Voice of America, 99-08-25

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

CONTENTS

[01] KOSOVO PARTITION BY TIM BELAY (PRISTINA)

[02] EARTHQUAKE CONSTRUCTION BY LAURIE KASSMAN (ISTANBUL)

[03] L-A TURKISH AID GROUNDED BY MIKE O'SULLIVAN (LOS ANGELES)

[04] TURKEY ECONOMY BY LAURIE KASSMAN (ISTANBUL)

[05] TURKEY QUAKE - WEDNESDAY (L) BY SCOTT BOBB (GOLCUK, TURKEY)

[06] TURKEY QUAKE (ROSR) BY SCOTT BOBB (GOLCUK, TURKEY)

[07] RUSSIA / DAGESTAN (L ONLY) BY PETER HEINLEIN (MOSCOW)

[08] CZECH TV (L-ONLY) BY BARRY WOOD (WASHINGTON)

[09] ITALIAN RADICAL EXTRADITED (L-ONLY) BY SABINA CASTELFRANCO (ROME)

[10] N-Y ECON WRAP (S & L) BY BRECK ARDERY (NEW YORK)

[11] WEDNESDAY'S EDITORIALS BY ANDREW GUTHRIE (WASHINGTON)

[01] KOSOVO PARTITION BY TIM BELAY (PRISTINA)

INTRO: United Nations officials in Yugoslavia's Kosovo province have rejected a proposal by Serb leaders to partition the province into separate ethnic zones. Tim Belay reports from Pristina.

TEXT: Serbians have long supported the idea -- cantonization, a partition process that would split Kosovo into separate ethnic zones. It is much the same way Bosnia was divided after the war there. The Kosovo plan was proposed by the leader of the Serb resistance movement in Kosovo. He suggested ethnic Albanians occupy the southern part of the province. Serbs would all settle in the north. But the leader of the United Nations provisional government in Kosovo -- Bernard Kouchner -- rejected the idea. United Nations spokesperson Nadia Younes says Mr. Kouchner does not believe this is the time to think about dividing Kosovo.

[02] EARTHQUAKE CONSTRUCTION BY LAURIE KASSMAN (ISTANBUL)

INTRO: Experts say it would be difficult for many buildings to withstand an earthquake of the magnitude that hit northwestern Turkey last week. It registered higher than seven on the Richter scale. But architects and residents in northwestern Turkey are raging against negligent builders and a decade's worth of irresponsible building practices. Correspondent Laurie Kassman in Istanbul reports on the growing call for tougher rules for housing construction.

TEXT: Australian rescue expert Warwick Kidd says he was surprised by the sub-standard construction when he scoured the badly hit areas of the Izmet city for survivors.

[03] L-A TURKISH AID GROUNDED BY MIKE O'SULLIVAN (LOS ANGELES)

INTRO: Private organizations around the United States have collected contributions to assist Turkish earthquake victims. But for some, the problem is getting much needed supplies there. One medical aid shipment in Los Angeles remains grounded. V-O-A's Mike O'Sullivan says relief workers hope to find an airline to fly the supplies to Turkey.

TEXT: The relief organization Operation U-S-A is waiting for word from airlines and private cargo firms, which relief workers hope can fly the supplies directly to Turkey. The organization's president, Richard Walden, says he has enough scalpels, bandages, and other surgical equipment to fill a Boeing 7-47.

[04] TURKEY ECONOMY BY LAURIE KASSMAN (ISTANBUL)

INTRO: Some economics experts in Turkey estimate last week's earthquake could cost the economy about 20- billion dollars -- enough to push Turkey into a recession. But business leaders are less pessimistic and say the cost is not so much in reconstruction, but in the loss of production from the industrial heartland, which is centered in the area of northwest Turkey hardest-hit by the quake. Correspondent Laurie Kassman reports from Istanbul.

