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Saturday 20th February 2010 - Asian Voice
Obama names Indian Muslim as Special Envoy to Islamic world
Washington: Much to the delight of Indian Muslims, US president Barack Obama has named an IndianAmerican Muslim as Washington’s special envoy to the Organization of Islamic Conference (OIC). The White House on Friday named Rashad Hussain, an Obama acolyte who is son of Indian immigrants from Bihar, as the US envoy to the 57–member OIC, following up appointments of several Indian-Americans, including at least two other Indian-American Muslims, to high level posts. Obama had earlier appointed Srinagar-born Farah Pandit and Dr Islam Siddiqui, an immigrant from Uttar Pradesh, in his administration.
Africa Focus Crisis in Kenya over suspension of ministers Nairobi: Kenya is again facing a fiery political crisis after clash between the Prime Minister Raila Odinga and President Mwai Kibaki over suspension of two ministers. On Tuesday, Salim Lone, adviser to Odinga said Cabinet minister from Oding’s party will boycott future Cabinet meetings till the dispute between the Prime Minister and the President is resolved. Lone said Odinga cannot function effectively following the dispute. On Sunday, Odinga suspended two ministers following allegations of corruption. Hours later, President Mwai Kibaki annulled the suspensions. The spat has sparked a debate in Kenya about constitutional powers and high levels of corruption. Odinga has asked former U.N. chief Kofi Annan to mediate, and Kenya's Attorney General has warned that the dispute could foster a constitutional crisis.
Ivory Coast President Gbagbo dissolves government Yamoussoukro: Ivory Coast's President Laurent Gbagbo has dissolved the government and electoral commission, casting doubt on when the long-delayed elections will occur. Prime Minister Guillaume Soro has been asked to form a new government. Mr Gbagbo accused the electoral commission of fraudulently trying to add more than 400,000 people to the electoral roll. The opposition says most of them are from ethnic groups in the north, who were unlikely to support Mr Gbagbo. In the past two weeks, presidential supporters have been trying to use the courts to remove thousands from the electoral roll, accusing them of being foreigners.
Nigerian parliament appoints VP as acting president Abuja (Nigeria): Nigeria's parliament has empowered Vice President Goodluck Jonathan to run Africa's most populous nation in place of an ill and absent president, striving for a political end to a crisis that ground the government to a virtual halt and triggered the resumption of an insurgency in the vital oil sector. But the move is not contemplated in the constitution, legal experts say, and could cause more friction between the Christian south, which gains the presidency at least temporarily, and Muslim north, which finds itself out of the seat of power.
SA celebrates 20th anniversary of Mandela’s release Cape Town: South Africans on Thursday last celebrated the 20th anniversary of former president Nelson Mandela's release from prison by sharing their memories of his triumphant walk to freedom after 27 years behind bars for resisting apartheid. Veterans of South Africa's struggle to end racist rule, of which Mandela became the emblem during his imprisonment, converged on Groot Drakenstein prison near Cape Town from early morning to commemorate the historic event, which laid the ground for the country's peaceful transition to democracy in 1994.
EU deplores Libya visa ban for Europeans Tripoli: The European Commission has condemned Libya's decision to stop issuing visas to the many Europeans whose countries are in the Schengen border-free zone. The commission says it "deplores the unilateral and disproportionate" Libyan decision and the nations affected will consider an "appropriate reaction". Libya's move came after Switzerland allegedly blacklisted 188 high-ranking Libyans, denying them entry permits. The Swiss ban is said to include Libyan leader Muammar Gaddafi and his family. Switzerland is in the 25-nation Schengen zone European countries that have abolished mutual border controls.
Two OZ premiers clash over attacks on Indians Victorian premier accuses his NSW counterpart of fishing in troubled waters
Melbourne: John Brumby, the Victorian Premier, has slammed his NSW counterpart, Kristina Keneally, for suggesting that Indian students fearful of coming to Melbourne due to recent racist attacks should instead consider Sydney. Brumby accused Keneally of seeking to exploit Victoria's problems with violent attacks against Indian students. He claimed that Keneally was trying to drag down Victoria while her state was much less safe than Victoria. "We are the safest state in Australia, full stop. All of the statistics on that are unambiguous," The Age quoted Brumby, as saying. He pointed out that the crime rate against the person was 552 per 100,000 people in Victoria - half the 1100 per 100,000 in NSW.
