Voice of America, 99-12-22

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From: The Voice of America <gopher://gopher.voa.gov>

CONTENTS

[01] ROMANIA GOVERNMENT BY STEFAN BOS (BUDAPEST)

[02] KOHL / SCANDAL (L-ONLY) BY SUZANNE KELLY (BONN)

[03] NY ECON WRAP (S&L) BY ELAINE JOHANSON (NEW YORK)

[04] WEDNESDAY'S EDITORIAL BY ANDREW GUTHRIE (WASHINGTON)

[05] PRESS / KILLINGS (L ONLY) BY RON PEMSTEIN (BRUSSELS)

[06] YEARENDER: EUROPEAN UNION BY RON PEMSTEIN (BRUSSELS)

[01] ROMANIA GOVERNMENT BY STEFAN BOS (BUDAPEST)

INTRO: Romania's president, Emil Constantinescu, has sworn in a new government, which he hopes will attain the economic goals for which more than a thousand people died during a bloody revolution against communism in 1989. As Stefan Bos reports from Budapest, the inauguration ceremony coincided with the barely noted tenth anniversary of the revolution.

TEXT: President Constantinescu appeared on television to swear in the cabinet led by non-party technocrat Prime Minister Mugur Isarescu, who he said will have a difficult task. Mr. Constantinescu hopes the partly re-shuffled centrist cabinet will finally introduce the reforms that may bring Romania into the European Union. As he spoke, only a small group of residents gathered in Bucharest to commemorate bloody revolution that toppled dictator Nicolae Ceausescu a decade ago. Some watched in silence as officials laid flowers at a monument to the victims of the 1989 revolt. About 70 Romanians gathered to see a film projected from the Communist Party balcony, where dictator Ceausescu was booed as he tried to gave his final speech. The subdued mood reflects widespread disappointment at the Government's perceived failure to make at least some of the economic goals of the revolution come true in what is now one of Europe's poorest countries. People live on average salaries of little more than 80-dollars a month, despite Western style market reforms. Thousands of children are homeless in Bucharest alone. Recent opinion polls conducted by independent researchers suggest that more than 60-percent of all Romanians now believe that life was better under Mr. Ceausescu, who was executed along with his wife Elena by a firing squad on Christmas Day in 1989. That is one of the reasons why President Constantinescu has appointed Central Bank Governor Isarescu as prime minister, to replace Radu Vasile. Prime Minister Isarescu says he realizes that 23- million Romanians want more prosperity, but he warns there will be no spending on populist measures in the coming election year.

[02] KOHL / SCANDAL (L-ONLY) BY SUZANNE KELLY (BONN)

INTRO: It won't be the happiest of holidays for former German Chancellor Helmut Kohl. After admitting on German television that he had accepted illegal party donations of up to 2 million marks - about 1 million dollars - while he was chancellor, his Conservative Christian Democrats -- the C-D-U -- are now doing what they can to distance themselves from the former leader of their party. Suzanne Kelly reports from Bonn.

TEXT: Known as the Chancellor of Unity, Helmut Kohl led Germany for 16 years, but it is the last 16 months that may well determine how he is best remembered. Mr. Kohl admitted last month to knowing about and keeping anonymous donations worth as much as 2 million marks in secret funds that were used to fund his parties' activities in eastern Germany - a clear violation of party funding laws. The German Bundestag - or parliament - has launched an investigation, as have prosecutors in Bonn, who are expected to announce soon whether they will bring criminal charges against the chancellor for fraud, misuse of power and money- laundering. So far, Mr. Kohl has refused to give investigators - even within his own party - the names of the anonymous donors. That defiance has prompted C-D-U Secretary General Angela Merkel to try to distance the former chancellor from the party as much as possible. She said in an open letter to the press this week that Mr. Kohl has damaged the party and that it is time for the C- D-U to take its future into its own hands. In the most high-ranking public statement yet, current C-D-U party leader Wolfgang Schaueble adopted a similar tone as he addressed reporters in Bonn on Thursday, stressing the urgent need for Mr. Kohl's cooperation. Mr. Schaueble made a public plea for Mr. Kohl to cooperate with investigators and disclose the names, citing his faith in the former chancellor to do the right thing. The C-D-U is already in trouble with voters over the issue. The party has lost public support in recent polls, and with coming elections in the state of Schlesweg-Holstein, party leaders are hoping for a final Christmas gift from Mr. Kohl: that he not force them to cut all ties with the Chancellor of Unity. (Signed) NEB/SK/GE/LTD/KL 22-Dec-1999 11:48 AM EDT (22-Dec-1999 1648 UTC)
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Source: Voice of America

[03] NY ECON WRAP (S&L) BY ELAINE JOHANSON (NEW YORK)

