Global Markets Plunge
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Dow Jones Industrial average crossed below 10,000 mark for the first time since October, 2004 as Nikkei index drops to four-year low; major indexes in France, Britain Germany slide more than five percent
Markets around the world are taking a beating, with a key US market average falling to its lowest level in four years. VOA's Michael Bowman reports from Washington, the market plunge spears to be driven by persistent concerns about tight credit that could further dampen the global economy.Traders watch financial markets on a computer,in Paris, 06 Oct 2008U.S. stocks opened sharply lower, mirroring losses in Europe, Asia, and much of the developing world. In New York, the Dow Jones Industrial average crossed below an important psychological floor, the 10,000 mark, for the first time since October, 2004. The Dow was more than four percent lower in early trading. It has lost about a quarter of its value this year.Major markets were hard-hit across the globe. Stocks in Tokyo and Hong Kong finished the day down more than four percent. In late-day trading, shares in London, Paris and Frankfurt had all fallen more than six percent. India's stock market fell to a two-year low, while trading in Brazil had to be halted twice after a 10-percent plunge followed by an additional five percent decline. Deepening concerns about tight credit and the apparent inability of central banks to combat it are eroding global market confidence, according to London-based financial analyst Michael Wilson."However much governments borrow, however much liquidity [cash] is put into the system, it [market confidence] needs trust and confidence being restored between banks, and there is none of that this morning," said Wilson.Last week, President Bush signed a massive rescue package to aid U.S. financial institutions facing ruin amid a continuing wave of home foreclosures. The bill allows the treasury to buy bad debt stemming from risky home mortgages, and raises the limit on federally insured bank accounts. Several European governments are following suit with bail-out initiatives and deposit guarantees. Boston-based investments advisor Art Hogan says European countries are facing the same tough choices the United States has wrestled with in recent weeks."Germany and the rest of Europe are not quite as [far] along the learning curve of what needs to be done to straighten out the balance sheets of some of the financial institutions," said Hogan.Amid further signs of global economic weakness, crude oil prices fell further, while gold rose sharply.Chris Varveras of the Washington-based National Association for Business Economics says the United States appears headed for a recession."Our economists have become more negative on the economic outlook for the next few quarters, with about two-thirds of us believing that we are either already in a recession or will soon enter recession," said Varveras.The U.S. central bank has announced new steps to stimulate credit markets. The Federal Reserve says it will begin paying interest on commercial banks' reserves and will expand its loan program to troubled institutions.
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Global Financial Turmoil Taking Toll on Refugees, Displaced
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UN High Commissioner for Refugees, says globalization has lifted millions of people out of poverty, but it has also widened the gap between rich and poor
U.N. High Commissioner for Refugees Antonio Guterres warns adverse economic, social and political trends threaten to trigger large-scale displacement if the international community neglects the world's poor. Lisa Schlein reports for VOA from the annual U.N. Refugee Conference in Geneva. U.N. High Commissioner for Refugees, Antonio Guterres, says no one can live in isolation in today's world. Globalization binds everyone together for good or ill.Guterres says globalization has lifted millions of people out of poverty, but it has also widened the gap between rich and poor. And, this, he says is prompting a growing number of people to leave their homes in search of greater security and better opportunities."Competition for scarce resources has become an increasingly important factor in provoking and perpetuating violence. We are confronted with a series of interlinked conflicts in an arc of crisis that stretches from South-West Asia to the Middle East and the Horn of Africa. And, some of them are deepening, with important implications for global security. More localized disputes have flared up in other parts of the world," said Guterres. "Climate change, extreme poverty and conflict are becoming more and more interrelated. And, as a consequence, forced displacement is increasing." Guterres say thousands of Africans have fled their homes this year and gone to neighboring countries such as Botswana, Chad, Kenya, South Africa and Zambia in search of asylum or jobs. He says the work of the U.N. refugee agency has become more difficult and more expensive. He says expenses have risen from $1.1 billion in 2006 to $1.6 billion in 2008. Guterres says high food and energy prices are putting the welfare of refugees seriously at risk."At the same time, I must point out that the resources required to support the 31 million people we care for are very modest indeed when compared, for instance, to the sums being spent-and it is necessary to do so - to bring stability to the international financial system," he added. "It would be tragic if the funds available to the humanitarian community as a whole, and UNHCR in particular, were to decline at the very time when the demands made upon us are increasing so dramatically." High Commissioner Guterres ends with a stark warning. He notes a hungry man is an angry man. And, if the international community fails to meet the basic needs of the world's poor, he predicts more social and political turmoil can be expected in the years to come.
