owning investing in or sponsoring hedge fund or private equity funds
blaming the banks for causing the economic crisis he said my resolve to
reform the system is only strengthened when see return to old practices at
some of the very firms fighting reform
he said he was also galvanised to act when see record profits at some of the
very firms claiming that they cannot lend more to small business cannot keep
credit card rates low and cannot refund taxpayers for the bailout
he vowed if these folks want fight it fight ready to have
however his words went down badly in wall street which tumbled percent
the news capped tough week for the markets which have broadly been lower on
fears that beijing is set to tighten credit as it tries to rein in its scorching
economy
people are scrambling to sell because of uncertainty over obama banking
proposal said dealer with singapore brokerage the china factor of course
is still fresh in everyone mind
those worries were stoked on thursday after beijing said its economy expanded
percent in the december quarter while inflation reached month high
shanghai was percent off on friday
we had weak lead from wall street on the potential moves from china to slow
things down and mr obama is going forward on bank regulation burrell
stockbroking director richard herring said in sydney
we had good run over the christmas period so maybe there just little
unwinding of some christmas excess
despite the markets woes tiger airways made its debut on singapore stock
exchange becoming the first asian carrier to list in five years
the budget airline which was one of the most actively bought stocks friday was
at singapore dollars slightly up from its initial public offering price of
dollars
the dollar fell to yen in tokyo morning trade from in new york late
thursday the euro rose to dollars from but dropped to yen
from
oil was also lower with new york main contract light sweet crude for march
delivery dipping cents to dollars barrel while brent north sea
crude shed eight cents to dollars
hong kong gold opened at us dollars an ounce down from
thursday close of dollars
british pm to testify at iraq inquiry before poll reports
london jan afp
british prime minister gordon brown appearance at the iraq war inquiry will be
brought forward to before elections amid growing pressure for him to give
evidence media reported friday
the probe into the conflict which started in with the us led british
backed invasion had said it would not call brown before general election due
by june to prevent party politics affecting the investigation
but the prime minister has faced growing calls from his political opponents to
testify which intensified this week with accusations brown finance minister
during the conflict had starved the military of vital funds
the bbc and daily mirror newspaper both reported brown would appear before the
elections
british media said brown could be questioned late next month or early march
which could prove uncomfortable for his governing labour party which will be on
the campaign trail against the opposition conservatives tipped to win power
an inquiry spokesman confirmed its chairman john chilcot had written to the
prime minister thursday saying the panel would be happy to offer him the
opportunity to appear before the election
government spokesman gave no official confirmation but said the prime
minister has always offered to give full evidence to the iraq inquiry and is
happy to do so at any time
brown has publicly insisted he has nothing to hide and wednesday told
lawmakers he had to written to the investigation to stress he was willing to
give evidence
am happy to give evidence about all the issues that john chilcot puts
forward and am happy to satisfy the public of this country about our
government commitment to the security of this country he said
pressure has mounted on the prime minister to testify recently as figures
central to britain involvement in the war have given evidence that has touched
on his role
former defence secretary geoff hoon told the inquiry this week that as finance
minister brown failed to fund the forces properly in the years before the
conflict and then cut their budget following the invasion
and tony blair former communications chief alastair campbell told the probe
last week that brown was one of the key ministers his boss consulted in the
run up to war
foreign affairs spokesman for the opposition conservatives william hague
praised the decision to call brown to give evidence
it is only right that the prime minister has been called to give evidence to
the chilcot inquiry before the general election he said
the inquiry and the british public need to hear the full facts from everyone
involved and as finance minister at the time he clearly has questions to
answer
the chilcot inquiry was announced by gordon brown in june honouring pledge
that the run up to and conduct of the conflict would be examined once british
troops pulled out
brown predecessor blair faced intense public hostility after backing then us
president george bush in the invasion and blair resulting unpopularity was
one of the main reasons which led to him stepping down in
blair is due to give evidence at the inquiry next week
on thursday jack straw foreign secretary at the time of the invasion said he
never wanted to take military action and only reluctantly came around to the
idea
he said that while he came to believe it was the only option faced with iraq
continued defiance of the united nations over its weapons programme it was the
most difficult decision have ever faced in my life
indian land scandal spotlights military corruption
new delhi jan afp
land scandal involving indian generals has shaken public faith in the
country massive military at time when unprecedented sums are being spent on
modernising the armed forces
four high profile generals face an official investigation into charges that they