INTRO: Stock prices in the United States were modestly higher today (Wednesday), as investors start winding down for a shortened trading week. The U-S stock market will be closed Friday for the Christmas holiday. V-O-A correspondent Elaine Johanson reports from New York:

TEXT: The Dow Jones Industrial Average gained three points, closing at 11-thousand-203. The Standard and Poor's 500 index went up two points. The technology- led Nasdaq composite did better, gaining six-tenths of one percent - another record high. The Dow Jones gained mostly on the strength of Eastman Kodak. The troubled photography company has named a new financial officer. Investors are betting this will turn around the second-worst performing stock in the Industrial Average this year. The latest on the U-S economy shows very strong growth in the third quarter. The Gross Domestic Product (G-D- P) was up five-point-seven percent. That was revised upward from the government's earlier figure of five- point-five percent. The new report came out one day after the U-S central bank left interest rates unchanged.

[04] WEDNESDAY'S EDITORIAL BY ANDREW GUTHRIE (WASHINGTON)

INTRO: Newspapers across the country are reacting to Sunday's Russian parliamentary election with generally favorable feelings, although some are cautious. Another topic is the devastation from flooding and mudslides in Venezuela, while a new ruling on homosexual couples' rights in Vermont is a top domestic issue for comments. Now, here is __________with an excerpt or two and a closer look in today's Editorial Digest.

TEXT: Russia's parliamentary elections in which the communists won the most seats, but suffered a significant loss of support to centrist parties, continues to dominate the editorial columns of the U-S press. In Florida, "The Orlando Sentinel" headlines it -- Welcome signs in Russia.

VOICE: Russia finished the year with a big surprise: generally free parliamentary elections . that opted for stability, not extremism. Communists and ultra-nationalists held on to many seats, but lost ground overall. That bodes well for American interests. . [including] An apparent desire among many of the newly elected to pursue market reforms even more vigorously.

TEXT: "The Tulsa [Oklahoma] World" is also pleased:

VOICE: The Russians seem to be getting the hang of this free election stuff. For the third successive time, they have gone to the polls without fear of violence and with confidence that their votes would be counted fairly. ..In all .the election bodes well for Russia .

TEXT: In the Pacific, Honolulu's afternoon daily "The Star-Bulletin" said Tuesday -- support for the war in Chechnya had more to do with the results than market reform.

TEXT: While in Rhode Island's capital, "The Providence Journal" also talks about the war as a key factor and warns observers:

VOICE: We urge caution about trying to penalize the Russian electorate; that is no way to promote democracy, in theory or in practice. . the real question is not whether the war is brutal - of course it is - but whether it is justified. An argument certainly can be made that it is. . Besides, we should not play down the more positive aspect of Sunday's election results. Gennadi Zyuganov's Communists will no longer have working control of the Duma ..

TEXT: Florida's "Times Union" in Jacksonville expresses surprise at the unexpected and rapid fall of ex-Prime Minister Yevgney Primakov, a clear favorite to be the next President just five-months ago.

VOICE: Not only was that a crushing defeat for [Mr. Primakov, and also for the communists, it may be an opportunity for [Mr.] Yeltsin ..to form a working coalition in the Duma - and, finally, to get some substantial reforms passed.

TEXT: Turning to affairs of this hemisphere, the expanding death toll from floods and mudslides in Venezuela draws this comment from the Houston Chronicle.

VOICE: So bad is the tragedy .. That officials are unable to even tally it accurately. Estimates are that somewhere between ten- thousand and 30-thousand people have died and tens-of-thousands more are homeless and in dire straits. . It is hard to talk about Venezuela without mentioning the wave of political change that has been taking place there under . President Hugo Chavez, and his rewrite of the . constitution. Times like this . are times to put aside politics. But . how well and how swiftly the Chavez government responds to the multiple crises . will be critical.

TEXT: A column by two University of Houston professors [also] in the "Houston Chronicle" faults the present and past governments for the underlying cause of the catastrophe, suggesting:

VOICE: Venezuela is the poster-country for mismanagement, indistinguishable corruption and a country with a cultural propensity for paternalistic leadership. Large petroleum wealth has failed to develop the country ...

TEXT: In domestic issues, the ruling by Vermont's State Supreme Court, giving homosexual couples almost all the rights and legal standing of heterosexual, married people, is drawing much comment. In Michigan, "The Detroit Free Press" calls the court's ruling a "right and courageous thing" and "The New York Times", saying it is the "gay rights movement[`s] biggest victory so far in the struggle to achieve legal recognition.' describes the ruling as "momentous."

TEXT: "The Chicago Tribune", noting the return of Macau, Europe's last Asian colony, to China, ponders the effect on Taiwan's status.

