biggest polluter after china comes from coal
with november elections on the horizon lawmakers have expressed concerns that
us action absent commitments from rising economic powers like china and india
would barely dent the problem while costing jobs mostly in already struggling
industrial us states and others dependent on fossil fuels
american people care more about health care the budget deficit said frank
maisano lobbyist with bracewell amp giuliani firm representing the
energy industry
part of the problem is the residual impact of any climate legislation which is
an increased cost and you don go in an election period telling people you are
going to increase cost he told afp
many republicans in congress remain deeply skeptical about adopting market
based mechanism to cut carbon emissions fearing it may hit the competitiveness
of us firms and products on global markets particularly while china and india
refuse to make concessions in tandem
us chamber of commerce president tom donohue urged lawmakers tuesday to
reconsider climate regulations he warned could raise costs and hamper recovery
from the worst economic recession in decades
congress the administration and the states must recognize that our weak
economy simply could not sustain all the new taxes regulations and mandates now
under consideration it sure recipe for double dip recession or worse
he said
steve eule vice president of climate at the chamber said it possible to
have compromise but it won be easy
senators john kerry lindsey graham and joe lieberman are proposing to increase
the use of nuclear energy offshore oil and gas exploration as well as step up
energy efficiency and new techologies to reduce costs and possibly skirt cap
and trade system
but that proposal likely will not sit well with many democrats who champion the
emissions market plan
we would all prefer really good economy wide cap and trade system it the
best the most efficient said eileen claussen president of the pew center on
global climate change and strategies for the global environment
but if we cannot get it don want to end up with nothing want to end up
with something that really starts to address this problem
snooker selby stuns sullivan in masters final comeback
london jan afp
england mark selby stunned world number one ronnie sullivan by capturing the
last four frames to take the masters title here on sunday
selby the champion at wembley in before surrendering the honour to
sullivan last year had trailed throughout the final until he won the
penultimate frame to take the game into decider
went into the final frame probably more confident than ronnie was because of
the deciding frames ve won here said selby
you are looking for one chance then if you don win it you can moan
it was the best match ve been involved in ronnie sets the standard
sullivan was left to regret taking on tricky green when he was up but
had no regrets about the decision
you have to take you chances when you get them that wasn an easy shot but
sometimes you have to take the game by the scruff of the neck sometimes they go
in sometimes they don it one of those things said the englishman
sullivan had looked on course for comfortable win when he led at the
mid session break
but selby hit back on the resumption taking the ninth frame
sullivan then knocked in in reply but selby response was break of
before the world number one stretched to
selby stayed in touch but further breaks of and got sullivan within
sight of back to back titles before his dogged opponent won consecutive frames
including another century break to set up thrilling finale at
then selby took the final two frames of the match making it four in row to
take the title
figure skating chan captures third straight canadian crown
london canada jan afp
reigning world silver medallist patrick chan captured his third consecutive
title at the canadian figure skating championships by sweeping the free skate
and the short programmes
chan brilliant skate secures him spot on team canada at next month
vancouver olympics
chan who will be one of the favourites for gold medal in vancouver set
canadian record with an overall score of as he skated to andrew lloyd
webber phantom of the opera and phantasia in sunday free skate
chan routine wasn perfect though as he touched hand down on triple toe
loop and completed only one jump of planned two on his opening combination
the year old from toronto easily beat runner up vaughn chipeur who collected
his second straight silver and will join chan in vancouver chipeur finished
second in the short but dropped to third behind kevin reynolds in the free
skate
reynolds placed third overall after landing pair of quad jumps sunday he
finished well back of chan with points
men figure skating begins february with the short programme
sri lanka vote raises hopes in washington
washington jan afp
sri lanka upcoming election is raising hopes in the united states for better
relations after chilly spell if the island turns the page on bloody war that
brought international opprobrium
the january election comes months after troops killed the top leadership of
the tamil tigers ending their ruthless decades long separatist campaign but
also triggering accusations of human rights abuses
ironically the post war election could be decided by voters from the tamil
minority as the sinhalese majority splits between two candidates incumbent
mahinda rajapakse who ordered the final military push and former general
sarath fonseka who executed it but more recently has pledged reconciliation
asked if the election could change relations with washington senior us
official said it already has changed the dynamic in positive way
lot of the progress we ve seen in the last two months or so is contributable
at least in part to the election the official told afp on condition of
anonymity
sri lanka has recently moved on key international concerns including releasing
thousands of tamil civilians who had been held for months in rudimentary
displacement camps
