Owen Jones: We're Now Governed by the Political Wing of the Wealthy
THE INDEPENDENT – AN EXTRACT: We're governed by the political wing of the wealthy. That's not the view of a Socialist Worker headline writer: it's mainstream public opinion. According to a poll for The Independent earlier this week, two out of three voters think the Tories are "the party of the rich". Inevitably, that's partly because the majority of the Cabinet are privately-educated millionaires who would not look out of place in a 19th-century government. That's why George Osborne (the St Paul's-educated heir to a 17th-century baronetcy) slapping a tax on pasties – popular cheap nosh – strikes such a nerve. "It may sound trivial – but it is becoming symbolic of a divide between working people and a rich elite" – again, not the Socialist Worker, but the otherwise loyal Tory rag, The Sun.

But it goes a lot deeper than the distance between the well-bred kitchen-supper eating Conservatives and the pasty-eating masses. It's the fact that the "Cash for Cameron" scandal has exposed the internal mechanics of how Toryism provides political representation for the upper crust of society, because "the people who remain quietly behind the scenes" have been thrust into the spotlight. Peter Cruddas is now persona non grata as far as Cameron's circle is concerned, but his pledge to "feed all feedback" of wealthy donors "to the policy committee" gives the rest of us an insight into how power works in Cameron's Britain. Read the whole article here » | Owen Jones | Friday, March 30, 2012

Argentina Threatens to Sue Banks Helping Falklands Oil Explorers as Trade War with Britain Escalates
THE DAILY TELEGRAPH: A group of British and American banks have been threatened with legal action by the Argentine government for advising and writing research reports about companies involved in the Falkland Islands’ £1.6bn oil industry.

In what amounts to the start of a new trade war between the UK and Argentina, the banks - understood to include the Royal Bank of Scotland, Barclays Capital and Goldman Sachs - have been warned they face criminal and civil action in the Argentine courts.

The threats were made in a series of letters sent to as many as 15 banks by the Argentine embassy in London over the last ten days.

The letter, a copy of which has been seen by The Sunday Telegraph, warns the institutions that even merely writing research notes on exploration companies involved in the Falklands constitutes “a violation of the applicable domestic and international rules”.

The news - coming a day ahead of the 30th anniversary of Argentina’s invasion of the Falklands which sparked the 1982 conflict - is likely to worsen tensions between the two countries. The Argentine government is continuing to push for sovereignty. » | James Quinn | Saturday, March 31, 2012

Burma: Aung San Suu Kyi 'Wins Seat' in Historic Election

THE SUNDAY TELEGRAPH: Aung San Suu Kyi's party claims she has won a seat in Burma's parliament after Sunday's historic election, setting the stage for her to hold public office for the first time.

The victory, if confirmed, marks a major milestone in the Southeast Asian nation, where the military has ruled almost exclusively for a half-century and where the government is now seeking legitimacy and a lifting of Western sanctions.

The victory claim was displayed on a digital signboard above the opposition National League for Democracy's headquarters in Rangoon.

Earlier, the party said in unofficial figures that Ms Suu Kyi was ahead with 65 per cent of the vote in 82 of her constituency's 129 polling stations. Read on and comment » | Dean Nelson | Rangoon | Sunday, April 01, 2012

My comment:

If anyone deserves to win in this election, this lady does. She has suffered and struggled. My heartfelt congratulations to her. – © Mark

This comment also appears here

Keith Olbermann Ousted from Current TV Talk Show

THE GLOBE AND MAIL: Keith Olbermann is looking for a new job after less than a year as a talk show host at Current TV.

The left-leaning cable network announced just hours before airtime on Friday that Mr. Olbermann’s show “Countdown” would be replaced with a new program called “Viewpoint” hosted by former New York Gov. Eliot Spitzer, beginning that night.

The sometimes volatile Mr. Olbermann came to Current in June as the centrepiece of its new prime-time initiative after a stormy eight-year stint at MSNBC – his second at that network – followed by his abrupt departure in January 2011.

