Another Presidency for Putin ? ..[ 1789 ]

Putin Stunts Hint At Another Presidency Bid

8:14am UK, Monday September 13, 2010

Amanda Walker, Moscow correspondent

Russia's prime minister is dropping increasingly heavy hints that he will run for a third term as president in 2012.

His various hard-man displays such as tagging whales, extinguishing peat fires and riding motorbikes are being viewed as an attempt to remind the electorate of his power.

Ask most Russians who is really in charge of their country and they will say Mr Putin.
His iron grip on Russia is welcomed by many but dissent is also growing.
Not everyone is impressed by his macho ways, in fact many have had enough of what they call Mr Putin's regime.
The latest unsanctioned anti-Putin protest in central Moscow was roughly broken up by riot police.

Putin holds a crossbow as he fires tracking devices at whales

The violence was effectively endorsed by Mr Putin who had said a day earlier that protesters could expect a "whack on the bonce".
People gather on the 31st of each month to voice their anger at the right to freedom of assembly being quashed. At least 70 of them were detained.

Activism is not a dominant force in Russian society - but dissent is growing.
The Khimki Forest, otherwise known as Moscow's lungs, lies slap bang in the middle of a new highway linking Moscow and St Petersburg.
It is arguably one of the most divisive issues between Russia's leading figures.
Mr Putin wants the road to go ahead while Mr Medvedev has halted construction for an environmental investigation.

The Prime Minister rides a Harley Davidson trike in the Ukraine

That is seen as a substantial victory for people power but not without more rough treatment of protesters.
Yevgenia Chirikova has been detained three times for what she says was peaceful demonstration at the destruction of her family's environment.
She said: "Every time they use more and more force. Recently, I was detained by 20 policemen, I'm still shocked and distressed by this.

"Why would you use 20 policemen to arrest a typical middle-class person and mother of two? I think it was a show of force, to threaten others."
Mr Putin has yet to confirm that he will run for president in 2012 but all the signs are there.
If he does it is already becoming clear that very little will get in his way

Iraq holds up to 30,000 detainees..[ 1788 ]

Amnesty: Iraq holds up to 30,000 detainees without trial

By the CNN Wire Staff

September 13, 2010 -- Updated 1322 GMT (2122 HKT)

Iraqi Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki has previously disputed reports about torture in a secret prison.

(CNN) -- Tens of thousands of people are being held without charge in Iraq, sometimes suffering severe beatings in secret prisons, Amnesty International warned in a new report Monday.

Amnesty estimates there are 30,000 Iraqis being held without trial. Iraqi authorities "have failed to provide precise figures," the group said.

The human rights group issued its report on the heels of the transfer of up to 10,000 detainees from American custody to Iraqi control, following the official end of the U.S. combat mission in Iraq.

The Iraqi government had no immediate response Monday.

But the U.S. military in Iraq said detainees in the Iraqi judicial system are not "likely to face torture and ill-treatment."

"The detainee facilities are inspected frequently and abide by the rule of law and international standards for detainee care and management," Lt. Col. Bob Owen said Monday.

"The Ministry of Justice is serving a valuable role here in Iraq. Detainees are fed, clothed, provided medicine and able to meet with family members. The U.S. is not violating any international agreements in Iraq in respect to detainees."

In April, Iraqi Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki disputed reports alleging that Iraq is torturing and abusing people in a secret prison.

"There are no secret prisons in Iraq at all," al-Maliki said in an April 26 interview with state-run Al-Iraqiya TV.

Allegations of torture and abuse at the prison, named Muthanna, were first reported by the Los Angeles Times on April 19. Amnesty International then urged Iraqi officials to investigate the allegations.

CNN's Jomana Karadsheh in Baghdad, Iraq, contributed to this report

London: Rush-hour Tube train wrong way ..[ 1787 ]

Human error blamed for sending rush-hour Tube train wrong way

Dick Murray, Transport Correspondent
Standard Co.Uk., 13.09.10

Human error was to blame for a Tube train being switched into the path of another, investigators believe.

The west-bound Hammersmith & City line train was sent down the east-bound track at rush hour because an electrical relay switch was incorrectly wired, they suspect.

The blunder meant the signal was allowed to “reset” and turn to green, with points in the wrong position.

The train left Plaistow heading into London after getting a green signal at 8.20am last Wednesday. Seconds later the driver hit the brakes after realising she was on the wrong track and facing an incoming train.

