Morocco 2nd in Arab world for internet users

2010-05-05

Morocco ranked second in the Arab world for the growth rate of internet users in 2009, MAP reported on Tuesday (May 4th), citing a Google survey. Egypt was first with a growth rate of 20%, Morocco had 18% and Saudi Arabia was third with 17%. The number of internet users in the Arab world increased from 16 million in 2004 to 56 million in 2010, MAP noted.

Source: Magharebia.com
Link: http://www.magharebia.com/cocoon/awi/xhtml1/en_GB/features/awi/newsbriefs/general/2010/05/05/newsbrief-04.

Morocco trains teachers to keep kids in class

The ITQANE project will give secondary-school teachers more skills to help them keep young Moroccans from abandoning their studies.

By Naoufel Cherkaoui for Magharebia in Rabat – 05/05/10

To curb high drop-out rates in secondary schools, Rabat's education officials have launched a teacher-training project aimed at encouraging students to stay in class and pursue careers.

"The new project is supporting students [and] enhancing the quality of education at the level of secondary education," said Education Secretary Latifa El Abidah. "It targets youth who need support in order to choose their career."

The Education Ministry, working in co-ordination with USAID, launched the Improving Training for Quality Advancement in National Education (ITQANE) initiative on April 29th.

The $14 million project will first be implemented in the pilot regions of Fez-Boulman and Doukkala-Abda before being widened to other regions. The project is part of Morocco's 2009 emergency plan to improve the education of all students.

ITQANE, which in Arabic means "to perfect", is the product of 14 years of collaboration between Morocco and USAID. During this period, the agency worked with education officials to boost the school system and improve students' performance.

"It's a project that falls within the framework of the excellent collaboration between Morocco and USAID, which has supported many programs in Morocco, such as 'Moroccan Education for Girls' that aims at supporting girls' education in elementary schools, and 'Alef', which focuses on improving the quality and relevance of elementary and secondary school," El Abidah said.

According to a USAID education official involved in the initiative, secondary-schools students have the highest drop-out rate in Morocco.

The initiative prioritizes teacher training, said project manager Christina N'tchougan-Sonou.

"We will train teachers as well as those who are still in training. In addition, we will train leaders and principals of educational institutions, superintendents and advisers," she said.

The project will also introduce monitoring and evaluation systems to bolster advances made as a result of the initiative.

The head of the Central Unit for Professional Training, Mohammed Dali, welcomed the initiative.

"I believe all involved parties in the education system need training, especially during the educational reform phase," he said. "There are always new developments in the field that the teachers should keep up with by going for continuing training."

"Through this project, teachers will be trained to do their job well and teach them how to assess their work," said US ambassador to Morocco Samuel Kaplan. "This is part of the drive aiming at improving the quality of education world-wide, and it is part of [US] President Barack Obama's vision to establish a strong relationship with the Arab world."

Source: Magharebia.com
Link: http://www.magharebia.com/cocoon/awi/xhtml1/en_GB/features/awi/features/2010/05/05/feature-03.

Tunisia to roll out virtual red carpet for tourists

To welcome the growing number of tourists who choose destinations using the internet, Tunisia is boosting its online presence.

By Houda Trabelsi for Magharebia in Tunis – 05/05/10

Tunisia plans to expand its internet outreach as part of a promotional technique to attract around 10 million tourists by 2014, Tunisian Minister of Tourism Slim Tletli told reporters on April 29th.

The ministry would have its own website soon, and the website of the Tunisian National Tourism Authority would be revamped to meet the challenges of the online era, Tletli said.

"We will support any website or portal about tourism in Tunisia that highlights its characteristics so as to attract more tourists", the minister said at a conference at the International Press Center of the Tunisian External Communications Agency.

Studies show that positive opinions about a tourist attraction posted on internet forums attract three additional travelers to the destination, while negative ones are likely to discourage 10 other tourists, Tletli said.

The latest World Tourism Organization data show that about 70% of tourists world-wide now choose their holiday destination by browsing the internet. This power over tourist decision-making is drawing attention far beyond government circles.

"Travel agencies have to adapt to the new reality because they don't have any other option; they should make this challenge a positive point by using modern technology," the head of the Tunisian Association of Travel Agencies, Hamadi Chrif, told Magharebia after the April 29th event.

Chrif said his colleagues are "well prepared" for this challenge and are creating their own websites to keep abreast of the changes taking place in the sector, particularly their customers' increasing tendency to use the internet to choose destinations.

Tunisia's tourism revenues reached 545 million dinars in the first quarter of 2010, with 1.098 million tourists and 4.463 million bed-nights, equaling a 4.6% rise compared to the same period in 2009, TAP quoted Tletli as saying at the event.

Besides expanding internet promotions, the ministry's other priorities include "tourism sector growth rates of about 7%, and generating US$5 billion in hard currencies", Tletli said.

Tunisia is experiencing a boom in certain tourism sectors. The beaches of Hammamet and the antiquities of Carthage are no longer the country's main attractions for international travelers. Tourists are now coming for liposuction, breast augmentations and other cosmetic surgery procedures. By 2008, Tunisia had seen a 7500% increase in the "health tourism" phenomenon.

As recently as 2007, travelers from the Maghreb accounted for a third of all tourist arrivals in Tunisia. In step with that data, the country has in recent years prioritized upgrading facilities for such tourists.

Source: Magharebia.com
Link: http://www.magharebia.com/cocoon/awi/xhtml1/en_GB/features/awi/features/2010/05/05/feature-02.

Athens public buildings on fire amid riots

Athens has seen two more of its public buildings torched by angry protesters as the police declare a "general state of alert" in the strike-ridden nation.

Protesters clashed with Greek police in Central Athens on Wednesday, using firebombs to set two more public buildings ablaze.

The police force has called on all its members, including those not on active duty, to help restore order after three people were killed in a petrol bomb attack on a bank in central Athens.

Athens austerity plans have triggered massive protests and strikes across the European nation, as they require tax increases and salary cuts.

Source: PressTV.
Link: http://www.presstv.ir/detail.aspx?id=125552§ionid=351020606.

North 'deploys' troops on Koreas border

North Korea has reportedly completed the deployment of about 50,000 Special Forces along the border with South Korea amid high tension in the Korean Peninsula.

South Korean media quotes a government official as saying the deployment began two or three years ago.

Tension on the Korean Peninsula has been rising since a warship belonging to the South sank close to the border with the North in March.

Forty-eight South Korean sailors were killed in the incident. Seoul has hinted that Pyongyang may be behind the sinking.

The North, meanwhile, denies any involvement in the incident.

Source: PressTV.
Link: http://www.presstv.ir/detail.aspx?id=125554§ionid=351020405.

Danish base attacked in Afghanistan

The Danish army says almost a dozen of its soldiers in Afghanistan have been wounded amid escalating violence in the war-weary country.

