ATC. World Headlines

Divided Poland marks anniversary of Russia crash

2011-04-10T19:30:00.000+02:00

by Stanislaw Waszak Stanislaw Waszak – 1 hr 52 mins ago

WARSAW (AFP) – Poland on Sunday marked the one-year anniversary of a plane crash in Russia that killed president Lech Kaczynski and dozens of other high-profile Poles, amid bitter domestic divisions and a row with Moscow.

At a ceremony in central Warsaw, the late president's identical twin and current conservative opposition leader, Jaroslaw Kaczynski, lashed out.

He slammed the "weakness of the (Polish) state, which was not up to the task of protecting its own president".

In a stark sign of splits in Poland's establishment, the Kaczynski twins' Law and Justice party (PiS) boycotted official events and organised its own.

Earlier Sunday, at 8:41 am (0641 GMT), the exact time of the April 10, 2010, tragedy in Smolensk, western Russia, a visibly emotional President Bronislaw Komorowski paid silent tribute to his predecessor and the 95 other victims in a Warsaw church.

Bowing before a memorial plaque, Komorowski and Prime Minister Donald Tusk -- both from the centre-right Civic Platform (PO), PiS's nemesis -- placed candles, a traditional mourning symbol in deeply Catholic Poland.

Later, in a Warsaw cemetery where many of the victims lie, Komorowski appealed for the tragedy not to be a source of strife.

"A year on, we should see what is great, what is good," he said.

"One of the finest memorials we can build together is to care for the dreams and passion of those who died, so that they find followers who will carry their passion, dreams and hopes into the future," he added.

At the presidential palace, thousands of Kaczynski supporters gathered before a makeshift shrine. At the foot of a birchwood cross was a model of Poland's presidential Tupolev 154 jet broken in two.

Lech Kaczynski's delegation had been bound for a commemoration in the Katyn forest, near Smolensk, for some 22,000 captured Polish officers slain by the Soviet secret police in 1940.

On Saturday and Sunday, Warsaw and Moscow traded barbs over the removal of a Polish-language memorial plaque in Smolensk which stated that the crash victims were heading to Katyn.

The Polish foreign ministry warned that Komorowski may not lay a wreath Monday when he meets with Russia's President Dmitry Medvedev there, but PiS demanded he cancel the trip outright.

On Sunday, Russia expressed "bewilderment" at Polish protests, saying Warsaw had been informed in advance about a bilingual plaque that did not mention Katyn.

Poland has also contested Russia's probe of the disaster, which blamed the Polish pilots for trying to land in fog.

Warsaw has complained of a whitewash of the Russian air traffic controllers and the shoddy state of Smolensk airport.

After Russia released its findings in January, Jaroslaw Kaczynski dubbed it a "mockery" and claimed that Tusk's government was being too soft on Russia. Tusk appealed for the issue not to be politicised.

Besides Lech Kaczynski and his wife, the crash victims included other senior politicians, military top brass and -- in a bitter twist -- relatives of those shot at Katyn.

The World War II massacre has remained a thorn in Polish-Russian ties.

Moscow blamed Nazi Germany until 1990, and Poles could not discuss it openly until Warsaw's post-war communist regime fell in 1989.

It has rarely been discussed in Russia since the Soviet Union's 1991 demise.

A year ago, Poles mourned together across party lines, but that unity is long gone.

The Kaczynskis, who clashed frequently with fellow European Union leaders and Moscow, were icons for conservative nationalists but often loathed by opponents.

PiS lost its presidential brake on PO when Komorowski beat Jaroslaw Kaczynski in a snap election after the crash.

The anniversary comes six months before a general election, with PiS trailing PO in polls.

Siemens 'received $2.35 bn' for Areva NP stake

2011-04-10T19:25:00.001+02:00

llion euros ($2.35 billion) for the sale of its 34-percent stake in its joint venture with French group Areva, a spokesman for the German industrial giant said on Sunday.

"Areva has paid out the 1.62 billion, that's correct," Alexander Becker told AFP, confirming an earlier report set to appear in the Die Welt daily Monday.

The sum corresponds to the amount established by an independent expert chosen by the two firms for Siemens' share in the Areva NP company.

Nevertheless, the final amount is still subject to a legal battle and could change, added Becker.

"A legal procedure will come to a decision on whether the price is confirmed or goes up or down by 40 percent," Becker said. This could value the deal at anywhere between 972 million euros and 2.27 billion euros.

Siemens has already said it expects the sale to make a significant positive contribution to profit in the second quarter of its fiscal year 2011.

The German group is exercising a put option on its holding after the French government, which is the majority shareholder, rebuffed an attempt to take a direct stake in Areva.

Siemens has since turned towards Russia, and is in talks on the creation of a joint venture with Rosatom, the state-owned nuclear energy agency.

However, after the nuclear crisis in Japan, Siemens is thought to be reconsidering its nuclear strategy.

Nazi warplane lying off UK coast is intact

2011-04-10T19:09:00.000+02:00

Reuters/Port of London/handout

A World War II era German bomber is seen using high-tech sonar equipment on the sea floor off southeast England.

By Stefano Ambrogi

LONDON (Reuters) – A rare World War Two German bomber, shot down over the English Channel in 1940 and hidden for years by shifting sands at the bottom of the sea, is so well preserved a British museum wants to raise it.

The Dornier 17 -- thought to be world's last known example -- was hit as it took part in the Battle of Britain.

It ditched in the sea just off the Kent coast, southeast England, in an area known as the Goodwin Sands.

The plane came to rest upside-down in 50 feet of water and has become partially visible from time to time as the sands retreated before being buried again.

Now a high-tech sonar survey undertaken by the Port of London Authority (PLA) has revealed the aircraft to be in a startling state of preservation.

Ian Thirsk, from the RAF Museum at Hendon in London, told the BBC he was "incredulous" when he first heard of its existence and potential preservation.

"This aircraft is a unique aeroplane and it's linked to an iconic event in British history, so its importance cannot be over-emphasized, nationally and internationally," he said.

