The EU should be stronger and more united. Great Britain should belong to the Union.
Die EU sollte stärker und geeinter sein. Großbritannien sollte der Union angehören.
L'UE devrait être plus forte et plus unie. La Grande-Bretagne devrait appartenir à l'Union.
Wednesday, March 25, 2009
Angriff auf Dollar: China verlangt neue Weltwährung
DIE PRESSE: Die Forderung des chinesischen Zentralbank-Chefs nach einer weltweiten Leitwährung beflügelt ökonomische Theorien des "Weltgeldes". Aber auch die Verschwörungstheorien rund um die Weltwährungen Amero und Globo.
China hat eine neue globale Leitwährung unter Aufsicht des Internationalen Währungsfonds (IWF) gefordert. Der Chef der chinesischen Zentralbank, Zhou Xiaochuan, schrieb in einem Aufsatz, dass die gegenwärtige Krise erneut nach einer kreativen Reform des internationalen Währungssystems hin zu einer internationalen Leitwährung rufe.
Dollar zu unverlässlich
Zhou erwähnte den Dollar zwar nicht direkt, schrieb allerdings, die Krise habe gezeigt, wie gefährlich es sei, sich bei internationalen Finanzgeschäften auf die Währung eines einzigen Landes zu verlassen. "Eine überhoheitliche Leitwährung, die von einer globalen Institution gemanagt wird, könnte sowohl dazu genutzt werden, die globale Geldflüsse zu schaffen, wie auch sie zu kontrollieren", schrieb Zhou. Dies würde die Gefahr künftiger Krisen reduzieren und zugleich die Möglichkeiten zum Krisenmanagement erweitern. >>> ebl/ag | Dienstag, 24. März 2009
Tuesday, March 24, 2009
The British Way with Corpses Is Best
TIMESONLINE: Open-air funeral pyres are a tradition too far
It seems ironic that Davender Ghai, the 70-year-old Hindu campaigning to be allowed to conduct open-air cremations, is also founder of a charity called the Anglo-Asian Friendship Society. In pushing for something that most Britons would find abhorrent, he is surely doing for Anglo-Asian relations what Timmy Mallett has done for music.
There are many ludicrous aspects to his position, not least his claim that open funeral pyres are “central to our religions” and that he has the support of many “prominent figures in India”. If the belief really was “central”, it would have become an issue some time ago, but Hindus and Sikhs in Britain have been using traditional crematoriums without complaint for decades. >>> Sathnam Sanghera | Wednesday, March 25, 2009
Iran Has a Problem as 'Great Satan' Turns on the Charm
THE TELEGRAPH: President Barack Obama's conciliatory and nuanced approach towards Iran confronts its leaders with their greatest foreign policy dilemma since the end of the war with Iraq almost 21 years ago, says David Blair.
If Iran's leaders had the power to choose between a belligerent America threatening "regime change" and a conciliatory US President hailing their "great and celebrated culture", they would probably prefer to bask in firebreathing threats.
When the "Great Satan" looks suitably wicked – and throws around epithets like "axis of evil" – Iran's leaders can sit back and relax. They can afford to stage "Death to America" rallies and be as intransigent as possible.
Their difficulties only arise when the "Great Satan" stubbornly refuses to be remotely satanic. President Barack Obama's conciliatory and nuanced approach towards Iran confronts its leaders with their greatest foreign policy dilemma since the end of the war with Iraq almost 21 years ago.
Mr Obama's message on the occasion of Iran's New Year was a carefully crafted attempt to unsettle its leadership. Iran's "accomplishments" in art and culture had "made the world a better and more beautiful place", said Barack Hussein Obama, the son of a Muslim who carries the name of the founder of the Shia faith.
With his words carried in Farsi subtitles, Mr Obama added that Iran's many achievements had won the "respect of America and the world". This was a calculated appeal to the country's 70 million people, roughly two thirds of whom are under 30.
Any visitor to Tehran is struck by how young Iranians have embraced Western – and specifically American – popular culture. This does not simply extend to fashion, films, music and the regime's famously futile attempts to ban satellite dishes. What struck me on my last visit was how the bookshops outside Tehran University sell dictionaries of American idiom and helpful guides on how to adopt an American accent. >>> By David Blair, Diplomatic Editor | Tuesday, March 24, 2009
FAZ: Die israelische Arbeiterpartei hat sich nach heftigem Streit für ihren Beitritt zu einer rechtsorientierten Regierung unter dem designierten Ministerpräsidenten Benjamin Netanjahu entschieden. Das bestätigte der Parteifunktionär Ofer Eini im israelischen Rundfunk. Auf einem Sonderparteitag gab es am Dienstag in Tel Aviv eine deutliche Mehrheit unter den etwa 1470 Delegierten. Damit hat Netanjahu jetzt formell eine Regierungsmehrheit von 66 der 120 Sitze in der Knesset.
Der Vorsitzende des rechtsorientierten Likuds verhandelt jetzt noch mit der streng religiösen Partei Vereinigtes Tora-Judentum, die weitere fünf Mandate einbringen könnte. Er hat schon Koalitionsvereinbarungen mit der ultrarechten Israel Beitenu (Unser Haus Israel) und der streng religiösen Schas-Partei unterzeichnet. >>> FAZ.NET/ Ap, dpa | Dienstag, 24. März 2009
Saudi Arabia's Shia Press for Rights
BBC: Underlying tensions between Sunni and Shia in the Middle East have escalated to full-scale crises in the past few years in countries such as Iraq, Lebanon, Bahrain, and, most recently, in Saudi Arabia.