Militants attacked the Danish base in Helmand Province late on Tuesday, injuring eleven troopers and two Afghan translators, the military said on Wednesday.

Nearly 30 Danish soldiers have died in the war-torn country since the 2001 US-led invasion of Afghanistan.

At least 178 foreign troops have been killed in Afghanistan since the start of 2010. According to statistics, 2009 was the deadliest year for foreign troops, with a total of 520 US-led soldiers killed.

NATO currently has more than 120,000 soldiers in the war-torn country. The US has plans to deploy 30,000 extra troops by August.

Source: PressTV.
Link: http://www.presstv.ir/detail.aspx?id=125557§ionid=351020403.

US threat against Iran denounced: Poll

An opinion poll suggests that US President Barack Obama's threat of a nuclear attack against Iran should be condemned by the international community.

The results of the poll carried out by Press TV indicated that nearly 68 percent of respondents believe that the global community must denounce Obama's recent threatening comments about a nuclear attack against Iran.

Only 11 percent said that the threat could become a reality while 21 percent considered the threat a bluff.

US President Barack Obama released a new US Nuclear Posture Review (NPR) last month, which restricts the use of US nuclear arms against some non-nuclear countries while excluding Iran and North Korea.

Just before issuing the new US nuclear weapons strategy, Obama told The New York Times that the loophole in the NPR would apply to what he called "outliers like Iran and North Korea."

The recent US threat was met with furor in Iran and prompted Tehran to submit an official complaint to the United Nations.

In a letter addressed to UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon, the Security Council and General Assembly presidents, Iran's Ambassador to the UN Mohammad Khazaee said that the US threat constitutes "nuclear blackmail."

He described threats of a nuclear attack as an "inhumane" breach of international treaties and principles outlined in the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty.

Iran is among the original countries to have signed the NPT and is a member of the International Atomic Energy Agency.

Source: PressTV.
Link: http://www.presstv.ir/detail.aspx?id=125559§ionid=3510203.

Syria slams renewal of US sanctions

Syria says the US has lost its "credibility" for renewing sanctions against Damascus and not fulfilling its promises towards the country.

Washington on Monday extended ongoing sanctions against Damascus on claims that it supports terrorists and pursues weapons of mass destruction.

Deputy Foreign Minister Fayssal Mekdad on Wednesday criticized the move.

"What is being heard publicly from the Americans is exaggerated and what is happening behind closed doors is the exact opposite," Mekdad was quoted as saying by the Al-Watan daily.

The economic and diplomatic sanctions against Syria were imposed by former US President George W. Bush in May 2004.

Source: PressTV.
Link: http://www.presstv.ir/detail.aspx?id=125549§ionid=351020206.

Huge thermometer goes to World Expo

The world's tallest meteorological signal tower has been installed at the 2010 World Expo Park, giving real-time weather information to visitors.

The massive thermometer is located in the Puxi Expo Park along the Huangpu River and shows the current temperature as well as the highest and lowest temperature of the day every hour.

The 165-meter tower is made from a chimney in the 110-year-old Shanghai Nanshi Power Plant, Xinhua reported.

The tower top changes color during the night to show different weather conditions, white means sunny or cloudy and purple means rainy or snowy.

A meteorological observation station also provides weather service in the park.

Source: PressTV.
Link: http://www.presstv.ir/detail.aspx?id=125548§ionid=3510212.

In NY, Ahmadinejad meets with rabbis

Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad says Tehran will continue to “fight for the rights” of oppressed nations in the face of global tyranny.

In a Wednesday meeting with a group of anti-Zionist rabbis in New York, Ahmadinejad said the rights of religious minorities is of primary importance for Iran.

He further added that Zionist groups are taking advantage of Judaism to further their political gains in Israel and other parts of the world.

The Iranian President praised the Jewish leaders who had shown the dark side of Zionism to the world by distancing themselves from pro-Zionist policies.

For their part, the rabbis praised Ahmadinejad and presented him with a book as a token of their gratitude for Iran's efforts in maintaining the rights of the Jewish people of Iran.

Iran has the largest Jewish population in the Middle East next to Israel.

Like the country's other religious minorities, the Jewish people are free to practice their faith and have one reserved seat in the Iranian Parliament (Majlis).

Ahmadinejad is in New York to attend the month-long nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT) review conference, which opened on May 3 at the UN headquarters.

Source: PressTV.
Link: http://www.presstv.ir/detail.aspx?id=125546§ionid=351020101.

France to return Maori warrior heads

France has decided to return a collection of Maori warrior heads, scattered in different French museums, to their native tribes in New Zealand.

The French parliament approved on Tuesday that the tattooed, mummified heads be sent to New Zealand after centuries of being displayed as exotic oddities in Europe.

"From a ritual showing the respect of a tribe and family toward their dead, the mummified heads became the object of a particularly barbaric trade due to the curiosity of travelers and European collectors," Parliamentary Relations Minister Henri de Raincourt said while presenting the law.

New Zealand has been requesting the return of the heads since the 1980s. The new French law will apply to over a dozen Maori heads, which will be shipped to the Te Papa museum in Wellington and then handed to different tribes for burial.

This is the first time that France agrees to return an entire category of museum items, Reuters reported.

Heads of Maori warriors, which were elaborately tattooed as a sign of strength and courage, were brought to Europe and the US in the 18th and 19th centuries.

Hundreds of them still exist as part of American and European collections.

Source: PressTV.
Link: http://www.presstv.ir/detail.aspx?id=125543§ionid=3510212.

French court acquits Iranian engineer

A French court has acquitted an Iranian engineer of violating an export embargo by purchasing US technology for military firms in Iran.

The US had officially requested the extradition of Majid Kakavand, 37, from France to American soil.

The request, however, was turned down on Wednesday.

The court hearing, which was dragged on for 14 months since Kakavand's arrest, demonstrated that his business dealings had not violated French law.

According to the Associated Press, a French prosecutor had opposed the US request, arguing that Kakavand had not perused products that could be used for military purposes.

Source: PressTV.
Link: http://www.presstv.ir/detail.aspx?id=125544§ionid=351020101.

Xe called in NATO airstrikes, founder says

HOLLAND, Mich., May 5 (UPI) -- Private security contractors working in Afghanistan called in NATO airstrikes, Erik Prince, the founder of contractor Xe was recorded as saying.

Prince, who founded the security company Blackwater, now doing business as Xe, said security forces working for his company in Afghanistan called in NATO support during operations in July.

Prince, in a secret recording from a Tuesday speech in his hometown of Holland, Mich., describes Xe contractors uncovering a weapons cache in southern Afghanistan.

