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Japan's unpopular Prime Minister Yasuo Fukuda suffered an unprecedented censure in parliament's upper house on Wednesday, but the embarrassing opposition move was not expected to force him to resign or call a snap poll soon. The opposition Democratic Party and smaller allies approved the non-binding censure motion by a vote of 131-105, the first against a prime minister under the current 1947 constitution, in an effort to build momentum for an early lower house election. Ruling party officials brushed off the motion, which comes less than a month before Fukuda hosts a Group of Eight summit, as a political gesture. "If I am pushed, I would have to say that they are putting on a performance for the end of the parliament session," Kazuo Kitagawa, secretary general of the ruling coalition's junior partner, the New Komeito Party, told a news conference before the vote. No election for the powerful lower chamber need be held until September 2009, but Democratic Party leader Ichiro Ozawa has made no secret of his desire to force an early poll in the hope of ousting Fukuda's conservative Liberal Democratic Party (LDP), which has ruled Japan for almost all of the past six decades. Tokyo Reuters
ARMS
Taiwan urges US to sell it advanced F-16 jets
South Korea’s Lee vows new start amid beef protests South Korean President Lee Myung-bak said on Wednesday his government intends to make a fresh start after his entire Cabinet offered to resign in response to weeks of rallies against the planned resumption of US beef imports. His remarks came hours after about 80,000 people demonstrated into early on Wednesday morning in Seoul in the largest demonstration yet against the beef deal, part of nationwide protests tied to the anniversary of pro-democracy protests in 1987. "I thought about a lot of things while watching protests last night," Lee told leaders of small companies on Wednesday morning, according to South Korean media pool reports. "The government intends to make a start with a new determination." Lee also said he was concerned the Cabinet resignations might cause "a vacuum in state affairs" amid rising oil prices and other economic difficulties. Lee has not yet said whether he will accept the resignations, but he was expected to reshuffle a few ministers -- which would not affect his ability to serve out his single, five-year term. South Korean media have reported Lee was considering naming his popular chief rival in the ruling party as prime minister to win back public confidence. Aides to Park Geun-hye, daughter of late President Park Chung-hee, said they would persuade her to take the post if Lee officially proposes it, according to reports. Presidential spokesman Lee Dong-kwan said
Taiwan's envoy urged the United States on Tuesday to clear the sale of advanced Lockheed Martin Corp F-16 fighter jets as soon as possible, putting the Bush administration in an awkward spot ahead of the Beijing Olympics. The potential $4.9 billion deal for 66 advanced F-16 C/D models is strongly opposed by China, as are all US arms sales to Taiwan. Critics say the Bush administration has been stalling, at least until after the summer games starting Aug. 8 that Bush is scheduled to attend. "We hope that the US administration will approve the requested sale as soon as possible," Joseph Wu, the outgoing chief representative in Washington, told Reuters in an emailed reply to a query. "We believe that Taiwan's acquisition of additional F-16s ... will do much to enhance Taiwan's air defense and at the same time improve stability across the Taiwan Strait," he said. Wu said it was also in US interests, an apparent reference to the danger that a crossstraits conflict might draw in US troops. Wu, who is to leave in coming weeks, was speaking for the government of Taiwan, said Eddie Tsai, a spokesman for the Taipei Economic and Cultural Representative Office, the de facto embassy. The new F-16s would supplement 150 F-16A/B models sold to Taiwan by George W. Bush's father, the first President Bush, in 1992. Washington Reuters
Workers from the Korean Metal Workers’ Union scuffle with riot police as police try to block their rally against the rise of prices and government privatization plans for utility companies in Seoul. nothing has been decided, though Park's appointment is one of the ideas under consideration to resolve the national crisis. The Cabinet's offer to resign on Tuesday was an attempt to defuse the beef crisis that
has sparked weeks of protests and paralyzed Lee's government less than four months after the former Hyundai CEO took office following a landslide election win. What started as a trickle of small protests against
Sudan probes fatal plane crash, dozens feared dead An official says at least 29 people were killed inside the burning plane, while 171 managed to escape, adding that 14 still remained unaccounted for. Many passengers fleeing the burning plane did not bother to pass through customs, making the toll initially difficult to ascertain, he added Sudanese investigators on Wednesday were trying to determine what caused a jetliner that had just landed in a thunderstorm to veer off a runway and burst into flames in Sudan's capital. At least 29 people were killed inside the burning plane, while 171 managed to escape, said Sudan Civil Aviation Authority spokesman Abdel Hafez Abdel Rahim Mahmoud to The Associated Press, adding that 14 still remained unaccounted for. Many passengers fleeing the burning plane did not bother to pass through customs, making the toll initially difficult to ascertain. By Wednesday morning, the fire has been completely extinguished and civil defense officials were now examining the wreckage to determine the causes of the crash, police spokesman Maj. Gen. Mohammed Abdel Majid al-Tayeb told the official SUNA news agency. The Sudan Airways jetliner appeared to have gone off the runway after landing at Khartoum International Airport, and several loud explosions resounded as fire raced through the aircraft, an Associated Press reporter at the scene said. The roaring blaze dwarfed the Airbus A310's shattered fuselage as firefighters sprayed water, Sudanese TV footage showed.