gave the go ahead for builder to acquire acre hectare plot of army
land at throwaway price in the himalayan resort of darjeeling
deepak kapoor chief of india army said he was left speechless by the
allegations against the four star officers including lieutenant general
avadhesh prasad one of the country eight key military advisers
such aspects dent the image of the nation and these aberrations need to be
corrected kapoor told news conference last week adding that they also
affected military morale
the land scandal coincided with action last month against officers who
allegedly sold service weapons on the black market confirmed kapoor who heads
the world fourth largest military
experts such as retired lieutenant general afsir karim fear corruption in the
higher echelons could affect national security
the system must reform itself because corruption now seems to be an accepted
form at various levels and this will hurt india readiness especially for any
big conflict such as war with china karim warned
besides corruption gets in the way of modernisation and it blunts the
credibility of the armed forces
string of eye popping fraud cases has damaged the institution in recent years
an army colonel seeking military honours as route to promotion was sacked
after he was caught faking gun battles with militants by sprinkling tomato
ketchup on civilians who were made to lie still on the ground in
press coverage earned the disgraced officer the nickname ketchup colonel and
led to military investigation into other medal seekers
year later commander was arrested after he earned the sobriquet brigadier
booze for selling subsidised military liquor in general faced court
martial for allegedly skimming combat ration funds
more than court martial proceedings between and number of
them relating to financial skulduggery point to poor discipline analysts
say
corruption is having serious impact on the psyche of india armed forces
argued retired air marshal kapil kak he pointed to arms deals as another
problematic area of military activity
last june india blacklisted seven firms including artillery maker singapore
technologies and state run israeli military industries after police accused
defence ministry bureaucrat of taking bribes
the step froze million dollar israeli arms contract and ended the army
dreams of acquiring modern artillery worth over billion dollars from the
singaporean firm
cricket former australian pm howard linked to icc top job
melbourne jan afp
former australian prime minister john howard is in the running to take charge of
international cricket reports said on friday
the melbourne age newspaper said howard was candidate to be president of the
international cricket council but cricket australia would not confirm whether
it had nominated him for the position
we have not discussed neither have we confirmed nor denied any of the names
that have been suggested to us by the press ca spokesman told afp it
confidential process
howard who is self confessed cricket tragic also had no comment
he does not want to say anything about the rumours spokesman for the former
prime minister said
the governing cricket bodies in australia and new zealand will next month
propose an australasian candidate to take the leadership of the icc from
the ca spokesman said the icc presidency which works on two year rotational
basis was difficult and complex role which involved juggling the political
and cultural considerations of diverse cricketing nations
england currently occupy the role as icc president with david morgan in the job
they hand over the mantle to india in mid when australasia candidate
would assume the deputy presidency ahead of assuming full leadership in
mid the spokesman said
since his defeat at elections howard only official position has been as
director of the bradman foundation his office said
the bradman foundation owns and operates the bradman museum of cricket and
manages bradman oval in bowral southern new south wales state where the
australian cricket icon don bradman first learned to play the game
howard was in the running last october for senior position with australia
national rugby league
howard has been regular cricket watcher at australian test matches both here
and overseas
he was prime minister from march to december and was the second
longest serving australian leader after sir robert menzies
yen rises in asia on safe haven flows
tokyo jan afp
the yen rose in asia thursday boosted by safe haven flows as prospects for
the global economy dimmed in light of recent economic data and moves by
governments to curb lending dealers said
the dollar fell to yen in tokyo morning trade from in new york late
thursday the euro rose to dollars from but dropped to yen
from
risk appetite has receded since the end of last year because of lacklustre
economic data in the united states europe and japan as well as recent signs
china is moving to cool an overheating economy dealers said
hopes for sustainable global recovery declined as stocks fell in response to
us president barack obama proposal unveiled on thursday to limit the size and
scope of us banks and finance firms
optimism for global economic recovery is receding prompting investors to
reduce their risky positions and favoring the yen as safe haven said
mitsubishi ufj trust and banking currency strategist toshihiko sakai
investors were waiting for more details surrounding obama plan which would in
effect force financial institutions to choose between commercial banking and
proprietary trading
there has been plenty of consternation at the obama plans for us banks the
market impact has been to put the skids under risk trades said societe
generale analyst patrick bennett
haiti recorded percent growth in before quake
mexico city jan afp
haiti economy recorded quite robust growth of percent in before