The alarm was raised and signals in the area were turned to red — holding the head-on incoming train at West Ham, just along the track.

No blame was attached to either the driver or the signalman but Tube bosses and the Office of Rail Regulation launched a major inquiry amid fears it could happen again elsewhere on the network — used by more than three million people each day.

Points at the London end of the Plaistow platforms were found to work normally and investigations are focusing on the controlling electrical system. Engineering work was carried out in the immediate area just days before the incident.

Investigators are studying wiring to the relay switch — a control box — to establish if it was incorrectly wired.

This could have allowed the end-of-platform signal, which gave the go-ahead for the train to leave, to reset itself and turn green before the points had switched to the correct direction.

A senior Tube source said: “A signal fault like this has all the potential for a major disaster. The real fear is that it could happen again.”

The ORR said that after the alert, all signals turned red to prevent a collision. A spokesman said: “Our initial inquiries show the signalling system worked correctly and prevented a collision.” Tube records show the train was halted automatically just before the driver hit the cab brakes.

A Transport for London spokesman said today: “The driver, following LU's stringent safety procedures, stopped the train immediately and our signalling system prevented any east-bound trains from moving towards the stationary train.

“The nearest east-bound train was stationary at red signals almost a kilometre away at West Ham.”

The investigation is due to be concluded early next month.

CHINA, Scandals spark public distrust...[ 1786 ]

Measles vaccine plan in China spurs outcry

Scandals spark public distrust

A child cries while waiting Saturday to receive vaccination injection against measles at a clinic in Beijing. China wants to vaccinate nearly 100 million children in a 10-day nationwide campaign starting Saturday to bring it a step closer to eradicating measles. (Associated Press)

By Gillian Wong

-

Associated Press

5:58 p.m., Sunday, September 12, 2010

BEIJING | China's plans to vaccinate 100 million children and come a step closer to eradicating measles has set off a popular outcry that highlights widening public distrust of the authoritarian government after repeated health scandals.

Since the Health Ministry announced the World Health Organization-backed measles vaccination plan last week, authorities have been flooded with queries, and Internet bulletin boards have been plastered with worried messages. Conspiracy theories saying the vaccines are dangerous have spread by cell- phone text messages.

The public skepticism has even been covered by state-run media, which noted the lack of trust was about more than vaccines.

"Behind the public's panic over the rumors is an expression of the citizens' demands for security and a crisis in confidence," a columnist wrote in the Chongqing Daily newspaper.

"The lack of trust toward our food and health products was not formed in one day," said the Global Times newspaper. "Repairing the damage and building credibility will take a very long time. The public health departments need to take immediate action on all fronts."

In recent years, government agencies have dragged their feet or withheld information about the spread of SARS, bird flu and, last month, an outbreak of cholera. China's slow response to SARS, or severe acute respiratory syndrome, was widely blamed for causing the outbreak that swept the globe in 2003, and led to deep mistrust both internally and internationally.

Milk products contaminated with industrial chemicals are still turning up despite a scandal two years ago in which tainted infant formula sickened 300,000 babies and killed at least six.

Feeding into worries about the measles vaccine were media reports in March that vaccines for encephalitis, hepatitis B and other diseases possibly killed four children and seriously sickened dozens in one province.

The health ministry said an investigation showed those vaccines were improperly stored but subsequent illnesses were unrelated. Many remain unconvinced.

Meanwhile, two Chinese vaccine makers recently said they shut operations after rabies vaccines they produced were found to be substandard.

Story Continues →

New York: Memorial to the victims of the 9/11 ..[ 1785 ]

Memorial to the victims of terrorist attacks

ANT1 / 2 hours before and 5 '

Memorial commemorating the victims of September 11, 2001 celebrated by Archbishop Demetrios of America, near the spot where stood the little church of St. Nicholas.

In a simple ceremony, the Greek American community honored those who perished during the terrorist attacks on the World Trade Center, between thirty and expatriates.

The head of the Orthodox Church in America remitted also prayers for the rebuilding of St. Nicholas, the only place of worship that was destroyed that day and expressed confidence that the problems will be overcome and the temple will be built.

Among those present were relatives of the victims, the Priest and members of the community of St. Nicholas, the Consul General of Greece and Cyprus Ages Balta and Kula Sofianou respectively, and represented homogeny bodies.

Meanwhile, Archbishop Demetrios to include 31 religious leaders in the United States signed a full page in U.S. newspapers, which will express their disapproval of the alleged burning of the Koran.