October 29, 2004

World Media Watch

by Gloria R. Lalumia

BuzzFlash Note: WMW provides BuzzFlash readers foreign views and perspectives that are not usually available from the media here in the U.S. The presentation of these articles from these international publications is not an endorsement of their viewpoints.

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WORLD MEDIA WATCH FOR OCTOBER 29, 2004

1//The Independent, UK--BLAIR ACCUSED OF USING INTELLIGENCE FOR PR (Britain's former deputy chief of defence intelligence yesterday accused Tony Blair of misusing intelligence terminology to describe the threat from Saddam Hussein before the attack on Iraq. In an astonishing attack on the "culture of spin" introduced under New Labour in 1997, John Morrison, one of the most senior intelligence analysts at the Ministry of Defence, said intelligence had been used as a "public relations tool" to be used to win the public debate since Mr Blair came to power.)

2//The Toronto Star, Canada--NO CANADIAN IRAQ TROOPS FOR KERRY, PM SAYS (Canada won't commit troops to Iraq regardless of the outcome of the U.S. presidential election, Prime Minister Paul Martin indicated today. Martin offered his standard reply when asked if he would send more troops in the event of a victory next week by Democratic challenger John Kerry. Canada's military resources are simply tapped out, he suggested. "The reason we made the decision on Iraq is we are very involved in Afghanistan," Martin said after a cabinet meeting.)

3//KurdishMedia.com, UK--SHIA GEAR UP FOR ELECTIONS (Leaders of Iraq's Shia majority have begun to lobby hard for their community's participation in the January elections. It comes as some Sunni representatives urge Iraqis to boycott the ballot. The Shia, who form around 60 per cent of the population, see the parliamentary elections as an opportunity to assert themselves politically, and their religious leaders are strongly urging followers to take part in the ballot...Shia leaders see the upcoming poll as a chance to reverse their followers' lowly status, which was cemented during the Saddam era.)

4//Arab News, Saudi Arabia--CHARTER ON WOMEN'S RIGHTS GETTING READY (The King Abdul Aziz National Dialogue Center in Riyadh is drafting a charter on women's rights, its President Saleh Al-Hosayn said. The charter will be considered a reference on women in Saudi Arabia...Saudi women play an active role in society despite the problems facing them. They own some 20, 000 firms - some five percent of all registered businesses - ranging from ordinary retail businesses to various types of industry...Women also account for 55 percent of Saudi graduates but they constitute only 4.8 percent of the work force. At present, however, only 5.5 percent of an estimated 4.7 million Saudi women of working age are employed.)

5//The Moscow Times, Russia--SHUVALOV: YUKOS CASE NOT THE LAST (The unrelenting legal assault on Yukos is no exception, and other oil majors should expect tax probes, too, a top aide to President Vladimir Putin said Thursday. "We must probe everyone, everyone. And if I was responsible for tax discipline -- against the background of Yukos -- I would probe all the other oil companies, too," the head of the presidential Expert Department, Igor Shuvalov, said on the sidelines of an investors' conference...The onslaught against Yukos has tarnished Russia's investment image, helped send oil prices soaring and shaken confidence, as officials put out chaotic signals about the future of the country's biggest oil exporter.)

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1//The Independent, UK 29 October 2004
http://news.independent.co.uk/uk/politics/story.jsp?story=577171

BLAIR ACCUSED OF USING INTELLIGENCE FOR PR
By Colin Brown, Deputy Political Editor

Britain's former deputy chief of defence intelligence yesterday accused Tony Blair of misusing intelligence terminology to describe the threat from Saddam Hussein before the attack on Iraq.

In an astonishing attack on the "culture of spin" introduced under New Labour in 1997, John Morrison, one of the most senior intelligence analysts at the Ministry of Defence, said intelligence had been used as a "public relations tool" to be used to win the public debate since Mr Blair came to power.

"There was a culture of news management that came in after 1997 which I had never seen before and intelligence got swept up in that," Mr Morrison said. He did not say the Prime Minister had distorted the evidence, but his remarks reopened damaging wounds caused by the death of Dr David Kelly, the weapons expert, and allegations that intelligence dossiers had been "sexed up", which were investigated by the Hutton and Butler inquiries.