being hit by devastating earthquake the un economic commission for latin
america and the caribbean said thursday
haiti produced quite robust growth by latin american standards given that
latin america economy declined by percent said eclac regional office
director hugo beteta
the improvement in haiti the poorest country in the western hemisphere was
largely the result of some million dollars of the nation external debt
being forgiven which allowed the country to divert resources to domestic
investments he told afp
the world bank announced thursday that it would waive haiti debt repayments
for the next five years in the wake of the january earthquake which killed
at least people and left hundreds of thousands homeless haiti officials
said
the bank said it would also work to cancel the entire million dollars haiti
owes
bombs and ambushes as marines inch into taliban bastion
southeast of marjah afghanistan jan afp
the crisp crackling of ak breaks the morning silence as us marines inch
towards the outskirts of taliban stronghold in afghanistan southern province
of helmand
within minutes three squads of the marines st battalion th regiment alpha
company are pinned down in an open dried out poppy field by gunfire from unseen
taliban militants hiding in mud houses metres away
stay down stay down get me an eye on these guys staff sergeant stephen
vallejo barks as he directs his men into an embankment facing the gunfire
at least two suspected taliban militants are sighted one of them lighting up
haystack as signal for reinforcement more gunfire ensues the smell of
gunpowder wafts in the cold air and then silence
in the distance women and children are in the firing line of the marines
either forced by the taliban to stay there as human shields or they are
unperturbed by the fighting
we can engage them because there are civilians in the direct path vallejo
says calling in the unit position to base and asking for exact coordinates to
pin down the enemy fire
his men positioned in the embankment let off volley of machine gunfire
sending fragments of the mud house flying into the air nearby an elderly man
herds his family away to safety
young marines in their early are visibly shaken
for some among them this is their first time out in the field waging battle
against the taliban the islamist regime ousted in us led invasion in but
who have since been waging festering insurgency from the south
soldiers from afghanistan army who are being trained by the marines to take
over once they begin gradually pulling out in months provide seemingly
chaotic support to those up front
one interpreter props himself down on the earth and begins to pray during lull
in the fighting
the marines are on one of the patrol missions to inch closer to marjah in
helmand province which produces the bulk of the world opium poppies the main
ingredient in the production of heroin
marjah is described as one of the last bastions of the taliban in southern
afghanistan and dislodging them from this area is part of the us government
overall strategy to push them away from population centres
some marines have already poured into the region and an all out push
into marjah is on the drawing board
the taliban could either fight to the death or abandon the town but pushing
them out without bloodshed is preferred
the best battles are won are without fight says one lieutenant
the initial push into marjah however has met resistance taliban fighters
hidden in farming communities take potshots at advancing marines
heavy sporadic fighting over the past few days has left at least three taliban
fighters dead forces also arrested an elderly man whose shed yielded over
kilograms pounds of processed ammonium nitrate and other materials used
in making bombs
one us sergeant was killed during an earlier patrol after stepping on an
improvised explosive device ied planted in an open field
watch out for disturbed earth these are clever fighters they plant ieds where
they know we may be going vallejo says
what really angers me is that we are prevented from making further contact
they are either using the women and children as human shields or they the women
and children just don care about the fighting he said
most likely it the former they know our rules of engagement he said
the radio crackles into life some minutes later it the forward operating
base calling them to pull back for now the operation ends
but we ll be back to get these guys vallejo vows moving away rifle
grenade explodes into the taliban position sending plume of smoke into the
air as artillery fire is heard in the distance
tennis dokic withdraws from australia fed cup tie
melbourne jan afp
troubled australian tennis star jelena dokic has withdrawn from next month fed
cup clash with spain
dokic who struggled to control her emotions as she was bundled out of the
australian open in the first round on monday told tennis australia she would
not be available for the world group ii tie in adelaide
writing in her local newspaper column on friday the year old said she needed
to break from the spotlight to regroup and resurrect her career
with the way everything is and the pressure it best if don play she
said not because of me but because of the team
don want to let the team down don think mentally would be up to
playing singles
dokic said she she felt an enormous weight crashing down on her shoulders when
she walked onto court for her first round australian open match
year earlier she stunned the tennis world by reaching the quarter finals here
after being given wildcard
but the former world number four who has battled off court distractions
including severign ties with controversial father damir vowed to bounce back
have had lot to deal with in my career but am not done yet she wrote
will be back
dokic had returned to the fed cup fold after her australian open run last year
