Extracts.
Clashes Between Police, Protesters in Karachi, Pakistan. Hundreds of Pakistan <http://english.peopledaily.com.cn/data/pakistan.html> i Islamic groups followers clashed with police in the southern port city of Karachi Friday morning, throwing stones and setting a restaurant on fire, according to news reaching here. The restaurant was US fast food KFC-licensed. Witnesses were quoted as saying that the restaurant had covered its familiar sign and logo this week in anticipation of anti-American protest, but protesters already knew of its existence. The news reports did not mention if anyone was injured. Firefighters extinguished the fire as demonstrators moved on to burn seven vehicles. Leaders of major Islamic political parties called nationwide demonstrations for Friday and a nationwide strike for Monday to protest U.S.-led military strikes in neighboring Afghanistan <http://www.peopledaily.com.cn/english/data/afghanistan.html> . Scattered protests and violence, some whipped up by leaders of major Islamic parties in Pakistan, have taken place in some cities this week since the strikes began Sunday. But the government says things are under control, and President Pervez Musharraf insists most Pakistanis support his decision to help the United States <http://www.peopledaily.com.cn/english/data/usa.html> . U.S.-led forces started aristrikes against Afghanistan Sunday night for its failure to hand over Osama bin Laden, the prime suspect of the September 11 terrorist attacks in U.S. **** Solution to Mideast Conflict Vital to World Safety: Mubarak. Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak Thursday warned that there would be "no safety" in the world if the Arab-Israeli conflict will not be settled "comprehensively." "Although we are dealing with the terrorists there in Afghanistan, there will be no safety on our planet in the future without reaching a comprehensive settlement to the problem of the Middle East," Mubarak said at a joint news conference with visiting British Prime Minister Tony Blair after their talks. While lauding U.S. President George W. Bush's endorsement of a future Palestinian state, Mubarak said that he and Blair agreed to maximize their efforts to reach this objective "as soon as possible." Resolving the Palestinian-Israeli conflicts would not allow terrorist groups to use the stalemate of the Mideast peace process to justify their terror activities, Mubarak said. He called on the international community to be united against terrorism, while proposing international efforts to combat terrorism within the framework of the United Nations. "Now it is time to hold an international conference against terrorism, which I had proposed 10 years ago, because we have suffered from terrorism for a long time," Mubarak said, adding that Egypt has done a lot to fight terrorism in the country. But he stressed that efforts should be made to reject any attempts to link terrorism to the Arab or Islamic world. For his part, Blair spoke highly of Mubarak's supports for international efforts against terrorism, making it clear that the current struggle against terrorism is by no means a campaign by the Western countries against Islam. He said that the purpose of terrorists who attacked the U.S. on September 11 was not only to kill innocent people, but also to make division between "the Arabs and the Western, Muslim and other faiths." "We will not be divided, rather we will stand united to bring the terrorists to justice," Blair said. The British leader also said that it is important to continue efforts to push forward the stalled Mideast peace process, adding that the Mideast conflict needs to be addressed "urgently." Blair flew into Cairo in the day from Oman, where he met Omani Sultan Qabus bin Said and rallied 23,000 British troops on exercise there. Cairo is the last leg in Blair's shuttle diplomacy to drum up support for the U.S.-led anti-terrorism coalition as military operations against the Taliban regime in Afghanistan continue. Last week, Blair visited Pakistan and India. **** Iran Denies Claims of Terrorists' Presence. Iran <http://www.peopledaily.com.cn/english/data/iran.html> on Thursday vehemently rejected a US claim that the Islamic republic was sheltering several terrorists, denouncing the charge as "baseless and unfounded". Iran's state IRNA news agency quoted an unidentified official as making the response to Venice Canistraro, the chief of counter- terrorist operations of the U.S. Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), who reportedly said on Wednesday that seven people in a 22- men list of the U.S. "most wanted terrorists" were believed to be in Iran. "This claim of the American official is categorically unfounded and baseless and such persons are not in Iran," the Iranian official said. U.S. President George W. Bush Wednesday unveiled a list of 22 " most wanted terrorists" including Saudi-born militant Osama bin Laden, the prime suspect of the September 11 terror attacks in New York and Washington. Washington has accused the Afghan Taliban regime of harboring bin Laden and launched military attacks last Sunday on the Taliban's targets. While condemning the terror attacks in the U.S., Iran, a neighboring country to the west of Afghanistan <http://www.peopledaily.com.cn/english/data/afghanistan.html> , is strongly opposed to the U.S.-British strikes over the Central Asian Muslim country. **** Protests Staged Across Iran Against U.S. Strikes in Afghanistan. Tens of thousands of Iranians in various cities took to the streets on Friday to protest against the on-going U.S.