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Updated on March 10, 2003 |
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clips are sponsored by the Indian American Center for Political Awareness (www.)
--- South Asian News, August 27, 2002 ---(International)
A three-member US diplomatic team meets separatist groups in the Kashmir Valley to try to persuade them to participate in the Indian Kashmir polls. The landmark hearing on one of the world's worst industrial disasters begins against Union Carbide former chief Warren Anderson. The Sri Lankan government and the LTTE are due to exchange prisoners ahead of the proposed peace talks on September 16 in Thailand.
Africa
* Most wanted bandit kidnaps VIP (News 24)
Americas
* Islamic rebels target Muslims in Kashmir to create fear: police (The New Mexico)
Asia-Pacific
* US team tries to persuade separatists on Indian Kashmir polls (Channelnews Asia)
* India rules out improving ties with Pakistan (Xinhuanet)
* Pakistani forces capable to operate against terrorists: spokesman (Xinhuanet)
* India says Pakistan army aiding Kashmir incursion (Australian Broadcasting)
* Kashmir rebels expand terror tactics (Australian Broadcasting)
* Indian cabinet makes minor reshuffle (Xinhuanet)
* Bandit kidnaps ex-minister (Star Malaya)
* Indian court relives deadly industrial disaster (Australian Broadcasting)
Europe
* Kashmiri police officer killed (Times Online)
* FBI works with Pakistan forces linked to rights abuses (International Herald Tribune)
* Pakistan awaits rape verdict (BBC)
* Court re Bhopal disaster case (BBC) (Ananova)
* Sharif defies Pakistan poll ban (BBC)
* Sri Lanka looks to rebuild (BBC)
* Pakistan opposition accuses Government (Guardian)
Middle East
* Child among 17 killed in Kashmir (Gulf Daily News)
* Sharif files election papers (Gulf Daily News)
* India, Pak could consider joint patrolling: Sinha (IRNA)
* New front to provide political leadership to India's Muslims (IRNA)
* Colombo, Tigers to exchange prisoners ahead of peace talks (Gulf News)
Editorial
N/A
Business/Technology
* India growth forecast to be reviewed (Gulf Daily News)
* India's stocks improves further at early stages at BSE (IRNA)
* Pakistan's commercial Banks have more bad loans than a year ago (Bloomberg)
Africa
* Most wanted bandit kidnaps VIP
Bangalore -- Indian authorities Monday appealed for calm after a former state minister was kidnapped by an infamous bandit who hit the world headlines two years ago when he abducted a top film star. In a similar crime M Veerappan, who carries a four-million-rupee (US$81 632) price on his head, kidnapped H Nagappa on Sunday night from his home in Chamrajnagar district, south of the southern city of Bangalore. Nagappa (62) is a former minister belonging to the centrist Janata Dal (People's Party) which ruled the southern Karnataka state for five years until 1999. A bodyguard was also kidnapped after a gang forced their way into Nagappa's home and fired shots, said D B Chandre Gowda, minister for law and parliamentary affairs in the Karnataka government, of which Bangalore is the capital.
http://www.news24.com/News24/World/Asia/0,1113,2-10-20_1247855,00.html
Americas
* Islamic rebels target Muslims in Kashmir to create fear: police
Jammu, India -- Islamic militants in Indian Kashmir have stepped up their attacks on civilians, including Muslims, to create a climate of fear ahead of crucial elections in the state, police said Monday. More than 23 Muslim civilians, including three members of the family of an official who worked for the police counter-insurgency wing, have been killed over the past two months in different parts of Kashmir, India's only Muslim-majority state. "These attacks are aimed at scaring people to ensure they follow the poll boycott call by the separatists," senior superintendent of police Kamal Saini told AFP. "Hitherto, the rebels were only targeting Hindus. Of late, they have attacked Muslims so that the majority community stays away from the polls." He said the police were faced with a gigantic task because security could not be provided to every individual.
http://www.thenewsmexico.com/noticia.asp?id=33803
Asia-Pacific
* US team tries to persuade separatists on Indian Kashmir polls
A three-member US diplomatic team has met separatist groups in the Kashmir Valley to make a last-ditch effort to persuade them to participate in the Indian Kashmir polls. Witnesses said the team on Monday met Abdul Gani Bhat, the chairman of Kashmir's main separatist alliance the All Parties Hurriyat Conference (APHC), at his residence-cum-office in Srinagar, the state's summer capital. The American team was led by Lisa Curtis, senior advisor to US Assistant Secretary of State for South Asia Christina Rocca. Ms Curtis was accompanied by New Delhi-based US diplomats, Sheetal Patel and Kailash Jha.
