Agency WPS
DEFENSE and SECURITY (Russia)
December 1, 2004, Wednesday
THE FATE OF THE LAST RUSSIAN BASE IN AZERBAIJAN UNDECIDED
SOURCE: Nezavisimaya Gazeta, November 29, 2004, p. 11
by Rauf Mirkadyrov
RUMORS ON THE UPCOMING APPEARANCE OF AMERICAN MILITARY BASES IN
AZERBAIJAN PUT WITHDRAWAL OF RUSSIAN MILITARY OBJECTS FROM THE
COUNTRY INTO THE FOCUS OF ATTENTION
The Gabala radar installation, the only Russian military object left
on the territory of Azerbaijan, is in jeopardy. National parliament
demanded a revision of the terms of lease more than once already. Not
long ago, the Azerbaijani Ministry of Ecology announced that it would
monitor the effect of electromagnetic emanation from the installation
on environment and the population. PR Department of the Russian Space
Force immediately released a statement to the effect that the
emanation was well within the established norms. Unfortunately, local
environmentalists claim quite the opposite. It should be noted here
that all these organizations exist on grants from Western, mostly
American, trusts. Citing their findings, environmentalists claim that
the Gabala radar has a negative effect on nature and health of the
population.
Even parliamentarians joined the campaign – mostly deputies of the
ruling party and that is not something that could happen without an
encouraging nod from the very top. Deputy Dzhangir Guseinov demanded
an answer from defense minister to the question concerning the rumors
that officers of Armenian origin were assigned to the Gabala
installation. The lawmaker called it unacceptable even if the
officers in question were in fact citizens of Russia. Other
parliamentarians and a substantial part of society backed Guseinov.
Well-informed sources claim that a new campaign for the closure of
Gabala was initiated by upper echelons of the Defense Ministry of
Azerbaijan. Allegedly, the matter of leasing the installation to
Russia was settled without the opinion of the Defense Ministry taken
into account, and an insiders claim that the Defense Ministry always
objected to the idea. The fact that the campaign was inspired by the
Defense Ministry is quite indicative. Defense Minister Safar Abiyev
is known as the man who would not do anything without looking over
his shoulder at the United States first.
Sure, official Baku may allegedly find itself under the pressure of
some domestic and, more importantly, external factors sufficiently
serious to initiate negotiations with Russia over liquidation of the
military object. “Electronic equipment may be dismantled and
withdrawn. But it is not the electronics that is valuable in this
particularly case (the electronics in question is fairly outdated
now), it is the building itself as a construction. It cannot be
dismantled. It can only be blown up, destroyed in the manner an
analogous object was destroyed in Latvia,” independent military
expert Dzhasur Mamedov said.
It does not even matter that Russia did not pay all its debts for the
use of the Gabala station before the signing of the lease accord for
a decade (it came into effect in 2002). Russia is paying only $7
million a year for the installation. Meanwhile, Moscow pledged to pay
$30 million worth of electricity bills for between 1992 and 2002. It
has not got down to it yet.
Azerbaijan has all legal grounds to initiate negotiations over
liquidation of the Gabala installation. About a year ago, its
parliament passed a law on national security expressly forbidding
foreign military bases on the territory of the country.
Azerbaijani Foreign Minister Elmar Mamedov told this correspondent
that the Gabala station operates under the lease accord between the
two states and viewing it as a military base is a mistake. As far as
Russia and Azerbaijan are concerned, he said, Gabala is a center of
information and analysis leased by Russia on the basis of an
agreement between our governments.
All the same, Azerbaijan may call Gabala a foreign military base and
initiate liquidation talks at literally any moment.
In the last 30 years or so first the USSR and the US and then Russia
and America signed a series of strategic arms limitation (SALT-I and
II), strategic offensive arms restriction (START-I and II), and
ballistic missile defense systems restriction (Ballistic Missile
Defense Treaty) accords. Said Mamedov, “These accords stipulated a
restriction of missiles with nuclear warheads and abolition of some
early warning radar stations including the Gabala and Latvian ones.
The station in Latvia was blown up, and the sides “forgot” about
Gabala – they probably agreed to. In any case, the provision
concerning elimination of the Gabala installation was never fulfilled
even though the sides never annulled it. Formally, the United States
will be quite within its rights demanding fulfillment of the clause
from Russia.”
So, Azerbaijan has enough formal excuses for initiation of the
liquidation talks. But why bring up the matter at this point
precisely?
