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| January 19, 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 19, 2004 1//The Japan Times, Japan--51.6% OPPOSE SDF DISPATCH TO IRAQ BUT CABINET SUPPORT UP (People opposing the dispatch of Self-Defense Force troops to Iraq for humanitarian operations outnumbered those supporting it in a Kyodo News opinion poll taken over the weekend...The poll was taken just as an advance team of Ground Self-Defense Force personnel arrived in Kuwait to begin preparations for the scheduled dispatch of the main contingent of GSDF troops, which will provide water supply and medical aid in the southern Iraq city of Samawah.) 2//The Turkish Daily News, Turkey--SALIH CLAIMS FEDERALISM WILL NOT LEAD TO IRAQ'S ETHNIC DIVISION (Iraqi Kurdish leader Barham Salih insisted on his people's claim for a federal regime in Iraq but assured this would not lead to any ethnic division in the war-torn country... Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan warned in talks with an Iraqi Shiite leader earlier this week that attempts to harm Iraq's territorial integrity would prompt intervention from neighboring countries and said Iran and Syria agreed with Ankara in this respect...Days before arriving in Ankara, Salih angered Turkish leaders by voicing Kurdish claims on the oil-rich city of Kirkuk.) 3//The Daily Times, Pakistan--KARZAI CALLS FOR HELP TO ENSURE SAFE ELECTIONS (Afghan President Hamid Karzai on Sunday registered to vote in upcoming elections under tight security, as he called on the international community to assist the war-wracked nation provide a safe environment for the polls...Low voter registration and security issues in parts of the country have cast doubt on whether the elections will take place this summer. Voter registration began in eight major cities in December but so far only 421,214 people of the 10 million eligible have enrolled to vote, UN spokesman Manoel de Almeida e Silva said on Sunday. Of these voters, 329,450 are men and 91,764 are women.) 4//The Chosun Ilbo, South Korea--ALL US MILITARY FACILITIES TO GO SOUTH OF THE HAN RIVER (Taking into account feelings of insecurity within Korea and practical issues like securing base sites and building facilities, the two sides agreed to start moving the Combined Forces Command and UN Command in the beginning of 2007, after a solution to the North Korean nuclear issue has been reached and essentially linked to the second stage of the U.S. 2nd Infantry Division's redeployment to positions south of the Han River.) 5//The Independent, UK--BLACK OUSTED AS 'TELEGRAPH' IS SOLD (The bidding war for The Daily Telegraph reached a sudden and unexpected finale yesterday when the Barclay brothers announced they had agreed a £260m deal to buy the global newspaper group headed by the troubled media mogul Conrad Black...Sir David Barclay who, along with his twin Sir Frederick, has built a business empire with annual revenues of £3.9bn, said he was confident that the deal, which makes the pair second only to Rupert Murdoch in their share of the national newspaper market, would bring an end to months of damaging publicity surrounding the media group.) * * * 1//The
Japan Times Monday, January 19, 2004 51.6% OPPOSE SDF DISPATCH TO IRAQ BUT CABINET SUPPORT
UP The news agency said Sunday that of 1,084 randomly selected eligible voters who responded to the telephone poll, 51.6 percent said they oppose the SDF dispatch, while 42.8 percent expressed support and the remaining 5.6 percent either said they did not know or did not give an answer to the question. The poll was taken just as an advance team of Ground Self-Defense Force personnel arrived in Kuwait to begin preparations for the scheduled dispatch of the main contingent of GSDF troops, which will provide water supply and medical aid in the southern Iraq city of Samawah. The first group of the main contingent may go to Samawah later this month for the humanitarian operations to support reconstruction of the war-torn country. Meanwhile, the survey showed that the approval rating for Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi's Cabinet was at 52.5 percent, up 8.7 percentage points from a similar survey in early December. (MORE)
SALIH CLAIMS FEDERALISM WILL NOT LEAD TO IRAQ'S ETHNIC
DIVISION Iraqi Kurdish leader Barham Salih insisted on his people's claim for a federal regime in Iraq but assured this would not lead to any ethnic division in the war-torn country. "Dividing Iraq along ethnic or religious lines is not the direction in which we are going to move," Salih told reporters after talks with Turkish Foreign Ministry officials in Ankara. Turkey is concerned over Iraqi Kurdish plans for the creation of a federal Iraq in which they could enjoy wide autonomy in the northern region of the country bordering Turkey. Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan warned in talks with an Iraqi Shiite leader earlier this week that attempts to harm Iraq's territorial integrity would prompt intervention from neighboring countries and said Iran and Syria agreed with Ankara in this respect. Salih's PUK and the Iraqi Kurdistan Democratic Party (KDP) have proposed a federal state that would comprise Kurdish and Arab sections as the Iraqi Governing Council is working on details of Iraq's future government. Syria and Iran have announced backing to Turkey's position in talks over the last couple of weeks, saying Iraq's territorial integrity must be protected. (SNIP) Days before arriving in Ankara, Salih angered Turkish leaders by voicing Kurdish claims on the oil-rich city of Kirkuk. He appeared to soften his stance after he arrived in Ankara on Thursday. In an interview with a Turkish television channel earlier this week, Salih said that Iraq's oil-rich Kirkuk region was "part of Kurdistan." Asked if his statement meant Kurdish rule of the city, Salih said, "I don't think my statement could be understood that way." Salih was speaking upon his arrival in Ankara ahead of talks with Turkish diplomats Friday. (MORE)