TEXT: Industrialists estimate the earthquake has cost Turkey's economy roughly 15-billion dollars in terms of lost assets, damaged factories and infrastructure. They put the loss of production at less than five- billion dollars. Prime Minister Bulent Ecevit says the earthquake represents a setback for the economy, which was already sluggish before the disaster. But private business leaders are not so pessimistic. Erkut Yucaoglu (YOO CHA OH LOO) is head of Tusiad (TOO-see-ahd), one of the Turkey's largest industrial associations, whose 500 members represent more than five-thousand companies. He figures productivity in the country's industrial heartland can be essentially on track within six- weeks. He says, most of the earthquake damage was to private housing, not factories.

[05] TURKEY QUAKE - WEDNESDAY (L) BY SCOTT BOBB (GOLCUK, TURKEY)

INTRO: In Turkey, search operations continue in a few areas, although there is little hope of finding any more victims alive from last week's earthquake. Correspondent Scott Bobb reports from the city of Golcuk (guul-chook), 100 kilometers east of Istanbul, that efforts meanwhile are increasing to provide greater care for the victims who survived the disaster.

TEXT: A platoon of Turkish soldiers spent the day searching for survivors in the ruins of an apartment building in Golcuk. And a U-S team used rescue dogs to search a collapsed building in nearby Izmit. But neither group expressed much hope of finding anyone alive, indicating the rescue part of this operation is drawing to a close. The commander of an emergency surgery unit from a U-S Navy ship off the coast here, Thomas John Gouley, said his unit is being recalled to its ship (EDS: USS Kearsarge) after a week on the ground. He says this is because the medical needs after the disaster have changed.

[06] TURKEY QUAKE (ROSR) BY SCOTT BOBB (GOLCUK, TURKEY)

INTRO: Correspondent Scott Bobb is in Golcuk -- one of the locations hardest-hit by last week's earthquake in Turkey. He describes the scene in this report (ED'S: filed about 8 am EDT)

TEXT: The search and rescue operations here are drawing to a close. Before me is a platoon of soldiers picking through this block of rubble. They say they are looking for someone. The do not expect to find that person alive but there are still search operations going on. It has been raining for the past two-hours and people are huddled in their tents, which are now leaking. Doctors are treating hundreds of people for exposure- related illnesses -- chills and fevers, mostly, and a few cases of diarrhea and one of typhoid. (SIGNED)
NEB/FSB/PCF/RAE 25-Aug-1999 08:48 AM LOC (25-Aug-1999 1248 UTC)
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Source: Voice of America

[07] RUSSIA / DAGESTAN (L ONLY) BY PETER HEINLEIN (MOSCOW)

INTRO: Russian troops say they have regained control of all mountain villages seized by Islamic separatists early this month in the southern Dagestan region. V- O-A Moscow Correspondent Peter Heinlein reports two villages bombed by Russian jets were destroyed.

TEXT: The fighting appears to be over. After two- and-one-half weeks of steady air and artillery strikes, Russian military officials say all Muslim rebels have been cleared from the mountains of Dagestan, along the border with breakaway Chechnya. A Defense Ministry spokesman said two of six villages occupied by the insurgents were reduced to rubble by the air strikes. Interior Minister Vladimir Rushailo says the next step is to sweep the combat zone for mines and booby traps before the estimated 11-thousand residents are allowed to return home.

[08] CZECH TV (L-ONLY) BY BARRY WOOD (WASHINGTON)

INTRO: A complicated legal battle is underway in the Czech Republic involving the most profitable television service in all of post-communist Europe. V- O-A's Barry Wood reports on the fight over TV Nova, the foreign owned TV broadcaster that has gained an over 60 percent audience share in the Czech Republic.

