World Media Watch for April 17, 2002

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.

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1//Ha'aretz, Israel--BACKGROUND/ BARGHOUTI'S ARREST COULD SPELL TROUBLE (The arrest could also be a double-edged sword, sparking terror attacks as Barghouti's comrades try to wreak revenge for his capture and detention.)

2//The Philippine Daily Inquirer, Philippines-- US MILITARY STUDYING BALIKATAN EXTENSION ("I believe that we need to continue to look at the situation and see the job that we set out to do in support of our allies here," Admiral Dennis Blair said at a press conference in the Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) Southern Command headquarters in this city.)

3//The Japan Times, Japan--S & P CUT CREDIT RATING FOR JAPAN TO AA-MINUS (The downgrade may deal a further blow to the struggling Japanese economy and to Koizumi... The deficit, coupled with weak economic growth prospects, makes Japan's fiscal stance "unsustainable," ...)

4//The Globe and Mail, Canada--U.S. AIMS TO SPEED BORDER TRADE (The U.S. government has no plans to provide funds for any security improvements that companies make, sources told The Globe and Mail.)

5//The Hindustan Times, India--HIMALAYAS COULD FACE GLOBAL WARMING MAYHEM WITHIN DECADE: UN (Lakes in the Himalayas are filling so rapidly because of rising temperatures that they could burst their banks within a decade, sending walls of water crashing down into valleys, the United Nations warned on Tuesday.)

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1//Ha'aretz Wednesday, April 17, 2002 Iyyar 5, 5762 Israel Time: 02:18 (GMT+3)
http://www.haaretzdaily.com/hasen/pages/ShArt.jhtml?
itemNo=152905&displayTypeCd=1&sideCd=1&contrassID=2

BACKGROUND/ BARGHOUTI'S ARREST COULD SPELL TROUBLE
By Ha'aretz Staff

There was a moment of rare unanimity Tuesday in Ariel Sharon's politically diverse national unity government, with hawks and doves crowing over the arrest of Fatah leader Marwan Barghouti, who was captured Monday in Ramallah by IDF troops acting on an intelligence tip-off.

Foreign Minister Shimon Peres welcomed the arrest, as did Culture and Sports Minister Matan Vilnai, who has voiced increasingly vocal criticism of the prime minister in recent days, saying the military operation launched in the West Bank would be futile if it was not followed up by a diplomatic initiative. The arrest of Barghouti, Vilnai said on Israel Radio, was proof of Israel's pledge to hunt down those who attacked its citizens "even if it takes a generation."

Former chief-of-staff Amnon Lipkin-Shahak, who once headed the Center party and who was deeply involved in negotiations with the Palestinians in the 1990s, said the arrest was legitimate because "Barghouti was involved in terror. He was one of the main operators of terror cells."

Israel charges that Barghouti turned the Tanzim - a Fatah political organization - into a terror machine. Originally, the Tanzim comprised mostly young people and was first used as a type of civil guard in the Palestinian Authority but, as the intifada dragged on, became a prominent militia undertaking terrorist attacks on Israelis.

Sharon has said he wants Barghouti, who became a symbol of the intifada, to be put on trial in Israel, although some senior security officers have raised the possibility of deporting him.

(SKIP)

One of the few cautionary voices was that of Oslo architect and former Justice Minister Yossi Beilin, who warned Tuesday that the arrest "goes against Israel's national interest" and would "ruin any remaining chance of peace."

Beilin also pointed out that while Barghouti had been arrested, Hamas spiritual leader Sheikh Ahmed Yassin and members of the Islamic Jihad go free.

The arrest could also be a double-edged sword, sparking terror attacks as Barghouti's comrades try to wreak revenge for his capture and detention. "Terror attacks as bargaining chips have always been on the list of threats, but when Marwan Barghouti, Ahmed Barghouti, Nasser Awis and other senior Palestinians on the terror list are sitting in the Shin Bet's interrogation cells, the temptation grows to try and get them out in exchange for Israeli captives "dead or alive."

