Thursday, June 28, 2007

Headlines (5:30)
WHITE HOUSE DEFIES CONGRESSIONAL SUBPOENAS
The White House has moved to block congressional subpoenas issued as
part of the investigation into the dismissals of 8 US attorneys. A
letter issued today by White House counsel Fred Fielding states that
President Bush is exercising executive privilege to keep those
subpoenaed from turning over documents. The announcement comes just
one day after the Senate Judiciary Committee issued subpoenas for
documents relating to the administration's warrantless wiretapping
program. Senate Judiciary Committee Chairman Patrick Leahy described
the the president's move as "Nixonian stonewalling".

ISRAELI PRESIDENT TO RESIGN OVER SEX CRIMES
Israeli President Moshe Katsav has agreed to resign as part of a
surprise plea bargain that allows him to avoid jail time for sex
offenses. Katsav has been the subject of a year long investigation
into charges of sexual crimes against former employees. Rape charges
have been dropped, but the Israeli president has pleaded guilty to
charges of sexual harassment, indecent acts, and obstruction of
justice.

THE EU AND THE US AGREE ON PASSENGER DATA DEAL
The US and the EU have revised a deal to share data on all passengers
on trans-Atlantic flights under the pretext of fighting terrorism.
Cinnamon Nippard reports from Berlin.

At present, within minutes of a flight's departure for the US, up to
34 pieces of data, including passengers names, addresses, seat
numbers, credit card and travel details, are forwarded to US
authorities. Sharing this information actually breaches European data
protection laws, but in 2004 the European Commission and the
governments of the 27 EU member states negotiated an exemption for the
US. However last year the European Court deemed the agreement signed
in 2004 to be illegal, and gave the EU until the end of July to come
up with a new deal. Under the latest draft agreement, the 34 types of
data would be reduced to 19, but the United States would be able to
keep this data for up to 15 years. The European Union's data
protection supervisor, Peter Hustinix has criticized the deal saying
that the privacy rights of EU citizens have become casualties in the
US War on Terror. European authorities will release the details of the
passenger data exchange program tomorrow. Cinnamon Nippard reporting
for Free Speech Radio News in Berlin.

ANDEAN TRADE DEAL EXTENDED, FAST TRACK AT RISK
The US House of Representatives has overwhelmingly approved a
short-term extension of a South American trade agreement...but some in
Congress have indicated that the president's fast track authority may
have a tough time when it comes up for renewal. Matt Kaye reports from
Capitol Hill.

The 365 to 59 House vote for an 8-month extension of the Andean Trade
Preference Agreement cleared the way for possible action soon on trade
deals with Peru and Panama—and maybe Columbia, at a later date. But
the vote angered Democratic critics of the deals, who have vowed to
oppose any renewal of presidential 'Fast Track' powers, which expire
Saturday. Fast Track Authority speeds trade deals through Congress on
'up or down' votes without allowing for changes or amendments. Ohio
Representative Marcy Kaptur: (sound) "We're here today to say that
this process of 'fast-balling' measures through the Congress on 'Fast
Track' is over, is over…because we have to begin restoring a regimen
in this country that creates American jobs—not, exports them, and
begins to represent the American people, at the table of global
trade." Kaptur vows legislation to fix inequities she SAYS exist in
NAFTA…and will join with House and Senate allies to propose tougher
new labor and environmental rules for all future trade deals—and for
renewing presidential trade powers. Matt Kaye, Washington.

SOUTH AFRICAN TRADE UNIONS END THEIR STRIKE
Hundreds of thousands of public sector workers in South Africa have
called off their 4 week old strike. The Congress of South African
Trade Unions, known as Cosatu, joined smaller independent unions in
accepting a 7.5 percent wage hike. The strike was the largest show of
force by organized labor since the end of apartheid.

MAOISTS ON THE OFFENSIVE IN WEST BENGAL
Maoist rebels in eastern India have been carrying out a campaign of
shutdown strikes and sabotage in opposition to governmental policies
to promote big business investment in the region. FSRN's Vinod K. Jose
reports.

State governments across a broad swathe in southern, central and
eastern India have made themselves largely unpopular with their
constituents due to aggressive promotion of industrial development
projects and so-called "special economic zones". Small farmers have
been among the hardest hit, as governments appropriate their land to
make way for industrial complexes. The level of frustration has
allowed a well-organized Maoist guerrilla force to acquire the muscle
to openly challenge the state and its economic system. Maoists in the
state of West Bengal enforced a successful two-day shutdown strike
earlier this week. Before dawn yesterday, a hundred Maoists raided a
railway station there, chasing away railway authorities and damaging
the station's signal network. The raid caused no casualties but did
disrupt train service for several hours. On, Tuesday the Maoists blew
up tracks and partially destroyed a cargo train in the neighboring
state of Jharkhand. The attacks come after weeks have seen blockades,
strikes and acts of sabotage targeting railways, communications
systems and mining companies. The government has taken it as a law and
order issue and sent more troops. For FSRN From New Delhi in India
this is Vinod K. Jose.

Features
Immigration Bill Dies in the Senate (4:30)
The Senate immigration bill was again halted for the second time this
month. Members failed to gain the 60 votes necessary to move forward
with the bill. It was a successful bid to kill the bill by a number of
Southern Republicans. Washington Editor Leigh Ann Caldwell reports.

Supreme Court Splits Over Using Race as a Factor in School Diversity Plans (4:15)
In a 5-to-4 decision, the Supreme Court ruled against voluntary
desegregation in public schools. The high court heard appeals in cases
involving two public school districts, one in Kentucky, the other in
Washington State, where parents say the use of race in determining
school assignments discriminated against white students by barring them
from attending popular schools. FSRN Host Aura Bogado spoke with John
Brittain, chief council with the Lawyer's Committee for Civil Rights in
Washington, DC.

UN Tribunal in Lebanon (4:00)
Since the end of last summer's devastating 34-day war with Israel,
Lebanon has been plagued by violence - car bombings, increased
sectarian strife and 2 targeted assassinations of anti-Syrian officials
– all since last November. For the past five weeks, well-armed Islamic
militants have been battling Lebanese security forces in northern
Lebanon. Meanwhile, the pro-Western government has joined the U.S.
government in blaming Syria for the unrest. In Paris this week, U.S.
Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice reiterated U.S. support for United
Nations Security Council Resolution 1757 – which aims to set up an
international tribunal to prosecute those responsible for the 2005
assassination of Lebanon's former Prime Minister, Rafiq Hariri. Syrian
officials are alleged to have been involved, and as Jackson Allers
reports from Beirut, the U.N. tribunal will likely be the next
battleground for Lebanon's government and the political opposition, led
by Hizbullah, a group that maintains close ties with Syria.

Push for Bio Fuels Displacing Indigenous Communities (4:00)
Some 7 million acres of forest are being cleared in Indonesia for palm
plantations every year. The government plans to double the number of
plantations in the next six years to meet rocketing worldwide demand
for bio-fuel made with the palm oil. They argue it will lift poor
communities out of poverty and create millions of jobs. But the
indigenous inhabitants of Central Kalimantan, the Indonesia province of
Borneo, are being forced off their land to make way for this
development. Dayak nomadic farmers who have lived in harmony with the
forests for thousands of years are losing their ancestral lands at a
dramatic rate. Rebecca Henschke has more.

Sexual Assault Against Native American Women Addressed at US Social Forum (3:00)
According to the US Department of Justice, Native American women are
more than 2.5 times more likely to be raped or sexually assaulted than
other women in the US. FSRN's Karen Miller reports from the US Social
Forum in Atlanta, where several groups highlighted this often ignored
issue.