Political scientist Metin Yasharoglu does not think that the American
military will want to be neighbors of the Russians no matter on what
pretext they are deployed in Azerbaijan. Reports appeared in the
Western media not long ago that Washington began consultations with
official Baku over the use of the territory of Azerbaijan for strikes
against Iran. Bearing in mind that Moscow is highly unlikely to
support Washington’s idea, the future of the Gabala station becomes
clear: The United States will never permit”enemy” radar behind its
lines.
Yasharoglu says that this turn of events is quite plausible. “Iranian
Foreign Minister Harrazi announced that Tehran accepted all IAEA
demands and abandonment of the uranium-enrichment program as soon as
the reports on strikes at Iran from the territory of Azerbaijan
appeared. President of Iran Hatami called Ilham Aliyev on the phone
on two occasions in the last month,” the expert said. “Shortly before
that, Tehran has finally settled the matter of opening the consulate
of Azerbaijan in Tebriz, the matter that defied a solution for a
decade. So, Iran is making advances to official Baku on the one hand,
and trying to gauge the mood in the upper echelons of Azerbaijan on
the other.”
Moreover, the Gabala radar is not going to be dismantled in the near
future because Aliyev looks up at Russia. Experts say that Vladimir
Putin has some leverage against Azerbaijani leaders.

Sunday Times, Australia
Advertiser, Australia
Mercury, Australia
Melbourne Herald Sun, Australia
Dec 2 2004
On this day
02dec04
1920 – Armenia cedes territory to Turkey by Treaty of Alexandropol
while Communists seize power in Armenian capital Yerevan and proclaim
a Soviet republic.
1697 – The chancel in St Paul’s Cathedral, London, virtually
destroyed after the Civil War and repaired and redesigned by Sir
Christopher Wren, is formally opened for worship.
1790 – Austrian troops re-enter Brussels and suppress the revolution.
1804 – Napoleon Bonaparte crowns himself emperor of France in Paris,
taking the crown from attending Pope Pius VII.
1805 – Napoleon wins a brilliant victory at the battle of Austerlitz
against Russia and Austria.
1814 – The Comte de Sade, known as the Marquis de Sade, dies; his
unnatural sexual practices and writings about them led to the term
sadism.
1815 – Britain and Rajah of Nepal sign a peace treaty.
1823 – Gold is discovered in the Fish River near Bathurst, NSW; US
President James Monroe declares the Monroe Doctrine, which opposes
European expansion.
1848 – Austria’s Emperor Ferdinand I abdicates in favour of Franz
Joseph I.
1851 – Louis-Napoleon Bonaparte, president of France, suspends the
constitution during a coup. Street fighting breaks out in Paris.
1852 – Second French Empire is proclaimed with Louis-Napoleon
Bonaparte as Emperor Napoleon III.
1854 – Austria concludes alliance with Britain and France.
1856 – France and Spain reach agreement on their frontiers.
1859 – John Brown, American anti-slavery campaigner, is hanged after
an abortive raid on the federal arsenal in Virginia.
1901 – King Camp Gillette patents the first safety razor, which has a
double-edged disposable blade.
1920 – Armenia cedes territory to Turkey by Treaty of Alexandropol
while Communists seize power in Armenian capital Yerevan and proclaim
a Soviet republic.
1932 – Controversial “bodyline” cricket series begins in Sydney
between Australia and England.
1942 – Nuclear chain reaction is demonstrated for the first time by
scientists working on the Manhattan Project underneath the University
of Chicago’s football stadium.
1950 – United Nations agrees to hand over Eritrea to Ethiopia.
1954 – US Senator Joseph McCarthy is censured by the Senate for
browbeating Army personnel with his Communist witch-hunts.
1960 – Australian Government lifts embargo on export of iron ore to
Japan, leading to large expansion of the industry in Western
Australia; The Archbishop of Canterbury visits Pope John XXIII in the
first meeting of the heads of the two major religions.
1961 – Britain refuses Uganda’s request for independence; Cuban
leader Fidel Castro declares himself a Marxist-Leninist who will lead
Cuba to Communism.
1969 – The Boeing 747 jumbo jet makes its debut as 191 people, most
of them reporters and photographers, fly from Seattle to New York
City.
1971 – Britain terminates all treaties with crucial states in Gulf,
leading to formation of United Arab Emirates.
