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| January 12, 2004 |
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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. * * * WORLD MEDIA WATCH FOR JANUARY 12, 2004 1//The Daily Star, Lebanon--US PLAN TO HUNT HIZBULLAH IN LEBANON MOST LIKELY TO FAIL (A mooted Pentagon plan to deploy US Special Forces in the Bekaa Valley to hunt Hizbullah targets is bound to backfire, analysts warn, saying it would boost support for the party and encourage global attacks against US interests...Hizbullah analysts in Beirut warn that attacking the party would be counterproductive. "I think it would be the height of ridiculousness if the United States government thinks of any kind of raid into the Bekaa," said Judith Harik, author of the forthcoming Hezbollah: The Changing Face of Terrorism.) 2//The Jordan Times, Jordan--CHALABI'S PARTY UNDER KUWAITI FIRE FOR RAISING ISLANDS ISSUE (A Kuwaiti daily called Saturday for declaring the Iraqi National Congress (INC) an enemy of Kuwait after its vice president urged the emirate lease two islands to Baghdad...INC Vice President Mudhar Shawkat said in comments published by the Kuwaiti newspaper Al Rai Al Aam Thursday that the Gulf islands of Bubiyan and Warba were essential for Iraq's economic development... The INC is headed by Ahmad Chalabi, a pro-US member of Iraq's interim Governing Council. "He (Shawkat) is following in the footsteps of Saddam Hussein and Abdelkarim Kassem," the Iraqi leader who threatened to occupy Kuwait in the early 1960s, Al Watan said.) 3//Asia Times Online, Hong Kong--DOWN IN THE VALLEY, THE MOOD IS SOMBER (The decision by India and Pakistan to commence a composite dialogue on contentious issues, including Kashmir, has been welcomed as a significant breakthrough in bilateral relations. However, the international applause that has greeted the handshake between Indian Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee and President General Pervez Musharraf in Islamabad has failed to resonate in the Kashmir Valley.) 4//The Independent, India--BIG BROTHER BRITAIN, 2004 (More than four million surveillance cameras monitor our every move, making Britain the most-watched nation in the world, research has revealed. The number of closed circuit television (CCTV) cameras has quadrupled in the past three years, and there is now one for every 14 people in the UK. The increase is happening at twice the predicted rate, and it is believed that Britain accounts for one-fifth of all CCTV cameras worldwide.) 5//Inter Press Service, Italy--UPCOMING ELECTIONS FAIL TO ROUSE STUDENTS (Iran's students, a reliable touchstone for assessing public opinion in the country, are displaying apathy towards the Feb. 20 elections to the 'majlis', Iran's 290-seat parliament. A low turn-out, fuelled by disenchantment with the political process, seems on the cards...Youth like Rouzbeh Riyazi, who at 21 is among the elected student leaders in the university, are dismayed by the barring of reformist candidates by the Council of Guardians - a conservative supervisory body composed of six experts in Islamic law, called 'mujtahids', and six civil lawyers.) * * * 1//The
Daily Star Beirut, Saturday January 10, 2004.
Updated 09:00 AM +2GMT US PLAN TO HUNT HIZBULLAH IN LEBANON MOST LIKELY TO
FAIL BEIRUT: A mooted Pentagon plan to deploy US Special Forces in the Bekaa Valley to hunt Hizbullah targets is bound to backfire, analysts warn, saying it would boost support for the party and encourage global attacks against US interests. Instead, they say Washington should encourage Israel to take up Syria's offer of a resumption of negotiations because a peace deal between the two countries is the surest way of neutralizing Hizbullah's militant activities. The Washington Post reported this week that US Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld could send "hunter-killer" teams of Special Mission Units into the Bekaa and Somalia to root out and destroy "terrorist" cells. The Post said Rumsfeld is "enamored" with the idea of expanding the role of special forces units in the "war on terror." "There have been briefings about various operations against various targets," a US State Department official told the newspaper. "We're prepared to go into these areas." But Hizbullah analysts in Beirut warn that attacking the party would be counterproductive. "I think it would be the height of ridiculousness if the United States government thinks of any kind of raid into the Bekaa," said Judith Harik, author of the forthcoming Hezbollah: The Changing Face of Terrorism. "If there's a raid into Lebanon that wipes out some of the leadership, they will reconstitute. This is a very reactive and absorbent group. And Heaven help the Americans in Beirut if that was to happen - this should also be considered." (MORE)
CHALABI'S PARTY UNDER KUWAITI FIRE FOR RAISING ISLANDS ISSUE KUWAIT CITY (AFP) - A Kuwaiti daily called Saturday for declaring the Iraqi National Congress (INC) an enemy of Kuwait after its vice president urged the emirate lease two islands to Baghdad. However, there has been no official Kuwaiti comment on the issue. "If this position represents the INC, we in Kuwait should from this moment treat the group as enemies," Al Watan wrote in a front-page editorial. INC Vice President Mudhar Shawkat said in comments published by the Kuwaiti newspaper Al Rai Al Aam Thursday that the Gulf islands of Bubiyan and Warba were essential for Iraq's economic development. "Iraq's interests first of all lead us to demand that we should have such a water terminal on the Arabian Gulf," said Shawkat, whose remarks reminded Kuwaitis of a similar demand made by deposed Iraqi President Saddam Hussein two decades ago. The INC is headed by Ahmad Chalabi, a pro-US member of Iraq's interim Governing Council. "He (Shawkat) is following in the footsteps of Saddam Hussein and Abdelkarim Kassem," the Iraqi leader who threatened to occupy Kuwait in the early 1960s, Al Watan said. Officially, Kuwait remained silent on the surprising proposal, but lawmakers lashed out at Shawkat, saying he was no better than Saddam. (MORE)