"It's one of the most significant aeronautical finds of the century."

Known as "the flying pencil," the Dornier 17 was designed as a passenger plane in 1934 and was later converted for military use as a fast bomber, difficult to hit and theoretically able to outpace enemy fighter aircraft.

Click image to see photos of World War II German bomber

Reuters/Royal Air Force Museum London/handout

In all, some 1,700 were produced but they struggled in the war with a limited range and bomb load capability and many were scrapped afterwards.

Striking high-resolution images appear to show that the Goodwin Sands plane suffered only minor damage, to its forward cockpit and observation windows, on impact.

"The bomb bay doors were open, suggesting the crew jettisoned their cargo," said PLA spokesman Martin Garside.

Two of the crew members died on impact, while two others, including the pilot, were taken prisoner and survived the war.

"The fact that it was almost entirely made of aluminum and produced in one piece may have contributed to its preservation," Garside told Reuters.

The plane is still vulnerable to the area's notorious shifting sands and has become the target of recreational divers hoping to salvage souvenirs.

The RAF museum has launched an appeal to raise funds for the lifting operation.

(Editing by Steve Addison)

Iceland rejects debt deal to repay UK, Dutch

2011-04-10T19:00:00.001+02:00

Gudjon Helgason, Associated Press – 1 hr 1 min ago

REYKJAVIK, Iceland – Voters in Iceland rejected a government-backed deal to repay Britain and the Netherlands for their citizens' $5 billion worth of deposits in a failed online bank, referendum results showed Sunday — sending the dispute to an international court and plunging the economically fragile country into new uncertainty.
Final results showed the "no" side had just under 60 percent of the votes and the "yes" side about 40 percent.
The result reflects Icelanders' anger at having to pay for the excesses of their bankers, and complicates the country's recovery from economic meltdown.
It is the second time voters have defeated a bid to settle the bitter dispute stemming from the collapse of Iceland's high-flying banking sector in 2008, and the government said it would be the last.
"We are at the end of the road of a negotiated solution," said Finance Minister Steingrimur Sigfusson.
He said Iceland would now opt for "Plan B," with the dispute going to the European Free Trade Association court, which could impose harsher terms on Iceland than those rejected in Saturday's vote.
Britain and the Netherlands said they would fight to get back the money they spent compensating their citizens who had accounts in the failed bank, Icesave.
Dutch Finance Minister Jan Kees de Jager said the referendum result "is not good for Iceland and also not good for the Netherlands."
"The time for negotiations has passed," he said. "Iceland still has the obligation to pay us back. This is now a case for the courts."
British Treasury minister Danny Alexander said "we have an obligation to get that money back, and we will continue to pursue that until we do."
"We have a very, very difficult financial position as a country," Alexander told the BBC. "This money, of course, would help."
Icelandic Prime Minister Johanna Sigurdardottir said the results were disappointing but she would try to prevent political and economic chaos ensuing. Sigfusson said the result would have no effect on Iceland's existing debt repayments and would not derail its bid for European Union membership.
A tiny North Atlantic nation with a population of just 320,000, Iceland went from economic wunderkind to financial basket case almost overnight when the credit crunch took hold.
Its major banks — which had expanded to dwarf the rest of Iceland's economy during a decade of credit-fueled boom — collapsed within a week in October 2008, its krona currency plummeted and protests toppled the government.
The savings of Icelandic citizens were protected by an unlimited domestic deposit guarantee, but no such rule applied to the many foreigners attracted to Icelandic banks by their high-interest accounts.
Some 340,000 British and Dutch savers had deposited more than $5 billion in Icesave. After Icesave collapsed, British and Dutch authorities borrowed money to compensate their citizens, then turned to Iceland for repayment.
The dispute has grown acrimonious, with Britain and the Netherlands threatening to block Iceland's bid to join the European Union unless it is resolved.
Failure to approve a deal also stalled installments from a $4.6 billion loan from the International Monetary Fund.
Sigfusson said the government would hold talks with those who have loaned Iceland money — the IMF, the Nordic nations and Poland — in the wake of the referendum defeat.
"We have made substantial progress moving out of the crisis in 2008, and we intend to keep on doing so despite this outcome," he said.
Icelanders overwhelmingly rejected a previous deal in a referendum last year, but the government had hoped a new agreement on better terms would win approval.
The Icesave debt was initially set at $5.3 billion — a crippling burden for the tiny country — but backers of the rejected deal said it would cost Iceland just under 50 billion kronur ($444 million), with the recovered assets of Icesave's parent bank, Landsbanki, covering the majority of the debt.
The deal was reached in December after long negotiations among the three countries and approved by Iceland's parliament in January. But President Olafur Ragnar Grimsson vetoed it amid strong public opposition.
The president hailed the referendum, and the high voter turnout of 75 percent, as a cathartic step for Iceland.
He said the financial collapse had "paralyzed the nation's will and sapped the courage of our people."
"The two referendums on the Icesave issue have enabled the nation to regain its democratic self-confidence and to express sovereign authority in its own affairs and thus determine the outcome in difficult issues," Grimsson said.
Opposition politicians called on the government to hold new elections, but Sigfusson said the left-of-center coalition would not resign.
"This was a referendum on the Icesave case, not on the government," he said.
___
David MacDougall in Reykjavik, Jill Lawless in London and Toby Sterling in Amsterdam contributed to this report.
(This version CORRECTS Adds voter turnout, quote from president. Corrects president's name to Grimsson, not Grisson. This story is part of AP's general news and financial services.)