"When the guys found it, they didn't have enough ammo, enough explosives, to blow it, they couldn't burn it all, so they had to call in multiple airstrikes," he said of the July operation. "Of course, you know, each of the NATO countries that came and did the airstrikes took credit for finding and destroying the cache."

The tapes were recorded in secret and obtained by the liberal news magazine The Nation.

Prince during his Holland speech responded to accusations that his contractors were potentially violating the Geneva Conventions by acting as unlawful combatants in Iraq, Afghanistan and Pakistan. He said militants there were "barbarians," adding, "They don't know where Geneva is, let alone that there was a convention there."

Prince rarely makes public appearances. He originally called for a media blackout of the Tuesday speech but later barred reporters from recording the event.

Source: United Press International (UPI).
Link: http://www.upi.com/Top_News/Special/2010/05/05/Xe-called-in-NATO-airstrikes-founder-says/UPI-75751273071117/.

'Iran must become Muslim role model'

Leader of the Islamic Revolution Ayatollah Seyyed Ali Khamenei says the Iranian nation will press ahead on its path regardless of threats and pressure.

Addressing thousands of Iranian teachers on Wednesday, Ayatollah Khamenei said that the enemy's attempts to hinder the Iranian nation's progress are predictable.

"The experience of the Iranian nation has proven that threats and opposition cannot slow its progress and the Iranian nation will resolutely move forward on its path."

Pointing to the country's shortcomings in the past, the Leader said making up for such losses requires great action and stressed, "Iran and the Iranian nation must attain the standing that they deserve and become a comprehensive role model for the Muslim world.”

"To achieve this great objective, the Iranian nation's innate abilities, and intellectual and humanitarian capabilities and capacities must be drawn upon," the Leader added.

Ayatollah Khamenei stressed that once the Iranian nation achieves its true status, it can prepare the ground for changing the fate of the Muslim world, adding, "The result of a change in the fate of the Muslim world is a change in the situation of the world."

The Leader of the Islamic Revolution described the moral condition of today's world as extremely dire and said, "This horrific fate of mankind can be changed but the first condition is initiating a major change in the country to become a moral and worldly role model.”

"The foundation of any change in the country requires education. Given the foundation laid over the past 30 years, although the road ahead is long and hard, the future ahead is bright," Ayatollah Khamenei said.

Source: PressTV.
Link: http://www.presstv.ir/detail.aspx?id=125537§ionid=351020101.

3.4mn Yemenis on verge of starvation

The UN food aid agency has appealed to international donors to cover up for a massive shortfall in funding for some 3.4 million starving Yemenis.

If the current situation continues some 500,000 hungry Yemenis, whose food rations have already decreased to half, will face a virtually complete exhaustion of stocks by August, UN World Food Program (WFP) warned on Wednesday.

Some 7.2 million people, one third of Yemen's population, suffer from chronic hunger, about 3.4 million of who depend on food aid, said the UN agency. More than one in 10 children suffers from acute malnutrition and more than half of those under five are underweight, it added.

Briefing reporters in Geneva on the humanitarian crisis in Yemen, WFP spokesperson Emilia Casella said the agency is currently only able to reach 475,000 people.

The WFP had to half its food ration due to a $75.3-million shortfall out of a total $103 million needed for 2010, focusing the shrunken aid on some 270,000 people displaced by clashes between government forces and Houthi fighters in and around the northern Sa'ada province, as well as a limited number of children under five and pregnant and lactating mothers.

"People have three other options after that -- revolt, migrate or die. A cut in rations is not a first step, it's a last resort," Casella said.

Half-rations provide 1,050 calories per person per day compared to the 2,100 standard amount, and by August WFP will run out of food almost completely, including nutritional support for 50,000 internally displaced children under five, she noted.

Oil-rich Yemen remains the poorest nation in the Arab world as the Sunni-dominated central government is struggling to weed out alleged al-Qaeda forces operating in the region while facing widespread protests from secessionists in the south.

The Sana'a government and Houthi fighters agreed to a ceasefire in February, months after the army launched a massive offensive in August 2009 in an attempt to crush the fighters in the northern province of Sa'ada.

The UN High Commissioner for Refugees says the displaced avoid returning to their homes, fearing the mines and unexploded ordnance.

Source: PressTV.
Link: http://www.presstv.ir/detail.aspx?id=125532§ionid=351020206.

Nationwide strike paralyzes Greece

Angry workers go on strike in Greece against the government's spending cuts, bringing the country's flights, trains and ferries to a halt and paralyzing public services.

The general strike which hit the country involved teachers, bank employees and doctors protesting the Greek government's austerity measures.

The government argues that the spending cut plan -- which includes wage freezes, pension cuts and tax rises -- is essential for pulling the country out of a 110bn euro international debt.

Meanwhile, the public sector umbrella union in Greece, ADEDY, says low-income Greeks will suffer disproportionately as a result of the new harsh measures.

"The executive committee of ADEDY calls on the workers to strongly react against the unprecedentedly harsh and savage measures taken by the government," the union said in a statement.

Around 1,700 police officers were deployed to central Athens to maintain order during Wednesday's demonstrations.

The protests are believed to be the first major test of the Greek government's determination to implement austerity cuts, seeking to avert fiscal meltdown.

Source: PressTV.
Link: http://www.presstv.ir/detail.aspx?id=125530§ionid=351020606.

Iranian Navy begins major drill

The Iranian Navy has started an eight day military exercise in the country's southern seas to display its strength in defending Iran's territorial waters.

The maneuver, called "Velayat 89," will be conducted in the Sea of Oman and the strategic waterway connecting it to the Persian Gulf.

The drill which started on Wednesday will cover a large area stretching from the Strait of Hormuz to the northern Indian Ocean and has six phases.

The security of the Strait of Hormuz has global significance, as almost 40 percent of the world's crude passes through the waterway.

Iranian Navy commander Rear Admiral Habibollah Sayyari says with the maneuver, Tehran seeks to send out a message of "peace and friendship" to regional states.

Other than its main defensive objectives, the Iranian Navy also aims to explore ways of dealing with piracy.

The drill comes just weeks after another large-scale Iranian maneuver in the Persian Gulf that also pursued the same goal of promoting regional security.

Source: PressTV.
Link: http://www.presstv.ir/detail.aspx?id=125531&sectionid=351020101.

Venezuela prison riot kills eight

A deadly riot in a Venezuelan jail has left at least eight inmates dead and three others injured, as Caracas plans to overhaul the country's prison system.

The unrest erupted on Tuesday night after rival gangs fought for control of cell blocks at the Santa Ana Prison in the western state of Tachira.

According to Venezuela's top prison authority Consuelo Cerrada, National Guard troops have now regained control of the prison.

Violence is common in Venezuela's overcrowded prisons, where fights often break out between rival gangs over the control of cell blocks or the sale of illicit drugs.

Weapons provided by some allegedly corrupt guards are usually used in the fatal attacks.