Israel's arrest of Barghouti, says Ha'aretz Commentator Amir Oren, will also afford the diminutive Palestinian leader priceless legitimacy. "Israel will be giving him one more important notch on his resume if he wants to be a Palestinian leader - time in jail as a security prisoner."

2//The Philippine Daily Inquirer Wednesday Apr. 17, 2002,
http://www.inq7.net/nat/2002/apr/17/nat_1-1.htm

US MILITARY STUDYING BALIKATAN EXTENSION
Posted: 0:04 AM (Manila Time) | Apr. 17, 2002
By Julie S. Alipala, Martin P. Marfil and Dona Pazzibugan
Inquirer News Service

ZAMBOANGA CITY - US authorities are studying the possibility of extending the Philippine-US Balikatan 02-1 joint military exercise, the commander in chief of the US Pacific Command announced Tuesday.

"I believe that we need to continue to look at the situation and see the job that we set out to do in support of our allies here," Admiral Dennis Blair said at a press conference in the Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) Southern Command headquarters in this city. "We will evaluate all these proposals."

(SKIP)

The President said on Monday that she favored the extension of the US military presence in Basilan because the residents themselves wanted it so the civic-action projects, such as the building of roads and water systems, could be finished.

But even with talks on the possible extension of the military exercise aimed at stamping out the Abu Sayyaf, Blair said the US government had no plan to reestablish a permanent American military presence in the Philippines. He said US troops would leave as soon as the Abu Sayyaf was crushed.

Blair also said he was in "active discussion" with Philippine officials to bring in additional US military engineers to help in civic work in Basilan.

AFP chief of staff General Diomedio Villanueva confirmed this in Manila, saying Blair favored the deployment of US military engineers in the impoverished province "for the socio-economic development that should be pushed through as a priority project."

But Villanueva said the matter was best left to the Department of National Defense, "as well as the other political authorities including the Department of Foreign Affairs."

(SKIP)

Blair visited the defense department Tuesday but evaded questions from reporters on the proposal to deploy US military engineers. "It was a great visit, we discussed great things," was all he said.

(MORE)

2//The Japan Times Wednesday, April 17, 2002
http://www.japantimes.com/cgi-bin/getarticle.pl5?nb20020417a2.htm

S & P CUT CREDIT RATING FOR JAPAN TO AA-MINUS

NEW YORK (Kyodo) Standard & Poor's Corp. cut Japan's long-term local and foreign currency sovereign credit ratings by one notch Monday from AA to AA-minus with a negative outlook, putting Japan at the bottom of the credit-rating league in the Group of Seven leading economies.

As reasons for the downgrade, S&P cited the falling popularity of Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi, political scandals, delays in structural reforms, and the disappointing results of the Financial Services Agency's inspections of major banks' nonperforming loans.

It said prompt measures are needed, including further capital injection into banks and more monetary easing.

In November, S&P lowered Japan's sovereign credit ratings to bring it level with Italy, which had been the agency's lowest-rated G-7 member. Monday's cut put Japan firmly at the bottom. The continued negative outlook indicates Japan's ratings could be downgraded further.

The G-7 consists of Britain, Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan and the United States.

Along with Japan, the local sovereign credit ratings of Israel, the Czech Republic, Hong Kong and Malta are also rated AA-minus by S&P.

The downgrade may deal a further blow to the struggling Japanese economy and to Koizumi.

(SKIP)

Takahira Ogawa, head of the S&P Asian sovereign ratings team, expressed wariness over the government's dithering.

"We had hoped that the Junichiro Koizumi administration would press for private-sector and governmental reform," he said. "But given the government's falling popularity and the problems that have beset key ministers and aides, Standard & Poor's has lowered its expectation in three key areas.

"We now expect Japan's general government deficit to remain in the 8 percent (of gross domestic product) range for several years."

The deficit, coupled with weak economic growth prospects, makes Japan's fiscal stance "unsustainable," he said.

