clips are sponsored by the Indian American Center for Political Awareness and archived at www..

Breaking News/Newswire

* US decries reported abuses in Bangladesh anti-crime drive (AFP): Bangladesh said its two-week army crackdown on crime would last as long as needed, after the United States voiced concern about reported human rights abuses during the operation. "The military would be kept as long as their presence is absolutely necessary," Foreign Secretary Shamser Mobin Chowdhury told reporters Thursday. "They (the military) will not stay one day more than necessary." US State Department spokesman Richard Boucher said Wednesday that Washington hoped the crackdown "will last only as long as is absolutely necessary," though he acknowledged that Dhaka was dealing with a serious crime problem that needed to be addressed. http://in.news.yahoo.com/021031/6/1x68b.html


--- South Asian News, October 31, 2002 ---

Pakistan frees a pro-Taliban leader due to lack of evidence. U S expresses concern over the crackdown by the army in Bangladesh even as Bangladesh said 12 people died in army custody. Peace talks between the Sri Lankan government and the Tamil rebels resumes in Thailand even while parts of Sri Lanka are under curfew. India has rejects international pressure to cut greenhouse gases saying the developed world has to do more themselves. In business stories, Pakistani Airlines has decided to buy Boeing aircrafts worth $1.2 billion and an Indo-US tie-up in the IT sector.

Top Stories

* Pakistan frees pro-Taliban leader (San Francisco Chronicle) (Star Tribune) (LA Times) (Washington Post) (MSNBC) (Washington Times) (Sun Herald)
* U.S. watching Bangladesh crackdown (San Francisco Chronicle) (Star Tribune) (Washington Post) (MSNBC)
* Hoax call grounds Air India flight (United Press International) (CBS News) (Washington Times)
* India has potential to become economic power, says U.S. Ambassador (Washington File)
* India's tuberculosis control efforts deemed successful (Voice of America)
* USA holds back agreement on global warming (Environmental News Network)
* Bangladesh says 12 die in army custody (Washington Post) (MSNBC) (ABC News)
* U.S. expects anti-terror cooperation from Pakistan (Washington Post) (MSNBC)
* Curfew re-imposed after clashes in Sri Lanka capital (MSNBC)
* Pakistan holds suspect in Karachi parcel bombings (MSNBC)
* Sri Lankan peace talks resume in Thailand (NY Times) (MSNBC)
* Vajpayee urges looser emission standards for poor countries (Voice of America)
* India rejects pressure to do more on greenhouse gas (Environmental News Network)

Editorial/Op-Ed

N/A

Business/Technology

* Pakistan International Airlines to buy from Boeing (Seattle Times)
* Microsoft and India's Wipro in web alliance (Forbes)
* Novartis buys rights to Torrent heart drug (Forbes)

Other Stories

* Indian composer sues over U.S. hit (CNN)
* Holy book celebrated (Appeal Democrat)

Top Stories

* Pakistan frees pro-Taliban leader

Sihala, Pakistan -- The leader of a banned Muslim extremist group blamed in the deaths of hundreds of people was released Wednesday by Pakistani authorities, who said they have no evidence to continue holding him. Maulana Azam Tariq, whose pro-Taliban group, Sipah-e-Sahaba, has been labeled a terrorist organization by the United States, had been detained for 13 months without being formally charged. A Lahore appeals court ruled Monday that the government would have to release him if it could not produce evidence against him.

http://www.startribune.com/stories/670/3399194.html
http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?file=/news/archive/2002/10/30/international1337EST0609.DTL
http://www.latimes.com/news/nationworld/world/la-fg-briefs31.6oct31,0,3951884.story?coll=la%2Dheadlines%2Dworld
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/AOct30.html
http://famulus.msnbc.com/FamulusIntl/ap.asp?reg=ASIA
http://washingtontimes.com/world/.htm
http://www.herald-sun.com/nationworld/international/25-282576.html


* U.S. watching Bangladesh crackdown

Washington -- The United States hopes that Bangladeshi troops deployed to help fight crime will continue in that mission only as long as necessary and other measures will be used to improve law and order, a U.S. official said Wednesday. State Department spokesman Richard Boucher said the Bush administration was concerned about reports of abuses and was closely watching the situation. Since the start of the anti-crime crackdown in Bangladesh on Oct. 16, at least 10 people have died and dozens of others have been hospitalized after falling ill during army detention.