In 2009 alone, 366 inmates were killed and 635 others wounded in violent incidents affecting many Venezuelan prisons.

A non-governmental group called the Venezuelan Prison Observer says over 32,624 inmates are currently held in Venezuelan jails, which should house only 12,000 prisoners.

The prison crisis in Venezuela has urged the government to plan new rules, which are aimed at improving the humane conditions in jails across the Latin American nation.

Source: PressTV.
Link: http://www.presstv.ir/detail.aspx?id=125528§ionid=351020704.

PREVIEW: Filipinos looking forward to picking new leader

Manila - Vilma Fernando couldn't hide her excitement about the upcoming elections.

The mother of four said she and her relatives had already prepared a list of their choices, from president to municipal officials in their town of Lubao, 75 kilometers north of Manila.

"We are voting straight Liberal so hopefully there will be change," Fernando, 35, said. The Liberal Party presidential candidate is the frontrunner, Benigno "Noynoy" Aquino III.

"We have had enough of President (Gloria Macapagal) Arroyo, there were too many bad things that happened during her administration," she added. "It's time to replace her and her people."

Her sentiments are shared by many Filipinos eager to choose a new leader after nine years of an Arroyo administration overshadowed by corruption scandals, allegations of fraud, patronage politics and mistrust.

More than 50 million Filipinos have registered to vote on May 10 for a new president, vice president, legislators and thousands of local officials. Turnout is expected to be higher than the 77 per cent at the last presidential elections in 2004.

Nine candidates are running for president, but surveys show that three candidates dominate the race - Aquino, Senator Manny Villar and former president Joseph Estrada.

Arroyo's candidate, former defense secretary Gilbert Teodoro, is trailing behind at fourth place.

Jun Salipsip, president of the Institute of Strategic and International Studies, said he believed that Filipinos were making their decision not based on who could manage the country better but who they could trust with their future.

"Whereas before (people said) let's pick someone who knows what to do or someone who can do it, now (they ask) is he trustworthy, is he someone who will take care of the country, is he someone who will take care of us," he said.

"The feeling is that we need somebody who can inspire us, who can raise our self esteem because we have been known as the most corrupt, we have been known as the country plagued with all sorts of scandals and anomalies," he added.

Professor Benito Lim of the Ateneo University said Filipinos were also looking for a new leader with no links whatsoever to the outgoing administration.

"They have been so dissatisfied with Arroyo's performance that this is their chance to get rid of her," he said.

Lim cited poverty, unemployment, graft and corruption and problems arising from climate change as among the top issues that the next government must prioritize.

Salipsip said the next president of the Philippines must also concentrate on raising revenues for the government to allow better delivery of basic services, improving infrastructure to attract investors and create more jobs and regaining public trust.

Prosecuting Arroyo and her allies for alleged corruption and other wrongdoings should also be a priority, but the new administration must allow the legal processes to work and avoid getting derailed by vindictiveness, he added.

Amid the high stakes, jitters are mounting over a new automated system that would count the votes electronically for the first time in the Philippines.

While election officials stressed that the system would prevent cheating, which has traditionally marred Philippine polls, critics noted that poor preparation has led to weak security measures that could allow digital fraud.

The doubts have triggered warnings of violence and another "people power" revolt similar to the 1986 uprising that ousted dictator Ferdinand Marcos and catapulted Corazon Aquino to power.

Dinky Soliman, a former Arroyo cabinet member now with the Liberal Party, said anger at the government would finally blow if cheating occurred in the elections.

"People are telling us that they will go out into the streets if there is massive cheating," she said. "People want to see an election, but if victory is stolen from the person who we thought would win, the seething would really erupt."

Arroyo has been accused of cheating in the 2004 polls. She and her camp denied the allegation, but no formal investigation was conducted to disprove evidence of the alleged fraud.

Soliman urged people to be vigilant on election day to thwart any attempts to hijack the vote.

For Gabriel Santos, a garbage collector with seven children, May 10 will be just another day for his family.

The Santoses live in a cramped shack in Manila's biggest dump, where they collect recyclable materials to sell.

"I don't really pay much attention to politics," he said, as he sorted out dirty plastic bottles. "I just want to be able to work and live decently. I have very few wishes in life, I just want us to be able eat three times a day."

Source: Earth Times.
Link: http://www.earthtimes.org/articles/show/322036,preview-filipinos-looking-forward-to-picking-new-leader.html.

PROFILE: Democracy icon's son electrifies Philippine voters

Cebu City, Philippines - Senator Benigno "Noynoy" Aquino III is no rock star, but the crowds turning out to see him campaign for president of the Philippines might make one think that he is.

"Oh, I'm so excited to finally see him in person," Malou Garillos gushed as she snapped photos during Aquino's visit to the municipal hall in Cebu City, 585 kilometers south of Manila.

The city employee also brought her teen daughter along see Aquino, the frontrunner in the presidential race.

"He looks very simple," the 40-year-old said. "I really hope he wins because he represents the change we all are aspiring for."

In the nearby city of Talisay, a young woman and her friends waited for more than seven hours in scorching heat just to catch a glimpse of Aquino and take a blurry picture of him on top of a truck.

"That's good enough," she said as they ran towards the truck.

Aquino smiled and waved at the crowd that spilled into the narrow road, halting traffic. People cheered, giggled, jumped and applauded.

The 50-year-old bachelor joked that his trademark yellow T-shirt, quite tight at the start of the day, was already loose because of all the people pulling at it.

"Everywhere we go, there are so many people. I'm happy to be swimming in a sea of people who love me," the scion of the country's most famous political family said. "We are already winners."

Latest polls show Aquino winning the May 10 elections with 39 per cent of the vote. His closest rivals, Senator Manny Villar and former president Joseph Estrada, are tied in second place with 20 per cent.

Aquino is running on an anti-corruption platform, his main slogan proclaiming, "Without corrupt people, there will be no poor people."

He has vowed to not raise taxes and instead increase state revenues by stamping out corruption in government and going after tax evaders and smugglers.

Before he decided to run for president, Aquino was just a legislator with no stellar record as a politician.

One could say that his only claim to fame is that he is the son of two Philippine heroes who played key roles in toppling the late dictator Ferdinand Marcos after a 20-year-rule.

His mother was democracy icon Corazon Aquino who was catapulted to the presidency by the "people power" revolt that ousted Marcos in 1986. His father was opposition senator Benigno "Ninoy" Aquino, whose assassination in 1983 galvanized opposition against the former strongman.

But analysts said the Aquino legacy is a "very compelling story" that Filipinos can relate to in their continuing struggle for change in government.

"The father died as a martyr for democracy and the mother fought a dictator and won," said Jun Salipsip, president of the Institute for Strategic and International Studies. "It's an unfinished business so let the son finish the legacy the parents left behind."