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60 Dead in Kyrgyzstan Earthquake
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6.6 magnitude quake hits late Sunday near Chinese border
Emergency officials say an earthquake in southern Kyrgyzstan has killed at least 60 people.The U.S. Geological Survey measured the quake's intensity at 6.6. The quake struck Sunday at 9:52 pm local time (15:52 UTC) and was centered 65 kilometers southeast of Sary-Tash. Officials say the quake injured another 50 people and destroyed at least 120 buildings in the village of Nura, near Kyrgyzstan's mountainous border with China. Nura is a remote village with a population of just under one thousand. Officials said rescue operations are continuing to see if anyone is still buried under the debris.
Some information for this report was provided by AFP, AP and Reuters.
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Suicide Bombing Kills 27 in Sri Lanka, Including Former Army General
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Latest violence erupted as the army says it is poised to capture the northern town from where the rebels have been leading their campaign for an autonomous Tamil homeland
In Sri Lanka, a suicide bombing by suspected Tamil Tiger rebels has killed at least 27 people, including a top former army general. About 80 others were wounded. The latest violence erupted as the army said it is poised to capture the northern town from where the rebels have been leading their campaign for an autonomous Tamil homeland. Anjana Pasricha reports from New Delhi. An injured victim of explosion receives treatment at a hospital in Anuradhapura, about 210 kilometers northeast of Colombo, Sri Lanka, Monday, 06 Oct. 2008Officials say a suicide bomber triggered a blast Monday morning at the opening ceremony of an office of the main opposition party (United National Party) in the northern town, Anuradhapura.Retired Major General Janaka Perera and his wife, who were attending the ceremony, were among those killed in the attack. Scores of people were injured.During the 1990's, the general -- who is regarded as a war hero in Sri Lanka -- won key victories against the rebels. At the time of his death, he headed the provincial unit of the opposition United National Party.Military spokesman Udaya Nanayakkara blames Tamil Tigers rebels for the attack. He says General Perera was the target of the rebels, also known as the LTTE. "He was officer who was leading the operations when he was in the service against the LTTE, especially in the north, and LTTE may have targeted him because of that," Nanayakkara said. "LTTE definitely may be targeting these kind of key figures, in order to get some kind of revenge." The rebels have been accused of using suicide attacks to carry out numerous killings, during their long-running campaign for an autonomous Tamil homeland. The latest violence erupted as the army said it is within striking distance of capturing the northern headquarters of the rebels, Killinochi. Military spokesman Nanayakkara says troops are poised just outside the town. "They are about two kilometers south of Killinochi, the foremost troops operating in that area….we will be moving into town no sooner (as soon as) we get the chance," Nanayakkara said.Killinochi is a major target of the government offensive to crush the rebels. It is symbolically important because it serves as the administrative headquarters of the Tamil Tigers.The government says it is confident of defeating the rebels in the north. Earlier this year, it drove them out of their eastern bases. Military observers say evicting the rebels from their bases will only drive them into jungle hideouts, where they will mount a guerrilla campaign.Sri Lanka's bloody civil war began a quarter century ago, and has claimed 70,000 lives.
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Turkey Launches Air Strikes on Kurdish Rebels in Northern Iraq
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Turkish General Hasan Igsiz says that the local Kurdish administration in northern Iraq refuses to cooperate with the Turkish military
Turkey's military said Monday that it had carried out an air strike inside northern Iraq overnight against Kurdish separatist rebels.Turks march to protest against Kurdish rebels who killed 15 Turkish soldiers Friday at Turkey-Iraq border, in Istanbul, Turkey, Sunday, 05 Oct. 2008On Sunday, the military accused Iraq's Kurdish leaders of tolerating Kurdish rebels who use Iraq as a base to attack Turkish soldiers.Turkish General Hasan Igsiz said that the local Kurdish administration in northern Iraq refuses to cooperate with the Turkish military. He said the Turkish military expects the Iraqi Kurds to consider the rebel Kurdistan Workers Party, or PKK, a terrorist organization, and to stop supporting it.The general made the comments as top government and military officials attended the funerals of 15 soldiers killed by PKK rebels Friday. Baghdad condemned Friday's deadly attack. The rebels have been fighting for Kurdish autonomy in southeastern Turkey for more than two decades. At least 37,000 people have died in the violence.
Some information for this report was provided by AFP, AP and Reuters.