Wahhabism, the dominant Saudi school of Islam, views the Shia as heretics. Photo courtesy of the BBC
Although they only represent 15% of the overall Saudi population of more than 25 million, Shia are the dominant population, according to the International Crisis Group, in key towns such as Qatif, Dammam, and al-Hasa, which are home to the largest oil fields and processing and refining facilities.
In February, clashes between Shia Muslims and the religious police in Madina, Islam's second holiest city, triggered a wave of unrest, resulting in the arrest of dozens of people.
Tensions were eased by King Abdullah's decision to release all the detainees but the situation remains volatile.
Many Shias in Saudi Arabia relate far more to fellow Shia in Iraq, Iran, Lebanon and Bahrain, than with fellow Saudis who follow the puritan Wahhabi school of Islam. Wahabbis often class the Shia as heretics, or even to have left the faith entirely.
And at a time when many Arab officials point to the predominantly Shia Iran as the most serious security threat they face, there is a general attitude in the Arabic media that suggests Saudi Shia are somehow led by or follow an Iranian agenda.
But Saudi Shias deny this and say they face unfair discrimination.
Accusations of discrimination are backed by many western governments, led by the United States, which repeatedly express their concerns about religious freedom in Saudi Arabia. >>> By Anees al-Qudaihi, BBC Arabic Service | Tuesday, March 24, 2009
US-Finanzminister Geithner will ein enges Korsett für Finanzsystem
TAGES ANZEIGER: US-Finanzminister Timothy Geithner und Notenbankchef Ben Bernanke wollen eine Neuordnung der Finanzmarktregulierung durchsetzen. Lücken in der Kontrolle von Finanzriesen [sic] müssten geschlossen werden.
Stärkere Überwachung der US-Finanzriesen: Ben Bernanke (Notenbankchef) und Timothy Geithner (Finanzminister). Bild dank dem Tages Anzeiger
«Alle Institutionen und Märkte, die ein Systemrisiko darstellen könnten, werden einer strengen Überwachung unterliegen, einschliesslich einer Begrenzung ihrer Risiken», sagte Finanzminister Timothy Geithner in Washington bei einer Befragung durch den Bankenausschuss des US-Repräsentantenhauses.
Es müsse verhindert werden, dass der Staat wieder mit einer Situation wie im vergangenen September konfrontiert sei, als der vor der Pleite stehende Versicherer AIG durch Eingreifen der Regierung gerettet werden musste. Notenbankchef Ben Bernanke sagte in der Sitzung, es bestehe ein «dringender Bedarf», neue Verfahrensweisen für die Kontrolle «systemrelevanter, wichtiger Finanzunternehmen» aufzustellen. >>> vin/sda/ap | Dienstag, 24. März 2009
Nicolas Sarkozy, à son arrivée au sommet européen de Bruxelles, le 20 mars. Photo grâce au Express
L’EXPRESS.fr: Silencieux sur la crise financière jusqu'à fin septembre, le Président de la République a ensuite multiplié les déclarations. Tantôt libérale, tantôt interventionniste, la doctrine économique de Nicolas Sarkozy n'est pas à une contradiction près. Mais sa communication en temps de crise obéit aussi à une logique très calculée. >>> Par Juliette Cua | Mardi 24 Mars 2009
Four residents of her village in Ghaziabad, north India, allegedly set the 16-year-old Muslim girl alight after they suspected her of having a relationship with a boy.
Police claim residents kept a vigil on her house as they noticed the boy visited her frequently when her father was away.
The four men then beat her, doused her with kerosene and set her on fire. >>> | Tuesday, March 24, 2009
Bibi Netanyahu: Likud Anglos
Porträt: Sie nennen ihn «Bibi» – den Falken: Wie Israels designierter Ministerpräsident Netanyahu am Comeback feilt
NZZ Online: Nur wenige Politiker sind so ehrgeizig wie Benjamin Netanyahu. Er wird in Israel gerne als Falke bezeichnet, weil er als Oppositioneller in den eigenen Reihen bekannt ist. «Bibi», wie der designierte Regierungschef gerne genannt wird, hat wie kein anderer an seinem politischen Comeback gefeilt.
Er gilt nicht nur in Israel als Hardliner. Benjamin Netanyahu ist ein Vollblutpolitiker. Einer, der opportunistisch seine Ziele fokussiert. Er kennt kein Wenn und Aber, geht zielstrebig seinen Weg und räumt, wenn es denn sein muss, auch seine eigenen Weggefährten aus dem Weg.
Aufgewachsen ist der 1949 in Tel Aviv geborene Netanyahu im verschlafenen Städtchen Cheltenham im amerikanischen Gliedstaat Pennsylvania als Sohn eines Professors für jüdische Geschichte. Er stellte die Weichen für seinen Werdegang früh. Netanyahu studierte am renommierten Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) Architektur sowie politische Wissenschaften an der Harvard University und besitzt ferner einen Abschluss der Sloan School of Management. Ferner hat er eine Reihe von Publikationen zum Thema Terrorismus verfasst, die ihm auf seiner künftigen Laufbahn zugutekommen sollten. Netanyahu ist zum dritten Mal verheiratet und Vater mehrerer Kinder. >>> hoh | Dienstag, 24. Marz 2009
INTERNATIONAL HERALD TRIBUNE: ANKARA, Turkey: Turkey does not back Denmark's prime minister becoming NATO's next secretary-general, a senior Turkish lawmaker said Tuesday.
Anders Fogh Rasmussen is seen as the front-runner to replace Jaap de Hoop Scheffer as NATO secretary-general when his term ends at the end of July.