TEXT: U-S cosmetics heir Ronald Lauder (August 24th) has filed suit against the Czech Republic accusing the government of failing to protect his 40 million dollar investment in TV Nova. The station, owned by Mr. Lauder's Central European Media Enterprises (CME), on August 5th was essentially "hi-jacked" by Vladimir Zelezny, until recently CME's local partner and holder of Nova's broadcast license. Mr. Zelezny, fired from Nova in April, earlier this month opened his own studio and began televising his own programs using the Nova name and logo. CME's Nova is off the air. The Czech regulatory agency (the radio and TV council) has failed to take a position on the dispute but will discuss the matter again on August 31st. Howard Golden, a New York lawyer with extensive investments in the Czech Republic, says the Nova case highlights the uncertain legal structure of the Czech Republic.

I-P-B has always been closely alligned to Klaus and his party, ODS. The fact that they were the bank that gave this substantial loan to Mr. Zelezny to get going, I think, certainly raises some questions as to whether this is truly a third party transaction made for purposes of making money or whether there is some other reason for this loan.

[09] ITALIAN RADICAL EXTRADITED (L-ONLY) BY SABINA CASTELFRANCO (ROME)

INTRO: After serving nearly 17 years in a U-S jail following conviction on racketeering charges, Italian citizen Silvia Baraldini made a triumphant return home on Wednesday. Her transfer represents a diplomatic victory for Italy, which had filed six separate extradition requests to the United States since 1989. Sabina Castelfranco reports from Rome.

TEXT: An Italian government jet brought Silvia Baraldini back to Italy Wednesday morning. Her mother was waiting at Rome's military airport to greet her, escorted by Italy's justice minister. Baraldini was immediately transferred to the prison of Rebibbia in Rome where she will have to serve at least nine more years. Hundreds of supporters welcomed her back to shouts of "freedom". Many wore tee-shirts bearing her picture. The 51-year old Baraldini was labeled a terrorist by U-S authorities. A judge sentenced her to 43 years in prison after she was found guilty of committing a series of armored truck robberies. In one incident, a guard and two New York City police officers were killed. Around the time of the crimes, Baraldini had participated in a violent revolutionary group called simply "the family." /// OPT /// The daughter of an Italian diplomat, Baraldini began championing leftist causes while a student at a U-S university in the 1960s, joining the movement against the Vietnam war and moving on to support black nationalist and Puerto Rican independence movements. /// END OPT /// Baraldini was eventually adopted by the Italian left as a symbol of American oppression. She often described her captivity in America as brutal and unnecessarily strict. In 1989 the Italian government sought her extradition for the first time. Five more requests would follow, but each time U-S authorities would stubbornly refused to allow the transfer. They said that Baraldini had never felt any remorse for her deadly actions and that Italy had a history of leniency towards terrorism. Washington finally consented to reopen talks on the Baraldini case last March. The decision was widely seen by Italian political observers as a concession linked to the cable car disaster in the Italian Alps last year, when a U-S Marine jet clipped the cable car wires killing 20 people. Italians were outraged when the jet's pilot was acquitted. The Italian government has repeatedly denied any link between the two cases. Meanwhile the U-S government has made clear it expects Italy to maintain the agreements reached for the transfer of Baraldini: namely, no reduction in the prison sentence and no special treatment. (Signed). NEB/SC/PCF/gm 25-Aug-1999 13:05 PM EDT (25-Aug-1999 1705 UTC)
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Source: Voice of America

[10] N-Y ECON WRAP (S & L) BY BRECK ARDERY (NEW YORK)

INTRO: Stock prices in the United States were up today (Wednesday) with the Dow Jones Industrial Average closing at a record high for the second time this week. VOA Business Correspondent Breck Ardery reports from New York.

TEXT: The Dow Jones Industrial Average closed at a record high 11-thousand-326, up 42 points. The Standard and Poor's 500 index closed at 13-hundred-81, up 18 points. The NASDAQ index gained two percent. Stock prices gained strength through the session with major averages closing at their highs of the day. Analysts say traders are now starting to focus on anticipated third-quarter corporate earnings which are expected to be strong. Tuesday's decision by the Federal Reserve Board -- the U-S central bank -- to raise short-term interest rates one-quarter percent caused major commercial banks to raise their prime interest rates from eight to eight and one-quarter percent. The prime is the rate that banks charge their most creditworthy customers.

