Gloria R. Lalumia's World Media Watch for January 23, 2008

WORLD MEDIA WATCH

Summaries are excerpted from the source articles; the featured article follows the summary section.

1//Worldpress.org, US
AUSTRALIA RULES OUT URANIUM SALES TO INDIA

The newly installed Australian Labor government has reversed a decision by the previous Howard administration to sell uranium yellowcake to India. Canberra has said it will ban such sales to New Delhi until it agrees to sign the Nuclear Nonproliferation Treaty. The previous Liberal-National coalition had followed a commitment by the Bush administration that allowed the sale of the resource despite New Delhi's refusal to sign the treaty. Then-Prime Minister John Howard defended his government's policy saying it would bring India more into the mainstream, forcing it to provide assurances over the disposal of the uranium. He continued with this policy even after lawmakers stalled the United States-India agreement in the Indian parliament. Opened for signature on July 1, 1968, the N.P.T. is designed to prevent the proliferation of nuclear material throughout the world. The treaty currently has 189 signatories of which five are in possession of nuclear weapons: the United States, Britain, France, Russia, and China. Four nations are not signatories: India, Pakistan, Israel, and North Korea. All four either have admitted possessing nuclear weapons of are suspected of carrying out nuclear weapon programs. Foreign Minister Stephen Smith told India's nuclear envoy Shyam Saran this week that the Labor party had campaigned prior to the November election against nuclear proliferation. "We went into the election with a strong policy commitment we would not export uranium to nation states who are not members of the Nuclear Nonproliferation Treaty," Smith said after the meeting with Saran. "It's a long standing commitment of the Australian Labor Party that we don't authorize the export of uranium to countries who are not parties to the Nuclear Nonproliferation Treaty. "India is a nation state that is not a party to the nonproliferation treaty. I don't think there's any expectation in the international community that it will become a member," he said.

AN EXPANDED EXCERPT OF THIS FEATURED ARTICLE FOLLOWS THE SUMMARIES

2//The Daily Times, Pakistan
NUKES CANNOT FALL INTO QAEDA HANDS, SAYS MUSHARRAF

President Pervez Musharraf on Tuesday ruled out the possibility of Pakistan's break-up and its nuclear arsenal falling into the hands of Al Qaeda or Taliban. Speaking at the French Institute of International Relations, he said extremists were only three percent of Pakistan's population and the 500,000-strong army protected Pakistan and its nuclear arsenal. He said Pakistan Army was one of the most disciplined armies in the world and there was no question of any junior officer taking over or attempting a coup. "Pakistan is not a banana republic," he said. A Shia-Sunni conflict existed but it could not harm Pakistan's integrity, he said. AP news agency quoted President Musharraf as saying that Pakistani troops were operating against terrorists and "not going around trying to locate Osama Bin Laden and Zawahri". "It's more important to battle the remnants of Afghanistan's former Taliban militia," he said. That Osama Bin Laden and Ayman Al-Zawahri are at large "doesn't mean much".

3//The Independent, UK
DAVIS: ‘ID CARDS IN INTENSIVE CARE'

The identity card scheme was said to be in "intensive care" as leaked Whitehall documents showed it faced a new delay of two years. The cards were set to be issued to Britons from 2010, when they apply to renew their passports, but private Home Office documents show the introduction is set to be put off until 2012. The likely postponement follows a series of fiascos over the security of personal data held by the Government. Gordon Brown is also widely believed not to share the enthusiasm of his predecessor for the scheme. David Davis, the shadow Home Secretary, who obtained the papers, said: "It is in the intensive care ward." He claimed the widespread introduction of the cards was being delayed to stop it becoming an issue at the next election, expected in 2009 or 2010. Under the new Home Office timetable, ID cards will still be issued this year to foreign nationals and next year to UK nationals employed in "positions of trust", thought to include youth workers and teachers. But the mass roll-out will not take place for another three years.

