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| October 1, 2003 |
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World Media Watch by Gloria R. Lalumia BUZZFLASH NOTE: Once again, these are the views and perspectives of the individual papers, not of BuzzFlash or Gloria. They offer BuzzFlash readers a way of reading what other nations are saying about the crisis, whether we like it or not. We repeat: This is not an endorsement of their viewpoints. * * * 1//The Independent, UK--FOOT MOUNTS PERSONAL ATTACK ON PM'S 'LIES' OVER CONFLICT IN IRAQ (The former Labour leader Michael Foot launched an extraordinary personal attack on Tony Blair last night, accusing him of telling lies over the war in Iraq...Last night the Labour leadership refused to accept a motion criticising the war. The unions expressed anger and pledged to challenge a decision not to allow a vote on an emergency motion tabled by the RMT rail union, which said the war had no justification and British troops should be withdrawn...This morning the RMT is expected to mount a public challenge to the decision to quash a vote on its critical motion.) 2//The Jordan Times, Jordan--JORDAN WILL TRAIN IRAQI POLICE, TROOPS - KING (His Majesty King Abdullah urged Washington on Monday to work with the international community to restore sovereignty in Iraq quickly and announced that Amman will train about 30,000 Iraqi police and troops. "At the moment we are in the final stages to prepare for training in Jordan a little over 30,000," King Abdullah said in an interview with AFP. "There will be eight-week courses, and every course will be attended by 1,500 Iraqis. Soon we will receive the first batch of 3,000." The King said Amman had ruled out sending its own police or military to Iraq.) 3//KurdishMedia.com, UK--BBC MEDIA TRAINING ON HOLD IN IRAQ (The British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) World Service Trust has put its activities on hold in Iraq temporarily due to deteriorating security. "We are really waiting for security to improve and we would have to see NGOs go back in first before we move in again," projects director for the BBC World Service Trust, Tim Williams, told IRIN from London on Monday...At present Iraqi Media Network TV and radio programmes are being prepared and pre-recorded in facilities in the Convention Centre near the headquarters of the Coalition Provisional Authority (CPA)..."While CPA officials of all kinds insist they want to foster a free independent and responsible media that will be at the centre of the democratisation process in Iraq, at the moment they are too busy trying to convince Iraqis of their good intentions and getting public information announcements on the airwaves".) 4//The Daily Star, Lebanon--AFGHAN ARMY GAINS NEW BATTALION, BOOSTS FORCE TO 6,000 TROOPS (Afghanistan's national army gained a new battalion Monday, boosting the force to about 6,000 and raising hopes that government troops will one day take control from warlord militias that still hold sway over large parts of the country. The move came as the country prepared to put forward a new constitution for ratification, which declares Afghanistan a Muslim state but stops short of imposing Sharia law, a contentious issue in this conservative nation, an Afghan official told The Associated Press... Afghan leaders have said they want a force of 70,000, but training has been slow. Foreign sponsors, including the US, Germany, France and Britain, say that could take at least five years. The problem is aggravated because Karzai's government has little influence outside Kabul and the rest of the country is controlled by local warlords who command private militias.) 5//The Guardian, UK--CHIRAC IN THE WINGS AT JUPPE TRIAL (Corruption at the heart of President Jacques Chirac's former political base, the city administration of Paris, came under scrutiny yesterday at the opening of the trial of the former prime minister Alain Juppé, 58... Mr Chirac will be monitoring the case closely, because he will almost certainly face similar charges when he relinquishes power.) * * * 1//The
Independent 01 October 2003 FOOT MOUNTS PERSONAL ATTACK ON PM'S 'LIES' OVER CONFLICT
IN IRAQ The former Labour leader Michael Foot launched an extraordinary personal attack on Tony Blair last night, accusing him of telling lies over the war in Iraq. Mr Foot, who was given a Downing Street reception by Mr Blair for his 90th birthday this summer, said at the Tribune rally that the chaos in Iraq increased the risk of nuclear, chemical and biological weapons falling into the hands of terrorists. He urged Mr Blair to make it the mission of a third Labour term to promote global disarmament. "If we have a full-scale international action to stop all the weapons of mass destruction, then we won't have to hear any more lies from our leaders on this," he said. Last night the Labour leadership refused to accept a motion criticising the war. The unions expressed anger and pledged to challenge a decision not to allow a vote on an emergency motion tabled by the RMT rail union, which said the war had no justification and British troops should be withdrawn. Union activists viewed this as an attempt to prevent the Prime Minister being humiliated. The leadership's decision left delegates with only an uncontroversial policy paper about Iraq to vote on today. The policy paper does not criticise the Government but it could form an opening for critical speeches from the floor. "A vote on this paper would be meaningless," said one senior union official last night. This morning the RMT is expected to mount a public challenge to the decision to quash a vote on its critical motion. It plans to refer the decision back to the conference arrangements committee, which recommends what should and should not be debated. A Labour spokesman said he could not comment on the decision ahead of a formal announcement to the conference this morning. On Sunday night Labour managers were delighted when the constituencies did not put their weight behind an Iraq vote. Yesterday they were trying hard to avert a humiliating defeat for Mr Blair after unions clubbed together to try to force a vote. (MORE)