the us official was upbeat about pledges made by fonseka including greater media
freedom and independent commissions to oversee the judiciary and other key
institutions
hesitant to make predictions about the future because candidates promise
all sorts of things and then they don deliver but certainly general fonseka
has been making some good pronunciations he said
but the united states has strongly denied allegations made by one ruling party
legislator that it is funding the opposition
some sri lanka watchers in the west and especially the tamil diaspora which
has been instrumental in pressing for harder line on sri lanka are deeply
ambivalent about fonseka
fonseka who holds us green card escaped questioning by us authorities about
possible war crimes during november visit after sri lanka summoned the us
ambassador to protest
fonseka would not be the us first choice as president but if he wins it would
at least open the door for better us relationship said robert oberst sri
lanka expert at nebraska wesleyan university
his whole association with the military is what tarnishes him in part if there
were war crimes committed he obviously knew about them and was involved
oberst said
sri lanka increasingly distanced itself from the west as it came under fire for
its human rights record it has built ties with china and iran and last year
hosted myanmar reclusive military leader than shwe
but asoka bandarage an associate professor at georgetown university and author
of the book the separatist conflict in sri lanka doubted the former british
colony would turn to western rivals except out of economic necessity
don think that even ardent sinhala nationalists would want sri lanka cut
off from western influence and that longstanding connection she said
the us official also believed sri lanka saw good us ties as long term
interest noting that western nations were the key market for its exports such
as garments and tea
tamil diaspora activists have also seized on the economic dimension launching
campaign urging western boycott of the island products
in one racy video under the slogan no blood for panties muscle ripped man
undresses an impassioned young woman only to lose the mood when he discovers her
underwear is made in sri lanka
there is really no fundamental choice between general fonseka and rajapakse
because both were instrumental in launching this military offensive against the
tamil community said tasha manoranjan whose group people for equality and
relief in sri lanka is running the boycott campaign
think the day after the election there will no longer be any concern for the
tamil people she said
yet some in the tamil diaspora where mahinda rajapakse is loathed figure are
willing to give fonseka at least chance
the tamil diaspora wants mahinda to be defeated said david poopalapillai
national spokesman for the canadian tamil congress
the climate would change and the rays of hope would come it would bring some
change in the country in the political climate he said
urgent qaeda wing denies six leaders killed in yemen site
hong kong jan afp
al qaeda in the arabian peninsula aqap denied that six of its leaders were
killed in yemeni air strike last week according to statement published by
the site monitoring group on monday
russia gains as ukraine awakes from orange dream
kiev jan afp
whoever becomes ukraine next president russia has strengthened its influence
and the orange revolution dreams of creating different model for post soviet
states have suffered rude awakening
the revolution was the worst defeat of russian strongman vladimir putin
decade in power after he congratulated the winning pro kremlin candidate before
an uprising and court order annulled the rigged vote
but in stunning turnaround viktor yanukovich the same moscow leaning
candidate accused of rigging the elections in is ahead in exit polls for
the first round of presidential elections and will be favourite in the run off
yanukovich likely second round opponent prime minister yulia tymoshenko may
be an orange veteran but she has struck pragmatic tone on kremlin ties and
above all built up strong relationship with the ever important putin
the political career of defeated orange revolution figurehead president viktor
yushchenko who dreamed of turning ukraine away from russia towards eu and nato
membership appears to have sustained terminal blow
the new president will remove the conflicts with russia linked with yushchenko
both sides will look for new balance between the countries said volodymyr
fesenko director of the penta centre for political studies in kiev
while both tymoshenko and yanukovich have set joining the eu as policy goal
neither shares yushchenko enthusiasm for bringing ukraine into nato move
some analysts warned risked causing military conflict with russia
there are not too many differences between yanukovich and tymoshenko on
foreign policy said nico lange director of the ukraine programme at the konrad
adenauer foundation in kiev
russia can live with both of them very well
ksenia lyapina an mp close to yushchenko grimly acknowledged moscow has won
they can be congratulated the politics that tried to resist imperial pressures
has lost
as well as his aim of permanently extracting ukraine from russia orbit also
in tatters is yushchenko programme of pushing the country to eu membership
with an ambitious programme of domestic reform
many of the thousands from all over the country who in poured into kiev
independence square universally known as the maidan to support the
yushchenko cause have been left feeling painfully betrayed
despite their promises the orange leaders failed to end corruption reform
ukraine creaking justice system or crack down on the oligarchs instead they
became embroiled in damaging internal struggles
do not like the way the orange leaders squabbled and yushchenko betrayed the
maidan said maria petriv an accountant from the western city of lviv
what happened to his steps for the people what happened to putting the
bandits in jail
yet for all the election day despondency the orange revolution led to changes