1972 – Gough Whitlam elected Prime Minister of Australia in first ALP
victory in 23 years.
1975 – Israeli jets carry out heavy raids against Palestinian targets
in southern and northern Lebanon, killing 91 people and wounding 150.
Residents of adjacent Lebanese villages in the south are among the
dead and injured.
1982 – In the first operation of its kind, doctors at the University
of Utah Medical Centre implant a permanent artificial heart. Barney
Clark, a retired dentist, lives 112 days with the device.
1986 – More than 16,000 Hindus go on a rampage in New Delhi to
protest at Sikh terrorist killings in Punjab state.
1988 – Arab diplomats introduce resolution in United Nations to move
General Assembly to Geneva so PLO Chairman Yasser Arafat can address
the world body.
1989 – Australian Labor Party under Wayne Goss gains power in
Queensland election after 32 years in opposition.
1990 – Chancellor Helmut Kohl’s center-right coalition easily wins
re-election in first all-German elections since 1932.
1991 – Kidnappers release American Joseph Cicippio, held hostage in
Beirut for more than five years.
1992 – The FMLN guerrillas in El Salvador begin destroying the
weapons they used in a 12-year civil war.
1993 – Drug lord Pablo Escobar, one of the world’s most wanted men,
is killed in a gunfight with security forces in Colombia, 16 months
after he escaped from prison.
1994 – Ferry carrying more than 600 people collides with a freighter
and sinks in Manila Bay, Philippines. Sixty bodies are recovered, 85
people are missing.
1995 – A Singapore court sentences former trader Nick Leeson to 6 1/2
years in prison in the crash of Britain’s oldest merchant bank.
1996 – A bomb explodes on a train bound for the troubled northern
Indian state of Jammu-Kashmir, killing at least 12 people and
injuring 39.
1997 – A Turkish court sentences 33 to death for a mob attack that
killed 37 intellectuals who had gathered in a hotel to discuss
promoting secularism.
1998 – NATO forces arrest General Radislav Krstic, the most senior
Bosnian Serb military figure yet to be seized for UN trial on
genocide and war crimes charges.
1999 – Investigators confirm that a young man who died during a gene
therapy experiment in September was killed by the treatment. Jesse
Gelsinger, 18, was believed to be the first person to die as a direct
result of gene therapy.
2000 – A German court rules that prostitution cannot be considered
illegal if it is done willingly without criminal ties; a Berlin
district had charged a cafe owner with fostering immorality by
renting seven rooms near her cafe to prostitutes who contacted
clients in the bar.
2001 – Enron Corp., the largest United States energy-trading company,
files for bankruptcy protection, dealing a blow to financial markets
worldwide. It is the largest bankruptcy in US history.
2002 – Rowan Williams, known for promoting women bishops and
defending gays, officially becomes Archbishop of Canterbury,
spiritual leader of the world’s 70 million Anglicans.
2003 – Top Israeli officials reject the “Geneva accord”, designed by
former Israeli and Palestinian leaders, saying it fails to advance
the overall peace process.

PanArmenian News
Dec 1 2004
IRAN-ARMENIA GAS PIPELINE WILL BECOME A REALITY SOON
However, the pipeline will not have a transit function yet.
The construction works of the Armenian segment of Iran-Armenia gas
pipeline started on November 30. It should be reminded that the start
construction works has been postponed several times. If the
construction works comply with the planned schedule, Iranian gas will
be supplied to Armenia already in 2007. The investments are expected
to be recompensed in nine years.
/PanARMENIAN.Net/ «Sanir» Iranian company will carry out construction
of the first 42km long Meghri-Qajaran segment. According to the
agreement reached during the visit of the president of Iran Mohhamad
Khatami, the Iranian party will fund $30 million. The issue of
contract of the second phase of the pipeline is still not settled.
The second phase is estimated $90 million. As for the construction of
the Iranian part of the pipeline, the construction works are carried
out as scheduled. The cost of the Iranian segment is $110 million.
Construction works are already under way, but the Russian `Gasprom’
still hasn’t given any answer about its participation in the project.
`Gasprom’ doesn’t say `no’. The interest of the Russian company in
the Iran-Armenia pipeline is obvious. But things have gone no further
than elaboration of technical-economic justification of possible
investments. It should be reminded that during his visit in Yerevan,
the vice- president of `Gasprom’ Alexander Ryazanov stated that the
payback dates are a bit above the norms accepted by `Gasprom’.