Shortly after, Current announced his hiring – reportedly with a five-year, $50-million contract – as the start of an effort to transform the network’s prime-time slate into progressive talk. His official title was chief news officer, charged with providing editorial guidance for all of the network’s political news, commentary and current events programming.

In a statement, Current TV founders Al Gore and Joel Hyatt said the network was “founded on the values of respect, openness, collegiality, and loyalty to our viewers. Unfortunately these values are no longer reflected in our relationship with Keith Olbermann and we have ended it.” » | Frazier Moore | New York | The Associated Press | Saturday, March 31, 2012

Turkish MPs Fight as Controversial Schools Bill Passed

BBC: Turkey's parliament has passed a bill that allows parents to move their children into Islamic schools earlier.

The education reform bill extends compulsory education from eight to 12 years and allows children to switch to specialist schools from as young as 10.

The ruling AK Party says the bill will mean pupils stay longer in school but secular Turks see it as part of a wider plan to increase religious influence.

MPs fought during a debate on the bill, which followed days of protests.

On Thursday, police used water cannon and tear gas to disperse protesters in the Turkish capital, Ankara. » | Saturday, march 31, 2012

US Elections 2012: Why Barack Obama's 'Open Mic' Slip-up Shows He Is a Man without a Plan

THE DAILY TELEGRAPH: President Barack Obama might be riding high in the polls at the moment, writes John Avlon. But his unguarded conversation with his Russian counterpart shows a failure to make a clear case for what a second term might bring.

It sounded like the dialogue from a bad spy film.

"This is my last election. After my election I have more flexibility."

"I understand. I will transmit this information to Vladimir."

But in fact it was a exchange between President Barack Obama and Russian President Dmitry Medvedev, accidentally caught on an open microphone as they discussed apparently deadlocked talks on a missile shield - and it quickly lodged itself in the American presidential campaign debate.

Paranoid hyper-partisans on the Right hailed it as a confirmation of Obama's deviousness, the latest sign that he is intent on selling out America's interests to its enemies in an unaccountable second term - when he'll have no further election to think about.

They are, as I said, paranoid and riffing off the "enemy within" narrative they've been playing since the days of Joe McCarthy, when Communists ruled the Kremlin.

But just because you're crazy doesn't mean you're stupid. This particular Obama slip will leave a mark – and just not for the reasons the wingnuts on the far-Right might think.

Yes, President Obama is riding high in the polls right now, buoyed by an improving economy – leading the presumptive Republican nominee Mitt Romney by double digits in some polls.

His job approval ratings are above 50 per cent for the first time since the killing of Osama bin Laden, while Romney's unfavourability ratings are already above 50 per cent - a bad sign for a non-incumbent nominee heading into the general election.

Nonetheless, this open mike slip will resonate, and probably appear in a Romney campaign ad this fall, because it highlights a core weakness of the Obama campaign – namely, his failure to make a clear case for what a second term might bring. "More of the same" isn't a satisfactory answer in US campaigns. Read on and comment » | John Avlon* | Saturday, March 31, 2012

* John Avlon is senior columnist for ‘Newsweek’ and ‘The Daily Beast’

Archbishop of Canterbury: Children Should Be Taught The Lord's Prayer
THE DAILY TELEGRAPH: Children are now half as likely to know the text of the Lord's Prayer than they were 40 years ago, according to a survey.

The study, which compared the answers of children aged 6-12 years old and adults who would have been that age 40 years ago, found that children today are less familiar with religious texts than their parents.

However, they are twice as likely to say that religion is important to them compared with those growing up in the 1970s.

Of the 1011 adults surveyed, 931 out of 1011 (92 per cent) said they knew the Lord’s Prayer as a child, while only 571 out of 1040 (55 per cent) of children knew it today.

The Archbishop of Canterbury told the BBC he believed that children should be taught the Lord's Prayer in schools and is worried by news that half as many children know the prayer.