in her absence veteran alicia molik and casey dellacqua both on the comeback
trail and doubles specialist rennae stubbs join world number samantha stosur
in the australian squad
the spanish team includes three top players in anabel medina garrigues maria
jose martinez sanchez and carla suarez navarro
hopes rise as damaged port reopens in haiti
port au prince jan afp
thousands of haitians waited by the sea on earthquake cracked mud surrounded by
bags and babies hoping the imminent reopening of the capital port would allow
them to flee
the main port potential hub for the international campaign to feed this
quake devastated nation was to open partially friday despite strong signs of
damage including buckled wharves leaning telephone poles and slanting cranes
with port au prince airport overloaded with aid and military flights many
hoped the harbour would help receive massive international aid shipments for
hundreds of thousands of desperate survivors of the january earthquake
but gaping fissures still slice through the pier where ships unload and it
wobbles during each of the terrifying aftershocks that have succeeded the
original temblor
it not good it very unstable platform at this point us coast guard
lieutenant commander mike pierno told afp
us navy and us army divers were due to start repairing the pier friday work
that was expected to last at least several weeks while us coast guard and
haitian officials will ensure it is not overused
right now it in state where it can be repaired and we don want to do any
more damage pierno said
since the earthquake couple of aid ships from france and the netherlands have
unloaded supplies on the unsteady pier while around more are anchored
offshore
on the other side of the port thousands of haitians wait to board boats out of
the capital
many observers have warned of rush by desperate survivors to reach the united
states by boat but those at the port said they were heading for the town of
jeremie where their families live in the far west of the island
coast guard officials said that although there were no signs of mass
migration it was to be expected
everything points to it but it not happening now said pierno adding that
people would probably set off from the north of the island
roger rouzier shipping company general director who has been using the port
for years said us naval forces were patrolling cordon off port au prince
to prevent the departure of boats full of refugees
us officials are taking measures against it rouzier said
the shipping company owner now controlled the immediate future of those camped
out at the port
his ferry the only boat to jeremie carried some survivors away from the
capital for free on friday three days after the quake but then hesitated to
pick up more due to shortage of fuel
the government has now given him gallons litres of fuel to help
move people out alongside private contributions of gallons litres
he said adding that he planned to give two more free passages
broad patchwork of colorful clothes and bags still filled all visible space on
land where some families had waited for days while hundreds of others crowded
on several large wrecked ships nearby
have nothing to do here just want to leave said year old pierre
louia sitting in the mud surrounded by his family
when there something to do ll return
brigadier general mike dana in charge of the logistics of the us operation in
haiti has said fuel would be shipped to the port at the weekend
the port is probably at percent of its capacity right now said dana this
week but after days it will be at full capacity
sitting in small fishing boat with his wife and nine year old son jean moise
said he hoped to take boat out of the capital very soon
lost two cousins and nephew and niece in the earthquake we re the
survivors but we have nothing moise said
maybe in or years we ll manage to rebuild the country with international
aid but for now we re in desperate situation
australia new zealand order review of bible gunsights
sydney jan afp
australia friday ordered its military to look at removing biblical references
from weapons used by troops in afghanistan after new zealand banned the
completely inappropriate inscriptions
australia defence minister john faulkner said the military had been unaware of
the meaning of the letters and numbers etched into the us made gunsights which
refer to passages in the new testament
have asked defence to examine the options available to deal with this matter
without compromising the safety of our troops and critically important
capabilities faulkner said
faulkner comments came as neighbouring new zealand condemned the inscriptions
as potentially inflammatory
they cause the same problems as putting slogans on bombs we should not be
doing anything that might give opponents any propaganda leverage the country
defence minister wayne mapp told afp
the markings are completely inappropriate and the defence force will be looking
at ways to get rid of them now and for future deliveries
the rifle sights are inscribed with lettering such as jn an apparent
reference to chapter eight verse in the book of john which reads then
spake jesus again unto them saying am the light of the world he that
followeth me shall not walk in darkness but shall have the light of life
australia and new zealand both have forces operating in afghanistan and there
are fears that the references could endanger coalition troops fighting in
muslim majority nations where the us military is already bitterly resented
top korea general mysteriously loses star
seoul jan afp
recent photos of north korean general close to leader kim jong il show that he
has been demoted for reasons which are unclear south korean newspaper
reported friday
the joongang daily published photos of general kim myong guk released last june
and this week the earlier picture shows kim with the four stars of full