http://www.channelnewsasia.com/stories/southasia/view/17223/1/.html
* India rules out improving ties with Pakistan
August 26 -- India Monday ruled out prospects of improving relations with Pakistan in the face of continued "terrorism from across the border." "The prospect of improvement of relations with our neighbor Pakistan, unfortunately, cannot be realized in the face of the continued support provided by it to terrorism directed at India," External Affairs Minister Yashwant Sinha told a press conference. India had repeatedly told Pakistan to end its sponsorship of "terrorism" so that a conducive environment could be created for resumption of bilateral dialogue, said Sinha, who returned home after a visit to Nepal and Bangladesh.
http://news.xinhuanet.com/english/2002-08/26/content_538804.htm
* Pakistani forces capable to operate against terrorists: spokesman
August 26 -- Pakistan Monday said its forces were fully capable of operating against any eventuality, terrorism or aggression against the country and required no assistance from any outside troops. This was stated by Foreign office Spokesman Aziz Ahmed Khan ata weekly press briefing here. Khan said that Pakistan's performance and its excellent support to the coalition forces in track down al-Qaeda activists had been duly recognized by the international community. "Our armed forces do not require outside help," he said while responding to a question on providing access to US troops to find al-Qaeda remnants on its soil.
http://news.xinhuanet.com/english/2002-08/26/content_538823.htm
* India says Pakistan army aiding Kashmir incursions
India says Pakistan is still helping militants cross into Indian-ruled Kashmir, rejecting Pakistani assurances that rebels received no official help in slipping into the troubled region. Speaking after a regional tour, India's Foreign Minister Yashwant Sinha says that without Pakistani army assistance, no-one can enter the country. Pakistan has said it cannot completely halt all infiltration across the frontier into Jammu and Kashmir state, but denies encouraging any rebel incursions. Meanwhile, four people have been killed by suspected Islamic militants, while Indian security forces shot dead seven Muslim rebels in the Himalayan region.
http://abc.net.au/asiapacific/news/GoAsiaPacificBNA_659331.htm
* Kashmir rebels expand terror tactics
Indian police say Islamic militants in Jammu and Kashmir state have stepped up attacks on civilians, including Muslims, to create a climate of fear ahead of crucial elections in the state. More than 23 Muslim civilians, including three members of the family of an official who worked for the police counter-insurgency wing, have been killed over the past two months in different parts of Kashmir. Police say the attacks are aimed at scaring people to ensure they follow the poll boycott call by the separatists. Separatist leaders have called for a boycott of the polls, while Muslim militants have threatened to kill those who participate.
http://abc.net.au/asiapacific/news/GoAsiaPacificBNA_659576.htm
* Indian cabinet makes minor reshuffle
August 26 -- In a minor cabinet reshuffle, Indian Prime Minister A. B. Vajpayee Monday allocated Youth Affairs and Sports Minister to Vikram Verma, and Power Minister to Anant Geete. Uma Bharti who was holding Youth Affairs and Sports has been shifted to the Ministry of Coal and Mines held by Deputy Prime Minister L.K.Advani. Verma, a Rajya Sabha ( Upper House ) member, was the leader of the opposition in Madhya Pradesh Assembly and tipped as chief ministerial candidate in 1998 elections which he lost. He was later brought to Rajya Sabha of State for Finance.
http://news.xinhuanet.com/english/2002-08/26/content_538900.htm
* Bandit kidnaps ex-minister
India's most wanted bandit has kidnapped a former state minister after a shootout, a Karnataka government minister said yesterday. H. Nagappa, 62, a former minister belonging to the centrist Janata Dal (People's Party) which ruled the southern Karnataka state for five years until 1999, was abducted overnight by bandit M. Veerappan from his home in the Chamrajnagar district, about 250km south of here. "Veerappan was himself present during the abduction along with a few of his gang members," said D.B. Chandre Gowda, minister for law and parliamentary affairs in the Karnataka government, of which Bangalore is the capital.
http://www.thestar.com.my/news/story.asp?file=/2002/8/27/asia/bandit&sec=asia
* Indian court relives deadly industrial disaster
A court in the central Indian city of Bophal is beginning a hearing relating to one of the world's worst industrial disasters. In December 1984, thousands of people were killed when a lethal gas leaked from a pesticide plant in Bophal, owned by the now defunct American company, Union Carbide. The BBC reports more than 3,000 died within hours, mostly in agony, when a storage tank burst sending tonnes of deadly gases over the sleeping city. In all, 20,000 deaths or more have been linked to the disaster. The Indian Government charged Union Carbide's former chairman, Warren Anderson, with culpable homicide.