JORDAN WILL TRAIN IRAQI POLICE, TROOPS - KING AMMAN - His Majesty King Abdullah urged Washington on Monday to work with the international community to restore sovereignty in Iraq quickly and announced that Amman will train about 30,000 Iraqi police and troops. "At the moment we are in the final stages to prepare for training in Jordan a little over 30,000," King Abdullah said in an interview with AFP. "There will be eight-week courses, and every course will be attended by 1,500 Iraqis. Soon we will receive the first batch of 3,000." The King said Amman had ruled out sending its own police or military to Iraq. "Having Jordanian soldiers or policemen walking in the streets of Iraq, I don't think it is fair to the Iraqis, nor to any of its neighbours," he said. "We told the Iraqis, anything you want from our institutions, (you're welcome). Here in Jordan, but to go there, I think it is sensitive," the Monarch added. King Abdullah spoke to AFP at Beit Al Baraka, in Amman's western suburbs, hot on the heels of a trip to the United States earlier this month to discuss efforts to pacify Iraq and the Middle East. In light of a disagreement between the United States and France on what he called the "timing of the transfer of sovereignty" to Iraq, the King said he hoped that current UN talks will defuse the row. "There is tremendous pressure on the Americans to move as quickly as possible (but) the US, seeing from the ground what the issues are, feels that the transfer of authority now to an unelected government is not timely," King Abdullah said. "But I think eventually France, the international community and the United States will be able to agree on a timeframe to give the Iraqis self-government." (MORE)
BBC MEDIA TRAINING ON HOLD IN IRAQ The British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) World Service Trust has put its activities on hold in Iraq temporarily due to deteriorating security. "We are really waiting for security to improve and we would have to see NGOs go back in first before we move in again," projects director for the BBC World Service Trust, Tim Williams, told IRIN from London on Monday. However, one radio programme entitled 'Calling Iraq' is continuing. Six journalists trained in Baghdad straight after the war is providing material to be broadcast on the programme, which is transmitted from London. Since the end of the war, the BBC has trained 100 journalists in south central Iraq and conducted a one week training course in conjunction with the United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF) introducing children to radio. "This project has been put on hold for the time being," he said. The trust has carried out two surveys of the Iraqi broadcast media firstly in April in the southern cities of Basra, Umm Qasr and Amara followed by another on the south central cities of Baghdad, Hilla, Najaf and Karbala in June. The surveys found that the process of developing a strategy for the rebuilding of the Iraqi media was just getting underway. "We felt that despite the bombing and disappearance of the entire management there were pockets of people who were trying to set up the media and trying to provide local information," Williams said, adding that there was a clear need to rebuild management. The report underscored the security situation: "Baghdad is still in chaos and security in the city is a constant worry". (SNIP) At present Iraqi Media Network TV and radio programmes are being prepared and pre-recorded in facilities in the Convention Centre near the headquarters of the Coalition Provisional Authority (CPA). They are physically taken to the TV and FM radio transmitter site some two km away so they can be aired. With 10 reporters and a staff of 50 in Baghdad only, the TV station broadcasts for up to 12 hours per day. The same reporters also work for radio. According to the survey findings, Iraqis all over the country had high broadcast engineering skills. However, production and editorial skills were poor. (SNIP) The survey findings also made reference to the CPA's involvement in rebuilding the media industry: "While CPA officials of all kinds insist they want to foster a free independent and responsible media that will be at the centre of the democratisation process in Iraq, at the moment they are too busy trying to convince Iraqis of their good intentions and getting public information announcements on the airwaves". Commenting on the news values of Iraqi journalists, he said: "When it comes to news Iraq is definitely a country run by rumour. One of the dangers for any media organisation is that it will have to deal with the rumour mill." He explained that there was a concern that these rumours could be manipulated by the wrong people to be used to their advantage. "Audiences are provided with both information and rumour," he remarked. "People have to deal with irrational thoughts and fears as well as dealing with the day to day issues and problems," he added.