`Gasprom’ prefers short-term investments. In other cases, political
decisions are usually made. Conflicts between commercial and
political interests are always solved in favor of political
interests. It is worth mentioning that conflicts of that sort are
quite common. Things were like that in spring when `Gasprom’
vice-president opposed to the Prime Minister Michael Fradkov, who
claimed that Moscow intended to supply Russian gas to the third world
markets through Armenia.
It is quite obvious that Moscow delays its answer due to political
considerations, although Russians do not have any grounds for anxiety
concerning the perspectives of Iran Armenian gas pipeline. The
Russian gas will not be forced out from Armenian market by the
Iranian gas, as the latter is nearly twice as more expensive. The
Iranian gas will just ensure Armenia’s energetic safety. It is known
that the Iranian gas will be processed into electricity, which will
be supplied back in its full capacity. The local consumer will
receive gas from Iran only in case of interruptions in the Russian
gas supply. As for the concerns about the plans of Iran to enter the
western market, it is already evident that the Armenian pipeline will
not have transit functions. This became clear when it turned out that
the diameter of the pipe would not exceed 700mm. A pipe with such a
diameter will not allow pumping enough gas needed for transit.
Nevertheless, the gas pipe brought to the Armenian border is 1.5m in
diameter. It means that Teheran does not exclude the possibility of
widening the diameter of the Armenian pipeline in future. However
this information should not alarm Russians. It should rather
encourage them because Moscow has too little resources to prevent the
plans of Iran concerning the outlet to European markets. If Iranian
gas is meant to enter Europe in one way or another, it would be much
better for Russia if it passed through Armenia. In Moscow they
realize it and perhaps this is why they don’t refuse to participate
in the Iran-Armenia gas pipeline construction project.
There are many alternatives to the Armenian route. At the end of
summer, during negotiations held between the first vice-president of
Iran Mohhamadreza Aref and the prime minister of Turkey Redjeb
Erdoghan a preliminary agreement was reached concerning Iranian gas
transit through Turkey. Besides, the gas pipeline passing through
Azerbaijan is currently being restored. After restoration, the
Iranian gas will get to Georgia already in spring. After this, the
project of laying a gas pipeline along the bottom of Black Sea to
Ukraine will again become relevant. It is estimated that the transit
pipeline Iran-Europe will cost $5 milliards.
Money is not going to be a problem, because the demand for Iranian
gas in Europe increases year by year, which is also promoted by the
recent political processes in Ukraine. Western power engineering
specialists accept that people living in Eastern Europe will have to
celebrate Christmas without light and heat, since the conflict
between Moscow and Kiev may bring to the closure of the pipeline. As
is well known, one third of gas going to Europe passes through the
territory of Ukraine. Creation of alternatives to this source of
energy supply is one of the most topical problems for Europe. Many
members of Russian government realize that sooner or later the
alternative will be created and the Iranian gas will go to northwest,
but the thing is in which way will it go to northwest. In current
conditions the Armenian route is the most acceptable for Moscow.
Russia’s presence in Armenia will enable to control the situation to
some extent. Thus it would be quite logical if the Russian government
ordered `Gasprom’ to participate in the construction of Iran-Armenia
gas pipeline.

Le Figaro, France
01 décembre 2004
Turquie
Le Parlement européen refuse le «partenariat»
Bruxelles : de notre correspondante Alexandrine Bouilhet
[01 décembre 2004]
La commission des affaires étrangères du Parlement européen a refusé,
hier, d’envisager l’option d’une «troisième voie» pour la Turquie
dans le cadre de ses négociations avec l’Union européenne. Appelés à
voter sur un texte décisif, qui sera adopté en plénière le 15
décembre puis soumis aux chefs d’Etat et de gouvernement à Bruxelles,
les eurodéputés ont rejeté les amendements préconisant un
«partenariat privilégié» et non une adhésion pure et simple.
Ce vote des députés, pourtant dominés par la droite allemande, est un
camouflet pour les élus français. En France, l’idée d’un «partenariat
privilégié» est défendue par Nicolas Sarkozy, Valéry Giscard
d’Estaing et François Bayrou. Elle a été relayée en commission des
affaires étrangères à Bruxelles par Jacques Toubon (UMP), Marielle de
Sarnez (UDF), Alain Lamassoure (UMP) et Nicole Fontaine (UMP). La
pression est telle qu’elle a contraint Jacques Chirac à évoquer, à
son tour, une possible «troisième voie» pour la Turquie en Europe.