OBITUARY
Ambulances and firetrucks rushed to the scene, and media were kept away. One survivor said the landing was "rough," and there was a sharp impact several minutes later. "The right wing was on fire," said the passenger, who did not give his name. He said smoke got into the cockpit and some people started opening the emergency exits. Soon, fire engulfed the plane, he told Sudanese television. Passenger Kamal Eddin Mohammed said that "as we landed, the engine burst into flame -- I was sitting right next to it." "It was horror inside the plane," Mohammed told Al-Jazeera TV. A sandstorm had hit the area with 20 mph winds between 2 p.m. and 3 p.m. and there was a thunderstorm and similar winds at the time of the crash around 9 p.m. local time, said Elaine Yang, a meteorologist with the San Francisco-based Weather Underground, a private weather service. But there were differing reports on the role weather played. The head of Sudanese police, Mohammad Najib, said bad weather "caused the plane to crash land, split into two and catch fire." Youssef Ibrahim, director of the Khartoum airport, disputed that bad weather was to blame and told Sudanese TV that the plane "landed safely" and the pilot was talking
to the control tower and getting further instructions when the accident occurred. "One of the (plane's) engines exploded and the plane caught fire," Ibrahim said. He blamed the accident on technical problems, but didn't elaborate. Airbus said in a statement that it was sending a team of specialists to Khartoum to help in the investigation. It said the plane involved in the accident was 18 years old and had been operated by Sudan Airways since September. France's Inquiry and Analysis Bureau, known by its French initials BEA, is also taking part in the inquiry because the plane was made by France-based Airbus. Civil aviation asked its counterpart in Amman, Jordan, the origin of the flight, for the passenger manifest to determine who was actually on the flight, as the original was destroyed in the crash, SUNA reported. Khartoum airport reopened on noon Wednesday. Sudan has a poor aviation safety record. In May, a plane crash in a remote area of southern Sudan killed 24 people, including key members of the southern Sudanese government. In July 2003, a Sudan Airways Boeing 737 en route from Port Sudan to Khartoum crashed soon after takeoff, killing all 115 people on board. Khartoum AP
Bangladesh frees Hasina from custody Bangladesh's military-backed government released ailing former Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina on Wednesday after nearly a year of detention on corruption charges. Prison chief Zakir Hasan said Hasina was released for eight weeks to obtain "better medical treatment abroad." Hasina was freed from a special prison on Parliament's premises and driven to her residence in central Dhaka under heavy security. Hundreds of jubilant supporters, many bearing flowers, greeted Hasina outside her residence, where she was arrested on July 16 last year. Hasina is likely to leave for either the United States or Canada early Thursday for treatment of eye and ear problems and high blood pressure, said a spokesman for her Awami League party, Syed Ashraful Islam. Hasina's children live in the United States. Earlier Wednesday, the head of the interim government, Fakhruddin Ahmed, signed an order exempting Hasina from appearing in person during her corruption trial for medical reasons, the United News of Bangladesh news agency said. "Her release is temporary and conditional," said Abdul Karim, the top official in the Home Ministry. Dhaka AP
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Pakistan condemns ‘cowardly’ US attack
SECURITY
Pentagon to present White House top security issues Facing the first White House transition in wartime since 1969, Defense Secretary Robert Gates has ordered a team to identify issues and potential security crises the next president and Pentagon chief must be prepared to deal with on their first day in office. Gates also said on Tuesday he asked civilian leaders inside the Defense Department, mostly Republican political appointees, to stay in their jobs, if asked by the next president, until their successors are confirmed by the US Senate."That could ensure some continuity in management of the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan as well as other issues, he said. "That's obviously up to the new president but I hope that they'll have at least a choice of having some continuity while the confirmation process goes forward so that a new secretary (of defense) doesn't arrive and find that on the civilian side, he's all alone," Gates added. "This is the first transition in wartime in 40 years and I just want to make sure that we don't drop the baton in wartime," he told reporters. Washington Reuters
