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INTRODUCTION╛INDEXUSA┴	FEATURESÆ
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	MEDICINE╛	POLITICSâM1ΓLATIN AMERICAEUROPE!CIS≡ ASIA£"M2¿'AFRICA.)MIDDLE EAST╕,1ú.263αB4äK5╕U6Ñ]7╔p8y9¬é10╟Å11Öá12█▓13╩┴14ƒ╦15ⁿ▀16╖δ17⌠181920┴%21Ñ922ƒB23xH24█a25hy26?â27è28≤¢29$▒30_╞31'┘32≤▐33╬°3435Y#36Σ037ó:38δ@39êD40sI41T42md43╒n44Θü45<Å469í47▒48Z╣49@╤50α▌51≥φ52ⁿ53╫54D55╓56ⁿ%57M-58π:59kC60¡K61\R62ñZ63Qe64.p65╣x66∞à67oÉ688ò69┘Ü701Ñ71Z▒72S╗73Q┴74O╩75∩╤76Æ╪77~δ78*⌠79s°80C8182l83╖84┼,85▌E86ER87%n88fü89ºì90ñ91ì│92σ╝93?╓94(α95╜Θ96	97 98ù#99Ü8100bC101 O102ƒV103|]104m105╙~106=ÿ107Jí108E╢109╠╜110╔╟111S╙112┘113sΓ114ÿτ115╒≡116▓117╩118.119 !120D*121²2122?123yK124∞R125æY126=b127ºh128en129≈y130_Æ131█Ü132╪ª133▌¡134╗║135Ç└136▓╠137î╙138▀139#φ140â⌡141¥142&143₧144▌145¡2146
=146UC147VJ148<U149^150├n151z152wç153.ö154ƒ¥155Γí156¥¬157Q╡158y╛159º┼160╧╬161╓╒162pµ163┘∩164J√SUBINFO~9INTERNATIONAL NEWS E-WIRE SERVICE WEEKLY WEEK OF 3/25/959                INTERNATIONAL NEWS E-WIRE SERVICE WEEKLY-                              ISSN 1080-3149.                            DISTRIBUTE FREELY.                             WEEK OF  3/25/951INFO/GENERAL INFO ON INEWS DAILY - INEWS@AOL.COM5TO REACH EDITOR ------------------ INEWSEDIT@AOL.COM$CLICK THE INDEX BUTTON FOR THE MENU.UNITED STATES,USA.LATIN AMERICA,LATIN AMERICA.EUROPE,EUROPE.RUSSIA  FORMER REPUBLICS,CIS.ASIA,ASIA.AFRICA,AFRICA.MIDDLE EAST,MIDDLE EAST .INEWS DAILY FREE TRIAL,SUBINFOUNITED STATES+        \FEATURES-CURRENT EVENTS\FEATURES\/        \FINANCIAL-ECONOMY-BUSINESS\FINANCIAL\        \MEDICINE\MEDICINE\        \POLITICS\POLITICS\.           CLICK TRACK TO RETURN TO THIS MENUFEATURES-CURRENT EVENTS5   \U.S. SAYS MEN HELD BY IRAQ ARE NOT IN DANGER\80\&   \TWO AMERICANS MISSING IN IRAQ\81\@   \RED CROSS NEGOTIATES WITH IRAQ FOR RELEASE OF AMERICANS\82\;   \ACADEMICS CONSIDER THE PROS AND CONS OF ORPHANAGES\83\8   \MARTIN SCORSESE LOBBIES FOR FILM DISCLOSURE ACT\84\K   \CHINA & VATICAN BLOCK WOMAN'S GROUPS FROM U.N. CONFERENCE ON WOMEN\85\"   \U.S. AGRICULTURAL ROUNDUP\86\(   \AMERICA RECONSIDERS IMMIGRATION\87\6   \U.S. CELEBRATES BOSNIA FEDERATION ANNIVERSARY\88\$   \WEARING THE HIJAB ON CAMPUS\89\&   \PRIVATIZING THE SPACE SHUTTLE\90\I   \TESTIMONY OF SHEIK OMAR PLOTTINGS IN NY BOMBING CONSPIRACY TRIAL\91\?   \ANTI-CRIME MEASURES IN U.S. IMPOSE MANDATORY SENTENCES\92\   \ATTACKS ON THE PRESS\93\I   \MIAMI SCHOOL FOR CUBAN CHILDREN FROM GUANTANAMO BAY REFUGEE CAMP\94\@   \DEBATE OVER PARTICIPATION OF WOMEN IN THE CATHOLIC MASS\95\F   \KEY TESTIMONY FROM INFORMANT IN N.Y. BOMBING CONSPIRACY TRIAL\96\*   \YALE RETURNS $20 MILLION DONATION\97\,   \"OUT OF IRELAND": COMING TO AMERICA\98\E   \INFORMANT INTERRUPTED BY SPECTATORS AT N.Y. CONSPIRACY TRAIL\99\"   \INVENTOR JEROME LEMELSON\100\.           CLICK TRACK TO RETURN TO THIS MENUFINANCIAL-ECONOMY-BUSINESS6   \U.S. CONSUMER PRICES, HOUSING STARTS FIGURES\124\J   \EX-SENATOR DANFORTH SAYS U.S. MUST PUT GREATER EMPHASIS ON TRADE\125\-   \LOCKHEED MARTIN CORPORATION CREATED\126\   \NEW INFLATION DATA\127\$   \WORLD BANK'S NEW PRESIDENT\128\=   \U.S. CHALLENGES COUNTRIES TO OPEN FINANCIAL MARKETS\129\-   \RELEASE OF U.S. ECONOMIC INDICATORS\130\2   \U.S. MANUFACTURES ARE BECOME MORE GLOBAL\131\9   \WTO DELEGATES FAIL AGAIN TO AGREE ON A DIRECTOR\132\B   \FACTORY OUTPUT ADVANCES, OPERATING RATES AT 15-YEAR HIGH\133\@   \U.S. CRITICIZE JAPANESE PLAN TO DEREGULATE ITS ECONOMY\134\.           CLICK TRACK TO RETURN TO THIS MENU	MEDICINE>   \WORLD HEATLH ORGANIZATION POLIO VACCINATION CAMPAIGN\147\7   \DOCTORS ISSUE REPORT ON NATURAL BIRTH CONTROL\148\   \ULCER VACCINE\149\.           CLICK TRACK TO RETURN TO THIS MENU	POLITICS(   \CLINTON'S SATURDAY RADIO ADDRESS\1\,   \CLINTON URGES IRA TO GIVE UP WEAPONS\2\B   \CLINTON SAYS HE WILL SHORTLY IF A MOSCOW TRIP WILL BE MADE\3\   \CONGRESS WEEK IN REVIEW\4\6   \TALBOT SAYS RELATIONS WITH RUSSIA ARE ON TRACK\5\9   \U.S. EDITORIAL OPINION ROUNDUP: THE CISNEROS CASE\6\.   \CLINTON ENTERS REGULATORY REFORMS RACE\7\O   \CONGRESS CRITICIZE ADMINISTRATION FOR RESPONSE TO CHINA'S RIGHTS RECORD\8\2   \HOUSE REPUBLICANS PASS BUDGET CUTTING BILL\9\G   \CONGRESS SETS IN MOTION LEGISLATION TO TOUGHEN CUBAN SANCTIONS\10\.   \IMMIGRATION MOOD CHANGE IN THE SENATE\11\3   \SENATE CALL FOR A COMPLETE EMBARGO ON IRAN\12\K   \SENATE VOTES TO PUNISH RUSSIA IF IT PROVIDES IRAN NUCLEAR REACTORS\13\C   \U.S. EDITORIAL OPINION ROUNDUP: CLINTON'S NEW IRISH POLICY\14\;   \CLINTON PLANS TELEPHONE DISCUSSION WITH JOHN MAJOR\15\2   \SENATE APPROVES DEFENSE SUPPLEMENTAL BILL\16\J   \HOLBROOKE SAYS N.IRELAND RANKS HIGH ON U.S. FOREIGN POLICY AGENDA\17\@   \CONGRESS WARNS PRESIDENT NOT TO PROMISE NEW FOREIGN AID\18\F   \RENO ASKS CONGRESS TO INCREASE NUMBER OF BORDER PATROL AGENTS\19\/   \TWO VIEWS OF THE CONTRACT WITH AMERICA\20\;   \KANTOR SAYS HE BELIEVES CHINA WILL OBEY IPR ACCORD\21\F   \PLANS FOR CHRISTOPHER'S MEETING WITH RUSSIAN FOREIGN MINISTER\22\.           CLICK TRACK TO RETURN TO THIS MENU1             \CLICK HERE FOR MORE SELECTIONS\M1\A   \HELMS ANNOUNCES MAJOR FOREIGN AFFAIRS RESTRUCTURING PLAN\23\K   \STATE DEPARTMENT OPPOSES CONSOLIDATION OF FOREIGN AFFAIRS AGENCIES\24\:   \U.S. HOPES N. KOREA WILL ACCEPT MULTILATERAL HELP\25\?   \KANTOR CALLS ARGENTINE PATENTS PROPOSAL "UNACCEPTABLE"\26\E   \U.S. WILL FOCUS INCREASED AID ON "SECOND WAVE" NIS COUNTRIES\27\+   \CLINTON'S NEETIMG WITH KING HASSAN\28\?   \HOLUM SAYS NPT SHOULD BE PERMANENT, SECURE, DEPENDABLE\29\$   \CONGRESS' SPLIT PERSONALITY\30\J   \PENTAGON STILL MAKING CONTINGENCY PLANS TO EVACUATE UN IN CROATIA\31\?   \U.S. OPINION ROUNDUP: THE FUTURE OF AFFIRMATIVE ACTION\32\>   \CLINTON CALLS CHOICE TO HEAD CIA "INNOVATIVE" THINKER\33\$   \HOUSE ACTION ON TORT REFORM\34\   \U.N. WEEK-IN-REVIEW\35\!   \CUBAN EMBARGO DISCUSSION\36\.           CLICK TRACK TO RETURN TO THIS MENULATIN AMERICAC   \COLOMBIAN COMMUNIST REBELS EXTEND ACTIVITY INTO VENEZUELA\135\0   \ZAPATISTAS REBELS AGREE TO PEACE TALKS\136\5   \AGENDA SET FOR HEMISPHERIC TRADE CONFERENCE\137\.   \BLEAK FUTURE PREDICTED FOR VENEZUELA\138\,   \ARGENTINE PRESIDENT BURIES HIS SON\139\4   \COSTA RICA/NICARAGUA IMMIGRATION AGREEMENT\140\>   \ARGENTINE PRESIDENT'S SON KILLED IN HELICOPTER CRASH\141\7   \CENTRAL AMERICAN FREE TRADE ZONE TALKS HALTED\142\6   \GUATEMALAN HUMAN RIGHTS UNDER SCRUTINY AGAIN\143\:   \U.S. EDITORIAL OPINION ROUNDUP: MEXICO'S ANGUISH\144\3   \ARGENTINE STOCKS RISE AFTER IMF AGREEMENT\145\B   \PERUVIAN PRESIDENT REMAINS FRONT RUNNER IN ELECTION RACE\146\@   \U.S. SUSPENDS TRAINING PROGRAM FOR GUATEMALAN MILITARY\146\.           CLICK TRACK TO RETURN TO THIS MENUEUROPE@   \BOSNIAN REACTS COOLLY TO U.S. CALL TO EXTEND CEASEFIRE\101\I   \BRITISH SAY THEIR SUSPECT IRA PLANTED BOMB FOUND HARDWARE STORE\102\;   \BRITISH REACTIONS TO GERRY ADAMS TRIP TO THE U.S.\103\    \CENTRAL ASIA ELECTIONS\104\;   \CONVENTIONAL FORCES IN EUROPE TREATY UNDER STRAIN\105\'   \NATO MEETING ON BOSNIA CRISIS\106\#   \NORTHERN IRELAND: WEAPONS\107\>   \SLOVAKIA WAITING WORD ON FINANCING FOR NUCLEAR PLANT\108\0   \CROATIAN PRESIDENT TUDJMAN VISITS U.N.\109\9   \U.N. MAKES NEW ATTEMPT TO DELIVER FOOD TO BIHAC\110\   \GERMAN ECONOMY\111\E   \KURDISH MILITANTS SUSPECTED IN ATTACK OF ON TURK BUSINESSES\112\5   \ITALIAN PRIME MINISTER WINS CONFIDENCE VOTE\113\H   \NATO DRAWS UP CONTINGENCY PLAN FOR EVACUATION FROM U.N. BOSNIA\114\'   \REPORTER'S NOTEBOOK:  ALBANIA\115\:   \SLOVAK AND HUNGARIAN PRIME MINISTERS END MEETING\116\   \ALBANIAN ECONOMY\117\"   \ALBANIAN/GREEK RELATIONS\118\2   \PROGRESS IN EU/CANADIAN FISHING CONFLICT\119\8   \REPORT ON EAST EUROPE MARKET REFORM TRANSITION\120\B   \MEMBERS OF TURKEY'S ALAWITES SECT BURY DEAD FROM RIOTING\121\6   \MORE ALAWITES DEMONSTRATORS KILLED IN TURKEY\122\/   \HUNGARY ANNOUNCE CURRENCY DEVALUATION\123\.           CLICK TRACK TO RETURN TO THIS MENURUSSIA/FORMER SOVIET REPUBLICS1   \AZERI TROOPS CRUSHED BY MUTINOUS POLICE\158\/   \YELTSIN INTERVENES IN BOLSHOI DISCORD\159\   \RUSSIAN TV IN TURMOIL\160\C   \BAIKONUR SPACE CENTER CONTINUES ON DESPITE MONEY TROUBLES\161\)   \ATTACKS ON THE PRESS IN EURASIA\162\3   \GORBACHEV CONSIDERS RUNNING FOR PRESIDENT\163\?   \UNREST IN CRIMEA AFTER THE UKRAINE CUTS BACK AUTONOMY\164\.           CLICK TRACK TO RETURN TO THIS MENUASIA!   \SRI LANKAN PEACE PROCESS\53\B   \BHUTTO SAYS WORLD TRADE CENTER BOMBER PLOTTED TO KILL HER\54\@   \U.S. SAYS REFUGEES SHOULD CONSIDER RETURNING TO VIETNAM\55\@   \CHINA'S NATIONAL PEOPLE'S CONGRESS SHOW OF INDEPENDENCE\56\!   \EAST ASIA PACIFIC REVIEW\57\M   \CHINA'S DAYA BAY NUCLEAR PLANT FAILS TO MEET INTERNATIONAL STANDARDS\58\@   \INDIA'S FINANCIAL MINISTER DEFENDS ECONOMIC REFORM PLAN\59\J   \PAKISTAN MAKES MORE ARRESTS IN CONNECTION TO TRADE CENTER BOMBING\60\I   \S. KOREA SAYS IT IS PREPARED FOR NEGATIVE N. KOREAN DEVELOPMENTS\61\I   \BURMESE DEMOCRACY GROUPS REACT TO RELEASE OF POLITICAL PRISONERS\62\>   \CHINA AND THE PHILIPPINES TO DISCUSS SPRATLYS DISPUTE\63\M   \CHINA SAYS DISSIDENT A CONDEMNED CRIMINAL, NOT DESERVING NOBEL PRIZE\64\I   \INDONESIA ASKS FOR PATIENCE ON HUMAN RIGHTS ISSUES FROM THE U.S.\65\>   \RABBANI SAYS HE WILL CONTINUE TO FIGHT TALIBAN REBELS\66\+   \SINGAPORE EXECUTES PHILIPPINE MAID\67\H   \FIGHTING BETWEEN BURMESE AND GOLDEN TRIANGLE DRUG LORD'S ARMIES\68\5   \BURMA RELEASES PROMINENT POLITICAL PRISONERS\69\&   \CAMBODIAN AID CONFERENCE ENDS\70\C   \CHINA REJECTS THE DALAI LAMA'S PROPOSED TIBETAN REFERENDUM\71\   \INDIA'S BUDGET\72\.           CLICK TRACK TO RETURN TO THIS MENU1             \CLICK HERE FOR MORE SELECTIONS\M2\A   \INDIAN HINDU NATIONALIST ALLIANCE'S CONTROVERSIAL LEADER\73\I   \PAKISTANI PRESIDENT'S BROTHER STARTS AN OPPOSING POLITICAL PARTY\74\A   \SOUTH KOREA CHARGES LOOCKEED WITH RENEGING ON A CONTRACT\75\,   \CAMBODIAN RECONSTRUCTION CONFERENCE\76\-   \CHINA REPORTS INCREASE IN CORRUPTION\77\2   \KASHMIR GENERAL STRIKE PARALYZES SRINAGAR\78\.           CLICK TRACK TO RETURN TO THIS MENUAFRICA   \SIERRA LEONE FIGHTING\37\*   \ETHIOPIAN AIRLINER HIJACKING OVER\38\5   \KENYA DENIES CROSS BORDER ATTACK INTO UGANDA\39\H   \KENYAN PRESIDENT RENEW CLAIM OPPOSITION INVOLVEMENT WITH REBELS\40\3   \AFRICA COMMISSION FOR HUMAN RIGHTS MEETING\41\   \ANGOLA UPDATE\42\*   \ETHIOPIAN GENOCIDE TRIAL REACTION\43\7   \SUDAN GOVERNMENT NOT INTERESTED IN PEACE TALKS\44\3   \CALL FOR CALM AFTER FAILED COUP IN NIGERIA\45\J   \KENYAN GOVERNMENT OUTCRY OVER GUERRILLA GROUPS CRITICS DENY EXIST\46\G   \DOUBTS OVER LEGITIMACY OF MAN WHO KENYA SAYS IS A REBEL LEADER\47\>   \THE WOMEN OF RWANDA, NOW TWO-THIRDS OF THE POPULATION\48\0   \SOUTH AFRICA UNVEILS ITS 1995/96 BUDGET\49\>   \ALGERIAN POLITICIANS DISAGREE ON HOW TO END BLOODSHED\50\5   \ALGERIAN PRIME MINISTER SPEAKS ON TRANSITION\51\    \RWANDA'S JUSTICE SYSTEM\52\   \SIERRA LEONE REFUGEES\79\.           CLICK TRACK TO RETURN TO THIS MENUMIDDLE EASTF   \ISRAELI NEWSPAPERS SKEPTICAL ABOUT RESUMING TALKS WITH SYRIA\150\.   \ISRAEL'S PALESTINIAN SEPARATION PLAN\151\   \JERUSALEM BOOK FAIR\152\?   \ALBRIGHT SAYS U.S. HAS PHOTOS OF HIDDEN IRAQI WEAPONS\153\3   \CHRISTOPHER MEETING WITH SYRIAN PRESIDENT\154\#   \UN IRAQI SANCTIONS REMAIN\155\J   \ISRAEL SUGGESTS EUROPEAN COUNTRIES TAKE PART IN INDUSTRIAL PARKS\156\?   \ATTACKS ON THE PRESS IN THE MEDITERRANEAN AND MIDEAST\157\.           CLICK TRACK TO RETURN TO THIS MENU   ---------------$   CLINTON'S SATURDAY RADIO ADDRESS   DEBORAH TATE   WHITE HOUSE:   President Clinton is urging Congress to consider toughBmeasures aimed at getting fathers who leave their families to pay@child support. Mr. Clinton says the proposals would cut welfare.costs and save taxpayers millions of dollars.<   In his weekly radio speech, President Clinton called for<tougher action to crack down on so-called 'dead-beat dads',Bfathers who abandon their families and fail to pay child support.B   Mr. Clinton noted a new study which indicates that if all such?fathers paid their child support, 800,000 mothers and children;would no longer need welfare, saving taxpayers millions of	dollars.@   The president proposes several ways to enforce child support;payment laws, including requiring businesses to report new>employees to the state in an effort to locate parents who oweAsupport, and revoking drivers' licenses of those who do not pay.<   Mr. Clinton urged Congress to pass the measures and send'deadbeat dads' this message:A   "If you neglect your responsibility to support your children,Bwe'll suspend your license, garnish your pay, track you down, andmake you pay."A   Reforming welfare is a priority for lawmakers, and one of theBfew areas where there is more agreement than disagreement between;the Democratic Administration and the Republican-dominated
Congress.@   Congressman Rob Portman of Ohio gave the Republican response@to the president's radio speech.  He embraced the child support@enforcement proposals the president talked about, but sought to$give his own party credit for them:A   "We welcome his support for this critical part of our welfare=reform that will force 'deadbeat' parents to own up to their,responsibilities and pay up what they owe."@   The House of Representatives is scheduled to vote Tuesday onwelfare reform.   ---------------   ---------------(   CLINTON URGES IRA TO GIVE UP WEAPONS   DAVID BORGIDA   WHITE HOUSEA   President Clinton, marking Saint Patrick's Day, is urging theBIrish Republican Army to give up its weapons to move the NorthernAIreland peace process forward.  His comments were made following>a meeting with visiting Irish Prime Minister John Bruton, and>before an evening reception with the prime minister and Gerry9Adams, head of Sinn Fein, the political wing of the IRA.>   The president once again welcomed Sinn Fein's readiness to<include the issue of giving up weapons in talks on northern.Ireland's future with the British government.?   But with Irish Prime Minister Bruton at his side, PresidentClinton urged action:B   "To those who have laid down their arms, I ask you now to take=the next step, and begin to seriously discuss getting rid of@these weapons so they can never be used again and violence will!never again return to the land."A   The president said such a move, in his words, "could not comesoon enough for me."B   Earlier, Gerry Adams said Sinn Fein and the British government>moved a step closer to ministerial-level talks by agreeing toBdiscuss an agenda for such a meeting.  The British government has@refused to elevate the talks to the highest level until the IRAdoes more to disarm.=   President Clinton is expected to speak with British Prime9Minister John Major this weekend.  Mr. Major, who visitsAWashington next month, was angered by the U.S. decision to allowASinn Fein fundraising in the United States.  Minimizing any riftAin the bilateral relationship, President Clinton described it asBgood, and said while there will be differences from time to time,?both governments share the goal of peace for Northern Ireland.?   During a brief ceremony after the Clinton-Bruton talks, the@prime minister praised President Clinton for his role in moving?the Northern Ireland peace process forward, saying it could be9one of his proudest achievements.  He then presented the>president with a traditional bowl of shamrocks for good luck.:   Then the prime minister met with reporters.  He said aAdecision by Sinn Fein on disarming could begin a process leading2to a dramatic decline in violence in his country:A   "It's very important that it be a decision taken in their own@way, in their own time, and with their own specific modalities,Bby Sinn Fein and the IRA themselves, they must, if you like, have=ownership of the decision that they take.  It shouldn't be aBdecision that is imposed on them or that other people's deadlinesAare used to put them into a corner.  They must make the generousBgesture themselves, in their own way.  And I believe that if they<do that, it will lead to the decommissioning of arms by the:loyalist organizations, and it will lead furthermore to a>reduction in the security presence by the official government>forces in Northern Ireland.  So we'll have an entirely benign5scenario developing from the moves that will occur."<   Attention then focused on the evening's reception, to be;attended by both the prime minister and Gerry Adams.  U.S.9officials have stressed it will be a social event, not asubstantive one.B   For his part, President Clinton did not seem too worried aboutany political ramifications.   ---------------   --------------->   CLINTON SAYS HE WILL SHORTLY IF A MOSCOW TRIP WILL BE MADE   WHITE HOUSEA   President Clinton says he expects to be announcing a decision6"very shortly" on whether to go to Moscow for May 9th<celebrations marking the fiftieth anniversary of the allied?victory in Europe and then for a summit with Russian PresidentBBoris Yeltsin.  President Yeltsin is trying to persuade him to go?by downplaying the military dimension of Russia's celebration.?   Will he go?  That question has been posed repeatedly to theApresident's top aides in recent weeks. The answer?  The decisionis being considered.?   Friday, having heard the Russian leader's appeal, PresidentBClinton was asked the same question and he kept to the diplomatictrack:B   "I appreciate what President Yeltsin said today.  And I expect<to be making a decision about that whole set of issues very,shortly.  And when I do, I'll announce it."B   Spokesman Mike McCurry, in a briefing with reporters, rejectedAthe characterization the president is having trouble deciding on?the issue.  He said the president does intend to meet with Mr.BYeltsin sometime in the first half of 1995.  He said many factors@are being considered in what he called intense diplomacy on theissue in recent weeks.?   Next week, Secretary of State Warren Christopher meets with>Russian Foreign Minister Andrei Kozyrev, with the anniversary=issue, a summit and what could result from it, and Chechnya,expected to be discussed.A   Domestic considerations are also at play as President Clinton7debates the decision to travel to Moscow May 9th.  TheAanniversary, known as VE day, is celebrated in the United States>May 8th, and there is pressure on him from veterans groups to#mark the day in the United States.?   Clinton spokesman McCurry told reporters Friday it is stillApossible the president can do that, fueling speculation creative9juggling of the president's may travel schedule is beingconsidered.=   So far, of the World War II allies, only French president<Francois Mitterrand has said he would be in Moscow May 9th.B   Mr. Yeltsin's remarks urging President Clinton to go to Moscow+came in an interview with foreign editors.   ---------------   ---------------   CONGRESS WEEK IN REVIEW   PAULA WOLFSON   CONGRESS9   Money matters topped the agenda this week in the U.S.<Congress.  House of Representatives focused on deep cuts ingovernment spending.>   The Republicans want to balance the federal budget and cutBtaxes.  There is only one way to meet both goals, slash spending.A   The first vote on budget cuts came Thursday in the House.  It8followed an emotional, highly partisan debate, one that9highlighted fundamental differences between the two main(political parties in the United States.=   This initial package of spending cuts totalled 17 billionAdollars. Most of the money was trimmed from social programs suchBas housing assistance for the poor and job training.  Republicans8said these programs are often wasteful and ineffective.?   Congressman Bob Livingston of Louisiana said too often, taxdollars are wasted:A   "We are trying to make this government more efficient, we are-trying to bring common sense to the budget!"B   Democrats said they want to balance the budget too, but not on?the backs of the poor.   Chaka Fattah of Pennsylvania said theRepublicans lack compassion:B   "Yes, it costs to care.  And education is indeed expensive.  IBwould argue that lack of caring and ignorance is more expensive."=   This debate will not go away and the fight about spending>priorities may well define the U.S. Congress for some time tocome.>   For this 17 billion dollar package was only the beginning.BThe House Budget Committee has proposed an additional 100 billionAdollars in cuts in specific programs during the next five years.BThe Republicans are also predicting 90 billion dollars in savings=if the legislature approves their plan to revamp welfare and>medicaid, huge government initiatives that provide guaranteed)benefits to Americans living in poverty.?   All these efforts, of course, must still be approved by theBU.S. Senate which is moving at a much slower pace than the House.BThis week, the Senate took time off from pending domestic matters:to handle a foreign policy concern.  Senators approved an<amendment designed to pressure Russia to drop plans to sell>nuclear technology to Iran.   The amendment was attached to a<measure to provide the Pentagon with emergency funds to paypeacekeeping expensesA   In the week ahead, the Senate is expect to focus on a measureAthat gives the president the ability to reject specific items inAa spending bill without vetoing the entire piece of legislation.<The House will turn its attention to a priority item on its$legislative agenda, welfare reform.   ---------------   ---------------2   TALBOT SAYS RELATIONS WITH RUSSIA ARE ON TRACK   ROMAS SAKADOLSKIS   WASHINGTON@   U.S. Deputy Secretary of State Strobe Talbott says relationsBbetween the United States and Russia remain on track, despite the@Chechnen conflict and Moscow's plans to sell nuclear technology	to Iran.=   Deputy Secretary of State Strobe Talbott says the Chechen@conflict and Russia's decision to sell nuclear reactors to Iran@have strained Moscow-Washington relations, which otherwise are,%in his words, "approching normalcy.";   The United States expected problems in Russia's road to@reform, says Mr. Talbott, but the Chechen war is a big setback:B   "This has been a big one. It's been particularly dismaying notAonly because of the terrible loss of human life but also because;one of the consequences of Chechnya has been a significant?reduction in the popular base that (Russian) president (Boris)(Yeltsin enjoys within his own country."B   Mr. Talbot calls Moscow's decision to sell nuclear reactors toIran a huge mistake:A   "We think this is a huge mistake not just from the standpointAof our own non-proliferation policy but also from the standpointBof Russia's own interest.  Iran has a very dangerous regime, that>is exporting terror and instability in the region.  It's much?closer to Russia than it is to the United States.  It's not in>Russia's interest that Iran develop nuclear weapons.  That is2unquestionably the intent of the current regime."B   Despite these disagreements, Mr. Talbot says the United StatesBwill continue to assist Russia, as well as the other republics of8the former Soviet Union, to strengthen their democratic!institutions and market reforms.<   The Deputy Secretary of State rejects criticism that the<Clinton administration is engaged in a Russia-first policy,@saying the U.S. president supports all countries in the region.BBut he notes Russia is the largest of the former Soviet republicsBand should be accorded a proportionate share of American support.   ---------------   ---------------5   U.S. EDITORIAL OPINION ROUNDUP: THE CISNEROS CASE   ANDREW N. GUTHRIE   WASHINGTON?   U.S. Attorney General Janet Reno has decided that a specialAcounsel should investigate whether Cabinet member Henry CisnerosAlied to the FBI during his background check for nomination to be>Secretary of Housing and Urban Development.  He is the second?member of the original Clinton cabinet to be investigated by a=special prosecutor, and the issue has generated considerable+comment in the nation's editorial columns.?   A special prosedutor is studying whether former Agriculture:Secretary Mike Espy broke any laws during his year in the@cabinet.  And two other serving members, Commerce Secretary Ron@Brown and Transportation Secretary Federico Pena have both been9investigated by the Justice Department, but the probe of:Secretary Pena is over, and no charges have been brought.8President Clinton supports Mr. Cisneros and refused his
resignation.@   Mr. Cisneros, former Mayor of San Antonio, Texas, and one of>the nation's leading Hispanic officials, is accused of having=lied to the FBI over the amount of money he paid to a former?mistress with whom he acknowledges having an affair during the>late 1980s. Praised for his work in leading the Department ofBHousing and Urban Development, now several papers, including "The6Atlanta Constitution," are calling for him to resign:@   "Even if [Secretary] Cisneros is eventually cleared, though,Bremaining at his post at the Department in the meantime is out ofBthe question.  He owes it to the president, who mistakenly talked@him into staying on, the opportunity to choose someone else who8can lead HUD without distraction and won't embarrass an=administration that currently has an excess of highly placedinsiders under investigation.":   However, "USA Today" says that if we set standards forAgovernment service at unreasonable levels, no one will be fit toserve:=   "Every man bears the whole stamp of the human condition,"=observed the easayist Montaigne.  If you don't get his point<intuitively, Henry Cosneros can paint you a picture.  [Mr.]BCisneros is widely hailed as a first-class housing secretary, but>no matter what his accomplishments, poor judgment in a purelyBpersonal matter threatens to remove him again from public office.AIndeed, if he is found to have lied, he will have to go.  But if@the argument is merely that he is unfit because he philandered,?with no connection to his performance in office, firing is far
too severe.">   "The Washington Times" however, is highly critical of both?Secretary Cisneros and the Attorney General for what the paper-feels is her tardy attention to the problem:;   "Janet Reno has at last asked for the appointment of an>independent counsel to investigate Secretary Cisneros. We mayAwell ask ourselves just why Mr. Cisneros was so reluctant to let@the FBI know how much money he was forking over [giving] to Ms.BMedlar [the mistress] each year.  But, apparently, at least where?members of a Democratic administration are concerned, the mere:fact of such lying needn't be grounds for investigation."?   "The Washington Post" agrees that an independent counsel is6necessary in this case. However "The Post" continues:@   "We hope if he's done no wrong he can and does stick it out;;[stay on] he's been a good secretary.  He has also already?absorbed an awful lot of public punishment in this messy case.=But that's not the issue at this point. Only an outsider can9convincingly either prosecute or exonerate Mr. Cisneros,whichever the outcome may be.">   In Pennsylvania, "The Philadelphia Inquirer" suggests that<"Henry Cisneros' fine record as HUD secretary might be bestpreserved by his exit":B   "While we've stoutly defended the HUD secretary before, noting<that a messy private life need not and in his case, had notBdisqualified him as one of HUD's most talented, energetic, honestAleaders in years, defending lying on a background check is a farBgreater stretch.  Frankly, President Clinton should not be tryingBto make it [that is: make the stretch/comparison between lying on:a background check and merely having admitted to having a>mistress while married] by what calculus does the White HouseApresent itself as an ethical paragon, and go easy on someone whotells the FBI a pack of lies?"A   And from the Midwest, and "The Cleveland [Ohio] Plain Dealer"which writes:<   "No matter how much talent, energy, and experience [Mr.]BCisneros brings to his job, and he brings plenty, certain minimum=standards of integrity must be required of Cabinet officers.?Blatant lying to federal authorities during background checks,7and conspiracy to lie, cannot be lightly excused.  The=independent prosecutor should work quickly but thoroughly toBresolve the questions that have cast such a regrettable pall over+the tenure of a talented public official."   ---------------   ---------------*   CLINTON ENTERS REGULATORY REFORMS RACE   DAVID BORGIDA   WHITE HOUSE>   President Clinton is taking action to win a political raceBwith Republicans to see who can best address voter concerns about.burdensome federal regulations on businesses.B   President Clinton is trying to help people like Stu McMichael,?the owner of a small print shop in nearby Arlington, Virginia,?who, like many small business owners, feels he spends too much@time complying with federal regulations, too little on making aprofit.<   In an effort to protect his employees and customers from<environmental hazards, the federal Environmental Protection@Agency has set certain standards with which he must comply.  He<currently must fill out twenty federal forms describing his+compliance with toxic emissions standards.<   President Clinton chose Mr. McMichael's business, calledA"Custom Print," to publicly announce new rules on how businesses?have to comply with not just environmental standards, but drug<and medical ones too.  If President Clinton's new proposals>become law, Stu McMichael will only have to fill out one suchform.   He says likes that, a lot:?   "I applaud these people who have taken this opportunity and>this time to make those kinds of changes to allow me to run a>business like this and to do it right and to make some money.B   The president's action is part of his administration's overall:effort, managed by Vice-President Al Gore,  to streamline4government and make it more responsive to citizens.A   The president said the time had come to treat people like Stu/McMichael not as adversaries, but as partners:?   "The philosophy that guided these changes is pretty simple,?protect  people, not !bureaucracy, promote results, not rules,<get action, not rhetoric, wherever possible, try to embracecommon sense."A   Congressional Republicans are pursuing more sweeping changes,$changes the administration opposes.B   The two political parties are competing for leadership on this@issue, hoping what they do now will be appreciated by voters in"(the next election year of) 1996.   ---------------   ---------------K   CONGRESS CRITICIZE ADMINISTRATION FOR RESPONSE TO CHINA'S RIGHTS RECORD   PAULA WOLFSON   CONGRESS@   The Clinton Administration's response to human rights abuses8in Asia is coming under criticism in the U.S. Congress.@   There was anger and frustration in the hearing room when top@State Department officials appeared before members of the House(subcommittees on Asia and human rights.>   Republican Christopher Smith of New Jersey held up a thick@blue copy of the State Department's latest human rights report.@He said the administration should be commended for its detailed<country-by-country analysis of conditions.  But he said theBClinton White House, while reporting these abuses, does little tostop them:A   "This book, well written and I think very well documented, is2disconnected from the policies enumerated by thisadministration.">   Mr. Smith made specific mention of China's family planningApolicy,  charging the Clinton Administration is doing nothing to(block the practice of forced abortions.>   China was also the target of comments made by Democrat TomLantos of California:B   "I wish our administration had fought as hard for human rights@in  China as it did against the theft of intellectual property.=This administration went to the mat when the subject was theBtheft of American intellectual property.  But this administration>ducked (avoided) a fight, as did the previous administration,=when it was a question of human lives, torture, persecution,Bdiscrimination, forced abortions, the most sickening of practicesimaginable on this planet.";   The assistant Secretary of State for human rights, John?Shattuck, defended the administration's approach.  He said the@Clinton White House has not shied away from controversy when it<comes to advocating the rights and freedoms of individuals:>   "This administration has placed more emphasis on issues of?human rights throughout Asia than any administration that I amaware of."A   Mr. Shattuck noted that in Asia, the United States is dealingAwith  countries with a wide range of political systems, from the@established democracy of Japan to the authoritarian regime that=rules Burma.  He closed his testimony with a few quotes from:nobel peace prize laureate Aung San Suu Kyi.  The Burmese?democracy activist once said "human beings the world over need?freedom and security so they can be able to achieve their fullpotential."   ---------------   ---------------.   HOUSE REPUBLICANS PASS BUDGET CUTTING BILL   PAULA WOLFSON   CONGRESS8   Republicans in the U.S. House of Representatives areAcelebrating another victory.  They pushed through a bill cutting>17 billion dollars in government spending. Leaders of the new6majority party say these cuts are only the beginning.B   This was the most emotional debate so far in the new Congress.;It was a debate on the one issue that divides the two main@political parties in the United States more than any other, therole of government.=   Republicans says government is too big, too intrusive and@spends too much.  Democrats say the nation faces many problems,Aand sometimes only government has the resources to lead the way.B   These opposing philosophies collided in the House chamber when>members were asked to approve the first Republican package of@spending cuts.  The main target was funding for social programs'championed for years by the Democrats.;   These 17 billion dollars in cuts are technically called:"recisions" because Congress is taking away money alreadyBapproved for specific initiatives.  Republicans said they focused=on programs that are ineffective and inefficient, along with:those that could be funded by the private sector, such aseducational television.>   Congressman Bob Livingston of Louisiana is chairman of the-committee that crafted the recision package:B   "The American people have waited long and hard for some common@sense and wisdom in Congressional handling of their hard earned<money.  For far too long, we have reached deeply into theirApockets, their purses and their wallets and we have seized theirAcash that they have worked so hard for. And we have consistentlyAtold them how it should be spent and why they should be happy weare spending it."A   His voice, with its soft southern accent, rose and fell, much5like a preacher leading a religious revival meeting:B   "...And while this is only the first step, only the beginning,@the fact is that this, the largest recision bill in the historyBof this country, the largest roll-back in previously appropriated@funds by a liberal spendthrift Congress, this is the first step;towards fiscal sanity and a balanced budget and it must betaken!"?   Democrats countered they too want to see a balanced budget.@But they said the Republicans are wrong to focus their spendingBcuts on programs that help the poor, the very young, and the veryold.A   David Obey of Wisconsin led the attack on the recisions bill:B   "We believe this bill is warped....and we believe there is  no?underlying sense of decency in the way the cuts are focused inthis bill."@   In recent days, Democrats have seized on Republican plans to9reduce or revamp government programs for children.  TheyBapparently have struck an emotional chord with the public because;throughout this debate Republicans found themselves on the?defensive.  Time and time again, members of the majority partyAsaid the best thing they can do for the nation's young people isAcut the national debt that hangs like a cloud over their future.>   In the weeks ahead, Republicans are expected to announce a=long range plan to balance the budget by the year 2002.  The<House Budget Committee is considering a proposal to cut 100<billion dollars in government spending during the next fiveyears.   ---------------   ---------------B   CONGRESS SETS IN MOTION LEGISLATION TO TOUGHEN CUBAN SANCTIONS   MERCEDES SPROUSE   WASHINGTONA   Cuba is coming under scrutiny in the U.S. Congress. LawmakersAin the House of Representatives have set into motion legislationAthat would toughen the economic embargo against Cuba. But others1say the time has come to lift some restrictions.@   The average Cuban is believed to earn an average of three or<four dollars a month.  Their tropical nation suffers from aBshortage of fish, bananas and sugar after more than three decades!under the reign of Fidel Castro.B   But what to do about Fidel Castro sparks passionate discussionAin the U.S. Congress. Some lawmakers want to strengthen the U.S.Aeconomic embargo and boost broadcasts of TV and Radio Marti as a@means to give the Cuban people incentive to force Castro out ofApower.    But others think the intent of U.S. policy toward CubaBout of touch with native Cubans and misguided to favor the wishesof Cuban Americans.A   "I don't really think this is about elections at all. I think:this is about elections in Florida," said Charles Rangel.>   Congressman Charles Rangel is a Democrat from New York. HeBcontends the U.S. economic embargo against Cuba hasn't worked forA35 years and it won't start now.  So, he wants the United StatesBto be able to do business with Cubans, just like other countries.=Mr. Rangel sponsored legislation that would ease the embargo>enough for the United States to sell food and medicine to theCuban people.B   Democrat Robert Torricelli of New Jersey says the embargo only;became credible when the Soviet Union cut off subsidies to@Havanna.  He maintains more time is needed to let the sanctionshelp bring down Castro.B   On Capitol Hill, Mr. Torricelli's spirited discussion Thursday?with Charles Rangel Foretold of heated Congressional debate tocome:A   Torricelli:  In a country that has five days worth of foreign?exchange, and the electricity is off 10 or 12 hours per night.BIn Havanna as they await the monthly oil ship let's deal with theBreality that in giving food and medicine we're trying to preserve@some quality of life for the poor of Cuba.  Selling it is doing<no favor.  If they could buy medicines they'd buy them fromEurope.  They have no money.   Rangel: Let's do it.A   Torricelli:  If they could buy food, they wouldn't' be buying9it from us, our rice is the most expensive in the world.3   Rangel:  Let's do it. That won't hurt anything.=   Torricelli: They'll have nothing until they bring forth achange.@   Rangel:   Look, remove the embargo just on food and medicineand then see.<   Torricelli:  Have a free election and let's remove it oneverything.@   In fact, private U.S. humanitarian groups have sent about 65?million dollars worth of food and medicine to Cuba in the past>three years.  Lawmakers want to get tough in other areas, andAdraft legislation that would direct allies like Mexico to comply=with the U.S. embargo, rather than doing business with Cuba.:   Clinton Administration are concerned new Congressional:legislation on Cuba will hamper broader national securityinterests.A   Specifically, a provision in the bill that require Washington>to withhold from Moscow an amount equal to the assistance and<credits Russia provides to Cuba in return for the use of an,intelligence facility at Lourdes (in Cuba).B   But lawmakers such as Democrat Tom Lantos of California accuseAthe Clinton Administration of a double standard in human rights:=   "Human rights are indivisible. And, if you take a broaderBhistorical perspective, you realize the attempt to make Cuba freeAof Castro is part of the attempt that many of us were engaged in:making South Africa free of apartheid. And I find it very?difficult to see people who were with us in that fight findingACastro somehow acceptable.  This year is the 50th anniversary ofBall kinds of nightmares in Europe.  The way to pay tribute to the>six million who died in hitler's gas chambers is to see to it>that the people who are being persecuted today, from China to-Cuba, are no longer going to be persecuted."@   A House of Representatives subcommittee will begin reviewingBlegislation next week in advance of what is expected to be heated,debate on revising U.S. policy toward Cuba.   ---------------   ---------------)   IMMIGRATION MOOD CHANGE IN THE SENATE
   DON HENRY   WASHINGTON;   Immigration reform has taken on new urgency in the U.S.ACongress, where an intensive round of hearings on ways to reduceAlegal and illegal immigration is under way in both chambers. The@elevated status of immigration is clear from the remarks at the?first hearing of the enlarged Senate Immigration Subcommittee.;   For years, immigration reform was the province of three>veteran senators, Democrats Edward Kennedy and Paul sImon andARepublican Alan Simpson.  Senator Simpson ran things for much of@the 1980's, Senator Kennedy was chair from 1987 onward, and now<the Republican election surge last November has put SenatorSimpson back in charge.=   At the first of what will be many hearings on immigration@reform, the wyoming Republican looked around at a new situationBin the large hearing room known as Dirksen 226.  Where once threeBsenators and their staff aides outnumbered the total of reporters-and spectators, now the room was jam-packed.>   Moreover, the veteran immigration trio is no longer alone.BFour more senators were added to the subcommittee and they becamethe opening witnesses.@   Each unveiled demands for more border control or other tough immigration oversight measures.@   Typical was the pronouncement of Democrat Diane Feinstein of9California, the state with the most immigrants, legal orotherwise:=   "I've come to the conclusion that the only way to protectBlegal immigration in this country is to stop, and I mean the wordBstop, illegal immigration.  The last two years we've provided 1007million new (additional) dollars.  Is it enough?  No!"=   Voters in California last year adopted proposition 187, a@measure aimed at discouraging illegal immigration by renedering@illegal aliens ineligible for most welfare benefits.   Although;she opposed prop 187, the senator said she understood that@California voters feel overwhelmed by the burden placed on them/by an estimated two million illegal residents.A   Senator Simpson said that feeling pervades the entire country@and it applies not only to those crossing the border illegally,Bbut to those who enter with a proper visa but overstay its terms,Aeven to some refugees whose claims for asylum are what he calledquestionable at best:@   "People are fed up.  They're disturbed.  They see people who=have come here and have violated our laws.  And then we haveAhundreds of thousands who cross the border illegally every year.BWe have the others who come legally but overstay their visas.  We@give some people asylum consideration.  And the American peopleare feeling outraged."B   Senator Simpson promised what he called an intensive effort byAthe subcommittee to sort through what will probably be dozens of?pieces of legislation, then put together a comprehensive bill,'and get it through Congress this year.?   There is general agreement the bill will support beefing up@the border patrol and immigration service to reduce the flow of>illegal immigrants into the country and to deport many caughthere.B   Likewise, agreement is expected on funding of test programs to@find a fraud-proof means of letting an employer verify that job9applicants are legal immigrants with work authorization.=   It is deemed likely as well that citizens who sponsor theBentry of parents or other family members will have to provide for=them. Senator Simpson says any legal immigrant who becomes aApublic charge by getting welfare assistance should be classified2as deportable after 12 months of such dependency.;   The wyoming Republican says Congress first will pass anAillegal immigration reform bill, then will draw up new and lower=limits on legal immigration, probably in September after the4national commission on immigration reform makes its@recommendation. Roughly 900-thousand immigrants entered legally?last year and Congress is expected to lower that ceiling by at%least two or three hundred thousand.:   The opposition is expected to put up a vigorous battle=including charges of immigrant bashing.  But Senator Simpson@cautioned against too much emotional rhetoric.  He believes theAAmerican people have become saddened at all the abuses they hearabout:B   "They're dispirited with all these elements and they're tired,?oh so very tired, of being told when they want immigration law8enacted that they are being cruel and mean and racist."<   The subcommittee chairman promised there will be nothing@racist, nativist or mean spirited about any bill to emerge from:the Senate.  He also predicted bipartisan backing, saying=immigration is not a Republican or a Democratic Party issue.   ---------------   ---------------.   SENATE CALL FOR A COMPLETE EMBARGO ON IRAN   JIM MALONE
   SENATE?   Republicans in the U.S. Senate intensified their call for a@complete embargo on U.S. trade with Iran Thursday even as a top>State Department official cautioned that such an action couldharm U.S. business interests.@   Republican Senator Al D'Amato pushed ahead with his proposal=to impose a total ban on trade with Iran, describing current+Clinton Administration policy as confused:=   "Right now, the embargo against Iran is a myth. It has no>real teeth.  It has  no  real functions.  It is nothing  moreBthan propaganda.  Now, if we do not make a total embargo and make;a real embargo, then we are kidding (deluding) ourselves."<   Senator D'Amato and other lawmakers who regard Iran as a@terrorist state are upset that foreign subsidiaries of AmericanBoil companies buy up to four-billion dollars worth of Iranian oil:each year despite an embargo in effect since the break in<diplomatic relations between Washington and tehran in 1979.A   The push to tighten the trade sanctions against Iran comes in>the wake of an executive order by President Clinton this week7prohibiting U.S. oil companies from involvement in oilAdevelopment projects with Iran.  That decision blocked a deal by?the American oil company Conoco from consumating a one-billion'dollar oil development deal with Iran.<   At a Senate Banking Committee hearing Thursday, the U.S.>undersecretary of state for political affairs, Peter Tarnoff,Asaid the Clinton Administration made it clear to Conoco from the?start that the proposed deal with Iran was not consistent with@U.S. policy.  However, Conoco Vice President J. Michael StinsonBtold the committee that the administration never gave his companyBa clear policy statement against the deal until it was announced.@   Undersecretary Tarnoff says the administration is willing to>discuss the D'Amato plan for a total economic embargo against>Iran and is considering additional steps against Iran. But he:warns that the trade ban would be difficult to implement:B   "The willingness does not exist in the international political?arena, both in governments or in companies themselves, to stopAthe import of oil from Iran.  So, the United States alone is not(capable of bringing about that result."A   Mr. Tarnoff also cautions that there are many legal questions>about trying to enforce an embargo on foreign subsidiaries of-American companies doing business with Iran.B   Experts who testified at Thursday's hearing were split on what@the impact of tightening the embargo would be.  The director ofAthe Middle East data project, Kenneth Timmerman, says tightening>the economic screws (intensifying sanctions) on Iran could be*helpful to democratic forces within Iran:A   "A window of opportunity is opening in Iran when the clericalBregime is more fragile than ever before and with a little push itAcould collapse on its own and I believe, Mr. Chairman, that your$bill will contribute to that push."?   But others caution that Iran could easily find other buyers>for its oil and that a total trade ban would  not necessarilyBtranslate into improvements in Iranian behavior.  Patrick Clawson:watches Iran from the National Defense University here inWashington:B   "Comprehensive sanctions are probably also not going to change>Iranian behavior that we find unacceptable on several fronts.>For instance, I do not think that the comprehensive sanctions=will have much affect on Iran's pursuit of nuclear weapons."@   Senator D'Amato urged the Clinton Administration to work him@on his proposed legislation,  noting that he has 26 co-sponsorsBbacking his measure and predicting that both the Senate and House?of Representatives ultimately will approve a tightening of theembargo against Iran.   ---------------   ---------------F   SENATE VOTES TO PUNISH RUSSIA IF IT PROVIDES IRAN NUCLEAR REACTORS   JIM MALONE
   SENATE=   The U.S. Senate voted Thursday to cut funding for nuclear<cooperation with Russia if Russia goes ahead with a plan toBprovide nuclear reactors to Iran. The Senate backed off a tougherBproposal which would have targeted the U.S./Russian space station	program.=   The Senate voted that President Clinton must certify thatBRussia has not sold four nuclear reactors to Iran or Russia faces@cuts in American assistance to its ministry of atomic energy as9part of a U.S. Russian agreement on nuclear cooperation.;   The vote came on an amendment to a supplemental defense@spending bill. It was offered by Arkansas Democrat Dale Bumpers=who said it  would be irresponsible for the United States toAstand by and do nothing while Russia sells nuclear technology toIran:A   "There is not any question about the fact that more terrorism@comes  out of Iran than any other country on earth.  And so for:the Russians  to irresponsibly cut a deal to sell nuclearBreactors to Iran which  has more oil than they could possibly putBin all the generators they  could build through the millennium, I?take very strong exception to that. Iran can only want nuclear9reactors for one thing and that is for a nuclear weapons
program.">   Initially, Senator Bumpers wanted to block funding for the:joint U.S. Russian space station program even as American<astronaut Norman Thagard begins a ninety-day mission on theBRussian Mir space station. Senator Bumpers, a staunch opponent ofBthe joint space program, will try to kill funding for the venturelater in this session.B   Senator Bumpers also warned that Russia may face even stronger?Congressional action in the future if Moscow goes ahead on itsnuclear deal with Iran::   "So now we are saying in this amendment, saying to the?Russians and saying to the president (Clinton). Mr. President,Byou need to put all the pressure you can on President Yeltsin andAthe Russian atomic energy agency, which is very independent, andAyou need to get a commitment from them.  And if this (amendment)?is not strong enough medicine, I promise you stronger medicinewill follow.">   The Bumpers amendment was attached to a two-billion dollarBsupplemental defense spending bill to cover U.S. peacekeeping and@other military operations in Haiti, Bosnia, Somalia, Rwanda andACuba. The funding for these programs is made up by cuts in otherparts of the defense budget.   ---------------   --------------->   U.S. EDITORIAL OPINION ROUNDUP: CLINTON'S NEW IRISH POLICY   ANDREW N. GUTHRIE   WASHINGTON:   Friday in the United States, cities from Boston in the;Northeast to Savannah on the Georgia coast, will take on aBdistinctly greenish hue as the country celebrates Saint Patrick'sADay.  Nowhere, except perhaps in Ireland, is this ancient CelticBSaint the subject of more celebrations than in America, including&huge parades in Chicago and New York.;   This year, however, there is a more serious side to the<celebrations.  Against the wishes of the British, Sinn Fein>leader Gerry Adams has been invited to the White House on St.@Patrick's Day for talks with President Clinton on the advancing?peace talks with Britain over Northern Ireland.  The visit has?stirred reactions both pro and con among the public and in the<country's editorials columns.  "The New York Times," noted:>   "As soon as Gerry Adams indicated a willingness to discuss:decommissioning the weapons of the Irish Republican Army,APresident Clinton extended him a St. Patrick's Day invitation to=the White House, and permission to raise funds in the UnitedBStates.  Mr. Clinton was right to resist British pressure to snubAthe Sinn Fein leader.  Mr. Adams has an obligation now, too.  He<must vindicate Mr. Clinton's gesture by acting responsibly,@making sure the money raised here is used for peaceful purposesBand coming up with concrete proposals that will -- to use his own.words -- remove the gun from Irish politics.";   "The Wall Street Journal" is puzzled however, about the>disparate treatment of Mr. Adams and the president of Taiwan:=   "Gerry Adams can tour the United States, but Lee Teng-hui?can't.  Gerry Adams will be feted and celebrated Friday at the>White house, but when Lee Teng-hui's plane landed in Honolulu>last year, the U-S government told him to gas up and get out.BLee Teng-hui who has been treated like an international pariah byBthe Administration is the democratically elected President of the?Republic of China, or Taiwan. The disparate treatment of these?two men tells an awful lot about the politics and instincts of:the Clinton presidency. It is hard to know precisely what>motivates Mr. Clinton to lionize a Gerry Adams and snub a Lee@Teng-hui. Perhaps the end of the Cold War has liberated liberal;heads of state into a state of light-headedness about such