Le Parlement européen n’a pas autant d’états d’me. Malgré le dépôt
de 500 amendements, visant pour la majorité à durcir la position de
négociation de l’Union, les eurodéputés ont suivi l’avis de la
commission. Ils recommandent aux chefs d’Etat et de gouvernement des
Vingt-Cinq «d’ouvrir les négocia tions» d’adhésion avec la Turquie
«sans délais inutiles». Seule concession aux sceptiques de la
candidature turque : les négociations qui doivent débuter en 2005,
disent-ils, ne doivent pas mener «automatique ment» à l’adhésion.
«L’objectif des négociations avec la Turquie est l’adhésion à
l’Union, insistent les députés dans leur résolution, mais la
réalisation de cette ambition dépendra des efforts menés de part et
d’autre ; l’adhésion n’est donc pas une conséquence automatique du
début des négociations.»
Le Parlement européen suit la recommandation de la Commission Prodi.
Les députés ont refusé d’évoquer le génocide arménien, appelant
simplement les autorités turques et arméniennes à se réconcilier, en
dépassant «l’expérience tragique du passé». Là encore, les élus
français, de droite comme de gauche, réclamant la reconnaissance par
la Turquie du génocide arménien, ont été mis en minorité. Les
eurodéputés ont préféré insister sur le respect des droits de
l’homme, qu’ils placent au centre des premières années de
négociations. Ils mettent l’accent sur la «tolérance zéro» à l’égard
de la torture, le droit des femmes, «trop souvent soumises à des
violences conjugales», mais aussi des Kurdes et des minorités
religieuses, qu’elles soient «chrétiennes» ou musulmanes «non
sunnites».
Sur Chypre, le Parlement est en phase avec les capitales européennes
décidées à hausser le ton. Avant d’ouvrir les négociations, ils
exigent d’Ankara la reconnaissance officielle de la République de
Chypre, et le retrait des troupes turques de la partie nord de l’île.

Assa-Irada, Azerbaijan
Dec 1 2004
Armenian opposition regards discussions on Upper Garabagh in UN as
Azerbaijan’s success

The UN General Assembly discussed the issue on the occupied lands of
Azerbaijan at its 59th session on November 23.
Chairman of the Assembly said after the discussions that approval of
the wording of the resolution on Upper Garabagh prepared by the UN
General Assembly has been adjourned.
The Armenian opposition told local media following the discussions
that President Kocharian’s foreign policy is bound to failure. They
also assessed the discussion of the Upper Garabagh conflict at the
United Nations as the success of Azerbaijan’s foreign policy.
Chairman of the Armenian National Democratic Party Shavarsh Kocharian
said that although the discussions on the Upper Garabagh conflict may
be assessed as Azerbaijan’s success, the adjourned approval of the
resolution can be regarded positive for Armenia.
`Armenia must take steps to impede the approval of the resolution,’
he said.
Kocharian noted that the postponement is mainly related to the fact
that the UN General Assembly supports the Upper Garabagh conflict
settlement strictly within the OSCE Minsk Group.*

Assa-Irada, Azerbaijan
Dec 1 2004
Construction of Iran-Armenia gas pipeline starts

Construction of the Armenian section of the Iran-Armenia gas pipeline
started on Tuesday.
Armenian Prime Minister Andranik Markarian and Iranian Energy
Minister Habibola Bitaraf met in Suyinik province of Armenia to
consider the issue. The Iranian delegation will hold meetings in
Yerevan on Wednesday to continue discussions on the project.
The 41km-long Armenian section of the 72mm-diameter gas pipe with a
total length of 141 kilometers, due to be commissioned by 2007, will
be constructed by Iran’s Sanir firm. The gas to be transported
through the pipeline is earmarked only to meet Armenia’s domestic
demand.
The construction of the Armenian section will be financed on a $30
million loan to be allocated by an Iranian bank under the agreement
reached during Iranian State Minister’s visit to Armenia this July.
Iran will spend $100 million to construct the 100-km section of the
pipeline in its territory.
The agreement to build the gas pipeline was signed by Iran and
Armenia in 1992 and a map-plan of the pipe route approved in 1995.