John Brumby
Kristina Keneally
His attack came in the wake Keneally's announcement last week that a NSW minister was being sent to India to sell the message that students who came to NSW would be helped into safe accommodation. "The difference between Sydney and Melbourne may be lost in the overseas market. We want to send a message that NSW is a welcoming place for international stu-
dents," she said. Brumby said Victoria continued to attract visitors and residents from around the world and interstate - "by the way, including from NSW". "When you are the best performer, as we've been in this area, of course you get people trying to drag you down. But the facts remain: we are seen as the most liveable city anywhere in Australia," he said.
Welcome desk at Melbourne airport for Indian students A welcome desk has been established for Indian and other international students at the Melbourne airport to "help settle" them, a minister said last week. Victorian Minister for Skills and Workforce Participation Bronwyn Pike said that students would receive a warm welcome at the International Student Welcome Desk located in the arrivals hall at Melbourne International Airport. The government "knows international students need support to help settle in to a new country", said Pike. A team of local volunteers will now be at the desk during peak arrival times to hand out welcome packs to international students arriving in Melbourne.
London: Senior ministers have found the ideal platform to converse directly with the public to strengthen support for the war effort in Afghanistan. Yoosk.com, the social media tool that enables direct conversations between public figures and the general public, has brought the likes of Foreign Secretary David Miliband, Defence Secretary Bob Ainsworth and Secretary for I n t e r n a t i o n a l Development Douglas Alexander closer to the people with concerns about the situation in the war-torn region. David Miliband has already responded to nearly 15 questions ranging
from issues of tackling poverty in the region to what victory in Afghanistan will look like. The initiative was launched in the lead up to the London Conference on Afghanistan in January, which brought together political leaders from across the world to address issues around lasting peace in the region. Yoosk stepped in to facilitate a more people-topeople consultation between government figures and various audience groups. In a video response to the questions, Miliband acknowledged the great concern over British casualties and said it was important that it was addressed. “The
objectives are to ensure that Afghanistan is never again a place for international terrorism and I think the concerns are over whether they can be achieved,” he said. The key driving force behind Yoosk is to encourage ordinary people to put their passion for specific social and economic issues to work by asking the right questions of key decision makers, rating their responses in a Performance League Table and fuelling further debate. This innovative tool has received further funding from Channel 4’s 4iP investment fund and Screen West Midlands. The six-figure investment will be used to add further
functionality to the service, already in use by the Foreign and Commonwealth Office, the Ministry of Justice, among others.Central to the development of Yoosk's toolbox will be the enhancement of its capacity to pull in questions from a wide number of online communities using widgets, Facebook applications and Twitter. Yoosk’s vision is for elected leaders and other public figures to be available to the public for interviews and conversations online. A key motivation is to popularise participation, empowering the public to take a greater interest in the political process. Logon to: www.yoosk.com
Kabul: The avalanches that blocked a mountain pass north of Kabul last week has claimed at least 166 lives, Afghan officials said. Afghan army troops dug through huge snowdrifts trying to rescue people from buried vehicles in the Salang Pass, a key road that connects the Afghan capital with the north. Helicopters ferried rescuers to the scene and brought down the bodies. Interior Ministry spokesman Zemeri Bashary said rescuers have recovered 166 bodies from the Salang Pass, 115 km north of Kabul. Some of the victims were found frozen to death inside their vehicles.
Kabul: The NATO-led forces on Sunday claimed to have gained control over Marjah and other major strongholds of the Taliban militants in Afghanistan as the new offensive involving over 15,000 soldiers continued for the second day. The forces, including the US, Afghan and British troops, killed 27 militants and seized crucial positions across Marjah since they began house-to-house search in the southern Helmand province as part of the operation 'Mushtarak' (together) launched on Saturday. Mohammed Dawood Ahmadi, a spokesman for
Helmand province's governor, said Afghan and NATO forces had set up 11 outposts across Marjah and two in the neighbouring town of Nad Ali. "We now occupy all the strategic points in the area," he said. From those posts, marines and soldiers began patrolling, searching door-to-door for weapons and fighters. This phase of the operation, considered the most dangerous, is expected to last at least five days. However, the allied forces faced resistance from the insurgents and the pattern suggested that the hardest fighting lies in
the days to come, The News reported. One American and a British marine soldier were reported killed by small-arms fire. NATO officials said that no civilian casualties had been reported. The combined forces also held meetings with local Afghans and asked for help in finding Taliban and hidden bombs in the area. The offensive has been launched as part of America's new strategy to establish the control of civilian government in the troubled areas before the withdrawal of the US forces from Afghanistan in 2011.
UK ministers tackle public concerns on Afghanistan
Afghan avalanches kill 166 people
NATO troops gain control of Taliban stronghold