Six killed in Sri Lanka fighting

COLOMBO - Six people were killed and 10 others were wounded as government troops traded fire with Tamil Tiger rebels in Sri Lanka's war-torn north, the defence ministry said Sunday.

Security forces beat back an attempt by the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) to break through the frontline at Muhamalai in Jaffna district late Saturday, killing three rebels, the ministry said.
In northwest Mannar district, troops clashed with the guerrillas late Friday, killing two rebels and injuring seven, the ministry, said adding that a government soldier also died and three others were hurt.
Over 4,800 people have been killed since a Norwegian-brokered ceasefire began unravelling in December 2005. More than 60,000 people have been killed in the island's 35-year-old ethnic conflict.-AFP

Bangladesh ex-ministers remanded

Three high-profile Bangladeshi politicians, including two ex-ministers, have been remanded for four days while five others, charged with corruption, have been sent to jail.
Whereabouts of three out of 11 politicians and businessmen, arrested in a two-day countrywide raid by the army-led joint forces, were not known till Tuesday night.
Authorities charged the politicians with corruption and activities subversive to the state, suggesting orders for remand and detention.
A metropolitan court in Dhaka in the evening issued orders for remand of Awami League general secretary and a former Commerce Minister Abdul Jalil, former State Minister for Home Lutfozzaman Babar and ex-lawmaker MA Hashem.
Police pleaded that these politicians need more interrogation into their alleged involvement in corruption and plans to destabilise the country.
Earlier, former Home Minister Altaf Hossain Chowdhury, ex-State Minister For Power Rafiqul Islam and the ex-State Minister For Sports Fazlur Rahman Patol, the Sylhet City Corporation Mayor Badruddin Ahmed Kamran and a collective bargain agency leader, Molla Abul Kalam Azad, were sent to jail with 30-day detention.
The joint forces also detained senior AL leader and former Health Minister Sheikh Fazlul Karim Selim, Barisal city corporation mayor Mojibur Rahman Sarwar and businessman Abdul Awal Mintoo, but their whereabouts could not be ascertained.
The forces launched a massive raid across the country on Monday afternoon, which continued till Tuesday morning and detained the political and business bigwigs.
This was the third such anti-corruption drive since the interim government of Fakhruddin Ahmed assumed to office in January 12, following proclamation of a state of emergency, vowing to rid the country of corruption and parties of evil influences.
In February and March, the forces arrested more than 50 senior political leaders and businessmen having political links with Awami League and BNP.
In their submission separately while producing the political leaders before the court, police said that Jalil was trying to destabilise the country while Babar amassed huge money illegally while he was a minister during the previous BNP-led alliance regime.
'Babar was involved in activities subversive to the state and needed to be interrogated to extract information in this regard,' a police inspector told the court, adding that the lawmen recovered four firearms, none having license.
Hashem was identified as dishonest businessman who made money out corruption as an influential lawmaker of the BNP during the previous government tenure.
Police said they were arrested under the emergency power rule and proposed for their detention under the Special Powers Act.
On Monday, the forces detained Abdul Jalil, Lutfozzaman Babar MA Hashem from their offices and residences.
Bangladesh's former Prime Minister and chief of the Awami League party, Sheikh Hasina, in a statement condemned arrest of her party leaders asking the government not to arrest the innocent politicians, but to capture the corrupt ones.
She warned that the 'emergency period has been over,' and the government should be very calculative in its steps. Hasina accused the government of diverting public attention from its failure by terrorising the people through these arrests.
She called upon the government to announce immediately timeframe for the stalled election to bring democracy back in Bangladesh.
The government justified the arrest, saying some of them were arrested based on specific allegations.
Asked on what charges the politicians were arrested, the law adviser, Mainul Hosein, told reporters earlier in the day that all were not being arrested on corruption charge rather many were being held to information regarding corruption.
'I know a little about it,' he added.
No BNP leaders came up with any statement.

Thousands of Bhutanese refugees demonstrate at Nepal-India border

KATMANDU, Nepal: About 10,000 Bhutanese refugees demonstrated at the India-Nepal border, where a day earlier Indian troops had opened fire, killing one refugee, officials said.

The refugees gathered Wednesday at the Nepalese border town of Karkarvitta, about 550 kilometers (340 miles) east of the capital, Katmandu, to protest the shooting, local police official Diwakar Katwal said by telephone.

Police stopped the refugees from marching to a border bridge to head off possible violence, he said.

He said they were chanting slogans against Indian officials.

Thousands of Bhutanese refugees have been camping at the border area for the past three days, demanding they be allowed to march through Indian territory back to their homeland, the same route they traveled to Nepal in the early 1990s.

"We want free passage through India to Bhutan, the same way we were brought here," chanted the refugees, according to Katwal.

More than 100,000 ethnic Nepalis — a Hindu minority in Bhutan for centuries — have been living as refugees in eastern Nepal since the early 1990s, when they were forced out by Bhutanese authorities who wanted to impose Buddhist culture across the country.

Most have been living in U.N.-run camps for the last 16 years.

Bhutan is unwilling to receive the refugees back, saying most left voluntarily and renounced their citizenship.

Authorities and human rights activists were holding talks with Indian officials on the Indian side of the border, Nepal's Home Ministry spokesman Baman Newpane said.

Meanwhile, Indian authorities released 15 of the protesters who were taken into custody during the past two days, the area's most senior Indian administrator, Rajesh Pandey, told The Associated Press.

"The situation is under total control, but we have not lowered our guards," Pandey said.

Pandey said he and his officers held a meeting with Nepalese officials at the border Wednesday to explore more ways to restore normalcy.

"It was a good meeting and we expect that the Nepalese officials will be able to talk to the people there and persuade them not to resort to violence or force their way," he said.

Sweden upstaged by Maldives in virtual diplomacy

STOCKHOLM, Sweden: Sweden on Wednesday opened an embassy in the computer-generated world known as Second Life, but it was not the pioneering venture into virtual diplomacy it had expected.

The high-tech Swedes saw themselves trailing the island nation of the Maldives by a week in establishing a diplomatic presence in the popular online community.

"They beat us to the gate," said Olle Wastberg, a former Swedish consul in New York who helped create the Scandinavian country's mission to Second Life.

Second Life is a virtual world in which some 6 million players — called "residents" — interact with each other. They can do basically anything that people can in real life, including buying and selling property, participating in group or individual activities, or socializing.

Sweden announced in January it would set up a virtual presence in the online world to spread information about the Scandinavian country of 9.1 million people and attract more young visitors. But it was the Maldives, with a population of 350,000, that opened the first Second Life embassy on May 22. According to the Maldives' Foreign Minister Ahmed Saeed about 170,000 people in the country have Internet access while there are 19,000 registered broadband users.

"I think it's good that other countries get involved" in Second Life, Wastberg said. "But I saw they had opened theirs on poles in the water so I hope they're not hit by global warming."

The Swedish virtual embassy was inaugurated by Foreign Minister Carl Bildt at the Swedish Institute in Stockholm. Seated in front of a computer, Bildt had some difficulty guiding his scissor-wielding online character to the ribbon-cutting ceremony.

"There's a question of finding the place," Bildt said, as he crashed the cyber version of himself into a tree.

The online embassy was modeled after the House of Sweden in Washington, D.C., and set in an environment resembling the Stockholm archipelago.

It provides visitors with information about Swedish culture and history, as well as tips about places to visit and visa rules. It will also host exhibits, including a virtual version of the Budapest office of Swedish diplomat Raoul Wallenberg, who helped thousands of Jews escape Nazi-occupied Hungary during World War II.

For access one may log on to

http://textus.diplomacy.edu/videovault/secondlife.asp

India to continue relations with Fiji

India's policy is to engage with Fiji's interim administration rather than isolate the country, the outgoing Indian High Commissioner to Fiji, Ajay Singh has said.

"It is the policy of the Indian government to give respect to every country, whether it is big and powerful or small and venerable. Fiji happens to be in the second category," Singh said.

Fiji's military had ousted the elected government on Dec 5, 2006 after a long drawn public spat between Prime Minister Laisenia Qarase and the military chief, Commodore Voreqe Bainimarama. An interim government with Commodore Bainimarama as the interim prime minister was appointed by President Ratu Josefa Iloilo.
The international community including the Commonwealth

Secretariat was quick to condemn the overthrow of the government.
Australia and New Zealand have since imposed diplomatic sanctions on the military led interim administration and are demanding a quick return to democracy.

"The point is to be able to engage, encourage and support a return to normalcy in Fiji rather then to try and crush a small and venerable country," Singh was quoted as saying by Fijilive.

"We believe in quiet diplomacy, rather than issuing statements through the media or by threatening or bullying or imposing sanctions that eventually hurt the common man," Singh added.

--- IANS

Japan's Riyo Mori crowned Miss Universe

TOKYO, May 29 (RIA Novosti) - Japan's Riyo Mori, 20, won the Miss Universe 2007 title in Mexico Monday, in front of 600 million television viewers.

An audience of 10,000 in a huge hall in Mexico City watched last year's Miss Universe, Zuleika Rivera of Puerto Rico, place a $250,000 diamond-and-pearl-studded crown on the winner's head.

A Venezuelan came second, and a Korean took third place out of 15 contenders from 77 countries.

The beauty pageant involved a few scandals. Rachel Smith from the U.S. was hit hardest as Mexicans met her with angry shouts as a representative of a country that discriminates against Mexican immigrants. But despite falling once on stage during the evening gown competition, she took fifth place.

During the pageant, Miss Sweden decided to withdraw because the event was criticized in her country as unworthy of a modern woman. Opponents of the contest held a number of alternative events called Miss Marijuana, Miss Human Rights and others on the same day.

Russian Tatyana Kotova from Rostov-on-Don failed to make the top 10 finalists.

The last time Japan won the pageant was in 1959, when Akiko Kojima became Asia's first Miss Universe.

Kim Jong Il fascinates Asian artists

TOKYO (AP) — Asia's largest design event showcased an unlikely hero: North Korean leader Kim Jong Il.

The communist dictator was featured on key chains, T-shirts, and other artwork featured Sunday at Design Festa in Tokyo — an event featuring 6,000 artists from across the region.