in ukraine that are almost unique in the former soviet union
it now boasts vibrant media of websites news magazines and political talk
shows unafraid of touching on the most delicate of issues in contrast to the
turgid scene that existed before
in its latest report on global freedoms freedom house rated ukraine as the only
free country in the former soviet union exluding the baltic states russia
remained stuck in the section for nations deemed not free
for all the cynicism on election day there were no claims of violations from
either side of the magnitude of those that wrecked the vote
the country also has major opportunity in hosting the european football
championships jointly with poland unique chance for ukraine to showcase its
identity and cities to the world
there are achievements that are irreversible said lange of the adenauer
foundation
but it an evolutionary process and not revolutionary the problem with the
orange revolution was that the expectations inside and outside ukraine were far
too high he said
football hot shot ronaldinho feeling the love
rome jan afp
brazil superstar ronaldinho admits that the smile is back on his face after
difficult few seasons as he leads ac milan serie title charge
the year old scored hat trick in sunday thrashing of man siena
his first treble in italian football to move milan to within six points of
leaders inter milan
the rossoneri have game in hand and play inter in the milan derby next
weekend meaning that if they win both matches they will be joint top
it has been remarkable turnaround for ronaldinho who was hounded out of
barcelona months ago after losing his way and his fitness
now feel loved and respected that how go onto the field and realise my
dream to use all this affection from the fans he said
this is special moment for my life and my career we know we have to work
hard for the scudetto but this milan team can go long way in all three
competitions
milan are through to the champions league second round where they will face
manchester united and are also in the coppa italia quarter finals
but despite his hot form ronaldinho knows the derby will be tough particularly
given inter beat milan earlier this season
inter are one of the best teams in the world and they have one of the best
coaches in the world jose mourinho so we have the maximum respect for them
he said
ronaldinho will be vital for milan on the left of their trident strike force
that currently sees david beckham to the right of marco borriello
the brazilian hat trick took his tally to five goals in his last two games and
nine in serie appearances
he also netted twice in five champions league games
it has got many people including his coach and compatriot leonardo believing
he can reproduce the form he showed in his barcelona heyday when he won back to
back world player of the year crowns consecutive spanish la liga titles and the
champions league
it normal when someone feels the love that he responds he entertaining
everyone he great player said leonardo
he having great season he rediscovered his taste for playing well and
scoring goals
of course some may feel that such an upturn in form was only to be expected in
world cup year but as he has not been part of recent brazil squads he
needed to do something spectacular to get back in coach dunga plans
whatever the reason for his resurrection both brazil and milan will be
delighted to have the real ronaldinho back
alert
al qaeda wing denies six of its leaders killed in yemen strike
three children die in philippine flash flood
davao philippines jan afp
three girls aged nine to were drowned after their village in the southern
philippines was hit by flash floods caused by continued heavy rains local
official said on monday
the children were riding raft down the gibong river in san francisco town in
the island of mindanao on sunday when they were hit by rushing waters that
capsized their raft said village chairman leopoldo raya
the drowned bodies of the three were fished out of the river hours later raya
said declining to identify the girls
five days of continuous rains in the south have resulted in floods that have
covered five towns and forced several families to evacuate areas which might be
vulnerable to landslides the civil defence office said
ukraine vote heads for tense run off
kiev jan afp
ukraine braced monday for nail biting run off between two old rivals in
presidential elections after the first round vote eliminated discredited orange
revolution hero president viktor yushchenko
exit polls and partial results showed the election was led by pro russia
politician viktor yanukovich the man accused of rigging elections which
sparked the orange revolution uprising that swept the old order from power
second place was set to go to prime minister yulia tymoshenko former orange
revolution comrade of yushchenko who subsequently fell out with the president
and adopted more pragmatic tone on relations with russia
as yanukovich failed to win majority in sunday first round the election
will go to second round on february with all to play for between the two old
foes who have savaged each other reputation in the campaign
the exit polls showed yushchenko taking miserable six percent of the vote
reflection of ukraine frustration that the orange revolution failed to realise
the dreams of those who protested in
yanukovich was set to obtain percent of the vote and tymoshenko percent
according to the initial results of an exit poll of sunday ballot organised by
the foundation for democratic initiatives
another poll by the gfk ukraine organisation showed yanukovich ahead on
percent and tymoshenko on percent
early official results based on only percent of the vote counted put
yanukovich on percent and tymoshenko on percent the central
election commission said turnout was percent
if tymoshenko is less than percent behind then her chances of winning in the
second round climb sharply said analyst igor zhdanov of the open policy think
tank
the polls also showed strong performance of around percent from businessman