Mr Morrison was sacked as the chief investigator to the Prime Minister's special intelligence committee months ago after appearing on a Panorama programme. In his first interview since, he said he was fired because he had been "rude" about the Prime Minister on Panorama about the misuse of intelligence. He said he could hear the "collective raspberry" in Whitehall from intelligence staff at Mr Blair saying Saddam was a threat to Britain, but he had no regrets.

"I felt somebody had to speak up about the misuse of intelligence by MI6, in not handling it properly, the misuse of intelligence by the senior management in the Defence Intelligence Staff and misuse of intelligence terminology by the Prime Minister in talking about a threat when no threat existed," he said.

(MORE)

2//The Toronto Star, Canada Oct. 28, 2004. 02:07 PM
http://www.thestar.com/NASApp/cs/ContentServer?pag...

NO CANADIAN IRAQ TROOPS FOR KERRY, PM SAYS
Canadian Press

OTTAWA - Canada won't commit troops to Iraq regardless of the outcome of the U.S. presidential election, Prime Minister Paul Martin indicated today.

Martin offered his standard reply when asked if he would send more troops in the event of a victory next week by Democratic challenger John Kerry.

Canada's military resources are simply tapped out, he suggested.

"The reason we made the decision on Iraq is we are very involved in Afghanistan," Martin said after a cabinet meeting.

"We are involved in Haiti. We intend to get involved in the Darfur issue. And there is a limit to our resources."

Kerry has presented himself as the best man to lead an international coalition in Iraq. The Democrat has relentlessly attacked President George W. Bush's failure to bring Canada and other allies onside.

But Martin again offered his stock line when asked if he was in effect telling Kerry, `No.' "What I want is for Canada to be involved where we can have a significant influence or impact," he said.

"We have that in Afghanistan - we are very important there. Same thing in Haiti."

Canadians are already involved in training Iraqi police officers in Jordan, Martin added.

(MORE)

3//KurdishMedia.com, UK 28/10/2004
http://www.kurdmedia.com/news.asp?id=5681

SHIA GEAR UP FOR ELECTIONS
Upcoming ballot is seen as an opportunity to secure power and influence for majority faction.

By Dhiya Ressan in Baghdad (ICR No. 86, 27-Oct-04)
Published under partnership agreement with IWPR.

Leaders of Iraq's Shia majority have begun to lobby hard for their community's participation in the January elections.

It comes as some Sunni representatives urge Iraqis to boycott the ballot.

The Shia, who form around 60 per cent of the population, see the parliamentary elections as an opportunity to assert themselves politically, and their religious leaders are strongly urging followers to take part in the ballot.

Despite being the majority community, the Shia have long been subordinate to the Sunni in Iraqi politics, dating back to their decision in the early twenties to boycott institutions created by the British during their occupation of the country.

Shia leaders see the upcoming poll as a chance to reverse their followers' lowly status, which was cemented during the Saddam era.

Grand Ayatollah Mohammed al-Yaccubi, leader of the al-Fadhila party, has said that voting is as important a duty for Shia as prayers and fasting.

"These two duties are ... between a person and his God, but elections are a duty related to the destiny of a nation," he said.

Iraq's most revered Shia leader, Sayid Ali al-Sistani, has issued a Fatwa (religious ruling) ordering his followers to participate in the vote, and warned that abstaining "is a betrayal of the nation" which would be punishable in hell.

Ayatollah Sistani has also asked his representatives to form committees - comprising members of all faiths - to provide information and guidance to Iraqis in the run-up to the 2005 elections, which he regards as vitally important to the future of Iraq.

(SNIP)

The statement added that the Hawza - the highest Shia religious authority - had agreed with the government that the elections should be held.

Shia religious parties such as the Supreme Council for the Islamic Revolution in Iraq, SCIRI, and the Islamic Dawa party, are also stepping up their electoral efforts, and are considering forming a single Shia-only bloc.

Ahmed Rasheed, head of Dawa's election media body, told IWPR that the party's leadership is negotiating with senior ayatollahs in Najaf and with other movements including SCIRI and the al-Fadhila to form a unified Shia list for the elections.