One stall displayed greeting cards showing the leader, who famously sports a quiff, dressed as Elvis Presley and was titled "Jong Il B. Goode" — taken from the song "Johnny B. Goode" by another rock 'n' roller of the 50s, Chuck Berry.

In apparent reference to an ongoing international standoff over North Korea's nuclear ambitions — and following Pyongyang's test of a nuclear weapon in October — other cards showed the secretive Kim posing in front of spy ships and mushroom clouds.

Elsewhere, key chains depicting the leader tied up in Japanese-style bondage ropes were sold out. Also popular was a stall selling T-shirts emblazoned with cartoon images of the leader.

"Kim Jong Il was one of our most popular models," said key chain designer Hayato Sakai, 32. "It's just a joke. Nobody takes it seriously."

"I think it's a timely theme," said illustrator Naotoshi Inoue, 46, who drew the Kim postcards. The design event opened just days after North Korea test-fired at least one short-range missile into waters between the Korean peninsula and Japan.

"If you think seriously about what Kim Jong Il is doing, it's so scary. But that's why it may also help to laugh," Inoue said.

Design Festa is held twice a year in Tokyo and is billed as Asia's biggest design event. About 60,000 people were expected to attend.

Copyright 2007 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.

South Asia Needs to Resolve Dispute, says Pakistan PM

ISLAMABAD: Prime Minister Shaukat Aziz Friday said South Asia has tremendous potential to move forward in a big way which needs to be exploited by ensuring peace and stability through dispute resolution and taking measures to fight poverty in the region.
Addressing the launch of Human Development Report in South Asia 2006 on "Poverty in South Asia and Challenges and Responses" by Mahboob-ul-Haq Human Development Centre here at local hotel, the Prime Minister said poverty in South Asia is still a major challenge as it harbours forty percent of the world's poor.

He said equitable distribution of macro-economic growth in Pakistan has played an important part in reducing poverty. He said poverty cannot be reduced until the equitable growth reaches all parts of the country.
He said the income of a common man has increased and at the end of next financial year per capita income will be dollars 1000.
Shaukat Aziz said that Zakat and Bait-ul-Mal are key elements of delivering those people who cannot use opportunities to improve their lives.
He said in the next budget, the government will expand and increase the role of Bait-ul-Mal so that vulnerable segment of the society can get a bigger share.
The Prime Minister said Pakistan has achieved remarkable progress in reducing poverty adding that the government is committed to improving the living standards of the entire population.
He said all stakeholders - government, private sector, civil society, development partners - have to work together in fighting poverty.
The Prime Minister said the fruits of economic growth are reaching all segments of society and all regions of the country.
He said the number of people below the poverty line has declined from 34.5% in 2001 to 23.9% in 2005 - in urban areas from 22.7% to 14.9% and in rural areas from 39.3% to 28.1%.
He said in absolute terms, 13 million people have been taken out of poverty, out of which 10.5 million belong to the rural areas.
The unemployment rate has come down from 8.3% in 2001-02 to 6.2% during 2005-06 and about 5 million new jobs were added during 2003-06, he added.
"We believe in balanced growth embracing all regions of the country and all segments of society and our model of development is not exclusive for a few but inclusive of all - rich and poor, men and women, urban and rural," he added.
The Prime Minister said economic policy is underpinned by principles of liberalization, deregulation and privatization.
However, regulatory oversight and intervention by government is equally important to remove market distortions, to protect the consumer and disadvantaged groups, and to provide a level playing field for all stakeholders.
Referring to poverty reduction strategy of the government, the Prime Minister said keeping in view social and economic policy, the government is implementing a comprehensive poverty reduction strategy.
He said the strategy is based on four pillars; accelerating economic growth and maintaining macroeconomic stability, improving governance and devolution, investing in human capital and safety nets for the poor
and the vulnerable.
The Prime Minister said sustaining a growth rate of 7% over the last 4 years and achieving 7% plus growth this year are the major achievements of the government. He said the size of the economy has doubled and Pakistan has become one of the fastest growing economies of Asia and the country has been added in Next-11 by Goldman Sachs.
Referring to record investment, both domestic and foreign, the Prime Minister said these are basis for sustainable growth.
He said investment in development has increased four time as in 1999, the development budget was 2.6% of GDP while it was 4.3% of GDP in 2006-07 and allocation of Rs. 435 billion for public sector development was highest ever in the country's history.
The Prime Minister said mega projects have been started to ensure energy, water and food security.
He said through devolution, the people have been empowered at the grassroots level. He said there has been record investment in social sectors.
Referring to improvement in social sector indicators, the Prime Minister said the ranking in Human Development Index has moved up 10 places in 4 years - from 144 in 2001 to 134 in 2004.
"We are committed to achieving the Millennium Development Goals, with substantial progress in poverty and gender related goals and targets with initiatives for youth, Internship Programme, President's Rozgar Scheme, " he added.
Regarding Pakistan's growth and development strategy, the Prime Minister said the world is looking to Pakistan as an attractive place as seven percent growth achieved in the last several years has doubled the size of the economy and the per capita income.
He said the pro-poor expenditure is increased from 4 percent of GDP during the 90s to six percent now. He said 48 percent of development programme is directly or indirectly relates to social programme. Regarding Education, the Prime Minister said it needs lot of funds.
The Prime Minister said that under the Khushal Pakistan Programme local projects can create jobs in remote areas to help the local people and are also expanding micro credit and micro finance institutions.
Regarding role of women in the development of the country, he said the government brought women in the mainstream in every sphere of life including education, Pakistan Army, Air Force and civil service.●

Looking for Osama in the Maldives.

Fixing me with a fierce scowl, the imam made it clear I was unwelcome. I can't say I was surprised. Somewhere in his 50s, he wore the long beard and calf-length pants that marked him as a follower of Wahhabiism, the strict fundamentalist brand of Islam that originated in Saudi Arabia. But I was not in Saudi Arabia. I was in the Maldives, the remote and lovely island chain in the Indian Ocean near Sri Lanka and southern India.

True, the Maldives is a Muslim country—exclusively so, since the practice of other religions is illegal—and has been since 1153, when the king at the time fell under the sway of an Arab traveler and ordered his subjects to convert. The islands had been predominantly Buddhist, a faith they shared with Sri Lanka, whose Sinhala language is similar to Divehi, the native Maldivian tongue.

But if Islam has a long history in the Maldives, it's not the kind of place you associate with hostile mullahs. Quite the opposite, in fact. With a population of just 360,000, the archipelago is dotted with luxurious private resorts—think Robinson Crusoe with plunge pools—and is a magnet for celebrities such as Tom Cruise, who honeymooned there in December. In Male, the cramped little island capital, tourists are relatively scarce. But the atmosphere, at least at first, seems laid-back and globalized. The skyline is dominated by modern, pastel-colored apartment blocks that would not look out of place in South Florida, and the streets are jammed with shiny new motorbikes, many piloted by sinewy young men in dreadlocks and baggy shorts. I even saw one young woman in a T-shirt that read, "Good Girls Don't Get Caught."

Still, there is no mistaking the Maldives' Islamic character. Alcohol can only be sold to foreigners at resorts, and nearly everyone I spoke with remarked on the growing popularity of beards and headscarves. When I caught up with the surly imam in Male not long ago, he was preparing for afternoon prayers in an illicit and supposedly clandestine mosque, which was hidden behind a row of stores. After he shooed me away, I retreated across the street and watched as a steady trickle of young men—all bearded and sporting abbreviated trousers—disappeared into the alley that led to the mosque. When they emerged a little while later, none of them would talk to me, either.

Some fear the worst is yet to come. In spring 2006, authorities announced the arrest in Sri Lanka of three Maldivians—two women and a man—who allegedly were heading to militant training camps in Pakistan. Charges have since been dropped, and when I spoke to Fatimah Nisreen, a policeman's daughter who was accused of helping to arrange the trip, she asserted that the man had been escorting the women to Pakistan so he could marry them—something he couldn't do at home. But the 26-year-old also described herself as "totally obsessed with Islam" and acknowledged that she regularly visited an extremist Web site, although she has yet to make up her mind about Osama Bin Laden: "There are things I support, and there are things I can't decide on him." [Read More on Slate]

Source: Slate

Kidnapped BBC reporter 'to be released soon'

A journalist holds a sign calling for the release of Alan Johnston

A Palestinian official has given the BBC reassurance that a reporter snatched two months ago in Gaza is still alive.

And he says the BBC's 44-year-old correspondent Alan Johnston should be released soon.

Ghazi Hamad, who is a spokesman for the Palestinian cabinet, says Mr Johnston is alive, and the Palestinian government has been making great efforts to get him released.

A little-known Islamist group claimed responsibility for the abduction.

Australian gay bar wins right to ban heterosexuals

A gay bar in Melbourne has been given an exemption from the Equal Opportunity Act in a landmark ruling which will allow the venue to refuse entry to heterosexuals.

The owners of Collingwood's Peel Hotel, which received complaints in April for promoting a gay Anzac Day party, successfully argued to the state planning tribunal that banning heterosexuals from the club would prevent "sexually based insults and violence".

Victorian Civil and Administrative Tribunal Deputy President Cate McKenzie claimed allowing straight men and women into the club would defeat the purpose of the venue.

McKenzie claims straight women go to the club because they find the gay patrons entertaining.

"To regard the gay male patrons of the venue as providing an entertainment or spectacle to be stared at, as one would at an animal at a zoo, devalues and dehumanises them," she said.

Farm minister commits suicide

Japan's farm minister, Toshikatsu Matsuoka -- under fire for a series of political funding and bid-rigging scandals -- has committed suicide on Monday.