DOWN IN THE VALLEY, THE MOOD IS SOMBER SRINAGAR - The decision by India and Pakistan to commence a composite dialogue on contentious issues, including Kashmir, has been welcomed as a significant breakthrough in bilateral relations. However, the international applause that has greeted the handshake between Indian Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee and President General Pervez Musharraf in Islamabad has failed to resonate in the Kashmir Valley. Leaders of mainstream political parties, as well as the separatist groups, including the pro-Pakistan Jamaat-e-Islami, see the decision to start talks next month as a step in the right direction. But the ordinary people of the Valley are skeptical that the dialogue will bring peace on the ground. However, residents of villages along the Line of Control in Kashmir (LoC) that divides the Indian and Pakistani-administered sections of Kashmir are nevertheless excited about the peace process. These people have lived for decades under the shadow of daily shelling from Pakistan. The recent ceasefire has brought a remarkable change in their lives. The guns have been silent for almost a month now. (SNIP) But unlike the people living along the LoC who are upbeat about the upcoming India-Pakistan talks and the radical change it could bring in their violence-hit lives, those living in the interior parts of the Valley view the talks with cynicism and skepticism. Many Kashmiris believe that far too many jihadis have already been infiltrated into the Kashmir Valley for violence in the near future. (MORE)
BIG BROTHER BRITAIN, 2004 By Maxine Frith, Social Affairs Correspondent More than four million surveillance cameras monitor our every move, making Britain the most-watched nation in the world, research has revealed. The number of closed circuit television (CCTV) cameras has quadrupled in the past three years, and there is now one for every 14 people in the UK. The increase is happening at twice the predicted rate, and it is believed that Britain accounts for one-fifth of all CCTV cameras worldwide. Estimates suggest that residents of a city such as London can each expect to be captured on CCTV cameras up to 300 times a day, and much of the filming breaches existing data guidelines. Civil liberties groups complain that the rules governing the use of the cameras in Britain are the most lax in the world. They say that, in contrast to other countries, members of the public are often unaware they are being filmed, and are usually ignorant of the relevant regulations. They also argue that there is little evidence to support the contention that CCTV cameras lead to a reduction in crime rates. Barry Hugill, a spokesman for the human rights and civil liberties organisation Liberty, said: "This proliferation of cameras is simply astounding. The use of CCTV has just exploded in the last few years, and what is terrifying is that we are alone in the world for not even having a debate about what it means for our privacy." (MORE)
UPCOMING ELECTIONS FAIL TO ROUSE STUDENTS TEHRAN, Jan 9 (IPS) - Iran's students, a reliable touchstone for assessing public opinion in the country, are displaying apathy towards the Feb. 20 elections to the 'majlis', Iran's 290-seat parliament. A low turn-out, fuelled by disenchantment with the political process, seems on the cards. ''The latest independent polling surveys suggest that in the parliamentary election the participation rate of people in Tehran will be 38 percent and the national average will be 45 to 50 percent,'' conceded Dr. Mohammad Reza Khatami, the secretary-general of the Islamic Participation Party, the biggest and the most powerful reformist party, and President Mohammad Khatami's brother. Iran's supreme leader, Ayatollah Seyyed Ali Khamenei, spoke of the need for an election that would be ''healthy, free, lawful and with high turn-out of zealous people'' when during a tour he stopped at the town of Qazvin, west of Tehran, and addressed a local gathering. In the university campuses however students criticise the Ayatollah's speeches. ''Why doesn't he register himself as a candidate for the next election and guarantee the healthy and high turn-out,'' asked 21-year-old Ahmad Husseini with a smile. Husseini, who studies mining engineering in the Amirkabir university, represents a sizeable fraction of campus reaction. A recent survey carried out in the Amirkabir university campus indicates that around 40 percent of the students are unlikely to vote. Of the rest, around 15 percent said they would, but only with a view to helping their chances of employment after graduation. Youth like Rouzbeh Riyazi, who at 21 is among the elected student leaders in the university, are dismayed by the barring of reformist candidates by the Council of Guardians - a conservative supervisory body composed of six experts in Islamic law, called 'mujtahids', and six civil lawyers. Although Iran's sixth 'majlis', elected in early 2000, has seen the reformists well represented, the hardline Council of Guardians has blocked the efforts of the reform-minded - those allied with President Mohammad Khatami. (MORE) | |||||
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