general while this week photos show just the three stars of colonel
general
we re trying to verify whether he has been demoted south korean unification
ministry spokeswoman lee jong joo told afp
kim heads the operations bureau of the north joint chiefs of staff
the latest pictures show him with just three stars on his collar as he briefed
kim jong il on military drill
considering the fact that he was briefing the leader analysts said kim myong
guk has likely retained his job despite losing star
it extremely rare for north korean military general to be demoted while
retaining his official post said baek seung joo of the korea institute for
defence analyses
if his demotion is confirmed it would be an intriguing incident as he is in
charge of the north military operations he told afp
choi jong kun political science professor told the newspaper the demotion
might be linked to naval clash in the yellow sea last november when
north korean boat was set ablaze after crossing the disputed border
believe north korea demoted kim myong guk as penalty for losing the naval
skirmish choi was quoted as saying
kim myong guk is considered one of the leader closest confidants he
accompanied him on inspection trips times last year alone
he became four star general in and led the operations bureau for the next
three years he then served as head of the fifth army corps and th armoured
corps before being again named head of the operations bureau in
he was addressed as general by the north party newspaper rodong sinmun as
recently as last september
best quotes from around the world over the past week
paris jan afp
best quotes from around the world over the past week
miracle
mama is not in the hole don leave me mama
the nightmarish cry of year old mendji bahina sanon pulled alive from the
rubble more than eight days after the haiti quake
seeing the world for the first time
and then out of the ruins came this little girl and will never forget it
she did not cry she looked astonished almost as if she was seeing the world
for the first time
television reporter robert penfold recounting how rival australian news crews
put aside their day jobs as they helped rescue an month old baby from the
rubble of earthquake devastated haiti
preparing for afterwards
earning lot of money but this is not going to last within days the rest
of the world will have forgotten haiti
port au prince taxi driver frederic leny on the dizzying rise in prices
charged to journalists and other foreigners following the haiti quake
bad person
he either is or was very bad person and either way he as bad person as
there has been in this region for long time
richard holbrooke the us envoy for pakistan and afghanistan after us
drone missile targeted pakistani taliban leader hakimullah mehsud but his
militia denied he had been killed
arms cash
yemen is not afghanistan nor pakistan where the jihad ideology is strong
here the tribes are always on the side of the one who pays according to their
interests they could sell an al qaeda man from one day to the next
general yahya saleh head of yemen security services and nephew of
president ali abdullah saleh
withdrawing from the world
it not google that withdrawing from china it china that withdrawing
from the world
chinese twitter user laments the possible exit from china of the world
top search engine
duel to the death
they think they are killing me but think they are committing suicide
argentinean central bank president martin redrado on the attempt by president
cristina kirchner to sack him over his refusal to accede to her request to dig
into the bank reserves to guarantee payment of new sovereign debt
issue
misunderstanding
it appears that it was misunderstanding with religious passenger wearing
religious item and praying loudly
security source explains how an orthodox jew strapping of sacred box to
his head caused bomb scare aboard chautauqua airlines plane diverted to
philadelphia after leaving new york
time to make babies
it is actually the most urgent and important issue the country is facing
south korean health minister jeon jae hee announces plan to turn off the
lights early at the ministry offices once month to encourage staff to go
home and make more babies in bid to boost the nation low birthrate
royal send up
normally get the piss taken out of me for my choice of music
britain prince william on his musical tastes during visit to youth drug
rehabilitation centre in australia
in port au prince craftsmen try to forget
port au prince jan afp
they come on whim to kill time meet up with friends and above all to try
to forget the earthquake the dead and the unbearable sadness
in street of port au prince craftsmen gather each day in front of their
workshop where the coffin maker alone still works building two or three day
it is resilient effort to regain some sense of normalcy
there was whiff of life in charreron street now swarming again with ice
cream rice and banana vendors traffic jams women washing in basins and doing
the laundry young men watching passersby children singing
but they also filled with craftsmen left empty handed after their workshops were
destroyed or badly damaged by the massive earthquake that nine days ago rattled
their nation the poorest in the americas
everything was broken can do anything but come out of habit to meet
people joke around we talk about everything and nothing about what we lost
our projects we try to erase little bit of the sadness said jean jacques
daniel year old cabinetmaker
everyone he knows lost someone in the disaster or had close ones suffer
injuries they live outside in tent either because their house was flattened
or out of concern for aftershocks
pretending to go to work gives them reason to get up each morning something
to do at home there are too many people too much fear too many memories
they said
it sad at home there is nothing to do everyone is panicked here we are