TOKYO, May 28, 2007 (AFP) - Japan's farm minister, who has been embroiled in a scandal over political funds that sent the government's approval ratings plummeting, attempted suicide on Monday.
Toshikatsu Matsuoka, minister for agriculture, forestry and fisheries, was found unconscious in his residence for lawmakers in Tokyo, the government said, adding he was in a critical condition.
"According to police, he was found today at 12:18 pm (0318 GMT) unconscious at the Akasaka dormitory. The person who found him made an emergency call," chief government spokesman Yasuhisa Shiozaki told a brief news conference.
He declined to give details. Public broadcaster NHK said an aide had found Matsuoka hanging from the door of his living room and called medics.
The 62-year-old minister has been embroiled in a scandal involving political funding and bid-rigging.
Two committees set up to support his electoral campaigns allegedly received money from a group of businesses, which then made bids for public works projects doled out by the government, according to media reports.
Prosecutors last week arrested two senior officials of the government body involved in the scandal, which involves work building roads in forests.
Matsuoka has also come under fire for allegedly claiming a large bill for expenses on water and other utilities at his rent-free office building. While he is not legally required to publicly report such expenses, the opposition has demanded that he explain the spending, as the building is managed by the government.
Earlier Monday, newspaper opinion polls said the scandal was a factor that has caused approval for Prime Minister Shinzo Abe's government to tumble.
Support for the cabinet's performance fell to 32 percent, down 11 points from April and the lowest level since Abe came to power in September, according to the Mainichi Shimbun newspaper.
Abe had previously been seen as easily coasting to a victory in national elections due in July.
Abe, at 52 Japan's youngest post-World War II prime minister, has tried hard to shake off perecptions that he cannot control the old guard of his party, which has ruled Japan almost continuously since 1955.
Two of Abe's top aides resigned late last year in separate scandals, while other ministers have made embarrassing gaffes.
Matsuoka, known as a staunch advocate for the farm and construction lobbies, has been closely involved in such hot-button issues as deadlocked World Trade Organisation negotiations and US calls for Japan to open further its market to US beef.
Matsuoka, a native of the southern city of Kumamoto, spent almost all of his career as a bureaucrat in the agriculture ministry before being elected to parliament in 1990 as a candidate of Abe's Liberal Democratic Party.
He was appointed to the minister's post in September when Abe took over from reform-minded premier Junichiro Koizumi.

India to join Asia-Europe Meeting for the first time

External Affairs Minister Pranab Mukherjee will lead a high-level Indian delegation to the two-day meet that brings together Foreign Ministers from 43 nations in Europe and Asia.

   India is joining the Asia-Europe Meeting as a new member, participating in the 8th ASEM Foreign Ministers consultation which opens here today to discuss issues like nuclear proliferation, terrorism, climate change and the situation in Iraq.
   External Affairs Minister Pranab Mukherjee will lead a high-level Indian delegation to the two-day meet that brings together Foreign Ministers from 43 nations in Europe and Asia.
   It is being hosted by German Foreign Minister Franz-Walter Steinmeier in his capacity as the current president of the European Council of Ministers. The biennial ASEM meeting is the biggest event during Germany's six-month presidency of the EU which expires at the end of June.
   The situation in Afghanistan, Iraq and the Middle East, the threats of nuclear proliferation, Iran's nuclear ambitions and the situation on the Korean Peninsula are among the themes on the agenda for discussions on the opening day.
   Tomorrow, the Ministers will turn their attention to issues such as fight against terrorism, energy security and combating climate change, but no major decisions are expected to emerge from the meeting.
   Hamburg city authorities have put in place some of the most stringent security measures to ensure the safety of visiting dignitaries following threats by anti-globalisation campaigners to disrupt the event.
   The authorities fear that the anti-globalisation activists might try to use the occasion for a trial run of their massive protest demonstrations planned for the summit of the seven leading industrialised nations and Russia which Germany will be hosting in the Baltic Sea resort of Heiligendamm early next month.

The decision to admit India and four other nations and the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) Secretariat as new members was taken at the last ASEM summit in Helsinki in September, last year.
   The new members, which include Pakistan and Mongolia from Asia and Bulgaria and Romania from Europe will be welcomed to the ASEM community by Steinmeier at a ceremonial opening of the meeting this evening.
   The Asia-Europe Meeting is an informal dialogue process initiated in 1996 between the European Union and the ASEAN aimed at strengthening the relations and fostering mutual understanding between the two regions.
   The 27 EU member-states, the ten member nations of the ASEAN as well as China, Japan and South Korea are already its members. With its opening towards South Asia, ASEM's membership encompasses nearly 60 per cent of the world's population, 60 per cent of world trade and 50 per cent of global gross domestic product.
   This will reinforce ASEM's role as the primary forum for Asia-Europe dialogue and its capacity to influence the global agenda, according to EU officials.
   The ASEM process' main features include providing an open forum for policymakers and officials from Asia and Europe for discussions on political, economic and social issues of common interest and thereby complement the work carried out in bilateral and multilateral fora such as the WTO and the UN.
   At their meeting in Hamburg, the Foreign Ministers will begin preparations for the next biennial ASEM summit in Beijing in October 2008.

Khaleda against dynastic politics

DHAKA: BNP Chairperson Khaleda Zia yesterday said her party does not practise politics of dynasty and will back only those with qualifications and popular support.

 

Demanding elections without delay, she said the BNP will initiate intra-party reforms as soon as the ban on indoor politics goes.
The former prime minister was speaking to journalists after meeting US Ambassador in Dhaka Patricia A Butenis at a city hotel.
At the press briefing, Butenis urged the government to withdraw the ban so that the political parties can begin the work on reforms. She also stressed the need for holding the election as soon as possible.
Asked to comment on dynastic politics, Khaleda said, "The position I'm in today has not been achieved overnight by means of family influence. It's for years of struggle on the streets, merit and support of the people."

"I believe only those accepted by the people will excel in politics," she said dismissing the allegation that the 'Zia dynasty' rules the BNP.
Her reaction came in the wake of some senior party leaders blaming her for promoting the politics of dynasty.
"We will begin working towards that end once the ban on indoor politics is withdrawn," she said referring to the much-talked about reform of the political parties.

Replying to a query, Khaleda said, "A lot of issues came up for discussion. They (US) want early elections like we do."
A party insider said that during the one and a half hours meeting that began at 4:30pm the BNP chairperson questioned the rationale for the 18-month time frame set for holding the next election.
"Five to six months are enough to have the job done," she was quoted as saying.

Asked if she is under pressure to leave the country, she smiled and said, "As you can see, I am still here."

Khaleda came out of her cantonment residence yesterday for the first time in the last two weeks.

Talking to the journalists, Butenis said, "We touched on a lot of issues including election, reforms and the voter list. I think it would be difficult for the political parties to share ideas on these if the ban is not lifted."

She said, "I call on the government to lift the ban on indoor politics and I hope they will do so."

The US envoy made a similar call after meeting Awami League President Sheikh Hasina on May 16.

According to party sources, before the formal meeting began, Khaleda talked with Butenis for about 30 minutes behind closed doors. Tarique's wife Zobaida Rahman accompanied her at that time.
Butenis enquired about Tarique Rahman, senior joint secretary general of the BNP and elder son of the former premier. She wanted to know if he is being treated properly in jail, added the sources.
BNP Secretary General Abdul Mannan Bhuiyan, Standing Committee members Dr RA Gani, Chowdhury Tanveer Ahmed Siddique,

Khandaker Delwar Hossain, Vice-president Lt Gen (retired) Mir Shawkat Ali, the party chief's advisers Justice TH Khan, Reaz Rahman and Mushfiqur Rahman were present at the meeting.
Later, Khaleda spoke to her party colleagues for about 20 minutes about the present political situation, said the sources.

Reaz Rahman, an adviser to the BNP chairperson, at a press briefing termed the meeting a 'farewell' to Butenis.

He said both Khaleda and the US ambassador hoped that the election would be held well before the end of the time limit announced by the Election Commission.

Afghans rally against MP suspension

JALALABAD: A protest march in the eastern Afghan town of Jalalabad has demanded that a recently suspended female MP be reinstated. Around 200 people, half of them women wearing Burqas, marched to the United Nations office in Jalalabad on Friday, expressing anger at the suspension of Malalai Joya, the country's outspoken female parliamentary member, AFP reported. The 28 year old legislator had enraged her colleagues by publicly comparing the parliament to a stable, saying a stable is far better because there "you have at least cows which provide milk and you have got donkeys which can carry loads."

A majority of her colleagues found Joya guilty of violating article 70 of the Afghan legislature's rules of procedure, which forbids lawmakers from criticizing one another. Her specific charge was announced to be "insulting the institution of parliament".
The high-profile Afghan politician has been suspended until the end of her parliamentary term before the 2010 elections.
Protestors say the parliament is not entitled to suspend an MP because she was elected by her constituency in the western province of Farah.

The Jalalabad rally follows similar protests staged Thursday in Farah.
Leading international rights watchdog Human Rights Watch, said Thursday that although Parliament's rule forbid law-makers from criticizing one another, MPs had regularly done so with impunity in the past.

"Joya's comments don't warrant the punishment she received," Brad Adams, the rights watchdog's Asia director said in a statement.

King insists on power for people

THIMPHU: Surrounded by alpine meadows and snowcapped peaks, the town of Punakha in central Bhutan bears witness to the difficulty of taking a Buddhist Himalayan monarchy into the 21st century. Inside the 17th-century Tibetan fortress or dzong, topped with pagoda-like golden roofs, are 172 civil servants running the affairs of thousands of villagers. Here taxes are collected, new forests planned, telephone lines installed and a watchful eye kept on the "mountain tsunamis" that threaten to burst from melting glaciers and wash away the town - as happened in 1994.

Yet the dzong is more of a spiritual centre. The corridors are enveloped in incense and prayer chants bounce off the walls. Monks, clad in red robes, outnumber sword-carrying civil servants almost 10 to one. "It is not a tradition that monks and officials are here together, it is a lack of space. We need to build another dzong but have been a bit busy," says Dasho Dzongrab Taappo, the deputy head of the district.

Dasho Taappo has been preparing for next week's mock elections, a dry run of democracy in a country that has only ever been a kingdom. Next year the country's voters will face parliamentary elections. The shift has been greeted with little joy and much anxiety. Above the town of Wangdue many say they do not want to rule themselves. "It is too early to give power to the people," says Shep, a farmer. "We are not ready for government. We prefer the king."
Political shift

The result has been apathy. Fewer than half the 250,000 registered voters turned out last month in the first round to choose between four imaginary parties identified by a colour representing an ideology. Red was for rapid industrialisation, green for environmentalism, blue for civic sense and yellow for heritage and tradition. Yellow, which also happens to be the colour of the king, won handsomely by 30,000 votes. On Monday voters are expected to vote en masse for the yellow party, emphatically rejecting the new-fangled ideas of "industrial-led development".