Under the agreement, Iran will annually supply 500 million cu m of
gas to Armenia starting in 2007. The figure will reach 1.2 billion cu
m in 2010. Armenia, in turn, will supply electricity to Iran in the
future.
Meanwhile, there were reports saying that Iran intends to transport
its gas to European markets through Armenia. The issue was discussed
during the last visit by Iranian President Mohammad Khatami to
Armenia as well.
The Iranian Ambassador to Azerbaijan Afshar Suleymani said that the
Iranian side has not forwarded any proposals to Armenia, which
imports Russian gas through Georgia, and wants to buy the Iranian gas
as well. It is still to be determined through which country the
Iranian gas will be transported and analysis is under way to choose
the economically viable route, Suleymani underlined.
`Europe is keen on importing Iran’s gas. Iranian gas may be taken to
Europe via two routes: either through Turkey and Greece or via
Armenia and Ukraine,’ the ambassador said.
Touching upon transportation of the Iranian gas through Azerbaijan,
Suleymani said that the Azerbaijani side has not made a proposal in
this regard.
`If Azerbaijan puts forth a relevant proposal, Iran will approve it,
as a pipeline exists which used to take Iranian gas to Georgia and
Russia through Azerbaijan in the Soviet times,’ he added.*

AIDS Day Is Observed Around the Globe
By ALEXANDER G. HIGGINS
.c The Associated Press
GENEVA (AP) – From Armenia to Zambia activists turned out by the thousands
for World AIDS Day on Wednesday, singing in mighty cathedrals, lighting
candles in city squares and playing sports.
The United Nations has dedicated this year’s observance to improving
protection for women and girls. Nearly half of the 39.4 million people infected with
HIV worldwide are female.
“Prevention methods such as the ABC approach – Abstinence, Be faithful and
use Condoms – are good, but not enough to protect women where gender
inequality is pervasive,” said Peter Piot, head of UNAIDS.
“We must be able to ensure that women can choose marriage, to decide when
and with whom they have sex and to successfully negotiate condom use,” Piot
added.
As the day began in Asia, where the disease has claimed 540,000 lives this
year, campaigners in Japan and South Korea handed out condoms. Thailand,
Vietnam, and Bangladesh had marches, and the Philippines a promotion for HIV
testing.
The Chinese government ordered local officials to learn about the disease
and televised a rare visit by President Hu Jintao to AIDS patients in a
hospital.
China, which has an estimated 840,000 infected with the AIDS virus, has been
criticized for reacting too slowly to the threat of AIDS. The U.N. AIDS
agency has warned that China could have as many as 10 million people infected by
2010 if it doesn’t take urgent action.
An Indian cricket match against South Africa, whose players wore red ribbons
to show their support for the anti-AIDS campaign, was dedicated to promoting
AIDS awareness.
In Pakistan, about 400 aid workers discussed how to empower women in a
region where men usually have a dominant role in society.
At the forefront of the pandemic in southern Africa red ribbons were tied to
lamp posts and draped over buildings. Zambians gathered for a candlelight
memorial service in the Cathedral of the Holy Cross in the capital, Lusaka.
Soccer matches in Botswana were dedicated to the campaign.
Anglican Archbishop Njongonkulu Ndungane of South Africa appealed for
tolerance.
“HIV/AIDS is not God’s punishment of the wicked,” Ndungane told a rally in
Cape Town. “AIDS is a preventable, treatable and manageable disease – no
more, no less.”
Malawi’s President Bingu wa Mutharika said he wants at least 1 million of
his 11 million people to test for HIV by the end of next year so his government
can determine how many need anti-retroviral treatment.
“We want to have 80,000 people on ARVs by the end of 2005,” he said at an
event in the central border district of Nchinji. That would be nearly 10
times the number of Malawians receiving free treatment.
Eastern Europe, where AIDS figures have jumped since the collapse of the
Soviet Union, joined in the observance. Events in Armenia included a concert
with well-known local artists.
Serbia-Montenegro, where the number of infected people has risen sharply,
had live radio and television programs to increase awareness of how the disease
spreads.
In the Croatian capital of Zagreb activists handed out condoms and selling
Christmas cards made by AIDS-infected children.
In Estonia, where 4,356 of the 1.4 million residents are HIV positive, the
biggest event was an “Open Your Eyes” concert in the Kaarli Church, in the
capital, Tallinn.
Polish campaigners were out to halt the trend of growing infections. In the
northern city of Sopot they lit red candles in the shape of a ribbon, and in
nearby Gdansk they distributed condoms.