Dr Rowan Williams said: "I'd like to see schools introducing children to the Lord's Prayer, so that they know that it's there, they know what it means and know why it matters. » | Josie Ensor | Saturday, March 31, 2012

Marrakech, ville du péché ?
LE POINT: Le ministre de la Justice marocain a laissé échapper une remarque qui fait polémique sur les réseaux sociaux.

Un ministre islamiste a suscité la polémique en affirmant que des touristes venaient à Marrakech (dans le sud du Maroc) pour commettre des péchés.

"Des gens du monde entier viennent pour passer beaucoup de temps à commettre des péchés et s'éloigner de Dieu", a déclaré Mustafa Ramid, ministre de la Justice et des Libertés, lors d'une visite à une école coranique à Marrakech, haut lieu du tourisme marocain. En septembre 2008, le prédicateur qui dirige cette école coranique, Mohamed Maghraoui, avait provoqué une controverse en émettant une fatwa (avis religieux) autorisant le mariage des filles à l'âge de 9 ans, comme l'a fait Aisha lorsque le prophèteMahomet l'a épousée. L'âge légal du mariage au Maroc a été fixé en 2004 à 18 ans, mais la loi permet au juge de la famille d'autoriser les mariages des mineurs dans certains cas, fréquents notamment dans le milieu rural. » | LePoint.fr | samedi 31 mars 2012

Niederlande: Wilders lässt Regierung Rutte vorerst nicht fallen

FRANKFURTER ALLGEMEINE: In den Niederlanden ist ein Bruch der Regierungskoalition abgewendet worden: entgegen seiner Drohung vom Mittwoch erklärte sich der Islamfeind Geert Wilders bereit, die Beratungen über ein massives Sparpaket fortzuführen.

Das niederländische Regierungsbündnis hat am Donnerstag einen Bruch der Koalition vorerst abgewendet. Unklar blieb zunächst, mit welchen Gegenleistungen der Islamfeind und Euroskeptiker Geert Wilders dafür rechnen kann, dass er sich entgegen seiner Drohung vom Mittwoch zur Fortsetzung der Beratungen über ein massives Sparpaket bereiterklärte. Wilders’ Freiheitspartei regiert zwar nicht mit, doch ist die Minderheitsregierung der Rechtsliberalen von Ministerpräsident Mark Rutte und der Christlichen Demokraten auf die Stimmen von Wilders’ Fraktion - der drittgrößten im Abgeordnetenhaus - angewiesen. » | Andrea Ross | Donnerstag, 29. März 2012

Auf Staatskosten: Wulff erhält Büro und Mitarbeiter
FRANKFURTER ALLGEMEINE: Zunächst bis Ende des Jahres kann der zurückgetretene Bundespräsident Christian Wulff ein Büro mit zwei Mitarbeitern in Berlin nutzen. Der Haushaltsausschuss des Bundestages musste nicht zustimmen.

Alt-Bundespräsident Christian Wulff kann nach seinem Rücktritt vorerst bis Jahresende auf Staatskosten ein Büro und zwei Mitarbeiter in Berlin nutzen. Präsidialamt und Bundestagsverwaltung hätten dieser Lösung zugestimmt, erfuhr die Nachrichtenagentur dpa am Freitag aus Kreisen der Unionsfraktion in Berlin. Auch ein gepanzertes Fahrzeug und Personenschutz stehen ihm weiterhin zu. Über die Kosten wurde zunächst nichts bekannt.

Ob der 52-Jährige diese Amtsausstattung auch nach dem laufenden Jahr nutzen kann, muss der Bundestag in den Beratungen über den Haushalt 2013 neu entscheiden. In der Unionsfraktion wurde von einer „relativ bescheidenen Lösung“ gesprochen. » | Quelle: DPA | Samstag, 31. März 2012

Distance between Europe's Cozy Couple
French President Nicolas Sarkozy has made internal security a focus of his presidential election campaign, and his ratings have soared over his handling of a series of shootings. But his focus on domestic events is putting pressure on his historically strong relationship with German leader Angela Merkel. Al Jazeera's Nick Spicer reports from Berlin.