The reason that King Jigme Singye Wangchuck and his anointed heir and son, the 27-year-old Oxford-educated Jigme Khesar Namgyel, are finding it so difficult to hand power to the people is the success of hereditary monarchy in preserving Bhutan's traditions while opening its doors to prosperity.

Bhutan, on the eastern flank of the Himalayas between India and China, is still poor but its progress has been startling given that serfdom was abolished only in 1956 and the first paved road appeared just five years later.
In the past 40 years Bhutan has flourished, building free schools and hospitals. Life expectancy has risen from 40 to 66. The literacy rate has soared from 20% in 1992 to almost 60% today. Thanks to hydropower, people are twice as rich as in India. "Bhutan has made extraordinary progress. Of course with progress comes challenges and that is where democracy comes in," says Nicholas Rosellini, the UN resident coordinator in Bhutan. "The neighbourhood has plenty of examples of instability so people are wary."

At first sight the country's capital looks stuck in a time warp. Traditional dress - a kimono-style jacket and a kilt - is compulsory in public places. Buddhist architecture is promoted and big murals of the revered phallus adorn city walls. A policy of extracting $200 a day from visitors ensures fewer people make it to the country than to Antarctica.

But Bhutan is not isolated. English is widely spoken, the internet is uncensored and satellite TV is available. Two private newspapers last year broke the monopoly of state-owned press. Korean pop stars and US basketball players have become idols for young Bhutanese. The effect of the outside world on the youth has been dramatic.
In a hotel lobby in Thimphu, Bhutan's capital, is 27-year-old Kezang Dema - the youngest and only female candidate in elections to the upper house.

People wary
She says her interest in politics was sparked by a BBC report on US presidential hopeful Barack Obama. "I saw something in his speech. I wanted to do the same for my people. Education is a priority and we need to make 100% of our people literate," says Dema.
To manage outside influences and retain a distinctive Bhutanese identity the king promoted a concept known as Gross National Happiness. This rests on Buddhist ideas that economic growth alone would not bring contentment. The result is that Bhutan ranks 134th in global wealth leagues but is the 13th "most happy" place on the planet.

GNH elevates social stability over a rush for growth and has become one of Bhutan's most notable cultural exports. The policy is widely popular, elevating environmental concerns long before they were in vogue. In the 2005 census that asked "are you happy?", only 3.3% of respondents said they were not.

However critics argue the single-minded pursuit of happiness has legitimised authoritarian, conservative rule. Abortion and cigarette sales are banned.

Some say that Bhutan's view of itself as the last repository of independent Himalayan Buddhist thought has promoted a nationalism that fuelled the expulsion of thousands of Nepali-speakers in the early 90s. Last week the UN's top refugee official called on Thimphu to help settle the future of 100,000 Bhutanese refugees in camps in Nepal.

Backstory
In 1921 the governor of Bengal, Lord Ronaldshay, wrote of Bhutan as "a magic time machine fitted fantastically with a reverse". It remained a hermit kingdom until the Chinese invasion of Tibet in 1959 sent a stark warning about the perils of isolation. Roads opened and the first bank arrived. King Jigme Singye Wangchuk launched a democratisation process in the late 90s and last December abdicated in favour of his son. Next year will see three landmarks: the coronation of the new king, 100 years of the Wangchuk dynasty and the first parliamentary elections.

FULL STORY 75% pepole want early CA election

KATHMANDU: A nation-wide political opinion poll, Nepal Contemporary Political Situation IV, found that 70 per cent of the people have heard of the constituent assembly and that 25 per cent of all Nepalis understand what a constituent assembly is all about.
The research carried out by Interdisciplinary Analysts with financial support of The Asia Foundation aimed to document the level of knowledge among the people on the processes and contents of the constituent assembly and thereby formulate an intervention strategy for voters’ education, said the opinion poll report. The research was done between December and January.

Seventy-five per cent of those contacted said elections to the constituent assembly were necessary, 55 per cent said they were necessary for lasting peace, while 22 per cent think they are must to formulate a new satisfactory constitution.
The figure reveals that the level of public trust towards the Nepali Army is more than the level of trust towards either the CPN-Maoist or the political parties. In total, about 62 per cent of the respondents have some level of trust in it while 29 per cent do not have faith in it.
About 54 per cent of the respondents had some level of trust in the Maoists. Thirty-three per cent do not trust them. Around 48 per cent of the respondents said they had some level of trust in the political parties.

Around 35 per cent mentioned that the Maoists should bring peace in the country, 22 per cent mentioned that they should help the poor, and 19 per cent, mentioned that they should bring development to the country.

Fifty-nine per cent of the respondents think that a democratically elected government or parliament should have ultimate control over the Nepali Army.

Around 45 per cent of the respondents are for a place for monarchy in Nepal, while 43 per cent think there should not be any place for monarchy in Nepal. The rest were undecided.

Split on monarchy:

• 45 per cent for a place for monarchy
• 43 per cent want no space for monarchy
• 25 per cent know what a CA is all about

DPRK accuses Japan of passing "imperialist law"

PYONGYANG, May. 26  -- The Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK) on Friday lashed out at Japan for passing a law that sets out the rules for a referendum on revising its constitution, a move it says will be a threat to peace in Asia and the world.

    "It is nothing but an imperialist law to turn Japan into a state for war and aggression", said a commentary issued by the official Korean Central News Agency (KCNA).

    The commentary comes after Japan's parliament passed and enacted into law a referendum bill on Constitution revision on May 14.

    Any amendment to Japan's constitution must be initiated by parliament and supported by two-thirds of lawmakers in both houses and then receive a majority vote in a referendum.

    Under the new law, the first legislation to establish rules for such a referendum, Japanese citizens aged 18 or older are eligible to vote in a constitutional referendum.

    "The main purpose of this law is to scrap Article 9 of the Constitution", said the KCNA.

    The debate over changing the constitution has mostly focused on Article 9, which states: "The Japanese people forever renounce war as a sovereign right of the nation and the threat or use of force as means of settling international disputes."

    "With the enactment of the law, Japan's Pacifist Constitution may cease to exist anytime and the military and political situation in Asia has reached the worst phase since the end of World War II",the KCNA said.

    The commentary also criticized Shinzo Abe, the Japanese Prime Minister, for repeatedly pledging to keep the issue of constitutional revision at the top of his agenda since he began campaigning last September to become leader of the ruling Liberal Democratic Party.

    Japan's constitution has not been revised since it came into effect in 1947. Recent surveys found that over half of the respondents think the supreme law should be amended.

    However, a majority of people expressed concerns over any changes to Article 9, which renounces war.

    Japan ruled the Korean Peninsula as a colony from 1910 to 1945, when 8.4 million slave workers were kidnapped and sent to Japan and 200,000 women were forced to work as sex slaves for the Japanese army.

2 killed, 7 injured in Pakistan roadside explosion

ISLAMABAD, May 26 -- At least two soldiers were killed and seven others injured in a roadside bomb attack on a convoy in northwestern Pakistan's tribal region on Saturday morning, the military said.

    The convoy was heading to Wana, the center of South Waziristan, from Tank, a major town at the edge of Waziristan tribal region, the army spokesman Major General Waheed Arshad said.

    "A convoy was heading to Wana from Tank at 7:15 a.m. (GMT 0215),when it was attacked with improvised device," Arshad said. "Two security men were killed and seven were injured."

    Wana, some 380 km southwest of Pakistani capital city Islamabad, is located in the so-called Federally-Administrated Tribal Areas, a semi-autonomous tribal belt bordering Afghanistan.

    The attack came days after the military raided a training camp in North Waziristan tribal region on May 22, killing four suspected militants.

    No one claimed responsibility for Saturday's attack but such attacks are usually blamed on pro-Taliban elements.

    The military spokesman said security forces are investigating into who was behind the attack.

    The security forces cordoned off the area soon after the attack, reports quoting witnesses said.

    The injured were shifted to a military hospital in the region. TV channel reports said that two injured soldiers are in critical condition.

    Since joining Washington-led war on terror in the wake of Sept.11, 2001 attack on the U.S., the Pakistani government has so far sent some 90,000 troops to the border areas to hunt Taliban and al-Qaeda members who sneaked into Pakistan for shelter.

    In an effort to restore peace and expel foreign militants out in the tribal areas, Pakistani authorities have entered into peace agreements with South Waziristan's tribal elders in 2005.

    Pakistan has started selectively to build fence along the 2,500-km-long border with Afghanistan and also claimed that it has installed some 1,000 checkpoints on the border to curb illegal movement of fighters.

    But things have been far from smooth in Pakistani authorities' efforts to secure the tribal areas bordering Afghanistan, where majority of the residents share the same ethnic background and close historical links with tribesmen in eastern Afghanistan.

    Hundreds of Pakistani soldiers have died in the numerous clashes or attacks with or by militants in the tribal areas since years ago.

USAID Provides Assistance to Maldives Flood Victims

WASHINGTON-- Due to the effects of recent flooding in the Republic of Maldives, the U.S. Government through the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) is providing $100,000 to the UN Children's Fund (UNICEF) for emergency water and sanitation services to the affected populations. On May 22, U.S. Ambassador to Sri Lanka and the Maldives Robert O. Blake declared a disaster and authorized U.S. assistance.

Beginning May 15, seasonal high tides and large waves exacerbated by intense winds flooded at least 55 of the 194 inhabited islands in the Maldives. Flood waters affected local infrastructure, water supplies, and crops on many islands, but did not cause any deaths, according to the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs. The flooding is the most widespread on record, apart from the December 2004 tsunami, according to the Maldives Government.

USAID will continue to monitor the situation and provide updates as appropriate.

For more information about USAID's emergency humanitarian assistance programs, please visit: www.usaid.gov/our_work/humanitarian_assistance/disaster_assistance/.