Portugal, which has one of the highest rates of new AIDS infections in
western Europe, opened the new headquarters of an association to support AIDS
patients.
A televised five-hour dance-a-thon, which was held simultaneously in the
Dutch city of Arnhem and in Cape Town, South Africa, raised money to fight AIDS.
One candle was lighted for each of the 1,800 people who have died of AIDS in
Denmark during a ceremony in a Copenhagen square.
Victor Mooney, 40, of Woodhaven, N.Y., kicked off a campaign in Rome to
raise $200,000 by selling bracelets to fund his rowing trip from Senegal to New
York next year to raise AIDS awareness.
Piot took his message about improving the chances of women to the United
Nations’ commemorative event at the Cathedral of St. John the Divine in New York
City. Hosted by actors Gloria Reuben and Alan Cumming, the event featured
singer Mary Wilson and South Africa’s Sinikithemba Choir.
Piot said laws must be passed everywhere against domestic abuse and rape and
to make sure women are educated and have property rights because that will
make them more secure and “far less vulnerable to HIV.”
“We will not be able to stop this epidemic unless we put women at the heart
of the response to AIDS.”
On the Net:
UNAIDS:
12/01/04 11:08 EST

AllAfrica.com
Dec 1 2004
Equatorial Guinea: Mercenary Trial Was Unfair, Legal Observers Say

UN Integrated Regional Information Networks
December 1, 2004
Dakar
Specialists in international law and human rights who observed the
recent trial of alleged coup plotters and mercenaries in Equatorial
Guinea said on Wednesday that it had been conducted unfairly and in
breach of international conventions.
Lengthy prison sentences were handed down by a court in the capital
Malabo last Friday against 20 people, 11 of them foreigners.
All were convicted of plotting to overthrow President Teodoro Obiang
Nguema by helping to prepare an abortive invasion of the oil-rich
West African nation by South African mercenaries .
Marise Castro, who observed the proceedings for Amnesty
International, told IRIN by telephone from London that “it was not in
our view a fair trial.”
Mark Ellis, Executive Director of the London-based International Bar
Association which also sent an observer to the hearings, said “the
trial fell short of international fair trial standards.”
Five South Africans and six Armenians were found guilty of
involvement in the failed coup against President Teodoro Obiang
Nguema and were sentenced to between 14 and 34 years in jail. Two
Equatorial Guineans who appeared in court received lighter sentences.
Castro said the 15 foreign nationals arrested on 8 March in the
capital Malabo – one of whom died in custody nine days later – had
been held “day and night since their arrest in handcuffs and (ankle)
shackles that weren’t even removed to go to the toilet.”
“That in itself is torture,” the Amnesty observer said.
Castro added that the prisoners had been deprived of adequate
medicine and food during their eight months in detention and had not
been allowed proper access to their families,
Ellis said the court’s refusal to take into consideration allegations
of torture by the defendants and their lawyers was “a fundamental
breach of internarional law.”
Former South African soldier Nick du Toit, the alleged leader of the
group and the sole defendant to have initially confessed to a role in
a conspiracy, said his confession had been obtained by torture. The
defendants said they had signed statements under duress.
“But the court just ignored that,” Ellis said. “That is inconsistent
with international law. A court must record such an allegation and
order an investigation if necessary.”
Castro quoted one of the defence lawyers as saying “the defendants
still had marks on their bodies.”
Two of the defendants said in court that German national, Gerhardt
Merz, also arrested in March, had died in front of them as a result
of torture in Black Beach prison. The authorities said he died of
cerebral malaria.
Ellis said the government of Equatorial Guinea also violated
international law by failing to notify defendants of the charges
during the pre-trial period and then denying them access to legal
counsel until three days before the trial began last August.
Both the IBA and Amnesty International criticized the court’s failure
to provide professional interpretors and translations of statements
both during the investigation and during the hearings. These were
conducted in Spanish, the official language of Equatorial Guinea.
The small country of 500,00 people consists of Bioko, a mountainous
volcanic island formally known as Fernando Poo, and a nearby block of
jungle-covered territory on the African continent. It was ruled by
Spain until independence in 1968.
Castro said some of the defendants’ claims of torture “were not even
translated into Spanish by the interpretor, who was biased. ” She
noted that he was the Attorney General’s official interpretor.