matters."A   Conservative syndicated columnist Cal Thomas, writing in "The?Denver Post" and "Miami Herald" also has some misgivings aboutthe Adams visit:>   "President Clinton has overruled the advice of most of hisAforeign policy advisers and allowed Gerry Adams to return to the>United States this week.  Adams plans to conduct fund-raising@activities here for his terrorist Sinn Fein organization, which=has been responsible for the deaths of innocent civilians in:Britain and Northern Ireland.  [Mr.] Clinton is playing a?dangerous game.  If [Mr.] Adams and Sinn Fein get rid of their<arms, the president could be seen as facilitating the peace@process.  But if terrorism begins again in Britain and NorthernAIreland, [Mr.] Adam's trip and the president's decision to allowAhim to raise money while he's here will be seen as subsidizing a7continuing war against innocent people and the British&government, our supposed close ally."@   Taking a much more positive tone, as it looks at the general9situation in Northern Ireland, "The New York Post" says:A   "Irish eyes will truly be smiling this St. Patrick's Day, andABritish eyes as well: As hard as it is to believe, it seems thatApeace has broken out in Northern Ireland.  It's always dangerousBto be overly optimistic in this realm; certainly, 'fragile' is an<appropriate word to describe the situation in the northeastBcorner of the Emerald Isle.  On the other hand and despite a fairAamount of bombast from London, the peace process seems on track.@Irish-Americans and others of good will can be thankful for the:very substantial progress already made toward this goal."B   Not at all happy with the Gerry Adams visit to the White House;or the involvement of the Irish-American political clan of>Kennedys in U-S policy toward Ireland, "The Washington Times"says:A   "Right now we have a Kennedy as ambassador to the Republic of;Ireland, Jean Kennedy Smith.  And we have a former aide toBSenator Edward Kennedy, Nancy Soderberg, at the National Security=Council running U-S policy on Ireland and of course, we haveBSenator Kennedy himself so it shouldn't really be a surprise that>Gerry Adams has been granted a three-month visa by the United?States.  Still, surprise or no, the idea that this man will beBspending St. Patrick's Day at the White House with Mr. Clinton is
outrageous."B   On the other hand, "New York Newsday" commends the president'sdecisions:@   "Once again, President Bill Clinton has done the right thingBon the sensitive Irish question when he bucked British objectionsBand allowed Sinn Fein leader Gerry Adams to raise funds openly in=the United States.  ... [Mr.] Clinton's official embrace was=justified by [Mr.] Adams' unprecedented and welcome offer toDnegotiate the possible disarmament of the Irish Republican Army..."   ---------------   ---------------6   CLINTON PLANS TELEPHONE DISCUSSION WITH JOHN MAJOR   WASHINGTONA   White House spokeman Mike McCurry said the president plans to=telephone British Prime Minister John  Major this weekend to;discuss the Middle East peace process, among other issues.?   He said the Major call, to take place after the White HouseBreception to be attended by Gerry Adams, leader of Sinn Fein, the@political arm of the Irish Republican Army, will cover "a rangeof things."A   McCurry said Clinton "is anxious to compare notes" with MajorBon the British leader's trip to the Middle East and to inform him;of the results of Secretary of State Christopher's shuttle?diplomacy in the region.  He said Clinton would likely discussBhis own March 15 meeting with Morocco's King Hassan II.  He added?that he "would not rule out the notion" that relations between*Moscow and Washington would also come up.B   Asked to describe the U.S. goal in inviting Adams to the White;House reception honoring Irish Prime Minister John Bruton,@McCurry said that Clinton shares with Major and with Bruton the4goal of advancing "the peace process that can bring4reconciliation to the peoples of Northern Ireland."?   "We believe," McCurry went on, "that that is best done whenBthe parties themselves are at the table and are talking about the?issues that have divided them, where they are actually talking>about making progress towards the goal of a safe and peacefulANorthern Ireland.  That process is defined in the Declaration ofBPrinciples (the Downing Street Declaration) that they've reached,Band the discussions have been underway.  We're satisfied that the@United States can lend its encouragement to a process that we s@upport by having the type of discussions we've been having, andAin a sense celebrating them on the occasion of St. Patrick's Dayas we will tomorrow."B   He told a questioner that the United States has "contributed aAgreat deal to the process" as indicated "by some of the parties.@We've helped them reach moments of dialogue; we've helped them,;in a sense, deepen their understanding of the process that@they've now undertaken.  We admire the courage that the parties>have shown, including Prime Minister Major and Prime MinisterBBruton, and we hope that the process will deepen as they begin to<address the issues that are difficult for them to address."?   Questioned about Bruton's suggestion that Clinton should do=more to reach out to Protestants in Ulster, McCurry said the<president has already done "considerable things.  We've had>active and productive dialogue with them through the national=security adviser.  They've been in contact as well with high>officials of the State Department.  As we seek to nurture and>encourage the peace process, we of course take steps to learn@more about the positions of the parties who are in dialogue. We7will continue to do that, continue to play any type ofAfacilitating role that the parties themselves deem appropriate."   ---------------   ----------------   SENATE APPROVES DEFENSE SUPPLEMENTAL BILL   WASHINGTON>   The Senate March 16 by a vote of 97 to 3 approved a $1,900Amillion defense supplemental appropriations bill for the current<fiscal year to pay for U.S. peacekeeping and other military>operations in Haiti, Bosnia, Somalia, Rwanda, Cuba and Korea.:The measure must now be reconciled with a version already*approved by the House of Representatives.B   During debate on the measure the Senate approved by voice vote)the following foreign policy amendments:>   -- An amendment offered by Republican Senator William RothBstating the sense of the Senate that indefinite and unconditional;extension of the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT) is>essential for furthering the security interests of the United?States and all the countries of the world.  The resolution was>cosponsored by Senators Glenn, Helms, Levin, McCain and Nunn.@   -- An amendment offered by Senator Kit Bond that would limit<U.S.-Russian nuclear technology cooperative efforts pending;future review of Russian nuclear power sales to Iran.  TheAamendment was offered as a substitute to one proposed by SenatorBDale Bumpers that would have cut off funding for U.S. cooperativeAactivities with Russia in space if the Russians proceeded with aAsale of nuclear reactor components to Iran.  The substitute saysBthat unless non-proliferation concerns are worked out with Russia@rega rding any such sale the United States would not enter intoBcooperative atomic energy activities with the Russian Ministry ofAtomic Energy.<   -- A sense of the Senate amendment offered by Democratic=Senator Max Baucus commending the efforts of the U. S. Trade@Representative (USTR) to open South Korea's market to U.S. beefAand pork.  The amendment states that the USTR should continue to@insist upon the removal of South Korea's non-tariff barriers toU.S. beef and pork.9   -- An amendment by Republican Senator Alfonse D'AmatoBrequiring President Clinton to transmit to Congress no later than?June 1 a report "detailing the illegal drug trafficking to theU.S. from Mexico."   ---------------   ---------------E   HOLBROOKE SAYS N.IRELAND RANKS HIGH ON U.S. FOREIGN POLICY AGENDA   DONALD LANDERS   WASHINGTON?   "Northern Ireland has been at the top of our foreign policyAagenda since the very first day" of the Clinton administration,"Bsays Richard Holbrooke, assistant secretary of state for Europeanand Canadian affairs.?   In testimony to the House International Relations Committee<March 15, Holbrooke emphasized that the administration "has>encouraged and supported the courageous initiative of British>Prime Minister Major, Irish Prime Minister Bruton, and former?Irish Prime Minister Reynolds to establish a new framework for(peace and justice in Northern Ireland."=   The United States is in a unique position to help achieveBpeace and reconciliation in Northern Ireland, he said, because of?the close historical, cultural and traditional bonds shared by4the United States, Ireland, and the United Kingdom.A   Holbrooke recalled that the present peace in Northern Ireland=began on August 31, 1994, with the announcement by the Irish:Republican Army (IRA) that it would immediately cease allAmilitary operations and end its 25-year campaign of violence; inBOctober, a similar announcement was made by the Combined LoyalistMilitary Command.@   "As we made clear to all parties, we expect both cease-fires@to be irreversible, and with both cease-fires, deeds -- and not3words -- will remain the key factor," he declared.<   "On November 1, shortly after both cease-fires came into>force, President Clinton announced a number of initiatives toBincrease our support for political and economic revitalization of@Northern Ireland and the border counties.  Northern Ireland hasBbeen at the top of our foreign policy agenda since the very first;day of this administration," Holbrooke told the committee.A   The centerpiece of U.S. support in these matters is to be theAWhite House Conference for Trade and Investment in Ireland to be:held in Washington on May 24-26, he said.  The aim of theBconference will be to show U.S. companies that sustained peace isBdramatically improving business opportunities in Northern Irelandand the border counties.@   After describing other administration initiatives, Holbrooke?also discussed the Joint Framework Document (JFD) announced onAFebruary 22 which outlines the shared proposals of Great Britain@and Ireland for inclusive talks on Northern Ireland.  "Based on?the Downing Street Declaration, the JFD includes the same core@principle of the need for the majority consent of the people of7Northern Ireland to any constitutional changes....Both?governments pledged themselves to the protection of the rights-and identities of both traditions," he said.<   Holbrooke also referred to the Framework for Accountable@Government in Northern Ireland announced separately by Major on9February 22.  He described the general reaction to these@documents, exploratory talks between the British government and)both the IRA and Loyalist party leaders.B   "The president has taken a risk on behalf of peace," HolbrookeBconcluded, "by permitting limited fund-raising by Sinn Fein.  The?ball is in their court to show they are serious about removingAthe gun from the political arena in Northern Ireland," Holbrookesaid.A   Ten witnesses testified March 15 on the subject of Ireland atBthe House International Relations Committee hearing  -- the firstAcongressional committee hearing focusing on Ireland in 23 years.?   They included co-chairmen of the House Ad Hoc Committee for=Irish Affairs: Congressman Thomas J. Manton (D) of New York,;Congressman Peter T. King (R) of New York, and Congressman&Richard E. Neal (D) of Massachusetts.B   Manton praised President Clinton's interest in the problems ofBIreland and suggested that the granting of a fund-raising visa to=Sinn Fein leader Gerry Adams and his invitation to the WhiteAHouse were examples of the president's concern.  The congressman@noted Clinton has attempted to influence American businesses to<invest in Ireland and to maintain fair employment practicesthere.>   King said that the present cease-fire was an unprecedented<opportunity to bring permanent peace and economic growth to@Ireland.  Clinton, he added, now appears as the "honest broker"in Northern Ireland.A   Neal suggested that the Irish dispute "is the longest-lasting>conflict in the history of the Western world."  But political=momentum has developed in the six counties of the north as a@result of Clinton's good offices, he said, also citing the help@given by British Prime Minister Major.  Major is in a difficult>position, said Neal, because he needs the votes of the Ulster#Unionists in the House of Commons.<   The three congressmen agreed that the principal cause of>violence and tension in the north was not religion but ethnic+origins and the control of the job market.B   Other witnesses included Congressman James T. Walsh (R) of New9York and Congressman Joseph P. Kennedy of Massachusetts.@   Declaring that "it is a good time not to dwell on the past,"?Walsh said centuries-old patterns of hate and violence must be2put aside for the good of the good of both sides.@   "With peace at last coming to Northern Ireland, as it has to=South Africa and the Mideast, this is the time to talk aboutAending the economic despair that lies at the heart of so much of,the tension in the province," Kennedy said.B   "While fair employment practices must be upheld, fair locationAof employment must also be considered, as the siting of jobs canAbe as important as their availability in providing economic hopeAto the people of Northern Ireland," he added.  He explained thatAthis means that in the present political and ideological climate@it is unreasonable to ask a Catholic worker to go to a job in aBpredominately Protestant area or a Protestant worker to go into a>Catholic section to work.  This kind of trip, he said, unt il=feelings of animosity greatly lessen, may well be dangerous.A   Kennedy continued: "But I am also here, Mr. Chairman, to talk:about a promising mechanism for bringing renewed economic@vitality to the island of Ireland as a whole."  The congressmanBoutlined a proposal for a U.S.-Ireland Technology Fund that wouldBbe used to help seed the development of new technologies in closeAassociation with U.S. companies throughout Ireland. This concept;would be modelled on the Bilateral Industrial Research and=Development Foundation (BIRD) established between the United*States and Israel more than 20 years ago.@   "An important side-benefit of BIRD," Kennedy concluded, "has@been to create a venture-capital community in Israel where noneAbefore existed. The same benefit could indeed accrue to Ireland,@where every effort must be made to encourage the development ofBan entrepreneurial culture and help the communities seize control of their own economic destiny."A   Others witnesses appearing before the committee were Margaret:M. Heckler, former congresswoman and former ambassador to?Ireland; Thomas Donahue, Secretary-Treasurer, AFL/CIO; Alan G.;Hevesi, Comptroller of the city of New York; and Dr. Chris-McCrudden, Lincoln College, Oxford, England.   ---------------   ---------------;   CONGRESS WARNS PRESIDENT NOT TO PROMISE NEW FOREIGN AID   PAULA WOLFSON   CONGRESS8   Members of the U.S. Congress are warning the Clinton?Administration against any new promises of foreign assistance.:Leading Republicans say money shortages may restrict U.S.Bactivities overseas, whether the United States acts alone or withothers.@   The Republican majority in the House of Representatives says?the U.S. budget will be cut and foreign operations will not bespared.:   At a hearing on funding for U.N. activities, lawmakers:stressed time and time again that dollars are limited andpriorities must be set.=   Republican Sonny Callahan of Alabama told U.N. Ambassador>Madeleine Albright there is virtually  o chance Congress will8approve the administration's request for more money for(peacekeeping and other U.N. operations:?   "I don't believe these increases are possible under currentAbudget accounts.  I know that you can probably justify the need.ABut under the current situation I think increases are very, veryremote possibilities."@   Mr. Callahan, the chairman of a subcommittee responsible for<large portions of the foreign operations budget, also had aBmessage for the White House.  He said first lady (the president's9wife) Hillary Rodham Clinton was wrong to announce a new:100-million dollar education aid program at a recent U.N.>conference without a commitment from Congress to allocate thefunds:A   "I do not consider this an obligation of the United States of>America just because someone went over there and said 'we aregoing to donate this money.'">   He also warned the administration against making financial=promises to Syria in hopes of boosting the Middle East peace9process.  Congressman Callahan said the Syrians could be>expecting the same kind of generous aid provided to Egypt andIsrael:?   "And to have Syria say that 'we want some money too to join.this peace', well, we don't have any monies."A   Even Democrats at the hearing offered words of caution to theBClinton Administration.  Congressman Charlie Wilson of Texas said?the White House and the legislature are headed for another big=confrontation over American commitments to U.N. peacekeepingoperations:<   "We are getting an increasing amount, a large amount, of@resentment on the part of Congress because we are not consulted6ahead of time and then we are presented with a bill.";   Other lawmakers complained the administration seems tooBwilling to rely on the United Nations.  Such accusations prompted3a sharp reply to Wilson, from Ambassador Albright:?   "Let me assure you, there is  no  one in the administration@who thinks the United Nations should be running our policy.  OnAthe contrary, we think we should be running the United Nations."B   Spending on U.N. activities is expected to be a primary targetBof Republican lawmakers as they move to slash the federal budget.AJust last month, members of the House approved a bill that wouldBput some restrictions on American commitments of men and money toU.N. military operations.   ---------------   ---------------A   RENO ASKS CONGRESS TO INCREASE NUMBER OF BORDER PATROL AGENTS   JIM MALONE
   SENATE@   U.S. attorney General Janet Reno urged Congress Wednesday toBincrease the number of border patrol agents to help stem the tide<of illegal immigration into the southwestern United States.B   Attorney General Reno presented her 1996 budget request before?a Senate appropriations subcommittee (commerce, justice, state?and the judiciary), asking lawmakers to approve an increase of?more than one-billion dollars to help stop the flow of illegal#immigrants into the United States.:   The Clinton Administration wants to hire an additional<seven-hundred border patrol agents next year to beef up the>effort against illegal immigration along the U.S. border withAMexico, focusing on (the U.S. states of) California, Arizona andTexas.;   Attorney General Reno says the border patrol expects to:complete implementation of its border control strategy inBsouthern California and west Texas this year.  It will expand the=program to include Arizona and south Texas, targeting routes8which have become popular in recent years among illegalimmigrants:;   "I welcome your support of the border patrol and of the?borders enforcement plan and I trust that you will ensure that:the border  patrol has the funding it needs to hire these:additional agents. The border patrol is the first line ofAenforcement of our immigration  laws and it is important that it.obtain the levels and resources it deserves.">   Members of Congress are generally receptive to the idea ofshoring up the border patrol.>   Subcommittee chairman Phil Gramm, a Republican from Texas,Bsays he wants the administration to prepare for more prosecutions>and deportations of illegal immigrants, given the increase inborder patrol agents:9   "Any increase in local effort in my state (on illegalBimmigration in  Texas) would clearly lead to a greater demand for@(prosecutions from) the U.S. attorney's office and I want to beBsure that when we are beefing up one part of the effort we do not/end up leaving out one key part in the chain."6   Ms. Reno appeared before the Senate appropriations5subcommittee in  support of the Justice Department's>sixteen-billion dollar budget  request for 1996. The proposed@budget also includes increases for  anti-narcotics efforts, new;prisons and international anticrime assistance programs in8Eastern Europe, Russia and the former Soviet republics.   ---------------   ---------------*   TWO VIEWS OF THE CONTRACT WITH AMERICA   TOM MAHONEY   WASHINGTON8   In the U.S. House of Representatives, the RepublicanArevolution and the party's much-publicized Contract with America@remains the focus of attention as GOP lawmakers strive to enact$their ambitious legislative agenda.A   But the new majority's priorities will, if enacted, result in@a fundamental altering of Washington's relationship with statesAand localities and a diminished role for the federal government.9Two African-American lawmakers, new members of the 104th3Congress, bring different views to the discussion.@   In the final third of these first 100 days, the really tough:decisions are still ahead, just where and how best to cut@government spending. Congresswoman Sheila Jackson Lee, Democrat6of Texas, worries about both the short- and long-term?implications of enacting contract provisions on crime, welfare8reform and reductions in, or elimination of, a range ofgovernment services:@   "it's my sense that the campaign by the Republicans is stillAgoing on when they really should be focusing on representing allBAmericans...And that means, children, the elderly; it means local=cities and counties that need to have police officers on thestreet.A   "I think in this rush to judgment, if you will, to be able toAmeet (fulfill) a campaign pledge that was supported by some mereA37-percent of the population that voted November 8, 1994, then IBthink we lose the opportunity to be the great nation that we want4to be and that we certainly are looked upon to be."=   Republican JC Watts, a freshman Republican from Oklahoma,8supports his party's legislative agenda and also notes:B   "Long before the Contract with America came out, I was talking?about a balanced budget amendment, I was talking about welfareAreform, I was talking about tax cuts for families, I was talking<about the social security issue and rolling back government@regulations. In the state of Oklahoma, we have term limits. So,Bmany of those issues I was talking about long before the Contractwith America came out.@   "Something interesting to note is that on November 8th, whenBthe people went to the polls, there was a tangible game plan (the<contract) out there, so to speak, that I think the American(people knew what they were voting for."A   According to representative Watts, Republican support for theAContract with America was bolstered by Democrats and independent<voters. For her part, Congresswoman Jackson Lee thinks it'sBimportant to stress that the Republican agenda items are not new.ARather, she says, they are issues all good elected officials and<citizens who want good government have been speaking about.9   Concerning the controversial issue of welfare reform,@Representative Jackson Lee says the Republicans are offering an>empty plate while Democrats want to help, not penalize, thosemost in need:B   "The Republican plan really points to no basis of getting jobs@(for welfare recipients), nor does it include, I would think, a>major part of its constituency base, private sector corporateAAmerica, which I know would willingly come to the table and helpBwith this welfare plan.  It is uneven, it is hastily put togetherBand it does not respond to the greatness of this country.  Again,2it is welfare punishment and not welfare reform."4   Representative Watts says the nation's governorsAoverwhelmingly support the block grant concept where the federalBgovernment makes a lump sum payment for states to spend on public@assistance as they see fit. He believes that's a more efficientAand economical way to administer the food stamp and school lunch8programs. As for an overall approach to welfare reform:>   "I think the bottom line is this. The question that we ask9ourselves. 'how do you define compassion?' I believe the@Democrats will define compassion by how many people are on food;stamps, in public housing or on AFDC (aid to families with?dependent children). I choose to measure compassion by how fewApeople are on food stamps, on AFDC and in public housing because=we've helped them climb the ladder of economic opportunity."?   Both Congresswoman Jackson Lee and Representative Watts areBconcerned about the issue of affirmative action, specifically theBrisk that the tone and substance of this debate will polarize theAmerican people:@   "I have encouraged our leadership to go slow on the issue of>affirmative action," says Watts.  "I think it is one of thoseBwedge issues and I don't think it should be a campaign issue or a:campaign topic. I think a bipartisan team needs to be put>together and take a look at the thing (system) that currently	exists."<   "The divisive angle that has been taken by some (in the)BRepublican leadership on affirmative action," says Lee, "and I do@applaud my colleague for his demeanor on this issue, is not the9way to go. The way to go is to accept the declaration of@independence of this country that says we all are created equal?with certain inalienable rights...Of life, and liberty and thepursuit of happiness."   ---------------   ---------------6   KANTOR SAYS HE BELIEVES CHINA WILL OBEY IPR ACCORD   ART CHIMES   WASHINGTON>   A senior U.S. official Wednesday expressed confidence that=China will abide by the terms of a trade agreement signed inBeijing last weekend.@   Under the U.S. China trade agreement, Beijing agrees to take?steps to eliminate piracy of compact disks, computer software,Bmovies on videotape, and other so-called "intellectual property."9The Chinese government also agreed to open its market to#legitimate imports of those items.A   The agreement came just hours before Washington was scheduled@to impose punitive tariffs on a number of key products exportedby China to the United States.B   Some of the most visible symbols of the dispute are 29 Chinese=factories said by American officials to be producing bootleg:music compact disks and video laser disks.  Some of thoseBfactories have been closed, but others remain open. Nevertheless,?U.S. trade representative Mickey Kantor says he believes China4will do what it promised because it is in Beijing'sself-interest:7   "I believe and am confident this Chinese government>understands the problem, understands their stake in enforcing>this agreement.  And they want to make sure, just like we do,@that it works and works properly because it's such a major step@towards what they want so desperately, and that's to be part ofthe World Trade Organization."B   Mr. Kantor and Chinese foreign trade minister Wu Yi signed theAtrade agreement in Beijing on Saturday.  It does not address all@the trade frictions between the two countries, including market9access for American companies who want to sell in China.A   Mr. Kantor says that has contributed to a huge and persistenttrade imbalance:?   "We take 40 percent of China's [worldwide] exports into the?United States of America.  Now we are going to keep our market@open, but we can not long sustain political credibility and the=support of the American people if we allow China to continuethese practices."B   U.S. trade representative Mickey Kantor says that unless China@opens up its markets, it will not succeed in attracting foreignAinvestment, and that could hurt the country's efforts to improve9the standard of living for China's one-point-two billionresidents.   ---------------   ---------------A   PLANS FOR CHRISTOPHER'S MEETING WITH RUSSIAN FOREIGN MINISTER   RON PEMSTEIN   MENDENHALL, U.K.>   U.S. Secretary of State Warren Christopher is returning to>Washington from a week-long trip to the Middle East. Planning>already is taking shape for Mr. Christopher's trip next week.8   Secretary of State Christopher is meeting is Russian@counterpart Andrei Kozyrev March 22nd and 23rd in Geneva.  U.S.>officials traveling with Mr. Christopher say a major topic at=that meeting will be the Russian sale of nuclear reactors toIran.A   The United States opposes the sale because of fears Iran will@use the reactor fuel to build nuclear weapons.  Iran is a rogueBstate, one official contends.  Russia should understand this is aBdanger for the world and should look instead for western markets,.not  old Soviet customers like Iran and Iraq.=   American officials believe the United States will be in a@stronger position to argue against the Russian sale because theAUnited States is giving up a one-billion dollar arrangement with>Iran negotiated by the Conoco Oil company.  President Clinton?will issue an executive order banning the sale on the basis of<national security.  And Conoco officials say their offer to0develop off-shore oil fields will be withdrawn.@   Other issues on the U.S./Russia agenda include Chechnya, the?NATO-Russian relationship and arrangements for the next summit?meeting between President Clinton and President Boris Yeltsin.   ---------------   ---------------<   HELMS ANNOUNCES MAJOR FOREIGN AFFAIRS RESTRUCTURING PLAN   WENDY S. ROSS   WASHINGTON<   Senate Foreign Relations Committee Chair Jesse Helms has@announced a wide-ranging proposal to reorganize and restructure@America's foreign affairs apparatus, abolishing several foreign+affairs agencies and consolidating others.A   The plan would eliminate the United States Information AgencyB(USIA), the Agency for International Development (USAID), and the<Arms Control and Disarmament Agency (ACDA), and would merge:"their functions into a reorganized and revitalized StateADepartment," Helms told a March 15 news conference.  He said the:plan has the support of former Secretaries of State Henry?Kissinger and George Shultz, and is similar to a proposal made,recently by Secretary of State Christopher.9   "But my version," Helms said, "goes much further than?Secretary Christopher's proposal.  It represents a fundamental:and revolutionary reinvention of America's foreign policyinstitutions."<   As part of the Helms plan, USIA's exchange and broadcast>functions would be placed under an under secretary for publicBdiplomacy; USAID's functions under an under secretary for policy;@and ACDA's functions under an under secretary for international:security.  On site inspection would be transferred to theDepartment of Defense.<   USAID's missions abroad would be closed, Helms said, and;long-term development aid would be delivered through a new@International Development Foundation, which would deliver block?grants to non-governmental organizations and private voluntary)organizations to carry out the programs.A   But "with or without this consolidation, foreign aid spendingBwill be cut this year," Helms said.  "There is absolute unanimity;in Congress, I think, on that.  The question for those who?support continued foreign aid is this: In a world of shrinkingAbudgets, would they rather have scarce tax dollars go to support?9,000 USAID bureaucrats and contractors, or would they like toBsee that money spent on and for some projects on the ground wherethe money will do some good?"<   The Helms proposal also would abolish the Inter-American=Foundation and the African Development Foundation.  It wouldAcreate a new Agency for Export Promotion, Trade, Development and@Investment, consolidating the Trade and Development Agency, the>Overseas Private Investment Corporation and the Export-ImportBank.B   "Our plan will make export promotion a central function of our=nation's foreign policy," Helms said, by tasking a new underAsecretary for export, trade economics and business to coordinate/policies to increase U.S. trade opportunities.A   The plan also "will strengthen our ambassadors in the field,"BHelms said, "by ending the treatment of ambassadors as ceremonialAfigures and empowering them to be real foreign policy managers."?   In addition, the plan will create a new under secretary forAmanagement who will coordinate a single, unified Foreign Service>that consolidates the functions of five existing services, hesaid.9   Helms said his proposal represents "a fundamental and>revolutionary" change in the way the federal government dealswith international relations.>   Government-to-government assistance -- such as support forBdemocracy, judicial reform and economic reform -- will be run out>of the regional bureaus of the new State Department, he said.=These programs will be coordinated by an under secretary for@policy, who will ensure that they serve U.S. foreign policy andnational security interests.9   Humanitarian aid, he said, will continue "with better8coordination" under the State Department's HumanitarianAssistance Bureau.A   Helms said his plan was ready "more than a month ago," but heAwaited to make it public because he "very much wanted" his staffBto get the cooperation of Vice President Gore's staff so that the'consolidation would be a joint effort.B   That cooperation, he said, has not happened and "after a monthBof waiting, I am beginning to doubt their commitment to a genuine?streamlining and revitalization of our nation's foreign policy<apparatus."  Helms said it seems to him that "they have let@themselves become hostage to the bureaucratic special interestsin Washington."?   Helms said he plans to move forward on his proposal with or<without the administration.  He pointed out that RepublicanAleaders in the House and Senate support the plan, and "I believewe have the votes to pass it."?   Also speaking in support of a reorganization of the foreign;affairs community was Senator Olympia Snowe, who heads the<International Operations Subcommittee of the Senate ForeignARelations Committee; and Congressman Benjamin Gilman, who chairs-the House International Relations Committee.:   Snowe said consolidating three agencies into the State<Department "makes a great deal of sense.  Certainly I thinkAthat's what Secretary Christopher had in mind, and I commend him1for originally recommending this restructuring.":   Gilman commended Helms and his staff "for laying out a=comprehensive and a far-reaching proposal" to reorganize and*consolidate the foreign affairs agencies.B   Many of these agencies, Gilman said, "were designed as part ofBour policy to contain the expansion of Soviet communism.  Now, of>course, it's an anachronism, and it's time we did take a goodhard look" at them.=   "At the same time, in a period when our nation is running@deficits of $200,000 million, we can no longer afford the waste5of overlapping and duplicative operations," he said.A   Congressman Chris Smith, who chairs the House Subcommittee on@International Operations and Human Rights, was unable to attend@the news conference due to a prior commitment.  In a statement,>however, he supported the move to simplify and streamline the;U.S. government foreign affairs apparatus.  "Reform of our@foreign policy apparatus is not a step toward isolationism," he9said.  "On the contrary, a more transparent and rationalAstructure will help to strengthen America's commitment to remain7engaged in the worldwide struggle for human rights anddemocracy.">   The House International Relations Committee is expected to=begin hearings on the question of reorganization of the U.S.@foreign affairs agencies before the April 7 recess.  The Senate>Foreign Relations Committee also plans to hold hearings soon.>   Snowe said she expects the proposal to pass both houses of1Congress this year and go into effect next year.   ---------------   ---------------F   STATE DEPARTMENT OPPOSES CONSOLIDATION OF FOREIGN AFFAIRS AGENCIES   RUSSELL E. DYBVIK   WASHINGTON:   The State Department has voiced strong opposition to a>proposal by Senator Jesse Helms to consolidate the department>with the U.S. Information Agency (USIA), the Arms Control andADisarmament Agency (ACDA), and the U.S. Agency for InternationalDevelopment (USAID).<   "We reject the notion that consolidation equals reform,">acting spokesman David Johnson told a March 15 news briefing.A"We believe that the missions of arms control, public diplomacy,<and sustainable development and humanitarian assistance are?essential elements in the conduct of foreign policy.  And they@are best carried out by independent agencies operating in close=coordination with the State Department and under the overall4foreign policy guidance of the secretary of state."=   Johnson said the department believes that "any attempt to@consolidate all of these agencies right now would interrupt the?conduct of foreign affairs.  We believe that the secretary andBthe president need the tools that they have at their disposal nowBto pursue our interests and to pursue broad engagement around theworld."9   Helms urged such consolidation at a Capitol Hill news<conference earlier in the day.  Last month, Helms cautionedBSecretary of State Christopher at a hearing of the Senate ForeignARelations Committee that he would pursue plans for consolidating#the four foreign affairs agencies.A   At that time Christopher pointed out that Vice President Gore<rejected such a proposal earlier this year because it would?hamper efforts of the four agencies to achieve the goal of theANational Performance Review, which is to "re-invent" the federal>government by making it both smaller and more efficient.  TheAvice president also concluded the four agencies performed unique$roles which should remain separate.>   At his press conference Helms contended his reorganizationAplan is essentially the same one put forward by Christopher when0his views were solicited by the vice president.=   But the acting secretary told reporters, "This is not the>secretary's plan, by no means.  When the vice president asked=shortly after the first of the year, in the beginning of the?phase two of the National Performance Review, to think of some9different ways to approach things, we considered various:options.  We considered them carefully, and we found them	wanting.<   "We found that the best way to pursue the foreign policy@objectives of the administration and the protection of American@interests abroad was through reinvention of the foreign affairs=agencies as currently constructed and the maintenance of the&independence of those four agencies.";   The State Department believes that the administration'sAforeign affairs reinvention efforts have already resulted in the<savings of millions of dollars, Johnson said.  "This is the?beginning of a rather lengthy process," he said.  "We will seewhere things go.">   Responding to questions, the acting spokesman said: "We've@found the independence of USIA in working abroad and developingAexchanges broadly for the American government and organizing the;American government's broadcast efforts...with independentAleadership that projects America's voice abroad has been helpful@in our foreign policy efforts.  And we believe it's a tool thatAshould remain at the disposal of the president and the secretary>of state in continuing to pursue American engagement abroad."A   The individuals who head the various foreign affairs agencies="operate under the leadership of the secretary of state, butBthey're not a corporate component of the Department of State," he?explained.  "And we have believed and continue to believe that:the type of independence that they have as organizationalBstructures has helped maintain the tools of foreign policy at our@disposal that we need to pursue the interest of America abroad,Aincluding broad engagement on foreign policy issues with foreign
publics."?   Asked why USAID should remain independent, Johnson replied:@"Because we believe that the organizational structure that they@bring, the expertise which they bring, has enabled us to have a<broad foreign assistance plan which pursues development and@brings economies and countries to a point where they can become>self-sustaining, and we believe that the structure which they?currently have and which they've had over several years is the2one which can help us best do that in the future.B   "We believe that the independence that it has, the independent9voice it brings to development, in coordination with the>Department of State in pursuit of overall foreign affairs and@foreign policy interests of the United States has been the most=effective way to pursue those interests. And we believe that5independent voice should be preserved and enhanced."A   On ACDA, Johnson said: "I don't think anyone would argue thatBarms control has ceased to be an issue in American foreign policyAand an interest for America that needs to be pursued vigorously.BIn fact, one could argue, and I would, that it's become much more;important as we've moved away from simply direct bilateral@interests in arms control with what was the former Soviet Union8to broader multilateral interests and issues, includingnon-proliferation."<   Controlling proliferation of such things as chemical and?biological weapons were important in years before the Cold War?ended, but are becoming much more important now, he said.  TheBindependent voice that ACDA brings "in articulating that interest@and in keeping that interest in our foreign policy equation, we*believe, is very important," Johnson said@   "For the pursuit of American interests, it is very important<to have the type of independence that comes from a separate?agency with a focussed interest on a particular set of issues,>particularly when it is in something as essential to American:security as arms control," the acting spokesman declared.   ---------------   ---------------5   U.S. HOPES N. KOREA WILL ACCEPT MULTILATERAL HELP   WASHINGTON?   The U.S. is hoping that the Democratic Peoples' Republic of>Korea (DPRK) will accept South Korean light-water reactors as=part "of a broad multilateral role in helping them deal withBtheir future development," according to Thomas C. Hubbard, deputyAassistant secretary of state for East Asian and Pacific affairs.7   During an interview March 14 with participants fromBWellington, Beijing, Manila, and Bangkok, Hubbard said that "I amAcertainly hopeful that the North Koreans will realize that their?interest lies in accepting the generosity of their brothers to(the south, in offering those reactors."?   Under the Agreed Framework, signed by the United States and?the DPRK on October 21, 1994, North Korea agreed to freeze its<gas-graphite nuclear program, which, if completed and fully@operational, could produce plutonium enough for several nuclear?weapons each year.  In exchange, the United States promised to9help establish an international consortium -- the Korean;Peninsula Economic Development Organization, or KEDO -- to<finance and supply more proliferation-resistant light-waterBnuclear reactors to meet North Korea's energy needs.  KEDO is not=in place; but until the reactors are constructed, the UnitedAStates and KEDO will provide North Korea with heavy fuel oil forelectrical generation.B   The light-water reactors to be supplied by KEDO, however, will:be South Korean models.  Hubbard noted that "During pressAconferences in Geneva, the chief North Korean delegate, Kang SokBJu, again said North Korea did not particularly want South Korean?reactors, but it...would effectively leave it up to the United<States to decide the reactor type.  So we believe the North?Koreans knew the only viable option was South Korean reactors.AWe were therefore disappointed that even at this stage they seemAto have changed the position that they took in Geneva.  They are@no longer just leaving it up to the United States; they are now saying they can't accept that."@   Hubbard noted that North Korea's dealings on the light-water>reactor project will be with KEDO, not the Republic of Korea.@"This is a multilateral project," Hubbard said.  "We think it's?something that the North Koreans ought to be able to accept --Bboth politically and certainly as a project of high technologicalvalue."A   Another round of talks with the North Koreans is scheduled to*take place in Berlin at the end of March.   ---------------   ---------------:   KANTOR CALLS ARGENTINE PATENTS PROPOSAL "UNACCEPTABLE"   BRUCE ODESSEY   WASHINGTON>   Legislation pending in Argentina to protect patents is far=from adequate, U.S. Trade Representative Mickey Kantor says,<raising the possibility of U.S. trade action if the measure
becomes law.@   "What they have done is unacceptable," Kantor responded to a?question at a March 15 U.S. Council for International Business'luncheon, calling the bill "terrible.";   He refused to speculate whether his office (USTR) would?identify Argentina as a priority country under the Special 301?provision of U.S. trade law, relating to intellectual propertyArights protection. Announcement of Special 301 determinations isscheduled April 29.A   Identification as a priority country could lead ultimately to;U.S. retaliatory trade sanctions without resolution of the	dispute.B   A U.S. industry spokesman said the bill, already passed by oneAhouse in the Argentine legislature, was expected to pass shortly@in the other house.  For a number of reasons, he said, it would>fail to give U.S. pharmaceuticals adequate protection -- less9than required under the Uruguay Round multilateral trade>agreement and less than promised by the Argentine government.@   In connection with Special 301, Kantor did say USTR was also@examining closely the intellectual property practices of Turkeyand Indonesia.@   Just returned from signing a copyright enforcement agreementAwith China, Kantor asked the U.S. business community to continue7supporting USTR's efforts to open China to imports and=investment, warning that the Chinese government would likelyBthreaten individual U.S. businesses as market-access negotiationsintensify.   ---------------   ---------------@   U.S. WILL FOCUS INCREASED AID ON "SECOND WAVE" NIS COUNTRIES   JON SCHAFFER   WASHINGTONB   The Clinton administration plans to focus increased assistance<on four of the newly independent states (NIS) of the former?Soviet Union whose economic reform efforts might be threatenedwithout international support.;   These four "second wave" countries -- Ukraine, Belarus,?Armenia and Georgia -- have all made impressive commitments to?comprehensive economic reform, despite the potential political@costs, Ambassador Thomas Simons, coordinator of U.S. assistanceto the NIS, said March 9.?   "A second wave of NIS reform is gathering strength," SimonsBsaid.  "It will break this year, but only if it receives adequate>international support; only U.S. leadership can mobilize that
support."9   Simons, appearing before the House of RepresentativesAAppropriations Subcommittee on Foreign Operations, said that the>1995 external financing requirements for these countries from;bilateral donors may exceed $2,000 million, excluding debt rescheduling and restructuring.B   Thomas Dine, assistant administrator for Europe and the NIS atAthe U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID), urged theAsubcommittee to support a $115 million structural reform supportfund for the four countries.@   "Our objective is to catalyze sustained structural reform so<that these countries can lift themselves from dependency to?growth," Dine said.  He said the fund would focus on providing=such key productive inputs as seeds, farm equipment and fuel-"that can generate rapid, tangible returns."B   Simons said, "The leaders of all four governments told us that?1995 will be the make-or-break year for their reform programs.@They said that unless these programs got adequate internationalBsupport they could not be fully implemented, or they would fail."?   He said that because of the close economic ties between the@NIS countries, continued support for the "first wave" countries>-- Russia, Kyrgyz Republic, Moldova and Kazakhstan -- remainsvital.B   "In each, impressively free and democratic elections have been?held; opposition media function; nongovernmental organizations@are proliferating and creating the outlines of civil societies;>mass privatization programs are taking essential parts of theBeconomy out of government hands; and the laws and institutions ofBefficient market economies are beginning to emerge," Simons said.9   The two U.S. officials acknowledged that economic and?democratic reforms have been uneven between and within the NIS@states.  But they argued that the funds requested are meager to4what the economic and defense costs would be if the*transformation of these economies failed.5   And Simons said that while the Chechnya crisis isB"disquieting," evidence suggests that Russia remains committed todemocratic and market reform.>   Currently, U.S. assistance is channeled four ways: through>Department of Defense for the dismantling of nuclear weapons;;from the Department of Agriculture for food assistance andBconcessional sales; from various government agencies for delivery@of humanitarian assistance; and through the Freedom Support Act8(FSA) for the support of market and democratic reforms.:   More than 75 percent of FSA fund is currently going to=programs outside the capitals of NIS countries and more thanBtwo-thirds to entities other than central governments.  As of the?end of 1994, $1,000 million of the $4,000 million appropriated(for FSA had been expended, Simons said.A   He said the strategy is to phase down humanitarian assistance@rapidly and replace it with technical expertise to put in placeAthe laws, regulations and institutions supportive of functioningdemocracies and markets.B   Dine said that among the key priorities would be consolidation<of mass privatization, particularly in Ukraine, Moldova andBKazakhstan; development of capital regulatory systems markets and@real estate markets; tax and banking reform; judicial and legalBreform; family planning and health; housing and municipal reform;(anti-crime and law enforcement efforts.B   Dine said that the pervasiveness of crime in the NIS countries=has become an obstacle to sustainable economic and political?progress.  Some of the roots of crime and corruption, he said,?can be addressed with sharply targeted assistance, such as thestrong rule of law program.@   He said, "In addition, we will continue to work to eliminateBthe conditions which breed these kinds of crime...by assisting in.the establishment of an open market economy."   ---------------   ---------------&   CLINTON'S NEETIMG WITH KING HASSAN   ALEXANDER M. SULLIVAN   WASHINGTON@   The leaders of the United States and Morocco, relying on the@antiquity of their friendship, joined hands once again March 15?to urge quick completion of a comprehensive Middle East peace.<   President Clinton, welcoming King Hassan II to the White@House, called on the parties to the conflict to "accelerate the?momentum for peace" that the king has done so much "to nurtureand sustain."?   In turn, the king praised Clinton's "relentless efforts" to<encourage the parties, and warned that "this newborn peace"@between Israel and the Palestinians appears to be threatened by;the pace of the talks.  The negotiations, he said, must be="accelerated away from any equivocations liable to cause thepeace process to falter."B   Clinton noted that the king arrived in Washington at a time of="renewed hope" growing from Secretary of State Christopher's8successful effort to bring Israel and Syria back to the?bargaining table.  Together with Israeli-Jordanian cooperationAand "the new energy we see" in Israel's talks with the PalestineBLiberation Organization, the president said, there is "now a real?opportunity to secure a durable resolution to the Arab-Israeliconflict."@   He said he discussed with the king prospects for development;of peaceful cooperation in the region, including the Amman8business summit this fall, and ways "to expand economicAintegration and encourage private sector growth and investment."@   Clinton told a questioner that he and the king had discussedBdevelopments in North Africa, adding that he thinks it is fair to?say the king believes the United States "is pursuing the right;policies. One of the things we have to do is to strengthenAeconomically the forces of progress and tolerance."  That is one?reason, he said, he was gratified that the two countries wouldBsign a trade and investment framework agreement later in the day.@"We will continue to support elements of progress and tolerance*in other nations as well," Clinton added.B   Morocco signed an Overseas Private Investment Corporation pactBguaranteeing $200 million in U.S. government support for a $1,500%million power plant near Casablanca.?   The president said he told King Hassan that weapons of massAdestruction pose a threat to the Middle East and urged permanent@extension of the nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT) when it7comes up for renewal at the United Nations next month.A   David Satterfield of the National Security Council staff told?reporters there was discussion of NPT and of Arab concern thatBIsrael is not a signatory.  "The king informed the president that>it would be difficult for many states to support" renewal, he?said.  Clinton replied that while Washington favors "universal?adherence to the NPT including (by) Israel," and also supports6the goal of a Middle East free of nuclear weapons, "a@comprehensive regional peace is the essential element that must1be in place to provide a context for adherence."<   Satterfield said the president and the king "discussed aAvariety of issues, regional security concerns, and policy toward@Iraq."  The king has called for easing United Nations sanctionsBagainst Saddam Hussein's regime to alleviate the suffering of theIraqi people.@   "The president," Satterfield said, "reiterated our view that<it's premature to consider lifting sanctions" until Baghdad9demonstrates "full compliance with all the U.N. sanction>requirements .  He pointed out that the U.N. sanctions regime<provides for the supply of medicines and other humanitarianBgoods.  If Saddam chooses to avail himself of such provisions, he>can help address these needs."  Satterfield said the issue of(U.N. sanctions on Libya was not raised.?   Marc Ginsburg, the U.S. ambassador to Rabat, told reporters;that as part of the trade and investment agreement, a U.S.?delegation will travel to Morocco next month to assess science<and technology opportunities there. He said an agriculturalAresearch team will advise Morocco on expanding crops for export.<   Both Clinton and King Hassan took note to the harmonious=present-day relations between Washington and Rabat, and each?traced them to earlier times.  "Before the cornerstone of this=White House was laid," Clinton reminded the king, "PresidentAGeorge Washington and your ancestor, Sultan Mohammad III, signedBa treaty of peace and friendship."  Since that time, he said, theAtwo countries "have sought to live up to that treaty's ideals by@building on our friendship and working for peace and prosperity+in your re gion and throughout the world."@   The president said peace in the Middle East had been brought>closer to reality by the king's efforts over the years, "fromAhelping to arrange (Egyptian) President (Anwar) Sadat's historicAjourney to Jerusalem, to building trust through quiet diplomacy,=from establishing ties with Israel, to hosting the Csablanca	summit."@   The king said the 1786 Marrakesh treaty "has endured to thisAday without either of the two parties ever having requested that?it be abrogated or even that one of its articles be modified."?He called that a demonstration that the relationship has "beenBcharacterized by continuity and stability based on friendship and@cooperation."  The bilateral agreements which have followed, he=added, "were inspired by the spirit of the original treaty."   ---------------   ---------------:   HOLUM SAYS NPT SHOULD BE PERMANENT, SECURE, DEPENDABLE   JACQUELYN S. PORTH   WASHINGTON@   The director of the U.S. Arms Control and Disarmament Agency8(ACDA) says the major objective of the upcoming nuclearBNon-Proliferation Treaty (NPT) review conference "is to make sure>that the global standard against the proliferation of nuclear@weapons is made permanent" so that it is "secure and dependablefor all time."@   John Holum told journalists at the U.S. Information Agency'sAForeign Press Center in Washington March 14 that it is important=for the United States and other nations "to keep encouraging?countries who still remain outside" the NPT to join it, noting>that the United States supports "universal membership" in thetreaty.@   The NPT review conference opens in New York on April 17, and>the 173 existing parties to the treaty must decide whether to?extend the accord indefinitely, for a fixed period of time, orAfor fixed periods.  A majority vote of 87 nations is required toextend the NPT permanently.<   "We are increasingly optimistic about the possibility of@having majority support when the conference opens," Holum said,=noting that the number of supporters of indefinite extension:currently numbers "in the seventies."  Once a majority is9achieved, he added, "the number will continue to climb."8   Holum stressed that the conference provides "the oneBopportunity" to make NPT permanent "without the requirement to go6back to parliaments for ratification."  If that isn't?accomplished in New York, he said, the long term future of NPTBwill be placed "in doubt, because after a fixed term, if you want:then to make it permanent, you probably have to amend the	treaty."B   The ACDA director pointed out that the "true value" of the NPT@regime is that countries "know that their neighbors...potential@rivals, will not acquire a nuclear capability, not only because@they promised not to, but because there is an international andBincreasingly effective system" assuring that they won't have that5capability because nuclear materials are safeguardedinternationally.?   The International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), he said, hasBstrengthened its technological capability to deal with violationsAand conduct special inspections at undeclared sites.  Holum saidBthe IAEA's use of special inspections in North Korea demonstrated@how effective they can be as an important tool in dealing "with?the potential spread of nuclear weapons in NPT member states."?   On the subject of the Comprehensive Test Ban Treaty (CTBT),BHolum said it would be "unfortunate" to link the NPT "to progress:in any other environment, including the test ban."  WhileAunderstanding that many countries do make the connection between;the CTBT and the NPT, he said, "we shouldn't sacrifice one?very...enormously valuable regime for the sake of another.  WeBshould have both, and there is no reason why we can't have both."=   The existence of a CTBT, Holum said, will have "a genuine8effect" on the United States by preventing "the further@qualitative improvement or development of nuclear weapons."  At>the same time, he explained, "a test ban does not, in itself,:constitute a decision that nuclear weapons that have beenAdeveloped in the past are going to disappear."  However, he saidAthat "if the international community cooperates, we are prepared@for the conclusion that the United States has already conductedits last nuclear test."A   The requirement for maintaining the safety and reliability of>the U.S. nuclear stockpile, Holum noted, "is under continuousAreview in terms of what specifically it requires" and this needs?"to be accommodated within the context" of the CTBT.  "I think@that is the same for all the nuclear weapons states," he added.9   Asked to describe the status of the so-called nuclear@threshold states, Holum said "Israel, Pakistan and India are inAthe position of being able to have nuclear weapons within a very(short time of the decision to do that."B   Asked about China's position on permanent NPT extension, Holum@noted that China is "a relatively new member" of the treaty and8has not yet announced its position regarding indefinite@extension.  He expressed hope that China will join the majority@"in support of that outcome." The director also said he knew ofA"no major question" concerning Chinese compliance with the terms?of the treaty prohibition against assisting nations seeking toacquire nuclear weapons.@   Asked about the status of the P-5 initiative, Holum said allAfive nuclear powers have agreed to negotiate a global cut-off ofAthe production of fissile material for weapons.  He said he does=not expect further progress before the NPT review conferenceAconvenes, but he stressed that the important point "is that theyhave all agreed" to negotiate.@   Concerning reports that Iran may be violating the NPT, Holum=said "the proper analogy to Iran is the experience we had in=Iraq, where we found a country that had taken on this globalBlegal commitment to not develop nuclear weapons and then activelyApursued a clandestine nuclear program in violation of its treaty>commitments."  The same is true for Iran, he said, because it8maintains NPT membership, "but based on its patterns of<acquisitions and other information, we are convinced" it is<actively pursuing a nuclear weapons crash program to try to&develop a nuclear weapons capability.   ---------------   ---------------   CONGRESS' SPLIT PERSONALITY   JIM MALONE