Salipsip said efforts to put down Aquino for his lack of experience and alleged psychological problems have failed to discourage voters.

"The more (his rivals) say that this guy doesn't have experience, the more people say we are not looking for a manager, we are looking for somebody who can lead," he said. "And leadership is all about inspiration."

"He's a guy who we think can lift us because somehow his parents left a ennobling legacy and sacrificed for the people," he added.

While Aquino is almost sure to win the vote on May 10, the presidency "will not be an easy crown to wear," according to research firm GlobalSource Partners Inc's quarterly report on the Philippines.

"The new leader may not have a harmonious relationship with Congress initially," the report said. "Such a scenario would not bode well for fiscal reform."

The US-based think tank said Aquino must "navigate through transaction-driven Philippine politics to take control and neutralize, co-opt, or cooperate with the forces aligned with the current administration" to be able to push for reforms.

"Failing to do so skillfully, he and the country may end up in a stalemate, meaning lost years for getting the economy finally moving forward as it locks horns with Congress," GlobalSource said.

Salipsip agreed that with the high expectations, Aquino could face a "big problem" if he fails to deliver on his promises and provide a strong political leadership.

"When people have put a lot of faith and hope in his leadership and if nothing happens, he's going to be a big disappointment," he said.

"If he has the moral suasion, if he acts the first few days that he sits on the position when the population is still euphoric, he can probably swing (the support of) a lot of congressmen and the senators."

Source: Earth Times.
Link: http://www.earthtimes.org/articles/show/322039,profile-democracy-icons-son-electrifies-philippine-voters.html.

PROFILE: Ousted Philippine president Estrada fights for redemption

Manila - Former Philippine president Joseph Estrada did not hide his excitement when a survey conducted two weeks before the presidential elections on May 10 showed him tied for second place with real-estate magnate Manuel Villar.

"As I told you, I will give them the surprise of their lives," he said, vowing to reach out to more voters in the final days of the campaign.

Estrada - known by his nickname Erap, the Filipono word for friend spelled backwards - predicted that he and frontrunner Benigno Aquino III would battle it out for the presidency come election day.

The 73-year-old former action movie star said he expected his loyal supporters - millions of poor people in slum areas - to vote for him.

"They have proven that they are loyal to me. They are just quiet," he added.

Margaux Salcedo, Estrada's spokeswoman, said that in the remaining days of the campaign, the former president will show the people that he is still the best man to rehabilitate the country after President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo's tumultuous nine-year rule.

"In the next few days we hope to establish that the change that the Liberal Party (of rival Aquino) proposes is empty without a leader with proven competence, political will and commitment to the masses," she said.

Indeed, among the nine candidates for president, Estrada has the most experience of holding office, having served as town mayor, senator, vice president and two years as president.

In 1998, Estrada was elected as president of the Philippines by a landslide, with the biggest-ever lead over his closest rival.

But in January 2001, he was ousted by a military-backed mass uprising over allegations of large-scale corruption and incompetence.

He was detained from April 2001 and eventually convicted in 2007 of plunder by the Sandiganbayan anti-graft court. He was sentenced to life imprisonment, but Arroyo pardoned him a few days after his conviction.

A known womanizer and heavy drinker, Estrada vowed to continue his pro-poor programs, which were stopped after his ouster from office. His slogan promises that "if there is Erap, there is prosperity."

Estrada said that once elected to office he would focus on poverty alleviation, peace and order, food security and addressing graft and corruption.

Political analysts, however, do not share Estrada's optimism that he would win this time.

Benito Lim, a political science professor at the Ateneo De Manila University, said Estrada was already past his prime and appeared to be living in a time warp.

"He said that if elected he is just going to continue the programs during his previous term, he must have forgotten that 10 years have passed and the world economy has changed and the Philippine economy has changed. We have new problems," he said.

Lim also doubted whether Estrada could command the loyalty of the country's impoverished millions.

"He still has loyal followers but this is not enough to propel him to presidency," he said.

Jun Salipsip, president of the Institute of Strategic and International Studies, a local think tank, said he believed that Estrada was running merely to clear his name.

"I think he just wanted reassurance from the public that they still love him," he said. "I think he just wanted redemption from the embarrassment he suffered due to his conviction."

Source: Earth Times.
Link: http://www.earthtimes.org/articles/show/322041,profile-ousted-philippine-president-estrada-fights-for-redemption.html.

Protesters stay put in Bangkok on Coronation Day - Summary

Bangkok - Thai King Bhumibol Adulyadej, 82, presided over his coronation day in Bangkok Wednesday, when it was hoped a two-month-old demonstration that has claimed 27 victims would end peacefully.

Bhumibol, accompanied by Queen Sirikit, left Siriraj Hospital to attend a ceremony marking the anniversary of his coronation on May 5, 1950, at the Amarin Throne Hall in Bangkok.

The world's oldest reigning monarch returned to hospital after the ceremony attended by ministers, government officials and diplomats. King Bhumibol has been in hospital since September 19. On several occasions he has left hospital briefly to attend ceremonies and deal with personal affairs.

It was hoped that this Coronation Day would mark the end of a seven-week protest that has rocked the capital and left blood on the streets.

The United Front for Democracy against Dictatorship (UDD) has occupied a prime commercial district in central Bangkok since April 3, demanding Prime Minister Abhisit Vejjajiva dissolve parliament and hold elections.

On Monday, Abhisit announced new elections for November 14. He also laid out a five-point proposal aimed at easing years of political upheaval marked by lengthy street protests, a military coup and a deepening social divide.

The UDD accepted Abhisit's proposal in principle on Tuesday, but refused to send its thousands of followers home until the prime minister sets a specific date for dissolving parliament.

"The prime minister feels that naming the dissolution day is unnecessary because he has already said polls will be held on November 14, which means parliament must be dissolved 45 to 60 days beforehand," government spokesman Panitan Wattanayakorn said.

According to Thai law, Abhisit must dissolve parliament between mid-September and October 1 if the polls are on November 14. His term was slated to end in December 2011.

The first step of Abhisit's proposal called for a commitment by all sides to uphold the monarchy, and prevent it from being drawn into politics.

The protest, the first popular uprising against the establishment since the communist threat of the 1960s and 70s, highlighted issues of class struggle, income disparity, injustice and the role of the centuries-old monarchy.

The UDD has been drawing between 5,000 and 10,000 supporters daily to its main protest site, an upmarket commercial district.

The demonstrators have barricaded themselves behind rubber tires, barbed wire and sharpened bamboo stakes, and a military crackdown would lead to heavy casualties, observers said.

Source: Earth Times.
Link: http://www.earthtimes.org/articles/show/322063,protestors-stay-put-in-bangkok-on-coronation-day--summary.html.