[11] WEDNESDAY'S EDITORIALS BY ANDREW GUTHRIE (WASHINGTON)

INTRO: The latest action by the United States central bank, the Federal Reserve, to tighten interest to prevent inflation is drawing a good deal of comment in today's editorial pages. Other topics under discussion include a Clinton administration plan to allow law enforcement personnel to secretly monitor people's home computers; the Turkish earthquake aftermath; a banking merger in Japan; and fears of a new North Korean missile launch. Now, here with a closer look and some excerpts is _____________ and today's Editorial Digest.

TEXT: The U-S Federal Reserve has raised short term interest rates a quarter of a percentage point, the second such rise in the past few months, as a hedge against inflation. Writing under a headline reading, "Fed speaks, but high-rolling investors aren't listening," the national daily USA Today, published in a Washington, D-C suburb, notes:

VOICE: An old axiom of the stock market is never to fight the Federal Reserve. Its power to raise interest rates can slow economic activity and reduce the profits that feed stock growth. But today's' investors appear ready not only to disregard Federal Reserve Chairman Alan Greenspan's off-repeated words of warning about overexuberrance, but also recent Fed actions. In the wake of a double quarter-point hike in the Fed's two short-term interest rates Tuesday, investors heaved a mighty ho-hum. . A faltering dollar . and the rejuvenation of the economies in Europe and Asia gave the Fed little choice but to raise interest rates to reduce inflationary pressures here.

TEXT: The New York Times calls the action, "A Cautious Rate Increase," while The Chicago Tribune says "A Little Dousing Now and Then" is a good thing, adding:

VOICE: . THE Fed's . goal is to keep the remarkable American economy humming along at an optimum level without overheating. A little dousing now and then in the form of a carefully calibrated rise in interest rates just might allow this current economic expansion to reach an historic 9th birthday next spring-and grow even older to the overall benefit of the nation.

TEXT: Another domestic issue; a proposal by the Clinton administration to allow law enforcement officials to secretly tap into people's home personal computers is drawing a good deal of ire in the newspapers. One of several papers opposing the idea is Boston's Christian Science Monitor.

VOICE: Congress should reject out of hand a chilling Justice Department request for authority to covertly break into the homes of suspects and search or tamper with their computers. The department's request stems from its worry about new software programs that allow users to encrypt computer files. Investigators want to obtain suspects' passwords and encryption keys so they can decode their files. . Expanding the use of search warrants would increase authorities' use of and reliance on covert entry, and with it the possibility of further civil rights violations. .. Justice should go back to the drawing board and come up with a proposal less damaging to the Bill of Rights.

TEXT: Pennsylvania's Greensburg Tribune-Review is also adamantly opposed to granting this power to law enforcement personnel, explaining:

VOICE: . It's no different--**not one iota** [italics for emphasis] than having a judge approve a "black- bag" job that would allow police to enter your home to obtain the spare key or combination numbers for the locks on a filing cabinet or a strongbox so they can rifle through them at will. It's simply preposterous.

TEXT: And in Florida, The St. Petersburg Times says in summing up:

VOICE: . Law enforcement wants access to as much private information as possible. But there are limits to how invasive the F-B-I can be while investigating run-of-the-mill federal crimes. Breaking into homes to get at computers goes way too far.

TEXT: The Turkish earthquake continues to draw comment, and today's Chicago Tribune says the government's poor response has made a bad situation worse.