http://www.startribune.com/stories/670/3399553.html
http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?file=/news/archive/2002/10/30/national1628EST0695.DTL
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/AOct30.html
http://famulus.msnbc.com/FamulusIntl/reuters.asp?reg=ASIA

*Hoax call grounds Air India flight

New Delhi -- All Air India flights were grounded Thursday after authorities received a fax message saying two passengers were carrying explosives on board an Air India flight from Mumbai to Hong Kong via New Delhi. Authorities immediately took control of the plane as Flight AI 316 landed at Indira Gandhi International Airport in New Delhi. The sender of the fax said a female passenger and her child were planning to detonate the explosives aboard the flight, police said.

http://www.upi.com/view.cfm?StoryID=r
http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2002/10/16/world/main525761.shtml
http://washingtontimes.com/upi-breaking/r.htm

* India has potential to become economic power, says U.S. Ambassador

"India's large and talented labor pool makes it possible for it to become yet another 'Asian miracle,'" said U.S. Ambassador to India, Robert Blackwill. But in a speech to the Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce and Industry in New Delhi October 29, the ambassador said India needs to betteritself to the globalized economy, and to undertake more economic reforms

http://usinfo.state.gov/cgi-bin/washfile/display.pl?p=/products/washfile/latest&f=02103002.nlt&t=/products/washfile/newsitem.shtml

* India's Tuberculosis Control Efforts Deemed Successful

Washington -- Indian and U.S. health officials say India's efforts to control the spread of tuberculosis has saved 200,000 lives and $400 million in indirect economic costs - eight times the cost of these efforts. India has more people with tuberculosis than any other country. Each year, the scourge infects two million Indians - one third of the world's total - and kills nearly half a million.

http://www.voanews.com/article.cfm?objectID=0B7DCEF6-A837-48C8-B4DC63B6AAA2F8E1

* USA holds back agreement on global warming

New Delhi -- The refusal of the United States to support the Kyoto Protocol continues to hamper negotiations at the United Nations climate change conference. As the talks near completion, deep divisions remain between negotiators over the roles of the industrialized and developing worlds in the effort to address climate change. Many environmentalists point to the United States as the source of growing tensions between the developed and developing world that have emerged in New Delhi, as the lack of American commitment to reduce greenhouse gas emissions threatens to undermine future agreements on climate change.

http://ens-news.com/ens/oct2002/.asp

* Bangladesh Says 12 Die in Army Custody

Dhaka -- Bangladesh has acknowledged that 12 people have died in army custody and promised to investigate the deaths reported during a two-week crackdown on crime. Soldiers conducting anti-crime raids across the country have detained nearly 3,500 people and recovered more than 500 weapons over the past two weeks, officials said on Thursday." The government has acknowledged the deaths of 12 accused and suspects in army custody and each death will be investigated," the government's principal information officer Khondakar Monirul Islam told reporters on Wednesday.

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/AOct31.html
http://abcnews.go.com/wire/World/reuters20021031_22.html
http://famulus.msnbc.com/FamulusIntl/reuters.asp?reg=ASIA

* U.S. expects anti-terror cooperation from Pakistan

New Delhi -- The United States said on Wednesday it expects Pakistan to cooperate against Islamic militants in Afghanistan and Pakistan, despite a dramatic rise in religious parties after elections in that country. U.S. Special Envoy for Afghanistan Zalmai Khalilzad told reporters in New Delhi that remnants of the al Qaeda guerrilla group remained in both countries.

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/AOct30.html
http://famulus.msnbc.com/FamulusIntl/reuters.asp?reg=ASIA

* Curfew re-imposed after clashes in Sri Lanka capital

Colombo -- Police re-imposed a curfew on parts of Sri Lanka's capital on Thursday, a day after clashes between Muslims and majority Sinhalese left one dead and at least 13 wounded. Police said seven districts in Colombo's northern suburbs were under curfew until dawn on Friday, and army and police had been deployed in the area.

http://famulus.msnbc.com/FamulusIntl/reuters.asp?reg=ASIA#body

* Pakistan holds suspect in Karachi parcel bombings

Karachi, Pakistan -- Pakistani police said on Thursday they had arrested an activist of an outlawed sectarian militant group suspected of involvement in parcel bomb blasts which injured nine people in Karachi. Asif Shadman, an activist of banned Lashkar-e-Jhangvi group, was arrested in an overnight raid in a poor neighborhood of the port city, a police officer in Karachi said.