Turkey, a NATO member, objects to Fogh Rasmussen because of the 2006 prophet cartoon crisis, his reported opposition to Turkey's EU membership and his stance on Kurdish rebels, said Suat Kiniklioglu, top foreign policy official in the prime minister's party.
"It is unacceptable that NATO be headed by an individual who has in the past rudely disrespected our values and religious beliefs," Kiniklioglu said in reference to Danish cartoons of the Prophet Muhammad that sparked Muslim protests.
Fogh Rasmussen defended freedom of speech amid the protests. >>> The Associated Press | Tuesday, March 24, 2009
Obama et Sarkozy engagent le dialogue avant le G20
LE FIGARO: Les deux présidents s'entretiendront mercredi, par téléphone, des enjeux du sommet international sur la finance mondiale qui se tiendra le 2 avril à Londres.
Nicolas Sarkozy devrait avoir une conversation par visioconférence mercredi avec Barack Obama (ici, les deux hommes à Paris en juillet 2008) (Crédits photo : Le Figaro)
Rencontres au sommet entre responsables américains et français. Après un entretien lundi soir à la Maison-Blanche entre François Fillon et le vice-président Joe Biden, Nicolas Sarkozy devrait avoir une conversation par visioconférence mercredi avec Barack Obama. À dix jours du sommet des principales puissances économiques mondiales, la France s'active pour défendre ses propositions en vue d'une réforme de la finance mondiale.
En visite aux États-Unis depuis dimanche soir, le premier ministre a enchaîné rencontres et entretiens avec des responsables politiques, économiques et bancaires. Son objectif est de confronter les réponses américaine et européenne à la crise, avec l'espoir de rallier l'Administration d'Obama à l'urgence d'une réforme de la régulation financière. À New York et Washington, François Fillon a solennisé l'enjeu de la réunion de Londres. «Le rendez-vous du G20 est très important pour la résolution de la crise, car c'est d'abord une crise de confiance. L'absence d'accord, un accord a minima ou bien des divisions constitueraient un signal extrêmement négatif envoyé aux peuples et aux marchés» , a confié le premier ministre lors d'une rencontre informelle avec la presse après sa rencontre avec des acteurs de la régulation financière. À l'heure du petit déjeuner, François Fillon a pris le pouls de plusieurs banquiers et décideurs économiques américains, dont Éric Dinallo, directeur de la régulation des assureurs de New York, William Dudley, président de la Réserve fédérale de New York, ou encore Tim Ryan, président de l'association des grandes banques de Wall Street. Il est reparti avec le sentiment que la majorité est consciente, selon lui, de l'impact qu'un «mauvais accord» à Londres aurait sur le redressement des économies. >>> Bruno Jeudy | Mardi 24 Mars 2009
When is a crowd of a million fans, fainting in the heat and being trampled to death in excitement, a sign of unpopularity? When you are Pope Benedict XVI, that's when. Despite the fact that his week-long tour of the African continent has been playing to record numbers, the Pontiff has had nothing but criticism from the First World press. He's a "disaster", he's "out of touch with the real world", his whole operation needs "a radical shake-up".
The failures, according to his critics, lie both in his medium and his message. The present Vatican has yet to come to terms with the worldwide, 24-hour blogosphere. The press office shuts up shop for the day at three in the afternoon. No one there has got to grips with Google. Stories leap out at strange times of the day and night, and they hadn't seen any of them coming. Bless… but who can blame them? It's a rum old world in which Jade Goody reaches near-sanctification for her telepathic relationship with the media and the Pope gets rubbished because he's baffled by it.
His message that Aids "cannot be overcome through the distribution of condoms, which can even aggravate the problem" has infuriated health workers the world over. But what exactly is a Pope for? Is he there to make public service announcements in accordance with current scientific thinking, or is he there to stick up for what his Church has long believed in? The relationship between Catholics and condoms was strained long before Benedict XVI got the job. Millions of Catholic couples take the independent decision to practise contraception, but that is no reason for the Pope to change what he preaches. It is absurd even to expect him to move with the times. He's a religious leader, not an interior decorator.
Pope Benedict has yet to say anything I agree with. I don't think rock music is the spawn of the devil; it seemed to me barmy to take back into the church the bishop who had denied the Holocaust; and I wouldn't dream of taking contraceptive advice from a bachelor in his seventies. But then I'm not a Catholic. The Pope, it transpires, is. Deal with it. [Source: The Telegraph] By Gill Hornby | Tuesday, March 24, 2009
Al Jazeera Sets Out to Conquer America!
THE TELEGRAPH: Al Jazeera English, the international television channel belonging to the Emir of Qatar's news network, has a fight on its hands to conquer America.
Al Jazeera English focused on its American dream . Photo courtesy of The Telegraph
The USA has been the downfall of many a foreign export but when you're a broadcaster based in the Arab world, bankrolled by a Middle Eastern autocrat and associated in the popular mindset with terrorist videos, the endeavour begins to look near-impossible.
When the English-language channel was set up in November 2006 to provide impartial competition for CNN and the BBC, the reputation of its Arabic sister channel, Al Jazeera, was already controversial.
Some observers claimed that it broadcast videos sent to the station from terrorist suspects, while US Defence Secretary Donald Rumsfeld had wrongly suggested that the network showed hostages being beheaded.
Since this inauspicious start, the Al Jazeera English team has been manning the PR battle lines against lobbyists anxious to keep the channel off US television line-ups.
So how did the Al Jazeera brand begin to convince US audiences that it serves a serious broadcasting purpose?
Tony Burman, managing director of Al Jazeera English and former Canadian TV executive, has found some of the answers while the station has built up an audience of 140m households in 40 countries – including Israel.