VOICE: When people's Liberation Army troops marched into Macau Monday . it gave no solace to Taiwan, nor should it have. With Hong Kong and Macau back in the fold, the People's Republic of China will be turning up the heat on Taiwan to consent to "reunifying the motherland," as the mainland likes to put it. Taiwan's leaders are correct, however, to point out that Taiwan was never a colony, like Hong Kong and Macau, and therefore should not be treated as the next wayward sheep to return to the fold.

TEXT: Briefly in Middle East peace efforts, renewed between Syria and Israel in Washington talks last week, "The Pittsburgh Post-Gazette" says do not be fooled by outward appearances:

VOICE: Too much was made of the dour demeanor of Syrian Foreign Minister Farouk al-Sharaa . That Mr. Al-Sharaa was unsmiling in public appearances - and vocal in criticizing Israel - is less important than that he was there at all, accepting American mediation of renewed and serious negotiations with the Jewish state.

TEXT: The national daily, "USA Today", addresses the growing fear of anti-U-S terrorism as the millennium changes, and the difficult problem of how to advise caution without creating panic.

VOICE: From the White House to law enforcement, officials are tight-lipped about specifics. But behind the scenes, the recent chain of events has ratcheted counter-terrorism officials' concern to extraordinarily high levels. . This has left the administration a dilemma about how much to say in public. Warning the public in more direct terms . could spread fear. . But saying too little could leave people at risk. . But the right choice is clear: Err on the side of disclosure, so that regular Americans can judge for themselves what constitutes self- preservation on this already-jittery New Year's.

TEXT: Lastly, these thoughts on a celestial New Year's present from Mother Nature; the brightest full moon in a century, from "The San Francisco Chronicle".

VOICE: Jaded astronomers may scoff at tonight's brighter than usual full moon as a cosmological non-event, but lunatics and lovers know better. ...it is illuminating Christmas week with a heavenly display that happens once every 133- years. .. The moon will appear 14-percent bigger and brighter // OPT // because it will be at perigee . closest to Earth in it's 27-day orbit, and close to perihelion, when Earth and moon are closest to the sun. /// END OPT /// .. A once-in-a lifetime moon show are special gifts at this time of year.

TEXT: On that celestial note of interest, we conclude this sampling of editorial topics from the pages of Wednesday's U-S press.
NEB/ANG/RAE 22-Dec-1999 11:49 AM EDT (22-Dec-1999 1649 UTC)
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Source: Voice of America

[05] PRESS / KILLINGS (L ONLY) BY RON PEMSTEIN (BRUSSELS)

INTRO: The Brussels-based International Federation of Journalists says 1999 was a hazardous year for journalists and other members of the news media, with more than eighty of them killed during the year. V-O- A Correspondent Ron Pemstein reports from Brussels.

TEXT: Most of the 86 victims were killed in the Balkans, Russia, and Sierra Leone. The International Federation of Journalists says 1999 has been the most dangerous year for people working for the news media since 1994, when conflicts raged in Bosnia and Rwanda. The general secretary of the federation, Aidan White, says governments and militias are deliberately targeting journalists.

[06] YEARENDER: EUROPEAN UNION BY RON PEMSTEIN (BRUSSELS)

INTRO: For the European Union, the year ahead brings new challenges as negotiations take place with 12 candidate countries about enlarging the Union. The 15 existing members must decide how to reform their procedures to cope with a potential membership of 28 countries. Correspondent Ron Pemstein reports from Brussels that there have been big changes in Europe and more to come.

TEXT: Where does the European Union end? By the middle of the 21st century's first decade, the border of Europe could be the Turkish-Syrian border or Poland's border with Ukraine. Decisions made in 1999 could change today's 15-country Union into tomorrow's 28-member giant with a population approaching one- half-billion. It will be a Europe - as the Union is today - with no borders among the member countries, a single, internal market and one currency, the Euro. The Euro was introduced on New Year's Day 1999 with balloons and fanfare. It will replace the currencies of many members by 2002. By the end of 1999, the value of the Euro has dropped 18-cents to near parity with the American dollar. Two-months after the introduction of the Euro, a political change shook the European Commission - the Union's executive branch. For the first time, all 20 commissioners - including President Jacques Santer - were forced to resign. An independent report accused the Commission of mismanagement and blamed the members' collective failure to take responsibility for anything. The European Union quickly named former Italian Prime Minister Romano Prodi as the President of a new Commission and charged him with reforming the political nature of Europe's bureaucracy. Mr. Prodi promptly challenged the European Union not to stop with the six countries negotiating membership, but to start negotiations with six more. As for Turkey, long denied membership on human rights grounds, Mr. Prodi suggested making it a candidate country but delaying negotiations until political conditions are met. Finnish Prime Minister Paavo Lipponen says Mr. Prodi has been the right man for the job.

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