sergiy tigipko who made late campaign surge and whose electorate will now
prove crucial in determining the second round outcome
if confirmed the exit polls represented good news for tymoshenko as they
indicate she has narrowed the gap on her main opponent compared with the last
opinion polls before the new year
yanukovich who represents criminal circles has no chance in the second
round said the prime minister at her post election news conference resplendent
in pure white costume
her opponent snapped back that ukrainians had voted for change and said that
tymoshenko was in despair
the second round promises to be gloves off affair and analysts have warned of
the risk of the result being taken to the courts and even once more sparking
street protests
the bitter campaign has already seen the shady pasts of the candidates once
again dredged up
yanukovich was jailed twice in the soviet era for theft and assault though the
convictions were erased in the late tymoshenko herself was briefly
detained in on smuggling charges that were later quashed
the orange revolution raised hopes of new era free of kremlin influence
for the country of million that would set precedent for other former soviet
states
but although ukraine now boasts improved freedom of speech steps to implement
reform and end corruption were forgotten as government became paralysed in
bitter power struggle between yushchenko and tymoshenko
tymoshenko famed for her peasant style blonde hair braid is seen as more in
favour of eu integration than yanukovich but has also played up her close ties
to russian strongman prime minister vladimir putin
since yanukovich has sought to reinvent himself with the help of western
pr strategists and to show he is not servant of the kremlin but defender of
ukrainian interests
he has also sought more support in the country ukrainian speaking west
traditionally the heartland of tymoshenko and yushchenko supporters while
holding on to his powerbase in the russian speaking east
mo nique wins supporting actress golden globe
beverly hills california jan afp
mo nique scooped the opening award at the th golden globes here sunday taking
the best supporting actress prize for her performance as an abusive parent in
the gritty drama precious
the year old accepted the award from oscar winning actress nicole kidman who
began the star studded show at los angeles beverly hilton hotel with an appeal
for donations to the haiti earthquake relief effort
thank you god for this amazing ride that you re allowing me to go on an
emotional mo nique told the vip audience tell all shaking in
the midst of my dream
other nominees included penelope cruz for nine julianne moore for single
man and up in the air duo vera farmiga and anna kendrick
earlier kidman urged viewers of the show being broadcast live across the
united states to donate funds to the haiti relief effort
just want to say on serious note lot of people are wearing ribbons
tonight in support of the people of haiti and you can go to nbc com to make
your personal contribution kidman said
chosen by the hollywood foreign press association the golden globes are seen as
an indicator of likely contenders at the oscars which take place on march in
hollywood this year
sony playstation is poison to children chavez
caracas jan afp
sony playstation video game console is poison and leads children down the
capitalist road to hell venezuelan president hugo chavez said sunday
chavez in his weekly radio tv show alo presidente called on venezuelan
manufacturers to make educational toys and dolls with indigenous peoples
features to replace capitalistic counterparts like the barbie doll that have
nothing to do with our culture
in expanding on his dislike of western toys and games he already slammed
nintendo for promoting selfishness individualism and violence chavez sunday
took on the world top selling game console sony playstation
those games they call playstation are poison some games teach you to kill
they once put my face on game you ve got to find chavez to kill him
the firebrand leftist president said any game that bomb cities or just throw
bombs are sold by capitalist countries to sow violence so they can later sell
weapons
they promote the need for cigarettes drugs and alcohol so they can sell them
that capitalism the road to hell he added
venezuela chavez said should be making educational games and suggested
designing little indigenous dolls to sell in place of dolls like barbie that
have nothing to do with our culture
venezuelan lawmakers in october passed law outlawing the sale of bellicose
games and videogames that can be punished with up to five years imprisonment
china restores texting in xinjiang state media
beijing jan afp
china further eased restrictions on communications in its troubled xinjiang
region restoring text messaging services six months after deadly ethnic unrest
state media said monday
the move followed similar recent moves to reintroduce internet access with
residents now able to access the websites of two state media outlets as well as
two popular web portals sina com cn and sohu com
xinhua news agency quoted regional government official as saying text
messaging services were gradually restored on sunday some online banking
services are now also available the report said
the report said the communications blackout put in place after the deadly riots
in early july which left nearly people dead and more than injured
had proven effective in helping to maintain regional stability
the official quoted by xinhua did acknowledge the measures had also brought
inconveniences to people lives
riots erupted in xinjiang capital urumqi on july pitting mainly muslim
uighurs against china majority han in the worst ethnic violence in china in
decades
authorities quickly reacted by restricting the flow of information going in and
out of the region
the government says terrorists separatists and religious extremists used the
internet telephones and mobile text messages to spread rumours and hatred as