Among Mr Burman's priorities has been busting a few myths, hiring journalists from well-established rivals and focusing news coverage on the developing world.
The English-language channel is carried by satellite television operator Sky in the UK. More astonishingly, its commercial team is on the brink of signing several contracts with cable and satellite operators to give it a reach right across the US. Al Jazeera English Focused on Its American Dream >>> By Rowena Mason | Monday, March 23, 2009
UK Population Must Fall to 30m, Says Porritt
THE SUNDAY TIMES: JONATHON PORRITT, one of Gordon Brown’s leading green advisers, is to warn that Britain must drastically reduce its population if it is to build a sustainable society.
Porritt’s call will come at this week’s annual conference of the Optimum Population Trust (OPT), of which he is patron.
The trust will release research suggesting UK population must be cut to 30m if the country wants to feed itself sustainably.
Porritt said: “Population growth, plus economic growth, is putting the world under terrible pressure.
“Each person in Britain has far more impact on the environment than those in developing countries so cutting our population is one way to reduce that impact.”
Population growth is one of the most politically sensitive environmental problems. The issues it raises, including religion, culture and immigration policy, have proved too toxic for most green groups. >>> Jonathan Leake and Brendan Montague | Sunday, March 22, 2009
Nine of AIG's Top Bonus Earners Agree to Repay Cash in Full
THE GUARDIAN: Nine of the top 10 recipients of controversial bonuses at the insurer AIG have pledged to hand back the money following a public and political outcry over multimillion-dollar rewards at the crisis-stricken company.
New York state's attorney general, Andrew Cuomo, revealed last night that most of the biggest winners from a controversial "retention scheme" at AIG have succumbed to pressure by forsaking their awards.
Of those working at AIG's financial products division, which ran up vast losses on toxic derivatives, 15 of the 20 top bonus winners are giving back the money.
Cuomo said: "A number of them have risen to the occasion and I applaud them."
The money being returned amounts to $30m out of the bonus scheme's total payout of $165m. Cuomo, speaking on a conference call, revealed that about $80m of the total went to Americans. Some of the rest is likely to have gone to British staff at AIG's key financial products office in London.
He expressed a hope that more bonuses would be returned and said he expected his office to recoup about $80m. >>> Andrew Clark in New York | Tuesday, March 24, 2009
Hindu Elder Goes to High Court for Right to Open-air Cremation
THE GUARDIAN: Davender Ghai, 70, says he is being discriminated against on grounds of race and religion
Davender Ghai, centre, arriving at court. Photo courtesy of The Guardian
An elderly Hindu man will today ask the high court for the right to have an open-air cremation , claiming that to deny him such a ritual "will enslave his soul in endless earthly entrapment".
Davender Ghai, 70, is challenging Newcastle city council's decision to refuse him an open-air cremation when he dies. He claims that this refusal discriminates against him on the grounds of race and religion, contrary to equality and race relation laws. If successful, say his lawyers, the case could set a precedent for designated natural cremation sites around the country.
They also described today's review as "the most controversial religious freedom case in British legal history".
The local authority argues that open-air funeral pyres are outlawed by the 1902 Cremation Act. In 2006, it blocked his attempt to establish Britain's first approved site for burning bodies outdoors. Ghai, however, claims to have tested the law in July 2006, when he lit the funeral pyre of Rajpal Mehat in Northumberland.
In a witness statement to be read out in court today, Ghai says he is asking for equality not exemption.
"Local authorities routinely provide separate Muslim and Jewish burial grounds and out-of-hours registration and immediate or weekend burials. Hindus should cremate before the following sunset, too, and yet we, along with the general public, wait for up to a week.
"No one expects Hindus to marry in a church so why are Hindu funerals shoehorned through chapels of rest designed like Anglican churches?" >>> Riazat Butt, Religious Affairs Correspondent | Tuesday, March 24, 2009
WELT ONLINE: Barack Obama hat den Iranern einen Neubeginn bei den internationalen Beziehungen angeboten. Während die Hardliner in Teheran sich unerbittlich zeigen, ist ein großer Teil der iranischen Bevölkerung längst für einen Versöhnungskurs. Die junge Generation wird sich immer mehr darüber im Klaren, das Amerika mehr Chance denn Bedrohung ist.
Sie kommen jeden Freitag. Zu Tausenden strömen sie durch das Tor der Teheraner Universität. Die Männer hocken in der ehemaligen Sporthalle. Die Frauen lassen sich auf einem gepflasterten Weg daneben nieder, dazwischen hängen grüne Plastikplanen. Sie plaudern, wickeln Proviant aus. Als die Worte "Tod für Amerika!" aus den Lautsprechern dröhnen, gerät die Masse in Bewegung: "Tod für Amerika!", brüllen die Gläubigen unter Anleitung des bärtigen Geistlichen zurück. Es ist ein bekanntes Ritual. Und doch: Es ist nur ein Ausschnitt des Ganzen. >>> Von Gabriele M. Keller | Montag, 23. März 2009
American Jewish Committee: Ayaan Hirsi Ali on the Viability of Hope
Ayaan Hirsi Ali: Is Europe too Tolerant of Radical Islam?
Fährt der TGV bald nach Mekka?
BLICK: PARIS – Muslimische Pilger sollen künftig im Eiltempo von Mekka nach Medina brausen können – französischer Bahntechnik sei Dank.
