Brown Lifts Labour's Hopes for Big Majority--UK

[Gloria]

New World Media Watch up now at http://www.zianet.com/insightanalytical
Tomorrow at Buzzflash

All links and exerpts at site.


WORLD MEDIA WATCH FOR APRIL 11, 2005



1//Asia Times Online, Hong Kong--REVIVAL OF THE TALIBAN (Two types of Taliban have left their leader Mullah Omar to join with Kabul: first, those organized by Pakistan's Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI) in Peshawar soon after the fall of the Taliban in 2001, and second, those who were arrested in Afghanistan and subsequently cultivated. Except for a few, all are mullahs. The vast majority of Taliban commanders retreated to Pakistan or adopted a low-profile private life in Afghan villages pending Mullah Omar finalizing a new guerrilla strategy similar to that adopted by the Iraqi resistance. The results of this are expected to manifest themselves within a few months. . … . Thus, unlike in the past, the Taliban movement is now target-oriented rather than reliant on the random attacks it previously adopted. Asia Times Online sources say that there are only a few hundred of these small teams. Their initial targets are Khost, Ghazni, Kandahar and Jalalabad, with June earmarked for attacks in Kabul.)


2//Islamic Republic News Agency, Iran—OPTIMISTIC IRAN CALLS FOR OPEN NUCLEAR TALKS (Iran Sunday sounded upbeat ahead of planned nuclear negotiations with the Europeans on April 19, hoping that they would put reservations aside this time in order to move further ahead. The two sides are engaged in intensive talks, centering on Tehran's uranium enrichment rights, with President Mohammad Khatami announcing this week that the two sides have made significant progress in this regard. Giving his own assessment of last month's talks, Foreign Ministry spokesman Hamid Reza Asefi described them as 'good', stressing that 'although cautionary, the last round of the negotiations has been a step forward'. . … . Khatami said the two sides were closer to a settlement over Tehran's right to develop nuclear power. . … . The country, however, insists that it cannot be cajoled to sustain the suspension for good. . … . Iran's Foreign Minister Kamal Kharrazi stressed last month that economic incentives may help improve foreign relations but won't permanently stop Tehran from pursuing a peaceful nuclear program. . … . “Economic incentives can't replace our rights. Our legitimate rights can't be compensated through economic incentives," Kharrazi said.)



3//The Guardian, UK--BROWN LIFTS LABOUR’S HOPES FOR BIG MAJORITY (Tony Blair is back on course for a hefty election victory as disgruntled Labour supporters start rallying to Labour, according to a new poll carried out for The Observer. Today's MORI poll, putting Labour seven points ahead among people certain to vote, will be seen as evidence of a 'Brown bounce', following the return of the Chancellor of the Exchequer to the campaign's centre stage. The boost to Labour's fortunes reflects a greater willingness among supporters to turn out and vote, but unless that is sustained victory could still slip from its grasp. . … . A focus group commissioned for The Observer reveals Blair has suffered badly from fading trust, while Brown is regarded as a 'safe pair of hands', reliable, straightforward and the real power behind the throne, helping explain why he has been recalled.)



4//The Moscow Times, Russia--PUTIN FACING A BACKLASH FROM BUSINESS (President Vladimir Putin is facing a growing backlash from leading businessmen over what they see as increasing state interference in the economy, a rising tide of state corruption, paralysis in policymaking and mounting jitters over whether political stability can be maintained. . … . "The state is not being managed, no decisions are being made. There is no team managing the economy," said one leading businessman, speaking on condition of anonymity. "We are working from one day to the next. But business is not happy. There are not equal conditions for all. ... We need to see long-term prognoses. Business is tired of promises that are not being kept. "The state is like a big corporation and the management of it has just gotten worse. When management gets worse, normally the shareholders try to change the leadership," he said. After spending most of his five years in power unchallenged and foot-sure on the economy amid high oil prices that have filled state coffers to record levels, suddenly Putin is starting to look isolated and weak. . … . The Kremlin has been attempting to mend the rift. In an unprecedented interview in Expert magazine last week, chief of staff Dmitry Medvedev warned of the "monstrous" consequences if the country should collapse, which he said could occur if the elites did not join in supporting Putin's regime.)



5//The Globe and Mail, Canada--BLOC LEADER WARY OF FORCING ELECTION (The Bloc Québécois is sure it can make the Liberals pay at the polls for the federal sponsorship scandal, but that's not enough in itself to justify a spring election, says Bloc Leader Gilles Duceppe. . … . “We're there to defend Quebec's best interests,” said Mr. Duceppe. “And we have to ask ourselves, is it in Quebec's best interests to have an election now or to wait a bit? So we'll see.” Mr. Duceppe also hinted strongly that there's no point in the Bloc trying to topple Mr. Martin's government if the Conservatives and NDP aren't onside. . … . Conservative Leader Stephen Harper used a Saturday rally on Parliament Hill against same-sex marriage to get in some digs at the Liberals on the sponsorship front as well. “Corruption is not a Canadian value,” thundered Mr. Harper. He sidestepped the question of how his party would vote if the Bloc decides to use an opposition day in the Commons on Thursday to present a motion of non-confidence in the Liberals.)