AFGHAN ARMY GAINS NEW BATTALION, BOOSTS FORCE TO 6,000 TROOPS Afghanistan's national army gained a new battalion Monday, boosting the force to about 6,000 and raising hopes that government troops will one day take control from warlord militias that still hold sway over large parts of the country. The move came as the country prepared to put forward a new constitution for ratification, which declares Afghanistan a Muslim state but stops short of imposing Sharia law, a contentious issue in this conservative nation, an Afghan official told The Associated Press. The question of Sharia has been "a huge struggle" in the work on the constitution, the official said Sunday. "So far, the focus has been on trying to find a consensus," the official, who was involved in the drafting, said on condition on anonymity. But, he added, "a balance has been found." As they draw up a constitution to unify the fragmented nation, conservatives and secularists have been hotly debating how to enshrine Islam into law after years under the Taleban, which enforced a harsh version of Sharia some Afghans recall with horror but others support. (SNIP) After 11 months of work by dozens of constitutional experts and three months of public consultations in which 150,000 people submitted suggestions, a draft will likely be released this week. (SNIP) Meanwhile, 663 soldiers and 13 officers of the 11th battalion paraded to a military band and drilled with AK-47 rifles at a ceremony at their Kabul training ground. It was the first time that Afghan, rather than foreign, instructors trained an entire battalion. Officers received training from French instructors on how to run 12-week basic training courses. The battalion is the first combat support battalion for the army's 3rd Brigade. Its soldiers will provide engineering, medical and scout skills. The United States has provided uniforms and other basic equipment. Weapons came from former Soviet bloc countries. (SNIP) No precise ethnic breakdown of the new battalion was given, but recruits were drawn from the Pashtun group dominant in the south, as well as Tajiks, who dominated the Northern Alliance before it overthrew the Taleban regime with the help of a US-led coalition in 2001. Other soldiers come from the Hazara and Uzbek minorities. Afghan leaders have said they want a force of 70,000, but training has been slow. Foreign sponsors, including the US, Germany, France and Britain, say that could take at least five years. The problem is aggravated because Karzai's government has little influence outside Kabul and the rest of the country is controlled by local warlords who command private militias. (MORE)
CHIRAC IN THE WINGS AT JUPPE TRIAL Corruption at the heart of President Jacques Chirac's former political base, the city administration of Paris, came under scrutiny yesterday at the opening of the trial of the former prime minister Alain Juppé, 58. Mr Juppé's political future depends on whether he is found guilty of creating fictitious jobs for party workers paid for illegally by the Paris town hall. If convicted, Mr Juppé, who is mayor of Bordeaux and head of Mr Chirac's centre-right party, the UMP, faces up to five years in prison, a big fine and a ban on holding public office. This would ruin his hope of being elected president in 2007. Mr Chirac will be monitoring the case closely, because he will almost certainly face similar charges when he relinquishes power. During Mr Juppé's trial the court was told that Mr Chirac had been partially investigated for his involvement in the same scandal, which dates from his 18 years as mayor of Paris, but he was excluded from this prosecution because of his presidential immunity. Yesterday, Mr Juppé defended his political mentor, saying that Mr Chirac had played no role in the party's finances. "The president did not get involved in preparing the budget, nor in its implementation, nor in the day-to-day running of the RPR," [Rally for the Republic, the UMP's predecessor] he said. (MORE) | |||||
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