Mekka und Medina in Saudi-Arabien sind die beiden wichtigsten heiligen Städte des Islams. Damit die Pilger künftig bequem hin- und herreisen können, wollen französische Unternehmen die Orte von Mohammeds Wirken mit einer TGV-Hochgeschwindigkeitsstrecke verbinden. >>> SDA/hhs | Montag, 23. Marz 2009
Le changement n'est qu'un «slogan» dans la bouche d'Obama, a insisté l'ayatollah Ali Khamenei. Crédits photo : AP
LE FIGARO: Le guide suprême iranien, l'ayatollah Ali Khamenei, a indiqué que Téhéran était prêt à changer de politique si les Etats-Unis modifiaient dans les faits et non seulement en paroles leur attitude à l'égard de la République islamiste.
La main tendue de Barack Obama qui a offert, vendredi, dans un message vidéo inédit de surmonter trente années de relations américano-iraniennes hostiles, a été accueillie avec sceptissisme par Téhéran. Le guide suprême du pays, l'ayatollah Ali Khamenei, a indiqué que l'Iran changera de politique si les Etats-Unis modifient dans les faits et non seulement en paroles leur attitude à l'égard de la République islamiste. « Nous n'avons aucune expérience du nouveau président américain. Nous observerons et jugerons. Changez, et notre attitude changera. Si vous ne changez pas d'attitude, sachez que notre peuple s'est renforcé et continuera de résister», a mis en garde le numéro un iranien.
Le changement n'est qu'un «slogan» dans la bouche d'Obama, a insisté le dirigeant religieux, devant des dizaines de milliers de personnes rassemblées dans la ville sainte de Mashhad. Khamenei a reproché aux dirigeants américains de continuer à accuser son pays de soutenir le terrorisme. Le président américain a en effet affirmé dans son adresse que l'Iran ne pouvait obtenir la place qui lui revient dans le concert des nations en utilisant «la terreur et les armes» et avait demandé à Téhéran d'opter pour «des agissements pacifiques». Ali Khamenei estime donc que la rhétorique de Barack Obama ne varie en rien de celle de son prédécesseur George W. Bush. «Obama a insulté la République islamique d'Iran dès le premier jour», a-t-il déploré. «Les responsables américains et les autres doivent savoir qu'on ne peut pas tromper le peuple iranien et lui faire peur». >>> lefigaro.fr avec AP et AFP | Dimanche 22 Mars 2009
Papst hält Messe vor einer Million Menschen
TAGES ANZEIGER: Benedikt XVI. hat am Sonntag bei einer Messe vor Gläubigen in Luanda Kriege und Stammesfehden auf dem afrikanischen Kontinent beklagt und zur Versöhnung aufgerufen.
Die Messe unter freiem Himmel in der angolanischen Hauptstadt war zugleich Höhepunkt und Abschluss seiner siebentägigen Afrikareise. Überschattet wurde der Besuch in Angola von einem schweren Zwischenfall vor einem Auftritt des Papstes am Samstag in einem Stadion, bei dem zwei Frauen in dichtem Gedränge zu Tode getrampelt und 40 Menschen verletzt wurden.
Benedikt äusserte am Sonntag zu Beginn der Messe sein Bedauern über den Tod der Frauen und übermittelte ihren Angehörigen sein Beileid. Den Verletzten wünschte er rasche Genesung. In seiner Predigt beklagte der Papst «Wolken des Bösen» über Afrika, die zu Krieg, Stammesfehden und ethnischen Konflikten geführt und Menschen zu Sklaven gemacht hätten. Der Krieg könne jegliche menschlichen Werte zerstören, erklärte der Papst. Versöhnung sei nur durch Veränderung im Herzen und einer neuen Art des Denkens möglich, sagte das katholische Kirchenoberhaupt.
Am Samstag hatte der Papst in einer Messe in der Peterskirche in Luanda die Christen in Angola zu weiterer Missionierung aufgerufen. Als «neue Missionare» sollten sie Anhänger von Hexerei und Zauberglauben zu Christus bringen. Christen sollten denen, die sich von bösen Mächten, Geistern und Zauberei bedroht fühlten, die frohe Botschaft entgegensetzen, erklärte der Papst. >>> cpm/ap | Sonntag, 22. März 2009
ASSOCIATED PRESS: TEHRAN, Iran — The wife of the late Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini, the father of Iran's 1979 Islamic revolution, has died after a long illness, state media reported Sunday. She was 93.
Khadijeh Saqafi, who was known as the "mother of the Islamic revolution," died Saturday in Tehran, state TV said. Thousands of people, including Iran's president and supreme leader, attended her funeral at Tehran University on Sunday.
Failure to Understand Political Islam Is 'Dangerous'
THE DAILY STAR: BEIRUT: The West has fundamentally misunderstood the meaning and significance of political Islam and the world is "a more dangerous place" as a result, a former broker of unofficial talks between Western powers and groups such as Hamas and Hizbullah said on Friday. Alistair Crooke directs Conflicts Forum, an NGO committed to creating dialogue between Islamist movements and the West. He was speaking to promote his new book, entitled "Resistance: The Essence of the Islamist Revolution."
He said that the West's failure to consider political Islam, particularly Iran's Islamic revolution, as anything more than an attempt to fill a void left by poor economic decisions and the failure of Arab nationalism has led to ineffectual policy toward the Muslim world.
"The rise of Islamism was not just about filling a void. They did not simply rise out of the decline of nationalism and pan-Arabism," he said. Instead, he argued that the phenomenon is a "huge transformative change that is exciting and energizing millions of people." >>> By Andrew Wander, Daily Star staff | Monday, March 23, 2009
Hardline Saudi Clerics Urge TV Ban on Women, Music
ASSOCIATED PRESS: RIYADH, Saudi Arabia — A group of Saudi clerics urged the kingdom's new information minister on Sunday to ban women from appearing on TV or in newspapers and magazines, making clear that the country's hardline religious establishment is skeptical of a new push toward moderation.