Bulgaria takes in Guantanamo detainee

Sofia - Bulgaria has taken in a former inmate of the United States detention facility in Guantanamo Cuba, the national news agency BTA reported Wednesday.

According to the report, the unidentified man arrived in the country on Tuesday night. He would initially be treated as a refugee in Bulgaria, the first Balkan country to take in a former Guantanamo detainee.

Local media had earlier reported that the man was a 38-year-old Syrian-born Kurd, who has been held at Guantanamo for the past eight years over suspected links with terrorists. He was reportedly never indicted.

The US intends to close the detention facility and have asked allies to take in inmates and help resettle inmates.

Source: Earth Times.
Link: http://www.earthtimes.org/articles/show/322070,bulgaria-takes-in-guantanamo-detainee.html.

Indonesian minister named World Bank managing director - Summary

Jakarta - Indonesian Finance Minister Sri Mulyani Indrawati has been appointed managing director of the World Bank Group, the bank said.

The appointment came amid controversy in Indonesia over Indrawati's role in the 2008 bailout of a small bank, which prompted calls for her to resign as finance minister.

World Bank President Robert B Zoellick said Tuesday that Indrawati had been an outstanding finance minister and would play a key role in helping the bank strengthen client support.

"Ms Indrawati brings a unique set of skills and experience to the World Bank Group, from the vantage point of an advancing middle-income country that still faces significant challenges of poverty," Zoellick said.

Indrawati has accepted the appointment, the World Bank said.

"It is a great honor for me and also for my country to have this opportunity to contribute to the very important mission of the bank in changing the world," she was quoted as saying.

President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono approved Indrawati's new assignment, saying that her departure was a "big loss."

"Ms Sri Mulyani has worked very hard to develop an appropriate fiscal policy and reform our financial system to discipline the use of state budget and improve accountability," the president said, adding that reforms she initiated had resulted in a steady increase in state revenue from taxes.

Indrawati became finance minister in 2005. During 2008-09, she served as coordinating minister of economic affairs. From 2002-04, she was an executive director on the board of the International Monetary Fund.

In her new role, which she will officially assume on June 1, Indrawati will supervise three World Bank regions: Latin America and Caribbean, Middle East and North Africa, and East Asia and Pacific.

Indrawati has been questioned by parliament and the country's anti-corruption commission for her role in the 700-million-dollar rescue of Bank Century.

Critics, including the majority in parliament, said the bank should have been allowed to collapse. But Indrawati insisted the move was to prevent a crisis in the banking system at the height of the global economic downturn.

Source: Earth Times.
Link: http://www.earthtimes.org/articles/show/322079,indonesian-minister-named-world-bank-managing-director--summary.html.

Iran warms to Brazil as mediator for nuclear fuel deal

Tehran - Iran's President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad said he agreed "in principle" with Brazil mediating a UN-backed uranium exchange deal, Fars news agency reported Wednesday.

A statement by the presidential office said that Ahmadinejad indicated his approval in a phone call to Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez on Tuesday.

The statement said Ahmadinejad also agreed to discuss "further technical details" with Brazilian President Luiz Ignacio Lula da Silva during his visit to Iran on May 15.

According to a plan brokered in October by the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), Iran's low-enriched uranium was to be exported to Russia for further enrichment. and then to France for processing into fuel for a Tehran medical reactor.

Tehran has said it was prepared either to buy the highly enriched uranium or exchange its own if the swap took place on Iranian soil.

The world powers and the Vienna-based IAEA refused to have the handover take place in Iran.

The West is pushing for further sanctions against Iran in the UN Security Council for its refusal to suspend enrichment and lack of cooperation with IAEA inspectors.

Brazil, which is a rotating member of the Security Council, has so far opposed sanctions and offered to help settle the dispute by mediating the uranium exchange deal.

Lula's preference for negotiations before imposing any punitive actions has been welcomed by Tehran.

Although the uranium exchange deal would not settle more than seven years of dispute over Iran's enrichment program, it is regarded by observers as a first step.

Tehran rejects accusations that it is working on a secret military program and nuclear weapons research.

Source: Earth Times.
Link: http://www.earthtimes.org/articles/show/322080,iran-warms-to-brazil-as-mediator-for-nuclear-fuel-deal.html.

German arms lobbyist from Kohl era jailed for eight years

Augsburg, Germany - Karlheinz Schreiber, 76, a lobbyist who promoted arms sales to Arab nations under former German Chancellor Helmut Kohl, was imprisoned Wednesday for eight years for tax evasion.

Judges said he evaded 7.3 million euros in taxes in the 1990s by failing to tell the tax authorities about the hidden millions he wielded as "commissions" when he was organizing controversial exports of aircraft and armored vehicles to the Middle East.

His lawyers had insisted to the last that he was not guilty. Schreiber, a German, had fled to Canada after an inquiry exposed him. He spent many years opposing German attempts to extradite him.

Source: Earth Times.
Link: http://www.earthtimes.org/articles/show/322081,german-arms-lobbyist-from-kohl-era-jailed-for-eight-years.html.

Iranian students protest US threats

Iranian university students and academics have staged a demonstration in front of the UN building in Tehran to protest US nuclear threats against Iran.

The large crowd of students gathered in front of the United Nations building on Wednesday morning to show their objection to US President Barack Obama's recent threatening comments about a nuclear strike on Iran.

Holding up placards that read "The US is the world's sole nuclear felon," the demonstrators called for Obama's resignation.

Last month, US President Barack Obama released a new US Nuclear Posture Review (NPR) that among other things restricted the use of nuclear arms against other states, expect Iran and North Korea.

Just before issuing the new US nuclear weapons strategy, Obama told the The New York Times that the loophole in the NPR would apply to what he called "outliers like Iran and North Korea."

On April 21, the Leader of the Islamic Revolution condemned Obama's comments. Ayatollah Seyyed Ali Khamenei said Washington's nuclear threat would leave a 'dark spot' in US history.

"International bodies cannot turn a blind eye… No one should dare to threaten humanity in this way. We will not allow the US to revive its evil dominance over Iran with such threats," said the Leader.

Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad has also criticized Obama over what he has called an attempt to threaten world nations with nuclear weapons.

The students rallying in Tehran chanted slogans in support of the Leader of the Islamic Revolution and President Ahmadinejad.

Source: PressTV.
Link: http://www.presstv.ir/detail.aspx?id=125519§ionid=351020101.

Ahmadinejad: Age of nukes is over

Iran's president says Tehran rejects nuclear weapons, as both immoral and unpractical tools that powers build, stockpile and use to threaten others.

"The age of the nuclear bomb, the worst and ugliest weapon known to man is over. We reject atomic weapons both in moral and practical terms," Mahmoud Ahmadinejad said in a press conference in New York on Tuesday afternoon.

"We believe those who build, store and use nuclear weapons to threaten others are committing the ugliest deed of all," he added.