ATC World News Headlines for october 9, 2008

2008-10-09T22:48:00.001+02:00

Middle East News

2 missing Americans detained in Syria AP - 9 minutes ago
DAMASCUS, Syria - Two American journalists whose disappearance prompted a U.S. Embassy alert and a wide search turned up in Syrian custody Thursday after being detained while trying to sneak into the country with smugglers, Syrian officials said.
Clashes erupt in mixed Arab-Jewish city in Israel AP - 19 minutes ago
ACRE, Israel - Arabs and Jews traded blows and threw rocks in this northern Israeli city on Thursday, in a second day of sectarian violence that marred the somber Jewish holiday of Yom Kippur.
Shiite politician assassinated in Baghdad AP - 1 hour, 15 minutes ago
BAGHDAD - A roadside bomb killed a prominent member of Muqtada al-Sadr's political movement Thursday, raising fears of new internal Shiite bloodshed ahead of regional elections expected in January.

Europe News

Putin: US image damaged forever over economy woes AP - 12 minutes ago
MOSCOW - The financial crisis has irreparably damaged the image of the U.S. as the leader of the free world and the global economy, Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin said Thursday.
North Korea preparing to restart atomic facility AP - 21 minutes ago
VIENNA, Austria - North Korea moved closer Thursday to relaunching its nuclear arms program, announcing that it wants to reactivate the facility that produced its atomic bomb and banning U.N. inspectors from the site.
Russia official blasts "secretive" UN-NATO deal AP - 58 minutes ago
MOSCOW - Moscow on Thursday accused NATO and the United Nations of secretly forging an agreement that tightens their cooperation without informing Russia, a U.N. Security Council member whose relations with NATO are badly strained.

Latin America

AP Enterprise: Some at Gitmo see US as ally AP - 57 minutes ago
SAN JUAN, Puerto Rico - A Chinese Muslim locked up at Guantanamo Bay may soon be granted an improbable wish: To move to the United States.
Mexico unveils emergency spending to combat crisis AP - Thu Oct 9, 12:47 AM ET
MEXICO CITY - President Felipe Calderon on Wednesday unveiled plans for 53 billion pesos ($4.4 billion) in emergency spending on roads, schools, hospitals and an oil refinery next year to help Mexico combat the world financial crisis.
Mexico: 16 killed in rough border state AP - Thu Oct 9, 12:05 AM ET
TIJUANA, Mexico - Mexican authorities said Wednesday that 16 people were killed in 24 hours in the northern state across the U.S. border from California.

Africa News

Sudan's Beshir rejects 'made up' warcrimes claims AFP - 19 minutes ago
LONDON (AFP) - Sudanese President Omar al-Beshir rejected the allegations of war crimes against him as "made up" and said mass rape "does not exist" in Darfur, in an interview broadcast here Thursday.
AU chairman worried financial crisis could curb aid to Africa AFP - 44 minutes ago
DAR ES SALAAM (AFP) - Tanzanian President Jakaya Kikwete, current chairman of the African Union, expressed concern Thursday that the global financial crisis may curtail foreign aid to the continent.
Sudan leader says allegations against him "fabricated" Reuters - 53 minutes ago
LONDON (Reuters) - Sudan's President Omar Hassan al-Bashir said Thursday that war crimes allegations against him were fabricated and the people would decide in elections next year if the country's rulers were criminals.

Asia News

Dalai Lama hospitalized following checkup AP - 4 minutes ago
NEW DELHI - The Dalai Lama's spokesman says the Tibetan spiritual leader has been hospitalized in New Delhi.
North Korea preparing to restart atomic facility AP - 21 minutes ago
VIENNA, Austria - North Korea moved closer Thursday to relaunching its nuclear arms program, announcing that it wants to reactivate the facility that produced its atomic bomb and banning U.N. inspectors from the site.
Maldives leader faces runoff in 1st free election AP - 36 minutes ago
MALE, Maldives - Maumoon Abdul Gayoom celebrated his top showing Thursday in the Maldives' first democratic election, but the nation's longtime ruler failed to win a majority and will now face his chief nemesis in a runoff.

Canada

Toronto stocks plunge as confidence fades anew Reuters - 11 minutes ago
TORONTO (Reuters) - The main index of the Toronto Stock Exchange plunged almost 5 percent on Thursday as mounting gloom over the state of the economy and the U.S. financial sector sent investors fleeing the market in a broad rout.
Canada's Afghan war costs higher than estimated Reuters - 2 hours, 31 minutes ago
VANCOUVER, British Columbia (Reuters) - Canada's Afghanistan mission has cost much more than publicly stated, a government report estimated on Thursday, but Prime Minister Stephen Harper pledged troops will stay until 2011 no matter who wins next week's Canadian election.
Harper says he could lose election Reuters - 1 hour, 59 minutes ago
RICHMOND, British Columbia (Reuters) - Prime Minister Stephen Harper, battered over his response to the worldwide financial crisis, acknowledged on Thursday he could lose the October 14 election that he had seemed set to win handily only two weeks ago.

Australia/Antarctica News

Qantas plane had glitch before altitude plunge AP - Thu Oct 9, 5:29 AM ET
SYDNEY, Australia - Qantas Airways said Thursday it will financially compensate all passengers who were on board a plane that made a terrifying plunge this week, tossing people around the cabin and injuring dozens.
Computer glitch may have caused Qantas plunge: investigator AFP - Wed Oct 8, 9:23 AM ET
PERTH, Australia (AFP) - A computer glitch may have caused a Qantas jet to plunge mid-flight, an investigator said Wednesday as passengers told how they were slammed against the cabin roof in the terrifying drama.
Australia intercepts 17 more suspected asylum seekers at sea AFP - Tue Oct 7, 2:57 AM ET
SYDNEY (AFP) - The Australian Navy has detained 17 suspected asylum seekers at sea just a week after a boatload of Afghans, Iranians and Indonesians was intercepted off the country's coast, officials said Tuesday.

Most Popular World News

Iceland teeters on the brink of bankruptcy AP - Tue Oct 7, 3:40 PM ET
REYKJAVIK, Iceland - This volcanic island near the Arctic Circle is on the brink of becoming the first "national bankruptcy" of the global financial meltdown.
France's Le Clezio wins Nobel literature prize AP - Thu Oct 9, 7:26 AM ET
STOCKHOLM, Sweden - French novelist Jean-Marie Gustave Le Clezio won the 2008 Nobel Prize in literature on Thursday for his poetic adventure and "sensual ecstasy."
2 missing Americans detained in Syria AP - 9 minutes ago
DAMASCUS, Syria - Two American journalists whose disappearance prompted a U.S. Embassy alert and a wide search turned up in Syrian custody Thursday after being detained while trying to sneak into the country with smugglers, Syrian officials said...