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Nobel Prize for Medicine, Physiology Announced
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One German, two French scientists win coveted prize for discoveries of viruses that cause severe human diseases
French scientists Luc Montagnier (file photo)One German and two French scientists have won the 2008 Nobel prize in medicine for their discoveries of viruses that cause severe human diseases.The Nobel commission in Stockholm, Sweden recognized German researcher Harald zur Hausen for discovering the virus that causes cervical cancer.Francoise Barre-Sinoussi and Luc Montagnier of France won the prize for their discovery of the human immunodeficiency virus that causes AIDS.Hausen will get half of the nearly one-and-a-half million-dollar award, while Barre-Sinoussi and Montagnier will share the other half. Five more Nobel prizes will be announced during the next week, with the peace prize recipient being revealed Friday.
Some information for this report was provided by AP and Reuters.
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Suicide Bombing Kills 12 at Pakistani Lawmaker's Home
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Police official says Rashid Akbar Nawani, member of former prime minister Nawaz Sharif's party, is wounded in Monday's blast at his home in the Bhakkar area, in Punjab province
Pakistani authorities say a suicide bombing has killed 12 people at the home of an opposition lawmaker in eastern Pakistan.Police official Khadim Hussain says Rashid Akbar Nawani, a member of former prime minister Nawaz Sharif's party, was wounded in Monday's blast at his home in the Bhakkar area, in Punjab province.Hussain says the bomber blew himself up in the middle of a crowd of the politician's supporters. No one immediately claimed responsibility for the attack.Pakistan has experienced a wave of violence in recent weeks.Suspected Taliban militants fired rockets Sunday at the residence of another prominent politician in northwestern Pakistan. North West Frontier Province chief minister Amir Haider Khan Hoti was not injured in the attack on his house, but witnesses say the rockets caused damage to at least two homes close to his. Last week, a suicide bombing in Charsadda, at the house of a leading member of Pakistan's coalition government killed four people. The politician (Asfandyar Wali) was not injured.
Some information for this report was provided by AFP and Reuters.
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Sudan Ready to Cooperate Without Preconditions Over ICC Warrant
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Sudan's government says it is ready to work with the international community in a compromise to improve the security situation in the Darfur region
Sudan's government says it is ready to work with the
international community in a compromise to improve the security situation in
the Darfur region. This comes after its delegation to the United Nations sought
to have a possible International Criminal Court (ICC) indictment against
President Umar Hassan Ahmad al-Bashir over human rights
abuses. The chief prosecutor of the ICC, Louis Moreno Ocampo accuses President
Bashir of committing genocide, crimes against humanity and war crimes in
Darfur. But Sudan's government maintains that a
possible indictment against President Bashir would derail Darfur peace talks.
The
United States and some European countries reportedly said they are ready to
have the indictment differ if Khartoum would change its policies in Darfur.
Ambassador Ali Saddick is
the spokesman for Sudan's foreign ministry. He tells reporter Peter Clottey
that Khartoum is ready to cooperate with anybody with no strings attached over
the ICC possible indictment of President Bashir.
"In fact our delegation headed by the
Vice President Ali Osman Taha was able to present the Sudan government's
position regarding the International Criminal Court. And in this regard, we
have made so many meetings and consultations with different groups and the vice
president also met with Condoleezza Rice and the special envoy Mr. Williamson.
And we briefed them on the support that Sudan has got from over 140 countries,
but there is, I think, some more work to go," Saddick noted.
He said The United States as well as some
European countries are skeptical about Sudan's role in the troubled Darfur
region and are demanding a dramatic change in Khartoum's policies.
"The Americans are not convinced with his
(Vice President Taha) position, and we are not convinced with the imposition
the Americans are using. The position is that they are ready to support any
suspension of the continuation of the ICC in the condition that some
development is being achieved on the ground in Darfur. And we are working on
that because the government now is working with the United Nations and the
African Union on two tracks - Peace and there is a political solution the negotiations
with the Abuja Agreement and on the other tracks the deployment of the UMISS
(United Nations Mission in Sudan) force in Darfur," he said.
Saddick said Khartoum has made
significant progress working with other nations to resolve the crisis in Darfur
as well as the possible ICC indictment of President Bashir.
"They were received very well in most of
the countries and we are still working with the French, the British and the
Americans, although the United States is just like us, we are not part of the
ICC statute. But I think we need to put in some more effort with those
countries so that overall objective of the African Union had agreed that this
indictment should be stopped at one point," Saddick pointed out.
He said Khartoum would not be pushed around
under any circumstances.
"It is the belief of the government of
Sudan and that of the African Union and the Arab League that if strings were
not attached to the issues, western governments, those three countries in
particular not all that has not been done regarding the situation in Darfur
does not lie on the government of Sudan because now, there is insecurity. The
government is trying to forge a security, but there are other factors who are
doing otherwise," he said.
Saddick said the government of President
Bashir is working with some international bodies to ensure peace and stability
returns to Darfur.