http://www.abc.net.au/news/justin/nat/newsnat-27aug2002-109.htm
Europe
* Kashmiri police officer killed
Suspected Islamic militants have killed a police officer and critically wounded another in the summer capital of Indian-controlled Kashmir. The gunmen fired three or four shots in a crowded bus station in Srinagar and then fled, sparking a panic. Elsewhere in the region, government forces killed two suspected Islamic militants in Langet, 60 miles north of Srinagar. One civilian was wounded in the crossfire of that incident.
http://www.timesonline.co.uk/TGD/tgdBreakingNewsDisplay/0,,3,00.html
* FBI works with Pakistan forces linked to rights abuses
Karachi, Pakistan On the front lines of a shadow war against terror in Pakistan, FBI agents are working undercover with local security forces who have a long history of human rights abuses. The joint effort is cloaked in secrecy. The U.S. and Pakistani governments will not discuss, officially, exactly how many FBI agents are working in Pakistan, citing security concerns and the political fallout that President Pervez Musharraf could face. Some Pakistani officials say privately that the number of FBI counterterrorism specialists in Pakistan is in the low hundreds. An FBI official, speaking in Washington on the condition of anonymity, confirmed that "between several dozen and a hundred" FBI agents are in Pakistan at any one time, working closely with local and federal police and intelligence officials.
http://www.iht.com/articles/68837.html
* Pakistan awaits rape verdict
A court in Pakistan is expected to give its verdict on Tuesday in the trial of 14 men accused over the alleged gang rape of a woman in central Punjab on the orders of a village council. Security fears have led to the trial being held behind closed doors in a special anti-terrorism court in the town of Dera Ghazi Khan, in the Muzaffargarh area 450 km (280 miles) south of Islamabad. Four of the men - who are accused of rape - face the death penalty, while the others could be given prison sentences for allegedly authorising the act. The case caused outrage in Pakistan and throughout the world in recent weeks when it was claimed that the woman, Mukhtaran Bibi, had been raped as a "punishment" for her teenage brother's alleged affair with a woman of another tribe.
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/south_asia/2218413.stm
* Court re Bhopal disaster case
August 26 -- A court in the central Indian city of Bhopal on Tuesday begins a landmark hearing relating to one of the world's worst industrial disasters. Thousands of people in Bhopal died in December 1984 after a gas leak at a chemical factory owned by the now defunct US company, Union Carbide. The court is considering an application from the Indian Government to reduce the gravity of the criminal charge against the American former chief of the company, Warren Anderson.
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/south_asia/2218172.stm
http://www.ananova.com/business/story/sm_658204.html?menu=
* Sharif defies Pakistan poll ban
August 26 -- Pakistan's former prime minister Nawaz Sharif filed papers to run in the 10 October parliamentary polls as the deadline for filing nominations ended on Monday. Mr Sharif is among thousands of people including anti-American clerics, pro-military government politicians and another exiled prime minister, Benazir Bhutto, who have filed papers to stand in elections intended to restore democracy in Pakistan. Both Mr Sharif and Ms Bhutto have been convicted in criminal cases and are barred by current regulations to contest in polls.
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/south_asia/2217478.stm
* Sri Lanka looks to rebuild
August 26 -- Sri Lankan Government negotiators and Tamil rebels have held discussions aimed at finding ways to rebuild the island's war-devastated north. The head of the government's Peace Secretariat, Bernard Gunetilake, who visited the rebel-held northern town of Kilinochchi to meet rebel representatives described the talks as a success. He took with him representatives of several private banks, one of them Japanese, who outlined proposals on what they could do to help redevelop the area. Monday's meeting was part of confidence-building measures being taken ahead of 16 September peace talks between the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Elam (LTTE) and the government.
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/south_asia/2217326.stm
* Pakistan opposition accuses government
August 26 -- The opposition party of former Prime Minister Benazir Bhutto asked Pakistan's election commission Monday to stop government officials from allegedly providing support to candidates who back the country's military leader. The Pakistan People's Party submitted a letter to the commission complaining that the governors of Sindh and Punjab provinces have been supplying government resources to four or five parties that support President Gen. Pervez Musharraf. Election Commission Chairman Irshad Hassan Khan has said the allegation is under investigation. Governors and other government officials are supposed to be neutral in the Oct. 10 parliamentary elections.
http://www.guardian.co.uk/worldlatest/story/0,1280,-1971759,00.html
Middle East
* Child among 17 killed in Kashmir
Seventeen people including two women and a child have been killed in fresh separatist violence in Kashmir, police said yesterday. Police said suspected separatist rebels on Sunday night shot dead four members of a Muslim policeman's family including a woman and a child. "Two militants barged into the house of a policeman on Sunday night andd indiscriminate fire on the residents," a police official said.