Bangladesh upgrades its top military brass

Dhaka: In a significant strategic development, Bangladesh has upgraded its military top brass and will have its first four-star general.

In the across the board promotions announced Thursday, Army Chief Lt Gen Moeen U. Ahmed will become a full general - after the investiture ceremony scheduled for Saturday.

Ahmed had only two days back ruled out a military takeover and maintained that the armed forces were "subservient to civilian authority".

In an apparent attempt to refute the widespread perception at home and abroad that the interim government of Chief Advisor Fakhruddin Ahmed is "military-guided", he also said he had no political ambitions and no plans to play a role beyond the army.

His observations, and that the government was working to hold general elections as early as possible, were welcomed by mainstream political parties.

In the promotions, air chief Vice Marshal S.M. Ziaur Rahman has been promoted to air marshal while navy Chief Rear Admiral Sarwar Zahan Nizam has been upped to vice-admiral, reported the Daily Star.

Besides, three major generals have been promoted to lieutenant general, while three brigadier generals have become major generals.

Bangladesh's armed forces, especially the army, separated from those of Pakistan in 1971, have a record of intervening in governing and ushering in phases of military or military-guided rule between 1975 and 1990.

The Bangladesh Army's current strength is more than 200,000 personnel, Bangladesh Air Force consists of more than 7,000 personnel and Bangladesh Navy has 14,950 personnel as per unofficial statistics.

Amongst the other promotions, Principal Staff Officer (PSO) Major General Mohammad Zahangir Alam Chowdhury has been elevated to lieutenant general and made quartermaster general.

Commandant of the National Defence College (NDC) Major General Abu Tayeb Mohammad Zahirul Alam has also been upgraded to lieutenant general.

Chief of the 9th Division Major general Masud Uddin Chowdhury has been promoted to lieutenant general with new positing as PSO of the Armed Forces Division.

Deputy Director General of DGFI Brigadier General Golam Mohammad has been made Director General of the Forces Intelligence on promotion as major general.

--- IANS

Malaysian leader denies Singapore meddling in industrial park project

Malaysia- Malaysia's leader has rejected concerns that Singapore might wield too much influence over how Malaysia plans to run a multibillion-dollar industrial park bordering the city-state, news reports said Friday.

Both countries announced earlier this month they would set up a joint ministerial committee to study ways to cooperate to make the Iskandar Development Region (IDR) project in Malaysia's Johor state a success.

Prime Minister Abdullah Ahmad Badawi, speaking to selected media during a visit to Tokyo on Thursday, said the announcement does not mean Malaysia will need to seek Singapore's approval for any decisions regarding the project.

"Many are worried that we would be consulting Singapore on everything we do on Iskandar," Abdullah was quoted as saying by The Star and New Straits Times newspapers. "No, it is not happening that way. ... That will never happen."

Aides traveling with Abdullah could not immediately be contacted Friday.

Malaysia and Singapore enjoy close economic and cultural ties, but have a history of diplomatic spats. Ties improved after Abdullah in 2003 succeeded former leader Mahathir Mohamad, who frequently criticized Singapore.

Following recent talks with Abdullah, Singapore's Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong said the city-state has assessed the IDR project and determined "it is fundamentally good for us if the project takes off and succeeds."

Once completed, the zone would be almost three times the size of Singapore. Malaysia plans an investment of 47 billion ringgit (US$14 billion; €10 billion) over the next five years, and 360 billion ringgit (US$105 billion; €80 billion) over 20 years.

Malaysia is hoping to attract investors from Singapore to get the project going, and Abdullah has said he envisions Singapore's relation with IDR as similar to that of Hong Kong and Shenzhen on the Chinese mainland.

The two countries have also agreed to make travel easier between Singapore and IDR by issuing chip-embedded smart cards that would make passports unnecessary.

Aquarium puts chips in fish

SINGAPORE: Singapore’s aquarium has tagged some of its fishes using microchips to help visitors identify the different species on display.

Visitors to the Underwater World aquarium can see the name, species and other information displayed on a touch screen whenever any of the 20 tagged fishes swim past a sensor, said Peter Chew, sales and marketing manager at Underwater World.

“Gone are the days when visitors are happy looking at animals and matching them with the information on the sign boards,” Chew said.
Underwater World, which is on Singapore’s Sentosa island, is the first aquarium in the world to tag its exhibit fishes with microchips using the radio frequency identification technology, Chew said.
The aquarium, which took three months to set up the S$30,000 ($19,600) system, is also considering tagging sharks, he said.
Those tagged include arapaima, one of the world’s largest freshwater fish, and pacu, which is related to the piranha.–Reuters

Bank robbery is no child’s play

KARACHI: A robber who tried to hold up a bank using a baby doll and a blood pressure pump was in custody yesterday after his heist failed, a Pakistani newspaper reported.

The 25-year-old burst into the bank in Karachi on Monday brandishing the doll, which he claimed was a bomb, and the pump, which he said was a hand grenade.

The man, identified only as Jamal, walked into the bank manager’s office, where he silently presented a note demanding Rs2.5mn to pay kidnappers whom he said were holding his family hostage.
Tahir Khan, the bank manager, told Jamal to wait in his office while he went to get the money from a cashier, the Daily Times reported.
Once outside, Khan called the police, who arrested Jamal at gunpoint and alerted a bomb disposal team, which discovered the doll was stuffed with harmless wires.

Police investigating Jamal’s claim that his family was being held later concluded he was trying to pay off large gambling debts.
Jamal, who was wearing a school satchel at the time of the attempted robbery, said he had got the idea of a bank robbery from a film, reported the newspaper.

He told police that he had earlier tried to rob the same bank on Saturday, but had been foiled because it was closed. - AFP

Seoul halts rice deliveries to N.Korea until it stops reactor

TOKYO, (RIA Novosti) - Seoul has suspended rice supplies to North Korea until it shuts down its nuclear reactor, South Korea's Yonhap news agency cited a government source as saying Thursday.

At bilateral negotiations Wednesday, North and South Korea failed to agree on delivery terms, not only for rice, but also raw materials for Pyongyang's light industry.

Seoul made it clear earlier that it would cooperate with North Korea, and planned to supply 400,000 metric tons of rice to North Korea late in May.

The UN Food and Agriculture Organization said previously that North Korea faces a serious food shortage this year and will need an additional 500,000 tons of rice.

Bilateral relations between the two Koreas were disrupted after Pyongyang conducted missile tests in October 2006. Dialogue was resumed when North Korea agreed to stop its nuclear reactor and give IAEA inspectors access to the country in a six-party agreement on February 13.

However, the communist nation has insisted that it will not start denuclearization until its funds frozen at Banco Delta Asia in Macao are released.

North Korea's $25 million deposited in Banco Delta Asia was unfrozen in March in an attempt to win Pyongyang's promise to close its nuclear reactor. But the fund transfer has been stalled, and in response the Communist regime has delayed shutting down its Yongbyon reactor expected in April.

The impoverished state has been cut off from global financial markets for several years and has used cash or complicated barter schemes to pay for supplies and services from other countries.

Japan to challenge G8 over climate

Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe proposed yesterday a global target to halve greenhouse gas emissions by 2050 and said Japan would support developing countries committed to halting global warming with a new form of financial aid.

Climate change will be high on the agenda at the Group of Eight summit in Germany next month and Mr Abe has said Japan wants to exert leadership in drafting plans to extend beyond 2012 the Kyoto Protocol on cutting carbon emissions. The pact is named after Japan's ancient capital where the agreement was signed in 1997.

Outlining his "Cool Earth 50" proposals in a speech, Mr Abe said a post-Kyoto framework should include all major emitters such as the US, China and India. Kyoto's first phase ends in 2012 and negotiations have yet to start in earnest on the pact's next stage.

Mr Abe said a post-2012 framework should also take into account the diverse conditions in different countries and be compatible with both economic growth and environmental protection.

"There is only one Earth, and there are no national boundaries for the air," Mr Abe said.

"Even the most outstanding strategy would be meaningless unless all people living on Earth participate in it.

"If the framework required economic growth to be sacrificed, the participation of many countries cannot be expected."

Germany has been pushing for G8 members to commit to cutting greenhouse gas emissions by 50 per cent below 1990 levels by 2050. But German Chancellor Angela Merkel said earlier yesterday that she was unsure whether the G8 summit would produce a breakthrough in the fight against global warming.

The US, the world's biggest emitter of greenhouse gases, pulled out of the Kyoto pact in 2001 and said it would keep rejecting targets or plans to cap emissions because it fears the impact on economic growth.

Japan, also a large producer of greenhouse gases, will host next year's Group of Eight summit of wealthy nations, at which the environment will remain a key issue.

Cambodia, Myanmar agree to direct flights

CAMBODIA and Myanmar have agreed to direct flights between their main tourist destinations, Cambodian Foreign Minister Hor Nam Hong said Wednesday.

The flights will connect Bagan and Mandalay, Myanmar's top tourist stops, to Cambodia's Angkor temple town Siem Reap, he said after returning from accompanying the Cambodian prime minister, Hun Sen, to the reclusive state.

"Cambodia and Myanmar agree to boost the tourism industry between the two nations and attract more international visitors," he said.

"We have the same culture because we are both Buddhist, so we have to attract more tourists to both countries," he added.

Impoverished Cambodia has built a booming tourist industry on the back of the 800 year-old Angkor temples, drawing some 1.7 million foreign visitors in 2006.

But Myanmar has failed to bring in even a fraction of that number, mostly due to poor infrastructure, and its cultural treasures go largely unseen by foreigners.

Cambodia, which has close diplomatic ties with military-run Myanmar, hopes to create regional package tours that also take in neighbouring Thailand and Laos, Cambodian officials said before the start of the visit.

Direct flights between Myanmar and Cambodia's capital Phnom Penh will begin sometime in the future, Hor Nam Hong said.

Malaysia Narrows Asean+3 For East Asian Community Building

TOKYO, May 24 (Bernama) -- Malaysia has recognised the Asean Plus Three (Asean+3) process as the primary vehicle in regard to the East Asian Community building instead of other regional cooperation platforms.