   SENATE@   Republicans in the U.S. House of Representatives continue toApush ahead with their Contract with America legislative program,Bmoving from legal reform last week to budget cuts this week.  But;the Republican agenda is facing a much tougher time in theSenate.@   Republicans in the House are more than halfway through their>election contract, having approved a constitutional amendment:requiring a balanced federal budget and approved bills onBCongressional accountability, regulatory reform, unfunded federalBmandates, crime, defense spending and international peacekeeping.>   But it is a far different story in the Senate. So far, theASenate has approved only two items, Congressional accountability?and unfunded mandates.  But the balanced budget amendment, theAcornerstone of the Republican contract, failed by a single vote,)though it may be brought up again later.@   In fact, while the House took two days to debate and vote on@the balanced budget amendment, it took the Senate five weeks to?finally get to a vote.  A Senate debate on the line-item  vetoBbill, which the House has also approved, has been put off because"of differences among Republicans.>   Part of the reason for the different pace in the House andASenate lies in the rules.  It is much easier to move legislation>quickly through the House and, in fact, Republicans have been@getting a fair number of democratic votes in support of several@of their contract proposals.  Republican Party unity and strong=leadership from House Speaker Newt Gingrich have produced an!impressive list of bills passed.@   But in the Senate, the rules are structured in such a way as9to make it easy to prolong debate and to offer dozens ofBtime-consuming amendments on each and every bill.  The Senate canBalso be delayed indefinitely by a small group of senators or even?a single senator determined to filibuster, or delay, a vote by@non-stop talking.  Historically, the House has been referred to?as a boiling cup of coffee with the Senate playing the part of#the saucer where the coffee cools.:   Senate Democratic leader Tom Daschle also believes the?slowdown in the Senate comes out of concern about the Contract?with America.  He says the more the American people get a good?look at the Republican contract, the more questions they have:@   "I think the Contract with America is sputtering and I think?it is sputtering in part because there just is not the kind of@consensus over here (in the Senate). There certainly is not the@kind of strongly held feelings by the American people about the?propriety of any of these (contract) proposals.  They are veryBconcerned.  The closer they look, the more worried they get.  AndBas they get worried, those concerns are expressed to senators who@have the ability, then, to change, to oppose, ultimately to, in0some cases, defeat these proposals one by one.">   The Senate's slow pace is frustrating to many Republicans,@especially the Group of 11 newcomers elected in last November's@Republican wave which gave the Republican Party control of both3Houses of Congress for the first time in 40 years.?   Freshman Republican Senator Craig Thomas of Wyoming says he@realizes the senate traditionally takes its time but he worries@that the momentum which carries legislation quickly through the<House is stopped cold when a bill reaches the Senate floor:@   "We have to observe that we have dealt with a limited numberBof items while we have been here.  And many of us are filled with=some kinds of mixed emotions, recognizing and respecting theAdeliberative nature of the Senate.  And at the same time, having?some frustration with the slowness of the deliberation and the>lack of movement on some of the issues that we consider to bevery important."?   Republicans also worry that time is not on their side.  The@House Republican contract calls for votes on all major elements?in the first 100 days.  There is  no  similar timetable in the@Senate and it remains an open question as to whether the voters<who swept the Republican Party into power last year will be@satisfied with a legislative program which has passed the Housebut has stalled in the Senate.B   Another factor is the 1996 presidential campaign which for allBintents and purposes has already begun.  Four Republican Senators?are expected to formally enter the race including the majority@leader, Bob dole, the man who sets the Senate schedule.  TryingBto run for president and run the Senate at the same time have, in;the past, proved incompatible.  It could carry significant?political risks both for Senator Dole and the Republican Party?this year with voters looking to the new Republican-controlled(Congress for action, not more gridlock.   ---------------   ---------------E   PENTAGON STILL MAKING CONTINGENCY PLANS TO EVACUATE UN IN CROATIA   DAVID SWAN   PENTAGON;   U.S. Defense Secretary William Perry says NATO is still@drawing up contingency plans to evacuate U.N. peacekeepers from?Bosnia-Herzegovina.  Some allied troops will be needed to help?the United Nations reduce its presence in neighboring Croatia.@   Echoing other western officials, Mr. Perry praised Croatia'sBdecision to allow U.N. soldiers to stay, though their number will@be cut by more than half.  The allies feared a withdrawal would=bring new fighting between the government and rebel Serbs in@Krajina, which could then spill over into Bosnia and trigger anall-out Balkan war.<   The secretary says a small number of NATO communications@troops, including some Americans, will help the U.N. protectionAforce draw down its troop strength in Croatia.  And although the@danger of a widespread war appears to be easing, Mr. Perry says@NATO is still making plans to cover a possible UNPROFOR pullout
from Bosnia:B   "We continue to believe that the Bosnia U.N. force should stay;in there, and we hope that this planning is only a prudent(measure and will not become a reality."B   There were several bloody cease-fire violations in Sarajevo in:the past few days.  A U.N. special envoy (Yasushi Akashi)@traveled to the Bosnian Serb stronghold of pale on Monday in an?effort to extend the cease-fire, which formally expires at theend of April.   ---------------   ---------------:   U.S. OPINION ROUNDUP: THE FUTURE OF AFFIRMATIVE ACTION   ANDREW N. GUTHRIE   WASHINGTON?   One of the more emotional debates currently going on in theBUnited States concerns the plan by Republicans in the Congress toAdramatically change  the federal government's affirmative action@programs.  Some critics of those programs that were designed to9correct, or compensate for, past discriminations against>minorities now contend they are sometimes a basis for acts of'reverse discrimination against whites.A   Affirmative action was a product of the great society program?of civil rights laws enacted by Congress under the guidance of@President Lyndon Johnson during the 1960s.  It was an outgrowthBof the civil rights movement, in which blacks demanded more equal<treatment in voting, education, and business under the law.@Affirmative action was a program in which many large businesses@actively recruited blacks and other minorities as well as women;who had been denied equal access to some jobs in the past.A   Now, many critics say the program has worked, that blacks are:being given equal access to most jobs and that continuingBaffirmative action will have the result of discriminating against;white males.  Republicans in Congress question the need toAcontinue affirmative actions programs and are determined to make=some changes. And President Clinton has called for a JusticeADepartment study to determine whether discrimination against the<majority does take place in the name of affirmative action.A   Newspaper commentators have joined the rather vigorous debate@on  the program.  In a column by Cynthia Tucker, editorial page>editor of one of the south's largest newspapers, "The AtlantaAConstitution."  She is one of a very small number of black womenBto head the editorial pages of a daily paper and has a first handview on the topic:A   "...I am a beneficiary of an assortment of policies that fallAunder the controversial rubric 'affirmative action.'  throughoutBmy career, I have been given opportunities that may not have come5my way if newspaper managers had not made conscious,>'affirmative' efforts to hire and promote women and people of=color.  I will not surrender affirmative action to those who=claim that its beneficiaries are unqualified.  That would be@perverse.  Affirmation action is necessary precisely because of@the legacy of a time, not at all distant, when women and people?of color were widely assumed to be incompetent and unqualified2for positions of authority in corporate America."=   In Baltimore, Maryland, where there is a large and active>black population and the headquarters of the NAACP, "The Sun";says some careful changes in the law are needed, but not abutchering of the concept:B   "Changes in affirmative action are needed.  It is not 'racist'<to support such changes.  By 154-44, House Democrats joinedBRepublicans to end broadcasting licensing affirmative action. ButBit is also wrong, dreadfully shortsighted, to lump 'all' [italicsAfor emphasis]  affirmative action policies and programs togetherBfor the purpose of dumping them, as Senator [Phil of Texas] Grammwould do."@   Another call for giving the plan a hard look to make sure it9works the way it was intended comes from the far Pacific+northwest and "The Oregonian" in Portland:=   "Giving affirmative preference to women and minorities in>hiring, promotion and placement has been a useful and largelyAsuccessful tool for broadening access to jobs and education from?which they were historically excluded.  The federal government@properly led that effort through its own hiring policies and byAusing its purchasing power to modify the hiring practices of its>contractors.  It should similarly take the lead in appraising<where affirmative action has worked so well It is no longer8needed to level the hiring and education playing field.9Affirmative action deserves a review, but its detractors>shouldn't be allowed to dismantle it where the need remains."@   In New England, "The Boston Globe" devoted its entire Sunday3editorial space to the subject (3/12), commenting:@   "We would agree that group preference goes against the grain>of the American tradition of individual merit. But we believe?that affirmative action, for all its faults, can and should be@defended because of that other, less worthy American tradition:9Discrimination. Affirmative action was never meant to be@permanent, and after 30 years it is legitimate to ask when will;it no longer be needed.  So let the reviews go forward.  A@healthy debate can lance the boil of raw political manipulationAalong divisive racial lines.  Equal opportunity, not equality of>outcome, in a colorblind society should remain the goal.  Butthat day has not yet arrived."B   Another view comes from "USA Today" columnist Dewayne Wickham,Ba young black journalist whose career may also have been aided byBthe programs of the 1960s.  He is critical of President Clinton'smove to assess the program:<   "On Friday, (3/3) the Justice Department announced it is?filing a suit to force Illinois State University to open up toAwhite men a program it runs to train blacks for janitorial jobs.=But [president] Clinton cannot escape the coming showdown on7affirmative action by throwing its opponents this boneA[offering].  The enemies of affirmative action are in no mood toAcompromise.  They want to bring all such programs to an end, notAjust the few [Mr.] Clinton is willing to put to the sword.  Why??Because affirmative action threatens the privileges many whiteAmen have long enjoyed.  Even with affirmative action, white men,@who are just a third of the population, dominate every facet ofAAmerican life.  Affirmative action is a remedy for their rampantabuse of power."?   Our last word, however, from "The San Diego Union-Tribune",@feels the system has evolved into something that does more harmthan good:=   "Instead of promoting opportunity for all based on merit,?without regard to race, color or creed, affirmative action has@evolved into a racial spoils system.  It has cast government in<the role of dictating how rival ethnic groups will divvy up?[divide] jobs, promotions, contractors and college admissions.@In the process, it has eroded the value of individual worth and@replaced it with the divisive notion of group rights. We cannot<turn our backs on the economic disparities that continue to;separate Americans along racial lines.  The solution is toBreplace divisive racial favoritism with affirmative opportunities5that actually expand the economic base for America'sdisadvantaged."   ---------------   ---------------9   CLINTON CALLS CHOICE TO HEAD CIA "INNOVATIVE" THINKER   ALEXANDER M. SULLIVAN   WASHINGTON7   John Deutch, President Clinton's choice to head the>intelligence community, is an aggressive technocrat who moves2easily between government and the private sector.@   Deutch also demonstrates "the kind of innovative thinking we;need to meet the new challenges" of the post-Cold War era,4Clinton said in announcing the nomination March 11.?   If confirmed by the Senate, Deutch, who currently serves as<deputy defense secretary, will take the helm of the CentralBIntelligence Agency -- an organization seeking to define its role<in a new world far removed from Cold War realities.  In theAaftermath of the Aldrich Ames spy scandal, the agency is seekingAto determine how employees ignored warning signs of what appears<to be the worst betrayal in CIA history. It is fighting theBmorale-crushing effects of downsizing, trying to decide what role@it will play in a multi-polar world and is being scrutinized by@several oversight congressional panels charged with determining?the future of the intelligence community in the United States.?   Clinton announced that Deutch will have Cabinet rank as CIA@director and will integrate intelligence data more tightly into:the formulation of national security policy.  This is not?business as usual for the Director of the Central IntelligenceBAgency (DCI); only the late CIA Director William Casey occupied a similar position in government.?   Clinton said he attaches "the highest personal priority" to6enhancing the nation's capacity to gather and analyze;intelligence data, and "to make that commitment absolutely;clear," the president asserted, he will name Deutch "to my$Cabinet if he is confirmed" as DCI.B   It has been the task of the DCI -- who has nominal supervisionAover the intelligence arms of the U.S. military and the NationalASecurity Agency -- to collect and analyze data and present it to@policy-makers in the White House, the National Security Counciland the State Department.?   At the Pentagon, Deutch developed a close relationship with=Clinton, taking a leading role in reviewing the U.S. nuclear?force posture and overseeing modernization of weapons systems.=Clinton said Deutch had "become intimately familiar with the9workings of the intelligence community" by working out a:"blueprint" to eliminate duplication between civilian and@military intelligence operations.  The president said that type@of achievement "demonstrates the kind of innovative thinking we=need to meet the new challenges" of the post-Cold War world.B   Deutch has been a chemistry professor at Princeton University,Bprovost of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (M.I.T.), anAunder secretary of energy in the Carter administration, a member7of the Foreign Intelligence Advisory Board in the Bush@administration, as well as under secretary and deputy secretary@of defense under Clinton.  He also has served with the NationalAScience Foundation, as an overseer of the Museum of Fine Arts in<Boston, as a trustee of Wellesley College and member of the@Trilateral Commission.  He is a graduate of Amherst College and>earned degrees in chemical engineering and physical chemistryfrom M.I.T.A   As far as intelligence responsibilities are concerned, Deutch;is a reluctant participant who once before told Clinton heApreferred to remain at the Defense Department rather than accept>the DCI nomination. He reportedly agreed to take the post the@second time it was offered after being assured of Cabinet levelinput.A   White House Press Secretary Mike McCurry told reporters March?13 that Deutch, while he "will not play a policy-making role,";will be seated at the decision-making table with "the bestAavailable facts and... analysis," which will be "critical as theBadministration addresses the challenges America faces in this newworld."A   Clinton, he added, thinks Cabinet rank will "add significance3to the intelligence function during foreign policydeliberations."?   McCurry said Clinton decided to elevate the post to CabinetAstatus "to help bring the intelligence-gathering function to theAtable as foreign policy is discussed within the White House.  It>is a reflection of the president's view that in the new world?that we live in the information that we need to make the rightBdecisions becomes very, very important and Dr. Deutch, as someone@who will be the chief analyst of that information, will be able=to contribute from that perspective to the discussions underway."=   The president selected Deutch after the withdrawal of the@nomination of Michael Carns, a retired Air Force general chosenAby Clinton after James Woolsey resigned as DCI.  Stating that he@did not wish to subject his family to trial in the press, Carns?withdrew from consideration after it was disclosed that he had@inadvertently broken U.S. immigration law by helping a relative.of a former employee enter the United States.A   "The sad truth," Clinton said in accepting Carns' withdrawal,8"is that we live in a time when even the most exemplary=individuals are deterred from serving by the fear that their7records will be distorted...their achievements ignored@and...their families maligned during the confirmation process.";   McCurry noted that Deutch has been through the Senate's@confirmation process twice in recent months, most recently last@year when confirmed as the second-ranking person in the DefenseBDepartment "so that most of the material and background (data) is=relatively current and was in the hands of the Senate fairlyArecently.  Whatever additional information is necessary, we will	gather."   ---------------   ---------------   HOUSE ACTION ON TORT REFORM   BRECK ARDERY   NEW YORKB   The U.S. House of Representatives recently approved some major;changes in the way Americans take each other to court. The@proposed changes, largely supported by American businesses, are>causing much controversy as the plan reaches the U.S. Senate.A   For years, leaders of American industry have been critical ofBthe ease with which Americans can bring lawsuits and often obtain>substantial monetary awards or settlements.  Businesses claimBthat numerous suits are without merit and that, even in many that@are justified, an anti-business bias among some jurors leads to>huge awards, awards which are all out of proportion to actual	damages.<   The area of civil litigation that most concerns AmericanBbusiness is so-called "product liability." Americans who claim to@have been injured by a product can sue and recover their losses@such as medical expenses and lost wages.  But they can also try:to receive punitive, or punishment, damages. Beyond that,?plaintiffs can also recover money for what is called "pain andsuffering."=   One recent case which businesses leaders often cite as anBexample of the lawsuit system out of control involves a woman who<bought a cup of hot coffee at a McDonald's restaurant.  SheBspilled the coffee on herself and a jury awarded her almost threemillion dollars.B   The Republican Party has made reform of the U.S. civil lawsuitAsystem a major priority and many Democrats agree with that goal.2But there is still controversy about the changes.>   Mark Geistfeld, a professor at the New York University Law@School and an expert in product liability, says a major problem>in the current system is the vague way in which many American.juries are instructed by the presiding judge:<   A lot of the guidelines in which juries are told whether>manufacturers should pay for injuries are very open-ended and>vague.  So there is a real concern that, as a result of this,@individual jurors can take advantage of their biases and imposeAdamages on manufacturers when perhaps damages are not warranted.B   One of the changes in the pending legislation is to limit bothBpunitive and "pain and suffering" damages to 250 thousand dollars>in most cases.  In addition, Americans who sue and lose their>cases, would usually be required to pay the defendants' legal?fees.  In the current system, plaintiffs are never responsible for the defendants' legal fees.>   Lawsuits are expensive for both plaintiffs and defendants.?However many Americans are spared the expense because numerous?lawyers are willing to take cases on a "contingent fee" basis.>That means the attorney charges no fee to the client but does1collect a percentage of the award or settlement.8   Professor Geistfeld says the requirement that losing?plaintiffs pay their opponents' legal bills could inhibit some&people from making legitimate claims:=   "It would seem that the "loser pays" system would make it@difficult for contingency fees to work. Nevertheless, there mayAbe ways to get around that.  But this is one of the things that,Aif they enact it (the reforms) they will have to figure a way to*deal with the issue of contingency fees."B   It can cost tens of thousands of dollars to bring a lawsuit toBtrial. Professor Geistfeld says that, without the contingency fee?system, Americans of modest means would be effectively "lockedout" of the legal system.8   Not surprisingly, most lawyers, especially those who@specialize in product liability cases, are strongly against the5proposed changes and businesses are for the changes.9   Law professor Mark Geistfeld says the real issue is a:philosophical one.  He says Americans must decide whether=liability lawsuits, or what lawyers call "torts", need to be9controlled for the greater economic good of the society:A   "The result of all the tort liability we have in this country@is that we are getting safer products. So if we cut back on the?tort liability of manufacturers, we will probably get products>that are somewhat less safe. But that may end up being a good>thing for consumers because tort is expensive.  Because it is;expensive, it runs up the costs of manufacturers and their?insurance companies. That raises the cost of the products thatBall of us buy.  So if you reduce tort liability, you should see aAreduction in the prices of products.  That is a good thing. But,@on the other hand, we will probably have more injuries and thatAis a bad thing. Whether we are better off on balance is really a=question as to whether the loss of safety might be more than2offset by a reduction in the prices of products."A   Professor Geistfeld concedes that Americans are more prone to;sue than are citizens of other industrialized nations. The<question, as he and many other observers see it, is whether=Americans are willing to yield some of their rights in civil=suits in exchange for lower costs to industry and consumers.@   The issue will not be resolved quickly. The reforms approved@by the House of Representatives must now be debated in the U.S.@Senate and, of course, the final bill will be subject to either'approval or veto by President Clinton.   ---------------   ---------------   U.N. WEEK-IN-REVIEW   ELAINE JOHANSON   UNITED NATIONSB   The United Nations Security Council decides to leave sanctionsAon Iraq after another one of its periodic reviews; former Soviet;foreign minister Eduard Shevardnadze, now head of state ofBGeorgia, calls for an international tribunal to deal with alleged>ethnic cleansing in the country's breakaway region; and, U.N.>diplomats begin work on creating a new peacekeeping force for	Croatia.<   More than four years after Iraq invaded Kuwait, the U.N.BSecurity Council decided again that Baghdad has not fulfilled all<U.N. resolutions and does not merit any lifting of economic?sanctions.  The council periodically reviews the comprehensive*trade embargo it slapped on Iraq in 1990.>   However, France and Russia warned they would take a softer@view on the sanctions if U.N. officials certify next month that>Iraq has complied with demands on eliminating weapons of massAdestruction.  If Iraq gets a clean bill of health on the weapons>issue, the council, under its own resolution, should consider%suspending a ban on Iraqi oil sales.A   The United States said it would resist all efforts to relieve?Iraq of any pressure until it is persuaded Iraq is trustworthy<and shows it no longer intends to be a bully in the region.:   On the matter of arms, the U.N. is still seeking vital0information from Iraq on past weapons programs.   ==============<   Georgian leader Eduard Shevardnadze has asked the United@Nations to consider setting up a tribunal, like the ones it hasBfor Rwanda and the former Yugoslavia, to prosecute alleged crimes;against humanity in its breakaway region of Abkhazia.  TheAGeorgian leader has charged that hundreds of thousands of people?have been victims of genocide in Abkhazia under what he called!the guise of self-determination.<   Some 250-thousand Georgians fled the region in 1993 when8separatists drove out Georgian government troops.   Mr.AShevardnadze said Abkhaz authorities intentionally drove out allthe non-Abkhaz population.@   Meanwhile, the Security Council this past week called on the?Abkhazians to allow the refugees to go back to their homes and>denounced them for deliberately obstructing repatriation.  It@urged  them to cooperate with the U.N. office for refugees on atimetable for their return.?   The council also expressed concern that security in Georgia8has deteriorated, despite the presence of a Russian-ledApeacekeeping force in the country.  The U.N.'s special envoy for9Georgia hopes to convene new talks in Moscow next month.   ===============;   Croatian President Franjo Tudjman stopped at the United8Nations this past week to discuss moves to create a new=peacekeeping force for his country.  Croatia had ordered the@peacekeepers out after March 31st, on the grounds that they areBmaking it nearly impossible for Zagreb to re-absorb the territory>seized by rebel Serbs in 1991.   But Croatia was persuaded to?maintain a U.N. presence after the United States agreed to its:demand to put monitors on its borders to prevent military5supplies from reaching the breakaway Krajina region.=   The United States has submitted a draft resolution in the>Security Council that would cut the size of the U.N. force inAhalf and put some 500 observers on Croatia's borders with Serbia@and Bosnia.  President Tudjman is insisting that he should have:the final say on both the size and the mission of the newoperation.   ---------------   ---------------   CUBAN EMBARGO DISCUSSION   GEORGE MEEK   WASHINGTONA   The 33-year-old U.S. embargo against Cuba is under discussion@again in the U.S. Congress.  Some lawmakers want to tighten it,Bwhile others want to relax it.  The current ban permits shipments?to Cuba of food and medicine, but there are some restrictions.@   Since sanctions were tightened under the Cuban democracy act@of 1992, the United States has licensed over 65 million dollars@worth of humanitarian donations to Cuban private organizations.BThe gifts have come from a wide variety of religious, social, and0professional groups, and from private citizens.B   Food and information materials like books and tapes require noBlicense for export to Cuba, but medicine and medical supplies do.AThe U.S. Government wants to make sure the medical goods are notBused for re-export, for production of biological products, or for>torture or human rights abuse.  The United States has granted>licenses to more than 150 people to take medicine and medical%goods to Cuba in the past two years.B   Last August, during the exodus of Cuban boat people, President?Clinton tightened sanctions to restrict remittances, packages,and travel to Cuba.>   Now Cuban-Americans cannot send money to Cuba except for aAone-time payment of one-thousand dollars to enable a relative to;emigrate, or for extreme humanitarian need, justified on acase-by-case basis.=   Air charter travel between the United States and Cuba for?family visits is also restricted to extreme humanitarian need.@Since last August, the United States has processed more than 36@hundred requests for family visits.  Officials acknowledge that4they cannot always process the requests in time for3Cuban-Americans to visit a dying relative in Cuba.>   The Treasury Department says many travelers get around theBrestriction by going to Cuba by way of Mexico or another country.@The Treasury Department is working on enforcement strategies totry to stop this.B   Family gift parcels, formerly unrestricted, are now limited to=food, medicine, medical and hospital supplies, clothing, and>certain humanitarian items. The packages cannot be worth morethan 200-dollars per month.?   The U.S. Government argues that these sanctions will hasten;democracy in Cuba, especially now that Havana is no longerBsubsidized by Moscow.  Critics say the restrictions hurt the veryBpeople they are intended to help, and harden Cuba's determinationto fight change.   ---------------   ---------------   SIERRA LEONE FIGHTING   PURNELL MURDOCK   FREETOWNB   Sierra Leone government troops and rebels of the Revolutionary?United Front fought Saturday for control of a strategic bridge;linking the southern area of the country with the capital,@Freetown.  Recent rebel attacks have brought fighting closer to
the capital.?   Military forces say units of the Revolutionary United Front@are trying to capture the bridge at Mabang, about 40 kilometers?southeast of the capital, Freetown.  The bridge provides a key=road link from the southeast province of Sierra Leone to the	capital.=   This is the latest in a series of rebel strikes that have<brought the fighting closer to Freetown.  Last Tuesday, the8Revolutionary United Front staged a two-pronged attack,Asimultaneously hitting the town of Moyamba, about 160 kilometers?from the capital, and the nearby road junction linking MoyambaAwith other towns in the area.  By Friday, rebels advanced to the5town of Rotifunk, about 70 kilometers from Freetown.@   The Revolutionary United Front, which is holding at least 17@foreigners, began attacking villages and ambushing road convoys>along major highways in 1991.  But it is only in the past few>months that the rebels have emerged as an united force with a:coherent strategy.  Their raids, once concentrated in the?southeast, have become more widespread since November and now,/only the area around Freetown has been spared.A   About 10-thousand people are believed to have been killed and@more than one-quarter of Sierra Leone's population displaced bythe civil war.   ---------------   ---------------%   ETHIOPIAN AIRLINER HIJACKING OVER   ALEX BELIDA   NAIROBI=   Five armed hijackers who seized an Ethiopian airliner and:forced it to fly to neighboring Sudan have surrendered to>authorities.  The 92 passengers and crew members on the planehave been released unharmed.=   The official Sudanese news agency says the hijackers gave@themselves up in the central Sudanese town of El Obeid about 24=hours after seizing the Ethiopian Airlines jet on a domesticflight.:   The hijackers initially had demanded that the plane be?refuelled and flown to Greece and then Sweden.  But they later:were reported to have demanded political asylum in Sudan.?   No details were immediately available on the terms of theirsurrender.>   Ethiopian officials had flown to El Obeid to join SudaneseAauthorities in negotiations with the hijackers, whose identities%and motives have not been disclosed.   ---------------  ---------------0   KENYA DENIES CROSS BORDER ATTACK INTO UGANDA   ALEX BELIDA   NAIROBI;   The Kenyan government has denied Ugandan charges Kenyan>security forces crossed into Uganda recently, killing severalApeople in an attack apparently aimed at suspected guerrillas out,to topple Kenyan President Daniel Arap Moi.B   A Kenyan government statement firmly rejects charges by senior>Ugandan officials Kenyan troops were responsible for a recent?raid on a border village in Uganda.  The statement says Kenyan@forces have never mounted security operations inside or againstUganda.B   The statement blames armed Ugandan soldiers for the attack andBclaims they were joined by Kenyan guerrillas of the February 18th;movement, a group which Kenyan authorities have accused of7carrying out raids on the Kenyan side of the frontier.9   Kenya claims Uganda has been providing support to theBguerrillas. President Daniel Arap Moi has also accused members of>Kenya's political opposition of having links with the rebels.?   Ugandan officials and Kenya's opposition have both rejected:the charges.  They claim the guerrilla group is a phantom:creation of the Moi government, aimed at diverting public*attention from Kenya's domestic problems.   ---------------   ---------------C   KENYAN PRESIDENT RENEW CLAIM OPPOSITION INVOLVEMENT WITH REBELS   ALEX BELIDA   NAIROBI@   In Kenya, the government and opposition remain at odds about=the existence of an guerrilla group supposedly out to topplePresident Daniel Arap Moi.B   Kenyan President Daniel Arap Moi says a Uganda-based guerrilla?movement is to blame for the deaths of at least six policemen,@including two reported killed this past week in raid in westernKenya.B   Speaking in Kiswahili at a rally outside Nairobi, Mr. Moi also<renewed claims that Kenyan opposition political leaders are@involved in the activities of the guerrilla group, known as the?February 18th Movement.  He said he knows their identities but-did not disclose them in his public remarks.:   A top aide to the Kenyan leader meanwhile repeated the8government's contention that a man identified by Kenyan@authorities as John Odongois  the leader of the guerrilla group1and that Mr. Odongo holds the rank of brigadier.B   Lee Njiru, the director of President Moi's press office, could@not say how large the rebel movement led by Mr. Odongo is.  ButAin a brief exchange at the Moi rally he too accused it of havingcommitted murders in Kenya:B   "I don't have an idea how big it is but it has killed and when8you kill it does not matter how many lives you destroy"?   Members of the Kenyan opposition have voiced new skepticism>about the government's latest statements on the February 18th
Movement.=   George Nyanja, a member of parliament from the Ford AsiliBparty, claimed in an interview that this week's alleged guerrillaBraid in western Kenya was a government hoax.  He charged that the>two policemen said to have been killed in the attack were notpolicemen at all:B   "This was just staged-managed by the government, by the state,=and two corpses were dressed like policemen and bullets werefired severally..."B   Opposition publisher and Moi critic Njehu Gatabaki charged the3government of Kenya has no credibility whatsoever:=   "You cannot believe the government of Kenya any more. The=government of Kenya talks about imaginary enemies, imaginarydeaths, imaginary policemen.">   There have been no independent eyewitness accounts of thispast week's alleged raid.B   Diplomatic sources have cast doubts on the Kenyan government'sAclaims about the threat posed by rebels and specifically by John@Odongo.  Sources familiar with Mr. Odongo, the alleged February<18th guerrilla leader, have described him as a crackpot and@questioned whether he could organize a guerrilla movement.  Mr.>Odongo had refugee status in Uganda but was recently moved to>ghana after his presence became an irritant in Kenyan-Ugandanrelations.   ---------------   ---------------.   AFRICA COMMISSION FOR HUMAN RIGHTS MEETING   WILLIAM EAGLE   WASHINGTON;   The African Commission for Human and People's Rights isAmeeting in Lome.  The commission will present its conclusions to+the Organization of African Unity in June.?   Conference delegates say the commission is making progress.:They say Algeria and Sudan have invited the commission to=evaluate the human rights situation in their countries.  TheBcommission is hoping for invitations from Mauritanian, Senegalese and Nigerian officials as well.A   Delegates also are discussing the establishment of a court ofAjustice to hear complaints of violations of the 1981 OAU charteron human rights.B   One delegate is Oji Umozurike [oh'-jee oo-moe-zher-ee'-keh], a;law professor at the University of Calabar in southeasternNigeria who says:A   "The African court would make it possible for individuals who@feel that they have not received justice in their own countriesBto take their complaints to the human rights court or commission.7It would be an extra safeguard to make human rights aninternational matter."<   Mr. Umozurike says the court would help end an important?source of human rights violations in Africa and the developingworld, state governments:=   "One of the problems of human rights in Africa is that of;impunity.  Agents of state commit offenses, they cause the=disappearances of people, and nothing happens to them within>their own jurisdiction.  That's  because the very authorities;that should be enforcing human rights are overseeing theseB[abuses].  The international court would operate outside the veryAgovernment that protects such individuals, strengthening avenues>to ensure that people who commit gross offenses against humanrights are tried."A   Another member of the commission believes the strength of the=proposed court depends on the Africans themselves.  Sourahta=Aboucar Semega-Jammeh [sore-ah'-tah ah-boo'-kar seh-may'-gah?jah'-meh]  a private legal practitioner from the Gambia, says:?   "Even within the domestic system, a court will be effective@only if a vast majority of people respect it and are willing to:comply with its decisions.  So I would envisage a general8situation in Africa where a vast number of people wouldAautomatically comply with what the court says.  It is a question<of what is obtained within the minds and governments of theApeople of Africa and the esteem in which they hold such a court.>It is the citizens of Africa who can do this more effectively?than government through the formation of human rights NGOs and1strong national and international associations."?   Mr. Umozurike says attention to human rights in Africa alsoAdepends on outside support.  Respect for human rights is often a:condition for development aid but it is also essential to	society:A   "There can be no society without the respect of human rights.?If people don't have respect to lives and liberty, then such a-group of people cannot exist as as society."B   Mr. Umozurike says Africans place greater emphasis on group or>cultural human rights than western countries, which emphasize@individual rights.  He says he hopes the international monetaryAfund and World Bank will respect these differences when devisingreform programs.;   Mr. Semega-Jammeh says a clash between human rights and&religious values is often overstated:<   "It is quite true that sharia originated in Saudi ArabiaAthrough the efforts of the prophet Mohammad.  You will find thatAin the Arab world, there are few countries that practice Islamic9criminal law.  What you are referring to are things like6amputation, stoning and flogging.  You may still haveBdecapitation and stoning in Saudi Arabia and Sudan, but not otherAplaces. There are people who believe that elimination of certainA[forms of punishment]  do not run counter to Islam, which is theteaching of peace."B   He says some issues, like abortion or reproductive rights, are2social and religious but not human rights issues.>   Mr. Semega-Janneh says though some differences between theAsexes may remain, he believes the world is moving toward the end'of domination of one sex by the other.   ---------------   ---------------   ANGOLA UPDATE   MALLORY SALESON   JOHANNESBURG?   An emergency meeting of southern African leaders to discussBthe situation in Angola has been postponed. The postponement came?as other diplomatic efforts continue to keep the Angolan peaceprocess on track.8   The emergency summit of southern African leaders was>originally scheduled to take place Saturday in Zimbabwe after?foreign ministers agreed earlier on the urgent need to discussBthe shaky cease-fire in Angola in a bid to keep the peace process<on track.  But the meeting has been indefinitely postponed,=reportedly at the wish of Angolan President Jose Eduardo DosSantos.>   Angola's neighbors are hopeful the meeting will eventually@take place as diplomatic efforts continue to shore up the peace@accord signed last November by the Angolan government and rebel7UNITA movement to end nearly two decades of civil war.A   On Friday a special United Nations envoy arrived in Luanda to>assess the situation and meet government and UNITA delegates.=Reports say the envoy is also expected to meet peace process7observers from Russia, the United States and Portugal.?   The United Nations Security Council is to decide later thisBmonth whether to send about seven-thousand peacekeepers to AngolaAin may.  The U.N. Security Council last month agreed to send theApeacekeepers if both warring factions show sincere commitment to@the peace process, adhere to the cease-fire and disengage their:troops.  Since then both sides have accused each other of?cease-fire violations and fighting has flared in some parts of