In a statement, the 35 hardline clergymen also called on Abdel Aziz Khoja, who was appointed by King Abdullah on Feb. 14, to prohibit the playing of music and music shows on television.
"We have great hope that this media reform will be accomplished by you," said the statement. "We have noticed how well-rooted perversity is in the Ministry of Information and Culture, in television, radio, press, culture clubs and the book fair." >>> By Donna Abu-Nasr | Sunday, March 22, 2009
Time to Speak Up about Britain's Islamists
THE TELEGRAPH: We should not be funding groups who are hostile to our way of life, argues Philip Johnston.
The Government will tomorrow launch a new counter-terrorism strategy, called Contest 2. For those who missed Contest 1, a brief explanation is in order. It has four strands: to protect, to pursue, to prepare and to prevent.
Which of these would you consider the most important? I would hazard a guess that most of us would suggest preventing a terrorist attack happening at all is the most crucial aspect of such a strategy. We should be ready, of course, to resist them; and we should track down those who perpetrate them. We should also protect people with straightforward security measures and with good intelligence. But, if we can stop them happening, that would be best.
So it was somewhat odd that when Gordon Brown outlined this updated approach in a newspaper article yesterday, the "prevent" bit seemed less prominent than one imagined it might be. There was talk about "murderous agents of hate" and of "core al-Qaeda" – spook-speak for the central command that is based in the lawless borderlands of Pakistan and Afghanistan.
"Terrorists remain intent on inflicting mass casualties without warning, including through suicide bombings," Mr Brown said. Tens of thousands of security guards and store managers have now apparently been "trained and equipped to deal with an incident and know what to watch for" (though this was news to my local shop manager when I went to get the papers yesterday). The strategy will also "address the longer-term causes – understanding what leads people to become radicalised, so we can stop the process". And that was about it for prevent.
There was not a single mention of the undeniable truth that the extremists who will actually carry out atrocities live among us and need to be confronted here and now. According to Mr Brown, "we are developing a strategy to tackle the terrorist threat by tackling the underlying causes, the extremist madrassas and the lawless spaces in which terrorists recruit or train". Not here, mind you, but in Pakistan. His only mention that this may have anything to do with British-based radical Islamism was a reference to "a violent extremist ideology based on a false reading of religion". >>> Philip Johnston | Sunday, March 22, 2009
Bludgeoned to Death at Sydney Airport!
BBC: A man has been bludgeoned to death by a group of Australian motorcycle gang members in full view of dozens of people at Sydney airport.
Witnesses described bikers swinging poles "like swords" at each other's heads as the brawl spilled over two floors of Sydney's domestic terminal.
Four suspects have been arrested and the others are said to have fled.
Police believe the fight broke out when one group of bikers coming off a plane was ambushed by a rival gang.
Police did not name any gangs thought to be involved, but Australian media reported that the brawl, on Sunday afternoon, was between the Hell's Angels and Comancheros gangs.
A 28-year-old man died in hospital from severe head injuries.
Police said about 15 gang members were involved in the fight, which was witnessed by about 50 people. Deadly Brawl at Sydney Airport >>> | Sunday, March 22, 2009
Crise : Obama défend son «pote» Geithner
lePARISIEN.fr: Le président américain Barack Obama réitère son soutien à son secrétaire au Trésor Timothy Geithner, affirmant qu'il n'accepterait pas sa démission si elle lui était proposée, dans une interview à CBS qui doit être diffusée dimanche soir. Ces déclarations interviennent alors que le gouvernement américain devrait présenter, lundi, le plan Geithner destiné à débarrasser les banques de leurs actifs toxiques. L'annonce de ce plan pourrait être l'épreuve du feu pour Tim Geithner.L'opposition républicaine réclame régulièrement sa démission.
Dans cette interview à CBS, Barack Obama assure que ni lui, ni M. Geithner n'ont jamais parlé de la démission du secrétaire au Trésor, mais que «la critique est naturelle» dans ce contexte de crise économique, indique un communiqué de la chaîne de télévision américaine, citant des propos du président américain dont une longue interview doit être diffusée dimanche dans l'émission «60 minutes». Et si jamais Tim Geithner proposait sa démission ? «Je répondrais : Désolé, mon pote, tu gardes ton boulot», rétorque le président des Etats-Unis.
Son secrétaire au Trésor est sous le feu des critiques pour sa gestion de la crise économique actuelle et en raison du scandale politique né du versement d'importants bonus par le géant américain de l'assurance AIG, récemment sauvé de la faillite par l'injection de fonds publics. >>> leparisien.fr | Dimanche 22 Mars 2009
YOU TUBE: Obama Defends Geithner
THE TELEGRAPH: Barack Obama Will Refuse to Let Tim Geithner Quit
President Barack Obama has insisted he would refuse to accept the resignation of Tim Geithner, the embattled Treasury Secretary, and instead tell him: "Sorry buddy, you've still got the job".
In an interview with the CBS "60 Minutes" programme, Mr Obama pleaded for more patience over dealing with the economic crisis.
He said: "It's going to take a little bit more time than we would like to make sure that we get this plan just right. Of course, then we'd still be subject to criticism.
"What's taken so long? You've been in office a whole 40 days and you haven't solved the greatest financial crisis since the Great Depression."
Seeking to channel public outrage over lavish bonuses for financiers from the failed insurance giant AIG, he urged corporate executives to visit Middle America.