Declaring Malaysia's stance on the process that is best for Asian Community building, Prime Minister Datuk Seri Abdullah Ahmad Badawi said only Asean+3 process involving the 10 Association of South-East Asian Nations (Asean) members, Japan, China and South Korea seeks to build an Asian Community, or to be more exact, an East Asian Community.

Quoting the East Asia Vision group report and the East Asia study group report, he said the Asean+3 process sought to build an East Asian Community of peace, prosperity and progress.
"This stance, however, does not make other regional cooperation processes namely, the East Asia Summit or Asia Pacific Economic Cooperation (Apec) any less important, only that they serve different purposes," he said in his keynote address on "Deepening Cooperation Towards A True Community" at the 13th Nikkei International Conference on the Future of Asia here today.

Abdullah said the East Asia Summit was an important forum to conduct dialogues and forge cooperation between the countries of the East Asian Community and their most important partners in development while Apec was a trans-Pacific forum to foster trade and economic cooperation among the member economies.
"The East Asia Summit process and Apec have a larger geographical footprint in terms of participating countries and economies but they have much narrower agenda.
"Fundamentally important as the two are in their respective roles, their purpose is not community building," he said.
Abdullah said a true community would go beyond mere functional cooperation.
"It is one in which the nations and peoples involved share a sense of common identity and common strategic purpose. They also subscribe to a set of values and norms they consider important and common to all," he said.
Abdullah said the countries that comprised a community with a common identity, a common strategic purpose and a shared set of values cannot be too dissimilar.
"They usually share a common and contiguous geographical space. They are bounded by strong economic ties, and above all, they share a common socio-cultural background," he said.

These attributes, he said, could be found in the European community and increasingly also in South-East Asia and East Asia.
He said the countries that were disparated would find it difficult to come together as a community.

"For instance, it is difficult to visualise a community of European and African nations, or European and East Asian nations but the European logic could be applied to the Asean region or East Asia," he said.

Abdullah said he preferred to use the term 'community building', which is an on-going process, rather than 'community' as he visualised a true community as an organism to be cultured rather than an organisation to be formed.

He said architecture, institutions and rule books were important and they must be created and introduced gradually as the community becomes strong in spirit as well as substantive in economic, social and political terms.

"Asean, for instance, is an experience worthy of study and perhaps emulate," he said.

He said after nearly four decades of sustained cooperation in which the foundations of the community were patiently extended throughout the region, Asean was ready to articulate its model of community in the Bali Concord II of 2003.

"The Asean community will be an amalgam of three communities, namely an economic community, a security community and a socio-economic community, he said.

"The coming years will be devoted to realising the idea of community and it will be reiterated in the Asean Charter that will be launched in December this year," he said.

Abdullah highlighted seven things that East Asian Community could do for successful community building. They are:

* The community must have some common attributes;
* Allow for diversity;
* Ensuring that it rests on a strong foundation of equality, mutual respect and consensus;
* Building confidence and trust;
* Have a genuine desire to share and learn;
* Recognise that true community is not about form but of function; and,
* The members of a community must be able to productively engage and cooperate with countries outside the community.

He said any tendency towards becoming closed or creating blocs should be avoided at all costs and communities like the East Asian Community should be well-integrated into the global political, economic and security systems.
-- BERNAMA

U.S. warships head to Philippine south for drills

MANILA (Reuters) - Three U.S. warships carrying about 1,400 sailors and marines were due in the southern Philippines next week for a 12-day drill to help root out Muslim militants on the archipelago's remote isles.

A naval spokesman said on Thursday that three Philippine navy patrol boats with 600 sailors and marines were expected to take part in the annual exercises off the southwestern tip of Mindanao and around the island of Basilan from May 31 to June 9.

"The exercises were designed to enhance the ability of the two nations to work together in maritime situations that range from natural disasters to maritime interception of criminals and terrorists," said Ensign Annaleah Palad.

The Philippines' ill-equipped military has been trying for years to flush Muslim militants, including the suspected masterminds of the 2002 Bali bombings, from its remote southern territories.

Earlier this month, one of the Bali suspects escaped a naval blockade and was thought to have fled to another island.

Manila is reliant on U.S. military aid, advice and training to help fight members of regional terror network Jemaah Islamiah as well as members of a local militant operation, Abu Sayyaf, infamous for decapitating captives.

The Philippines already holds conventional annual war games with the United States, its former colonial master and long-time security ally in the Asia-Pacific region.

Since 2002, the Philippines, Indonesia and Malaysia have been exchanging information to improve controls along their vast maritime borders.

The three countries were planning to set up a more formal arrangement patterned after the "eyes in the sky" cooperation in the Strait of Malacca.

Tools: Save | Print | E-mail | Most Popular Feedback U.S. checking all toothpaste imports from China

WASHINGTON (Reuters) -- U.S. health officials are beginning to check all shipments of toothpaste coming from China, following reports of tainted products in other countries, a government spokesman said Wednesday.

The Food and Drug Administration has no evidence that contaminated toothpaste has made its way into the United States but is taking the step as a precaution, agency spokesman Doug Arbesfeld said.

China is the second-largest exporter of toothpaste to the United States behind Canada, according to the FDA.

The FDA's action comes after the lethal chemical diethylene glycol was found in toothpaste sold in the Dominican Republic and Panama.

It follows a wave of concern over pet food from China containing another toxic chemical, melamine, thought to have sickened thousands of U.S. cats and dogs and made its way into livestock feed.

"We are going to be sampling and testing all shipments of toothpaste that come from China," Arbesfeld said. "We're doing this as a precautionary measure. We have no evidence that toothpaste containing diethylene glycol has entered the country."

Tests on product pulled from shelves in Panama showed they contained high levels of diethylene glycol, used in engine coolants. Investigators in that country said two toothpaste brands were imported illegally from China through a free-trade zone.

Tainted toothpaste has also been reported in Australia, Arbesfeld said.

It was not immediately clear which brands of toothpaste sold in the Unites States are made in China.

A representative of Johnson & Johnson's McNeil-PPC Inc., which makes Rembrandt toothpaste, could not be immediately reached.

A spokeswoman for Colgate-Palmolive, maker of Colgate toothpaste, said the company did not import toothpaste into the United States from China.

A Procter & Gamble spokeswoman said Crest brand toothpaste was American-made. A spokeswoman for GlaxoSmithKline Plc's consumer unit, which makes Aquafresh, had no immediate comment.

Chinese officials have said they plan to strengthen domestic food safety even as worries grow about its manufacturers' use of toxins and fake ingredients.

Earlier Wednesday, China called for an investigative team to probe the toothpaste incidents.

FDA's Arbesfeld said the U.S. agency is beginning its work immediately and will continue for 90 days, although that could be extended.

Arbesfeld added that the agency has been in contact with health officials in the other affected countries as well as China.

Tsunami warning lifted after strong Indonesia quake

JAKARTA (Reuters) - An strong undersea earthquake on Thursday off central Indonesia's Nusa Tenggara island chain sparked panic and prompted a brief tsunami warning, but there were no reports of casualties or major damage.

The quake struck near Sumbawa island at a depth of 19 km (11 miles), Fauzi, head of seismology at Indonesia's meteorological and geophysics agency, told Reuters.

"We have cancelled the warning. The quake had no tsunami potential," Sri Woro, the head of the agency, told Reuters.

Residents in Raba town on Sumbawa island said the quake sparked panic but no damage was reported.

"It happened for a few seconds. People were rushing out of their houses and buildings," Eli, who works at the Raba regent's office, told Reuters by telephone.

A local hospital official, Suharto, said some hospital walls in Raba were cracked.

The United States Geological Survey said the quake was of magnitude 5.5 and at a depth of 50.4 km (31 miles) and was 1,380 km (860 miles) east-southeast of the Indonesian capital, Jakarta.

Thailand's Disaster Warning Center said the quake measured 5.6 there and no tsunami warning had been issued, while Malaysia's seismology agency reported much the same.

Earthquakes are frequent in Indonesia, the world's fourth most populous country. Its 17,000 islands sprawl along a belt of intense volcanic and seismic activity, part of what is called the "Pacific Ring of Fire."

A devastating Indian Ocean tsunami triggered by a giant undersea earthquake off Indonesia's Aceh province in December 2004 left hundreds of thousands dead or homeless across the region.

Nearly 1,600 people were killed in Nusa Tenggara islands when a strong quake triggered a tsunami in December 1992.

Maldives Unveils World’s First Virtual Embassy

The Maldives today became the first country in the world to open a Virtual Embassy in Second Life, the online virtual world.
The Maldives Virtual Embassy will soon be followed by embassies representing Macedonia and the Philippines. Sweden has also announced plans to open a Virtual Embassy.

The Maldives Virtual Embassy is located in the Diplomatic Quarter of Diplomacy Island in Second Life, an on-line space designed to allow new avenues for diplomatic representation and negotiation, especially for small and developing countries that have limited diplomatic outreach in the “real” world. Diplomacy Island is the brainchild of Diplo Foundation, a non-profit organisation which works to assist developing countries participate meaningfully in international affairs.

The official inauguration ceremony took place simultaneously in the real world (Geneva) and in the virtual world (Second Life), with participants in both “place” and “space” able to watch the speeches, interact with each other, and explore the Maldives Embassy and the rest of Diplomacy Island.

The ceremony included addresses by Dr. Srgjan Kerim, President Designate of the UN General Assembly (speaking via the internet from New York), Mr. Abdulla Shahid, Minister of State for Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Maldives, Mr. Sergei Ordzhonikidze, Director General of the United Nations Office at Geneva, Ambassador Walter Fust, Director of the Swiss Agency for Development and Cooperation, Mr. Philip Rosedale, CEO of Linden Labs and Founder of Second Life (speaking form Silicon Valley), and Dr. Jovan Kurbalija, Director of Diplo Foundation.