the country.@   Angola's Roman Catholic bishops have called on both factions@to cease war preparations, including the importation of weapons<and military equipment.  The bishops' statement accused theAwarring factions of actions incompatible with the United NationsAmediated peace accord they signed four months ago.  The bishops,?who have sought to help reconcile the warring factions through=the church, also called on the United Nations to immediately8deploy the peacekeepers to help monitor the cease-fire.;   On Thursday, the United Nations special envoy to AngolaAreported more cease-fire violations but said things appear to beBimproving.  He said the United Nations is actively working to get@both sides to adhere to the peace accord so the full contingent!of peacekeepers can be deployed.B   A United Nations military official earlier said there is a lot>of tension in Angola.  But he said both sides, under pressure;from the international community, appear to be getting the;message they must halt activity that jeopardizes the peace	process.   ---------------   ---------------%   ETHIOPIAN GENOCIDE TRIAL REACTION   HILLETEWORK MATHIAS   WASHINGTON<   In Ethiopia, the genocide trials of former ruler ColonelAMengistu Haile Mariam and 72 former officials continue.  Colonel=Mengistu fled to Zimbabwe in 1991, as rebels advanced on the5capital.  He is now being tried in absentia. trials.B   The trials bring back bitter memories of the bloody era of the@late 1970's known as "the red terror."  Thousands of Ethiopians@were killed by the Mengistu government.  Most were young.  Some=of the bodies were left outside for days.  They served as an:example of what the government did to those it consideredanti-revolutionaries.B   At times, family members were forced to buy the bodies so theyBcould be buried.  However, any display of mourning was forbidden.BThe international group "Human Rights Watch" calls it "one of the@most systematic uses of mass murder by the state ever witnessedin Africa.">   The trials are the most extensive since Nazi war criminalsAfaced justice after World War II.  They began last December, but=adjourned until this month to give defense attorneys time toprepare their cases.<   The prosecution is said to be compiling a vast amount of7evidence against the Mengistu government.  Reports say=investigators have documents detailing murders and execution?orders.  Forensic teams have dug up hundreds of bodies.  Among<those discovered were the remains of the late Emperor Haile<Selassie and his ministers.  In addition, nearly 25-hundred+witnesses have stepped forward to testify.@   Ethiopian-born Sahlu Michael has been practicing law for the>past six years in Washington, D.C.  He says the trials have a&special legal message for Ethiopians:@   "The significance of these trials is that they will no doubtBbe setting an important precedent by which current and as well as@future leaders in our country and maybe internationally will be@judged. I also think another significant aspect of this is thatBthese trials will probably be setting the standard for procedural?safeguards in the constitution in the future for any Ethiopian@who may be charged with criminal activity.  I think this is the<most important aspect of this trial as far as the future isconcerned."=   Most Ethiopians agree the former officials should be held?accountable for their acts.  But they differ over the right ofBthe transitional government of Ethiopia to bring them to justice.;Rahel Mesfin is a graduate student at Howard University inAWashington, D.C.  She spent eight years in prison during the redBterror.  She says justice should prevail now against the Mengistu+government, which was known as the Dergue:@   "It has become clear that given the nature and the extent of?crimes against Ethiopia and Ethiopians, no trial,  no setup of;new laws can close the chapter (issue).  These people have=murdered, tortured, mutilated, separated families for the 17<years they have been there.  I feel that the Dergue and the=people who carried out their orders were fortunate to have a@chance for a fair trial. The Dergue never gave anyone a chance.>It killed thousands of people.  I don't care which government>takes over after the Dergue, they should have immediately putthem on justice."A   Others disagree with that view.  According to Ayalew Asaye, a@political scientist by profession, and a private businessman inWashington:A   "The present government has  no  legal authority to try these?people because it is not an elected government.  The courts in@Ethiopia are not independent.  The judges are handpicked by the@government in power for their ethnic and political affiliation,:without regard of their professional ability and personal=integrity.  Under these circumstances, I do not believe thatBjustice will be served and the officials will have a fair trail."A   But attorney Sahlu Michael says such an argument has no legalbasis::   "Surely from a legal point of view, under the relevantBcriminal laws, any government that is in place at the time should;be able to take action. After all, if we have to wait evenBanother one year, it is that much longer that justice is delayed.@We have to remember that as long as these people are in prison,Aarguing whether the government is a permanent one or a temporaryBone will be really secondary to the importance of setting some of>these people free and letting the others get the judgment andcontinue with their lives.">   Most western governments and human rights groups favor the@trials.  But some express concern about the legal rights of theAdetainees.  Most of them have been held without charge for threeyears.;   Legal experts say if the Ethiopian trials are conducted9fairly, they could be a model for Rwanda's new tutsi-ledBgovernment.  That government hopes to conduct similar proceedings:for Hutu militiamen and officials implicated in genocide.   ---------------   ---------------2   SUDAN GOVERNMENT NOT INTERESTED IN PEACE TALKS   ALEX BELIDA   NAIROBI9   A senior Sudanese official has indicated the Khartoum7government is no longer interested in participating in@regional-sponsored peace talks aimed at ending the civil war in?southern Sudan.  That word coincides with an announcement thisBweek by the main southern Sudanese rebel group it intends to stepAup its opposition activities in the government-held north of the	country.A   The secretary general of Sudan's Higher Council for Peace was<dispatched to Nairobi this week on a mission seen by Kenyan@analysts as an apparent bid to demonstrate Khartoum's continued.interest in a peace initiative for the south.=   But, minister Lino Rol Deng used his meetings with Kenyan?authorities to talk more about a concept described by Khartoum=as, peace from within, rather than a revival of the regional?peace effort backed by Kenyan President Daniel Arap Moi.  That>effort, organized under the auspices of the intergovernmental?authority on drought and desertification, had brought together>officials from Khartoum, representatives of southern SudaneseBrebel groups, and diplomats from Eritrea, Ethiopia and Uganda, aswell as Kenya.A   Sudanese radio quoted the Khartoum official as promoting whatBhe termed, a new mechanism, in the search for a peaceful solution>to the southern problem.  He said his proposal is an internal@mechanism aimed at preserving the unity of the north and south,0and guaranteeing the stability of all of sudan.A   The apparent rejection of any future regional peace talks met=with an angry response from the main southern Sudanese rebel5group, John Garang's Sudan People's Liberation Army.@   SPLA spokesman Steven Wondu said in a Nairobi interview, the;rebels are ready for more negotiations.  But he blamed the5Sudanese government for torpedoing the last round of?Igadd-arranged talks, and said the rebels are prepared to taketheir fight to the north:@   "We are on standby.  We are ready any minute they are ready.;We shall negotiate.  But from the past we know this regime@(Khartoum) has made declarations to the effect they do not want@to negotiate with the SPLA. They would like to bring peace fromBwithin and therefore we are mobilizing the rest of the country toBfight them so  that we can get somebody who can talk to somebody.'You need two parties to an agreement."A   Mr. Wondu disclosed the rebels have formed what they call theAnew Sudan brigade to operate in the government-controlled north:A   "The new Sudan brigade has been launched by the SPLA so as to@harness the opposition in the north for the purpose of removing<the regime of Omar Hassan Al-Beshir and giving the SudaneseApeople the opportunity for a peaceful settlement of the conflictin Sudan."A   The rebel spokesman gave no indication of the size of the new?unit, but said it will include an armed-guerrilla component as/well as political cells and a propaganda wing.@   A Sudanese government military spokesman later dismissed the>rebel threat in the north and said the country's armed forces%were capable of thwarting new plots.B   More than one million people are estimated to have died in the:fighting between the mainly Arab and Muslim north and the?predominantly Christian African south during the 12-year civil5war.  The rebels have been pressing for the right ofself-determination.   ---------------   ---------------.   CALL FOR CALM AFTER FAILED COUP IN NIGERIA   WILLIAM EAGLE   WASHINGTONA   In Nigeria, a well known ethnic leader has called for calm inBthe wake of a foiled coup plot.  Chief Ojukwu (oh-juu-koo) is oneBof the leaders of the Ibo people.  He led the break-away state ofABiafra during Nigeria's civil war nearly 25 years ago, and he isAcurrently a delegate to the country's constitutional conference.=   From civil war secessionist to prominent statesman, Chief@Chukwuemeka Odumegwu Ojukwu (choo-koo-eh-meh-kah oh-doo-may-goo;oh-juu-koo) has seen it all.  He was a major player in the?country's civil war, and, like most Nigerians, a witness to at?least nine attempted coups since independence in 1960, five ofthem successful.A   Chief Ojukwu says the latest coup attempt could not have comeBat a worse time.  He says the government-sponsored constitutionalAconference has almost finished more than eight months of work onBa draft constitution for a future democratic government.  He says>a coup at this time would be a set-back for himself and otherdelegates:=   "We have enjoined the government to investigate [the coup?plot] very quickly.  But if there is a smell of treason in theAair, we say arrest it, nip it in the bud [crush it], investigate=and punish.  We have given our government the benefit of the;doubt, now let them show us the evidence in an appropriate[amount of] time."A   Chief Ojukwu adds that one of the goals of the conference has@been finding ways to prevent future coups.  He recommends swift>punishment and the recovery of stolen funds.  He also says it=should not be up to the president to decide how to deal with$someone who seizes power illegally:>   "We should have it clear that a coup does not give you the@right to govern.  Once you take over government in a manner not?stipulated in the constitution it is an act of treason.  ThereBshould be  no  statutes of limitation on this, and  no  incumbent@president should have discretionary powers to deal with someone!who has committed such a crime."9   Chief Ojukwu also addressed critics of Nigeria's slowBtransition to democracy, both at home and abroad.  This week, the@Washington-based lobbying group Trans-Africa announced it would>begin a campaign to pressure Nigeria's military government to<restore democracy and civil rights.  Chief Ojukwu says most?Nigerians welcome constructive support, but not pressure, fromoutside groups:@   "We can always listen to any group that wishes to advise us,=we welcome such advice.  The only thing we tend to resent is?foreigners or foreign governments taking positions on NigerianBaffairs not in consonance with affairs inside Nigeria. If a groupAof African Americans wishes to discuss with Nigerians across theAboard and members of the constitutional conference and listen toAus [that would be fine].  But going around talking to people who?might be, in our own view, rebels or rascals does not help, itbrings more confusion.":   The Nigerian leader also criticized outsiders who have<expressed concern the government may deal unjustly with thealleged coup plotters.?   Human rights groups say some coup plotters in the past have@been executed by firing squad.  The 1994 State Department human9rights report says the Nigerian government has failed to=investigate charges of extra-judicial killings by police and:security forces. And this week, the U.S. State DepartmentAappealed to Nigeria to assure the safety of all detainees and to?respect their rights. It cautioned Nigeria's government not to;take any summary measures that could be construed as being+outside the bounds of international norms.;   Chief Ojukwu was also asked his opinion on the issue ofBdetained opposition leader Moshood Abiola, who was arrested after9declaring himself head of state last year.  The military@government annulled the 1993 presidential elections which he iswidely believed to have won.A   Chief Ojukwu says he believes Mr. Abiola committed treason by=declaring himself president, and he says no government wouldBaccept such an act.  But he says he could support a pardon if Mr.Abiola is found guilty::   "Once the judicial process has gone through if it is aAquestion of pleading on his behalf for a presidential pardon, or=whatever, certainly I would  not hesitate to be part of that.pleading.  But let us get our country right."@   On the other hand, Chief Ojukwu reiterated his position that=military men should not be involved in politics, unless theyBexchange their uniforms for civilian clothing and compete in freeand fair elections.   ---------------   ---------------E   KENYAN GOVERNMENT OUTCRY OVER GUERRILLA GROUPS CRITICS DENY EXIST   ALEX BELIDA   NAIROBI:   Kenya remains firmly in the grip of guerrilla fever, a2government-sponsored outcry over the existence ofBpreviously-unknown rebel groups out to overthrow President Daniel=Arap Moi.  But critics, both Kenyan and foreign, contend the>specter of a guerrilla threat is intended to divert attention%from more serious problems. Nairobi.?   Since March first, The Kenya Times, the paper of the rulingAKenya African National Union Party, has been running a series of?reports about the February 18th Movement, an alleged guerrilla<group based in Uganda.  Kenyan authorities say it is out to4topple the government of President Daniel Arap moi.=   The Kenya Times bills its reports as exclusives.  Critics#describe them as works of fiction.B   In any event, the series has so far linked the guerrillas to a?host of traditional western political demons, including SovietAcommunism and Libya.  It has also linked the rebels to PresidentMoi's domestic opponents.;   The times has claimed, for example, that brigadier John@Odongo, the alleged leader of the guerrilla group, is a veteranAsoldier educated in Moscow who favored communist ideals.  It has=also charged that Kenyan opposition political leaders raised?funds that were sent to Uganda to buy guns for the guerrillas.;In addition, the times has alleged February 18th commandos7acquired explosives from Libya that were to be used to&assassinate key Kenyan personalities.<   Another report asserted that a former Ugandan university?lecturer wrote a blueprint for the guerrillas titled "ten ways=toward the removal of Moi".  The times went on to claim that@recent demands by the Kenyan opposition and the U.S. Ambassador@to Kenya for an easing of state controls over broadcasting were@part of the guerrilla masterplan for destabilizing the country.=   The times has also blasted the United Nations and foreignBdonor countries in its series.  It has, for example, alleged that?U.N. refugee camps were used as bases by conspirators plotting=against Kenya.  It has also charged that the rebels received@speedboat motors through an international relief agency, motorsBthat were paid for by Kenyan exiles in Scandinavia and which were>to be used in attacks on Kenyan villages along Lake Victoria.<   The times has maintained that fake Kenyan passports were<supplied to dissidents in a racket involving senior Ugandan@officials and the guerrillas.  In addition, it has claimed thatBthe guerrillas, backed by Ugandan soldiers, tried to set up bases?in Kenya and to recruit disenchanted ex-servicemen and joblessyouths.B   In one edition, the times even printed a photograph purporting<to show three so-called "boy soldiers" of the February 18thBMovement with AK-47 assault rifles.  The paper said the photo wasBtaken by a guerrilla instructor after a training session.  It did#not say how it obtained the photo.@   Despite the extensive detail, diplomatic sources in  Nairobi>and Kampala say they have been unable to find any evidence toAsuggest there is anything substantive to the claims published inthe Kenya times.B   Instead, these sources suggest what is happening is a familiarAKenyan pattern of "sound and fury and howling at the moon" aimed>at diverting popular attention in Kenya from such problems as4unemployment, corruption and the country's decayingBinfrastructure.  Opposition Kenyan parliament member Raila OdingaAsaid recently there are no guerrillas outside Kenya.  Mr. Odinga<claims the only real guerrillas are in Kenya itself, in hisBwords, "the economic guerrillas who have over the years sabotagedour economy.";   Some sources believe the sudden discovery of an allegedAguerrilla threat may also have been intended to divert attentionBfrom reports earlier this year that President Moi had either died<or been incapacitated by illness.  These reports circulated;unchecked for days and diplomats say they seriously marred1President Moi's image as a leader and statesman.   ---------------   ---------------B   DOUBTS OVER LEGITIMACY OF MAN WHO KENYA SAYS IS A REBEL LEADER   ALEX BELIDA   NAIROBI=   New doubts have been raised about the Kenyan government's@claims about a man alleged to be behind a plot to topple KenyanPresident Daniel Arap Moi.A   The man identified by Kenyan authorities as the leader of the@Uganda-based February 18th Resistance Army is described by U.S.Bdiplomats as a "crackpot" who could not possibly have much if any(of a following among Kenyan dissidents.?   The man is self-styled "brigadier" John Odongo.  The Kenyan>government says Mr. Odongo is a veteran guerrilla fighter whoBreceived military training and a communist political education inAthe former Soviet Union.  It also maintains he and his followers=have received extensive support from the Ugandan government.B   But U.S. officials say Mr. Odongo went to the American Embassy?in Kampala a year ago to complain about alleged persecution by=Ugandan authorities and by the local office of the U.N. HighBCommissioner for Refugees.  The sources say the officials who met:him did not find him impressive and questioned his mentalstability.?   Mr. Odongo, who held refugee status in Uganda, was recentlyAmoved to Ghana after being denounced by the Kenyan government as<a guerrilla leader.  Ugandan authorities, working with U.N.Arefugee officials, arranged the move in what was described as anBattempt to eliminate a source of friction in Kenyan-Ugandan ties.A   However, Kenyan authorities say the February 18th Movement isAnot dead.  They say a new raid was staged this week into westernBKenya by February 18th guerrillas under the leadership of another<previously unknown man, identified as "Brigadier" Augustine?Simba.  They say two Kenyan policemen were killed and arms and8ammunition stolen from a government armory in the raid.=   Ugandan authorities have expressed dismay over the latestBKenyan claims.  Diplomatic sources in Kampala say they have foundBnothing substantive to support the alleged existence in Uganda of<any serious guerrilla threat to President Moi's government.   ---------------   ---------------9   THE WOMEN OF RWANDA, NOW TWO-THIRDS OF THE POPULATION   SONYA LAURENCE GREEN   NAIROBIA   After the genocide in Rwanda, women make up nearly two-thirdsBof the population.  The women, many of them widows, face enormousBproblems trying to piece together their lives again.  But some of1them also participated in last years' massacres.A   During Rwanda's genocide, women were both actors and victims.<   Women, as well as men, murdered their neighbors.  In one>infamous case, a woman clubbed to death young children in the;neighborhood, children she had known since they were born,Achildren who were playmates of her own sons and daughters.  When@asked why she did it, she replied coldly that their parents hadAalready been killed by the militia, they were orphans, what kindof a life would they have had?A   Inside the women's prison in the capital, Kigali, hundreds of>women accused of such crimes are crammed shoulder to shoulder@into a small corridor, with a few cells off to the sides.  Some@are busy passing out bowls of cornmeal gruel from a large metal?barrel; some taunt the security guards outside; others tend to9the young children they brought with them when they were
arrested.=   Aloysia Inyumba, Rwanda's minister for family and women's9affairs, says she is ashamed that women took part in the
genocide:>   "I am also ashamed sometimes to speak about it.  But women?participated in genocide.  We have testimonies of women, where@they killed eight, twelve (people).  But they will tell you, "'>did, it's true, I killed eight, i killed twelve. But it was aBforced act, you know.'  They will tell you that, but they did it.BAnd actually, a few of them did organize it.  Like in Butare, the<lady organized the militia.  She's the one who provided the;transport, and gave a very powerful speech, and the people;responded, you see.  I think the participation of women inBgenocide is...It's no different from the way the youths respondedto it."5   Christine Umutoni, an official at the ministry of<rehabilitation, helped put out the first issue of a 12-pageBnewspaper devoted to women's issues.  It is called Inkingi, which?refers to women as the pillar of the nation.  Flipping through:the pages, Ms. Umutoni describes some of the pictures and
articles:=   "We see what was the role of women in this genocide. They=participated.  You'll see pictures of women who were on thisAnotorious radio, R.T.L.M., engineering the genocide.  You'll see@pictures of some women who were part actually of the criminals,Acutting., that is, getting a panga (machete) and cutting another:woman who has a child at the back.  Very horrible things.BBecause naturally a woman is known as somebody who is supposed to?be kind and a mother and everything.  So it was a shock to thecommunity.">   Ms. Umutoni stresses that while some women did murder, the:vast majority of Rwandan women were themselves victims ofterrible brutality:@   "But also we see women as victims of this.  And they are theBmost, in fact.  They were killed in fact they were raped, most of?them are in refugee camps, not because they even know why they=are in refugee camps, but because they are hostages of theirBhusbands.  And so many other problems: They are widows, they have1no houses.  They are therefore victims of this."=   last week President Pasteur Bizimungu and other officials?attended a ceremony in honor of international women's day, and=they used the occasion to recognize the suffering of Rwandan@women.  Hundreds of orphans and widows dressed in black scarveswelcomed them to the ceremony.B   Many of these widows and orphans lost all their relatives.  InAa new twist, some women who lost their children are now adopting@orphans, and forging new families.  Nearly 300-thousand orphans@now live with foster families, but nearly the same number againstill need help.?   One local women's group, known as Asoferwa, has small-scale>projects to help poverty-stricken women and orphans.  Through=self-help programs, they make bricks and build shelters, andraise money for schools.A   The vice president of Asoferwa, Mary Rutagengwa, took us on a=tour of the cafeteria at Kigali's central hospital, where 20-widows have started up their small business:>   "This is one of the projects we have managed to give them.<They were businesswomen before.  We did not want them to beBneglected when they can do something, so we gave them just little>money to start with,  although we haven't managed to do much.>But they can get little money to sustain themselves and theirchildren."@   Ann Kavira, one of the widows working in the cafeteria, told%us her story through an interpreter.?   She says that before the war she used to have a restaurant,>and she used to have relatives and friends. But they were all>killed.  But she's here with the other women, she has her own=children five, and then her brother's six children.  They're:orphans.  The brother died, he was killed during the war.B   Mrs. Kavira says this job has given her new hope and optimism.?   She says she's happy because of this work she's doing here,Abecause even the friends have the same problems. So when they're>here, they talk about the problems, they talk about how to go@about it, so they share their common interests and the problemsBthey have.  So she feels if she's in the group, she feels better.@   Jeanette Kagame, wife of Rwanda's vice president and defenseAminister, is the patron of the women's group, and says women and3mothers are in the forefront of rebuilding Rwanda:A   "If they're willing to follow that process of reconciliation,@I think it would influence even the rest of the population, andBthe kids, because I think that it would influence their kids more@than anyone else.  And since the kids are the future of Rwanda,@if they strongly believe in those values, definitely it's goingBto give a big change.  I think mothers should be more responsible&in whatever, whichever acts they do.">   Mrs. Kagame says these women involved in re-building their?country may well be the biggest asset to the future of Rwanda.   ---------------   ---------------+   SOUTH AFRICA UNVEILS ITS 1995/96 BUDGET   MALLORY SALESON   JOHANNESBURGB   The South African government unveiled its budget for 1995/1996@Wednesday with the announcement the economy is well on the road?to recovery. There were no surprises in the economic plan that,begins to address inequalities of the past.?   Finance minister Chris Liebenberg unveiled the government'sBbudget plan for the next fiscal year that reflects the priorities<of the new South Africa.  The 1995 / 1996 budget that takes@effect April first seeks to address the inequalities and wealthAgap created by decades of apartheid as well as to combine fiscalBdiscipline with policies aimed at increasing local investment andattracting foreign investment.;   Mr. Liebenberg told parliament South Africa's political?transformation should be matched by economic change within itsmeans:8   "As all other governments, past, present and future,Bfunctioning under whatever political system and pursuing whateverBset of priorites, we must nonetheless recognize that any specific<point in time resources, be they financial or physical, are=limited and that the country and its people must manage this<constraint wisely. Whatever choice is made, the inescapable>consequence is that some other, often critical need has to besacrificed or postponed.">   Mr. Liebenberg announced plans to cut defense spending andBincrease funds to education, housing, health care and other areas;of social spending.  South Africa's police force will also>benefit from budget increases.  Mr. Liebenberg also announced>government moves to make South Africa more investor and trade=friendly, including the abolition of the import surcharge onluxury and other goods.=   Economic analysts described the budget as a balancing act@between the government's promise to deliver social and economic@upliftment programs to millions of disadvantaged South Africans;and its commitment to disciplined monetary policies.  They;welcomed the announcement the budget deficit would drop to@five-point-eight percent of anticipated gross domestic product.<   This is the first economic plan of the new Government ofANational Unity led by the African National Congress and reflectsAthe changing priorities of the country toward reconstruction and;development.  Analysts said it would likely be welcomed byAbusiness leaders, trade unions, investors and ordinary citizens.A   The new plan offers some tax relief for lower income earners,?married women and single taxpayers.  Top income earners, still>mostly white, will have to pay more taxes to help redress the;imbalances of the past.  The budget plan also reflects the@government's commitment to boost black economic empowerment andsmall business.B   Economic analysts describe the new budget as an optimistic andApositive plan aimed at boosting economic growth.  It follows the;abolition Monday of the dual currency system to open South>Africa's foreign exchange markets to free trading in a single:currency to attract foreign investment.  Analysts say the?economic decisions made this week reflect a growing confidence:within the government that South Africa is on the road to"economic and political stability.   ---------------   ---------------9   ALGERIAN POLITICIANS DISAGREE ON HOW TO END BLOODSHED   LAURIE KASSMAN   ALGIERS@   Algeria's political parties and the transition government do@not agree on the best way to end the country's political crisis9and bloodshed.  European and neighboring Arab states are=anxiously watching the outcome, amid fears the violence willspill over the borders.A   Most of Algeria's population of 27 million is Muslim.  But it?is politically divided in its vision of how religion fits into;the country's future.  Most politicians say they support a?free-market democracy anchored in Islamic principles.  Islamic;fundamentalists say they want Islamic law to rule society.B   Interior Minister Abderrahman Meziane-Cherif is explicit about?his vision of Algeria's future.  The mosque should not run the;presidency, he says, and Algeria will not be another Iran.;   There is a tug-of-war underway within the country's key?political factions over the best approach to end the country's6escalating spiral of violence.  The hardliners in the<military-backed government favor a tougher crackdown on theMuslim radicals.A   But politicians and conciliatory voices within the government@say a security crackdown alone will not work.  They are pushing>for dialogue but complain the military authorities behind the0transition government are working against them.=   President Liamine Zeroual has also called for a politicalBdialogue and met several times with jailed Islamic leaders.  But,Bat the same time, he is determined to hold presidential electionsthis year, no matter what.8   The outlawed Islamic Salvation Front and seven legal:opposition parties have proposed immediate talks with the1government, which the authorities have rejected.>   They also called on the government to keep the army out of8politics and release all political prisoners.  But, theBgovernment says the opposition proposal does not clearly renounce;terrorism, a key government demand for any talks to start.B   The military cancelled general elections in 1992, and outlawedAthe Islamic Salvation Front after the party took the lead in theAfirst round of balloting.  Armed radicals then intensified their2campaign of violence to force out the government.<   They have targetted security forces, women and children,@teachers, intellectuals, journalists and foreigners.  The death>toll after three years of bloodshed is estimated at more than30-thousand lives.>   Most analysts say the Islamic Salvation Front, or FIS, forBshort, is losing its appeal as the violence becomes more and more?repulsive. Radicals have started attacking women and children,"often decapitating their victims.?   In neighborhoods and villages where they have imposed their?will, cigarettes, alcohol, movies and card-playing are banned.>Shopkeepers complain they are forced to pay protection money.>Many women in these areas wear headscarves or stay at home toavoid harassment.<   But analysts add that government repression in the fightBagainst the radicals is also alienating the public.  The interior?minister says his security forces are regaining control of theBsituation.  But politicians say the security clampdown alone willnot stop the violence.8   Algeria's opposition leaders acknowledge they took a<calculated risk when they included the FIS in their January>meeting to draft their conditions for dialogue.  They are not;sure the FIS speaks for the armed groups out in the field.?   A leader of the Berber-backed Socialist Forces Front Party,=Mustafa Bouhadef says the crisis brought together mismatchednegotiating partners.?   Abdelhamed Mehri heads the National Liberation Front, which@has ruled Algeria for more than three decades.  He contends the@government's plans for presidential elections are ill-timed and.insists a political dialogue must come first.A   People on the street feel trapped in the middle, and most say&they just want the bloodshed to stop.A   Algeria's western and Arab allies choose to remain discreetlyAon the sidelines for fear of alienating any of the forces tryingto shape Algeria's future.   ---------------   ---------------0   ALGERIAN PRIME MINISTER SPEAKS ON TRANSITION   LAURIE KASSMAN   ALGIERS9   Algeria is locked in a political crisis compounded byAextremist violence that has claimed an estimated 30,000 lives in@the past three years. The transition government has intensified9its campaign to rout Muslim radicals while preparing forBpresidential elections it has promised by the end of the year. AtBthe same time leaders are consulting with Algeria's key political9forces on the prospects of a dialogue to end the crisis.B   Prime Minister Sifi describes Algeria's future government as a>modern and democratic free market society.  He says Algerians=will achieve that goal through the ballot box and not on the(streets that have become a battlefield.A   His transition government is preparing presidential elections;for later this year, a mission that has been criticized by8opposition parties who want a political dialogue first.@   Seven political leaders and a representative of the outlawedBIslamic Salvation Front Party, or the FIS (fees), as it is known,Bmet in Rome two months ago to work on a formula for dialogue withthe government.>   Mr. Sifi says their proposals do not differ much from what<President Liamine Zeroual put forth last year when he first8called for dialogue and talked with jailed FIS leaders.@   But the prime minister, like the president, rejects the RomeBdocument for not clearly renouncing terrorism. The document listsAone of its principles as the rejection of violence as a means toBachieve and maintain power.  But Prime Minister Sifi says that isnot good enough.6   Mr. Sifi defends his government's decision to hold=presidential elections because he says the president, who is8elected directly by the people, is the guarantor of theAconstitution. The goal of the transition government, he says, is"to pass on power, not to hold it.A   Mr. Sifi sees no problem with a FIS presidential candidate if@he is not a fugitive from justice for terrorist activities.  He=is careful to distinguish between a candidate who runs as anBindividual and a political party that has been legally dissolved.:Mr. Sifi says many FIS members have rejected the shift toBviolence.  But he says the appeal of the FIS has sharply declinedbecause of it.=   Armed FIS radicals intensified their campaign against the=military government when the party was banned after the 1992Ageneral elections. The FIS had taken an overwhelming lead in the?first round of ballotting. Mr Sifi says its gains in 1992 were?part of a voter protest against a government that had lost its8credibility. He adds that almost half of the 13 million+registered voters did not go to the polls.@   Mr. Sifi insists that Algerians are no longer, as he put it,Bsitting by with their arms folded.  He says they now realize what?is at stake and are defying the Muslim extremists in their ownway.@   As an example, Mr. Sifi says seven million children continueAto go to school even after threats from Muslim radicals who haveBburned or damaged more than 600 schools. He says many communities>helped repair or rebuild classrooms to keep the schools open.?   Mr. Sifi says key reforms are also beginning to turn around@the economy, easing financial constraints so the government canBconcentrate on creating new jobs and building much-needed housing&for Algeria's 27 million inhabitants.<   Prime Minister Mokdad Sifi says decades of political andBeconomic mismanagement made Algeria's crisis unavoidable.  But heBsays the solution to the crisis lies in negotiation and dialogue,not in violence.   ---------------   ---------------   RWANDA'S JUSTICE SYSTEM   SONYA LAURENCE GREEN   NAIROBI?   The U.N. High commissioner for human rights recently called=for urgent help to set up a judicial system in Rwanda, whereAprisons are overflowing with suspected perpetrators of genocide.>In Rwanda there are no functioning courts, no magistrates, noAprosecutors, and practically no police. The Rwandan government's?number one priority is to get a judicial system up and runningagain as soon as possible.;   It is a hot sunny day at the central prison in Rwanda's@capital Kigali, an imposing old-fashioned brick fortress with a=crenelated rampart running along the top.  Inside, more thanB7,000 sweltering prisoners, some dressed in pink uniforms, others?in rags, jostle each other in the courtyard. Some sit squeezed@together on bits of torn plastic, or lie on the ground, closelyAwatching as the gatekeeper opens the door to let in more people.@   Rwanda's prisons are in a crisis state.  Prisons designed to@hold only 4,000 people today are crammed with 23,000 prisoners.<And because of a recent crackdown, each week over 1000 more9prisoners are being squeezed into the overcrowded jails.?   The U.N. special envoy to Rwanda, Shaharyar Khan, says that>because of poor conditions at prisons in Butare and Gitarama,6about 45 prisoners are dying each day from dysentery:B   "The situation in the prisons is so bad that really, if one isAaccused of a crime and sent to a prison, it's virtually, I would<say today, as near a death sentence as you could think of."=   Most of the prisoners are accused of participating in the<genocide last year in which up to one million Rwandans were>brutally killed with machetes, clubs, and knives.  Because soAmany Rwandans participated in the massacres, the government says9it wants to see that all of them are brought to justice.>   But the suspects being held in prison may have a long wait<before they get their day in court.  Rwanda's government is?desperately strapped for money and manpower to set up a proper>judicial system. The U.N. special envoy appealed to donors toBrelease 600 million dollars promised to Rwanda, and the U.N. High=Commissioner for Human Rights underlined the urgent need forAfinancial aid to recruit judges, investigators, prosecutors, anddefense attorneys.B   Rwanda's justice minister, Alphonse-Marie Nkubito, attending a>memorial service for those slain in the genocide, said he has8made a start, and hopes to have some magistrates courts$functioning in the next two months:A   "The reconstruction of our system, our judicial system is now:beginning.  Because we are teaching, we are training someAinvestigators, and we are training magistrates. And we think, or=we have to nominate the supreme court judges, in some days."@   But there is concern that some of those accused and arrested>are innocent.  Experts believe that 30 to 40 percent may havebeen wrongly imprisoned.@   At Kigali's central prison, Joseph Desire Muhigande, who wasAonce deputy minister for tourism, says he was falsely accused by<his neighbor, a woman who lost her husband in the genocide:@   "That woman asked me: Why you was my neighbor and my husbandBdied. Why are you living?  So I says madame, excuse me, it's very=strange for me.  And they arrest me and they bring me to the
brigade."<   When questioned about Mr. Muhigande's case, high-rankingAgovernment officials said they have enough evidence against him.AThey say it is common for almost all the prisoners to claim they$are innocent, even if they are not.;   Still, some Rwandans claim that government soldiers are>abusing the law in their search for perpetrators of genocide.BOne old woman, Vassta Mukabaziga, says she is afraid to leave the<Kibeho camp for displaced people west of Kigali.  She said,?through a translator, that she is too afraid of soldiers to gohome.@   She says nobody's safe at home.  Whoever goes from this camp=is arrested or killed. She has seen it herself.  She saw the=women and the men tied. They tied the breasts, they tied the8legs, and the arms.  And they took them too to prisons.B   A boy in the camp named Sekanyambo points to his arms, scarred@by rope burns, his left hand and wrist twisted and lame, unable=to function.  He says soldiers took him and two friends to a:house in the bush, an unofficial prison,  where they were/constantly beaten before he managed to escape.B   U.N. Human rights spokesman Lee Woodyear says field workers goBand investigate all these stories, to separate rumors from facts:>   "I think it goes both ways.  I think in some cases they're;justified and in some cases they're rumors which should beBdisbanded and we should try to get to the root of it.  One of theAjobs that we do, is  when we learn of allegations, we go and tryBto confirm them.  It an allegation can't be confirmed, we go back@and say ok, it's not  confirmed.  But we're not going to lie to;anybody.  There are some communes that are very insecure."<   Mr. Woodyear said the government has shown good faith inAredressing isolated incidents, and believes it is trying hard to<promote human rights in Rwanda.  But he said the number oneBpriority now is to get Rwanda's judicial system working again, to:process cases, try prisoners, and ultimately set free the!innocent, and punish the guilty.   ---------------   ---------------   SRI LANKAN PEACE PROCESS   MICHAEL DRUDGE
   NEW DELHI=   Tamil separatist guerrillas in Sri Lanka have released 14Bsecurity personnel one day after issuing demands that could delayfurther peace talks.@   Authorities in Sri Lanka say Tamil separatists have freed 13?policemen and a soldier who had been held for five years.  Two>other policemen had been freed on Thursday.  The captives hadbeen on a hunger strike.@   The release comes just one day after the rebel commander put;new conditions on further peace talks with the government.8   In a letter read over the guerrilla radio, commanderBVellupillai Prabhakaran said he would have to take what he called4"a regretable decision" if his demands are not met.;   Mister Prabhakaran says the government must dismantle a8strategic army camp, totally end an economic embargo on?rebel-held areas, and permit Tamil fishermen to work at night.:   The demands came after President Chandrika Kumaratunga=suggested resumption of peace negotiations in early April to:discuss ending the 11-year war that has claimed more than30-thousand lives.   ---------------   ---------------=   BHUTTO SAYS WORLD TRADE CENTER BOMBER PLOTTED TO KILL HER   JENNIFER GRIFFIN
   ISLAMABAD=   Pakistan Prime Minister Benazir Bhutto says alleged WorldBTrade Center Bomber Ramzi Yousef plotted to kill her in 1993. Mr.=Yousef was extradited last month from Pakistan to the United>States to stand trial for the New York bomb blast. The latestBallegations emerged this week during police interrogations of six?men arrested in Peshawar for having connections to Mr. Yousef.>   Prime Minister Benazir Bhutto says she was the target of a61993 assassination plot by an international terrorist>organization who wanted to kill her because she is a moderateMuslim leader.?   In an interview Saturday at her Karachi mansion, Ms. Bhutto?told Reuter News Agency alleged terrorist Ramzi Yousef came to>Karachi intending to kill her, but was foiled when he injuredBhimself mixing explosives for a bomb.  Senior Pakistani officials@said Mr. Yousef was treated at the private Aga Khan hospital in6Karachi, but the incident was not reported to police.;   Karachi police officials expressed skepticism about Ms.BBhutto's allegations.  Co-chairman of the citizens-police liaisonAcommittee Jameel Yousef said it is impossible Ramzi Yousef could:have been wounded during an explosion and the incident gounreported.B   Ms. Bhutto was informed about the assassination plot this week>after police interrogators questioned six men, including four@Arabs, who were arrested in Peshawar for having associated withMr. Yousef.A   Observers note the timing of Ms. Bhutto's announcement.  They:say it is convenient for Ms. Bhutto to paint herself as aBmoderate Muslim leader whose government is being de-stabilized byAIslamic extremists.  Ms. Bhutto leaves for Washington next monthAwhere she will most likely be asked about the recent attack that'left two U.S. consular employees dead.?   The prime minister's critics say she was slow to respond to@the escalating violence and terrorist attacks sweeping Karachi,Auntil the U.S. citizens were killed.  During the past week, more?than 500 suspects have been arrested in Karachi, but none have&been charged with any serious crimes.   ---------------   ---------------;   U.S. SAYS REFUGEES SHOULD CONSIDER RETURNING TO VIETNAM   RON PEMSTEIN   STATE DEPARTMENT>   The United States says refugees from Vietnam who have been>refused refugee status by the U.S. Government should considergoing back to Vietnam.=   Some 43 thousand Vietnamese refugees have taken asylum in>southeast Asia, with more than half of them in Hong Kong. The?rest are scattered among the Philippines, Indonesia, Malaysia,Thailand and Singapore.;   Vietnamese refugees in the Philippines recently woundedAthemselves and one even tried to set himself on fire rather than:to be evicted from housing in preparation for a return to;Vietnam. The State Department says these Vietnamese do not@qualify for refugee status in the United States and they should(resign themselves to return to Vietnam.B   The Vietnamese are considered economic migrants, not political8refugees who fear persecution at home. State Department>spokeswoman Christine Shelly says 71 thousand Vietnamese havereturned safely since 1989:<   "The U.S. has been working closely with non-governmentalBorganizations to provide some eight million dollars in support of>projects in Vietnam to assist those who do opt to return. The9returnees have been able to resume normal lives with the=assistance of a re-integration program which is organized by?UNHCR (United Nations high commissioner for refugees) by donor9governments and by NGOs. (Non-government organizations)"A   The spokeswoman says the United Nations High Commissioner for@Refugees monitors the returns and thus far has not observed any3persecution of the migrants who return to Vietnam.B   The camps in most locations are to be closed by the end of the?year and those in Hong Kong shortly thereafter.  Many of thoseArioting in the Philippines emigrated on an American program that9offered citizenship to children of American soldiers and:Vietnamese spouses as well as their families. However, anBinvestigation revealed that documents had been falsified and they7were not accepted for emigration to the United States.   ---------------   ---------------;   CHINA'S NATIONAL PEOPLE'S CONGRESS SHOW OF INDEPENDENCE   GIL BUTLER   BEIJINGB   In what some observers say is the biggest show of independence5ever by China's National People's Congress deputies,Bnearly-40-percent did not support the leadership's choice for oneof two vice-premier posts.A   Jiang Chunyun and Wu Bangguo were proposed by Premier Li Peng9to be new vice premiers.  Mr. Jiang will be in charge of?agriculture.  Mr. Wu will mainly oversee industrial production'and reform of state-owned enterprises.:   The two proposals were put before the two-thousand-752*deputies at the great hall of the people.:   But when voting was completed, nearly one-third of the7deputies had not voted for one of the two vice-premiercandidates.?   Six-hundred-five voted against Mr. Jiang and 391 abstained,17-hundred-46 voted for him.B   Mr. Wu was elected to his new post with 210 negative votes and161 abstentions.B   The large number of negative votes and abstentions in the case?of mr. Jiang represented the largest show of independence mostdeputies could remember.B   Some of those voting against Mr. Jiang said he was too old for=such a high pressure, high energy job, though he is only 64,@young by Chinese government standards.  Others were not pleased?the new agricultural vice premier is from Shandong province in?eastern China.  A deputy from Anhui told reporters, he has not:worked in central or western provinces, which are poorer.B   Still others said simply they did not believe he was qualified8for the agricultural post.  In a country that must feed=one-and-one-quarter-billion people, agriculture is supremelyimportant.B   The new vice premier for industrial production, Wu Bangguo, is=a protege of Chinese President Jiang Zemin.  Both he and Mr.>Jiang are members of the 21-member communist-party politburo.   ---------------   ---------------   EAST ASIA PACIFIC REVIEW   DON BENSON   WASHINGTON?   Cambodia wins pledges of more than one billion dollars at a?Paris aid conference, and Burma's military government releases#two prominent political prisoners.B   Cambodia's two co-prime ministers went to Paris this week, forBa meeting with donor countries and organizations.  Prince NorodomASihanouk and Hun Sen told the group the government in Phnom Penh?is trying to solve the country's difficulties.  They came awayAwith pledges totaling more than one-point-three billion dollars.@Human rights organizations had urged the conference to hold theBCambodian government accountable for alleged corruption and abuseAof power.  But the co-prime ministers said no special conditions"were attached to the aid pledges.   ===============A   In Rangoon, Burma's military government announced the releaseAfrom jail of two of the country's most prominent dissidents, Tin=Oo and Kyi Maung.  Both are former officials of the NationalBLeague for Democracy party.  The founder and leader of the party,BAung San Suu Kyi, is still being held under house arrest. She wasBaccused in July of 1989 of trying to incite unrest.  Two thousandBother political prisoners have been freed in Burma since April of?1992.  The latest amnesty coincides with the 50th anniversary,;later this month, of the founding of the Burmese military.   ===============>   Other reports from Burma say the army has undertaken a new?offensive against the notorious drug Lord Kuhn Sa.  As many as<one thousand troops have been deployed near the border withBThailand.  International drug enforcement officials consider KuhnASa to be Southeast Asia's top opium trafficker.  He is leader of?an army of ethnic Shan Burmese, and is under indictment in the+United States on drug trafficking charges.   ===============B   In Singapore, a Philippine maid convicted of double murder was@hanged, despite pleas by the Philippine president, Fidel Ramos,<to delay the execution.  Prison officials said there was no?reason to delay the hanging of 42-year-old Flor Contemplacion.5She was convicted in the 1991 murders of a woman andBfour-year-old child.  Her lawyers said they had new evidence thatAproved Mrs. Contemplacion's innocence, but Singapore authorities/said the former maid confessed to the murders.   ===============A   Delegates to a U.N. sponsored conference of nations that fund;resettlement of illegal southeast Asian migrants this weekBreaffirmed plans to end the program by the end of the year.  At a8one-day meeting in Geneva, the delegates said more thanA40-thousand Vietnamese and several thousand Lao in refugee camps=across Asia have no option but to return home.  But the U.N.Brefugee official for Asia, Werner Blatter, warned that a shortage=of international contributions could hinder the repatriation:program.  U.N. officials have determined that most of theBmigrants who remain in the camps have no valid claim to politicalasylum.   ===============@   And doctors treating Thailand's King Bhumibol Adulyadej thisAweek said his health is improving, and that he could be released>from the hospital soon.  The 67-year-old King Bhumibol is theAworld's longest-reigning monarch.  He was admitted to a hospital@in Bangkok last week after complaining of chest pains.  DoctorsBsay they found a clogged blood vessel in his heart, but that they=managed to clear it.  The Thai king has a history of cardiac
problems.   ---------------   ---------------H   CHINA'S DAYA BAY NUCLEAR PLANT FAILS TO MEET INTERNATIONAL STANDARDS   MAX RUSTON
   HONG KONG?   China's Daya Bay nuclear plant plans to replace its controlArods after discovering some do not meet international standards.BThe discovery has renewed concerns in the territory about China's2ability to maintain the plant's safety standards.;   Plant operators say the decision to replace all 53 rods?follows the discovery of about one-half-dozen rods moving moreAslowly than required.  The rods, which are thrust up and down inBthe plant, are designed to regulate temperature and output in theAreactor.  Engineers say friction related abrasion on the surface<of seven rods caused them to slow down but did not pose anyimmediate danger.>   The incident has, nevertheless, rekindled concerns in Hong<Kong over the safety of the plant.  Less than 50-kilometers=separate the British colony's business center from Daya Bay.>Residents of the territory have protested the plant since its!construction began a decade ago.@   The control rod flaws are the latest in a string of problemsAat the plant.  During the past few years, construction faults, a@pump failure, and charges of incompetence against some managers have increased safety concerns.;   Although the plant has been built primarily with French?technology and expertise, environmental groups have questioned>the ability of Chinese officials to ensure the maintenance of;adequate safety standards.  They say they are particularlyBworried by the tendency of Chinese officials to hide problems forAfear of punishment or embarrassing their supervisors.  China has#rejected the charges as unfounded.B   The plant was formally opened a year ago by Chinese Premier Li?Peng.  About 70-percent of its two-thousand megawatt output issold to Hong Kong.B   In Hong Kong, some politicians have pressed Beijing to provideBguarantees problems or dangerous occurrences at the plant will be@reported to the territory's government without delay.  They sayBthis will allow Hong Kong to decide when and how to carry out itsBown safety measures, which include plans for mass evacuations andfood rationing.   ---------------   ---------------;   INDIA'S FINANCIAL MINISTER DEFENDS ECONOMIC REFORM PLAN   MICHAEL DRUDGE
   NEW DELHI>   The Indian finance minister says the government's economicBreform program has been the victim of misinformation by those whosay it is anti-poor.B   Finance Minister Singh has defended the economic reforms begun0in 1991 to dismantle four-decades of socialism.B   Speaking to New Delhi's foreign CORRESPONDENTs club, Mr. SinghAsaid critics have resorted to what he called, misinformation, to'label his reform program as anti-poor.@   He was reacting to commentary associated with the release of>the indian budget this week.  The budget contains several new@programs to fight poverty, and fewer than expected tax cuts forcorporations.A   Many analysts say the budget aims to win back poor voters who?have been casting ballots against the ruling Congress Party instate elections.>   Mr. Singh admits he drafted the budget with an eye on nextAyear's general elections, but he says his commitment to economicreform is unwavering:B   "It would be less than honest on my part to say I do not think?about what is going to happen to India, including the CongressBParty in the year 1996.  But having said that, I would say what I@have sought to do is essentially intensification of the process)of reform which I began four years ago."B   Mr. Singh also defended the defense budget, which will grow byAan inflation-matching 11-percent at a time with the military has1been wanting to buy expensive new war machinery.8   He said development must take priority over defense:9   "I think the message to the rest of the world is this@sub-continent should be allowed to proceed in a manner in whichAdefense expenditure does not grow.  That these resources that we@put into defense can be better deployed in dealing with chronic:problems of poverty, ignorance and disease, which afflict7millions and millions of people in this subcontinent."A   In an obvious reference to Pakistan and China, Mr. Singh saidAthe international community should ask India's neighbors to alsocurb defense spending.   ---------------   ---------------E   PAKISTAN MAKES MORE ARRESTS IN CONNECTION TO TRADE CENTER BOMBING   JENNIFER GRIFFIN
   ISLAMABAD>   Pakistani police have arrested six men suspected of having?connections to alleged World Trade Center bomber Ramzi Yousef.@From Islamabad, jennifer griffin reports the arrests took place