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World News Headlines for october 7, 2008

2008-10-07T22:40:00.003+02:00

Middle East News

Iraq's FM: 'Bold' decisions needed on bases deal AP - 59 minutes ago
BAGHDAD - The Iraqi foreign minister said Tuesday it will require "bold political decisions" to resolve the major issue standing in the way of a deal allowing American troops to remain here next year — who would try U.S. troops accused of crimes.
Iran forces down Hungarian flight AP - 1 hour, 24 minutes ago
TEHRAN, Iran - Iran forced an aircraft carrying Hungarian military officials to land after it entered its airspace, Hungary's Defense Ministry said Tuesday. The plane was allowed to continue to Afghanistan after it was determined the entry was accidental.
Turkish jets bomb Kurdish targets in Iraq, Turkey AP - 2 hours, 52 minutes ago
ANKARA, Turkey - Turkish warplanes bombed suspected Kurdish rebel positions in northern Iraq and southeast Turkey early Tuesday in retaliation for an attack that killed 17 soldiers, the Turkish military said.

Europe News

UK set to launch bank rescue deal Reuters - 23 minutes ago
LONDON (Reuters) - Britain's Finance Minister Alistair Darling will announce a rescue package for the UK banking system on Wednesday and a government source said it was likely to include public money being injected into banks.
Far-right Austria governor isolates asylum seekers AP - 29 minutes ago
VIENNA, Austria - Powerful far-right politician Joerg Haider has set up a holding facility in the remote mountains of southern Austria for asylum seekers suspected as criminals, saying they need to be isolated to protect the people in the area.
Europe Struggles for a Response to the Bank Crisis Time.com - 48 minutes ago
Some analysts say the case-by-case approach of national governments is undermining confidence rather than bolstering it

Latin America

Tropical Storm Marco hits Mexico's Gulf coast AP - 2 hours, 1 minute ago
VERACRUZ, Mexico - Tropical Storm Marco roared ashore on Mexico's Gulf coast with near-hurricane force winds on Tuesday, prompting a shutdown of some oil platforms.
Official links Mexican drug gangs, Colombia rebels AP - 2 hours, 53 minutes ago
MEXICO CITY - Mexico's powerful drug cartels are buying drugs directly from Colombia's main rebel group, a senior Colombian defense official said Tuesday at a hemispheric meeting on crime.
Tropical Storm Marco roars ashore on Mexico's Gulf AP - Tue Oct 7, 10:59 AM ET
MEXICO CITY - The U.S. National Hurricane Center says Tropical Storm Marco is hitting land north of Mexico's Veracruz port on the Gulf coast.

Africa News

UN rights chief, Amnesty, criticise SAfrica over xenophobia AFP - 11 minutes ago
JOHANNESBURG (AFP) - The UN human rights chief Tuesday urged South Africa to do more to stop xenophobic violence, as Amnesty International said officials had failed to help foreigners displaced by the attacks.
UN calls for action to fight pirates off Somalia AP - 27 minutes ago
UNITED NATIONS - The U.N. Security Council unanimously passed a resolution Tuesday calling on all countries with a stake in maritime safety off Somalia to send naval ships and military aircraft to confront growing piracy there.
Anti-coup protesters clash with police in Mauritania AFP - 40 minutes ago
NOUAKCHOTT (AFP) - Police in military-ruled Mauritania clashed Tuesday with protesters supporting ousted president Sidi Ould Cheikh Abdallahi, as the African Union urged the junta to reinstate the elected leader.

Asia News

NKorea reportedly fires missile into Yellow Sea AP - 46 minutes ago
TOKYO - North Korea has fired a short-range missile into the Yellow Sea, media reports said Tuesday.
Chinese lawyers face pressure to drop milk cases AP - 1 hour, 22 minutes ago
BEIJING - Lawyers advising the families of children sickened in China's tainted milk scandal said Tuesday they are facing growing official pressure to withdraw from the cases.
NKorea fires short-range missiles: Yonhap AFP - 1 hour, 28 minutes ago
SEOUL (AFP) - North Korea has fired two short-range missiles into international waters in the Yellow Sea as part of a routine military drill, South Korea's Yonhap news agency said early Wednesday, quoting a defence source.

Canada

Liberals mull higher deposit insurance Reuters - 5 minutes ago
VANCOUVER, British Columbia (Reuters) - The leader of Canada's main opposition party, Stephane Dion, said on Tuesday he would consider following the lead of other countries in raising the insurance limit on banking deposits.
Harper says Afghan mission can't last indefinitely Reuters - 43 minutes ago
OTTAWA (Reuters) - The history of Afghanistan demonstrates that foreign troops cannot stay there indefinitely in an attempt to completely suppress all insurgency, Canadian Prime Minister Stephen Harper said on Tuesday.
Economy might just cost Tories the election Reuters - 2 hours, 8 minutes ago
OTTAWA (Reuters) - The slide in the polls for Prime Minister Stephen Harper's Conservatives has been so steep as voter worry over the state of the economy has heightened that the possibility of his losing the upcoming general election is now being raised.

Australia/Antarctica News

Dozens injured in Qantas mid-air jet drama AFP - Tue Oct 7, 7:44 AM ET
PERTH, Australia (AFP) - Thirty-six passengers and crew were injured, some seriously, in a mid-air drama that forced a Qantas jetliner to make an emergency landing, the Australian carrier and police said on Tuesday.
Australia intercepts 17 more suspected asylum seekers at sea AFP - Tue Oct 7, 2:57 AM ET
SYDNEY (AFP) - The Australian Navy has detained 17 suspected asylum seekers at sea just a week after a boatload of Afghans, Iranians and Indonesians was intercepted off the country's coast, officials said Tuesday.
Australians bid farewell to 'g'day mate': report AFP - Sun Oct 5, 11:14 AM ET
SYDNEY (AFP) - Australians who sound like crocodile hunter Steve Irwin or Crocodile Dundee actor Paul Hogan could soon be a relic of the past, a report said on Sunday.