the july violence erupted
so far people mostly ethnic uighurs have been sentenced to death for the
violence drawing sharp criticism from the west and rights groups concerned that
the accused were denied fair trials
nine executions have so far been reported by state press
the government has nearly doubled funding for public security in the region for
to billion yuan million dollars as compared with last year
state media reported last week
snooker masters final result
london jan afp
result in the masters snooker final at the wembley arena here on sunday
final best of frames
mark selby eng bt ronnie sullivan eng
football centurion messi hungry for more success
madrid jan afp
at just lionel messi just can stop making history and on saturday his
glittering career shone even brighter when he became the youngest player in
barcelona history to score goals for the club
it was the latest landmark for the argentine star who has already won three
league titles two champions leagues and collected both the ballon or and fifa
world player of the year awards in
messi scored twice in the final five minutes in barcelona home win over
sevilla on saturday to mark his th and st goals in barca colours and he
has needed just games to reach his century
the argentine has goals in the league in the champions league in the
kings cup two in the spanish super cup and two in the world club championship
messi said he was happy to bring up his century but cherished the vital goals he
scored in finals last season such as the header against manchester united in the
champions league final win and his goal in the world club championship
victory
remember the important goals the ones in finals more than the nice goals
said messi
just like the other important things that have happened in the past this
doesn hold too much importance and don think about it am relaxed over
the whole thing and just want to do more things
barcelona coach pep guardiola heaped praise on the modest messi and said the
forward could go on to write many more new chapters in barcelona history
you just have to congratulate him it amazing at his age and it in his
hands to break all the records said guardiola
what we all like about him is his endless ambition can tell he wants more
the figures show what great trajectory he had and he great example for
future generations
the two late goals from messi against sevilla made it five in his last two
matches following hat trick at tenerife last weekend and he now leads the
goalscoring charts on
barcelona are now five points ahead of real madrid in the standings after their
rivals lost at athletic bilbao but messi called for caution with the season
not even at the halfway point
it is an important advantage because five points is decent lead but we know
there are lot of games to go and it is long season said messi there is
the whole second half of the season left and madrid will be up there
we don have anything to prove to anyone we will continue with the same
mentality as last season and we want to continue winning things and think we
have shown that
barcelona crashed out of the kings cup to sevilla on wednesday so they won be
able to match last season treble
but they are unbeaten leaders in the league and are in the last of the
champions league where they face vfb stuttgart
football city have more to lose in derby semi ferguson
manchester england jan afp
sir alex ferguson has tried to up the pressure on manchester city by claiming
their league cup semi final against manchester united matters more to them than
to his team
united travel to eastlands for the weather delayed first leg on tuesday with
their local rivals desperate to end their long wait for silverware
city have not appeared in the final of major tournament since and have
not lifted trophy since winning the league cup in
by contrast ferguson has presided over the most successful period in united
history with league titles two european cups and five fa cups among the
trophies the scot has brought to old trafford since joining from aberdeen
years ago
however expectations at city have multiplied since they were taken over by the
wealthy abu dhabi united group in and they hope to break into the champions
league places this season at the very least
semi final against united when they haven been in final for so long is
the biggest motivation city could have so far this season ferguson said
so it bigger more important game for them than us he added it game
for the fans and their emotions
ferguson has already confirmed the likes of darron gibson and rafael and fabio
da silva are likely to feature against roberto mancini team
and while he is keen to give some players break he insists he is not taking
the tie lightly and intends to be in strong position going into the home leg
you don underestimate these things and ll pay particular attention to it
once you in semi final you want to be in the final we want to be in
healthy position back at old trafford for the second leg he said
ferguson is likely to be without dimitar berbatov who may need surgery on his
knee problem and the game is likely to come too soon for rio ferdinand to
recover from his calf injury
mancini goes into this match on the back of his first defeat as city manager
following his team league loss away to everton on saturday
but city midfielder nigel de jong hopes striker carlos tevez desire to prove
ferguson wrong after being released by united and then signed by their
manchester rivals at the end of last season will work in the home team favour
the argentina forward has scored goals for city so far this season and de
jong said every player needs to be loved don know what carlos situation
was at old trafford just glad he here
united and city shared seven goals in manchester derby thriller in september
with reigning league champions united triumphing thanks only to michael
owen stoppage time winner
people still talk about what happened at old trafford in the league but that
game is in the past we don want to keep looking back de jong said