in Peshawar.>   Police in Pakistan are questioning six men alleged to have>connections with Ramzi Yousef, who was arrested last month inAIslamabad and extradited to New York to stand trial for plotting to bomb the World Trade Center.A   Three of the men arrested last Saturday in the northwest townBof Peshawar are Sudanese.  The fourth, an Iranian, told police he=fought for two-years in the Afghan civil war.  The two otherAarrested are Pakistani citizens, one a Syrian-born director of a%Kuwaiti aid group based in Peshawar.B   Pakistani police say the interior ministry ordered the arrestsBafter intelligence agencies traced phone calls made by Mr. Yousef<to the six men.  It is unclear whether police have evidence0linking them to the World Trade Center bombing.B   The suspects were taken to a jail near Islamabad.  But, family?members who tried to bring clothing and food were told the menwere no longer there.A   The family members say Mr. Yousef was well-known in Peshawar,?socializing at weddings and parties prior to the 1992 bombing,"but they have not seen him since.?   Pakistani officials say the attack on three U.S. Government>employees, which left two dead in Karachi last week, may have<been retribution for Mr. Yousef's extradition to the UnitedBStates.  FBI agents are in Pakistan investigating the attack, but/so far have few clues to the killers' motives.   ---------------   ---------------D   S. KOREA SAYS IT IS PREPARED FOR NEGATIVE N. KOREAN DEVELOPMENTS   SHIN NA	   SEOULB   The South Korean defense ministry said Friday it will maintain9military preparedness to guard against possible negative0developments in the North-Korean nuclear issue.=   The South Korean defense minister said his ministry wouldBmaintain a strong defense system with the U.S. forces in Korea toBencourage faithful implementation of a North Korea/U.S. agreementBreached last October.  He said his government will strengthen its@military surveillance systems to monitor North Korea's possible<diversion of heavy oil from the U.S. for military purposes.A   The United States is providing the north with heavy oil as an;interim source of energy.  The supply fulfills the OctoberBagreement reached between the two countries to freeze the north's>suspected nuclear weapons program.  The defense ministry also>announced Friday the North Korean air force is conducting its:largest scale war exercises since 1991.  According to the>ministry's report, North Korea's recent air exercises include?night time combat drills, air release of troops and bombs, andtactical air strikes.?   But, the ministry said North Korean army and navy exercises8have been routine and there are no unusual developments!indicating military provocation.B   The ministry report comes two days after North Korea denouncedBa plan by the Pentagon to deliver sophisticated military hardware@to South Korea.  The official North Korean central broadcasting@station monitored in Seoul claimed in a commentary the U.S. hadAambitions to overwhelm North Korea militarily.  The North Korean;broadcast came after reports the Pentagon is improving the@defense capabilities of U.S. forces in Korea through deliveries@of advanced attack helicopters, tanks, land vehicles, and othermilitary supplies.8   According to the U.S. forces spokesman in Seoul, the7introduction of this equipment is part of a continuingBmodernization program and is not related to the current political:or diplomatic situation between the U.S. and North Korea.   ---------------   ---------------D   BURMESE DEMOCRACY GROUPS REACT TO RELEASE OF POLITICAL PRISONERS   DAN ROBINSON   BANGKOK?   Burmese exile democracy groups have welcomed the release of@two prominent political prisoners by the military government in?Rangoon.  Democracy forces outside the country say pressure byAwestern governments was a factor behind the release Wednesday ofAtwo members of the National League for Democracy, the party that/won an overwhelming victory in 1990 elections:B   The release of U Tin Oo and U Kyi Maung, former leaders of the@National League for Democracy (NLD), came as a surprise to many in the Burmese exile community.>   The military government in Rangoon has recently come underAheavy criticism by the United States, Australia and the European9Union for failing to continue toward political dialogue.@   Adding to the surprise factor was the fact there had been noBface-to-face talks with democracy leader, Aung San Suu Kyi, sinceOctober of last year.6   U Thein Oo is secretary of the National League forADemocracy-liberated area.  The organization is composed of party@members, including those elected in 1990 elections, who fled to$the jungle to oppose military rule.?   He says the decision by the State Law and Order RestorationBCouncil (SLORC) is a realization Burma's political impasse cannot(be solved with key NLD members in jail.A   Burmese democracy groups say the junta's release of U Tin Oo,?who was party chairman, and Kyi Maung, who was acting chairman@and spokesman, could increase the pressure to free Aung San SuuKyi.@   Speculation was intense in January Aung San Suu Kyi, who wasAgeneral secretary of the National League before her detention in1989, would be released.@   But a spokesman for the national Coalition Government of the?Union of Burma, which also serves as an umbrella for democracyBorganizations, says the military will still be extremely cautious3about the timing and conditions for releasing her.?   In a message sent out of Rangoon with her husband, Aung SanASuu Kyi said she would never make secret deals with the militarygovernment.=   NLD exile spokesman U Thein Oo says the present politicalAsituation in Burma can be solved only through dialogue involving:Aung San Suu Kyi, democracy forces, ethnic groups and the<military.  Otherwise, he says, it is difficult to see how a*comprehensive settlement can be achieved.@   Observers say something else to be watched in coming days isBwhat effect the release of tin oo and Kyi Maung might have on the;leaders of the NLD in Rangoon who have participated in the>military's tightly-controlled national convention.  The junta>usually warns released prisoners against resuming any role in
politics.   ---------------   ---------------9   CHINA AND THE PHILIPPINES TO DISCUSS SPRATLYS DISPUTE   GIL BUTLER   BEIJING@   China and the Philippines will discuss conflicting claims toBthe Spratly Islands in the South China Sea, beginning March 19th.@The meeting plan follows tension over Manila's charge China put?warships in the area and built a structure on a disputed reef.=There is not a feeling of crisis surrounding the issue, even<though six countries lay claim to all or part of the islandchain.<   The Chinese foreign ministry confirms that a  PhilippineAdelegation will come to Beijing Sunday for talks about the South@China Sea.  It is part of a regular series of meetings, but the@schedule was moved up from July in response to new tension over9the Spratlys, which the Chinese call the Nansha Islands.@   Philippine President Fidel Ramos has voiced serious concerns<over the presence of Chinese warships near a disputed reef.@Later, China acknowledged it built a structure on the reef, but6said it was only for the safety of Chinese fishermen.?   At his weekly news conference, the Chinese foreign ministry=spokesman, Shen Guofeng, confirmed the meetings.  He did not?directly answer a question of whether fishermen from any other=countries could use the shelter China has built on the reef.;   He said, in his words, "we hope to exchange opinions on@bilateral relations including the issue of the South China Sea.AIt is unquestionable China has indisputable sovereignty over the@Nanja Islands and their adjacent waters.  Before the 1970's, noone disputed that."B   China scholar Robert Ross of Boston College says China's claim>to the Spratlys is probably the best of any of the claimants.>However, he says the problem is Chinese military moves in the=region are threatening to other countries in Southeast Asia.>   Professor Ross thinks erecting a structure on the disputed,reef represents a change in Chinese policy:A   "This is a policy change. They have not built such structures@the last three or four years.  This is a policy that would haveAbeen decided at the top and would have to have been built by the:Chinese navy.  Does it reflect a new policy that will seeAadditional such structures built in the near future?  The danger@is, that should this be the beginning of a trend, one could seeBsomething of a land grab of the islands in Southeast Asia as each<claimant, concerned that others are going to occupy islands<before them, they will all rush to do so.  In that context,?diplomacy can become sensitive and the prospects for conflicts/increased.  And, that would be destabilizing."9   Philippine President Ramos says his country will haveBproposals to put forward in the Beijing talks.  He describes them,only as "a peaceful democratic initiative."   ---------------   ---------------H   CHINA SAYS DISSIDENT A CONDEMNED CRIMINAL, NOT DESERVING NOBEL PRIZE   GIL BUTLER   BEIJING9   An official Chinese spokesman said today Thursday Wei<Jingsheng, China's most-prominent dissident, is a condemnedAcriminal who has no qualifications to be nominated for the Nobel
Peace prize.?   Wei Jingsheng was last seen publicly in early April of lastAyear, a few months after he met with American human-rights envoyAJohn Shattuck.  At the time, Chinese authorities said the former>electrician was under investigation for committing new crimes@while on parole and during a time when his political rights hadbeen taken away.B   Since then, there has been no report of his being charged with8a specific crime or any word of where he is being held.@   Wei Jingsheng was jailed in 1978 for writing essays directlyBcriticizing senior leader Deng Xiaoping during the democracy wallAmovement.  He served almost all of a 15-year prison sentence and=was released on parole just before the International Olympic?Committee was to choose the city for olympic games in the year)2000.  Beijing's application was denied.A   A group of 50 American lawmakers, among others, has nominated#Mr. Wei for the nobel peace prize.A   As the first anniversary of his disappearance approaches, the@Chinese Chinese foreign ministry spokesman was questioned about3Wei Jingsheng at the regular weekly news briefing.=   A western reporter asked spokesman Shen Guofeng where WeiAJingsheng is and China's reaction to the prospect of his winningthe Nobel Prize for peace.A   Mr. Shen said Wei Jingsheng is "but a condemned criminal" who=has no qualifications whatever to be nominated for the Nobel?Peace Prize.  The spokesman for China's foreign ministry said,:just like the reporter, he had no knowledge at all of WeiJingsheng's whereabouts.=   Later, a Chinese reporter asked what offense, if any, WeiBJingsheng is charged with and if he is at large or will be put on?trial.  Mr. Shen says all those questions were the business of?the judicial departments of China, and, as the foreign affairs<ministry spokesman, he had no need at all to know where WeiJingsheng is now.   ---------------   ---------------D   INDONESIA ASKS FOR PATIENCE ON HUMAN RIGHTS ISSUES FROM THE U.S.   JILL GATHMANN   WASHINGTON:   Relations between Indonesia and the United States have@improved dramatically during the past few years.  International>trade has increased, economic development is on the rise, and?U.S. military cooperation is growing.  But U.S. concerns about<Indonesia's human rights policy still present a problem for?Jakarta.  Officials in that developing Southeast Asian countryare asking for patience.?   At an international forum in Washington this week, U.S. and@Indonesian officials noted that 1995 marks the 50th anniversary(of Indonesia as an independent country.;   A group of Indonesian nationalists declared the country;independent of Dutch colonial rule in 1945, after Japanese3occupation forces left at the end of World War II.;   Five decades later, activists in East Timor, the former?Portuguese colony now controlled by Jakarta, want independencefrom Indonesian rule.B   In 1976, one year after invading East Timor, Indonesia annexedthe island.@   Indonesia's claim to the island has never been recognized by<the U.N. general assembly, and the world body has called on4Jakarta several times to withdraw its armed forces.>   Washington has criticized Jakarta for alleged human rights*abuses by its armed forces in East Timor.B   U.S. national Security Council advisor Stanley Roth says that,Awith the new conservative Republican Party shift in Congress, itAis likely that the subject of East Timor will remain an issue inrelations with Indonesia:=   "The continued high level visibility and attention in the?Congress to developments in East Timor will continue.  I think=that I get more letters on East Timor in my job at the White@House than any other country in Asia.  A number of senators and<congressmen follow it very closely, and it is an area where;continuing ongoing human rights problems do jeopardize the;relationship, do give Indonesia somewhat of a black eye in@(damage) its reputation in the United States, and do affect the?relationship. And so it's an area where we do have to continue
working on."A   Since the 1975 invasion, human rights groups say 200-thousand=people in East Timor, one-third of its population, have been3murdered or have died from starvation and disease.<   The groups say military authorities have used torture to?obtain information from political detainees.  And thousands ofApeople have been tried and sentenced to lengthy prison terms foralleged political crimes.?   Indonesia's former minister of  energy and mining, Mohammed?Sadli, says Indonesia is working to change its record on human@rights abuses, but that some understanding by the United Statesis needed:A   "We are still sensitive that you are hitting us over the head:with respect to East Timor, human rights, workers rights,Awhatever...Well, after all, China's still doing it, so we cannotAbe less than China.  We have to work hard now on the maintenance=of these bilateral relations.  (But) keep on preaching to us<(laugh) and if we don't do it right away, please, please be$patient. (Laugh) give us 15 years."B   But 15 years may not be soon enough for the U.S. Congress.  As@the Republican majority begins to consider cuts in foreign aid,?officials say Indonesia may find there is very little sympathyfor delaying reforms.   ---------------   ---------------9   RABBANI SAYS HE WILL CONTINUE TO FIGHT TALIBAN REBELS   DOUGLAS BAKSHIAN   SLAMABADA   Afghan President Burhanuddin Rabbani says he will continue to6fight rival Taliban forces until they are driven from?rocket-attack range on the Afghan capital, Kabul. Mr. Rabbani,>during a news conference in Islamabad, also pledged continued3support for the U.N. peace process in his country.B   President Rabbani says his army will keep fighting the TalibanBstudent militant group until it pushes them outside the range for4making rocket attacks on Kabul, the Afghan capital.@   Presidential troops Sunday reportedly drove the Taliban from>positions in Kabul, but there is still fighting to the south.A   Explaining the conflict, Mr. Rabbani says the Taliban started?out as a peaceful force but became a military threat when theyopposed presidential soldiers.A   The Taliban is a mysterious armed group of religious students=that emerged last October saying it wanted to bring peace to=Afghanistan.  The group began operations in the south of the0country and worked its way towards the capital.;   President Rabbani says it is not clear who supports theATaliban, but that, in his words, "every war machine has expenses+and without expenses it can not continue."A   He says Pakistan's government has given assurances that it is@not helping the Taliban.  But he also says that based on recent>military developments, some obvious groups are imposing theirwill on Afghanistan.>   Mr. Rabbani expressed continued support for the U.N. peace>effort in Afghanistan, which calls for him to step down March>21st. When asked about resigning, his answer was unclear.  HeAsays he has made himself ready to accept the U.N. process at theAdate that they promised.  But he also says he is waiting for the>United Nations to come up with an objective mechanism for thetransfer of power.B   Mr. Rabbani also spoke about the recent death of Hezbi-WahadatAleader Abdul Ali Mazari while being held captive by the Taliban.BMr. Rabbani said he regretted this, but he also called Mr. Mazari
a warmonger.A   President Rabbani says the ongoing conflict in Afghanistan is<not a civil war, but a war imposed from outside. He did notBexplain further.  He says war is an unnatural thing that does not4solve problems, but only creates more difficulties.=   An estimated 25-thousand people have been killed in three?years of fighting between rival Afghan factions.  The conflict;has pitted President Rabbani against former Prime MinisterAGulbuddin Hekmatyar.  But Mr. Hekmatyar withdrew in mid-February<from his long-held base south of Kabul, when Taliban forcesmarched on the position.   ---------------   ---------------&   SINGAPORE EXECUTES PHILIPPINE MAID   DAN ROBINSON   BANGKOK>   A Philippine maid convicted of a double murder in 1991 has;been hanged in Singapore.  Singapore rejected appeals from@President Fidel Ramos and others in the Philippines to halt theexecution:?   A police statement said Flor Contemplacion was hanged early-Friday morning at Singapore's Changi Prison.B   She had been convicted of strangling another maid and drowning0the young son of the victim's employer in 1991.A   Authorities this week rejected an appeal from President Fidel=Ramos to delay the execution, based on new evidence from two%witnesses who said she was innocent.A   The Singapore statement said Mrs. Contemplacion admitted bothBmurders to investigators at all stages of the proceedings againsther.B   The case sparked demonstrations outside Singapore's embassy in?Manila, where Christian groups demanded that Singapore grant aBstay of execution and re-open the investigation.  There were also1threats of violence against Singapore interests.?   Despite the last minute appeals, Singapore authorities said=the new evidence was insufficient to prevent the 42-year-old"mother of four from being hanged.   ---------------   ---------------C   FIGHTING BETWEEN BURMESE AND GOLDEN TRIANGLE DRUG LORD'S ARMIES   DAN ROBINSON   BANGKOK<   There are reports of fighting between Burmese governmentBtroops and forces loyal to Golden Triangle drug kingpin, Khun Sa.BThai military forces along the border are on alert and monitoring0the new dry-season offensive by Burmese troops:?   Thai military officials say several thousand Burmese troops?are thought to be involved in the offensive in Burma's easternShan state.8   Reports reaching Bangkok say Burmese artillery beganBbombarding Khun Sa positions 15 to 20 kilometers from the border,*Tuesday. The shelling continued WednesdayA   Thai border police and military officials say several hundred<Shan and other minority people crossed the border after thefighting escalated.@   Khun Sa has controlled southern Shan state for years.  He is@protected by a well-equipped army estimated to number about ten<thousand people.  He is financed by profits from the goldentriangle opium trade.A   Burmese military leaders have vowed to wipe out Khun Sa.  ButARangoon forces, using Chinese weaponry, have so far failed to doso.<   Several hundred Burmese soldiers and Khun Sa troops were1killed during a government offensive, last year.@   The United States considers Khun Sa to be one of the world'sAmajor narcotics traffickers.  In 1990, he was indicted by a U.S.%court on heroin-trafficking charges.   ---------------   ---------------0   BURMA RELEASES PROMINENT POLITICAL PRISONERS   DAN ROBINSON   BANGKOKA   Burma's military government has freed two prominent political=prisoners. Those freed Wednesday included two members of the>party that won an overwhelming victory in the 1990 elections,Aelections permitted by the military two years after it crushed anationwide democracy uprising:>   The announcement on Rangoon radio Wednesday was brief.  ItAsaid 31 male detainees were released from prison in honor of the=50th anniversary of Burma's armed forces (later this month).B   However, two of those freed were major political prisoners and=key figures in the democracy movement that swept Burma sevenyears ago.;   Tin Oo, a retired general turned democracy advocate wasAchairman of the National League for democracy, the party of Aung@San Suu Kyi, the 1991 Nobel Peace Prize laureate and oppositionfigure.@   In 1989, Tin Oo was arrested and sentenced to three years inAprison  at the same time Aung San Suu Kyi was placed under house<arrest. Both were charged with inciting unrest and creatingdisunity in the army.8   In 1992, Tin Oo's sentence was extended to 10 years.@   His week, a report from Rangoon said Tin Oo had been allowed@to attend the funeral of his brother-in-law.  The report quoted=family members as saying he was driven around Rangoon before#being taken back to Insein prison.?   Former National League spokesman Kyi Maung, who also served>briefly as acting party chairman, was sentenced in 1990 to 10?years. This is the latest in a series of releases of politicalBdetainees by Burma's military.  In February, two other former NLD/members Aung Khin Sint and Tin Moe were freed.?   In the past, analysts have warned against interpreting suchAreleases as indicating any significant change in the attitude ofBurma's military rulers.:   However, observers believe it is possible the junta isBreacting to recent sharp criticism by the United States, EuropeanUnion and others.=   The United States has been signalling that relations with@Burma could be downgraded further if no progress is made on the@dialogue with Aung San Suu Kyi and human rights issues overall.;   Deputy assistant Secretary of State Thomas Hubbard, whoAvisited Burma last November, said Rangoon has not yet taken evenBthe small steps needed to merit a modest improvement in bilateral>relations. The top U.S. official for East Asia, Winston Lord,?said Washington is extremely disappointed and mentioned, among@other things, Rangoon's failure to continue talks with Aung San<Suu Kyi, and its unwillingness to allow Red Cross visits toprisoners.   ---------------   ---------------!   CAMBODIAN AID CONFERENCE ENDS   ANDREW BAIRD   WASHINGTON>   An international conference on aid to Cambodia ended todayAWednesday in Paris.  Phnom Penh officials say they have receivedAmore than one billion dollars in pledges over the next two years?to rebuild the nation. But a leading human rights organization>has issued a report which says potential donor nations should@withhold assistance to Cambodia until opposing political groups$halt gross human rights violations.=   Human Rights Watch is a private human rights organizationAwhich monitors human rights issues around the globe.  On Monday,Bthe group issued its report on Cambodia and paints a grim picture%of human rights in the Asian nation.6   Dinah Pokempner, author of the report, says that a<two-billion- dollar United Nations' peacekeeping effort has;failed to halt fighting between the Khmer Rouge and forces>belonging to Cambodia's coalition government. Both sides, she?says, are now engaged in some of the worst human rights abuses8since the end of the U.N. peacekeeping mission in 1993:8   "This war is causing great abuses on both sides. The@government has a very poorly paid, poorly disciplined army, andAit has committed very, very serious abuses.  Looting and pillage>are common, but there have also been well-documented cases ofAabduction, extortion, and murder of civilians, simply for money.>At the same time, the Khmer Rouge have hardened their tactics>since the Cambodian government passed a new law banning theirorganization."=   The Khmer Rouge, says Ms. Pokempner, has adopted what she?calls "scorched earth" tactics, burning entire villages to the9ground and causing tens of thousands of Cambodians to be?displaced.  In addition, she says that both sides are plantingdeadly land mines:A   "Cambodia is already the most heavily mined country on earth.?Almost one in every 236 persons is an amputee and this is onlymaking the situation worse."@   Human Rights Watch is calling for an end to violence againstAcivilians on both sides, the prosecution of military authoritiesAin civilian courts on human rights charges, and the abolition ofAthe use and stockpiling of land mines. It also wants a full haltAto Thailand's support of the Khmer Rouge and the flow of weaponsAto the guerrillas from Thailand.  The organization also calls onAall nations to stop providing arms and military equipment to thewarring Cambodian parties.>   Ms. Kokempner says the Cambodia government has entered theinternational arms market:>   "The Cambodian government has been buying arms on the openBmarket from countries such as Israel, Poland, the Czech Republic,?the seychelles, North Korea, just to mention a few. Also, many>western countries, including the United States, are providing,military training to the Cambodian forces."?   She says there have been incidents involving the kidnapping>and murder of U.N. sponsored peacekeepers by the Khmer Rouge.BShe also accused the Khmer Rouge of perpetrating  what she calledBracially motivated killings of ethnic Vietnamese, including womenand children.   ---------------   --------------->   CHINA REJECTS THE DALAI LAMA'S PROPOSED TIBETAN REFERENDUM   GIL BUTLER   BEIJING>   Chinese-controlled Tibetan officials and Chinese communist=party leaders rejected the idea of a referendum on Tibet.  A@referendum among Tibetan exiles has been proposed by the exiled@Dalai Lama to determine if the Tibetan people want independence,or will accept autonomy under Chinese rule.B   The official who answered the most questions at a Beijing news;conference Wednesday morning was identified as "Mr. Raidi,?chairman of the Standing Committee of the People's Congress of<the Tibet autonomous Region."  That is what China considersTibet.B   In his opening remarks, Mr. Raidi described the efforts of the>central government in Beijing to develop Tibet to improve its;economy, health and infrastructure.  He describes Tibet as<enjoying thriving economic development, social tranquility,@political stability and ethnic unity with its people working incontentment and happiness.>   A reporter asked Mr. Raidi why, if that is the case, ChinaAdoes not hold a referendum. Raidi answered through a translator:?   "Is an autonomous region under the sovereignty of China. SoAthe question of holding a referendum here simply does not arise.@Tibet is an inalienable part of China.  The proposed referendum<is only a new trick by the dalai clique and some anti-china<western forces to split China.  This is entirely out of thequestion."@   According to figures released by the government officials at@the news conference, Han Chinese make up less than 3 percent of@Tibet's population.  They say that refutes claims by supporters?of the Dalai Lama Tibetans are being turned into a minority inAtheir own land.  But, although they are a tiny percentage of the<population, Han Chinese hold a high percentage of party and<government positions.  One third of the senior posts and 40percent of county jobs.<   Tibet communist party chief Chen Kuiyuan, a Han Chinese,Bexplains that by referring to the backwardness of the country and>the lack of educated people to take to jobs.  "Other parts ofChina must help," he says.>   Reports from visitors, exiles and human-rights groups have=painted a  different picture of Tibet than that given at the@Beijing news conference.  Those reports charge there is unrest,;imprisonment, torture and repression of religion in Tibet.@   The Chinese and Tibetan officials here in Beijing were asked=several times how many Tibetans are currently in prison, but%there was no answer to the question.   ---------------  ---------------   INDIA'S BUDGET   MICHAEL DRUDGE
   NEW DELHI?   India's new budget will cut taxes and target more money forBthe poor as the country vows to forge ahead with economic reform.<   Indian Finance Minister Manmohan Singh issued the budget@Wednesday with one eye on economic reform and the other on nextyear's general elections.;   He reaffirmed the ruling Congress Party's commitment to;pro-business reforms.  He announced a wide array of tariff$reductions to stimulate investment.B   But he spent a large section of the 90-minute speech outliningprograms to alleviate poverty.@   Poor voters have been punishing the Congress Party in recent@state elections.  Party dissidents grumble that the benefits of=economic reform have not trickled down to the 300 million 30/Crore indians who live below the poverty line.A   As members of parliament thumped their desks in approval, Mr.=Singh outlined programs to build up rural infrastructure and*create jobs in poverty-stricken villages.=   On a more somber note, Mr. Singh said inflation remains aAserious problem.  The annual inflation rate is now running aboveB11 percent.  Mr. Singh said this is eroding even his own family's5purchasing power and it has been punishing the poor.<   The Indian army is also fighting inflation.  The finance5minister said the defense budget will increase by an>inflation-matching 11 percent, to about eight billion dollars>rupees 25,500 Crore. That compares with a 20 percent increasethat he announced last year.   ---------------   ---------------<   INDIAN HINDU NATIONALIST ALLIANCE'S CONTROVERSIAL LEADER   MICHAEL DRUDGE
   NEW DELHI<   As a Hindu nationalist alliance takes control of India's?richest state, attention is being focused on its controversialAleader.  The self-described "Supremo" of a party called "Army of
Shivaji."@   Bal Thackeray is a former newspaper cartoonist who now heads7one of the most militant Hindu organizations in India.@   He is 68 years old and wirey thin, with jet black hair.  His8favorite robes are colored saffron, the symbol of Hindu=revivalists.  He makes no secret of his admiration for AdolfHitler.A   His party is called Shiv Sena, or the Army of Shivaji, a 17th2century Hindu warrior who fought Muslim invaders.<   Shiv Sena is the dominant partner in a Hindu nationalist>alliance that has won elections in Maharashtra, the country's@richest state and home of bombay, the Indian financial capital.=   Mr. Thackeray is taking  no  official position in the newAstate government, but he says he will run things, as he puts it,"by remote control."@   Mr. Thackeray has wasted no time lashing out at his favoritetarget, Muslims.?   Mr. Thackeray says the new government will weed out what he@calls "infiltrators" who have sneaked into bombay from Pakistanand Bangladesh.@   He also has condemned those Muslims he calls "traitors."  He8told India today magazine that Muslims must prove their?credibility. In his words, "it is the duty of those Muslims to%prove that they are not Pakistanis."A   An Indian court report blamed Mr. Thackeray and the Shiv Sena@for sparking anti-Muslim riots in bombay in 1993 that left moreBthan 500 Muslims killed and caused 200 thousand others to flee inpanic.B   But Indian politicans appear afraid to challenge Shiv Sena andits self-styled "Supremo."B   After the 1993 riots, Prime Minister PV Narasimha Rao rejected?suggestions that Shiv Sena be outlawed.  As Prime Minister RaoBmulled over his decision, Bal Thackeray told an Indian newspaper,6"let them outlaw the Shiv Sena and see what happens."<   This week, when the Hindu alliance fell just short of an:outright majority in the maharashtra assembly, the rulingACongress Party decided not to stake a claim to form a government-out of fear Shiv Sena would react violently.   ---------------   ---------------D   PAKISTANI PRESIDENT'S BROTHER STARTS AN OPPOSING POLITICAL PARTY   DOUGLAS BAKSHIAN
   ISLAMABAD;   Murtaza Bhutto, the brother of Pakistani Prime MinisterABenazir Bhutto, has launched his own political party in a directchallenge to her authority.=   More than 1,600 supporters of Murtaza Bhutto, voting at a;convention in Karachi, elected him as head of the Pakistan>People's Party-Shaheed Bhutto.  This is a split from the main.people's party that the prime minister leads.A   The convention passed several resolutions.  One demanded that@ms. Bhutto's government resign and a transitional government beformed.?   The resolutions accused the current government of not beingBable to protect the life and property of Pakistan's people.  ThisAis a reference to three-and-a-half months of violence in KarachiAin which almost 500 people have died.  The resolutions also saidBthe existing people's party has become corrupt under Ms. Bhutto'sleadership.=   At the convention delegates read a letter said to be fromBNusrat Bhutto, the prime minister's mother, nominating Murtaza aschairman of the new party.?   Nusrat Bhutto has long favored her son to lead the People's?Party, in keeping with Pakistan's traditionally male-dominatedBculture.  The mother has clashed with Benazir Bhutto before. LastAyear the prime minister removed Nusrat Bhutto as chairman of theruling party.A   Murtaza Bhutto has repeatedly challenged the prime minister's<leadership since returning to Pakistan in late 1993 after a<decade and a half of self-imposed exile.  Many times he has:accused her government being corrupt and has demanded her
resignation.B   Prime Minister Bhutto has denied the charges and observers say<she has largely ignored her brother.  Analysts say he is an>unknown force in Pakistani politics.  They say he weakens the@prime minister somewhat, but he has not been able to generate asubstantial following.   ---------------   ---------------<   SOUTH KOREA CHARGES LOOCKEED WITH RENEGING ON A CONTRACT   SHIN NA	   SEOULB   The South Korean defense ministry said Wednesday it would fileBa law suit against a giant U.S. aircraft company. The ministry is;charging Lockheed with reneging on a contract with a localconsulting company.B   The defense ministry says it will sue Lockheed for refusing toApay a consulting fee to a local company, in a contract to supply7anti-submarine patrol planes to the South Korean navy.@   A defense ministry official says the suit will be filed withAthe international court of arbitration.  It demands more than 25Bmillion dollars, which it claims is owed to South Korea's Dae-Woo@corporation.  Dae-Woo played an intermediary role in Lockheed's<contract with the South Korean navy for the purchase of the
aircraft.A   South Korea says the U.S. company was to pay Dae more than 29=million dollars in commissions.  The defense ministry claimsBLockheed paid only four million of the sum.  According to Dae-Woo@spokesman in Seoul, his company acted as Lockheed's sales agent;in Korea and was to receive the sum as five percent of theAcontract's value.  He claims the aircraft company has reneged on.the deal in refusing to pay the total amount.A   Lockheed officials in Seoul could not be reached for comment.?The defense ministry signed a contract with the U.S.  aircraftBcompany in 1991 to purchase the anti-submarine patrol planes at a"cost of 130 million dollars each.9   Under the contract, two of the eight planes are to be+delivered to the navy at the end of march.:   The patrol plane, called the PC-3, is a reconnaissance(aircraft designed to detect submarines.   ---------------   ---------------'   CAMBODIAN RECONSTRUCTION CONFERENCE   LOU LORSCHEIDER   WASHINGTON?   An organization of 30 countries, known as the international=conference for the reconstruction of Cambodia, is meeting in9Paris this week Tuesday and Wednesday.  The event bringsAworldwide attention to the plight of strife-torn Cambodia, as it:struggles to outlive civil war, government corruption and?widespread poverty.  The obstacles blocking reconstruction and@national reconciliation are daunting, even as the international0community nurtures hopes for Cambodia's future.=   In a period of less than 25 years, Cambodia experienced a<military coup, two foreign invasions, politically motivated.slaughter, civil war and a shattered economy.A   In 1993, hope arose for a better future, when a new coalition?government took power, after elections sponsored by the UnitedANations.  With that new government, and the return of Cambodia's=exiled prince, now king, Norodom Sihanouk, many believed the?killing would stop, and that the resulting peace would lead toeconomic prosperity.9   But two years later, the country is still in turmoil.2   Khmer Rouge guerrillas, who battled the formerBVietnamese-backed government for 13 years, refused to participate@in the 1993 elections.  They have continued to fight, this time"against the new ruling coalition.B   And now, widespread allegations of corruption and human rights>abuses are threatening to discredit the administration.  Most8people agree that the coalition of royalists and former@communists, once seen as the solution to the chaos in Cambodia,(has failed to move the country forward.<   Against that backdrop, international donors in Paris areAhearing requests for an additional 300-million dollars in aid to>Phnom Penh.  In two previous meetings since 1991, donors have=pledged one-point-seven billion dollars to rebuild Cambodia.?   Many observers expect that, in this third conference, donorAcountries and organizations will demand more accountability fromAPhnom Penh.  Australia's Ambassador to Cambodia, Tony Kevin, was@quoted recently as saying that international attention must now/focus on bringing good government to Cambodia.?   A senior policy analyst at the Heritage Foundation, RichardAFisher, calls the near destruction of Cambodia over the last twoBand a-half decades a calamity of staggering proportions.  He saysAthat in the end, it will be human generosity, as demonstrated by8these Paris conferences, that will bring Cambodia back:=   "By any stretch of history, Cambodia is one of the top 10?tragedies of this century.  And it has been a testament to the>human spirit, and a testament to our basic humanity, that theAinternational community did come together in the late 1980's andBearly 1990's, to allow Cambodia to have one more chance to get itright."A   Mr. Fisher and a group of international Cambodia-watchers areAexpressing concerns about the ability of the ruling coalition tomove Cambodia forward.A   Frederick Brown is a Southeast Asian expert for the School of@Advanced International Studies at Johns Hopkins University.  HeAis among those who contend it is time for the coalition in Phnom;Penh to show it can govern effectively and with restraint.A   But Mr. Brown also warns that the international community mayAbe asking too much, too soon of Phnom Penh, after just 18 monthsof representative government:B   "I think it would be extraordinarily naive to believe that the:Cambodians could have pulled themselves together, after a8generation of factional fighting, and in one fell-swoop?(instant), because of an election, somehow come to a political<agreement on all issues.  I think there are exaggerated andAunrealistic expectations of what this government could do.  That?said, I think there have been many disappointments and i think"there is a long, long way to go.":   A consensus on Cambodia's future has yet to form.  But5supporters and critics of Phnom Penh's experiment inBrepresentative government, including most donor countries meeting@in Paris, say it is time to demand more from Cambodian leaders.?   Last week, king Norodom Sihanouk seemed to agree.  He urged@donor countries to help protect Cambodia's fledgling democracy.;The king also acknowledged that conference members can now>extract a promise from Phnom Penh to improve its human rightsrecord.@   But king Sihanouk is also asking the international community=for patience.  He noted that democracy in Phnom Penh is very>fragile, because there is much non-democratic behavior in the	capital.=   He also warned that a failure of Cambodia's experiment in>representative government could lead to another dictatorship,@even as his country seeks to recover from more than two decades=of strong-arm rule (Khmer Rouge and the Vietnamese-installedgovernment of Hun Sen).   ---------------   ---------------(   CHINA REPORTS INCREASE IN CORRUPTION   GIL BUTLER   BEIJINGB   China's top-ranking jurist told the National People's CongressAin Beijing Monday corruption cases were up more than 70 per centAin China last year. The issue of official corruption is emerging7as one of the key priorities of President Jiang Zemin.A   The president of China's supreme people's court, Ren Jianxin,?said 20 thousand people were jailed for corruption, bribery orAembezzling public funds last year.  Those convicted included one5vice minister and 28 department or bureau directors.?   Judge Ren said the struggle against corruption is long-term9and complicated, handling major cases is very difficult.A   Government efforts to battle corruption have not succeeded in=recent years.  Part of the difficulty is bringing successful,cases against high ranking party officials.A   In addition to official corruption, the chief jurist told theAPeople's Congress criminal cases were up almost 20 per cent from@the previous year.  Included major crimes such as murder, armed;robbery, rape, drug trafficing and kidnapping of women and>children.  In all, Judge Ren said about 483 thousand criminalAcases were brought to court in 1994.  Only two thousand of thosewere found not guilty.A   The National People's Congress annual session is in its finalAweek  and once again democracy activists have sent a petition toBthe congress.  The Associated Press received a copy of a petition;signed by 13 people from Fujian province urging release of<political prisoners, greater democracy and human rights andArehabilitation of Zhao Ziyang.  The communist party chief at the@time of the Tiananmen democracy movement was purged as a result@of the protests and has been under effective house arrest sincethen.@   Since shortly before the People's Congress convened on MarchAfifth there have been a number of human rights petitions sent to>the deputies and made public through foreign news media here.?Chinese officials have dismissed the petitions as either being?made by people who have lost their political rights because of:convictions or are merely seeking foreign support, not an#internal dialogue on human rights.   ---------------   ----------------   KASHMIR GENERAL STRIKE PARALYZES SRINAGAR   MICHAEL DRUDGE
   NEW DELHI@   A general strike in Indian Kashmir has paralyzed life in andAaround the main city, Srinagar.  The strike was called Monday to,protest the army surrounding a nearby town.A   Tension is growing in Indian Kashmir over the army deployment@around Charar-E-Sharif.  The military says at least 120 Islamic'militants are trapped inside the town.A   The army last week sealed off Charar-E-Sharif.  Reporters say@at least five thousand of the town's 25 thousand residents have@fled, fearing a gun battle.  The town's food stocks are runninglow.@   Charar-E-Sharif contains a 14th century shrine that attractsmany Muslim pilgrims.<   Kashmir's all-party freedom conference, a coalition that@opposes Indian rule of the region, sponsored a strike Monday to>protest the army deployment.  The strike paralyzed commercial"activities in the Kashmir valley.B   Kashmiri militants have been fighting to break away from India;since 1989.  More than 12 thousand people have died in the
conflict.   ---------------   ---------------   SIERRA LEONE REFUGEES   PURNELL MURDOCK   SIERRA LEONE@   Several hundred Sierra Leone refugees arrived in the capital>of Freetown Monday, from a small island near the coastal city?that has become a camp for people fleeing rebel attacks in theBsouthern region of the country. The growing number of refugees on:the island now face starvation because of food shortages.B   Two boat loads of refugees waited in long lines at the port inAFreetown to be screened by Sierra Leone officials.  The evacueesAcame from the island of Bonthe, about 96 kilometers south of the	capital.<   Bonthe has become a end point for refugees fleeing rebel0attacks in the outline regions of Sierra Leone.@   Many of the refugees are believed to have traveled for weeks@through the Sierra Leone jungle to get to Bonthe.  Sam Maligie,>Sierra Leone's minister for interior affairs, says the peopleAsettled on the small island seeking safety from the rebels.  But@he says the large influx of refugees has created a new problem:A   "After the attack at Rutile and Mathru and other places, mostBof them thought they could all go to Bonthe.   What I believe has@happened in Bonthe is that it has become overcrowded.  And food?is very scarce, so most of them are now trying to come back toFreetown.":   Mr. Maligie says that in the past few days, nearly oneBthousand refugees have come to Freetown, which has already had to0integrate some three thousand in recent months.A   Mr. Maligie says the food shortage in Bonthe, and the lack of@facilities in Freetown is creating a logistical problem for thegovernment:;   "The government is making every effort to alleviate the@problem in Bonthe.  I believe that the two boats that have come@now, will be loaded with some food that will go back to Bonthe,Afor those who are now in Bonthe.  In the meantime, we are tryingBto see if we can find accommodations for the two or more thousand>who are in Freetown, which is my most immediate concern rightnow."A   Observers in Freetown say that in addition to the scarcity ofBfood on the island of Bonthe, the price of rice, a main food item<in Sierra Leone, rose nearly two-hundred percent last week.BMaking it difficult for people to buy what little food they couldfind on the island.@   The civil war in Sierra Leone began four years ago by rebelsBof the Revolutionary United Fronts.  Some ten thousand people are<believed to have been killed and nearly 300-thousand SierraLeoneans displaced since 1991.   ---------------   ---------------0   U.S. SAYS MEN HELD BY IRAQ ARE NOT IN DANGER   DEBORAH TATE   WHITE HOUSE:   Clinton Administration officials say they hope the two9Americans being held by Iraq will be released soon. U.S.>officials say the two men are not in any danger, but they arerefusing to say much else.>   A senior administration official says the United States isBworking through third parties to try to obtain the release of thetwo Americans.>   The official, who does not want to be identified, says theAUnited States is seeking to free the two men through the efforts>of international agencies and the government of Poland, which?represents U.S. interests in Iraq.  The United States does not%have diplomatic relations with Iraq.B   The U.S. official refused to comment further about the matter.A   U.S. Defense Secretary William Perry, who is in Saudi Arabia,Btold reporters the Americans were in no danger.  He said he hopes<the situation would be resolved by the time he leaves SaudiArabia Sunday.?   The two Americans have been held by Iraq since Monday, whenAthey entered Iraqi territory from Kuwait, apparently by mistake.?Reports say the men worked for U.S. based companies in Kuwait.   ---------------   ---------------!   TWO AMERICANS MISSING IN IRAQ   RON PEMSTEIN   STATE DEPARTMENT?   Two Americans are missing in Iraq. They apparently wandered.across the border with Kuwait a few days ago.?   The two Americans are not identified but State Department's?officials say they are private businessmen not U.S. government?employees. Other officials say they wandered across the border;with Kuwait last Monday.  State Department spokesman David?Johnson says contacts have been made with responsible parties:B   "I can tell you that our embassy in Kuwait has been in regular=contact with the United Nations Iraq-Kuwait observer missionAwhich is conducting an investigation of the detention of the two>Americans in Iraq. We've also been in contact with the Polish?authorities who provide services to American citizens in Iraq.<And finally we've been touch with the families of these twoAmericans."?   The United States has no diplomatic relations with Iraq and?has led the drive to maintain international economic sanctions9against Baghdad, charging it has not met its obligationsfollowing the Gulf War.   ---------------   ---------------;   RED CROSS NEGOTIATES WITH IRAQ FOR RELEASE OF AMERICANS   VICTOR BEATTIE   WASHINGTON?   A spokesman for the International Red Cross (ICRC) says his@agency is negotiating with Iraq for access to two Americans who@crossed into Iraqi territory earlier this week. The White HouseBsays the United States is doing everything it can to free the twoU.S. citizens.?   Iraq's U.N. Ambassador Nizar Hamdoun says the two Americans@crossed from Kuwait into Iraq illegally Monday.  U.S. officials;say the two private citizens apparently were searching for?friends working for the United Nations.  They were detained as$they attempted to return to Kuwait.?   Ambassador Hamdoun says Baghdad is discussing the case with
the ICRC.@   Red Cross spokesman, Daniel Augsberger, is hopeful Iraq will#grant access to the two Americans:A   "As soon as the access is granted then we will proceed to the;visit which is to gain access to be able to talk with themAwithout witness, and of course to be able to repeat these visits*as long as these people remain detained."=   The United States does not have diplomatic relations with>Baghdad and is working through the United Nations and Poland,@which has represented U.S. interests in Iraq since its invasionof Kuwait in 1990.>   U.N. spokesman Fred Eckhardt says his agency last tried to&establish contact with Iraq Thursday:<   "They promised to get back to us, but we have no furtherinformation since then."@   The detention of the two came the same day the U.N. Security@Council voted to maintain international sanctions against Iraq.   ---------------   ---------------6   ACADEMICS CONSIDER THE PROS AND CONS OF ORPHANAGES   JUDITH LATHAM   WASHINGTON@   Lawmakers and citizens debating welfare reform in the United;States have begun to consider different ways of caring forAchildren "at risk." The Republican Party's platform for the 1994@Congressional campaign, the "Contract with America," includes a@proposal that welfare funds be used to establish orphanages for?the children of impoverished, unwed, teenage mothers.  Many of=these families currently receive public assistance through a:program known as aid to families with dependent children.A   Until the mid-1930's orphanages were very often used to house;and care for destitute and homeless children in the United8States. Today, however, many children who are orphaned,Aabandoned, or abused end up in foster homes where they live with>an unrelated family temporarily. Nine million children in the:United States live with single parents who receive public@assistance. Since the 1994 Congressional election, policymakersBhave begun to reexamine the possibility of increasing the role of>orphanages in the care of children who are seriously at risk.=   Ronald Feldman is dean of Columbia University's school of<social work in New York City.  Mr. Feldman says the idyllic>hollywood image portrayed in the popular film about orphanage@life called "Boys Town" was not what he found when he served as8deputy director of the Nebraska orphanage 20 years ago.6   He says the boys at that time were housed in large<dormitories, supervised by single men who worked eight-hourBshifts.  Today the situation has changed in two significant ways:9   "They have moved away from traditional dormitory-type?orphanages to group home settings which bring together smallerAnumbers of children in a setting.  Many, but not all, have moved?towards parenting training for those persons who work with the?children and the very best ones employ husband-wife teams on a@24-hour, seven-day a week basis to work with the children.  TheAother major trend, which is very important, is that we find over>the years that in such institutions we tend to place our mostBdifficult children, those who have been most abused or neglected,9those who have not responded very well to other forms oftreatment."A   And that means, according to Ronald Feldman, many children in=group care are either anti-social and have severe behavioral8problems or they may have parents who are mentally ill.<Furthermore, he says, the cost of institutional care, which<includes group homes, is expensive, ranging from $45,000 to$75,000 per child:A   "What that would indicate in my view is that children who are;not at very serious risk, who merely face such problems as@perhaps being raised by a single parent who is relatively young>and may be financial impoverished, those children by in large@should not be placed in such institutions.  There are much more>effective community-based, less expensive ways to assist suchBchildren rather than to take them away from their natural family,7even if that family consists only of a single parent."8   Columbia University's Robert Feldman says it is more@cost-effective and emotionally better for most children if they can remain with their families:@   "There is, of course, a place for orphanages, but in my view@it's essentially a last resort for children who have been shown=to be at severe risk for child neglect, or for abuse, or for;children who are experiencing severe problems that clearly>warrant their being taken away from their family. We ought toBrealize further that we have to devote the financial resources to@make sure the orphanage is an effective, well-run one accordingBto the most modern principles of child development.  It's my view=that society would be best served and children would be best@served by developing low-cost community-based alternatives thatAwill enable children to remain with their parents and help theirAparents though difficult circumstances.  It would save money and>produce better adjusted, more responsible, adults in the longrun."=   Robert Feldman is dean of Columbia University's school of@social work in New York City.  He contends that the chief value<of the proposal to establish more orphanages is that it hasstirred public debate.@   Marshall Jones welcomes the reexamination of orphanages as a=component of the child welfare system.  He's chairman of the;Department of Behavioral Science at the Pennsylvania State=College of Medicine.  Professor Jones, who has served on theBboard of a Catholic orphanage for girls in Pennsylvania, believes=orphanages are preferable to the current practice of placing=children who are taken away from their natural families in aBseries of private foster homes.  The range of other possibilities=include adoption, agency-owned Foster Homes, and small grouphomes.?   "In my judgment, " says Jones, "a child should be placed inBthe best available situation for the child.  Now, that is not the@current practice. The current practice is to place the child in:the most family-like situation, which may not be the best>situation for the child.  The larger group setting has simply7been excluded as much as possible by the child welfare?establishment. There were always orphanages that provided muchBbetter care than could be obtained in most foster families.  That6was true in the late 19th century.  It's true today."B   Professor Jones says the foster family system has broken down.BAbout half a million children are temporarily placed by the state>with other families until their parents are able to put their@lives in order. But, that often results in their being shuttledBfrom family to family, sometimes 5 to 10 times or more.  MarshallBJones says child welfare agencies need to make greater efforts to@encourage adoption rather than placing children in a successionof foster homes.?   He adds that orphanages should be offered as an alternative0for children who have been abused or neglected:>   "The decision as to where a child should be placed must be=taken away from the existing child welfare professionals and>placed in the hands of private, non-profit agencies headed by3representative lay people from those communities."7   Professor Jones says much of the problem rests with<professional social workers who dominate the nation's child<welfare system. He says they are ideologically committed to@keeping children with their natural families or placing them in9the "most family-like situation."  Marshall Jones of theAPennsylvania State College of medicine and Ronald Feldman of the?Columbia University school of social work disagree on the best<solutions to the problems of poverty and homelessness among@children.  But, both believe the current debate over orphanages@stirred up by the Republican Party's "Contract with America" is>focusing attention on the need to reform the nation's welfaresystem.   ---------------   ---------------3   MARTIN SCORSESE LOBBIES FOR FILM DISCLOSURE ACT   KEMING KUO   WASHINGTON?   Many Americans watch few movies in theaters, believing theyAcan see the same film several weeks or months later by renting a>video, or watching a screening during a plane flight.  Or, by@waiting even longer, they might be able to view it on broadcast5television.  While most movie buffs realize that theBcommercial-interrupted movie seen on television is altered beforeBbroadcast, few are aware that there are often differences between=the original theatrically-released film and the version seen@during an airplane flight or on videotape at home. Some members?of Congress want to alert the American public of such editing,?framing, and perspective changes made for various markets.  To>garner support for their legislation, the congressmen invited>world-renowned director Martin Scorsese to visit Capitol Hillthis week.;   As the director of such highly-acclaimed films as "Mean7Streets," "Goodfellas," "Raging Bull," and "The Age ofBInnocence," Martin Scorsese needed no introduction when he walked>to the lectern in a room near the Senate chambers of the U.S.	capitol.>   Mr. Scorsese, who has lobbied on behalf of film disclosure?legislative attempts in the past, noted that raising the issue!this year was especially timely:A   "Motion pictures are the most powerful and pervasive art form:of this or any other century and the legislation is being@appropriately introduced in this year, 1995, which is about 100=years from when films were actually invented.  Movies are an@indigenous American art form. They're recognized as such by the@national film preservation act.  It's an art form that American8filmmakers, I really believe this, created.  The global;enthusiasm for American films makes this art form the mostAimportant of our 'diplomatic greeting cards' and, of course, the-second greatest earner of foreign currency."B   Martin Scorsese noted that the Clinton Administration recently=took steps to stop the illegal copying of motion pictures inBChina.  But he wondered why the White House and legislators don't<show a similar concern about how films are presented in theUnited States:?   "While the government and the producers have been staunchlyAprotecting the economic interests of the movie industry, there's@been indifference, and quite honestly, hostility, to the simple=proposition that movies are an art form and deserve at leastAbasic legal protection.  [Like] jazz, America's other indigenousBart form, movies receive more respect and esteem abroad than hereBin the United States.  The two bills being introduced today would=raise the level of respect afforded filmmakers here.  So the:entire creative community is indebted to Senator Simpson,+Congressman Frank and Congressman Bryant.">   Wyoming Senator Alan Simpson and Massachusetts Congressman@Barnie Frank are co-sponsoring the film disclosure act of 1995.=The legislation would let viewers of films in any venue know9whether they are seeing a different version of a movie's>theatrical release.  The congressmen emphasized that the bill9will not delay or prevent a film moving from theaters to@television video stores or airplane screens.  It also would notBcriticize altered versions of a film. Filmmakers have pointed outBthat as much as 44 percent of the original frame size of a motion=picture may be chopped off to fit a new screen size, such asBduring a transfer from the theatrical, "letterbox" rectangle to a@square, television screen format.  Also, whole scenes of a film&may be altered, shortened or removed.<   Senator Simpson described why he is introducing the filmdisclosure bill in Congress:@   "I think it's demeaning and wholly inappropriate to colorizeAsuch black-and-white classics as "lost horizons" or "casablanca"@or "the maltese falcon."  Yes, I do understand that the authors>of a film are usually not the owners.  I recognize that and IAalways want to be careful and cautious about limiting the rights=of an owner of any work of art.  But I strongly believe thatBgreater protections are needed to preserve the artistic integrityAof one of America's truly significant contributions to the world%of art, and that's motion pictures."@   A separate bill, sponsored by Texas congressman John Bryant,>would give directors, cinematographers, and screenwriters the7right to go to court to stop the alteration of a film.>   Director Martin Scorsese described how films may be subtlyAchanged by using sophisticated editing techniques to "shave off"seconds of scenes from movies:?   "People have no idea how indiscriminate editing changes and>distorts your narrative.  The visual image of a movie, a wideBscreen, is lost when you try to fit that image, compress it, ontoBa television screen.  You lose visual information which tells theAstory, so you're not getting the story.  Performances are ruined*when you electronically speed up scenes."@   Mr. Scorsese says that, as distressing as it is when a movie>studio or anonymous editor has altered one of his films, it's>even worse when the film is still represented as his original&work, with no mention of the changes:A   "The film has my name on it, but it seems to lose much of its<impact if it had any.  Its imagery, its pace, its narrative?coherence, and ultimately its integrity are all degraded.  But8still, the picture has my name on it. Now as far as I'm8concerned, this is unfair: To me, to the writer, to the=cinematographer, and ultimately to the audience watching the