http://www.gulf-daily-news.com/arc_Articles.asp?Article=31053&Sn=WORL&IssueID=25160
* Sharif files election papers
Pakistan's exiled former prime minister Nawaz Sharif filed papers yesterday to contest October parliamentary elections in defiance of a ban by the military government, aides said. Sharif, his wife Kulsoom and younger brother Shahbaz who are living with him in exile in Saudi Arabia, filed nominations for the October 10 polls via proxy in their home city of Lahore. Pakistan's military ruler General Pervez Musharraf, says the Sharif family promised to stay out of politics for 10 years before going into exile to Saudi Arabia in 2000 and has vowed to block them from coming to power again.
http://www.gulf-daily-news.com/arc_Articles.asp?Article=31051&Sn=WORL&IssueID=25160
* India, Pak could consider joint patrolling: Sinha
India's External Affairs Minister Yashwant Sinha asked Pakistan to spell out clearly that "permanently ending" stoppage of infiltration across the Line of Control (LoC) in Jammu and Kashmir (J&K) was beyond its control in which case both sides could consider joint patrolling and other measures. In Sinha's first press conference on Monday after taking over as external affairs minister recently, he said: "In the context of the fact that the Pakistani president and pakistani authorities say we are trying to do our best but what is happening is outside our control and India finds this credible, then we can take a look at it (joint patrolling).
http://www.irna.com/en/world/.ewo.shtml
* New front to provide political leadership to India's Muslims
The United Muslim Front (UMF), which was set up as a political party at the recently-held Muslim convention at Meerut in the northern Indian state of Uttar Pradesh, said on Monday it would provide political leadership to the country's Muslims. In a statement here, UMF president Baseer Ahmad, who is a professor of Islamic Studies at Jamia Hamdard University in New Delhi, said though Muslims in the country had an acceptable religious leadership, they did not have a viable political leadership which was essential for their uplift. The UMF has demanded seat for Muslims in the Parliament leadership in order to promote their standing.
http://www.irna.com/en/world/.ewo.shtml
* Colombo, Tigers to exchange prisoners ahead of peace talks
An exchange of prisoners between the Sri Lankan government and the Tamil guerrillas is due to take place ahead of the proposed peace talks as a further confidence-building measure between the two sides, a local news newspaper said yesterday. The Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) and the government have been exchanging details about the prisoners over the past few weeks and the release is due to take place before the peace talks begin in Thailand on September 16, The Sunday Times said. The LTTE's chief negotiator Dr Anton Balasingham, during talks with Norway's special envoy Erik Solheim on Thursday had discussed the release of the prisoners.
http://www.gulf-news.com/Articles/News.asp?ArticleID=61534
Editorial
N/A
Business/Technology
* India growth forecast to be reviewed
India's central bank said yesterday it will review its economic growth forecast for the financial year to March 2003 in the next few weeks. In April the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) projected a gross domestic product growth of 6.0-6.5 per cent for the year to March, on the back of higher agricultural output and "positive indications" of a recovery in the industrial sector.GDP growth in the previous year was 5.4pc. But a drought in July adversely affected the crop output in agricultural states, in turn hampering a strong revival in the industrial sector.
http://www.gulf-daily-news.com/arc_Articles.asp?Article=30984&Sn=BUSI&IssueID=25160
* India's stocks improves further at early stages at BSE
New Delhi -- India's stocksd moderately higher and improved further in line with a mild rally in select heavyweighted counters Tuesday morning on the Bombay Stock Exchange (BSE) on fresh buying by domestic investors. Mirroring the upbeat, the BSE sensitive indexd better at 3128.41 as against Monday's close of 3123.60, and later moved upwards to a high of 3137.59.
http://www.irna.com/en/world/.ewo.shtml
* Pakistan's commercial Banks have more bad loans than a year ago
Pakistan's banks had more bad debt in June than a year ago as the war in Afghanistan hurt the country's textile exports, affecting the capacity of companies and individuals to pay back loans. Non-performing loans rose 5 percent from a year earlier to 167.7 billion rupees ($2.8 billion) on June 30, according to central bank statistics. State-owned banks, which account for about half of the credit, were the worst hit as soured loans accounted for almost 27 percent of their total lending. Bad debt is among ``our numerous concerns with Pakistan,'' said Liew Chih Wai, an analyst at rating company Standard & Poor's in Singapore. ``Given the state of the economy, it's hard to imagine the financial system to be in good shape.''
http://quote.bloomberg.com/fgcgi.cgi?ptitle=South%20Asia%20News&tp=topfin&T=as_storypage99.ht&s=APWruCRUuUGFraXN0
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---South Asian News, August 27, 2002 ---(International)
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