(MORE)

4//The Globe and Mail Posted At 1:08 PM EDT Tuesday, April 16
http://www.globeandmail.com/servlet/RTGAMArticleHTMLTemplate/D,C/20020416/
wborderus?hub=homeBN&tf=tgam%252Frealtime%252Ffullstory.html&cf=tgam/
realtime/config-neutral&vg=BigAdVariableGenerator&slug=wborderus&date=2002
0416&archive=RTGAM&site=Front&ad_page_name=breakingnews

U.S. AIMS TO SPEED BORDER TRADE
By Roma Luciw with a file from Barrie McKenna and AP

A new U.S. border security program aimed at easing congestion at the Canadian-U.S. border was unveiled Tuesday, with the Bush administration calling on Corporate America to do its part in the war on terrorism.

According to American officials, the plan will facilitate quicker border crossings for U.S.-bound shipments, allowing airplanes, trucks and ships to skip routine U.S. Customs inspections.

Major U.S. corporations will work with the government to enact certain measures including stricter background checks on drivers, tougher physical scrutiny on goods being shipped across the border and using transponders to track transport vehicles.

(SKIP)

Since the Sept. 11 attacks, the flow of more than $1-billion a day in cross-border trade has been seriously impacted for fear that explosives, weapons of mass destruction or biological agents will be transported into the United States.

About 7,000 commercial trucks cross the Ambassador Bridge daily, and automakers and other companies say they rely on timely deliveries from Canada to keep plants operating.

Executives from five major U.S. multinationals - General Motors, Ford, DaimlerChrysler, Sara Lee and Target - that ship billions of dollars worth of products a year across the border were on hand Tuesday. Kevin Smith, General Motors Corp. director of customs administration, said the plan should result in quicker border crossings by U.S. bound shipments than before Sept. 11.

GM - the world's largest auto maker - is one of 60 companies that have joined the program, and more than 100 additional applications are pending.

The U.S. government has no plans to provide funds for any security improvements that companies make, sources told The Globe and Mail.

It also isn't clear whether Canadian companies would be eligible for the U.S. program, or what penalties would be faced by shippers that don't play by the new rules. But it's believed that U.S. Customs would treat the five inaugural participants as models for the rest of the industry.

Canada has its own fast-track system for major importers, known as Customs Self-Assessment, introduced in December. It allows prechecked importers and transporters to spend less time at border crossings and file customs documents later, by computer.

5//The Hindustan Times April 17, 2002, Wednesday
http://www.hindustantimes.com/nonfram/170402/dlnat04.asp

HIMALAYAS COULD FACE GLOBAL WARMING MAYHEM WITHIN DECADE: UN
AFP Geneva, April 16

Lakes in the Himalayas are filling so rapidly because of rising temperatures that they could burst their banks within a decade, sending walls of water crashing down into valleys, the United Nations warned on Tuesday.

The UN Environment Programme (UNEP) said a scientific study in Bhutan and Nepal had revealed that at least 44 glacial lakes were filling swiftly with water as rising temperatures accelerated the melting of glaciers and surrounding snowfields.

It said data in Nepal showed that high altitude lakes could suddenly burst banks formed by mud and debris once they reached peak levels, unless preventive action was taken.

The quantities of water involved were such that they would spread for hundreds of kilometres along the valleys, according to UNEP.

"We are giving early warning," director-general Klaus Toepfer told a news conference.

Average temperatures in Nepal have risen by about one degree centigrade at high altitudes since the mid 1970s, UNEP noted.

"We are open for all development of science but in this moment where we have to act, there is an overwhelming conviction that climate change happens. It is not a prognosis but it is a fact," Toepfer added.

(SKIP)

But UNEP said similar work was necessary to shore up or relieve "scores" of other glacial lakes, and that knock-on effects much further downstream could not be ruled out.

"If we step back and look at Asia, the major river systems -- the Indus, the Ganges, the Brahmaputra and the Mekong, they all originate from the Himalayas," Shrestha said.

"Any change in the mountain areas has a direct or indirect effect on the population downstream."

The UNEP survey, which involved extensive use of satellite mapping as well as on site surveys, examined thousands of lakes and glaciers in Bhutan and Nepal.

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© 2002, Gloria R. Lalumia
insight@zianet.com

More Stuff at: http://www.zianet.com/insightanalytical

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