picture."B   Director Martin Scorsese says the proposed film disclosure act>is comparable to a "truth in labeling" law, a concept used in7identifying the contents of many other consumer goods:A   "Just tell people how movies have been altered.  Just say theAmovie has been shortened by three or four minutes.  Just say theBfilm was originally made in black and white.  And let me have the<chance to say I object to these changes, if the alterationsBreally, truly, are objectionable.  Let's inject a little fairness=and thereby raise the respect for films and filmmakers.  The<movie industry is not just about making money, and this has>always been the struggle: Art and commerce, art and commerce.?But it's also, at this point, 100 years into it now, a time toAliterally protect the original version, to protect it for future/generations and give it the respect it's due."   ---------------   ---------------F   CHINA & VATICAN BLOCK WOMAN'S GROUPS FROM U.N. CONFERENCE ON WOMEN   ELAINE JOHANSON   UNITED NATIONS:   China and the Vatican are blocking women's groups theyBdisapprove of from attending a major United Nations conference onAwomen.  Hundreds of delegates and non-governmental organizations8are meeting in New York at this time to prepare for the8conference, which will be held in Beijing in September.A   China has used its position as host of the conference to deny;credentials to Taiwanese and tibetan women's groups.  U.N.@officials say a final decision will probably be made next week.BBut delegates to the preparatory meeting in New York expect Chinawill prevail.@   The U.N. does not recognize as an independent country either<Taiwan, whose U.N. seat was taken over by China in 1971, or@Tibet, which China occupied in 1950.  In deference to political@pressure from Beijing, it has moved in the past to exclude them9from U.N. events or bar their entry into U.N. buildings.>   Sofia Woodman (pron. So-fa'-ya), representing a U.S. based:China human rights group, says the situation is alarming:?   "I think it's very worrying and I think it should worry allBparticipants to the conference that China is willing to interfere?in this very heavy-handed way at this early stage.  I think it9sends an alarm signal about the way China will deal withorganizing this conference."B   The Tibetan and Taiwanese women's groups at the moment are not@allowed to even participate in discussions on the drafting of a4document which will be taken to Beijing for action.B   The Vatican, too, has stirred controversy by bringing pressureBfor the exclusion of delegates who do not agree with its position<on abortion.  One group in particular, Catholics for a Free=Choice, and its branches in Brazil, Uruguay and Mexico are a:special target of Vatican action.  A Vatican delegate has8complained that the liberal Catholic group calls itselfB"Catholic" but does not accept church dogma.  This same group hadAattended other U.N. conferences, including the one on populationAin Cairo last year and the recent summit in Copenhagen on social
development.A   Bella Abzug, a former U.S. congresswoman and a strong women's>advocate, says it's not right that women of any persuasion be9excluded from a conference dedicated specifically to thepromotion of their rights:@   "This is a time in which we have come together at the United?Nations for the purpose of expressing our dreams and our hopes=and our needs.  And no person that can participate should be>denied that right.  No organization of women should be denied>that right.   No group, whatever the point of view, should bedenied that right."B   The preparatory meeting has set up a small committee to review>the protests.  An American official estimated that nearly 200Aorganizations have been excluded, including some lesbian groups.A   The Vatican is an observer state at the United Nations and is@allowed to participate as a government in U.N. conferences.  It=has chosen to exert significant leverage in recent years, as<social issues have risen to prominence on the internationalagenda.   ---------------   ---------------   U.S. AGRICULTURAL ROUNDUP
   ROB SIVAK   WASHINGTON?   Administration officials assess crop damage in flood-soaked?California and its impact on consumers a U.S. Senate committee<continues hearings on major new agriculture legislation, as@budget-cutting lawmakers take aim at federal farm subsidies and@introduce a measure to dismantle the 130-year old Department of
Agriculture.?   Acting U.S. Agriculture Secretary Richard Rominger returnedBthis week from a two-day tour of flood-damaged farming regions in?the western state of California, which has been inundated by aweek of monsoon-like rains.>   Mr. Rominger confirmed at his Wednesday news conference inAWashington that the extensive flooding has taken a heavy toll on)the nation's premier agricultural state:B   "We saw a great many acres that are still underwater, and this:was in a Monterey County area where they grow a number of>vegetables, so we saw damage to strawberries, artichokes. And@there will be shortages of cauliflower and cabbage and probablyAeven broccoli as we look to get these fields drained and look to@get the farmers back on the fields for producing another crop."@   Mr. Rominger said the flooding has also created some serious9soil erosion problems across the state that will make itAdifficult for many farmers to return their fields to production.@He noted that California's lucrative strawberry crop could be a>near total loss, since strawberry growers will not be able to<plant another crop on the flooded fields until next season.A   Mr. Rominger predicted that U-S food consumers will soon feel.the impact of such losses at the marketplace:?   "It is going to mean very likely some increase in prices inAthe next few months as these crops that were to be harvested are=not going to be harvested until we have to wait for the nextBcycle, so that could mean some increases. We do know that this isAgoing to be a larger loss to the state's farmers than the floods?that we had in January because the crops are now farther alongand the damage is greater."B   Acting U.S. Agriculture Secretary Richard Rominger also turnedBhis attention at the Washington news conference to the continuing<efforts in the Republican-led U-S Congress to slash federalBspending this year to reduce the government's huge budget deficitand offset proposed tax cuts.B   Mr. Rominger said a House of Representatives plan to shave 240?million dollars from this year's U-S Department of Agriculture@budget unfairly targets women, children and rural families, and>targets a sector of government that has already made dramaticcuts in spending:A   "So we would say, let's not make those cuts there, let's look=for places where we can make cuts to pare government withoutAaffecting these numbers of peoples. And we have done that in ourBreorganization of USDA, where we are going to save four-point one<billion dollars as a result of administrative and personnelBsavings without cutting programs that are so valuable to people."   =====================>   The  House of Representatives' proposed 240 million dollar:reduction in USDA spending this year pales by comparison,@however, to the long-term spending cuts being discussed over in>the U.S. Senate. The Senate Agriculture Committee, which last6week officially began hearings on new, five-year farm9legislation, heard testimony this week from a variety ofAwitnesses arguing for deep cuts in the 62 billion dollar federalagriculture budget.@   On Thursday, the chairman of the Senate Budget commitee, NewAMexico Republican Pete Domenici, told the agriculture panel that@given current efforts in Congress to balance the federal budget;by the year 2004, it could be necessary to cut agriculture;spending over the next five years by as much as 50 billion	dollars:=   "If the Committee chose to allocate this aggregate number>based on the current mix of farm and nutrition programs, farm=programs would be allocated between 7 billion and 10 billion7dollars, while food and nutrition programs within yourAjurisdiction would be allocated between 28 billion dollar and 406billion dollars in savings over the next five years."@   Senator Domenici said the scale of those spending cuts could>be reduced if savings are found elsewhere, but he warned that@"U.S. agriculture will have to do some heavy lifting" as he put(it, to help balance the federal budget.<   In other testimony Thursday, Ken Cooke, president of the7private Environmental Working Group, described for the;Agriculture Committee his three-year study of federal farm=subsidies. Mr. Cooke said the study, called "City Slickers,"Bshows that over the past ten years, nearly two billion dollars in@farm program payments have gone to well-to-do urban or suburbanBresidents who own farmland elsewhere but are not actively engagedin farming.A   Mr. Cooke said scarce government resources should be targetedat those who really need them:?   "Surely we can come up with some way to help family farmersBwithout helping a network news anchor to the tune of 100 thousand@dollars over two years.  I think that is the point of it.  ThatAwe have got a lot of folks in this program who are getting a lot?of money who by any stretch of the imagination are not farmers:and who by any stretch of the imagination don't need it.";   Ken Cooke's conclusions were challenged by North DakotaBSenator Kent Conrad, who noted that the payments in question were@made under the 10 year old Conservation Reserve Program, to pay=farmers and other legitimate landowners, wherever they mightAlive, to take their most erodible acreage out of grazing or crop>production.  But Senator Conrad agreed with the environmental@group that federal farm subsidies, in general, ought to be more0carefully targeted to producers that need them.<   Also this week, two New Jersey Senators, both Democrats,Araised some eyebrows with their proposal to completely dismantle@U-S farm subsidy programs. The bill's co-sponsor, Senator Frank@Lautenberg, told Washington reporters his so-called Agriculture<Modernization Act would actually go much farther than that:;   "In the interest of reduction and realignment, it would@eliminate the Department of Agriculture. It would spin off some=of the programs it now handles to other parts of the federal<government, and sell the two USDA buildings that are on theMall."<   Senator Lautenberg said his proposal would phase out allBcommodity price support and export subsidy programs over the next;five years and save the federal government an estimated 25;billion dollars. But the Democrats' bill was derided by anAAmerican Farm Bureau official as more of a political ploy than a<serious proposal, designed to warn Republican lawmakers andAwealthy agribusiness firms that budget-cutting at U-S-D-A can be;a two-edged sword. The official said the U-S Department ofAAgriculture's budget has already been cut by 40 percent over the>past five years and is slated for further reductions.  And heBinsisted that the U-S-D-A plays an indispensible role in carrying@out U-S agriculture policy and should be allowed to continue inthat role.   ---------------   ---------------#   AMERICA RECONSIDERS IMMIGRATION   LINDA CASHDAN   WASHINGTON?   The United States is a country founded by immigrants, and a@country that has, more than any other nation in the world, kept>its doors open, throughout its history, to immigrants. The 46@meter high Statue of Liberty standing in New York City's harbor@has long been thought of as a the nation's official welcomer, aBsymbol of U.S. immigration policy.  A sonnet by poet Emma Lazarus>on the pedestal of the Statue of Liberty proclaims:  "Give me@your hungry, your poor, your huddled masses yearning to breathe	free..."?   In recent years, however, Americans have begun wondering as=never before whether immigration is an economic plus for the>country or an economic drain.  Are today's immigrants costingAmore in the social services they require than they pay in taxes?AIs immigration something the United States can no longer afford?@   George Borjas (Bor'-hass) certainly favored U.S. immigration<policy 35 years ago when it enabled him to enter the United2States from Cuba, and become an American citizen.A   Today, however, Mr Borjas, a college professor and economist,Acontends that times have changed, and so have the economic needsof the country:A   "What made this country great in terms of immigration is veryAdifferent from today.  A hundred years ago, the U-S was becoming@industrialized and the kinds of workers that it needed were the@kinds of people who wanted to come at that point in time -- whoAhad little skills and who just provided raw labor to the growing5factories. You have a very different economy today."B   It is an economy, Mr. Borjas contends, in which high tech jobs=are increasing and unskilled jobs are diminishing.  In otherAwords, it is an economy where education and training have becomevital tools for the workplace.@   It is estimated that some three million immigrants enter the7United States every year.  The immigrants who meet theBrequirements for legal entry by possessing job skills that are in@short supply have the education and training necessary to cope.<   However, the vast majority, more than two thirds, of the;immigrants entering the United States each year are either<illegal immigrants or legal refugees, people granted asylum<because they are suffering from persecution in their native8countries.  The three groups, legal immigrants, illegal>immigrants and refugees, have very different characteristics.9Seventy-five percent of the immigrants entering the U.S.>illegally today, and 46 percent of the legal refugees have no:high school diploma.  In contrast, one third of all legalAimmigrants have college degrees, a much higher proportion, even,than native-born U-S citizens.<   Because illegal immigrants' and refugees' educations are@minimal, says Lee Grissom, an employee in the Governor's officeAin California, their needs are great. Mr. Grissom estimates that;two thirds of the children born in public hospitals in Los@Angeles this year were born to illegal immigrants.  Anyone born?in the United States is automatically granted U-S citizenship.?   Mr. Grissom says those new citizens are straining the statebudget:;   "We're the only large state in the union whose children?between one and eighteen, is growing at a faster rate than the@people between the ages of 19 and 64.  What's significant aboutAthat is that the younger group requires a great deal in terms of>government expenditures, primarily in terms of education, butother things as well."B   California State Governor Pete Wilson complains that the older=group of illegal immigrants is also costing the state a lot:@   "The number of illegal immigrants incarcerated in CaliforniaBprisons is steadily and dramatically rising. A similar chart with?an even sharper  escalation would portray what has happened in?terms of providing health care to illegal immigrants. So we do?not exaggerate when we say that illegal immigration is eroding=the quality of life for legal residents of California. It is?threatening the quality of the education we can provide to our?children, the quality of care to our needy, blind, elderly anddisabled."<   Governor Wilson's feelings are by no means shared by all;Californians. Many businesses and farm owners say they are;dependent upon a steady flow of immigrant workers, and the;computer firms in California's Sillicon Valley are equallyBdependent on the brain power of the immigrant scientists who work>there.  Indeed, while the Governor and a large segment of theBpopulation are calling for immigration reform,  many CaliforniansBargue the cost of illegal immigrants is more than compensated for:by the tax contributions of the state's legal immigrants.<   The debate is going on at the national level as well. An<intensive round of hearings on ways to reduce the number of<illegal immigrants entering the country is underway in bothhouses of the U.S. Congress.   ---------------   ---------------1   U.S. CELEBRATES BOSNIA FEDERATION ANNIVERSARY   DAVID GOLLUST   STATE DEPARTMENT?   Senior officials from Bosnia and Croatia were in Washington9Thursday for observances of the first anniversary of the>U.S.-sponsored federation of Bosnia's Muslims and Croats. The8State Department and White House meetings are part of a6stepped-up Clinton Administration effort for peace inBosnia-Herzegovina.<   The high-profile events were aimed at giving the tenuousAalliance an economic and political boost, at a time when Clinton<Administration officials are increasingly concerned about a6possible resumption of generalized warfare in Bosnia.A   Created a year ago in ceremonies at Washington's Blair House,<the federation has developed much more slowly than had been>hoped. And senior U.S. officials warn that if the federation,@beset by a myriad of political and logistical problems, were to@crumble, so too would hopes of coaxing the Bosnian Serbs into apeace accord.B   At a reception, Secretary of State Warren Christopher said the?federation agreement could be the model for an overall BosnianAsettlement.  Its success, he said, would shatter the notion that>Bosnia's ethnic communities cannot work together in a unifiedentity:A   "Behind the aggression that started this war lies a dangerousBmyth that people of different communities cannot live together, a@blind conviction that ancient disputes  will never be resolved.AAs the federation develops and succeeds, it is a sharp rebuke toAall of those who would say that we must carve up post-war Europe#along ethnic and religious lines."A   Among those attending the observances was Croatia's President=Franjo Tudjman, the president of the Muslim-Croat Federation9Kresimir Zubak and Ejup Ganic of the Bosnia's collectivepresidency.?   In his remarks Mr. Ganic appealed to Bosnia's ethnic Serbs,Bwho control 70 per cent of the country's territory, to join peace+efforts based on the federation blueprint:A   "Peace in Bosnia-Herzegovina started with the federation. And@for that reason, from this place, I invite pale (Bosnian) SerbsBto join the federation.  If they are not ready yet, we are ready,>after they accept the map of the contact group peace plan, to@work on other modalities which do not question the integrity on'Bosnia-Herzegovina as a single state."B   The United States, backed by the European Union, has set up an?informal organization called "Friends of the Federation" which=has already raised tens of millions of dollars to assist the,Muslim Croat alliance and its institutions.=   Special emphasis is being given to rebuilding the divided>Muslim and Croat city of Mostar, which has been devastated byBpast fighting and remains a point of tension between the would-befederation partners.<   Briefing reporters, assistant Secretary of State RichardAHolbrooke said the unraveling of the federation would kill hopesBfor a broader peace. He said having helped defuse the crisis over@croatia's move to expel U.N. peacekeepers, the administration'sApriority now is to try to extend Bosnia's shaky ceasefire due toexpire in May.   ---------------   ---------------   WEARING THE HIJAB ON CAMPUS   JUDITH LATHAM/DAALIA REFAAT   WASHINGTON<   An increasing number of Muslim women on American college@campuses are deciding to wear "hijab" [hi-jab], the traditionalAIslamic mode of dressing in modest, loose clothing, covering the+head with a scarf, and not wearing makeup.;   Twenty-year-old Maha Alkhateeb [ma-hah ahl-kah-teeb] isBgraduating from George Mason University in northern Virginia this9spring and plans to pursue a master's degree in conflict<resolution.  Maha, whose family is Iraqi-American, says sheBstarted wearing hijab during her last year of high school becauseAof the strong influence of her parents and her Muslim community.@But, she stopped wearing it for a year during college, and then@she started wearing it again last year after she got engaged tobe married.B   "It's very difficult, especially when you're young because youBwant to fit in," says Alkhateeb.  "I know I did, and that was the?reason I took it off. And what upset me afterwards is that all@those same people, who were non-Muslim who would put me down or?reject me and ostracize me, now thought that I could be one ofBthem.  In a sense it's liberating because, when I put it back on,?I felt like this is really 'me' now and I'm doing it because IAreally want to. You don't stand out as much in a Muslim country,@but here you do. I think they tend to think of Muslim women whoAcover in general as more religious, and they consider my friends and me to be rather extremist.">   Maha says her college in the suburbs of Washington, DC, is?ethnically and culturally diverse. So, the faculty tends to be7more sophisticated and accepting of students who dressAdistinctively than are many people who are unfamiliar with Islam6and who sometimes stare or make insensitive comments:@   "I think probably just about every professor has had someone9in their class at one point who has worn a scarf, if not@regularly.  I think a lot of them are very open-minded and very*nice to me, and that helps me out a lot."@   University of California student Sarah Nasr [nah-ser], whose8family is Egyptian, says her decision to wear hijab wasAinfluenced by a favorite teacher who was her role model when she@attended a Muslim high school in Chicago.  Sarah is married and8and says she hopes to become an Arabic teacher one day:@   "I think one of the good aspects of my wearing hijab is thatAI'm a role model for my religion. Most people I know are Muslim.ASome people think I'm a [catholic] nun, but most people know I'mAMuslim, and I feel I am setting a good example for Muslim women.BPeople, not all people, but a lot of people, respect you more for?sticking to your religion. I feel more protected wearing hijab<because people don't look down on me. And, I get a lot more@respect wearing that because people don't treat me like a pieceof meat [sex object]."?   As Sarah Nasr expressed, Afeefa Syeed [ah-fee-fah sigh-eed];feels a sense of pride in her decision.  She is a graduateBstudent in anthropology at the University of Maryland and is fromBa Kashmiri family. She began wearing hijab as a seventh grader in	Indiana.<   Afeefa says one benefit of hijab is that people pay more@attention to what kind of person she is rather than to what shelooks like:=   "I'm constantly conscious of who I am as a Muslim and theBthings that I believe in because I'm wearing hijab, and it's such?an obvious indication of who I am. And, of course, it's also a=sense of letting people know that you belong to a community.=You're a Muslim so you're part of something worldwide.  And,<especially in high school, when you feel like you're all byAyourself and you're going through all these pressures and stuff,?it's really nice to feel there are lots of people all over the?world like you and to let people know you're part of somethingvery big.":   Unlike some of her peers, Afeefa Syeed finds that mostBAmericans are accepting of people who dress in a manner that sets them apart from the mainstream:>   "There are just so many different kinds of people here. In>that sense, we can all kind of do whatever we want and you're=okay. You have your freedom to do what you want.  Of course,?human nature is to react a little bit less warmly to something>that's different.  But, I know people who feel like they have?been discriminated against because they wear hijab and because?they're Muslim.  And, many times people are just waiting to beBaccepted, but they don't themselves make an effort.  So, I try to=take another approach, which is to be who I am, but then let-people know that it is okay to approach me."@   Afeefa says she is active in her Muslim student association,<and she and her friends at the University of Maryland often1discuss their religious and cultural identities:B   "We have to constantly create an American Muslim identity, and?that is a challenge in itself.  Many of my friends' [families]=are from different countries and they don't have any of thatBculture within them, but we have Islam.  It sounds like it's very<theoretical or ideological, but it is very specific. You'reBtalking about everyday stuff. You're talking about how do we deal<with dating situations, for example, or how do we deal withBhijab, or how do we deal with even the careers we choose.  In the?last 10 or 15 years a lot of things have sprung up, like youth@organizations around the country to help us support each other.4And we have camps, conferences, and get togethers."A   On American college campuses, many young women such as Afeefa=Syeed wear hijab to represent their personal response to the@Qur'anic injunction to dress modestly. It also symbolizes their4identification with the Muslim community worldwide.   ---------------   ---------------!   PRIVATIZING THE SPACE SHUTTLE   DAVID MCALARY   WASHINGTON?   A panel of U.S. aerospace executives, business leaders, and>former officials of the U.S. space agency, NASA, says private@enterprise should take over operation of the Space Shuttle from=the government.  As The group says the shuttle program needsstreamlining in many ways.?   The panel was formed by NASA administrator Daniel Goldin toBpropose ways to reduce costs of the shuttle, which amount to moreBthan three billion dollars a year, a little more one fifth of the@agency's budget.  Since President Clinton took office two years?ago, fiscal austerity measures have meant reductions in nasa's=budget, forcing the space agency to examine this big program	closely.@   NASA has reduced shuttle operating expenses about 25 percentAover the past three years.  But the independent panel says costsAare still higher than necessary and will not come down without a0major change in the way the program is managed.;   In the experts' view, expenses are high because shuttle?management is not sufficiently streamlined;  modifications are?constantly being made to the shuttle fleet;  launch procedures@are too complicated;  and there has been excessive attention to:safety and quality control since the shuttle "challenger"exploded in flight in 1986.B   NAS conducts shuttle operations with the assistance of several?private contractors who provide hardware and support services.8The panel says many of the contractors have overlapping?functions.  It recommends transferring shuttle operations to a<single business entity that gets broad direction from NASA.@   Another key recommendation is for NASA to freeze the current@shuttle design and perform only those changes required to carryout individual flights.@   The panel also says the shuttle has become about as safe andBreliable as today's technology will provide, so NASA should relax<safety and quality control procedures implemented since the"challenger" disaster.2   But a leading space policy analyst opposes the9recommendations. John Pike of the federation of American"scientists calls them disturbing:;   "The problem with turning the shuttle over to a privateBoperator is that the private operator is going to have incentives@to try to reduce costs, which means cutting corners on safety."@   The panel says its proposal to restructure redundant qualityAcontrol procedures would  not come at the expense of safety. ButBMr. Pike disagrees, saying it simply increases the probability ofanother shuttle accident:=   "Unfortunately, the Space Shuttle is the most-complicated>machine that human beings have ever built and I think that it?requires this sort of almost excessive attention to detail and=safety to make sure that some problem that could have tragic@consequences doesn't manage to slip through the system.  We may@save a few hundred million dollars in the next year or two, but>when the bill comes due, perhaps 10 billion dollars after the@next 'Challenger' accident, in retrospect, this will be seen tobe a very big mistake."?   NASA says it is premature to comment on the panel's call toprivatize shuttle operations.?   But agency spokesman Ray Castillo [kass-'til-lo] notes thatAsome of the other recommendations are already being implemented:=   "Our goal is to significantly reduce the number of normal=maintenance and launch-processing steps required before eachAflight.  We are also taking a look at the best way to handle any@shuttle upgrades that might be needed in the future.  Actually,Awe're looking at any number of ways to try to streamline.  We're@just looking for the best way to meet our goals of reducing the8budget another five billion [dollars] over five years.">   The independent panel's review of Space Shuttle operations?supplements an internal agency review.  Mr. Castillo says both=will be presented to NASA administrator Daniel Goldin in themiddle of May.   ---------------   ---------------D   TESTIMONY OF SHEIK OMAR PLOTTINGS IN NY BOMBING CONSPIRACY TRIAL   CHRIS SIMKINS   NEW YORK>   A key U.S. Government informant in the trial of sheik omar@Abdel Rahman and 10 Others testified today Thursday that months?after the bombing of the World Trade Center followers of Sheik:Omar began plotting to bomb the United Nations and kidnappolitical leaders.A   Emad Salem, the U.S. Government's informant, told jurors that?Siddig Ibrahim Siddig Ali, a key figure in the alleged plot toBbomb New York landmarks, asked him to construct a bomb to blow up=the United Nations building. Siddig Ali,  who was not in theBcourtroom, has pleaded guilty to the terrorism charges and agreed"to cooperate with the government.B   In his sixth day of testimony, Mr. Salem testified that Siddig@Ali told him in June of 1993 that he was going to arrange for a<car used by the Sudanese mission to carry the bomb into the?underground United Nations parking garage. Mr. Salem indicated>that Siddig Ali believed that was the best way to deliver theAbomb because the vehicle had diplomatic plates and would  not be*searched by guards at the United Nations.:   Prosecutors also read transcripts of secretly recordedBconversations between Emad Salem and El Sayyid Nosair. Nosair wasAcharged with the assassination of the militant Rabbi Meir Kahane?in New York in 1990. Nosair was later acquitted of the murder,Bbut was found guilty on weapons charges. During the conversation,@Nosair told Mr. Salem he also wanted to kidnap former Secretary=of State Henry Kissinger and former President Richard Nixon.ANosair indicated the two political leaders would be used to helpAwin the release of members of a terrorist organization in Egypt.?   Emad Salem was able to infiltrate Sheik Omar Abdel Rahman's<followers and secretly record hours of their conversations.@Prosecutors say Sheik Omar, an Egyptian cleric, was a spiritualBleader who instructed his followers to wage a war of urban terror>against the United States to change its Middle East policies.>Prosecutors say part of that plan included the bombing of the@World Trade Center and a plan to assassinate Egyptian president#Hosni Mubarak in New York in 1991.?   Defense attorneys are planning to attack the credibility ofAMr. Salem and the tapes, when they begin their cross-examination"of Mr. Salem, expected next week.   ---------------   ---------------:   ANTI-CRIME MEASURES IN U.S. IMPOSE MANDATORY SENTENCES   STUART GORIN   WASHINGTONA   veryone growing up in America knows from an early age that in>the popular game of baseball, it is "three strikes and you'reout."B   Applying this sports analogy to the nation's criminal violenceBproblem, a number of state governments and the U.S. Congress have:passed new, tough anti-crime "three strikes" legislation.B   At the federal level, the measure is part of the massive crime?bill that President Clinton signed into law in September 1994.BIt requires mandatory life imprisonment for anyone convicted in a=federal court of a violent or drug related crime who has two@prior convictions, even if they were at a state court level and=were for simple property crimes. Clinton said it offered the3country a way to be "tough and smart" about crime.B   The measures differ at various state levels, where the maximumBsentences can range from 30 years to life in prison.  Legislation@in such states as Virginia, Connecticut and Florida ensure that@only violent felons will face the maximum sentence.  WashingtonAstate, California and Wisconsin, however, are among states which=will give the maximum sentence to those convicted earlier ofAproperty and/or drug offenses. About 20 states have some form of@"three strikes" legislation, and several others are consideringit.@   While the measures have large popular support throughout the@United States, there are still expressions of concern that theyare not solving the problem.@   One such opponent, Congressman Kweisi Mfume, said it is "badApublic policy" that will increase the nation's prison population@at a time when "we can't build the prisons fast enough to house<new convicts."  His alternative suggestion is to place moreBemphasis on education as a deterrent to crime and to provide drug0addicts with treatment, not just incarceration.:   However, Congressman Bob Livingston, a "three strikes"@legislation supporter, said the nation's "revolving-door prison=system is a disgrace" and "victims' rights must come first.";   In 1993, Washington state started the national trend by?adopting the first such measure.  A year earlier, that state'sBlegislature bottled up a proposal which then failed to get on the@election ballot. Subsequently, however, with the active support;of the National Rifle Association, it received the largest8positive vote of any initiative in the state's history.A   Approved by 75 percent of the voters in Washington state, the@measure covers about 40 different felonies, ranging from murder;to attempted second degree assault.  The law mandates lifeAsentences without parole for felons convicted of a third serious@crime.  Opponents argue, however, that the overall impact won'tAshow up for another 10 or 20 years, when prisoners who otherwiseAwould have been released after serving time remain incarcerated.<   More than a dozen other states instituted "three strike"Alegislation in 1994, including California, where the law doubles>the sentence for crimes of violence and triples or imposes 256years to life for anyone convicted of a third felony.B   California Governor Pete Wilson, who campaigned strenuously inBits behalf, said it is the "toughest and most sweeping crime bill>in California history."  Speaking on its first anniversary inAMarch 1995, the governor said he is "convinced that the value of?three strikes is that it has made the people of California far8safer from career criminals, from the minority who do a@disproportionate amount of violence and terrorize our streets."@   Regarding the increased time spent in courts, Wilson said it>is a "necessary expenditure of both time and money....I don'tBthink we ought to be measuring this in terms of money.  The first?duty of a civilized society is to protect innocent people from@crime, and certainly from crimes that are classified as violent=or serious felonies.  And we're talking about people who areknown bad risks."<   In one of the state's most unusual and highly publicized>cases, a man named Jerry Williams who had stolen pizza from a@group of children, had prior convictions for robbery, attempted<robbery, drug possession and unauthorized use of a vehicle.?Wilson said this case "is not simply about stealing a piece of?pizza.  This is about someone who had five felony convictions,#including some very serious ones."B   Terming Williams' "three strikes" conviction a victory for theBpeople of California, State Attorney General Daniel Lungren said:<"This is a thug who has a record of violence in the past --?serious felonies -- who believes that it is okay to go out andterrorize little kids."B   Opposing the sentence, the American Civil Liberties Union said>the punishment did not fit either the crime or his cumulative=record of crimes.  A five year sentence would have been more%"reasonable," the organization said.@   The California State Senate had approved the "three strikes"@legislation by a 4-1 ratio.  California Secretary of State BillAJones, a coauthor of the measure as a state assemblyman, said itBhas "done a good job in beginning to send the signal to criminals>that if they are going to repeat crime they have two choices:?they either have to leave the state or change their behavior.">   The nonpartisan Legislative Analyst's Office in California@conducted a study which found that courts and jails are swampedAwith mostly nonviolent offenders, and that there has been nearly?a total disappearance of plea-bargaining by ex-convicts facing%second and third strike convictions.@   Throughout the United States, prosecutors traditionally have@offered defendants an opportunity to agree to plead guilty to a@lesser charge and accept a lesser punishment in lieu of a court@trial -- thereby saving the government the time and expense and>the opportunity to focus its efforts on cases considered moreimportant.B   But as third-time defendants who face the prospect of 25 years@to life are no longer willing to enter into the plea-bargainingAarrangements that used to settle 90 percent of all felony cases,>there has been a dramatic rise in the backlog of court cases.?   Still, supporters insist that over time the law's deterrent?effect will reduce crime.  And one additional appeal of "three>strikes" is that it is mandatory -- an action which by itself@attaches a sentence to a crime and precludes the possibility of<bias (racial or any other kind) in meting out the sentence.   ---------------   ---------------   ATTACKS ON THE PRESS
   DON HENRY   WASHINGTON@   The American-based Committee to Protect Journalists reported<Wednesday that record numbers of journalists were killed or<jailed around the world in 1994. The group says most of the<murders were deliberate attempts to silence the free press.>   Kati Marton, Hungarian-born chair of the committee, told aAWashington news conference this is the grimmest report in the 10?years the committee has been surveying attacks on journalists.BIronically, she said, things have gotten worse since the cold warended:A   "We've never had such a sorry picture of reporters under fire;in virtually every corner of the globe.  Ethnic strife and>fundamentalism, Islamic fundamentalism, have made reporting a7vastly more dangerous business now, where a great many6supernationalist leaders see reporters as the enemy.";   The survey shows a record 72 journalists killed and 173:imprisoned during 1994, plus about 450 other incidents of+harassment, censorship or legal reprisals.?   William Orme, executive director of the committee, says theBkillings generally were not the result of a reporter accidentally.stepping into crossfire between armed rivals:B   "Most of the journalists who die on the job are not accidents.AThey're not casualties.  They are not people who are assigned toBwars who run over land mines in their jeeps.  They are targets of%deliberate political assassination."=   He says all but 14 of the 72 documented murder cases weredeliberate assassinations.<   The survey says Algeria was the most dangerous place for>reporters, with 19 murders of journalists last year, and five<more already this year.  It says at least 14 reporters wereassassinated in Rwanda.B   The committee says Turkish authorities jailed 74 reporters and;editors, the largest number of imprisoned journalists ever?recorded in the survey in any country.  T said most related to9coverage or attempted coverage of the Kurdish separatist
movement.3   Six journalists were killed covering the war inBBosnia-Herzegovina last year.  The committee says the total of 45@reporters killed since 1991 in the former Yugoslavia makes thatBthe most dangerous conflict since Vietnam for war correspondents.>   The committee says actions against journalists usually are>aimed at silencing any views critical of religious and ethnicrebels or governments.?   It vows to keep bringing public attention to attacks on the7press, and urges governments to release all imprisoned
journalists.   ---------------   ---------------D   MIAMI SCHOOL FOR CUBAN CHILDREN FROM GUANTANAMO BAY REFUGEE CAMP   JIM TEEPLE	   MIAMI?   The Roman Catholic Church's Miami archdiocese is setting up@temporary schools in Miami for Cuban children arriving from the@U.S. navy base at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba. The program is aimed at=helping children from Guantanamo adjust to life in their new	country.B   About sixty students from Guantanamo Bay began their schooling=this week at the immaculate conception Parish in the Hialeah=section of Miami.  Father Gustavo Miyares, the pastor of the;Hialeah Parish says above all the children need stability:>   "In the past year they have gone from living in Cuba under>trying situations and circumstances where there was a lack of7practically everything to being on a raft, to being inAGuantanamo, and now they find themselves in Miami.  That is four?big changes, for any person, but it is very disruptive for the@life of a child to go through all those changes in such a shortperiod of time."B   The program hopes to help more than one-thousand children  who@have been held in camps at the U.S. navy base at Guantanamo BayBfor more than six months and are now being brought to Miami. Most>have received little formal schooling and are not prepared to&enter the Miami public school system.A   The archdiocese of Miami decided temporary schools are needed7where the children will receive basic English lessons,@psychological counseling and other lessons which will help them@adjust to life in the United States. They are to be enrolled at?what are being called Varela centers, named for a Cuban priest>who worked with immigrant children in New York in the 1800's.?   Father Miyares says the program will run until August, when<the children should be ready to enter Miami's public schoolsystem.;   The project receives no support from either the federal;government or the state of Florida and depends entirely onAvolunteers.  The Varela centers will be located in Parish halls,:former convents or empty classrooms of parochial schools.?   Almost all of the children at Guantanamo Bay will be in the=United States by the month of may, so project organizers sayAtheir biggest challenge is to find enough volunteers to help the@children.  They say if the program succeeds they hope it can beAexpanded to help children currently held at a camp in the CaymanBIslands, or even children who arrive in Miami directly from Cuba.   ---------------   ---------------;   DEBATE OVER PARTICIPATION OF WOMEN IN THE CATHOLIC MASS   TERRI KEEFE   WASHINGTONA   A group of Roman Catholics in suburban Washington, angry thatBthe Arlington Diocese will not permit girls to serve at the altar?during mass, has called for a boycott of the diocese-sponsoredAcharity drive for lent. The Arlington Diocese is one of only twoAin the nation that continues to bar girls from assisting priests>during mass.  Last spring, Pope John Paul II ruled that girls@could share in a role traditionally restricted to boys, leaving@it to the bishops to determine if they would do so.  But if theAissue of whether girls should help at mass is controversial, theBquestion of whether women should say the mass is nothing short of=revolutionary to the Vatican.  Change is coming for CatholicBwomen, but as Terri Keefe reports, the door to ordination remainsshut:@   Religion experts say the nation's bishops are caught between?the male-dominated Vatican and the American laity who, for the,most part, favor expanded rights for women.=   Father Andrew Greeley, an author, priest and sociologist,:supports the ordination of women, a position he says mostAmericans share:B   "The survey data show that two out of three American Catholics;want women priests.  They don't get to vote on it and they?probably shouldn't, but it does indicate that the position I'm?taking is really that of the overwhelming majority of American@Catholics. They are angry at what seems to be the church's lackof respect for women."?   Citing a poll conducted by the Gallup organization in 1992,:Father Greeley says support for women priests has shown a@striking increase since 1974, when less then one-third of thoseBsurveyed favored it. Pope John Paul may have thought he ended the=debate about female priests when he issued a letter last May>reaffirming an earlier Vatican ban on women priests.  But the>papal letter, far from being the final word on the issue, has7reignited long-standing discussions about women in the>priesthood.  Last fall, guards ejected American nuns from St.<Peter's square in Rome during a protest in favor of women's?ordination.  The Catholic church always has insisted it has no@authority to ordain women as priests because Jesus Christ choseonly men as his apostles.7   This argument infuriates Ruth Fitzpatrick, National3Coordinator for the Women's Ordination Conference:B   "I personally do not believe that anybody can read the mind of=Jesus Christ.  I do not believe, no matter who says it, that@Jesus did not intend to have women priests.  Jesus did not even@know that there were going to be such as thing as male priests,=so when somebody says Jesus doesn't want women priests, it's'like, how do we read the mind of god?"?   Catholic feminists such as Ruth Fitzpatrick contend that in:choosing the 12 apostles, Christ was merely following theAcultural norms of his time.  Two thousand years later, they say,Bthe church should accept the modern notion that women deserve the>same respect and treatment as men.  But the image of a female9priest at the altar troubles some traditional Catholics.>   Helen Hall Hitchcock, founder of the St. Louis-based groupBWomen for Faith and Family, says those who advocate women priests:are what she calls "radical feminists", out of touch withmainstream Catholics:B   "If we are saying that women and men should be interchangeable?and that they have identical roles, then you might as well sayAthat it's unfair to men that they are not allowed to be mothers.>I mean, it's preposterous.  People may not understand what is>going on at a Catholic mass.  In the protestant churches, the@minister has always been a leader chosen from among a communityBof people to lead prayer and worship and so on.  And it could be,;theoretically, it could be anybody.  But that's not what a:Catholic priest does.  What a Catholic priest is doing is5representing the sacrifice of Christ at every mass.">   Nevertheless, according to Ruth Fitzpatrick of the Women's?Ordination conference, there is no theological reason a female@priest cannot reenact the sacrifice of Christ.  Ms. Fitzpatrick@says in 1976, a panel of biblical scholars commissioned by Pope@Paul VI determined there is nothing in the bible that prohibits@ordaining women.  The Anglican cHurch, she says, cited the same?pontifical study when it voted to ordain women last year.  ButARuth Fitzpatrick says the Vatican suppressed the panel's finding=twenty years ago and remains intransigent about the all-malepriesthood today:<   "The Pope is going to go to his grave, this one, adamant?against women priests.  But in one way, he's done a very greatBservice to the church.  His negative attitude toward women church9has increased the study, has increased the analysis, has?increased the conversation. Why is it that in the last fifteen<years, two popes have felt it necessary to come out adamantBagainst the ordination of women?  It means to me, and to a lot of1other people, that it's right on the threshold."?   Whether the priesthood will be within the reach of women in<the near future is unclear.  What is clear is that the U.S.=Catholic church has acknowledged sexism within its ranks and>taken steps to address it.  In November, the nation's bishops;overwhelmingly approved a document urging females to enter;traditionally male-dominated fields, such as canon law andAtheology.  Sister Sharon Euart, the highest ranking woman in theANational Conference of Catholic Bishops, says she believes womenBare advancing in the church.  But she also says the importance of;the ordination debate has been overplayed by feminists andtraditionalists alike.B   Women are not abandoning their faith, Sister Sharon says, just$because they cannot become priests:9   "There are many women who would like to see a greater=involvement on the part of women in the church and there are@others who would like to see that involvement be the ordination?of women.  So, it depends on what your perspective is, whetherAthe goal is involvement or the goal is ordination.  I think with;more people, it's involvement.  And while many would favorBordination, I don't think it is something that would keep a large>number of women from becoming involved in the church in otherways."B   According to Sharon Euart, most lay and religious women in the>church are proud and happy to be catholic.  And that seems to?apply to Ruth Fitzpatrick as well, even though she has been an;outspoken advocate for women's ordination for the past twoAdecades.  