Speaking ahead of the opening ceremony, which was hosted by the Geneva Centre for Security Policy, the Maldives Minister of State for Foreign Affairs, Mr. Abdulla Shahid emphasized how information technology and particularly the internet can be harnessed by small countries to help them participate meaningfully in international relations: “The Maldives is a small country but that does not mean we do not have a valuable contribution to make in international affairs. The Maldives is well known as a tourist destination, but we are also a country that has experienced rapid economic, social and political development over recent years; while our vulnerability to sea-level rise has put us at the forefront of the global debate on climate change. The Virtual Embassy offers another channel for us to provide information on the country, to offer our viewpoint on issues of international concern, and to interact with our partners in the international community. I warmly welcome anyone interested in the Maldives to pay us a visit in Second Life”.

Echoing these sentiments, Dr. Srgjan Kerim, President Designate of the UN General Assembly said “Modern diplomacy should follow the changes of today's world. One of the main and most profound changes is the development of the internet and new forms of communication. Diplo’s virtual diplomacy initiative, with Diplomacy Island and Virtual Embassies, heralds new developments in diplomatic practice.”

DiploFoundation’s Director and concept leader of Diplomacy Island, Dr. Jovan Kurbalija, noted that “the core of diplomacy is communication. When communication changes – as is happening now – diplomacy must adjust”. He also expressed his hope that Diplomacy Island will go some way towards addressing the “image deficit” of diplomacy. “In the modern world, thousands of museums celebrate wars and military victories, however there are no museums dedicated to diplomacy” he noted.

Second Life has 6.2 million users and has already become an established home for real-world companies (such as Toyota, Nike and General Motors), media outlets (e.g. Reuters, BBC Radio One), and universities (e.g. Princeton and Harvard).

Legendary Thai puppeteer dies

BANGKOK: Sakorn Yang-keowsot, a renowned Thai national artist and eminent puppetry master, has died of lung and kidney complications, news reports said yesterday. He was 85. Sakorn, the founder of the Joe Louis puppet theatre, died Monday night at a Bangkok hospital, the Bangkok Post paper said. Founded in 1985, the Joe Louis theatre combined khon, Thailand’s classical masked theatre, and traditional puppetry.

Freelancer photographer gunned down in Cavite

MANILA: A freelance photojournalist in the Philippines was shot dead yesterday, bringing to four the number of reporters killed in the country so far this year, police said.

Dodie Nunez was aboard a passenger mini-bus on his way home in General Mariano Alvarez town in Cavite province, just south of Manila, when he was shot.

Chief Inspector Manuel Placido, the town’s police chief, said three men riding a motorcycle blocked the path of the mini-bus and shot Nunez.

One other passenger was also wounded in the attack.
Placido said Nunez was a photojournalist working mainly with a local newspaper owned by a politician, who lost his bid to replace the incumbent governor in Cavite in elections last week.
Investigators have yet to determine if Nunez was killed for his work as a photojournalist or his affiliation with the local politician.
Last year, 11 journalists were killed in the Philippines.
International media groups have identified the Philippines as the second most dangerous place in the world for journalists, next to Iraq, due to unabated attacks and harassments.-DPA

No escape as mobile phone reaches Everest’s summit

KATHMANDU: A British man has set a world record by making the first mobile telephone call from the summit of Mount Everest, taking the blessing-or curse-of the cell phone  to new heights.

“It’s cold, it’s fantastic, the Himalayas are everywhere,” Rod Baber said in the phone call from the top of the 8,848-metre (29,198-foot) peak early on Monday morning, according to a voice recording posted on his weblog.

“I can’t feel my toes, everyone is in good spirits - we got here in record time, it is amazing,” said Baber.
His achievement was made possible by China Telecom, which has set up a mobile phone tower at base camp on the north side of the mountain.

While the Himalayas had been cherished as one of the few places on earth where you can truly get away from it all, the news has nevertheless been welcomed by those involved in the adventure business.

“It’s good news because communications are essential in the mountains where climbers face huge risks,” said Ang Tsering Sherpa, the president of Nepal’s Moun-taineering Association.
“The mobile coverage could help in rescue operations,” he said.
The call is one of several high altitude stunts being carried out in the current Everest climbing season.

Last week a Briton pulled off the season’s first big stunt by making the first flight over the summit using a powered paraglider.
A Nepali mountaineer has also broken his own world record by scaling the peak for a breathtaking seventeenth time.
Other daredevils on the mountain include Wim “Iceman” Hof, a Dutchman attempting to scale the peak wearing just shorts, boots, gloves and a cap.

This year, around 550 people are attempting Everest from both Nepal and via the northern flank in China. – AFP

Top UN official in Nepal to resolve fate of refugees

KATHMANDU: The UN’s top refugee official arrived in Nepal yesterday for a visit aimed at resolving the fate of around 100,000 refugees from Bhutan stuck in Nepal for 16 years.

“I think there is now a good opportunity for several solutions, and we will make an effort to move forward,” UN High Commissioner for Refugees Antonio Guterres told reporters.

The refugees-mostly ethnic Nepali Hindus-began leaving Bhutan in 1990 when the Buddhist kingdom launched cultural reforms encouraging the use of Bhutan’s language and national dress.
During his three-day visit, Guterres will meet with Nepal’s Prime Minister Girija Prasad Koirala and other government officials before travelling to one of seven UN camps in southeastern Nepal today. He will also visit Bhutan.

The United States has offered to resettle around 60,000 of the refugees, but the move has created tensions in the camps-with many insisting on being allowed to return home.

Bhutan and Nepal have held at least 16 unsuccessful rounds of talks over each other’s responsibility for the refugees.

Meanwhile, the US government’s offer to resettle Bhutanese refugees languishing in Nepal for nearly two decades has triggered eagerness among their peers in India to start a new life on American soil.

According to the US State Department, nearly 15,000-30,000 Bhutanese refugees have been living in India since the 1990s when Bhutanese citizens of Nepali origin were forced to flee their homes following the Druk government’s crackdown on ethnic communities.
Many of those refugees in India were among the poorest in Bhutan and did not have the resources to make it to the refugee camps in Nepal administered by the UN High Commissioner for Refugees with donations from the international community.

“All of them live on the margins of society, without citizenship and with no legal status in India,” says a report issued by the Human Rights Watch (HRW) last week.

Officials of the NGO, who visited India in November to compile the report, “Last Hope: The need for durable solutions for Bhutanese refugees in Nepal and India”, say the refugees in India told them they were as much in need of a “durable solution” as those in Nepal.
“I have heard about the US proposal,” one of them told HRW. “If they (refugees in Nepal) go, why not us? Another refugee lamented that the community in India was ignored by the donors.  – Agencies

New pest threatens to wipe out RP coconut industry

The Philippine government warned of a new malady which threatens to wipe out the country's US$ 760 million coconut industry in three years' time.
Called the coconut hispine beetle (Brontispa longissima Gestro), it has already affected about 70,000 trees or 700 hectares of coconut plantation.

CIIF Oil Mills Group president and CEO Danilo M. Coronacion, in an interview during the Farmers Night held recently at the Hotel Intercontinental, said these pests are native to Papua New Guinea and Indonesia and were brought to the Philippines in 2004 through ornamental plants imported from Thailand and Vietnam.

These pests were first spotted preying on palm trees along the Baywalk strip of Roxas Boulevard in Manila and along the stretch of Silang to Dasmarinas highway in Cavite.

Coronacion said the infestation had spread in different areas throughout the country from southern Luzon to Mindanao.
According to the Philippine Coconut Authority (PCA), Brontispa feeds on young leaves, which then appear burned or scorched and may cause death to young palms and those situated in poor growing conditions.

The beetle causes great damage to seedlings and mature coconut palms, kills the young spears and eventually the whole palm. Ornamental palms suffer the same fate.

The larva and adult are the destructive stages. They damage the epiderms of the young leaves that eventually provide easy entry for pathogens. The adult is not capable of long flights but its long life span lasting from 75 to 90 days is responsible for the short distance spread of the insect.

On the other hand, the larva feeds throughout its growing period, which normally lasts for 36 days. Both larva and adult stay between unopened leaflets of young coconut spears. They feed on the soft tissues but spare the hardier veins and mid-ribs. Affected parts decay and dry up, thus preventing the coconut palm from bearing fruits, it said.

The PCA said the eggs of this beetle are difficult to detect because they are inserted between leaflets. Thus, planting materials of coconuts and ornamental that are intended for transport to non-infested areas should be inspected thoroughly.

It said chemical spraying is ineffective against this pest and is hazardous to non-target organisms and the environment in general.

Based on the study conducted by the Philippine Council for Agriculture, Forestry and Natural Resources Research and Development (PCARRD), the pest is best controlled by pruning, clean culture, and proper disposal of infested coconut palms or parts thereof.

Biological control is also advisable by using the fungi, Metarrhizium and Beauveria, and the parasitoid, Ascodes hispinarum.

The hispine beetle is considered one of the most damaging pests of coconut and other palm species. The beetle is endemic in Sulawesi, Indonesia and Papua New Guinea, and spread in the late 1990s to Southeast Asia and Maldives where it severely damaged coconut production.--PNA

Rare penguins via Maldives Post

Male’ Maldives, Tuesday , May 22, 2007: Reflecting its contribution to preserving the eco system in the world and also in the country, the Maldives Post has come up with a unique stamp series of rare penguins to mark the International Polar Year.

Launched early this month the series has several stamps with denomination of Maldives Rufiyaa 12 depicting different penguins.

Maldives Post says there are 17 known species of Penguins, all found in the southern Hemisphere. Though Penguins are birds and have wings, they are unable to fly. Their black and white coloring is used as a form of camouflage, making them indistinguishable to predators from both above and below.
The Maldives Post has Souvenir Sheets as well as First Day Cover on the International Pola Year commemoration.

The series on penguins is the latest issuance of new stamps by the Maldives Post. The previous one was in February to commemorate the 100 Years of World Scouting.

LM

Pakistani court sends same-sex couple to jail

LAHORE, Pakistan (Reuters) - A Pakistani court sent a couple to jail on Tuesday on the grounds that the husband was actually a woman and that same-sex marriages were against Islam.
The husband, Shumail Raj, 31, had sex-change surgery and told a newspaper that a cousin was aware of the condition and agreed to marry because she feared being forced into wedlock with someone else.

The two were arrested last week on the orders of the High Court in the eastern city of Lahore, which said Raj had earlier lied to the court, saying he was a man.