Most Popular World News

Nepal appoints 3-year-old as new living goddess AP - Tue Oct 7, 9:59 AM ET
KATMANDU, Nepal - Hindu and Buddhist priests chanted sacred hymns and cascaded flowers and grains of rice over a 3-year-old girl who was appointed a living goddess in Nepal on Tuesday.
Kenya deports US author of anti-Obama book AP - 2 hours, 23 minutes ago
NAIROBI, Kenya - The American author of a controversial book accusing Barack Obama of seething with "black rage" and of being unfit for the U.S. presidency was kicked out of Kenya on Tuesday.
Russia's Jerusalem land claim worries Israelis AP - Tue Oct 7, 6:59 AM ET
JERUSALEM - The Russians are coming to downtown Jerusalem, reclaiming ownership of a landmark with the approval of the Israeli government, just as Prime Minister Ehud Olmert visits Moscow to try to iron out serious policy differences between the two countries.

ATC World. We Bring You The News!

AMY GOODMAN, HOST OF DEMOCRACY NOW!, FIRST JOURNALIST TO WIN

2008-10-02T01:49:00.003+02:00

New York City, NY –

Award-winning journalist and host of Democracy Now! Amy Goodman is the first journalist to receive the Right Livelihood Award, widely recognized as the world's premier award for personal courage and social transformation. The annual prize, also known as the Alternative Nobel, will be awarded in the Swedish Parliament on December 8, 2008.

The Right Livelihood Award was established in 1980 to honor and support those "offering practical and exemplary answers to the most urgent challenges facing us today". Goodman has been selected for “developing an innovative model of truly independent grassroots political journalism that brings to millions of people the alternative voices that are often excluded by the mainstream media.”

Pioneering the largest public media collaboration in the country, Democracy Now! is a daily grassroots, global TV/radio/internet news hour airing on more than 750 public radio and television stations and at http://www.democracynow.org.

Goodman said, “I am deeply honored that grassroots, independent journalism and the hard work of my colleagues at Democracy Now! are being recognized in these critical times. I strongly believe that media can be a force for peace. It is the responsibility of journalists to give voice to those who have been forgotten, forsaken and beaten down by the powerful. It is the best reason I know to carry our pens, cameras and microphones out into the world. The media should be a sanctuary for dissent. It is our job to go to where the silence is.”

Goodman and two Democracy Now! producers were arrested last month at the Republican National Convention while reporting on street demonstrations. Charges were dropped after widespread public outcry. The video of Goodman's arrest was among the most watched YouTube video's during the convention week. It has now been viewed over 860,000 times.

Amy Goodman writes a weekly syndicated column with King Features which runs in major newspapers throughout North and South America. She is co-author with her brother, journalist David Goodman, of three New York Times bestsellers: Standing Up To the Madness: Ordinary Heroes in Extraordinary Times; Static: Government Liars, Media Cheerleaders, and the People Who Fight Back; and The Exception to the Rulers: Exposing Oily Politicians, War Profiteers, and the Media That Love Them.

Goodman’s reporting on East Timor and Nigeria won the George Polk Award, the Robert F. Kennedy Prize for International Reporting, and the Alfred I. DuPont-Columbia Award. Her other awards include the first ever Communication for Peace Award presented by the World Association of Christian Communication, the Puffin/Nation Institute Award for Creative Citizenship, The Paley Center for Media “She Made It” Award, and the Gracie Award for American Women in Radio and Television Public Broadcasting. Goodman has also received awards from the Associated Press, United Press International, and the Corporation for Public Broadcasting.

Goodman shares the 2008 Right Livelihood Award with Krishnammal and Sankaralingam Jagannathan of India, and their organisation, Land for the Tillers’ Freedom, for their work dedicated to realising in practice the Gandhian vision of social justice and sustainable human development; Asha Hagi of Somalia “for continuing to lead at great personal risk the female participation in the peace and reconciliation process in her war-ravaged country.”; and Monika Hauser of Germany, gynaecologist and founder of medica mondiale, “for her tireless commitment to working with women who have experienced the most horrific sexualised violence in some of the most dangerous countries in the world, and campaigning for them to receive social recognition and compensation.”

For more information about the 2008 Right Livelihood Award, please visit
http://www.rightlivelihood.org.
International Herald Tribune Article:
http://www.iht.com/articles/ap/2008/10/01/europe/EU-Sweden-Alternative-Nobel.php
Editor and Publisher Article:
http://www.editorandpublisher.com/eandp/news/article_display.jsp?vnu_content_id=1003857765
Right Livelihood Press Release:
http://www.rightlivelihood.org/1317.html
Democracy Now!:
http://www.democracynow.org/
Video of Goodman Arrest at RNC:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oYjyvkR0bGQ

ATC Journal. ¡Llevamos la información!

World Headlines for october 1, 2008

2008-10-01T19:12:00.002+02:00

Middle East News

Iraq: government takes command of Sons of Iraq AP - 37 minutes ago
BAGHDAD - Iraq's Shiite-led government took command Wednesday of thousands of U.S-backed mostly Sunni fighters who turned against al-Qaida, pledging to integrate them into public life in recognition of their help in quelling violence.
Color, glitter enliven Saudi women's black abayas AP - Wed Oct 1, 4:04 AM ET
JIDDAH, Saudi Arabia - For years, the only thing sold openly in Saudi stores selling women's cloaks were of the all-black, drab covering variety. Now, streaks of vibrant color, bands of glittering crystal — even sheaths of sexy leopard skin prints — are showing up on the racks.
US military deaths in Iraq war at 4,176 AP - Tue Sep 30, 7:32 PM ET
As of Tuesday, Sept. 30, 2008, at least 4,176 members of the U.S. military have died in the Iraq war since it began in March 2003, according to an Associated Press count.