French Police Arrest 'Islamic Radicals'
French commandos carry out raids across France, a week after gunman Mohamed Merah was killed. President Sarzozy vowed to crackdown on what he called "Islamic radicals". The operation began before dawn. Police raid homes in cities including Nantes, Toulouse and Paris, detaining 19 suspects and seizing a number of weapons. Al Jazeera's Jacky Rowland reports from Paris.

Related »

Thousands Attend Funeral of Gay Man in Chile
A 24-year-old who was beaten and branded with swastikas by a neo-Nazi group earlier this month was laid to rest, as thousands attended his funeral in Chile. Friends, family, gay rights activists, and foreign dignitaries gathered in Santiago on Friday, as police stated they are treating the murder of Daniel Zambudio as a hate crime. They believe he was targeted because he was homosexual. The tragedy has sparked a national outcry and a debate over whether the government should pass an anti-discrimination law offering stronger protections for victims of hate crimes. Al Jazeera's Rachel Levin reports.

WA TODAY: Huge funeral for gay neo-Nazi victim: Thousands of Chileans have joined the funeral procession a gay man tortured and beaten to death by presumed neo-Nazis amid growing national outrage over the attack. ¶ On Friday people crowded the streets around cars that travelled for three hours between Daniel Zamudio's home in San Bernardo south of the capital and the main cemetery in Santiago, waving white handkerchiefs, throwing flowers and clapping. ¶ "There will be time for justice but for now, I am only asking for respect, and I thank all of you for each gesture, each tear shed, for my brother," Diego Zamudio said before a private cremation. » | AFP | Saturday, March 31, 2012

France a 'Rogue State' on Regional Languages

AL JAZEERA ENGLISH: Campaigners say Breton, Occitan, Corsican and others will soon cease to be living languages without formal recognition.

When Tangi Louarn casts his vote in next month's French presidential election he will be forced to do so in a language that he does not recognise as his own.

A resident of the rugged peninsula region of Brittany in northwestern France, Louarn is one of about 200,000 speakers of Breton, once the world's most commonly spoken Celtic language but now recognised as severely endangered by UNESCO.

Despite its precarious situation, Breton has no formal status in France. It is not offered as a language of education in the public school system, the state makes no provision for regional language media, and it is not used in government or public services.

Once home to a vibrant multitude of tongues, the monolingualism of modern France is enshrined in article two of the country's constitution, rooted in the revolutionary principles of 1789, which reads: "The language of the Republic shall be French."

Yet Louarn, the president of Kevre Breizh, a Breton language activist group, says that regional language speakers are still waiting for their human rights to to be respected.

"Breton is my language. It is a part of my identity. Yet 'Liberte, egalite, fraternite' is only for people speaking French. When you speak another language you do not have equality." » | Simon Hooper | Friday, March 30, 2012

REUTERS FRANCE: Manifestations en faveur des langues regionals : PARIS - Des manifestations en faveur des langues régionales se sont déroulées samedi dans une dizaine de villes de France, dont Strasbourg, Lille, Quimper, Toulouse, Perpignan et Ajaccio, à l'appel d'une coordination nationale. » | Gilbert Reilhac à Strasbourg, édité par Marine Pennetier | samedi 31 mars 2012

EDL Holds Far-right Rally in Denmark to Unite 'Anti-Islamic Alliance'

THE GUARDIAN: Mayor of Aarhus says far-right extremists protesting at 'Islamification of Europe' are not welcome in Danish second city

Far-right groups from across Europe, including members of the English Defence League (EDL), are holding a rally in Denmark in a bid to set up "an anti-Islamic alliance" across the continent.

The demonstration in Denmark's second city of Aarhus is expected to draw anti-Islamic groups from countries including Russia, Finland, France, Germany, Norway, Poland, Romania, and Sweden.