All the while, ms. Fitzpatrick has seen other women inBother religions attain the right she wants for her church.  Women<serve as episcopal priests, protestant ministers and Jewish8rabbis.  Several of her feminist colleagues have become>discouraged and decided they could serve god only outside theCatholic church.>   But when asked why she doesn't join them, Ruth Fitzpatrick0says the church is too much a part of her life:A   "I just happen to be Irish Roman Catholic and I wake up every>morning and I say, 'i am the church; where would i leave to?'Anow when other people can do that, that's fine.  You know, I cryBa little bit and I grieve. They phone us and say, 'we're leaving'>and I understand that.  But I also have a very strong feeling>from Vatican II, and a lot of us do, that  we are the church,?this is our church and as long as I can stay and help work and9struggle to make things better, that's where I will be.";   Ruth Fitzpatrick is national coordinator of the women's>ordination conference, an international movement committed to:seeing women become priests. Complicating the theologicalAquestion of whether women should be ordained is a practical one,=the severe shortage of priests in America.  Nationally, a 40>percent decrease in the number of active, diocesan priests is?projected into the next century.  Some theologians say that inBits effort to preserve an all-male clergy, the Catholic Church iscreating priestless Parishes.   ---------------   ---------------A   KEY TESTIMONY FROM INFORMANT IN N.Y. BOMBING CONSPIRACY TRIAL   CHRIS SIMKINS   NEW YORK9   Key testimony from Emad Salem, the controversial U.S.@government informant, continued Wednesday in the trial of Sheik?Omar Abdel Rahman and 10 Others.  Mr. Salem answered questions=about the alleged conspiracy that accuses Sheik Omar and his2followers of plotting to bomb New York landmarks.@   Emad Salem, the U.S. Government's informant told jurors moreBabout his secretly tape recorded conversation with Siddig Ibrahim>Siddig Ali, a key figure in the alleged plot to bomb New York@landmarks and assassinate political leaders.  Last month Siddig:Ali pleaded guilty to the terrorism charges and agreed tocooperate with the government.@   In his fifth day of testimony Mr. Salem, who was hired as anAinformant by the Federal Bureau of Investigation, testified that?he secretly videotaped Siddig Ali and several other defendants@allegedly mixing ingredients used to make a bomb.  The incident@occurred in a so-called "safe house" garage in queens, New York@in June of 1993.  The tape was made four months after the World>Trade Center bombing and days before police raided the house.BProsecutors say the tape also contains discussions about possible@assassinations and plans to bomb other New York City locations.?   Emad Salem was able to infiltrate Sheik Omar Abdel Rahman's@followers and secretly record 150 hours of their conversations.;Sheik Omar and 10 others are charged with plotting to bombBseveral New York landmarks including the United Nations building.9   Prosecutors say sheik omar, an Egyptian cleric, was a?spiritual leader who instructed his followers to wage a war ofAurban terror against the United States to change its Middle EastApolicies. Prosecutors say part of that plan included the bombingBof the World Trade Center two years ago and a plan to assassinate6Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak in New York in 1991.@   On Thursday, government prosecutors plan to read transcriptsBtaken from conversation between Mr. Salem and sheik omar. Lawyers=will also present transcripts from a videotape taken by Emad<Salem.  On the video, Siddig Ali is seen driving through anAunderground highway tunnel talking about how the tunnel would be@flooded once the bomb exploded.  So far, the tapes have been an<important part of the government's case against most of thedefendants.@   Defense attorneys say they plan to attack the credibility of=Mr. Salem and the tapes, by showing that FBI agents had very?little control over the methods he used in making more than 60?clandestine tapes. They also want to show he entrapped some of;the defendants.  Defense attorneys plan to pick up on that>argument when they begin their cross-examination of Mr. Salemnext week.   ---------------   ---------------%   YALE RETURNS $20 MILLION DONATION   MONA GHUNEIM   NEW YORK<   Yale University, in the eastern state of Connecticut, is>returning a 20 million dollar gift donated by a wealthy Texas<businessman.  The decision to return the money has prompted?debate over issues concerning the state of higher education inthe United States.:   Yale University has announced that it will give back aBdonation of 20 million dollars to alumnus Lee Bass because it wasBunable to work out a mutually satisfactory academic program.   In<1991, Mr. Bass donated the money with the request that Yale@expand its western civilization curriculum.  Mr. Bass has asked:for his money back because Yale never implemented the newBcourses.  The decision to return the money became final when yaleArefused Mr. Bass's latest request: That he be allowed to approve!faculty members for the courses.?   The stipulations made by Mr. Bass have brought to light two:on-going debates in American higher education.  The firstBconcerns courses reflecting the contributions of the world's manyAcultures.  There is a growing demand for those courses, although5some Americans feel they diminish studies of western>civilization.  The second debate concerns questions about how>much power a donor should have over the administration of themoney.B   Yale spokesman gary fryer says control of faculty appointments?was a key issue.   Mr. Bass's request for the right to approveBcertain appointments meant that someone outside of the university?would have authority over the faculty, and that, says the yale%spokesman, was impossible to accept.B   David Merkowitz of the American council on education says that?although donors have a right to channel their money where they=want, most institutions would have made the same decision asYale:B   "I think most institutions would draw the line in terms of theAdonor actually selecting faculty or selecting curriculum.  It is<not at all unusual for a donor to stipulate the use of that:money.  However, the involvement of a donor in the actualAadministration of that gift,  in other words choosing professors<or books in the curriculum,  would be a violation of normalacademic principles."B   Yale administrators believe that Mr. Bass would not have asked9to approve faculty appointments had they not delayed the@implementation of the western civilization courses.  UniversityBspokesman Gary Fryer says the four-year delay at yale was neither=political nor ideological, but rather stemmed from practicalBproblems.  The university, he says, was dealing with a succession<of three presidents within the past four years and ran into@problems with the program.  Nonetheless, the delay gave rise toBdebate over courses on multiculturalism and western civilization.A   Mr. Merkowitz of the American Council on Education, a privateBhigher education organization, says such debate is healthy for anBinstitution, but that educators should realize and accept changes2in curriculum, according to changes in the world:A   "The time is long past when we can consider somebody educated>who has only been exposed in a very narrow way to American orBWestern European cultures, literatures and languages.  Curriculum?is not a static thing.  It is a constantly evolving thing that=reflects changes in academic life, changes in knowledge, new1fields of study, new developments in the world."=   Conservative critics say efforts are underway in American?colleges to diminish and distort western civilization courses.AHowever, Mr. Merkowitz says that Yale University,  with over 100Acourses in traditional western civilization,  is in no danger of@losing its western grounding.  He says reports of the demise of>the teaching of western civilization in American colleges are9greatly exaggerated.  He believes that teaching is still>dominated by western civilization courses but that the debate<over multiculturalism forces universities to focus on theireducational mission.   ---------------   ---------------'   "OUT OF IRELAND": COMING TO AMERICA   KEMING KUO   WASHINGTON>   More than 40 million Americans trace their ancestry to theBcountry of Ireland.  During the month of march, and especially on?the seventeenth, St. Patrick's Day,  most Irish Americans take>time to reflect on their ancestral home and culture.  Special<attention is often given to earlier Irish immigrants in the?United States whose triumphs and tragedies more than a century>ago formed the basis of the success for future generations ofIrish Americans.@   A new film, "Out of Ireland," tells the story of some of the>seven million Irish men and women who emigrated to the United;States. Filmmakers Paul and Ellen Wagner used letters, old:photographs, interviews and music in their feature-length
documentary.:   The story of the Irish coming to the United States has=particular significance this year because it marks the 150th:anniversary of the so-called "Ireland potato famine", the@principal stimulus of Irish-American immigration.  In just fiveAyears, beginning in 1845, more than one-point-five million Irish5citizens made the ocean journey across the Atlantic.A   After they arrived in the United States, the Irish set out to?find work.  But filmmaker Paul Wagner says the impression that>new Irish immigrants only settled in large, eastern cities is!wrong; many headed further west.>   Indeed, as Mr. Wagner explains, the American city with the>largest percentage of Irish immigrants among its residents is?Butte [pron.: Byoot], Montana, a northern state crossed by therocky mountains:>   "It's indicative of a large population of Irish people who@settled not in Boston or New York or Chicago or Pittsburgh, but:in smaller towns.  Now they did tend to gravitate towards?industrial occupations.  But many of those jobs were in mining7camps, lumber camps, [and] railroad work, building theAtranscontinental railroad. All those occupations attracted largenumbers of Irish people."4   Paul Wagner says another common misconception of?Irish-American  immigration is that most of the newcomers wereAmen.  In fact, he says that, of all the U.S. immigrant groups in?the past two centuries, the Irish were the only group in whichwomen outnumbered men:>   "The men tended to go into very difficult industrial jobs,<very hazardous jobs and low-paying, very transient types of@labor.  The women went into a category of work we may look downAupon today.  But at the time, it was actually a pretty good job:@As domestic servants.  They had some stability.  They had theirBroom, clothing and board often paid for by the employer. And they>received a small stipend.  Many of them saved a lot of money,Adonated it to the Catholic church and social service agencies in=America, and, of course, sent large amounts of money back to
Ireland."A   Among the most touching portions of the film "Out of Ireland"<are the readings of letters from the new immigrants sent torelatives back home.?   For "Out of Ireland" co-producer Ellen Wagner, an importantApart of her film is the explanation of the formidable challenges5the new Irish immigrants faced in the United States:B   "I think the most striking thing in general about the story of<the Irish in America is that many people are unaware of the@extreme hardship and prejudice that they faced when they got to>this country.  They were at the bottom of the social-economicArung.  The story of their journey upward in America is really anastonishing one.";   The abuse and exploitation of early Irish immigrants is>dramatically described in the film by historian Dennis Clark:B   "When the diggers of the canals wanted to get a labor force to9build the Chesapeake Canal in Virginia, they went to the8plantation owners and said, 'rent us your slaves!'  the@plantation owners said, 'no way!  These slaves are worth money!AGet Irishmen!  If they die, there's no monetary loss, these wereApeople who got up every morning and went to very, very laboriousAtasks, whether they were women servants or whether they were menBwho worked in steel mills, these were men who were subject to the:most fierce exploitation at a time when capitalism had no9governors and had no constraints upon it in the mid-19th
century."A   Researching the experiences of Irish immigrants in the United=States and Ireland had special poignancy for filmmaker Ellen1Wagner, whose ancestry is almost entirely Irish:>   "When we were doing some filming in Ireland, that was when@sometimes we would meet different people and they would be justBdelighted.  They would say, 'i can't believe you're from America.BYou're Irish!'  that was really a neat experience for me to have.@And to feel this immediate sense of familiarity with the people@and the land.  You feel it has to be some ancient tie, and thatwas very special."A   While "Out of Ireland" celebrates the arrival of the Irish in>the United States, co-producer Paul Wagner says his film also:helps other immigrant groups understand the experience ofbecoming an American:B   "In contemporary America we have huge numbers of people coming>here: from Asia, from Latin America, from the Caribbean.  And?it's impossible to understand those people, the needs of thoseBpeople, and the way in which they may affect life in this countryBas they come here as immigrants, unless we study the immigrationsof the past."   ---------------   ---------------@   INFORMANT INTERRUPTED BY SPECTATORS AT N.Y. CONSPIRACY TRAIL   EDIE SMITH   NEW YORK=   There were some dramatic moments Monday at the conspiracyBtrial of the 11 men accused of plotting a war of terrorism in NewYork City.A   As the controversial government informant Emad Salem answered@questions about the alleged conspiracy to murder some prominentApeople and blow up New York landmarks,  a spectator in the court?room shouted 'this man is a liar.'  The spectator, a young man@wearing a white Middle Eastern style hat, but otherwise western@dress, then quickly left the courtroom and the trial continued.=This rare interruption, in front of the jury, in the heavily?guarded court room came as the government witness identified a>silver pistol, he said he was given in a mosque frequented byAfollowers of Sheik Omar Abdel Rahman.  The government says Sheik:Omar instructed his followers to carry out a war of urbanterrorism.@   A few minutes earlier, the government witness had identifiedAone of the defendants, Clement Hampton-El, as a man known to himAas Abdel Rashid, who Mr. Salem said, had agreed to try to supplyhim with a handgun.>   During his testimony,  Mr. Salem said he had been asked in@1992 by some of the defendants to buy parts for 12 bombs.  ThisBwas months before the 1993 bombing in New York of the World Trade;Center.  Four men have been convicted of carrying out that;bombing, but the government says it was part of the war of3terrorism planned by the defendants in this trial.A   Egyptian-born, Emad Salem is controversial in part because he@admits he has in the past repeatedly lied about his background.BIn addition, although he was hired as an informant by the FederalABureau of Investigation in 1991.  He was dismissed by the FBI inA1992.  He was then rehired after the world trade center bombing,2with the promise of more than one million dollars:   in his testimony Mr. Salem became a bit agitated as he=described the disagreements that lead to his 1992 dismissal.BAlthough the defense attorneys are expected to try to prove laterAthat he was fired because he failed a lie detector test, he saysBhe was dismissed because he refused to testify in court about theplans to build the 12 bombs.?   In his testimony Emad Salem says this disagreement with the=FBI agents led him to make secret tape recordings of all his9telephone conversations.  He said when he was rehired heAcontinued the taping, he said to protect himself, because he was@afraid he would be accused of participating in the Trade Center	bombing.B   These tapes and those Mr. Salem made at the request of the FBI?are expected to be essential to the arguments of both sides in+the coming months as this trial continues.   ---------------   ---------------   INVENTOR JEROME LEMELSON   PAUL FRANCUCH   CHICAGO@   Jerome Lemelson is an inventor with more U.S. patents to his<name than any American, short of Thomas Edison and Polaroid;camera inventor Edwin Land.  Mr. Lemelson has patented the<technology for items ranging from the Sony walkman cassetteBplayer to bar code scanners.  He is now focusing his attention on7rekindling the inventive spirit among young Americans.A   With all of the inventions for which he holds patents, Jerome=Lemelson has become a very wealthy man.  But the 71-year-oldBinventor remains unassuming in appearance and continues coming upwith new product ideas:=   "I look for things that don't work right. Not necessarily@things that don't work right but things that are not working as,efficiently as they could work for people."A   He started inventing things back in the 1940s, trying to comeAup with items like an illuminated tongue depressor which he made?for his father, who was a physician.  Mr. Lemelson then turnedAhis attention to inventing toys and games and eventually to moresophisticated products:<   "I think the process is primarily to see a problem as it@exists.  Just by way of example, many, many years ago I got the;idea of being able to carry a telephone around, preferablyBsomething very portable in your pocket and not tied-in by wire to>an outlet.  And from that idea, which I thought would be very<useful to businessmen and people in the home, came a patent@issued to me in the early 1960s for what was probably the firstcordless telephone."B   Inventor Jerome Lemelson has spent a lot of time in courtroomsAbattling big corporations which he charged had stolen his ideas.BHe's both won and lost big legal fights, a daunting reality which>all inventors face.  But he believes there is a bright futureAahead for independent inventors.  To back up that optimism, bothBhe and his wife, dorothy, have contributed much of their personal=fortune to colleges, universities and other organizations toBestablish programs to stimulate the spirit of innovation.  At the@Massachusetts Institute of Technology alone, the Lemelsons haveBcontributed six-and-a-half million dollars to endow a professor's@chair, provide student fellowships and award prizes for student<inventions.  On March 29th, MIT will award the first annual@half-million dollar Lemelson innovation prize, the largest ever+given in the United States for inventions.A   "I'd like this to be something like a cross or combination ofBlet's say the Nobel Prize and the Pulitzer Prize.  My main object?here is to get people enthusiastic about invention, innovation;and technology, to know more about it and to recognize our0inventors for what they contribute to society."?   Inventor Jerome Lemelson believes if the United States does<not innovate and produce new products, it will languish andeventually die.?   Mr. Lemelson was in Chicago to receive the "Engineer of the)Year" award from "Design News" magazine.   ---------------   ---------------:   BOSNIAN REACTS COOLLY TO U.S. CALL TO EXTEND CEASEFIRE   DAVID SWAN   PENTAGONA   The Bosnian government has reacted coolly to the U.S. call toBextend a ceasefire with the Serbs, which runs out in May. Bosnian;and Croatian leaders have wrapped up a round of high-levelmeetings in Washington.B   The Clinton Administration is urging all sides to continue the@four-month ceasefire past April, even if the Serbs do not agree;to accept an international peace plan.  Bosnian governmentBofficials say their troops do not plan to launch an offensive may;first, but the formal halt to hostilities should expire asscheduled.B   In Washington, Bosnian vice-president Ejup Ganic says fighting@never stopped at the besieged Muslim enclave of Bihac.  He saysBextending the ceasefire would only encourage the Serbs to hang onto captured territory:>   "And I also ask our friends here "please don't ask us that>anymore."  Because you ask us to sign an agreement, ceasefireBagreement for four  months and you know, you did not deliver what@was promised, no airdrops,  no supply of humanitarian aid so ithas been disastrous."<   Mr. Ganic says airdrops of relief supplies are now badly=needed at Bihac.  The United States and other countries have;pledged tens of millions of dollars in economic aid to theAMuslim-Croat federation, which marked its first anniversary thisweek.>   Defense Secretary William Perry has also pledged to find a?retired American general officer to act as military advisor to@the federation.  The administration is still resisting attempts=to lift the U.S. arms embargo on Bosnia-Herzegovina, to help7government troops even the balance on the battlefield.A   U.S. officials say this would lead to a wider war, perhaps anBall-out Balkan conflict.  Mr. Ganic argues the embargo should endAbecause, as he puts it, diplomacy without force is not diplomacyat all.   ---------------   ---------------C   BRITISH SAY THEIR SUSPECT IRA PLANTED BOMB FOUND HARDWARE STORE   ANDRE DE NESNERA
   LONDONB   British authorities say they suspect the Irish Republican Army@(IRA) may have planted a bomb found in a Northern Ireland store@overnight.  The IRA denies it is responsible.  But the incident>is seen as an embarrassment to Sinn Fein, the IRA's political=wing, as its leader, Gerry Adams, prepares to attend a WhiteHouse reception in Washington.B   The Irish Republican Army has flatly denied any involvement in=planting the bomb which was defused by British soldiers in aAhardware store in Newry, a town in the southern part of Northern9Ireland.  Two anonymous telephone calls alerted security"officials to the bomb's location.?   In a statement, the IRA said it was clearly the work of its?opponents and is aimed at derailing the peace process to which?the IRA is fully committed.  For more than six months now, the=IRA and pro-British paramilitary groups have been respecting<cease-fires which have stirred hopes for a lasting peace inNorthern Ireland.A   Despite the IRA denial, some politicians believe the bomb wasBplanted by that group.  David Trimble is a member of the moderateUlster Unionist Party:>   "There is no doubt of the fact that this was material thatAcame from an IRA  stockpile.  The likelihood is that it was done5by people from the IRA because the RUC (Royal UlsterAConstabulary, local security officials) have advised us that the@construction of the device was similar to devices made and usedby the IRA in the past."@   Senior British government officials say this latest incident@points to the urgent need to discuss as quickly as possible the,issue of disarming all paramilitary groups.   ---------------   ---------------5   BRITISH REACTIONS TO GERRY ADAMS TRIP TO THE U.S.   ANDRE DE NESNERA
   LONDONA   British government officials and many politicians continue to=be infuriated at the Washington reception given Gerry Adams,8president of Sinn Fein, the political wing of the IrishRepublican Army.@   Many analysts here say the welcome given Sinn Fein presidentBGerry Adams in Washington is out of proportion with the politicalBclout he has either in Northern Ireland or in the Irish republic.@These analysts point to the fact that Sinn Fein received only a<little more than 10 percent of the votes in the most recentAelections in Northern Ireland (several years ago), and less than two percent in Ireland, itself.<   Many conservative politicians and lawmakers representing?protestant constituencies in Northern Ireland find it alarming=that Mr. Adams is portrayed in the United States as a man of?peace since his organization, Sinn Fein, is intricately linked;with the terrorist group, the Irish Republican Army (IRA).B   Ulster politician James Kilfedder stressed that point during aArecent parliamentary debate on Northern Ireland (in the house of
commons):B   "Is it not sickening that the head of Sinn Fein, the political<wing of the IRA, should describe himself as a man of peace,Bunless, of course, he is referring to the fact that his terrorist=organization has been responsible for sending countless men,/women and children to the peace of the grave."=   Pro-British unionist politicians, those who want northern;Ireland to remain within the United Kingdom, see PresidentAClinton's meetings with gerry Adams as interference in Britain'sinternal affairs.@   Ian Paisley, Jr., of the hardline Democratic Unionist Party,Atold British television Mr. Clinton's decision to greet the SinnAFein leader is indicative of American foreign policy as a whole::   "This is quite typical of the American involvement andAinterventionist process throughout the world where they come in,Athey sprinkle their Walt Disney-like fairydust across the actual<political situation and then move to the next situation not>caring about the result they leave on the ground, in the area"they have just been involved in."9   The strong anti-Clinton statements by politicians andAcommentators here indicate just how sensitive the whole issue ofpeace in Northern Ireland is.@   Bernard Ingham, spokesman for former Prime Minister MargaretAThatcher and now a political commentator, says President ClintonAhas not helped the peace process one bit by meeting Gerry Adams:;   "The whole adulation of a terrorist frontman in my view>sickens me.  It sickens me terribly because it ought never to>have occurred.  Any responsible senior politician should have;ensured that they (the IRA) demilitarize and hand in their>arsenal.  He (adams) hasn't done so (handed in weapons).  AndAthere is  no guarantee that they will do so, but in the meantimeBthey can raise funds, as they have done so, for armaments before.?They say they will not use them again but we have no guaranteeBthat they will not return to the gun and the bullet.  Here he is,;he (adams) is allowed to go on raising money in the UnitedBStates.  Words fail me at the sheer irresponsibility of President
Clinton.";   That view is echoed by James Cran, a conservative party=lawmaker and an expert on issues affecting Northern Ireland:?   "We do not expect our closest ally to interfere in a mannerBthat we think is unhelpful on a matter which affects our domestic<interests.  And after all, if a British prime minister were<allied, let's say, with one of the governors of one of yourAstates on a particular issue, I think we would find very quickly=that the American president would tell us where to get off."A   Mr. Cran encapsulated the overall reaction of the Gerry Adams?visit to the United States by saying, we are very irritated on?this side of the atlantic and expect better treatment from ourclosest ally.   ---------------   ---------------   CENTRAL ASIA ELECTIONS   ALI JALALI   WASHINGTON?   Kazakhstan President Nursultan Nazarbaev recently dissolved>the legislature and concentrated all power in his hands.  His9action followed a constitutional court decision that the=post-Soviet parliamentary elections last March were illegal.<   Most deputies of the disbanded kAzakh parliament say theApresident's decision will lead Kazakhstan to an autocratic rule.@Mr. Nazarbaev declares he will not be a dictator and that humanBrights will be observed.  He also promised to hold new elections.;   International observers say there are positive signs in@Kazakhstan.  American elections expert Linda Edgeworth says newBelections may provide an opportunity to correct some of the flaws#that inhibited the vote last year:@   "If there is a positive side it is perhaps we have noticed aBsignificant step toward follow through on the independence of the<constitutional court and the willingness for rule of law toBprevail.  In terms of the next immediate moves, it will be in theBhands of the president.  Of great concern is whether a new decree8or adjustment of the parliamentary election law will be?accomplished before the next election is called to replace the&entire parliament in a new election."@   Supporters of President Nazarbaev won a sweeping majority inAthe first elections after independence but the voting procedureswere challenged.7   International observers criticized the concept of a<"presidential list" that enabled the president to hand-pick>nearly 24 percent of the 177 members legislature.  There were>also criticisms about the complicated process for registering@parties and candidates and about voting procedures that allowed=individuals to cast ballots for several voters and families.@   Regional analysts say the pace of democratization in Central>Asia has been affected by fears that rapid change may promote'ethnic strife and social displacement.B   During the past year, four of the five former Soviet republics?of the region held their first post-independence parliamentaryelections.@   In a recent meeting in Washington, election specialists fromBan American non-government organization, International Foundation>for Electoral System (IFES), commented on electoral reform inCentral Asia.A   Dan Blessington said the legal framework and public awarenessAof democratic procedures is one of the principle areas that needto be improved in the region:A   "I think that basically the laws that are on the books...With<respect to elections, are inadequate.  They don't set forthApeople's rights in an especially clear manner and the proceduresAare not always definitive. So you have that situation.  You also=have, in addition to that, a public who (that) is unfamiliar@largely with true democracy, with basic democratic concepts andpractices."@   Catherine Barness says the IFES is trying to help people andAtheir governments in the region to institutionalize the election	process.@   International observers say that during the recent elections<in Uzbekistan and Tajikistan, the lack of political will to;implement certain democratic procedures has contributed to=excessive intrusion of partisan government influences on theAelection process.  Particularly, the absence of a free press and.a campaign devoid of issues. Was regrettable.A   IFES consultant Linda Edgeworth says it will be difficult forBelection processes to be measured favorably against international9standards as long as political opposition is suppressed:@   "In considering any work in Uzbekistan, it will be important?to consider strategies that focus on programs that nurture the;building of democratic institutions rather than "drop-in",?"band-aid" (outside mandated) projects.  A review of the legalAframework would be beneficial.  It is clear that much work needs8to be done to refine the restrictive laws which inhibit@meaningful political opposition.  The law on public associationAunder which political parties are registered currently gives the;state undue authority to control, limit or shut down their@activities. Technical assistance would be beneficial in helpingBto alleviate problems with regard to campaign financing and state@control over the content of candidate campaigns and coverage bythe media."B   Analysts say democratic reform in Central Asia is fraught with?competing challenges on social and economic fronts.  They say,?education programs should aim for long-term results instead of8attempting to bring about immediate textbook solutions.   ---------------   ---------------5   CONVENTIONAL FORCES IN EUROPE TREATY UNDER STRAIN   MAXIM KNIAZKOV   WASHINGTON6   A shadow was cast over the five-year old treaty onAConventional Forces in Europe, or CFE, late last month, when theAleader of the former Soviet republic of Belarus announced he was<suspending implementation of the accord.  Belarus President<Alexander Lukashenko said his country had stopped scrappingAtanks, armored vehicles and artillery pieces in response to NATO@plans to expand to the east.  The announcement, which came amid@persistent attempts by Russia to renegotiate key clauses of the@treaty, caused significant concern in the west, which views the@CFE agreement as a bulwark of the present security structure inEurope.A   Belarus so far is the only one of the treaty's 30 signatoriesAto announce a suspension of its weapons destruction program. But6U.S. officials realize the move reflects a much wider=dissatisfaction with the treaty in the increasingly unstable+region that once made up the Soviet Union.@   Michael Guhin, deputy assistant director of the Arms Control8and Disarmament Agency, says Russia is also voicing its7objections to weapons limits imposed by the agreement:?   "The Russian flank concern is another concern that is beingBdiscussed in Vienna at the group that oversees the implementation@of the treaty called the joint consultative group.  It has been>discussed between countries.  And we would expect, as we have>told the Russians, that it is very important for them to find>ways consistent with the treaty that would allow them to meettheir perceived concerns.":   Moscow's chief argument is that Europe's political andAmilitary landscape has changed so dramatically since the signingBof the accord, that some of its provisions have come to undermineARussia's security.  Vladimir Bashkirov, counselor at the Russian<embassy in Washington in charge of disarmament issues, says?Russia is particularly concerned by what it sees as inadequateBtroop strength in the northern and southern parts of the country:A   "The collapse of the Soviet Union has drastically altered the?configuration of Russia.  And that in turn has stripped limitsAand balances outlined by the c-f-e treaty of their political andBmilitary meaning.  The flank problem is the most stark example of:the absurdity of the current situation.  Just look at the>figures. The treaty allows the Russian military to have aboutA11-and-a-half thousand armored vehicles.  At the same time, only<580 armored vehicles can be deployed in the so-called flank>regions, that is in the Leningrad and North Caucasus military<districts.  But if you look at the size of those districts,;you'll see that they constitute nearly a third of Russia's@territory.  This situation defies sheer common sense, let alonebasic military criteria."9   This concern evidently is not shared by Russia's waryAneighbors, who would like to preserve the current limits and are=pulling out all stops to prevent a treaty revision, a stanceBessentially supported by major western nations.  But this ongoing9tug-of-war makes for an accord that approaches its fifth9anniversary under a severe strain, its future clouded by
uncertainty.@   It took arms negotiators 17 grueling years to put together a>mutually acceptable document that paved the way for a gradual?process of conventional disarmament in Europe.  After years ofAvirtual stalemate, the Vienna talks received a powerful boost in9the late 1980s, when the new reformist Soviet leadership9displayed a sincere interest in defusing tensions on the;continent.  The treaty imposing strict numerical limits onAconventional forces and armaments of each major European country;was finally signed in 1990, only to be undercut by the theBdissolution of the Soviet Union a year later.  Diplomats and arms;experts rushed back to the bargaining table, scrambling to9incorporate into the treaty the newly-born countries and@renegotiate arms limits.  By mid-1992, they produced a revampedBaccord now signed by 30 states. But the c-f-e treaty continues toAbe challenged by new conflicts and old suspicions that have been;sending tremors throughout Europe over the last few years.9   This fall, says Michael Guhin of the Arms Control andADisarmament Agency, the treaty will approach a crucial benchmark6that will demonstrate whether or not it is capable ofwithstanding the test of time:7   "Those parties have undertaken a number of critical@provisions.  One, of course, is they've undertaken by November,@1995, to have reached certain limits, which they have announced@to each other and which have been established, according to the=treaty.  And by November, 1995, they will have destroyed all=excess equipment so that they will reach these limits in theAareas of application.  This is a major accomplishment in itself.?By November, 1995, there will have been  well over 30 thousand<pieces of equipment [destroyed].  And when I say 'pieces of;equipment,' the categories under the treaty include tanks,>include armored combat vehicles, they include artillery, they?include combat aircraft, and they include attack helicopters."?   It remains to be seen, of course, whether or not all treaty:participants will fully carry out their obligations.  But;officials say the Clinton Administration remains generally@optimistic, and Mr. Guhin has signaled Washington's flexibility?and readiness to address the issues that upset Belarus, Russiaand other member-states:=   "This is a flexible document in the way that it is built.>That certainly, as events continue to evolve, we will need toBaddress those events and we will need to address any implications>that those events could have for the treaty.  But that, as we?have done in the past, I'm optimistic that we will continue to5keep this, and when I say 'we,' again, I mean the 30<states-parties, we will be able to keep this a very viable,-critical cornerstone of security in Europe."9   One positive sign is that the Russians, for all their>criticism of some treaty provisions, seem to be interested in=preserving the agreement as a whole.  That is the impression7given by Russian embassy counselor Vladimir Bashkirov.?   "I think that everybody is interested in preserving the CFE@treaty, all European states and all members of the Organization)for Security and Cooperation in Europe.">   Mr. Bashkirov warns, however, the treaty may be in for yet?another serious test when NATO countries move ahead with theirexpansion plans.   ---------------   ---------------!   NATO MEETING ON BOSNIA CRISIS   JOHN FRAZER   BRUSSELS@   The 15 European Union foreign ministers meet this weekend inBthe southwest French town of Carcassonne to discuss the crisis in:Bosnia, relations with Russia and aid to the third world.<   The most urgent item on the agenda is the attempt by theBFrench, who hold the presidency of the European Union, to convene8a summit of the leaders involved in the Bosnian crisis.?   The Serbian, Bosnian and Croatian presidents will be called?upon at this meeting to agree to mutual recognition and to the>international peace plans for Bosnia and Croatia.  In return,)sanctions against Serbia would be eased.B   There has been agreement in principle to the summit but so farAno firm date has been fixed for it.  This is because the Serbian?president, Slobodan Milosevic, is saying sanctions against hisBcountry must be lifted before the meeting takes place.  This is a6demand that the European Union is refusing to accept.B   The fear is that unless the international peace plan is agreed:to by all parties at a summit, the crisis in Bosnia could<deteriorate.  If an upsurge in fighting were to happen, the?pressure for the withdrawal of the United Nations peacekeepers;might become irresistible.  The conflict could also spreadoutside Bosnia.<   The EU foreign ministers' meeting will also discuss what<incentives may be offered to Croatia to keep United Nationspeace-keepers on its soil.<   A separate debate on Russia will involve a discussion ofAwhether the EU should proceed with a partnership and cooperation=accord with Moscow.  The agreement has been frozen by the 15@foreign ministers as a way of putting pressure on Boris Yeltsin#to resolve the crisis in Chechnya.;   There may also be a more philosophical debate on future%relations between the EU and Russia.:   The foreign ministers will discuss European aid for 70Adeveloping countries.  There will also be a debate on the futureBof European defense cooperation and of the way in which this willAbe handled inside three separate institutions, NATO, the Western#European Union and the EU, itself.>   The aim of the meeting then will be to balance a review of:immediate challenges against a more measured debate about,Europe's long-term foreign policy strategy.   ---------------   ---------------   NORTHERN IRELAND: WEAPONS   ANDRE DE NESNERA
   LONDONB   As the peace process in Northern Ireland gathers momentum, one<of the most difficult issues to resolve is how to make sureAparamilitary groups on both sides never use their weapons again.@Politicians in Britain, Ireland and Northern Ireland are trying9to work out ways acceptable to all parties to ensure the3ceasefires are transformed into a permanent peace.?   Guns have been silent in Northern Ireland for more than six8months now. Ceasefires by the Irish Republican Army and?protestant paramilitary groups have held.  As each day passes,>people in Northern Ireland hope this will lead to a permanent>peace so that they can live their lives without the threat of
violence.8   With the ceasefires in effect, the British and IrishBgovernments have forged ahead with their plans to find a lasting,Bpeaceful solution in Northern Ireland.  After more than two yearsAof discussions, they have finally published what is known as the@framework document. That text is intended to be used as a basis?for discussions between all constitutional parties in Northern	Ireland.@   Many politicians, experts and academics agree there has been>tremendous progress in trying to bring a lasting peace to the@troubled British province. But they also say in order for peace@to be fully established, it is essential for all weapons to be,=as they describe it, decommissioned: A term meaning all arms6should be made useless but not necessarily handed in.?   Both the Irish Republican Army and pro-British paramilitary?groups have substantial arsenals.  Colonel Andrew Duncan, withBLondon's International Institute for Strategic Studies, says most>of the IRA's weapons are hidden in the Irish Republic and are+brought into Northern Ireland when needed:<   "The IRA have rather more sophisticated weapons than theAloyalist paramilitaries. Both obviously have a number of rifles,=machineguns, sub-machineguns, revolvers, that sort of thing,>small arms. But the IRA are known to have some rather heavier;machine guns. They have some surface-to-air missiles, it's=believed, and of course a large stock of semtex explosives.";   For several months now, the British government has been>holding, what it calls, exploratory talks with Sinn Fein, the@political wing of the Irish Republican army. These negotiationsAare intended to bring Sinn Fein fully into the political process:and  are expected to be upgraded, in other words, British<ministers will talk to Sinn Fein as opposed to simply civil
servants.=   However many conservative party lawmakers and politicians>representing the protestant, unionist view say upgraded talks@must not take place before there is substantial progress on theBissue of decommissioning weapons.  Jim Cran, a conservative partyBexpert on Northern Ireland, says that issue is vital to finding a'lasting peace in the British province:B   "The clear fact of the matter is that the peace process cannot@go ahead without the decommissioning of arms simply because the?unionist, protestant politicians will not sit around the tableAwith Sinn Fein, until that process has occurred. And indeed, why@should they? Because they take the view, and indeed the British?government takes it and so do i, that all that would happen if>arms were not decommissioned, is that the mailed fist that isAkept under the negotiating table will be taken out whenever SinnFein/IRA think fit."?   Politicians here and in Northern Ireland say the ceasefires?offer a perfect opportunity to explore, and discuss, sensitive?issues such as the elimination of weapons held by paramilitary@groups.  John Alderdice, leader of the Alliance Party, bringing@together Protestants and Catholics, unionists and nationalists,?says there is a great sense of relief  in the British province;now that guns are silent. But he says there are also vividreminders of the past:A   "There is also the terrible, painful reality that many people?are without limbs, without spouses, without friends because of>bereavement and injury and damage. Many have suffered a greatAdeal and they say, and quite rightly so, if the IRA wants peace,=then why do they hold the weapons of war?  If they truly areBbringing violence to an end, what is the purpose of holding on tothese weapons?"<   The whole issue of decommissioning is taking on an added=dimension given that Sinn Fein president Gerry Adams is on a@fundraising trip to the United States.  During a recent meetingBwith senior U.S. administration officials, Mr. Adams was urged to?begin discussing as quickly as possible with British officialsthe issue of weapons.?   Martin McGuinness, member of Sinn Fein's executive council,@says he believes the decommissioning issue should be broadened:A   "We have accepted that the decommissioning of weapons must be;dealt with. But it must be dealt with in the context of anBoverall peace settlement, and of course it must mean not just the<decommissioning of the IRA's weapons, but unionist weapons,2loyalist weapons and British government weapons."A   Mr. McGuinness made clear Sinn Fein will use its influence onAthe IRA with regards to decommissioning weapons, but only at the>appropriate time.  Being a politician, he did not reveal whenBthat will happen. But as one British lawmaker commented, I am notholding my breath.   ---------------   ---------------8   SLOVAKIA WAITING WORD ON FINANCING FOR NUCLEAR PLANT   BARRY WOOD
   PRAGUE@   A decision on whether a controversial nuclear power plant in=Slovakia will be given western financing is being delayed byBabout two weeks. There is still no consensus among members of theAEuropean Bank for Reconstruction and Development of the project.A   The executive board of the European bank had been expected to?vote on the Mochovce nuclear power plant loan March 21st.  The?London-based bank says because of technical delays the vote is=now expected around the first of april, but that no date for"board consideration has been set.;   The Mochovce project has evoked fierce controversy.  OnBThursday, the European parliament passed a resolution calling for:the project to be delayed until safety concerns have beenBresolved. The European Union commissioner with responsibility for?Mochovce, Yves-Thibault De Silguy, says Slovakia must agree to>close down another, more dangerous nuclear reactor before the5European Union will approve financing for  Mochovce.?   The Mochovce plant, not far from the Austrian and Hungarian<borders, is 80 percent complete.  The Soviet designed power@station, more modern than Chernobyl, was begun a decade ago but>construction stopped when money ran out three years ago.  The@Austrians have led the opposition to Mochovce.  A new member of?the European Union, Austria, is threatening to pull out of theAEuropean bank for reconstruction and development if the loan for;Mochovce is approved.  The EBRD loan would be for over 275>million dollars.  It would be bank's first loan for a nuclear
power plant.A   The Slovaks and French have formed a joint venture company toBcomplete Mochovce and bring it up to western safety standards. An@American company already has arranged to finance the completion9of a similar, Soviet-designed nuclear plant in the Czech
Republic.   ---------------   ---------------*   CROATIAN PRESIDENT TUDJMAN VISITS U.N.   ELAINE JOHANSON   UNITED NATIONS@   Croatia is demanding that the new United Nations force beingBconsidered in the Security Council has a strong enough mandate toBhalt cross-border supplies to its rebel Serbs. Croatian President?Franjo Tudjman visited U.N. headquarters Friday to discuss the<broad parameters of a reduced U.N. presence in his country.=   Briefing reporters on President Tudjman's visit, CroatianAAmbassador Mario Nobilo said the border patrols that are part ofBthe deal must be more aggressive than the U.N. monitors presently*watching traffic on Serbia's Drina River.B   Ambassador Nobilo warned Croatia could not accept a mere tokenBmonitoring that would allow supplies to slip through to its rebelSerbs:@   "If they do not have the power to stop and prevent then they=will be simply sending reports similar to those on the Drina?river.  We are  seeking a much more efficient mechanism on theAdanube and elsewhere when our government is not at this point in!full control of its boundaries."@   Croatia rescinded its decision to evict the U.N. force after@the United States agreed five to six hundred observers would be@deployed on its borders with Serbia and Bosnia.  U.S. officialsAsay the borders would not be sealed militarily.  But the preciseAdefinition of the new operation is still being worked out in theSecurity Council.7   The United States this week submitted several draftBresolutions to the council for its consideration.  The idea is to=break up the U.N. force into separate components for Bosnia,:Macedonia as well as Croatia and to re-write the Croatian-mandate.  Each would have its own commander.@   Croatia says it will insist on having the final say over theAconfiguration and the mission of the new force on its territory.BHowever, Ambassador Nobilo indicated numbers are not critical andAhis government would not object if additional troops are needed.>The current proposal is to cut the force in half to about six@thousand.   Some western diplomats are saying that would not beenough to do the job.;   The crisis over the U.N. presence in Croatia erupted in?January when President Tudjman ordered the peacekeepers out by@March 31st, when their mandate expires.  He accused the U.N. ofAmaking it difficult for Croatia to re-absorb territory which therebel Serbs seized in 1991.A   Croatia also insists that Serbia or the Croatian Serbs do not?have to approve the new plans.  It says all that's expected istheir cooperation.   ---------------   ---------------3   U.N. MAKES NEW ATTEMPT TO DELIVER FOOD TO BIHAC   DOUGLAS ROBERTS
   GENEVAB   The United Nations is making a fresh attempt to deliver needed;food supplies to the northwest Bosnian enclave of Bihac. A>nine-truck U.N. convoy carrying more than 100 tons of food is;attempting to reach government-held parts of Bihac through@territory controlled by Serb forces in neighboring Croatia.  IfBthe convoy gets through, U.N. officials say the food situation inBihac will remain critical.@   No humanitarian aid has reached the Bihac enclave this monthAbecause of a continuing blockade by Croatian Serb militiamen and8an allied force of Muslim rebels opposed to the Bosniangovernment.A   Last week, the U.N. high Commissioner for Refugees retaliated=by halting aid deliveries to the Croatian Serbs and to areas>controlled by the Muslim rebels at the northern end of Bihac.<   Spokesman Ron Redmond says the suspension will remain in9effect until the UNHCR has free and unhindered access to&government-held parts of the enclave:@   "Until we see that, we will continue to have this sort of anBaccess, we will not be doing deliveries to the Krajina (Croatian)Serbs."9   Amid escalating cease-fire violations in Bosnia, U.N.?officials fear that humanitarian conditions will soon begin to*deteriorate again throughout the country.B   Serb forces have effectively renewed an all-but-total siege of?Sarajevo.  Civilian routes in and out of the capital have been=shut down.  And the international airlift of relief suppliesremains suspended.A   The airlift was halted last weekend after several planes were@hit by ground fire.  The United Nations has not said which side;was responsible for the shooting incidents.  But spokesmanARedmond says U.N. commanders are waiting for security guarantees.from serb forces before resuming the airlift.:   Meanwhile, Mr. Redmond says Serb forces are apparently=continuing a campaign of harassment and intimidation against/Muslim and Croat civilians in northern Bosnia.A   At least nine officials of a Muslim humanitarian organization@(MERHAMAT) in the Banja Luka area have been arrested during the9past month.  And Mr. Redmond says the wife of one of the1detainees was severely beaten earlier this week:@   "Four men in military police uniform came to her house. They@cut the phone lines, tied her up.  They stole approximately 500Bdeutsche marks, and then beat her severely.  As a result, she had>three broken ribs, her shoulder was dislocated and there werebruises all over her back."?   Mr. Redmond says phone lines to almost all Muslim and Croat?homes in the Banja Luka region have been cut, heightening U.N.Bconcern for the safety of the dwindling minority community in thearea.?   Since the war began almost three years ago, several hundred=thousand Muslims and Croats have been forced out of northernBBosnia, in a well-documented campaign of ethnic-cleansing by Serbforces.   ---------------   ---------------   GERMAN ECONOMY   EVANS HAYS   BONN;   Germany's central bank has decided not to lower its key@interest rates.  A rate reduction could have helped to stem the?fall of the U.S. dollar on international currency markets. The9bank remains more concerned about domestic inflation and!Germany's own economic recovery.<   There has been speculation for days about what Germany's=central bank, the Bundesbank, would do about interest rates,2which are a key factor on world currency markets.=   In ordinary times, a Bundesbank decision to leave its key:discount and Lombard rates unchanged would provoke little>interest.  But the dollar has fallen sharply on world marketsBduring the past several days.  That has sent investors rushing tolook for other currencies.B   Investors are looking for high interest rates to make a bigger=profit and they generally move away from countries where theinterest rate is sinking.@   Germany's Bundesbank is staying on a middle course, in large?part for domestic reasons.  A rise in the Lombard and discount@rates, which are used for major loans to the biggest commercial;banks, could have provoked more investment from abroad andweakened the dollar even more.?   Lowering the Bundesbank rates would have helped the dollar,Abut at the same time it would have made it easier for Germans to@borrow money and fuelled Germany's inflation rate.  And that is)something the Bundesbank wants to avoid.   ---------------   ---------------?   KURDISH MILITANTS SUSPECTED IN ATTACK OF ON TURK BUSINESSES   EVANS HAYS   BONNA   Police in Germany say they suspect Kurdish militants may have=been responsible for yet another wave of firebomb attacks on8Turkish businesses and other targets.  It was the third@consecutive night of bombings, which caused property damage but:no  casualties.  Kurds in Turkey are fighting against the;government to win an independent homeland. Authorities are;concerned that the violence has spilled over into Germany.?   Police say no one has claimed responsibility for the latestAattacks that hit Turkish travel agencies, cultural centers and a?mosque in several cities.  But they suspect it was the work ofBKurdish militants, possibly linked to the banned Kurdish Workers'Party, or PKK.B   The PKK has been outlawed in Germany since 1993 because of the