-led military strikes in neighboring Afghanistan. In the capital Tehran, several thousand people marched from the Tehran University to the central Palestine square with the participation of Iran's Minister of Culture and Islamic Guidance Ahmad Masjed Jamei and Minister of Commerce Mohammad Shariatmadari. In a statement, the protestors accused the White House of " fanning the flames of a crisis." "The U.S., which supports Israeli state terrorism, is not suitable to lead such a global campaign against terrorism and has no logical right to lead the world into crisis with its power- thriving policies," the statement said. The nation-wide protests were called on Wednesday by Iran's Islamic Propaganda Organization, the body in charge of organizing demonstrations and rallies in the country. Other major cities witnessing mass protests included Isfahan, Tabriz, Shiraz, Bushehr, Hamedan, Bandar Abbas, as well as southeastern Zahedan and northeastern Mashhad, both close to the border with Afghanistan. A rally of about 3,000 people in Zahedan, capital of southeastern Sistan Baluchistan province, turned violent after the demonstrators threw stones to the Pakistani consulate there. Pakistan formerly supported Afghanistan's ruling Taliban regime, but now backs the U.S.-led operations in Afghanistan. Washington, charging the Afghan Taliban regime with harboring Saudi-born militant Osama bin Laden, the prime suspect of the September 11 terror attacks on the U.S., started retaliatory attacks in Afghanistan last Sunday. Iran condemned the September 11 terror attacks, but has refused to join or assist the U.S.-led military actions against Afghanistan. **** US Conducts New Type of War Different From Vietnam: Bush. US President George W. Bush said Thursday that the United States is conducting a new type of war, which is different from that in Vietnam. Addressing a first prime-time US presidential news conference since 1995, Bush said that the lesson the United States has learned from the Vietnam war is "you can not fight a guerrilla war with conventional forces". It is now a unconventional war with different type of approach and mentality, he added. **** China Regrets Civilian Casualties in Afghanistan, FM Spokesman. China regrets the civilian casualties in the US and British air strikes against Afghanistan <http://www.peopledaily.com.cn/english/data/afghanistan.html> , said Chinese Foreign Ministry <http://www.fmprc.gov.cn/eng/> Spokesman Sun Yuxi Thursday. Sun, at the regular press conference, said China has always stressed that anti-terrorism actions should be aimed at specific targets, avoid hurting innocent people, and should not spread the war to other countries. China believes that the fight against terrorism will be more effective if these principles are observed, and China hopes these principles be faithfully implemented, Sun stressed. China has cooperated with the international community, including the U.S., in the counter-terrorism sphere, Sun said, noting that in view of the current situation, China has strengthened security measures along its border with Afghanistan. All of China's institutions in Pakistan <http://english.peopledaily.com.cn/data/pakistan.html> , including its embassy and counsel in Karachi, are working normally, Sun said, adding that those Chinese who work in Pakistan's bordering areas with Afghanistan have withdrawn to other safer places of that country. **** No Hiding-Place Is Allowed for Corrupt Elements in the Party. The serious cases of breach of law and violation of discipline by Mu Suixin, former mayor of Shenyang City, and Ma Xiangdong, executive deputy mayor, and several others have been subjected to investigation and prosecution, and a group of corrupt criminals have been punished according to law. This once again indicates: the Communist Party of China (CPC) is never indulgent toward and soft on the punishment of corrupting actions and corrupt elements and never allows a hiding place for them within the Party. Mu Suixin, Ma Xiangdong and others, as leading cadres, broke laws and violated discipline, became corrupt and degenerate in defiance of Party discipline and State laws. Abusing powers in their hands, they received huge amounts of bribes and grabbed private gains; they appointed people by favoritism and benefits, addressed chiefs of the black market as their brothers, and indulged in the trading of power for money; they practiced curve-accumulation of wealth by letting their spouses, children and relatives participate in business and operate enterprises; they committed crimes despite orders and decrees and resisted examinations conducted by the Party and government, in an attempt to escape legal penalty. Their actions have smeared the images of the Party and government, and jeopardized the cause of reform, opening up and the modernization drive. >From the case of Mu Suixin it can be seen: The key to improving the Party's style of work and successfully building a clean and honest administration and guaranteeing that Party cadres at all levels effectively exercise and use their powers for the people lies in leading bodies. First of all, it is necessary to choose and use the right people. We should begin with deepening the reform of the cadre and personnel system, tighten supervision over the selection and appointment of cadres, prevent and overcome the unhealthy trends in employment and violation of discipline from their source, establish and perfect the system of making public the assessment of cadres and the system of multi-candidate election, and give play to the role of mass supervision, so that people with both ability and political integrity and enjoying support from the masses will come into the open, and the evil ways of campaigning and asking for official posts will be blocked; we should set up a system for investigating and affixing responsibility for cadre work. Cases of oversight and mistake made in employment which entail serious consequences should be investigated and