Europe News

Medvedev says Russia to leave areas of Georgia AP - 23 minutes ago
STRELNA, Russia - President Dmitry Medvedev says Russia will fulfill its promise to withdraw troops from areas of Georgia outside two separatist regions.
UK to bring home diplomats' children from Pakistan Reuters - 27 minutes ago
LONDON (Reuters) - Britain is withdrawing the children of its diplomats from Pakistan following last month's suicide bomb attack that killed 55 people at the Marriott Hotel in Islamabad, the Foreign Office said on Wednesday.
London stocks close higher ahead of US Senate vote AFP - 33 minutes ago
LONDON (AFP) - The FTSE 100 finished more than one percent higher on Wednesday, with shares surging in HBOS and Lloyds TSB, as the US Senate prepared to vote on a revised financial rescue package.

Latin America

Money sent home by Mexicans in US drops 12 percent AP - 24 minutes ago
MEXICO CITY - Mexicans living in the U.S. sent home 12 percent less money in August, the largest drop on record since the Bank of Mexico began tracking remittances 12 years ago, the central bank reported on Wednesday.
Tropical Storm Marie forms over the Pacific AP - 1 hour, 45 minutes ago
MEXICO CITY - The National Hurricane Center says Tropical Storm Marie has formed over the Pacific, hundreds of miles southwest of the Baja California Peninsula.
Gunmen in Mexico steal suspected drug planes AP - 2 hours, 54 minutes ago
MEXICO CITY - Police in Mexico say 20 heavily armed men have stolen five small planes that the army seized in anti-drug operations.

Africa News

S.Africa sticks to target on black land ownership Reuters - 16 minutes ago
PRETORIA (Reuters) - South Africa will stick to its ambitious plan to put 30 percent of farmland in black hands by 2014, even though it is lagging way behind target, a senior government official said on Wednesday.
Zimbabwe ruling party rejects call for Mbeki mediation AFP - 48 minutes ago
HARARE (AFP) - Zimbabwe's ruling party Wednesday rejected an opposition call for ex-South African president Thabo Mbeki to intervene to salvage a power-sharing deal after the two sides failed to agree on a cabinet.
Somalia: World can use force against the pirates AP - 50 minutes ago
MOGADISHU, Somalia - Foreign powers can use force if necessary to free a hijacked cargo ship loaded with battle tanks and heavy ammunition, Somalia's foreign ministry declared Wednesday — increasing pressure on the Somali pirates who have demanded a $20 million ransom.

Asia News

US Senators express caution ahead of Indian nuclear deal vote AFP - 3 minutes ago
WASHINGTON (AFP) - The US Senate warned about the prospects of further nuclear tests by India before a vote Wednesday that could clear the final hurdle to a landmark agreement overturning a three-decade ban on civilian nuclear trade with New Delhi.
NATO general says reconciling with Taliban a political decision AFP - 9 minutes ago
WASHINGTON (AFP) - The general who commands NATO forces in Afghanistan called Wednesday for enlisting tribes to help pacify the country and did not rule out reconciliation with ousted Taliban leader Mullah Mohammad Omar.
U.S. envoy looks to save nuclear deal in North Korea Reuters - 13 minutes ago
SEOUL (Reuters) - A senior U.S. envoy traveled to North Korea on Wednesday with compromise proposals to rescue a faltering nuclear disarmament deal and prevent Pyongyang from rebuilding a plant that made weapons-grade plutonium.

Canada

Polls divided on Conservative majority Reuters - 34 minutes ago
OTTAWA (Reuters) - The Conservatives could turn their parliamentary minority into a majority in the October 14 election, according to one poll released on Wednesday, while other surveys suggest they could fall just short.
Stephane Dion overcome by problems Reuters - Tue Sep 30, 11:39 AM ET
OTTAWA (Reuters) - Liberal Party leader Stephane Dion, who looks to be heading for a big defeat in the October 14 federal election, is so fond of his green credentials that he named his dog Kyoto after the pact to curb global warming.
Xstrata Kidd smelter workers strike as talks fail Reuters - Wed Oct 1, 1:02 AM ET
TORONTO (Reuters) - Unionized workers at Xstrata's Kidd metallurgical operations in Canada went on strike early on Wednesday after talks with the company failed to produce a contract agreement ahead of a midnight deadline.

Australia/Antarctica News

Australian watchdog says it will not block BHP's bid for Rio AFP - Wed Oct 1, 5:59 AM ET
SYDNEY (AFP) - Australia's competition watchdog said Wednesday it will not oppose BHP Billiton's 120 billion US dollar takeover bid for rival Rio Tinto, saying the deal was unlikely to substantially lessen competition.
Harper caught up in plagiarism row AFP - Wed Oct 1, 5:45 AM ET
OTTAWA (AFP) - A row about plagiarism embroiled Prime Minister Stephen Harper on Tuesday after his former speechwriter admitted to copying a speech in support of the US-led Iraq war by Australia's former leader John Howard.
Eating kangaroos could help fight global warming: scientist AFP - Wed Oct 1, 3:09 AM ET
SYDNEY (AFP) - An offbeat suggestion that Australians should eat kangaroos instead of cattle and sheep has been given a scientific stamp of approval by the government's top climate change adviser.

Most Popular World News

Money sent home by Mexicans in US drops 12 percent AP - 24 minutes ago
MEXICO CITY - Mexicans living in the U.S. sent home 12 percent less money in August, the largest drop on record since the Bank of Mexico began tracking remittances 12 years ago, the central bank reported on Wednesday.
Parents file lawsuit in China against dairy firm AP - 1 hour, 26 minutes ago
BEIJING - The parents of a baby allegedly sickened by tainted infant formula are suing the dairy at the heart of China's contaminated milk scandal, state media reported, as 15 more companies were accused Wednesday of producing spiked products.
Spanish police arrest 121 in child porn raids AP - Wed Oct 1, 6:52 AM ET
MADRID, Spain - Spanish police arrested 121 people in the country's biggest-ever crackdown on child pornography, seizing discs containing millions of video and photo files shared by a network that distributed them in 75 countries, authorities said Wednesday.