http://famulus.msnbc.com/FamulusIntl/reuters.asp?reg=ASIA

* Sri Lankan peace talks resume in Thailand

Nakorn Pathom, Thailand -- Sri Lankan government negotiators and Tamil Tiger rebels gathered for a second round of peace talks in Thailand on Thursday to try to end nearly two decades of ethnic conflict. Thai foreign ministry officials said the discussions were due to begin at around 0800 GMT at a resort 55 km (35 miles) west of Bangkok but no formal statement on their content or progress would be made until November 3.

http://www.nytimes.com/aponline/international/AP-Sri-Lanka-Peace-Talks.html
http://famulus.msnbc.com/FamulusIntl/reuters.asp?reg=ASIA

* Vajpayee urges looser emission standards for poor countries

New Delhi -- Indian Prime Minister Atal Behari Vajpayee says poor countries should not be set the same targets as rich nations in cutting greenhouse gas emissions. Mr. Vajpayee spoke to representatives from 185 countries attending the U.N. climate conference in New Delhi. Mr. Vajpayee rejected suggestions that developing countries could do more to tackle global warming by cutting down so-called greenhouse gas emissions. "There have been suggestions recently that the process should commence to enhance commitments of developing countries on mitigating climate change beyond that included in the convention," he said.

http://www.voanews.com/article.cfm?objectID=D7D639C8-D26F-47B8-9F4CA53EB59E7D0A

* India rejects pressure to do more on greenhouse gas

New Delhi -- India, one of the world's most populous but poorest countries, rejected pressure Wednesday for poor nations to step up efforts to cut gases that contribute to global warming. Developing countries struggling to feed their hungry produced only a tiny fraction of greenhouse gases and could not afford the cost of extra emissions cuts, Prime Minister Atal Behari Vajpayee said inng ministerial talks at a U.N. climate conference.

http://www.enn.com/news/wire-stories/2002/10/10312002/reu_48845.asp

Editorial/Op-Ed

N/A

Business

* Pakistan International Airlines to buy from Boeing

Karachi, Pakistan -- State-run Pakistan International Airlines (PIA) signed an agreement with Boeing yesterday to buy eight 777 passenger aircraft worth approximately $1.2 billion at list prices, the order provides a small but much needed boost for Boeing's 777-200LR program. Launched in February 2000, the 301-seat 777-200LR will fly more than 10,000 miles without stopping, making it Boeing's longest-range jet. But sales have been slow. EVA Airways of Taiwan ordered three 777-200LRs in June 2000, but no other customers had emerged until PIA ordered two of the planes yesterday.

http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/businesstechnology/134566243_pakistan310.html

* Microsoft and India's Wipro in Web alliance

Bangalore, India -- Microsoft Corp (NASDAQ: MSFT - news - people) and India's Wipro Ltd said on Wednesday they would jointly work to implement the U.S. software giant's ".NET" (dot-net) strategy linked to doing business over the Internet. Microsoft's strategy involves blending software and information across a wide range of devices, from desktop computers and Internet servers to hand-held devices.

http://www.forbes.com/technology/newswire/2002/10/30/rtr771619.html

* Novartis buys rights to Torrent heart drug

Zurich -- Novartis AG said on Thursday it had acquired the rights to Torrent Pharmaceuticals Ltd's early-stage "AGE-breaker" experimental drug being tested for use against heart disease. It gave no financial terms in a statement but said India's Torrent would get upfront and milestone payments, get royalties on global sales, and lead co-promotion of the compound in India.

http://www.forbes.com/technology/newswire/2002/10/31/rtr773402.html

Other Stories

* Indian composer sues over U.S. hit

Los Angeles -- A famed Indian composer has filed a lawsuit in federal court claiming the recent hit single "Addictive" by Truth Hurts borrowed heavily and without permission from a 20-year-old Hindi song. The lawsuit also charges American producers, including hip hop impresario Dr. Dre, with practicing a form of "cultural imperialism" by not crediting Third World artists.

http://asia.cnn.com/2002/SHOWBIZ/10/31/india.dre.lawsuit.reut/

* Holy book celebrated

Harbans Sraon sat at a table in a dining hall in the Sikh Temple on Tierra Buena Road Wednesday, looking at large paintings of Sikh gurus who have long since been gone. Some of the pictures show Sikh faithful enduring great suffering at the hands of torturers who tried to destroy their faith and their religion. One man is being sawed in half, while another painting shows two men being encased in brick while still alive.

http://www.appeal-democrat.com/103102/10312002dlw31sihks.shtml

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------