"To the international community my request is to help Afghanistan to reach the election deadline on time by providing us better means of security and by assisting us facilitate the people of Afghanistan to get their cards for voting and to be able to vote freely," Karzai told reporters after registering. When asked whether the elections would be held as scheduled in June, Karzai said: "We are trying to be on time, we are trying very hard." Low voter registration and security issues in parts of the country have cast doubt on whether the elections will take place this summer. Voter registration began in eight major cities in December but so far only 421,214 people of the 10 million eligible have enrolled to vote, UN spokesman Manoel de Almeida e Silva said on Sunday. Of these voters, 329,450 are men and 91,764 are women. The registration process is due to move into regional centres and provinces within months. The spokesman said he hoped Karzai's registration would "prompt other key officials and Afghan personalities to follow his lead and we hope this sends a strong signal to the rest of the country about the importance of voter registration." Karzai has previously said he would contest the presidential election. (MORE)
ALL US MILITARY FACILITIES TO GO SOUTH OF THE HAN
RIVER All U.S. military facilities located at the Yongsan Garrison, including the Combined Forces Command and the UN Command, are to be moved to locations south of the Han River by the end of 2007. The move would bring an end to the 122-year history of having a foreign military based in Seoul, a history that began with the occupation of Yongsan by troops from Qing Dynasty China during the Military Revolt of 1882. The government aims to turn Yongsan into a park. (SNIP) During the sixth round of the "Future of the Alliance Policy Initiative" talks held in Honolulu, Hawaii, the Korean and U.S. negotiating teams, led by Assistant Defense Minister Cha Young-koo and Deputy Assistant U.S. Defense Secretary Richard Lawless, respectively, agreed Saturday afternoon to move all the men and facilities from the Yongsan Garrison to the Osan-Pyeongtaek area. Taking into account feelings of insecurity within Korea and practical issues like securing base sites and building facilities, the two sides agreed to start moving the Combined Forces Command and UN Command in the beginning of 2007, after a solution to the North Korean nuclear issue has been reached and essentially linked to the second stage of the U.S. 2nd Infantry Division's redeployment to positions south of the Han River. (MORE)
BLACK OUSTED AS 'TELEGRAPH' IS SOLD The bidding war for The Daily Telegraph reached a sudden and unexpected finale yesterday when the Barclay brothers announced they had agreed a £260m deal to buy the global newspaper group headed by the troubled media mogul Conrad Black. The reclusive billionaire brothers, whose interests range from the Ritz hotel in London to Littlewoods stores, said they had reached an "irrevocable agreement" to take over Hollinger Inc, giving them control of the world's third largest group of titles, including The Daily Telegraph and The Sunday Telegraph and The Spectator magazine. The agreement by Lord Black of Crossharbour to sell up, signed at midnight on Saturday in New York, came just hours after the peer's fortunes took a further dive for the worse with the announcement he was being sued by his own company, Hollinger International, for a catalogue of alleged unauthorised payments worth more than $200m (£118m). Lord Black, 59, was also summarily sacked as the company's non-executive chairman. Under the complex structure of Lord Black's newspaper empire, Hollinger Inc, based in Toronto, had been used by the peer to control Hollinger International, a separate holding company that oversees the newspaper group. The deal, which gives the Barclay brother's 73 per cent of the voting rights in Hollinger International, is still dependent on the agreement of other shareholders and will be closely scrutinised by America's powerful financial watchdog, the Securities and Exchange Commission, overseeing a separate inquiry into the alleged scandal. It is also likely to be examined by Britain's new media watchdog, Ofcom, to ensure it does not infringe newspaper ownership rules. Sir David Barclay who, along with his twin Sir Frederick, has built a business empire with annual revenues of £3.9bn, said he was confident that the deal, which makes the pair second only to Rupert Murdoch in their share of the national newspaper market, would bring an end to months of damaging publicity surrounding the media group. (SNIP) In a statement, Lord Black said he was sorry to be selling. He said: "It will be distressing to part from the Telegraph newspapers, The Spectator, the Chicago newspapers and The Jerusalem Post, in particular. But these fine titles must not be hobbled any longer by the controversies and financial uncertainty. They will be in good and caring hands and we will be able to focus exclusively on resolving current legal and public relations concerns." (MORE) | |||||
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