ATC Journal. We Bring You The News!

News Headlines for september 28, 2008

2008-09-28T10:31:00.001+02:00

News Headlines Via Yahoo

Middle East News

Israeli officials: US sends radar to Israel AP - 1 hour, 54 minutes ago
JERUSALEM - Israeli officials say the U.S. has provided Israel with an advanced radar system that will give early warning in case of an Iranian missile attack.
No interim peace deal with Israel, Saudi says AP - Sat Sep 27, 8:53 PM ET
UNITED NATIONS - Arab nations will totally reject any partial or interim solution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict because historically such arrangements have become permanent, Saudi Arabia's foreign minister said Saturday.
US military deaths in Iraq war at 4,174 AP - Sat Sep 27, 8:32 PM ET
As of Saturday, Sept. 27, 2008, at least 4,174 members of the U.S. military have died in the Iraq war since it began in March 2003, according to an Associated Press count.

Europe News

Tories aim to show readiness for govt AFP - 3 minutes ago
BIRMINGHAM (AFP) - The Conservatives start their party conference Sunday believing that victory at the next general election is a distinct possibility for the first time in a decade.
MP weds lesbian partner AFP - 8 minutes ago
LONDON (AFP) - A junior minister has become the first female MP to enter into a civil partnership with her lesbian partner.
Conservative poll lead halved: survey AFP - 13 minutes ago
LONDON (AFP) - The Conservative Party has seen its opinion poll lead over the governing Labour Party halved on the eve of its annual conference, according to a new survey published Sunday.

Latin America

Ecuadoreans go to polls to vote on constitution AP - 1 hour, 32 minutes ago
QUITO, Ecuador - Ecuadoreans go to the polls Sunday to vote on a constitution that would significantly broaden President Rafael Correa's powers and let him run for two more consecutive terms.
Chavez lands in Cuba, meets with Castro brothers AP - Sun Sep 28, 12:32 AM ET
HAVANA - Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez made a surprise visit to Cuba late Saturday and wasted little time heading into a closed-door meeting with President Raul Castro and his ailing brother Fidel.
Police in Mexico arrest alleged killer of US woman AP - Sun Sep 28, 12:14 AM ET
MEXICO CITY - Authorities in southern Oaxaca state said Saturday they have arrested a man who allegedly raped and killed a U.S. woman.

Africa News

Kidnapped tourists back in Sudan: foreign ministry AFP - 1 hour, 38 minutes ago
KHARTOUM, (AFP) - Bandits who kidnapped 19 tourists and Egyptians in the desert have taken their hostages back to Sudan but are now heading towards Egypt, Sudanese officials said on Sunday.
US destroyer watching hijacked ship off Somalia AP - Sun Sep 28, 12:51 AM ET
MOGADISHU, Somalia - A U.S. destroyer off the coast of Somalia closed in Saturday on a hijacked Ukrainian ship loaded with tanks and ammunition, watching it to ensure the pirates who seized it do not try to remove any cargo or crew.
Cairo's poorest live life on the edge Reuters - Sat Sep 27, 8:12 PM ET
CAIRO (Reuters) - As Manal Mohamed goes about her day, in the back of her mind she's on alert for signs the ground might be moving, fearing a repetition of the rockfall that crushed homes and lives in Cairo's Duwaiqa district this month.

Asia News

Japan's new PM faces setback as transport minister resigns AFP - 7 minutes ago
TOKYO, (AFP) - Japan's new Prime Minister Taro Aso on Sunday faced his first political setback just days after taking office as his transport minister was forced to resign over a series of embarrassing gaffes.
Militants attack Pakistani forces; Pole kidnapped AP - 7 minutes ago
ISLAMABAD, Pakistan - Islamic militants struck back at security forces in Pakistan's northwest while gunmen Sunday abducted a Polish engineer and extended a wave of attacks on foreigners.
Indian police detain a dozen over Delhi blast Reuters - 15 minutes ago
NEW DELHI (Reuters) - Indian police have detained about a dozen people in connection with a bomb blast in a crowded New Delhi market that killed two people and wounded 22, a spokesman said on Sunday, the second attack in the capital this month.

Canada

Hurricane Kyle takes aim at New England, Canada Reuters - 18 minutes ago
MIAMI (Reuters) - Tropical Storm Kyle strengthened into a hurricane off the United States on Saturday as it took aim at New England and Canada's Maritime provinces, the U.S. National Hurricane Center said.
Harper's oil sands plan puzzles industry, greens Reuters - Fri Sep 26, 5:30 PM ET
CALGARY, Alberta (Reuters) - Prime Minister Stephen Harper said on Friday he would ban exports of tar-like bitumen from Alberta's oil sands to countries that do not match Canadian efforts to cut carbon emissions, a campaign promise that perplexed both the oil industry and environmentalists.
Canadian election rivals square off over economy Reuters - Fri Sep 26, 6:58 PM ET
CALGARY, Alberta (Reuters) - Canadian Prime Minister Stephen Harper lashed out at his opponents on the campaign trail on Friday, saying they wanted the country to sink into a recession as the world economy slows.

Australia/Antarctica News

Illicit drug trade in Australia put at $10 billion: study Reuters - Sat Sep 27, 2:08 AM ET
SYDNEY (Reuters) - Up to A$12 billion ($10 billion) in illicit drug money could be flowing out of Australia every year, according to an estimate by the Australian Crime Commission (ACC).
New nuclear commission set to meet in Sydney AP - Fri Sep 26, 4:52 AM ET
CANBERRA, Australia - India and Pakistan will attend an international nuclear disarmament conference for the first time in Sydney next month, Australia's government said Friday, even though the nuclear-armed foes have consistently shunned a nonproliferation treaty.
BHP Billiton chairman says Asian demand to continue AFP - Wed Sep 24, 3:18 AM ET
SYDNEY (AFP) - Asian economic growth will slow at some point but demand for raw materials from countries such as China is expected to continue, the chairman of the world's largest mining company said Wednesday.