The EDL, which has organised the rally, said it was not expecting large numbers – perhaps around 700 – but said the event signalled the beginning of a Europe-wide movement against the "Islamification of Europe". » | Damien Pearse and agencies | Saturday, March 31, 2012

BBC: EDL takes part in far-right European rally in Denmark: Far-right groups from across Europe are holding a rally in Denmark aimed at setting up what they term an anti-Islamic alliance across the continent. » | Saturday, March 31, 2012

Autriche: Une affiche anti-marocaine créé une crise diplomatique

TRIBUNE DE GENÈVE: Le Maroc a exprimé vendredi son indignation à l'ambassadeur autrichien à Rabat après l'utilisation en Autriche d'une affiche électorale au caractère anti-marocain par le parti d'extrême-droite FPÖ.

Le Parquet d'Innsbruck (ouest de l'Autriche) a ouvert une enquête contre le parti d'extrême droite FPÖ, pour "incitation à la haine", en raison d'une affiche au caractère anti-marocain placardée pour les élections municipales qui doivent avoir lieu le 15 avril à Innsbruck.

Le slogan de l'affiche en question du FPÖ, dirigé sur le plan national par Heinz-Christian Strache, affirme dans une rime polémique: "L'amour de la patrie plutôt que des Marocains voleurs" ("Heimat-Liebe statt Marokkaner-Diebe").

A la suite du dépôt de trois plaintes de citoyens, un porte-parole du Parquet d'Innsbruck a confirmé à l'agence de presse autrichienne APA qu'une enquête était ouverte pour "incitation à la haine". » | afp/Newsnet | vendredi 30 mars 2012

Obamaville

Al-Qaeda 'Plotting Another 9/11’ from Afghanistan

THE DAILY TELEGRAPH: Al-Qaeda fighters have returned to Afghanistan and will use the country as a base to launch September 11-style attacks on Western cities, according to the American ambassador to Kabul.

Ryan Crocker told The Daily Telegraph that if the West was to leave Afghanistan too early, al-Qaeda would be able to increase its presence.

With the US preparing to withdraw the majority of its combat forces from Afghanistan next year, Mr Crocker warned: “If we decide we’re tired, they’ll be back.

“Al-Qaeda is still present in Afghanistan. If the West decides that 10 years in Afghanistan is too long then they will be back, and the next time it will not be New York or Washington, it will be another big Western city.”

Mr Crocker, 62, who previously served as ambassador to Iraq, said that while progress had been made, Afghanistan would need Western support for years to come. » | Con Coughlin | Friday, March 30, 2012

Brandis Defends Sharia for Muslim Wills
THE AUSTRALIAN: OPPOSITION legal affairs spokesman George Brandis has come to the defence of Muslims making out wills on the principles of sharia, arguing that Australian law allowed people to favour one child over another in bequests.

Senator Brandis said Islamic law was compatible with regular law in many instances in Australia, such as dietary and clothing practices as well as religious worship.

And someone can dispose of their property as they choose.

"Our laws start with the presumption that people are entitled to write their will as they choose, subject to certain formal requirements," he said.

"The Coalition does not believe that sharia law should be accepted or recognised in Australia. It is logically possible for somebody to do something that is both consistent with Australian law and consistent with sharia principles. The question is: are they obedient to Australian law." » | Patricia Karvelas | The Australian | Saturday, March 31, 2012

Falkland Islands 'Will Belong to Argentina One Day' Says Minister
THE DAILY TELEGRAPH: The Falkland Islands will belong to Argentina one day, according to the country's chairman of the foreign affairs committee.

But Daniel Filmus said Argentina would not try to take the disputed islands by force. "There's no suppression which lasts forever.

"It's just a matter of how much time it takes for it to be understood that there must be dialogue and the need to find a mechanism for diplomatic agreement to get us there," he told Radio Five Live.

Speaking ahead of the 30th anniversary of the start of the Falklands War, which began on April 2 1982, Mr Filmus said Argentines "have enough patience and know what is right".

Argentina has revived the dispute over the islands it calls Las Malvinas as the anniversary approaches. Read on and comment» | Friday, March 30, 2012