"If you go to North Dakota, or you go to Iowa, or you go to Arkansas, where folks would be thrilled to be making $75,000 a year – without a bonus – then I think they'd get a sense of why people are frustrated," he said.
His unstinting support for Mr Geithner came as he prepared to unveil a plan for a long-term overhaul of the crisis-hit American financial system.
Officials said that the plan would include using $100 billion in taxpayer money to ease the credit crisis by leveraging as much as $1 trillion in so-called toxic assets so they could be taken off the books of struggling banks. >>> By Toby Harnden in Washington | Sunday, March 22, 2009
Ausverkauf! Sonderangebot! Daimler holt sich Abu Dhabi als neuen Großaktionär
WELT ONLINE: Der angeschlagene Autobauer Daimler hat sich das Emirat Abu Dhabi als Großaktionär ins Haus geholt. Über eine Kapitalerhöhung steigt die staatlich kontrollierte Investmentgesellschaft Aabar mit 9,1 Prozent bei Daimler ein. Damit wird Abu Dhabi zum wichtigsten Anteilseigner des Autoherstellers.
Unterstützung für Daimler: Das Emirat Abu Dhabi steigt als Großaktionär bei dem angeschlagenen deutschen Autohersteller ein. Bild dank der Welt
Der von der Absatzkrise gebeutelte Autobauer Daimler hat sich ein zweites Emirat als Großaktionär ins Haus geholt. Mit 9,1 Prozent steigt Abu Dhabi zum wichtigsten Anteilseigner auf und verweist Kuwait auf den zweiten Platz. Der Einstieg geschieht durch die Ausgabe neuer Aktien, durch deren Kauf 1,95 Milliarden Euro in Daimlers Kasse fließen, wie der Konzern am Sonntag in Stuttgart mitteilte. Der Anteil Kuwaits wird dadurch verwässert und fällt von 7,6 auf 6,9 Prozent. >>> dpa/lha | Sonntag, 22. Marz 2009
REUTERS: WASHINGTON - A public furor over big bonuses paid by firms bailed out with U.S. taxpayer money is fueling resistance to President Barack Obama's ambitious plans to extend government intervention in the U.S. private sector.
Republican opponents say his commitment of huge sums to try to revive the ailing economy is driven by a philosophical belief in greater government intrusion in many areas, from healthcare to education, dubbing it socialism.
Obama is pursuing these policies just 13 years after President Bill Clinton, a fellow Democrat, disarmed Republican opponents by declaring: "The era of big government is over."
As the enormous cost of the Obama's effort to stimulate the economy grows, many are weighing just how far government should be extending its powers.
"We're in the midst of a huge political battle, which is being obscured behind a financial crisis," said Bruce Kogut, professor of ethics and corporate governance at Columbia University. "If the financial crisis wasn't here we'd be having this battle anyway."
"The question I think we need to figure out as a country is what is the proper role of government?" said David Moss, professor of economic history at Harvard Business School. >>> By Tabassum Zakaria – Analysis, Editing by David Store | Sunday, March 22, 2009
Saudi Police Arrest Shi'ites, Search for Preacher
REUTERS: RIYADH - Saudi police have arrested at least 11 Shi'ites in eastern Saudi Arabia after a firebrand preacher attacked the Sunni authorities over recent sectarian clashes, police and Shi'ite sources said on Sunday.
Tewfik al-Saif, an intellectual from the Eastern Province, said a total of 14 Shi'ites were arrested in Awwamiyya during several days of sit-ins in protest against police raids in search of preacher Nimr al-Nimr, who has gone missing.
Shi'ite website Rasid.com also reported the arrests.
Interior Ministry spokesman Mansour al-Turki confirmed that 11 men were detained on Saturday on suspicion of "disturbing public order" and an act of vandalism that caused an electricity black-out in the Shi'ite town of Awwamiyya.
He said police wanted Nimr for questioning but did not know for what reason.
Saif and a member of Nimr's family said that in a sermon in Awwamiyya this month Nimr had suggested Shi'ites could one day seek to secede from Saudi Arabia, a country that sees itself as the bastion of mainstream Sunni Islam.
GEO.tv: SARGODHA: Jamiat Ulema-e-Islam-S chief Maulana Sami-ul-Haq said on Sunday that he was ready to fight a war for the enforcement of Sharia across the country after Swat.
Addressing a news conference here, he said that alliance of the Muttahida Majlis-e-Ammal (MMA) had fell apart because its leadership went after the power politics.
JUI-S chief said that the future of democracy and present government looks bleak and disappointing, while crime rate in Swat went down to one percent following after promulgation of Sharia Law.
He lamented that the stable of horse-trading had been opened after imposing governor rule in Punjab. [Source: Geo.tv] Sunday, March 22, 2009
Turkey Could Block Rasmussen at NATO, Official Says
REUTERS: BRUSSELS (Reuters) - Turkey could block Denmark's prime minister from becoming the next NATO chief given concerns over his past stance on Turkey and a row over Danish cartoons of the Prophet Mohammad, a Turkish official said on Sunday.
Current secretary general Dutchman Jaap de Hoop Scheffer steps down on July 31. His successor is expected to be named at an April 3-4 NATO summit.
NATO diplomats and a U.S. source said on Saturday Washington had told NATO allies it would back Anders Fogh Rasmussen as the next secretary general but getting Turkey to agree would be key.
A Turkish official said the Turkish position could be set in coming days, but Rasmussen was "tainted" in Turkey's eyes.
