterres said that refugees and migrants can expect to be blamed for the economic problems that are deepening in many countries.

The former Portuguese prime minister said: 'In my experience as a politician, I'd say that when things go wrong in a country, there are two potential targets - one is the government, the other is the foreigners.'

Mr Guterres described the economic crisis as a 'generator of xenophobia' in some countries. He did not, however, name any country.

'Xenophobia is an inevitable trend in many parts of the world when the economic situation deteriorates,' he argued.

Mr Guterres said that he would travel to Bangkok next month to discuss international concerns about Thailand's treatment of refugees from Myanmar.

The Thai government acknowledged this month that authorities had towed boats carrying ethnic Rohyingya migrants, who are denied citizenship in their native Myanmar, out to sea.

Rescued migrants have alleged that they were hauled out to the high seas in boats with no engines by the Thai navy and left to drift for weeks with little food and water.

Survivors who were picked up by the Indian navy said that hundreds of people had perished.