Ahmadinejad described Washington's decision to disclose the number of its nuclear warheads as a step forward, but asked the US administration whether it took pride in possessing such destructive power.

"Just two bombs created that atrocity in two Japanese cities. Now do you think it is a source of pride to own 5,000 new generation warheads with greater destructive potential?" he asked.

Ahmadinejad said US nuclear weapons were a global threat, especially to the people in countries where they are stored.

He also commented on remarks by UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon about the need for Iran to" restore trust within the international community on the peaceful nature of its nuclear program."

Ahmadinejad said if the UN headquarters were in Tehran and Iran held veto powers at the Security Council, Ban would not have spoken as he did on Monday.

He pointed out that Iran's atomic activities were under the full supervision of the UN nuclear watchdog and said that it was not up to Iran to prove its innocence.

"The US government claims that Iran's nuclear work has diverted from the peaceful path. We ask, 'What evidence do you have to prove that,' and they say 'We have no proof, but we are sure that you have deviated, you prove otherwise.' How can we move forward with such logic," asked Ahmadinejad.

The Iranian president was in New York to take part in the UN nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT) review conference.

Source: PressTV.
Link: http://www.presstv.ir/detail.aspx?id=125514§ionid=351020104.

Qotbi to analyze World Cup matches

Iran's national soccer team manager Afshin Qotbi is scheduled to travel to South Africa in order to analyze the 2010 World Cup matches in person.

The Iranian coach's trip is aimed at seeing and analyzing North Korea's matches in South Africa's World Cup which begins on June 11 and ends on July 11.

The Iranian outfit is in Group D of the 2011 AFC Asian Cup, competing with World Cup qualifiers North Korea, defending champions Iraq and the UAE.

Iran will hold a training camp in Austria from July 11-24 and play a friendly match against South Korea on September 7th to prepare itself for the Asian tournament.

According to the Iranian boss, the success of the Iranian side in the 2011 AFC Asian Cup depends on its preparation.

“Asian football is on the rise and the difference in standards of teams is getting thinner. There are no clear favorites in our group. I believe, the success of Iran in the competition will depend on our preparation,” Qotbi said following the 2011 Asian Cup draw at the Aspire Dome in the Qatari capital on April 23rd.

“We're giving shape to an extensive training program and want to make steady progress,” the 46-year-old Iranian coach added.

“We've a few talented youngsters in the squad and they need more experience and exposure. We're confident of doing well, but again we need to make the right kind of build-up,” he further explained.

Draw for 2011 Asian Cup:

Group A: Qatar, Kuwait, China, Uzbekistan

Group B: Saudi Arabia, Japan, Jordan, Syria

Group C: South Korea, India, Australia, Bahrain

Group D: Iraq, North Korea, UAE, Iran

Source: PressTV.
Link: http://www.presstv.ir/detail.aspx?id=125509§ionid=3510211.

Philippines to delay presidential polls

Only six days before the Philippines' first automated election, officials say the presidential poll is likely to be postponed due to glitches in the counting machines.

Faulty memory cards used in the vote-counting machines prompted the Philippines election commission to delay the poll in order to eliminate the risk of fraud and violence.

The glitches were found after the country's Commission on Elections conducted the final testing of the devices on Monday and recalled all compact flash cards for reconfiguration, Commission's Spokesman James Jimenez explained.

The Southeast Asian state is notorious for fraud after President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo allegedly rigged the 2004 presidential election in her favor.

"Postponement of election is the only remedy to prevent a failure of election," President Arroyo's election lawyer said Monday.

Meanwhile, Margaux Salcedo spokesman for former President Joseph Estrada -- who is seeking to run as president -- ridiculed the issue, saying "It's ironic that poll automation, which is supposed to secure the sanctity of the ballot, is now the very threat to the process."

The Philippines is holding its first computerized election, as earlier in 2005, audio recordings of a phone conversation between President Arroyo and then Election Commissioner Virgilio Garcillano were released to the public. The conversation allegedly contained discussions about rigging the 2004 national election results.

The crisis escalated when the minority of the Lower House of Congress called for Arroyo's impeachment. Their attempt, however, was blocked by the president's coalition in September 2005. No trial has so far been held over the issue.

Source: PressTV.
Link: http://www.presstv.ir/detail.aspx?id=125507§ionid=351020406.

Pork test to bust cheats

Mon May 3, 2010

(Reuters) - Scientists in mainly Muslim Kazakhstan have come up with an instant test for the presence of pork in food, a popular newspaper reported on Monday.

The plastic-stick test detects food molecules that are found only in pork, which is forbidden by Islam but is easily found in the Central Asian state, Megapolis weekly said.

"It's no secret that some chefs cheat and add pork to beef to make the dish cheaper," the newspaper wrote on Monday, saying the practice was widespread in Kazakhstan.

"When you get your beef patty, cut off a couple of small pieces and drop them in a glass of water. Stir, shake, put the test stick in ... In a minute or two you will see the result."

Megapolis said it was unclear when the test, in which the stick changes color as in a pregnancy test, would become widely available.

Source: Reuters.
Link: http://www.reuters.com/article/idUSTRE6424YN20100503.

Carthage hosts international dance festival

2010-05-04

The tenth edition of international dance event "Carthage Choreographic" kicked off last week-end in Tunis, Tunisia Online reported on Monday (May 3rd). The one-week event is slated to feature professional dance troupes from Tunisia, Switzerland, France, Germany, and Belgium. The program also includes screenings of four African and European films about dance.

Source: Magharebia.com
Link: http://www.magharebia.com/cocoon/awi/xhtml1/en_GB/features/awi/newsbriefs/general/2010/05/04/newsbrief-05.

Algeria names new Sonatrach CEO

2010-05-04

Algerian state energy company Sonatrach on Monday (May 3rd) named former Hydrocarbon Regulatory Authority chief Nordine Cherouati as Chief Executive Officer. Sonatrach also appointed new vice-presidents to head upstream and downstream activity, transport and marketing. Abdelhafid Feghouli had served as acting chief since January, when Algeria began a corruption and bribery investigation of former Sonatrach CEO Mohamed Meziane, his two sons and several of the company's top executives.

Source: Magharebia.com
Link: http://www.magharebia.com/cocoon/awi/xhtml1/en_GB/features/awi/newsbriefs/general/2010/05/04/newsbrief-03.

Spain and Portugal are solid, Zapatero tells nervous markets

Brussels - Spain and Portugal are financially solid and any suggestion that the International Monetary Fund (IMF) and the eurozone will have to bail them out is "absolutely unfounded, irresponsible," the Spanish premier said Tuesday.

The Madrid stock exchange fell by almost 5 per cent on Tuesday, while the euro slid to a one-year low against the dollar at 1.3055, as markets feared that the Greek 110-billion-euro (146-billion- dollar) bailout may not be enough, and could be followed up by similar action for other eurozone countries.