"The government of Sudan is helping the
United Nations to complete the deployment of the forces and all the
requirements for UNMIL to operate, but again the United Nations is not doing
anything, so, it is not entirely the government. We need other people to help
us to assist the United Nations to complete or to do its obligations regarding
the peaceful resettlement and the deployment of the 26 thousand strong force,"
Saddick noted.
He said although there was a need for
compromise on the way forward in addressing the insecurity situation in Darfur,
Khartoum would not be bullied.
"I can't agree more because we believe
that there should be some compromise if there are no political agenda, I think
we would reach some agreement very soon," he said.
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UN Appeals to Taliban to Allow Afghan Food Aid
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Kai Eide, the Special Representative of UN Secretary General to Afghanistan, says insurgents in the country should understand the food shipments are purely humanitarian
The United Nations chief in Afghanistan is making an appeal to the Taliban not to disrupt food aid heading to hungry Afghans. The representative of the world body on Monday also lashed out at the increasing number of pessimistic voices predicting that the seven-year-old international military and humanitarian campaign in the country is doomed to failure. VOA Correspondent Steve Herman in Kabul has details. With millions of Afghans expected to confront hunger this coming winter, the United Nations' top representative in Kabul is calling for food aid from the international community not to be impeded by the Taliban. Kai Eide, the Special Representative of the U.N. Secretary General to AfghanistanKai Eide, the Special Representative of the U.N. Secretary General to Afghanistan, says insurgents in the country should understand the food shipments are purely humanitarian, not a political effort "to win hearts and minds." "I will take this opportunity to appeal to the Taliban and to the appeal to its leaders to ensure access for food distribution," he said. "There are disagreements on so many things but let us demonstrate that we can share this humanitarian agenda." Drought and a poor harvest have led some international experts to warn of a possible humanitarian disaster. Estimates of the number of Afghans facing an acute shortage of food in the months ahead go as high as nine million - one-quarter of the population. The International Committee of the Red Cross on Monday issued a warning that 200,000 people in northern Afghanistan this winter could be forced to leave their homes in the face of drought, insecurity and rising food prices. Afghans already confront a worsening security situation, partly due to a resurgent Taliban. And there are complaints that corruption within the government is seriously impeding reconstruction of the war-torn country. All this despite a seven-year-old military and humanitarian effort, with tens of billions of dollars pledged to rebuild Afghanistan. In recent weeks, diplomats, generals and other prominent voices in the international community have issued increasingly pessimistic statements about the country's fate. Some predict failure to defeat the Taliban militarily and worry openly about the collapse of democracy.The U.N. chief representative here, clearly exasperated, told reporters in the capital he is "sick and tired" of hearing such negative comments. "I address those particularly in the international community who've almost made it a hobby to be pessimistic and to talk in terms of gloom and doom. I think that is incorrect and is dangerous with regard to our ability to move forward." he added.But Eide agreed with those contending that the insurgents cannot be defeated solely by force. Asked to comment on President Hamid Karzai's hopes for a Saudi-brokered attempt to bring the Taliban to the negotiating table, the U.N. official said there must be political engagement with relevant parties - a clear reference to the resurgent Taliban.
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Malaysian Court Tries Blogger on Sedition Charges
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Raja Petra Kamaruddin is accused of allegedly implying deputy prime minister was involved in murder
A popular Malaysian blogger is on trial on sedition charges for allegedly implying the deputy prime minister was involved in the murder of a Mongolian woman.Raja Petra Kamaruddin waves as he walks out from court in Petaling Jaya, near Kuala Lumpur, 06 Oct 2008Raja Petra Kamaruddin denies wrongdoing. He appeared in court on the first day of his trial in Kuala Lumpur Monday. The sedition charges stem from an article Raja Petra published in April on his anti-government news Web site "Malaysia Today." The article titled "Let's Send the Altantuya Murderers to Hell" allegedly links Deputy Prime Minister Najib Razak and his wife, Rosmah Mansor, to the 2006 killing of 26-year-old Altantuya Shaariibuu of Mongolia.Najib denies he was involved in the crime. His close associate is charged with abetting the murder, and two policemen are accused of killing the woman.Raja Petra is already in jail on a separate case under the Internal Security Act, an anti-terrorism law that allows indefinite detention without trial. If convicted, Raja Petra faces up to three years in jail.Malaysia's opposition and international human rights advocates have condemned the Malaysian government's use of the Internal Security Act. They say the government is using the law as a repressive measure to control dissent.Malaysian blogs are considered an alternative source of information from the mainstream media, which are controlled by political parties or closely linked to them.
Some information for this report was provided by AFP and AP.
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