Last chance to see Joaquín Sorolla in Malaga

2008-09-23T21:37:00.007+02:00

More than 3,000 visitors a day

Fourteen large canvases comprise the exhibition at the Contemporary Art Centre (CAC) in Malaga

23.09.08

SUR |

MALAGA (Spain)

The exhibition 'Vision of Spain’ ran in Valencia for five
months and will now go to Barcelona, Bilbao, Madrid
and then back to Valencia.

The count down is on to be able to see the much-visited ‘Sorolla, visión de España’ exhibition originally showing at Malaga’s Contemporary Art Centre (CAC) until September 21st. The run of the exhibition was extended until today (Tuesday 23rd) the operning hours were extended and it now finally closes at 2 a.m. tomorrow morning.

This exhibition comprises 14 large canvases, which are on loan from the Hispanic Society New York who commissioned the works to decorate their premises in 1911.

When the exhibition was in the artist’s home city of Valencia, more than half a million people went to see it in the five months it was on show. At the CAC more than 3,000 people have visited the exhibition a day and it will move to Barcelona, Bilbao, Madrid before going back to Valencia after the run in Malaga.

Headlines by agencies for september 23, 2008

2008-09-23T21:18:00.002+02:00

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Palin press may boycott UN conference

2008-09-23T21:09:00.001+02:00

Politico - 1 hour, 59 minutes ago

NEW YORK – Journalists, displeased with Sarah Palin’s efforts to restrict their access to her, are threatening not to cover her events surrounding the United Nations conference here unless they're allowed more access.

Video: Palin's U.N. meetings CNN
Full Coverage: 2008 Presidential Election

Bernanke: Recession more likely without bailout

2008-09-23T21:05:00.001+02:00

Enlarge Photo

AP - 2 minutes ago

WASHINGTON - Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke bluntly warned reluctant lawmakers Tuesday they risk a recession with higher unemployment and increased home foreclosures unless they act on the Bush administration's $700 billion plan to bail out the financial industry.

Video: Dems not giving 'Wall Street a blank check'. AP

Paulson on verge of historic new powers

2008-09-23T21:03:00.000+02:00

The Christian Science Monitor - Tue Sep 23, 4:00 AM ET

Washington - Henry Paulson Jr. has become one of the most famous and, perhaps, consequential U.S. Treasury secretaries since Alexander Hamilton. Legislation submitted to Congress would transform Paulson's office into that of temporary overseer of America's entire financial system.

Video: Who is Henry Paulson? CNN

Gunman opens fire at school, 9 dead

2008-09-23T13:26:00.003+02:00

By MATTI HUUHTANEN, Associated Press Writer

HELSINKI, Finland

A gunman opened fire at students at a vocational school for adults in western Finland on Tuesday before shooting himself, police said. Finnish media reported nine people were killed and the gunman was wounded.
The shootings began just before 11 a.m. local time as about 150 students went to class in Kauhajoki, 180 miles northwest of Helsinki. Witnesses said panic broke out as the hooded gunman entered the school and began firing.
"Within a short space of time I heard several dozen rounds of shots, in other words it was an automatic pistol," school janitor Jukka Forsberg told broadcaster YLE. "I saw some female students who were wailing and moaning and one managed to escape out of the back door."
YLE, citing police at the school, reported nine people were killed. The Finnish news agency STT said the school building was on fire and the gunman reportedly had explosives on him.
Jussi Muotio, superintendent of the Kauhajoki police, confirmed that several people had been wounded but could not immediately confirm the deaths. "The incident is over now," Muotio said.
Vesa Nyrhinen, detective superintendent from the local police, declined to say how seriously the gunman was injured. "He was wounded by his own bullets," he said.
College rector Timo Varmola told YLE there were 150 students in the school at the time.
The shootings happened almost a year after another gunman killed eight people and himself at a school in southern Finland, an attack that triggered a fierce debate about gun laws in this Nordic nation with deep-rooted traditions of hunting in the sub-Arctic wilderness.
With 1.6 million firearms in private hands, Finland is an anomaly in Europe, lagging behind only the United States and Yemen in civilian gun ownership, studies show.
Finnish media said YouTube clips of a man firing a gun appeared to be linked to the shooting. In one of them, a young man wearing a leather jacket fires several shots in rapid succession with a handgun at what appears to be a shooting range.
The posting was made five days before the shooting and the location was given as Kauhajoki. The posting included a message saying: "Whole life is war and whole life is pain. And you will fight alone in your personal war."
The person who posted the clip identified himself as a 22-year-old with the name "Mr. Saari." He also posted three other clips of himself firing a handgun in the past three weeks.
Clips from the 1999 Columbine school shootings in Colorado were listed among his favorite videos.
Police could not immediately confirm whether the postings were linked to Tuesday's shooting.
Last year, Pekka-Eric Auvinen, described by police as a bullied 18-year-old outcast, opened fire at his high school in southern Finland on Nov. 7. He killed six students, a school nurse and the principal before ending his own life with a gunshot to the head.
Finnish investigators have said Auvinen left a suicide note for his family and foreshadowed his attack in YouTube postings.
After Auvinen's rampage, the government said it would raise the minimum age for buying guns from 15 to 18, but insisted there was no need for sweeping changes to Finland's gun laws.

Europeans kidnapped in Egyptian desert near Sudan

2008-09-22T23:43:00.000+02:00

By SARAH EL DEEB, Associated Press Writer 6 minutes ago

CAIRO, Egypt - Kidnappers have seized 11 European tourists and eight Egyptians during a Sahara desert safari to Gilf al-Kebir, a plateau famed for its prehistoric cave paintings, Egyptian officials said Monday.