"Neither Islam nor our law allows marriages of the same sex. This mistake cannot simply be overlooked," Lahore High Court judge Khawaja Sharif told the couple.

"Why should a case be not registered against you for committing unnatural offence and telling lie," he said.

The judge ordered that Raj be sent to jail in Lahore and the woman, Shezina Tariq, be sent to jail in her home town of Faisalabad, pending their trial.

If convicted of "unnatural offence" -- a term used for homosexuality -- they could be sentenced to life in prison.

Tariq said they married because they were in love.

"We're not homosexuals. Ours was a love marriage," the 24-year-old woman, clad in a long shawl, told reporters while sitting in a police vehicle after the verdict.

Raj had initially brought their case to the attention of the courts, appealing for protection from harassment by relatives who disapproved of their marriage. Tariq's father had earlier tried to marry her to someone else, the Dawn newspaper reported.
"It was the fear of forced marriage which compelled me to convince Shumail for marriage," the paper quoted her as saying.
"I was fully aware of Shumail's physical condition."

Raj, who has a trimmed beard and looks like a man, had undergone surgery twice in Pakistan and hoped to go abroad for more. Pakistan is a predominantly Muslim nation and sex-change surgery is illegal.
"We love each other," Raj told the newspaper. "I informed her about my medical condition and clearly told her that she could not become a mother if she married me.

"Despite that, Shezina gave her consent owing to fear of forced marriage."

Reuters

Two earthquakes shake Philippines

Tuesday, May 22, 2007 04:40 PM

Two earthquakes shook the Philippines Tuesday, one in Agusan del Norte while the other in Nueva Ecija, according to the Philippine Institute of Volcanology and Seismology.

 A tectonic quake registering 4.1 in magnitude occurred 31 kilometers northwest of Butuan City around 12:56 a.m.  The quake was felt at intensity 5 in Butuan City and at intensity 4 in Surigao City.

No damage was reported and the Phivolcs said they were not expecting aftershocks.

Meanwhile, another quake hit 9 kilometers southeast of Palayan City around 12:14 p.m.  The quake was also tectonic in origin and had a magnitude of 3.1.

The quake was felt at intensity 3 in Palayan City but no damage was reported nor were aftershocks expected.

Judge Dismisses Brunei Prince's Lawsuit

Judge Dismisses Brunei Prince's Lawsuit Against British Advisors

NEW YORK -- A federal judge in New York has dismissed a Brunei prince's lawsuit against Britain-based husband-and-wife legal advisers that the prince claims conned him and his companies out of millions of dollars.

In an opinion Friday, U.S. District Judge Lewis A. Kaplan dismissed a federal racketeering claim against Faith Zaman and Thomas William Derbyshire brought by Prince Duli Yang Teramat Mulia Paduka Seri Pengiran Digadong Sahibul Mal Pengiran Muda Haji Jefri Bolkiah and a group of companies, of which he is beneficial owner.

The judge also denied a request by Prince Jefri to file an amended complaint in the matter.

Shortly after Judge Kaplan issued his ruling, Prince Jefri's lawyers filed a lawsuit against the couple in New York State Supreme Court on Friday, said Mark A. Cymrot, the couple's lawyer.

"(Judge Kaplan's decision) confirms that the Derbyshires are not racketeers," Cymrot said Monday. "It reduces the dispute to a normal commercial dispute, for which we think there's no merit."

Brian Socolow, a lawyer for Prince Jefri, said Monday that they disagree with Judge Kaplan's findings in the federal case and are "examining our options." He said the prince has separately filed a lawsuit in New York state court asserting the same state law claims as the prior federal lawsuit.

In his lawsuit, Prince Jefri had alleged the couple, who began acting as his legal advisers in 2004, breached their fiduciary duties through a series of fraudulent real-estate transactions in the United States and misuse of corporate credit cards.

The complaint had sought the set-aside of the real-estate transactions, damages and the return of millions of dollars in legal fees.

AP

Sri Lanka sinks into lawlessness

Cases of murder, abduction, disappearance and intimidation surface almost daily in Sri Lanka as the South Asian nation appears to be sliding into lawlessness and war.

With a truce between the government and the rebel Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) in tatters and peace talks long since abandoned, rights workers and the media fear the situation is spiralling out of control.

The government is pressing for a military victory over the Tigers, and a series of tit-for-tat clashes have left heavy casualties on both sides -- as well as discrepancies over the true body count.

But away from the front lines, bloodshed is just as frequent and usually involves civilians, although it is seldom clear who is behind the day-to-day violence.

\"The situation is out of control,\" said Sunander Deshapriya of the Centre for Policy Alternatives, a private think tank.

\"What we are seeing today is uncertainty. We do not know who is doing what. It is very difficult to find out who is responsible, violence is so widespread,\" Deshapriya said.

\"It is also very difficult to see the situation improving.\"

Almost 5,000 people have been killed since December 2005, according to the defence ministry.

And more than 700 people are reported to have \"disappeared\" in the past year in Sri Lanka, where at least 60,000 people have been killed in the Tamil separatist conflict since 1972.

Such a climate of fear has not been seen on the island since 1987-1990, when the army crushed a Marxist Sinhalese uprising at the official cost of 16,750 dead and thousands more missing.

Britain halted debt relief this month in anger at the government\'s human rights record, and major donor Japan is reviewing its position. Germany stopped aid last December.

The United States has also dropped the usual diplomatic niceties, publicly accusing Sri Lanka of reneging on promises to protect human rights.

\"People are more fearful and face more difficulties. Overall, there has been a deterioration in Sri Lanka\'s human rights record,\" said US Assistant Secretary of State Richard Boucher on a visit to Sri Lanka this month.

He travelled to the northern Jaffna peninsula, where 350,000 civilians and 40,000 government troops have lived under virtual siege conditions since the army closed the only land access in August after rebel attacks.

Laxman Gunasekera, president of the South Asian Free Media Alliance (SAFMA) in Sri Lanka, said abductions were rampant -- \"but not a single government authority is prepared to acknowledge abductions and give us a figure.\"

\"We have an impression of a lack of control by the state itself,\" he said.

Sri Lanka\'s Human Rights Minister Mahinda Samarasinghe told AFP the lack of official figures was a \"lacuna\" and said the government was battling to ensure a human rights commission functioned independently.

This involved setting up a witness protection scheme and safe houses, and arranging for political asylum in the West when necessary.

\"It\'s a serious situation we have to grapple with,\" he said. \"I know it\'s hard for people to understand that we are making progress.\"

The minister pointed to the ongoing return of thousands of refugees to eastern areas where troops have captured territory from the LTTE.

But journalist groups accuse authorities of trying to silence anyone who dissents from the official line.

\"Journalists face public abuse, violent physical assault, threats, deaths, abduction and murder ... in all parts of the country,\" including LTTE-held areas, said SAFMA\'s Gunasekera.

\"The picture is not one of improvement, but worsening conditions,\" he said. \"The reality is bleak.\"

The independent Sri Lanka Press Institute is creating a safety fund to help journalists facing death threats. It is looking at providing mobile phones to local reporters and running a safe house in the capital.

Tamil journalists have borne the brunt of the onslaught. Several told AFP they live in fear for their lives and can no longer work normally or risk using their names on air or in print.

In eastern Batticaloa district, only one Tamil journalist remains at work today, several months after the army ousted the LTTE from the Tamil-majority area. Others have fled, among them the president of a Tamil journalists union.

Nadesapillai Vithyatharan, chief editor of the Tamil-language Uthayan newspaper -- the only paper to publish in Jaffna for the last 20 years without interruption -- refuses to back down.

He says he will not close despite a squeeze from the authorities which has resulted in the daily cutting its pages from 20 to four, and printing on any paper it can find. Circulation has dropped from 24,000 to 4,000.

\"We have lost five staff in the last 18 months,\" he said. \"I have had grenades tossed into my room, but I am ready for anything.\"

AFP

Men in San Marino, women in Japan live longest, WHO says

By Alexander G. Higgins

A boy born in the mountainous enclave of San Marino in northeast Italy will likely live to 80, the world's longest male life expectancy, but newborn girls in Japan and 30 other countries have even better prospects, the World Health Organization said.

Sierra Leone registered the shortest male life expectancy at 37 years—the same as for girls in Swaziland, the bottom of the female list, according to WHO's ''World Health Statistics 2007.'' Females in Japan—who traditionally lead the world tables—have a life expectancy of 86, the same as in last year's WHO statistics. San Marino men, who were tied with Japanese men last year at 79, have added a year to move ahead.

WHO said the life expectancy figures were based on 2005, the latest year available. It said statistics kept by its 193 member countries may vary in some cases because it had computed the figures itself to ensure compatibility.

Following San Marino on the male side were Australia, Iceland, Japan, Sweden, and Switzerland at 79 years and then Canada, Israel, Italy, Monaco, and Singapore at 78. France was tied for 12th place at 77 years with a group of countries including New Zealand and Britain. Germany was at 76 years, and the United States was tied with Cuba and other countries for 33rd place at 75.

Countries with long-lived women include Monaco, 85 years, and Andorra, Australia, France, Italy, San Marino, Spain, and Switzerland at 84. Canada tied Iceland and Sweden at 83 years for women, and Germany was in a group at 82 years. Britain came in at 81 years and the United States tied for 32nd place with Costa Rica and Denmark at 80 years.

Afghanistan is the toughest place for babies to survive, with an infant mortality rate of 165 in 1,000 live births, compared with the two babies who die per 1,000 born in Singapore or Iceland. But Sierra Leone is worse than Afghanistan for mothers' survival, with a maternal mortality rate of 2,000 per 100,000 live births. The rate for Afghanistan was 1,900. Ireland did best at four deaths, followed by Spain, Italy, Finland, Canada, and Austria at five deaths. Diet is often given as a major factor in life expectancy, but the report did not give specific reasons for each country's showing. However, it noted that many of the countries that fared badly spent much less money on health.

It also noted that tobacco use had a ''high prevalence among the world's poorest people,'' and suggested that the low life expectancy in some countries could be linked to high rates of diseases like HIV/AIDS and tuberculosis. 

AP