VOICE: Compounding the tragedy . in the minds of many Turks was the fact that the government, and especially the army, appeared to respond so sluggishly to the crisis. This was unconscionable in a state where the army is the strongest, best organized institution-and the guarantor of secular democracy. Even Turkish President Suleyman Demirel, normally a staunch advocate of the near infallibility of the state, was assuring his people in recent days that there will be better coordination among government agencies next time - as well as more seismic monitoring and tougher building standards and enforcement. If so, at least something positive may emerge from a disaster /// OPT

TEXT: In the Orient, the announced merger of three large Japanese banks, Fuji, Dai-Ichi Kangyo and Industrial Bank of Japan, is also drawing attention, with today's Los Angeles Times calling it a "Messy Mega-Merger."

VOICE: Japan's banking industry may have pulled back from the brink of collapse, but it remains in a parlous state. A financial meltdown (collapse) was avoided last year only by the government's injection of billions of rescue dollars. . Certainly, restructuring Japan's troubled banking sector is in order, and mergers are inevitable. But this mega-deal raises tough questions that should be answered before Tokyo banking regulators approve it.

TEXT: Still in the region, there is continuing concern about the possible launch of a new, longer- range North Korean missile within the next weeks. The Houston Chronicle says no one should give concessions to Pyongyang to postpone the launch.

VOICE: North Korea appears to be using the threat of test-firing its long-range Taepodong Two missile-which for the first time would give the Stalinist regime the capability to strike Alaska and Hawaii - as a bargaining chip to win more economic and political concessions from the United Japan and South Korea. Unfortunately, any bargain agreed to will accrue to the long-term benefit of North Korea, while leaving leaders in Washington, Tokyo and Seoul to wonder what provocation the North Koreans will try next, certain only that it will be something. . The fact is, there are no easy answers in dealing with the North Koreans.

TEXT: In Arkansas, Bill Clinton's home state, The Arkansas Democrat-Gazette, is assessing current U-S China policy, toward defending Taiwan against threats from the Mainland, and finds it wanting.

VOICE: Washington's policy is to have no policy, hoping that generous amounts of verbal fog will keep the peace. Here's today's equivocation: The United States would clearly view an attack on Taiwan as a matter of "grave concern," while Washington just as clearly disapproves of Taiwan's acting like a free country or, far worse, talking like one. Which is what Taiwan's president has been doing. And the Clinton administration is not about to forgive him for it.

TEXT: Turning from the Orient to Europe, today's Tulsa [Oklahoma] World ponders the political future of Yugoslavia's President Slobodan Milosevic.

VOICE: There may be disagreements between Yugoslavian factions on how to get rid of Slobodan Milosevic, but they are united in their quest to see the Serb thug ousted. The common goal was evident last week when more than 150-thousand people attended an opposition rally in Belgrade. . The disunity among [Mr.] Milosevic's opposition is significant, but not unexpected. . One thing is sure -and all sides agree: As long [as] [Mr.] Milosevic remains in power there will be no economic aid from the West. Without that help, the country will continue to struggle with a collapsed infrastructure, a corrupt government and thousands of sick and hungry people.

TEXT: From the island of Hawaii, The Honolulu Star- Bulletin marks the transfer of Germany's government from Bonn to Berlin.

VOICE: Ten years after the collapse of the Berlin Wall, a unified German government has returned to its traditional capital. Following the parliament's relocation from the West German capital of Bonn. Chancellor Gerhard Schroeder has moved into temporary headquarters that once accommodated former East German leader Erich Honecker while awaiting completion of a new office . /// OPT /// Parliament next month will convene in the renovated 19th century Reichstag building but with little fanfare. Germans are more interested in the politics at hand, focused on dealing with a sputtering economy, than whether the debate occurs in Bonn or Berlin. /// END OPT /// By returning to a revitalized Berlin, the German government demonstrates that it has put behind it the nightmares of the Nazi and Communist eras as it moves into the new millennium.

TEXT: On that note we conclude this sampling of comment from some of Wednesday's U-S press.
NEB/ANG/KL 25-Aug-1999 11:33 AM EDT (25-Aug-1999 1533 UTC)
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Source: Voice of America

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