a beef deal with the US has swelled into a torrent of anti-government street rallies, invoking the memory of pro-democracy movements in the 1980s that brought down the then-military dictatorship. Rallies continued until early on Wednesday, but no clashes or injuries were reported. Police said they arrested about 20 protesters on charges of occupying major Seoul streets and causing traffic congestion. Lee, a pro-American conservative, agreed in April just before a summit with US President George W. Bush to reopen the country's beef market -- resolving the issue that had long been an irritant in bilateral ties. South Korea was the third-largest overseas customer for US beef until it banned imports after a case of mad cow disease -- the first of three confirmed in the United States -- was detected in 2003. Lee's government said it has asked the US not to export beef from older cattle, considered at greater risk of mad cow disease. But he has rejected calls for a complete renegotiation of the accord, citing possible diplomatic and trade disputes with the US. "We're not considering a renegotiation," South Korean Deputy Trade Minister Ahn Ho-young told reporters Wednesday. "If we break our promise, the consequences are enormous. South Korea will become an unreliable country." Both Seoul and Washington insist US beef is safe, citing the Paris-based World Organization for Animal Health. Seoul AP
AP
Former Vietnamese PM Vo Van Kiet dies Former Vietnamese Prime Minister Vo Van Kiet, an economic reformer who led the Communist nation away from poverty and isolation and backed the normalization of ties with the United States, died on Wednesday. He was 85. Kiet, who was prime minister from 1991 to 1997, died in a hospital in Singapore, where he was taken Saturday after suffering a stroke, government officials said. His body was transported later on Wednesday to Ho Chi Minh City, the city in southern Vietnam where he held a number of top Communist Party and government posts. Born into a peasant family in southern Vinh Long province on Nov. 23, 1922, Kiet fought the French and Americans for almost four decades, joining Communist revolutionary forces at the age of 16. As prime minister, Kiet helped craft policies that attracted billions of dollars in foreign investment, vastly expanded trade and enabled the economy to grow at an annual rate of better than 8 percent. Impatient with Communist Party functionaries trying to protect their own turf, Kiet argued that the party could only stay in power if it loosened its tight hold over the government and business, allowing them to become more efficient. Although his first wife and two children were said to have been killed by US forces during the Vietnam War, Kiet was a firm supporter of normalizing relations with the United States, finally achieved in 1995. Hanoi AP
REUTERS
Japan PM censured, but unlikely to quit
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REUTERS
11.06.2008
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T10-12-06-08.qxd
Authorities inspect the scene the morning after a Sudanese jetliner veered off a runway after landing amid thunderstorms and exploded into flames, at the airport in the capital Khartoum, Sudan, on Wednesday. Dozens of passengers reportedly were killed.
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Pakistan said on Wednesday an "unprovoked and cowardly" air strike by US forces had killed 11 Pakistani soldiers on its border with Afghanistan and undermined the basis of security cooperation. The soldiers were killed at a border post in the Mohmand region, opposite Afghanistan's Kunar province, late on Tuesday as US coalition forces in Afghanistan battled militants attacking from Pakistan, a Pakistani security official said. The US military said in a statement issued on Wednesday that it had coordinated the artillery and air strike with Pakistan, but was investigating further. The incident came as frustration is rising in Kabul and among Western forces in Afghanistan over Pakistani efforts to negotiate pacts to end militant violence on its side of the border. NATO says such deals lead to more violence in Afghanistan. In its strongest criticism of the US military since joining the US-led campaign against terrorism, the Pakistani military condemned the killing of the 11 paramilitary soldiers, including an officer. If confirmed, it would be the most Pakistani soldiers ever killed in an attack by US forces. "The attack hit at the very basis of cooperation and sacrifice with which Pakistani soldiers are supporting the coalition in the war against terror," the military said. "Such acts of aggression do not serve the common cause of fighting terrorism," it said in a statement. Islamabad Reuters