(MORE)

4//Arab News, Saudi Arabia Friday, 29 , October, 2004 (15, Ramadhan,1425 )
http://www.arabnews.com/?page=1&section=0&article=53619&d=29&m=10&y=2004

CHARTER ON WOMEN'S RIGHTS GETTING READY
P.K. Abdul Ghafour, Arab News

JEDDAH, 29October 2004 - The King Abdul Aziz National Dialogue Center in Riyadh is drafting a charter on women's rights, its President Saleh Al-Hosayn said. The charter will be considered a reference on women in Saudi Arabia.

He said the recommendations of the third national dialogue on women in Madinah would be given precedence in the charter. He did not say when the charter would be ready.

The Madinah dialogue, which was held in June, ended with a call to respect the equality of sexes granted by Islam. "Islam guarantees equality and does not differentiate between people based on race, sex or color," Hosayn said while opening the forum. "It is a natural situation achieved by ensuring that people enjoy the same legal rights, dignity and obligations," he added.

But he had warned that women working outdoors would not find enough time to raise their children and demanded a balance between women's rights and their obligations.

Both male and female participants called for a review of the taboo shrouding local customs governing women's lives. However, defenders said it was such customs that provided a sense of identity to Saudi people.

"The forum lifted a virtual taboo that has existed for years about discussing women's issues. It initiated a social dialogue and triggered and renewed interest in women's rights and roles in the future of Saudi Arabia," says Samar Fatany, a Saudi radio journalist based in Jeddah.

"The dialogue reflected the Saudi leadership's opinion that women are an integral part of the reform process. It conveyed the message very clearly that both men and women are partners in reform," she added.

Saudi women play an active role in society despite the problems facing them. They own some 20, 000 firms - some five percent of all registered businesses - ranging from ordinary retail businesses to various types of industry.

The number of women registered in local chambers of commerce and industry is on the increase. The Jeddah chamber, for example, has more than 2,000 women members out of a total membership of 50 ,000. In Riyadh, the figure is over 2,400 out of a total of 35,000 members and in Dammam more than 1,000 out of a total of 14,000.

Women also account for 55 percent of Saudi graduates but they constitute only 4.8 percent of the work force. At present, however, only 5.5 percent of an estimated 4.7 million Saudi women of working age are employed.

(MORE)

5//The Moscow Times, Russia Friday, October 29, 2004. Page 1.
http://www.themoscowtimes.com/stories/2004/10/29/001.html

SHUVALOV: YUKOS CASE NOT THE LAST
By Guy Faulconbridge, Staff Writer

The unrelenting legal assault on Yukos is no exception, and other oil majors should expect tax probes, too, a top aide to President Vladimir Putin said Thursday.

"We must probe everyone, everyone. And if I was responsible for tax discipline -- against the background of Yukos -- I would probe all the other oil companies, too," the head of the presidential Expert Department, Igor Shuvalov, said on the sidelines of an investors' conference.

"This is only the start of the road in relation to other taxpayers. Many oil companies used schemes that they call 'tax optimization.' Where it was illegal they will have to pay in full," he told investors.

The onslaught against Yukos has tarnished Russia's investment image, helped send oil prices soaring and shaken confidence, as officials put out chaotic signals about the future of the country's biggest oil exporter.

Shuvalov said that multinational oil companies are scrambling to sink big money into the country, despite the Yukos affair. Still, a widening of probes against other oil majors has been a nightmare scenario for investors since the government launched its multibillion dollar tax case against Yukos last year.

(SNIP)

In response to reporters' questions, Shuvalov said that one company that paid its taxes properly during the 1990s was gas giant Gazprom.

The gas giant is being built up to play a major global role, Shuvalov said.

"We have a massive company -- the biggest in the country -- which could become one of the leading corporations in the world energy sector," he said.

"It is time to compete on a world level. The merger of Gazprom and Rosneft is seen as the creation of a player that can compete on a world level."

Shuvalov said that the merger with Rosneft should be concluded before other assets are added to Gazprom and that the energy behemoth should obey anti-monopoly rules.

"There is the Yukos affair and everyone -- politicians and investors -- is looking at it to see how it will end," Shuvalov said. "One of my colleagues said to me not long ago: However it ends, nothing positive will have come of it. We understand that."