4//Asharq Alawsat, UK
KUWAIT'S SOLE FEMALE MINISTER SURVIVES VOTE OF NO-CONFIDENCE AVERTING POLITICAL SHOWDOWN

Kuwait's only woman in politics survived a no confidence vote in parliament Tuesday averting a political crisis in this small oil-rich Gulf state where women were only allowed to participate in political life in the last two years. Minister of Education Nouria al-Subeih received 27 votes of confidence from parliamentarians and 19 votes against, with two abstentions, allowing her to retain her post after conservatives called for her ouster on accusations of mismanagement and endangering conservative religious values. Hundreds of her women supporters in the galleries applauded and ululated even before the result was officially announced by the speaker, Jassem al-Kharafi. "We're so happy we can fly," said Mona Hassan, a 52-year-old school principal, as she left the gallery. "This is a victory for Kuwaiti women. Allow (the other) half of society work and watch the results." Clad in a black pantsuit, al-Subeih, who doesn't wear the Muslim headscarf unlike nearly all women in this overwhelmingly conservative society, stood up and waved to the crowds, while parliamentarians shook her hand. Her impeachment would have prompted a crisis between the government and parliament with a large Islamic bloc. The government does not tolerate votes of no confidence in its members, and has avoided them in the past with resignations, reshuffles or just dissolving the whole legislature. On Jan. 8 the minister had to defend herself before parliament against the allegations that she had attempted to deceive the nation when she denied a press report that three schoolboys had been sexually assaulted by an Asian worker at a state school. She explained she had been misinformed and subsequently issued an apology. Islamist lawmaker Saad al-Shreih also accused her of not showing enough respect for Islam when she did not punish a 14-year-old girl who had allegedly drawn a cross on her religion text book and scribbled notes on it that she hated Islam. The minister told the house there was no evidence the girl had actually done that and so she was just referred to counseling.

Al-Shreih, however, still managed to gather the requisite signatures of ten lawmakers to force the no confidence vote. Al-Subeih is a political independent, but has wide support among Westernized liberals who have dubbed her Kuwait's "Iron Lady" for standing up to the nation's conservatives. She started her career as a teacher more than 30 years ago. Many women activists believe the attack against her is an attempt to remove the only female Cabinet member in a country that still does not totally accept women in politics.

5//EuroNews, France
RUSSIAN FRONTRUNNER TO FOLLOW PUTIN'S PATH

The overwhelming favourite to succeed Vladimir Putin has told Russia he will stick to the course laid out by the outgoing President. It was Dmitry Medvedev's first big policy speech since Putin backed him to win the coming presidential election in March. He said the Russian leader had played a key role in pulling the country out of chaos: "The main thing is to have continuing calm and stable development. Decades of stable development are needed, something our country has been deprived of," he said in the address in Moscow. Some observers say Medvedev has a more liberal and pro-Western outlook than Putin, and his tone on foreign policy was conciliatory: "No one should have any doubt. Russia will continue developing as a country open for dialogue and cooperation with the international community." But he said Russia would keep its close ties with states like Iran, despite Western reservations. One of his rivals in the race for the presidency now faces an even greater struggle after prosecutors accused him of forging signatures to allow to him stand. It could lead to Mikhail Kasynov's disqualification from the election.

FEATURED ARTICLE

1//Worldpress.org, US January 20, 2008

AUSTRALIA RULES OUT URANIUM SALES TO INDIA

Rich Bowden

Sydney, Australia

The newly installed Australian Labor government has reversed a decision by the previous Howard administration to sell uranium yellowcake to India. Canberra has said it will ban such sales to New Delhi until it agrees to sign the Nuclear Nonproliferation Treaty.

The previous Liberal-National coalition had followed a commitment by the Bush administration that allowed the sale of the resource despite New Delhi's refusal to sign the treaty. Then-Prime Minister John Howard defended his government's policy saying it would bring India more into the mainstream, forcing it to provide assurances over the disposal of the uranium. He continued with this policy even after lawmakers stalled the United States-India agreement in the Indian parliament.

Opened for signature on July 1, 1968, the N.P.T. is designed to prevent the proliferation of nuclear material throughout the world. The treaty currently has 189 signatories of which five are in possession of nuclear weapons: the United States, Britain, France, Russia, and China.

Four nations are not signatories: India, Pakistan, Israel, and North Korea. All four either have admitted possessing nuclear weapons of are suspected of carrying out nuclear weapon programs.

Foreign Minister Stephen Smith told India's nuclear envoy Shyam Saran this week that the Labor party had campaigned prior to the November election against nuclear proliferation.

"We went into the election with a strong policy commitment we would not export uranium to nation states who are not members of the Nuclear Nonproliferation Treaty," Smith said after the meeting with Saran. "It's a long standing commitment of the Australian Labor Party that we don't authorize the export of uranium to countries who are not parties to the Nuclear Nonproliferation Treaty.

"India is a nation state that is not a party to the nonproliferation treaty. I don't think there's any expectation in the international community that it will become a member," he said.

India had successfully lobbied the previous conservative government under John Howard to reverse a ban on sales of the resource to India pointing to its excellent record in preventing proliferation of nuclear material and technology despite being a non-signatory of the N.P.T.

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Copyright 2008, Gloria R. Lalumia

WORLD MEDIA WATCH