The Amnesty observer also noted that one of the South African
defendants in court spoke only Portuguese. The court was not aware of
this and had not provided an interpretor, she added. A Russian
interpretor was provided for the Armenian defendants. A delegation
from Yerevan is currently in Equatorial Guinea discussing their fate.
Castro and Ellis both lamented that the prosecution had failed to
present any evidence to substantiate the charges, bar the defendants’
own statements.
“Weapons produced by the prosecution were shown as examples of the
type of guns they intended to buy in Zimbabwe,” Castro said.
She said no warrants had been issued for the arrest of the accused
and their statements had been taken by the attorney general, not by
investigating magistrate as prescribed by the country’s own legal
system.
The IBA stressed the fact that the court had broken Equatorial
Guinea’s own judicial rules by deciding two weeks ago to also place
on trial nine exiled opposition leaders in absentia alongside the
original defendants.
It was unclear whether any of these individuals who were tried in
their absence had been informed of the charges against them and
whether any effort had been made to bring them before the court,
Ellis said.
Severo Moto, the Spanish-based leader of a government-in-exile, was
sentenced to 63 years in jail at the trial. It was the third time
that a court in Equatorial Guinea had convicted him of political
offences and imposed a prison sentence on Moto in his absence
The accused were found guilty of preparing the way for an abortive
mercenary invasion last March by a planeload of mercenaries who were
intercepted in Zimbabwe on their way to Malabo.
The plane, carrying 67 mainly South African mercenaries, was
prevented from reaching Equatorial Guinea after it was detained
during a stopover in Harare to pick up weapons.
Although many of the defendants in the trial in Malabo were sentenced
to long prison terms, the court ignored prosecution calls for the
death sentence to be imposed against du Toit, the alleged leader of a
mercenary group already placed inside in the country, and Moto, the
exiled opposition leader who would allegedly have become president
had the coup succeeded.
Obiang, the present head of state, has been widely accused of
corruption and human rights abuse. He has ruled Equatorial Guinea
since he deposed and killed his uncle, Macias Nguema, in a 1979 coup,
accumulating considerable personal wealth from oil revenues which
have poured in over the past decade.
Equatorial Guinea now produces 350,000 barrels per day of oil and has
become Africa’s third-biggest oil producer after Nigeria and Angola.
The state prosecutor alleged during the trial that plot to overthrow
Obiang and install Moto in his place, had received support and
finance from prominent individuals in South Africa, Britain and
Spain, including Mark Thatcher, the son of former British prime
minister Margaret Thatcher.

AINA (Assyrian), CA
Dec 1 2004
Australian Liberal Party Condemns Iraq Church Bombings, Calls for
Safe Haven for Christians
(AINA) — The Liberal Party of Australia, NSW division, issued a
statement condemning the bombing of churches in Iraq, and calling for
a Christian enclave.
The Young Liberal Movement of NSW is the most influential youth
political organisation in Australia, and is the youth wing of the
centre-right conservative Australian Liberal Party, led by the
current Prime Minister of Australia, The Hon. John Howard MP. On
Saturday the 27th of November the state council, a meeting of
branches from the state of NSW gather to discuss policy, issued a
policy motion made by the Smithfield branch, which has many Assyrian
members and is located near Fairfield, which has the largest
concentration of Assyrians in Australia.
The Statement states:
The Liberal Party of Australia, NSW Division condemn the hideous and
unjustifiable attacks on the Assyrian and Armenian Christian churches
in Baghdad and Mosul that killed 15 worshipers and injured another
65. These attacks are a crime not only against Iraqi Christians but
all Iraqis who seek a free and democratic Iraq. The Liberal Party of
Australia, NSW Division further deems that the formation of a
Christian enclave in the north is necessary to safeguard the
country’s Christian minority, who makeup 3% of the total population.
The motion was passed unanimously by over 100 delegates in the
presence of Federal members of Parliament and is now a part of the
official policy of the NSW Young Liberals.

A1 Plus | 13:48:53 | 01-12-2004 | Official |
PRESIDENT CONGRATULATING
Robert Kocharyan has today received Ishkhan Zaqaryan, Chairman of State
Committee for Physical Training and Sport and Gagik Tsarukyan,
newly-elected Chair of National Olympic Committee of Armenia.
Kocharyan congratulated Gagik Tsarukyan on his election for the post.
Issues regarding activity of National Olympic Committee and coming plans
were discussed at the meeting.