"It may come to the veto," he told Reuters. "We will have to see." NATO leadership positions are filled by consensus among the 26-nation military pact. >>> Reporting by Paul Taylor and David Brunnstrom | Sunday, March 22, 2009
RADIO NETHERLANDS WORLDWIDE: Freedom Party leader Geert Wilders has launched an official appeal against the British government's decision to ban him from entering the United Kingdom. Last month, Britain's Home Office refused the MP entry on the grounds that his opinions about Islam made him a threat to public security.
Mr Wilders had been invited to screen his film Fitna at the House of Lords by Lord Pearson of Britain's Independence Party. Upon arrival at London's Heathrow airport, the far-right MP was denied entry to the UK and sent back to the Netherlands. Mr Wilders has appealed to the Asylum and Immigration Tribunal to reverse the decision. He will be notified of the date for the hearing in 28 days time. [Source: RNW] | Saturday, March 21, 2009
Turkey's State Radio to Begin Armenian-language Broadcast
HÜRRIYET: Turkey's state radio will launch an Armenian-language channel, reports said on Friday in the latest in a series of planned foreign language broadcasting mediums being launched by the state.
The move comes as Ankara and Yerevan have been engaged in a normalization process between the neighboring countries that for decades have had no diplomatic relations.
Turkish Prime Minister Tayyip Erdogan also said Wednesday that state-run Turkish Radio and Television Corp (TRT) would launch a radio station broadcasting in Kurdish.
The radio channels broadcasting in Armenian and Kurdish will go on air in "two to three months", Reuters and CNNTurk reported citing Anatolian Agency.
"At this stage, we will refrain from any comments," an Armenian Foreign Ministry spokesman told Reuters when asked about the report of the planned radio station on Friday.
TRT also plans to launch a Persian TV channel and a news channel broadcasting in English next year, Friday's reports added.
Turkey recently took steps to boost the cultural and democratic rights of Kurds with the Jan. 1 launch of TRT-6, a TV channel that airs in Kurdish 24 hours a day. [Source: Hürriyet] Sunday, March 22, 2009
Canada Bans Outspoken British MP
THE CANADIAN PRESS: OTTAWA — Immigration Minister Jason Kenney will not intervene in a decision to ban British anti-war MP George Galloway from Canada despite opposition claims of censorship.
Galloway termed the decision "idiotic" after Citizenship and Immigration Canada deemed the outspoken politician inadmissible on security grounds. He was exploring his legal options Friday, vowing to fight the ruling with "all means at my disposal."
Kenney's office noted Galloway has expressed sympathy for the Taliban cause in Afghanistan and provided financial support to the Palestinian group Hamas, listed in Canada as a terrorist organization.
Speaking in Calgary on Friday, Kenney said that while he has authority to overrule his officials, he will not provide special treatment to the 54-year-old Scottish MP.
Galloway "last week publicly called for a coup d'etat in Egypt and the overthrow of the government there while at the same time delivering aid and resources to Hamas, which is a banned illegal terrorist organization," Kenney said.
EUROPE NEWS: At your service, American Taxpayer! AIG's Shariah Advisory Board. Meet Moe, Larry and Curly. I mean, Mohamed, Muhammad, and Mohammed.* As members of the AIG Takaful Shariah Advisory Board, they really work for you and me, the American taxpayer, ever since we the people bought an 80 percent stake in the bankrupt insurance company.
How's that for bait and switch? While we agonize over chump-change AIG bonuses, we ignore the fact we're paying for the subversion of liberty and justice for all by funding AIG's promotion and entrenchment of sharia--Jew-, Christian-, and humanist-hostile supremacist Islamic law. As of December 2008, by the way, AIG Takaful insurance products went on sale in the USA under the ironically named Lexington Takaful Solutions.
Lexington, Lexington--wasn't that where our experiment in liberty began with the shot heard round the world? Must have been a dream. At this rate, Lexington will go down in history as the beachhead of US taxpayer-funded sharia. From "taxation without representation" to taxation to support sharia: How the free have enslaved themselves. >>> Diana West (DianaWest.net) | Friday, March 20, 2009
Religulous: Borat-style Satire on Faith Causes Outrage
THE INDEPENDENT ON SUNDAY: British release for controversial US movie will increase friction between atheists and believers
The Pope caused global outrage last week when he suggested on a trip to Africa not only that Aids 'cannot be overcome through the distribution of condoms' but that they 'even aggravate the problems'. Photo (AP) courtesy of The Independent on Sunday
A Borat-style documentary lampooning the world's religions through interviews with their leaders is to open in Britain next week – and, if the US experience is anything to go, it is certain to spark controversy.
Religulous – the title is a provocative combination of "religion" and "ridiculous" – caused outrage across the Atlantic, with Catholics complaining they were the main target of the film, directed by Larry Charles. He also directed Borat, the satire on US mores starring Sacha Baron Cohen as the Kazakhstan reporter. The American comedian and satirist Bill Maher takes the Cohen role.
Maher has said that while the film was meant to be funny, it wasn't just meant to poke fun at religion, but demolish it. "I was raised a Catholic," he said, "but by the time I became an adult, scientific thought and rational evidence led me to believe otherwise. You know, when I was a kid and got a cavity, I had mercury drilled into my teeth. Then, when I got older, they drilled it out – and you can do the same with religion."
The film opens shortly after the Pope was condemned for suggesting condoms "aggravate the problem" of Aids, causing a frantic Vatican damage-limitation exercise.
Emboldened atheists have run slogans on the side of buses proclaiming "There is probably no God" – and a campaign by Christians to undermine that attracted record numbers of complaints last week to the Advertising Standards Authority. >>> By Andrew Johnson and Emily Dugan | Sunday, March 22, 2009