But Jose Luiz Rodriguez Zapatero summoned journalists to an impromptu press conference in Brussels to "confirm his calm confidence in the strength of public accounts in my country," adding he had "the same confidence in Portugal's."

He said he did not "give any credit" to suggestions that Spain was preparing to ask for a bailout, calling the rumors "absolute madness."

He said that any increase in risk premiums being applied to Spanish bonds as a result of market speculation would be "simply intolerable, and of course we are going to counter it."

Zapatero insisted that Spain's public debt as a ratio of its gross domestic product (GDP) was "20 points lower than the European average" and said that concerns about its banking system's vulnerability to the collapse of the housing market were "unfounded and exaggerated."

He also suggested that the European Commission's spring economic forecasts, due Wednesday, would show that Spain has emerged from the recession ahead of expectations, while figures out Tuesday already showed the country's high unemployment has started to dip.

"We ask all economic operators to look at real data," he said.

Source: Earth Times.
Link: http://www.earthtimes.org/articles/show/321969,spain-and-portugal-are-solid-zapatero-tells-nervous-markets.html.

Syria gains observer status at WTO

Geneva - Syria was granted observer status at the World Trade Organization Tuesday, in the first step towards becoming a member of the global body.

Syria's effort to join the body was aided by Egypt and the group of Arab countries at the Geneva-based organization. No state objected to the proposal, and the European Union, Israel and the United States made no comment at all, WTO officials confirmed.

Developing and emerging markets backed Syria, with statements of support coming from Brazil, China, India and Pakistan.

Damascus has been trying to join the WTO since 2001, but has had its efforts thwarted in back-room negotiations.

Joining the WTO would "contribute both to global welfare and the welfare of the people of Syria," said Faysal Hamoui, Damascus' envoy to Geneva.

A working group will now be established for Syria to begin negotiating the terms of its accession. The process could take a number of years and no end result is certain.

Iran saw a working group established in 2005 on its accession, but that process has been mired ever since in procedural issues.

Russia also still is a candidate - one of the few remaining large economies outside of the global trading bloc.

Source: Earth Times.
Link: http://www.earthtimes.org/articles/show/321973,syria-gains-observer-status-at-wto.html.

Schwarzenegger in offshore drilling U-turn

San Francisco - California Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger has reversed his support for offshore drilling projects following the massive oil spill off Louisiana, and will not permit an expansion of oil exploration off the California coast.

"I see on TV the birds drenched in oil, the fishermen out of work, the massive oil slick destroying our precious ecosystem," he said in comments released by his office Tuesday. "That will not happen here in California and that is why I am withdrawing my support," he said.

Schwarzenegger had proposed a controversial drilling plan off the coast of Southern California, which would have raised 1.8 billion dollars over the next 14 years, as a way to help the state deal with its budget crisis. The so-called Tranquillon Ridge project would have been the state's first new oil lease in 14 years.

Source: Earth Times.
Link: http://www.earthtimes.org/articles/show/321987,schwarzenegger-in-offshore-drilling-u-turn.html.

Bereaved Gaza astronomer opens up the heavens

Rami Almeghari writing from, The Electronic Intifada, 4 May 2010

As the sun set on a clear evening in Gaza City, Suleiman Baraka was setting up his telescope on the rooftop of the French Cultural Center as two dozen visitors waited anxiously to gaze into the stars. It was a rare occasion to break away -- at least momentarily -- from the siege on the ground in the Gaza Strip.

"It is such an exciting experience for me that I never imagined would happen," said Suzan al-Barashly, one of the waiting star-gazers. "I've been used to nothing but Israeli warplanes and drones buzzing over our heads. I have never enjoyed the beauty of our sky. I am seeing the stars close to me -- such a beautiful scene."

In recent years, the Gaza Strip has witnessed widespread Israeli air raids that targeted many parts of the coastal territory, the latest and deadliest of which was in the winter of 2008-09. More than 1,400 persons, mostly civilians, were killed in the attacks.

That reality was not far from al-Barashly's mind. "I just told a friend that I am afraid to look into this telescope," she said. "It resembles a rocket launcher, so I am afraid the Israeli unmanned drones will hit us, thinking we are launching rockets."

Ahmad, another amateur astronomer, said, "I feel glad to have experienced something that is unimaginable in Gaza. Really, thanks to Mr. Suleiman, who made us enjoy such an incredible moment."

For the past several weeks, astronomer Suleiman Baraka has been touring the Gaza Strip with his telescope to allow as many individuals as possible to enjoy a few moments looking up into the heavens. His first stop was with the schoolmates of his late son, Ibrahim.

Baraka, 46, hails from the southern Gaza Strip and holds a doctorate in astrophysics from an Australian university. In 2007, he spent a year doing research at the National Aeronautical and Space Administration (NASA) in the United States. In January 2009, he returned to Gaza after Ibrahim, aged 11, was killed in an Israeli air strike that hit his home in the town of Bani Suhaila. Baraka now lives at his brother's home in Bani Suhaila along with his own four-member family.

"The killing of my son inspired in me a message of peace, a message that I decided to convey to his killers," Baraka said. "I gathered Ibrahim's fellow students and started teaching them how to be inspired to be scientists."

"I didn't teach them sources of horror or terror," Baraka recalled. "Rather, I wanted to send out a message that the sky, from which my son was killed, is a beautiful sky that has beautiful things to look at."

Along with the killing of his son and the destruction of his home, Baraka lost his large library of scientific books. With a smile full of pride, the astronomer also spoke about his experience at NASA.

"Man is great, man can do everything, once he is provided with the tools for creation. When you take off the social or economic burdens that always pose an obstacle in the face of achievement, man can do anything and can reach the moon. The Americans have been successful enough, ensuring such proper conditions for creation."

Before his position at NASA, Baraka had spent time doing research at Virginia Tech. When he first joined NASA, Baraka said, "I felt so proud of being a part of this prestigious American agency," he recalled.

Asked whether he planned to stay in Gaza or move abroad, Baraka replied that he is thinking of staying in Gaza to foster research for the benefit of the entire Gaza community.

"In coordination with a local university here, I plan to open up the first-ever space research department, hoping that in a course of five years, Gaza will see several space researchers, God willing," Baraka said.

But even bringing his highly-advanced Meade LXD 75 telescope into the Gaza Strip was enormously difficult due to the strict blockade Israel has imposed on in the territory for almost three years.

"Three countries helped bring this equipment into Gaza, but I am not going to name any of them," the astronomer said after an evening of star-gazing. As he spoke, he packed up the telescope, ready for the next stop on his tour.

Source: The Electronic Intifada.
Link: http://electronicintifada.net/v2/article11245.shtml.