affixed responsibility and seriously prosecuted. It is imperative to intensify supervision over leading cadres. Cadres at all levels, being public servants of the people, must be subject to the supervision of the people and the law. It is necessary to rely on the development of democracy and improvement of the legal system to prevent and rectify the phenomenon of corruption. By strengthening inner-Party supervision, legal supervision and mass supervision, in light of the concrete structure, system and weak link that aptly give rise to the phenomenon of corruption, and through deepening reform and structural innovation, it is essential to establish a power operating mechanism featuring a rational structure, scientific allocation, compact procedure and mutual restriction, to ensure that power operates along the track of institutionalization and legalization. The key to combating corruption and encouraging honest practices lies in the temporary tackling and permanent solution of problems, it is necessary to prevent and control corruption from its fountainhead, and gradually eradicate the soil and condition for the breeding of the phenomenon of corruption. The vast numbers of cadres who are Party members should draw a lesson from the degeneration of Mu Suixin and others. They must establish and maintain the noble sentiment and revolutionary quality of Communists, pursue the temperament and interest of life featuring active effort to make progress, and cultivate a sharp sense of integrity of Communists. They should pay attention not only to the need to study, to be politically minded and to be honest and upright, but also to cultivation, morality and honor and shame, they should do fruitful work with man. They should practice strict self-discipline, so as to check a vice in the bud. They should persevere in self-respect, self-introspection, self-vigilance and self-encouragement, so as to constantly enhance their consciousness of observing discipline and laws, they should persistently be clean and honest, and be upright persons. Should consciously resist the corrosion of money worship, hedonism and extreme individualism, and construct a solid ideological Great Wall against corruption and degeneration. Party cadres, especially leading cadres, should establish a correct outlook on power, position and benefit and keep firmly in mind the purpose of serving the people wholeheartedly. They should be the first to show concern and the last to enjoy themselves, the first to bear hardship and the last to enjoy comfort. They should set an example, be clean and honest and self-disciplined. They should properly govern themselves, their spouses, children and working staff around them, they should properly handle the construction of Party style and clean and honest government in their own regions and departments. They should withstand the tests of reform, opening up and ruling power, as well as the tests of power, money and badger game. Jiang Zemin's important speech given on July 1 provides us with a fundamental guidance and a sharp weapon for strictly administering the Party and combating corruption and encouraging honesty in accordance with the requirements of the "three represent's", we must study and implement it conscientiously. The Sixth Plenary Session of the 15th Party Central Committee adopted the Decision of the CPC Central Committee on Strengthening and Improving the Construction of the Party Style of Work", clearly pointed to the need, at present and for a period of time to come, to grasp focal points and concentrate our efforts to solve outstanding problems in the respects of the Party's ideological style, the style of study, style of work, style of leadership and life-style of cadres. From the height concerning the life and death of the Party and State and lasting peace and stability, comrades of the whole Party must realize the important significance of the construction of the Party's style of work and clean and honest government and the struggle against corruption. The work of combating corruption and encouraging clean and honest practices must be carried through the whole process of the reform, opening up and modernization drive, we must win the confidence of the people with the actual results of the construction of Party style of work and clean and honest government, so that our Party will always maintain vitality and vigor. **** Ten Corrupt Senior Officials Dismissed From CPC. Ten senior officials have been expelled from the Communist Party of China (CPC) and removed from public positions, the CPC Liaoning Provincial Commission for Discipline Inspection (LPCDI) and the Provincial Supervision Department told a press conference Wednesday morning. The officials were implicated in the corruption case of Mu Suixin, former mayor of Shenyang, northeast China's Liaoning Province. Jia Yongxiang, former president of the Shenyang Intermediate Court, has taken massive bribes and kickbacks to support a corrupt life, and wiped out big personal bills with public money. Liu Shi, former procurator general of the Shenyang People's Procuratorate, was accused of taking huge bribes and interfering with the investigation on Ma Xiangdong, former deputy mayor of Shenyang and also now under trial for corruption charges. Jiao Meigui, former vice president of the Shenyang Intermediate Court, took bribes from local gangsters and speculated with large amounts of public money. The Wednesday announcement also confirmed the discharging from CPC membership and government employment of seven other senior officials. Among them are Zhou Wei, and former director of Shenyang Tobacco Monopoly Administration, Liang Fuquan, former vice president of the Shenyang Intermediate Court. Xu Weiguo, a LPCDI official, said that the punishment handed out to the corrupt senior officials demonstrated the determination and ability of the CPC and the Chinese government to eliminate corruption. President Vladimir Putin of Russia, the presidential office said. **** China Demands ROK's Active Cooperation for Investigation on Illegal Immigration Case. Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Sun Yuxi said Wednesday that China demands active cooperation from the Republic of Korea (ROK) to thoroughly investigate an illegal immigration case which involved the death of 25 Chinese citizens. Sun made the remark while answering questions from the press for comment on the ROK's apology to the Chinese government after the dumping of the corpses of 25 Chinese stowaways into the sea. Sun said that according to information from the ROK police, 25 Chinese citizens, stowaways en route to the ROK, were stifled to death in the freezing hold of a fishing boat and their bodies dumped into the sea. The remaining 35 stowaways are alive and in the custody of the ROK police. The captain, a ROK citizen, and other suspects have been detained. The spokesman stressed the Chinese government is paying high attention to the case. The Foreign Ministry promptly contacted the ROK side through diplomatic channels, asking for an immediate and thorough investigation into the case, the identities of the people concerned and timely information about the progress. The Chinese embassy to the ROK has sent staff to the scene for further information and to see the survivors. He said that this is an illegal immigration case organized by transnational criminals. The Chinese government expressed strong indignation and condemnation over the criminals' inhuman behavior, and expressed regret for the dead and sent deep condolences to their families. The Chinese government has always opposed illegal immigration, taking strong actions against all types of illegal immigration activities and cooperating actively with related countries and international organizations, Sun said. China demands the ROK work actively to carry out a thorough investigation into the case, severely punish the perpetrators and properly handle the remaining problems of the incident. **** How Cult Plotted to Sue Chinese Official: Report . In mid-July, when a government official from central China's Hubei <http://english.peopledaily.com.cn/data/province/hubei.html> Province visited the United States <http://www.peopledaily.com.cn/english/data/usa.html> , he unexpectedly received a summons from an American court. The official was said to be sued by Peng Liang, a Chinese citizen and Falun Gong practitioner, on the charge of "human rights" violations that caused the death of Peng's brother, Peng Min, and mother, Li Yinxiu, early this year. Xinhua News Agency <http://www.xinhua.org/> published a report, co-written by Xinhua and People's Daily <http://www.peopledaily.com.cn/GB/paper464/> reporters, Thursday, telling of how the Falun Gong cult plotted for the indictment. According to the report, Peng's family lives in Wuhan, the provincial capital of Hubei, and all five family members are Falun Gong followers. On February 28, 2000, Peng Min, 27, was detained by local police on suspicion of organizing others and using the cult to break the law, and he was arrested later. On January 8, 2001, the man hurt himself by striking an iron gate with his head in an apparently suicide attempt and was paralyzed due to a fracture. Local government and hospitals tried all means to save his life, but the man died on April 5. When he was in hospital, his family members, including the parents and Peng Liang, refused to let him receive proper medical treatment, but instead, insisted on broadcasting tapes on Falun Gong and reading the "sutra" of the cult for him, in front of his hospital bed. Upon learning that the son died, the mother put her palms together and said, "You have reached perfectness at last." His father said, "We, the whole family, are proud of you." Since Peng's family are too poor to afford the medical charges, the government exempted them from paying the fees worth more than 30,000 yuan. On April 29, the 56-year old mother died of a cerebral hemorrhage in a local hospital. When Li Hongzhi, the Falun Gong leader, and the headquarters of the cult in the United States, learnt of their deaths, they directed, via the Internet, their followers in China to plot for the indictment. A number of the followers were involved in the conspiracy, including Mo Chou, Li Fengyou, Zhang Jing, Yan Zhigang and Liu Xunchun. They found Peng Liang and persuaded him to sign on a power of attorney which was fabricated to tell a false story on the case. Peng wrote what he saw on the spot, but did not know that the power of attorney later would be replaced by a fabricated copy with his signature on. When the cult group received the indictment, they sued the Chinese official when he was in the United States, which was widely covered by news media in some foreign countries and Taiwan <http://english.peopledaily.com.cn/data/province/taiwan.html> Province. Afterwards, the cult members also planned to smuggle Peng out of the country, but the police stopped them. In a commentary accomppanying the report to be published October 12, the People's Dalily says that lies will never help save the doom of Falun Gong cult. It describes the plot by the Falun Gong headquarters in New York to sue the Chinese official as a "farce", which ended in vain. _________________________________________________ KOMINFORM P.O. Box 66 00841 Helsinki Phone +358-40-7177941 Fax +358-9-7591081 http://www.kominf.pp.fi General class struggle news: [EMAIL PROTECTED] subscribe mails to: [EMAIL PROTECTED] Geopolitical news: [EMAIL PROTECTED] subscribe: [EMAIL PROTECTED] __________________________________________________