violence.@   There are more than two million Turkish residents in Germany>and about 400-thousand of them are Kurdish.  Authorities have>repeatedly warned the Kurds against bringing their grievances-against the Turkish government into Germany.B   The government's view has taken a new legal turn, deportation.=   Many of the Kurds living in Germany have sought politicalAasylum on grounds that they were being persecuted at home.  They@claim that Turkish authorities have systematically hunted KurdsAand killed them for expressing the desire for independence.  The*Turkish government has denied the charge.?   Under previous German laws, anyone seeking political asylum=could remain in Germany while the claim was being processed.AHundreds of thousands of asylum-seekers have remained for years.B   That law has been changed and the application process has been@shortened to a few weeks or months.  Kurdish asylum-seekers who>failed to win a residence permit were to have been subject to8deportation months ago.  But that was delayed pending aAgovernment probe into allegations that Turkey has, in fact, been$persecuting its Kurdish population.?   Interior Minister Manfred Kanther now says the deportations@will resume.  He says there is no evidence to support the claimof persecution.=   That federal government decision, however, may be hard toBimplement.  Several German states governed by the main opposition@social Democratic Party have said they will not enforce the new'rule on deportation, at least for now.   ---------------   ---------------/   ITALIAN PRIME MINISTER WINS CONFIDENCE VOTE   PEGGY POLK   ROME:   Italian Prime Minister Lamberto Dini has won a vote ofAconfidence in the lower house of parliament. The vote clears the>way for approval of a stringent supplementary budget aimed at.bringing the country's deficit under control.4   Calling for the vote of confidence was a gamble.>   If he had lost, Mr. Dini would have been forced to resign,Braising the prospect of general elections in June, just 15 months'after Italians last went to the polls.=   But the economist and banker, whose stopgap government ofAtechnocrats was sworn in only two months ago, won by a margin ofsix votes.>   The victory killed amendments that would have crippled Mr.?Dini's 12-billion-dollar mini supplementary budget and cleared9the way for final approval by both houses of parliament.@   Opposition came from former Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi:and his right-wing allies, who are pressing for immediate9elections in a bid to return to power, and from hardline=communists, who object to the budget's austerity provisions.>   With the lira plunging to historic lows against the German=mark almost daily, the prime minister and his supporters hadBwarned that defeat would have a devastating effect on the Italian	economy.   ---------------   ---------------B   NATO DRAWS UP CONTINGENCY PLAN FOR EVACUATION FROM U.N. BOSNIA   JOHN FRASER   BRUSSELS>   NATO officials have given details of plans for the western;alliance's largest ever peace-time operation, the possible@evacuation of 24-thousand United Nations personnel from Bosnia.;The plans are being drawn up in the event NATO is asked tocoordinate the operation.=   French diplomats say that NATO would field (deploy) up to@70-thousand personnel for the operation which would go ahead ifAand when the United Nations decides on a withdrawal from Bosnia.A   The plan has been given the code name "determined effort" and'would take several months to complete.@   In its most ambitious form, the plan would  not only involveBthe removal of United Nations peace-keepers, but would also cover<the vast stocks of equipment that the United Nations has inBosnia.=   The plan has been reviewed by the 16 alliance Ambassadors?meeting in Brussels on Wednesday, but has still to be formally2approved because some details need to be refined.:   The operation would be led by a United States admiral,BLeighton Smith, who is head of NATO's southern command in Naples.<His deputy would be a Frenchman, lieutenant General Bernard@Janvier, who is head of the United Nations forces in Bosnia.  A;British lieutenant general, Michael Walker, would lead the evacuation force on the ground.<   NATO officials say there is  no  immediate prospect of a<withdrawal from Bosnia but it is prudent to have a full andBcomprehensive strategy for the operation if it becomes necessary.=   The operation would face several hazards.  There could beBinhospitable weather, some factions in Bosnia might try to attack@the United Nations forces or to seize their equipment and there@could be a problem of civilians who might panic at the prospect8of having the protection of the United Nations removed.<   In case of a crisis, United States troops could stand in2reserve to be used if the situation deteriorates.B   Germany would be involved in the operation, but would probably=send its troops to neighboring Croatia rather than to Bosniaitself.@   NATO officials say the detailed pull-out plan includes ideas>on what to do to deal with angry crowds, how to rescue United>Nations personnel who may be taken hostage and how to protectUnited Nations equipment.   ---------------   ---------------!   REPORTER'S NOTEBOOK:  ALBANIA   WAYNE COREY
   TIRANAB   The last Eastern European country to abandon communism was the=rigidly orthodox communist state of Albania.  The transition=toward democracy and capitalism has been even more difficult"there than it has been elsewhere.=   It may or may not be true that in Albania the more things>change, the more they remain the same.  But, some of the most@visible symbols of decades of communist rule are still evident.=   Anti-aircraft guns near the airport and concrete military<bunkers around the airport and in the fields along the road@leading into Tirana are eerie reminders of the bizarre paranoia/that gripped this country's communist leaders.;   But, the anti-aircraft guns are not manned now, and the?concrete  bunkers are empty.  The only military presence to be=seen is a few Albanian soldiers in uniform walking along theBstreets of Tirana and an occasional, aging Chinese or Soviet-mademilitary truck.?   While the anti-aircraft guns and the concrete bunkers still<greet visitors, so does the sight of an American car rentalBcompany and a sign advertising an American express travel office.B   There has been a big increase in the number of cars in Tirana.AIt's typical of the ambiguous reality of life here, though, that:horse-drawn carts line up with cars, trucks and massively<overcrowded buses at red lights in this dusty, shabby city.?   A modern new hotel is expected to open for business soon on<Skanderberg square.  The hotel is a gleaming, glass-fronted=building, in stark contrast to the architecturally-tastelessBcommunist-style palace of culture where an Albanian cast performs"one of verdi's operas, Rigoletto.?   As a former colonial power, Italy retains a strong cultural?influence here.  Satellite television dishes, sticking up fromBsqualid apartment buildings, enable their owners to watch Italianfootball (soccer).@   Italian-style coffee bars are popular, and there are French,BGerman and Chinese restaurants.  An Albanian-American couple owns4what many people consider Tirana's best restaurant.:   Besides pleasant music performed by a trio, the piazzaArestaurant offers its well-dressed clients good Italian food and:excellent Italian wine in a clean, modern and comfortableAatmosphere.  It's the only restaurant for which reservations are
recommended.A   The owners live in the United States.  Their daughter managesAthe restaurant. She told me it took a lot of patience in dealingAwith Albanian government authorities to get the restaurant going=a year ago. She said her parents' business is now doing verywell.@   For the sake of comparison, I had dinner the following night:in the restaurant of Tirana's main hotel.  The hotel is aBbattered, old, communist relic that is going to be renovated.  It<ought to be preserved as a kind of monument to human folly.?   After completing the unappetizing main course, I ordered an@ice cream dish for dessert.  It was listed on the menu, but the'waitress said "no,  we don't have it."A   I tried again.  Well, how about the ice cream cake then?  No,4it seemed the restaurant did not have that, either.B   After looking at the menu once more, I pointed to a torte that4was listed and told the waitress I would like that.B   The waitress was, at least, sympathetic, when she replied that@there were no more tortes.  In fact, she said, there was reallynothing for dessert at all.<   So, the hotel lost an opportunity to make some money.  I>doubted whether the communist-era management of the hotel hasbeen replaced.A   But, many Albanians are clearly impatient to make money fast,Anot  just the young children who beg on the streets.  I realized@this as soon as I walked into the airport's arrival section.  AAyoung man, with what appeared to be a special pass, walked up to?me and asked if I needed a taxi ride into Tirana.  I said yes.>After we agreed on the fare, the Albanian offered to speed meApast all the other people waiting in a long line for customs andimmigration checks.B   I protested that it would  not be right to cut in front of all>those people.  This did not go down well with my new AlbanianBfriend.  He muttered one word, Americans, as he shook his head in=obvious, though good-natured, disapproval of my desire to bepolite.   ---------------   ---------------4   SLOVAK AND HUNGARIAN PRIME MINISTERS END MEETING   BARRY WOOD
   PRAGUE>   The Slovak and Hungarian prime ministers met for over four=hours Thursday afternoon and evening in Bratislava.  The two=governments are seeking agreement on a bi-lateral friendshiptreaty.;   The stakes are high for both Hungary and Slovakia. BothBgovernments want to present the bi-lateral accord to a conference?in Paris next week on stability in Central and Eastern Europe.BThe French government will host the conference which was proposed+by Prime Minister Eduard Balladur in 1993.A   The Slovak and hungarian leaders have had difficulty agreeingAon such basic matters as recognition of common borders and humanBrights guarantees for ethnic hungarians in Slovakia. Earlier this@week the hungarians and Romanians failed to resolve differences@blocking agreement on a similar friendship treaty. Negotiations@will continue but there will be no Romanian-hungarian accord in!advance of the Paris conference.A   The Slovaks and hungarians are both currently on a fast track>for entry into the European Union. The French have repeatedly<warned that failure to agree on common borders and minority'rights would jeopardize EU membership.A   About a half million ethnic hungarians reside in the southern:part of Slovakia. The newly installed government of Prime<Minister Vladimir meciar has been critical of the hungarianBminority and his coalition partner has raised questions about its>loyalty to Slovakia.  Hungarian Prime Minister Gyula Horn has?sought accommodation with Mr. Meciar and relations between the=two governments are cordial. There have been disputes over a@hydro-electric dam on the danube that was begun under communism@but later opposed by the hungarians and favored by the Slovaks.   ---------------   ---------------   ALBANIAN ECONOMY   WAYNE COREY
   TIRANA=   There are signs of new economic life in Albania, Europe's?poorest country, following decades of stagnation and isolation@under xenophobic, communist rule.  Creation of a market economyBis a high priority of the democratic government, but the problemsinvolved are enormous.?   Official statistics here show that Albania's gross domestic=product increased last year by eight percent.  Inflation was:under control, and unemployment is said to have decreased
slightly.B   Of course, this is good news for the nearly three-and-one-halfAmillion people in Albania; but, in a sense, the Albanian economyAhas nowhere to go except up.  The question is whether the upwardtrend can be sustained.B   There is no lack of imported consumer goods now, at least hereBin the capital.  The transition toward a market economy is at the0stage of what might be called kiosk capitalism.A   Operators of small kiosks or individual vendors offer foreign=cigarettes, Cola-Cola, cigarette lighters and other imported>goods.  In one section of Tirana there is a large open market?where household products are available.  For the few AlbaniansAwith enough money, it is possible to buy modern toilets, kitchenBsinks, electrical fans and heaters, cassette recorders, tools andelectric light fixtures.A   Electric heaters are popular because most apartment buildings;do not have central heating.  The problem is that Tirana's?inadequate power supply cannot cope with the demand when space?heaters are used during the winter.  The result is often power	outages.;   The power shortages reflect Albania's desperate need to@improve its antiquated infra-structure.  Roads are in appalling:condition; the telephone system is hopelessly inadequate.B   Billions and billions of dollars are needed for infrastructure<development.  Some international aid is being provided, butAforeign investment is still minimal, partly because of Albania's&inefficient and corrupt !bureaucracy.A   The only fairly large foreign investment in Albania since theAfall of communism here is a Cola-Cola bottling plant on the roadBto Tirana's airport.  The plant is owned by an Italian subsidiary)of the huge American soft drink company.B   Given the widespread poverty and under-development in Albania,@it is surprising to see many fairly new German and Italian cars>in Tirana.  Western diplomats believe Albanian criminal gangs?have brought many of these cars here.  The cars are thought to?have been purchased with money obtained from smuggling or drug
trafficking.A   Albania's recent economic growth is due partly to remittancesAfrom Albanian workers in Greece and Italy.  Tens of thousands ofBAlbanians have been deported from Greece, but many are thought to5have easily re-entered the country along the poorestGreek-albanian border.@   Another boost to the Albanian economy has been at least some;of the profits from smuggling.  Diplomats say some of that?smuggling has involved the illegal flow of Albanian oil to theformer Yugoslavia.>   Albania may have enough oil reserves both on shore and off@shore to meet its domestic needs, but these reserves as well as=this country's hydropower potential need substantial foreigninvestment to fully develop.A   To encourage foreign investment, Albania needs to improve its;banking and judicial systems, and more rapid resolution of9property disputes and privatization of large state-owned enterprises are important, too.A   One almost completely unexplored area of possible interest to=foreign investors could be tourism.  For potential tourists,<Albania may be the last frontier in Europe.  There are someAbeautiful stretches of pristine coastline along the Adriatic SeaAin the south.  A holiday in exotic Albania could someday be seen?as an interesting alternative to a vacation in the overcrowded,tourist destinations in neighboring Greece.@   Albanian President Sali Berisha is aware of what needs to be=done and what is possible.  He has said the economic mess he=inherited from the communists will take decades to clean up.>   Western diplomats are skeptical about whether the Albanian=government is really capable and determined enough to pursueBvital economic reforms.  A foreigner who operates what is said to>be Tirana's best restaurant is more optimistic.  She senses aBgrowing economic dynamism here and she believes this poor countryhas a bright future.   ---------------   ---------------   ALBANIAN/GREEK RELATIONS   WAYNE COREY
   TIRANA@   Albania is hoping for better relations with Greece following=what has been described as the Greek foreign minister's very:positive visit to Tirana. Better relations are crucial toAlbania's economy.@   Greek Foreign Minister Karolos Papoulias left Tirana with anAagreement to establish a joint committee to work on the problems!facing Greek-albanian relations.?   The overall objective is to conclude a bilateral friendship=agreement, possibly in Athens later this year.  That appearsAfeasible in view of the extremely friendly and positive comments-by the Greek and Albanian foreign ministers.?   The Albanian and Greek governments pledged to resolve their?dispute over the large number of Albanians who work in Greece.?Albania relies on the workers' remittances to help sustain its	economy.9   Greece has expelled tens of thousands of Albanians in<retaliation for the alleged mistreatment of Albania's largeethnic Greek minority.>   Albanian Foreign Minister Alfred Serreqi assured his Greek;counterpart that the human rights of ethnic Greeks will berespected.B   Albania cannot afford to antagonize Greece.  Albania needs all@the foreign investment it can get and Greece is the second most0important investor in this country after Italy.8   Greece is willing to increase its investments if its:businessmen can more easily get Albanian visas and if the<National Bank of Greece is allowed to open a branch here inTirana.?   The Albanian government is thought to be sympathetic to theBGreek interests.  But western diplomats say Albania's inefficient=and corrupt official !bureaucracy could delay the process ofBbilateral rapprochement despite the government's best intentions.   ---------------   ---------------,   PROGRESS IN EU/CANADIAN FISHING CONFLICT   JOHN FRAZER   BRUSSELSB   There has been a breakthrough in the fisheries war between theAEuropean Union and Canada.  The Canadians have agreed to release=a Spanish troller which they had been holding in the face of(threats of trade sanctions from Europe.A   European Union officials have given a cautious welcome to theBCanadian action.  They say formal talks between the two sides can>now begin.  The dispute between Europe and Canada is over the=volume of halibut each side can catch in the fishing grounds$between newfoundland and greenland.@   European Union officials say the Spanish troller, the Eftai,=which seized by the Canadians, had been legally operating in<international waters.  The Canadians claim the Spanish were-posing a conservation threat by overfishing.>   Officials from both sides have been holding discreet talksAbehind the scenes to try to resolve the issue.  EU officials sayBCanada agreed to release the Spanish troller after the government+in Madrid paid a deposit, known as a bond.9   There was also pressure on Canada from European UnionBfisheries commissioner Emma Bonino.  She threatened the CanadiansAwith trade sanctions if there was  no  resolution to the crisis.B   Now that the war of words seems to be coming to an end, formalBtalks are likely to begin on resolving the underlying issue.  The?Canadians say they are entitled to catch more than half of the:27-thousand ton quota of halibut in the disputed fishery.<European Union officials, on the other hand, say that their@vessels are entitled to the lion's share.  Clearly a compromise>will have to be reached in which both sides will have to giveway.?   The European Union is also likely to demand assurances fromAthe Canadians that they will not capture further fishing vesselsAin international waters.  The seizure of the Estai was described"as piracy by commissioner Bonino.B   Any agreement is also likely to include an undertaking by both@sides to strictly police the fishery.  Spanish fishermen have a;poor reputation for respecting rules and regulations.  The@Canadians are expected to argue that if they are not allowed to;take strong action against Spanish vessels themselves, the=European Union will have to improve its fisheries inspectioneffort.   ---------------   ---------------2   REPORT ON EAST EUROPE MARKET REFORM TRANSITION   BARRY WOOD
   PRAGUEB   A U.S. based research group has released a report that asserts;that the west has failed to deliver adequate assistance to3central and East European economies in transition.=   The Institute for East-West Studies says the momentum for>market-based reform is losing strength in central and easternEurope.@   With the exception of the Czech Republic, the institute says@leftist-leaning governments are moving less vigorously to build<the institutions vital for the success of a market economy.?   At the same time, the institute says, the west is suffering=from aid fatigue and moving its assistance to the more needy?economies of the former Soviet Union.  The institute says that9while 62 billion dollars of aid has been promised to six>post-communist countries in Europe since 1990 only 16 billiondollars has been delivered.@   Included in the assistance survey are the six countries that?have signed pre-membership agreements with the European Union.AThey are the Czech Republic, Slovakia, Poland, Hungary, Romania,and Bulgaria.B   According to Stephen Heintz, the European studies director for$the Institute of East-West Studies:A   "One of the reasons that this slowdown or loss of momentum isBso worrisome is that sustained economic growth in these countriesAis essential if these countries are actually going to get to the?level where they will be able to join the European Union.  And that is a very real challenge."@   Mr. Heintz says the danger is stagnation and drift and beingBcaught between failed central planning and a market  economy. The?institute warns of a social crisis in Eastern Europe and calls?attention to old age pension systems which are underfunded andinadequate.B   Continued western assistance, it says, is vital.  But that aid=should be targeted on small business, social reform, and the9development of non-profit, social welfare agencies.  The>East-West Institute says foreign investment in the region hasAbeen less than expected.  And that, unlike the post-World War II>Marshall plan aid to Western Europe, aid to Eastern Europe is1mostly in the form of loans that must be repaid.   ---------------   ---------------<   MEMBERS OF TURKEY'S ALAWITES SECT BURY DEAD FROM RIOTING   AMBERIN ZAMAN
   ANKARA@   Thousands of demonstrators from the moderate Islamic AlawiteAsect gathered in an Istanbul suburb Wednesday to bury their deadBafter four days of riots in which at least 19 people were killed.?   The crowds, who have remained barricaded in Istanbul's GaziAdistrict since imposition of a curfew on Monday, are reported to:have struck a deal with authorities for the return of the)remaining bodies of the Alawite victims.B   Under the deal, Alawite demonstrators pledged to take down the5barricades once all the victims' funerals were held.B   Leaders of the Alawite community, a progressive Shi'ite Muslim;group, which is the foremost proponent of Turkey's secularAsystem, say at least 25 people were killed.  The government saysthe death toll was lower.>   The violent protests were triggered by a drive-by shootingAlate Sunday on four coffeehouses and a pastry shop in the mainlyAAlawite area of Gazi, resulting in the deaths of three Alawites.B   Residents took to the streets after police allegedly failed toBrespond promptly to their appeals for help.   Alawite leaders sayBmany of the victims died when police opened fire on the crowds ofdemonstrators.@   Members of prime minister Tansu Ciller's ruling conservativeBtrue path party have joined opposition parties in calling for the?resignation of interior minister Nahit Mentese over the way in!which he has handled the affair.?   Mr. Mentese has sought to play down the sectarian aspect of?the disturbances and has blamed what he calls dark forces fromabroad for the incidents.9   The Alawites, who make up one-third of Turkey's totalBpopulation of 60 million, have lived peacefully with the majority?sunnis for centuries.  Differences between the two groups have<focused mainly on ideology, with the Alawites traditionallyvoting for leftwing parties.@   But analysts say the recent rise of militant Islam in TurkeyAhas been accompanied by a spate of attacks against the Alawites.?A more worrying development, Alawite community leaders say, is<the steady penetration of government institutions by Muslimfundamentalists.?   They cite as an example, the Turkish police force which has:begun to recruit graduates from Islamic clerical training	schools.>   Sunni Muslim extremists view the community and its liberal@form of Islam, which includes more relaxed rules on praying and8fasting during the holy month of Ramadan, as heretical.9   In the most serious incident of anti-Alawite violence@recently, Islamic extremists set fire to a hotel in the eastern?town of Sivas two years ago, killing 37 Alawite poets, writersand intellectuals.<   Alawite leaders have accused the government of being tooBlenient after a special security court sentenced the arsonists toB15 years in prison last December.  Scores of Turkish politicians,Bincluding five Kurdish members of parliament, have been sentenced?to equivalent prison terms or even longer for expressing views8deemed to be harmful to the unity of the Turkish state.   ---------------   ---------------0   MORE ALAWITES DEMONSTRATORS KILLED IN TURKEY   AMBERIN ZAMAN
   ANKARA?   Four more demonstrators are reported to have been killed inBclashes with police in Istanbul.  At least 19 people have died in=Turkey in sectarian violence or in clashes with police since>Sunday, although ethnic leaders say the death toll is higher.@   Leaders of the Alawite community say the most recent victims@were killed when police opened fire on a crowd of protesters in?Istanbul's Umraniye district.  They were protesting the way inBwhich police handled disturbances, which have been going on since#Sunday in another Istanbul suburb.@   According to the semi-official Anatolian news agency, scoresBof demonstrators were wounded, many of them seriously, during the@clashes on Wednesday.  The government has imposed an indefinite>curfew on Umraniye and a neighboring district, Uskudar, wheremany Alawites live.@   Prime minister Tansu Ciller, after an emergency meeting withBcabinet members and top security officials, said Turkey was faced:with what she called foreign forces seeking to divide the!country.  She did not elaborate.@   The first clashes between police and demonstrators broke out<Sunday in the Istanbul suburb of Gazi, after residents were=angered by what they saw as a delayed police reaction to thedeaths of two Alawites.B   The two men were killed when gunmen opened fire Sunday on four?coffeehouses and a pastry shop in Gazi.  Thousands of AlawitesAbarricaded themselves in the district after a curfew was imposedBthere Monday, and only took down their barriers after authorities>returned the bodies of five Alawites for burial on Wednesday.?   The Alawite community is a progressive Shi'ite Muslim groupAwhich is the foremost proponent of Turkey's secular system.  Its=leaders have accused the government of what they describe asBcriminal negligence over the way the authorities have handled thedisturbances.@   Mrs. Ciller's ruling conservative true path party has joined>opposition parties in calling for the resignation of interiorAminister Nahit Mentese.  Mr. Mentese has sought to play down theBsectarian aspect of the disturbances and has blamed what he calls+dark forces from abroad for the incidents.9   The Alawites, who make up one-third of Turkey's totalBpopulation of 60 million, have lived peacefully with the majorityASunni Muslims for centuries.  Differences between the two groupsAhave focused mainly on ideology, with the Alawites traditionallyvoting for leftwing parties.@   But analysts say the recent rise in militant Islam in TurkeyAhas been accompanied by a spate of attacks against the Alawites.AAlawite community leaders say a more worrying development is the8steady penetration of state institutions and government=ministries by pro-islamic fundamentalists.   They cite as an=example, the Turkish police force which has begun to recruit2graduates from Islamic clerical training schools.9   In the most serious incident of anti-Alawite violence@recently, Islamic extremists set fire to a hotel in the eastern?town of Sivas two years ago, killing 37 Alawite poets, writersand intellectuals.   ---------------   ---------------)   HUNGARY ANNOUNCE CURRENCY DEVALUATION   BARRY WOOD
   PRAGUE=   In an attempt to boost sagging domestic and internationalAconfidence in its economic policies, Hungary has announced a bigAcurrency devaluation and measures to reduce the country's fiscal!and balance of payments deficit.@   Hungary's new economic team says the country's currency, theAforint, is being devalued by nine percent effective immediately.=In addition, the currency will be devalued by just under two?percent each month until July.  After that, the forint will beAdevalued by one-point-three percent monthly until the end of theyear.:   Hungary's new finance minister, Lajos Bokros, says the<government has no choice but to begin dismantling Hungary'sBgenerous system of social benefits, which, he says, can no longer<be afforded.  Beginning in July, family allowance payments,Acurrently available to all parents, will be limited to the poor.@Tuition will be introduced at universities in September. Public3sector employees and university staff will be cut.@   Concerning the forint, Mr. Bokros says pre-arranged, regular=devaluations corresponding to the inflation rate will reduce<speculation and promote confidence.  The government is also=introducing an eight percent customs duty on all non-energy,non-capital equipment imports.>   Hungary has large budget and balance of payments deficits.?Its large foreign debt has prompted some bankers to worry thatBHungary could face a Mexican-style loss of confidence and capital@flight.  Anxiety increased in January when the previous finance9minister feuded with the prime minister and subsequentlyBresigned, protesting  what he said was a bungled privatization of?a major hotel chain. Hungary has attracted more foreign direct<investment than any other post-communist economy, but those4capital flows have all but halted in recent months.  ---------------  ---------------0   U.S. CONSUMER PRICES, HOUSING STARTS FIGURES   WASHINGTON>   U.S. prices at the consumer level continued their moderateBrate of increase in February, rising only sightly faster than the,average monthly advance over the past year.=   Consumer prices were up 0.3 percent, the Labor Department>reported March 16, the same increase as in January.  Over the?past 12 months the increase was 2.9 percent, and over the past@three months the increase was at an annual rate of 3.2 percent.@   Excluding the volatile food and energy sectors, the February;rise also was 0.3 percent.  Over the 12 months, this "coreBinflation rate" excluding these sectors was 3.0 percent, and over;the past three months it was at a 3.3-percent annual rate.B   Food prices were up 0.3 percent in February after dropping 0.3Bpercent in January, while energy costs, which rose 0.3 percent in'January, fell 0.1 percent in February.=   A day earlier the Labor Department reported that producer;prices, one step before the retail level, also were up 0.3Bpercent in February. Over the 12 months ending in February, these=prices rose only 1.7 percent, and the core rate also was 1.7	percent.>   Separately, the Commerce Department reported March 16 thatAhousing starts were down 2.6 percent in February, after droppinga sharp 12 percent in January. Following are some key figures:CONSUMER PRICE INDEX9Percent change from preceding month, seasonally adjusted7 Aug.    Sept.    Oct.    Nov.    Dec.    Jan.    Feb.7  0.4      0.2     0.1     0.1     0.2     0.3     0.3<Compound annual rate, three months ended February 1995: 3.2<12 months ended February 1995, unadjusted:              2.9   ---------------   ---------------D   EX-SENATOR DANFORTH SAYS U.S. MUST PUT GREATER EMPHASIS ON TRADE   MAX RUSTON
   HONG KONG>   A former senator from the United States is calling on U.S.Bpoliticians to put greater emphasis on international trade issues>and their impact on the country's economic health. Republican<John Danforth made the remarks Wednesday during a speech tobusiness leaders in Hong Kong.B   In his speech, Mr. Danforth warned of a trend in U.S. politics8towards what he calls "pocketbook issues" and away fromBinternationalism.  He urged business people to remind politicians;free trade is in the best economic interests of the UnitedStates.?   Before announcing his retirement from the Senate last year,=Mr. Danforth served for almost two decades, representing thestate of Missouri.A   In Hong Kong, Mr. Danforth specifically called for WashingtonAto be firm in dealing with China's application to join the World?Trade Organization.  He says, if pressure is not maintained onBBeijing to meet fair trade guidelines and reduce import barriers,;there could be long-term damage to international commerce.@   China is trying to join the organization under special terms?given to developing nations.  The United States and some other<countries have called on Beijing to abide by more-stringent(standards applied to developed nations.=   In discussing politics in the United States, Mr. Danforth>cautioned people abroad not to take everything they hear frompoliticians seriously:@   "People in China, people in the government in China, believeBthat every word that is uttered by an American politician is someBpearl of wisdom that is being handed down to the world.  In fact,Bit is something that somebody just thought of five seconds before@that has not been thought out at all.  And that is something toBrealize about those of us who are or have been in politics, we do1not necessarily know what we are talking about.">   Mr. Danforth says politicians from both the Democratic andBRepublican parties lack courage in dealing with economic problems:in the United States.  He called on them to take stronger=measures in reducing the federal budget deficit and buildinginternational trade ties.   ---------------   ---------------'   LOCKHEED MARTIN CORPORATION CREATED   BRECK ARDERY   NEW YORKB   Shares of the world's largest defense contractor began trading)Thursday on the New York Stock Exchange.=   The company was formed in a merger of the Martin MariettaBCorporation and the Lockheed Aircraft company, a merger which was>formally completed on Wednesday.  With combined sales of more@than 22 billion dollars, the merged firm is more than twice the;size of McDonnell Douglas, the second largest U.S. defensecontractor.B   Top executives at the two companies have been working together9since last year on details of the merger and say the two@companies have been effectively integrated into one.  Since theAend of the cold war, U.S. Government spending on defense systems$has fallen by more than 60 percent.?   Daniel Tellep, chairman of the new Lockheed Martin company,+says his firm will be seeking new markets:A   "We are trying to build a globally competitive, 21st century,Bhigh technology company.  We certainly have roots and heritage in;aerospace, but we have a very rapidly growing component ofAbusiness in the civil, international and commercial sectors.  So?we are excited about the future and will face our challenges."B   Mr. Tellup said he expects continued consolidation in the U.S.defense industry.?   Lockheed Martin employs 170 thousand people and many of the?workers are nervous about losing their jobs as a result of the@merger.  Union leaders claim as many as 20 thousand jobs may be?eliminated.  Company officials concede there will be workforce6reductions, but have not said how large they will be.   ---------------   ---------------   NEW INFLATION DATA   JOE SUMMERS   WASHINGTON@   U.S. financial market analysts have new data to digest about?inflation. The latest information seems to suggest the central9bank may not be in a rush to raise interest rates again.>   The Labor Department says its consumer price index rose byBthree-tenths of one percent during February, the same rate posted6in January.  The monthly increase in the CPI has been@three-tenths of one percent or less for six consecutive months.>   The report indicates businesses are absorbing higher costsArather than raising prices for products and services.  The laborBdepartment reported slightly higher costs for food, medical care,=automobile financing and airline fares.  Energy and clothingcosts declined.<   The report supports information in a central bank survey@released Wednesday that indicates U.S. economic growth began to;slow down during the past two months and that inflationaryBpressures are moderating.  The central bank has raised short-termBinterest rates seven times during the past 13 months in an effort<to slow down an overheated economy and reduce the threat ofrenewed inflation.;   In separate reports, The Commerce Department reported a9two-point-six percent decline in housing starts, anotherBindicator that high interest rates are affecting economic growth.BThe Labor Department's weekly report on unemployment claims shows$pressures easing in the work force.   ---------------   ---------------   WORLD BANK'S NEW PRESIDENT   ART CHIMES   WASHINGTON@   A New York investment banker is expected to take office soon<as head of the World Bank, James Wolfensohn whose interests'extend far beyond the financial world.:   News stories published about Mr. Wolfensohn repeatedlyAdescribe him as a "renaissance man."  He runs an investment bankBin New York.  He's been active in environmental issues and headed>the Kennedy Center for the performing arts in Washington.  He<plays the cello and competed in fencing in the 1956 olympicgames.A   Much of his international banking work has been in developing@countries, and he was an advisor to Barbara ward, the economist4who wrote pioneering studies of development issues.A   James Wolfensohn was born 61-years ago in Australia, where heAearned a law degree.  He also has a business degree from Harvard,University.  He is now an American citizen.@   He comes to the World Bank as the 50-year-old institution is9at a crossroads, trying to adapt to the rapidly changingpost-cold war world.@   In recent years the World Bank has been trying to focus more@on promoting private investment in developing countries, rather?than the government-sponsored dams and other megaprojects that@were the hallmark of World Bank involvement in years past.  Mr.BWolfensohn's experience in investment banking seems a natural fit?for an institution that is changing the way the World Bank is.A   The bank has also been trying to promote more environmentally=friendly development.  Though many critics remain skeptical,Benvironmental issues appear to be getting a more attention at the@World Bank than they used to.  Although Mr. Wolfensohn is known<to be interested in environmental issues, his record on the7subject is not extensive.  But support from those with>established green credentials, such as U.S. Vice President Al?gore, should help smooth the way with environmental activists.<   Another challenge concerns the International DevelopmentAAssociation, or IDA.  IDA is the World Bank affiliate that makesBloans under very generous terms to the world's poorest countries.7It will soon be needing an infusion of more money, butAbudget-cutters in the U.S. Congress are reluctant to appropriatemoney that will go overseas.<   It seems likely Mr. Wolfensohn will preside over further@downsizing at the World Bank.  Outgoing president Louis Preston:has taken some steps to reduce the size of the staff, butBobservers say further reductions are needed to make the bank less#!bureaucratic and more responsive.@   The president of the World Bank is traditionally an American8and the bank's approval of the Wolfensohn nomination isBconsidered a likely formality.  Mr. Wolfensohn says he won't give-any interviews until after his confirmation.A   If confirmed, Mr. Wolfensohn would replace Louis Preston, the?World Bank's 68-year-old president who is retiring after beingdiagnosed with cancer.   ---------------   ---------------7   U.S. CHALLENGES COUNTRIES TO OPEN FINANCIAL MARKETS   JON SCHAFFER   WASHINGTON@   The United States is proposing to open its market completely<to foreign financial services provided that other countries@remove their barriers to U.S. banking, securities and insurancecompanies.A   U.S. officials say they will withdraw this offer, however, if@other countries fail to provide reciprocal access and warn that6Congress is already drafting retaliatory legislation.=   "We're moving into high gear," Assistant Secretary of the:Treasury Jeffrey Shafer told reporters about the services'negotiations scheduled to end June 30.B   Following an almost 15-month hiatus in negotiations, the 30 or=so actively participating countries were scheduled to submitAtheir latest offers March 15 and resume negotiations the week of
March 27.=   He said he was hoping to see better offers both on marketAaccess, or the right of a foreign provider to operate in another@country, and on national treatment, or equal treatment for bothdomestic and foreign firms.A   "In order to encourage that," Shafer said, "we have indicated<that we would offer the extremely open arrangements in U.S.Afinancial markets to other countries fully and to extend any new;powers we give U.S. financial institutions to foreigners."A   Foreign barriers to banking and insurance services costs U.S.?firms thousands of millions of dollars annually in lost sales,"huge stakes for the negotiations.A   Richard Self, assistant U.S. trade representative, said in an>interview that without substantially improved offers from keyBcountries, the United States would withdraw its offer and instead;take what is called a most-favored nation (MFN) exemption.?   Such an exemption would allow the United States to restrictBexpanding operations in the United States by a foreign investment>firm from a country that discriminates against U.S. financial>companies while permitting expansion by a firm from a countrywithout investment barriers.A   Legislation being drafted in both the Senate and the House of>Representatives would require the administration to limit theBoperations of foreign financial firms discriminating against U.S.>providers.  While most U.S. most financial service industries>support the bills, administration officials want more time toreview the details.A   "Our position is that while we are negotiating, we don't want8to be simultaneously preparing for the failure of thesenegotiations," Shafer said.@   Another country would be mistaken, however, to interpret theAfailure of Congress to pass such legislation last year as a lack$support for this approach, he said.B   So far no one is predicting the outcome of the negotiations orBthe legislation.  When the administration must submit a report to?Congress April 30, Shafer said, it must describe the status of@the negotiations, but need not signal just yet its intention onMFN exemption.>   U.S. officials say they need to see further liberalization;commitments from "commercially important countries" -- theAemerging markets of Asia, certain countries in Latin America and!several countries in South Asia.?   The specific limitations are broad and vary from country to9country, USTR's Self said.  They include prohibitions on?establishing foreign bank branches, caps on foreign ownership,;limits on foreigners to minority shares in joint ventures,@restrictions on the types of services that can be provided, and(limits on access for foreign personnel.?   In Malaysia, for example, foreign banks can engage in joint@ventures only as a minority partner, said Peter Russell, senior:vice president for government affairs at Chemical BankingBCorporation, the third largest bank in the United States.  Brazil@is an example where restrictions on foreign ownership are built into its constitution, he said.=   Cathryn Heron, vice president and senior counsel with theBInvestment Company Institute, a trade association that represents>5,528 member mutual funds, said that while the U.S. market isBentirely open to foreign financial advisers who register with the>Securities and Exchange Commission, U.S. advisers are blockedAfrom operating in many countries. The Institute's top priorities@are Japan, South Korea and Taiwan, followed by India, Thailand,Malaysia and the Philippines.B   In Korea, Heron said, foreign firms cannot apply for a license@to manage mutual funds or advise non-mutual fund clients, and a@single foreign investor or group cannot own more than 3 percent@of a Korean stock.  In Taiwan, she said, U.S. foreign firms can>enter only as minority participants in a single joint ventureBwith Taiwanese firms and can hold only 25 percent of the venture,6and total foreign ownership is limited to 49 percent.<   An official from the American Insurance Association saidBIndia's monopoly is the most extreme example of discrimination in8insurance. Other priority areas, he said, are Thailand,#Indonesia, Malaysia and Venezuela.B   Chemical's Russell said that though a number of countries have?begun to open their markets or expressed interest in doing so,Btoo little time might be left before July 1 for them to commit to%reforms the United States is asking.B   "I've become increasing convinced that the critical element in<this is helping the countries whom we want to liberalize to4become confident themselves that it is in their own>self-interest," Russell said.  "And we can see that happening?unilaterally with a number of them.  Indonesia is one of them.BArgentina is another.  But the time frame we are working with may8make it difficult to go ahead on a multilateral basis."B   A major step was made earlier this year when the United States?and Japan signed a bilateral accord that opens up the Japanese@financial market in a number of areas previously closed to U.S.providers.B   "We feel that our bilateral deal with Japan is the basis for aAmultilateral commitment," Treasury's Shafer said.  "We recognizeAthe need for countries to phase in adjustments.  It doesn't meanBthat everything has to be there on July 1.  What we cannot accept<is an open-ended statement that 'some day we will do this.'@There must be a fixed date and it has to be a reasonable date."   ---------------   ---------------'   RELEASE OF U.S. ECONOMIC INDICATORS   JOE SUMMERS   WASHINGTON=   U.S. financial market investors have a broad range of newAinformation Wednesday as they try to figure out the direction ofAU.S. interest rates. New indicators include information preparedBfor central bank policy makers to use when making their decisions$on interest rates later this month.>   The latest survey of nationwide economic conditions by theAU.S. central bank indicates that the threat of inflation appears6to be lessening as the expansion begins to slow down.?   Reports from the 12 central bank branches around the nation?show the pace of economic expansion moderating during the last?two months.  The report adds there is little evidence that theAstrength in labor markets or increases in commodities prices has4spilled over into rising wages and consumer prices.=   The survey was prepared for the March 28th meeting of theBpolicy-setting Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC).  The central>bank has boosted short-term interest rates seven times in the=past 13 months in an effort to slow down economic growth andprevent renewed inflation.B   Meanwhile, the Labor Department says its producer price index,Aone of two important measures of inflation, rose by three-tenths=of one percent during February.  Food and energy prices wereAmoderate, but there was a one-point-five percent increase in raw;materials prices, products such as crude oil and iron ore.B   Central bank chairman Alan Greenspan has expressed concerns in;the past about the inflationary implications of rising raw@materials prices.  But the report prepared for the FOMC meetingAsays raw materials prices have not shown up in higher prices forAconsumers.  The broader measure of inflation, the consumer price"index, will be released Thursday.A   Another concern expressed often by Mr. Greenspan is the levelBof factory capacity use.  The central bank says the rate of plantAusage rose to 85-point-seven percent last month, or  its highest?level since 1979.  Many analysts express concern about factoryBbottlenecks arising when the capacity utilization rate goes above85 percent.   ---------------   ---------------,   U.S. MANUFACTURES ARE BECOME MORE GLOBAL   LEOS ROUSEK   NEW YORKA   A New York consulting company, has presented the results of a4survey of major U.S. manufacturers on becoming more:international, what the consultants call "globalization."B   According to the Deloitte Touche Tohmatsu study, manufacturersBof industrial products in the United States have awakened to what=they call the "globalization imperative."  Out of 150 senior@executives interviewed for the survey, 75 said establishing andBmaintaining an international presence and production capabilitiesBis crucial to their companies' future profitability.  Automotive,?aerospace and high-tech electronic companies said they plan to@build new plants or expand existing plants overseas in the nextfive years.@   Mark Delane of Deloitte Touche tOhmatsu advises the EuropeanBsubsidiaries of companies like General Motors, Honeywell and Arco?International.  He said this international outlook of AmericanAcompanies will have an impact on other international businesses:?   "The question, of course, that it (globalization) poses forAother European and other manufacturers is:  'do we want to adopt;a cooperative philosophy or do want to adopt a competitive8philosophy?' and that's, I think, what's going to be an)interesting future, how that works out."?   Michael Fradette, a Delloit Touche director added, that theAU.S., European and Japanese manufacturers are very interested in?South East Asian markets, especially China.  Mr. Fradette also=said that China would be the number one market by year 2020.5   According to the study, a majority of the top 150=manufacturing executives in the United States view Southeast=Asian markets as more important than the emerging markets in<Latin America or Eastern Europe.  The consultants said that:Russia and India are other potential markets for the U.S.manufacturers.<   Asked about using Eastern Europe as a way to Russia, Mr.@Fradette replied that approaching Russia through Eastern Europe>is like going through a minefield.  But Mr. Delane disagreed,Badding that it is necessary not to see Eastern Europe as a singleAentity. He said most countries of Central Europe, like the Czech9republic, Hungary or Poland, have stable governments andeconomies:?   "And I think the opportunity for the American manufacturers@today is to pick certain countries in Eastern Europe or Western>Europe that can be the stepping stones to that market. Rather?than just flying directly from New York and landing in Moscow,>maybe what we really need to do is take two or three stepping?stones before we get to the Russian market?  And so that's whyBcountries like the Czech Republic, where we've got some stability<and maybe like Poland and even some Western European, we're;talking about eastern sector of Germany can be interestingstepping stones."<   Furthermore, Mr. Delane saw Eastern Europe as a trainingBground, where the U.S. manufacturers could learn to deal with the=tough issues they might face in Russia or possibly in India.   ---------------   ---------------3   WTO DELEGATES FAIL AGAIN TO AGREE ON A DIRECTOR   DOUGLAS ROBERTS
   GENEVAB   Delegates to the World Trade Organization have again failed to?reach consensus on a director for the Geneva-based forum which>came into being at the beginning of this year, succeeding theBgeneral agreement on tariffs and trade. The outgoing director has@agreed to stay on for another six weeks, to give delegates moretime to choose a successor.B   Peter Sutherland was supposed to step down January first, whenBthe WTO officially came into being.  But amid wrangling among the@delegates over his successor, the Irish diplomat agreed to stayBon until mid-March.  Now, he has again been obliged to extend his9tenure, although he made it clear he did so reluctantly.?   After a day of talks here, the delegates issued a statementBsaying consensus is emerging in favor of the leading candidate to=replace Mr. Sutherland, former Italian trade minister RenatoBRuggiero.  But his main rival, former South Korean trade minister$Kim Chul-Su, remains in contention.>   The key factor in the talks is the United States position.<Washington initially backed former Mexican President Carlos@Salinas De Gortari.  But he withdrew from the race earlier this6month after his brother was implicated in a politicalBassassination.  And the Clinton Administration has so far refused/to support either of the remaining candidates.6   The impasse has sparked some sharp criticism among?commentators for leading trade and financial publications, who=say the wrangling is detracting attention from crucial tradeissues.@   In his brief statement Wednesday, Mr. Sutherland said he had@agreed to stay on as interim director solely out of concern for1the credibility of the World Trade Organization.   ---------------   ---------------<   FACTORY OUTPUT ADVANCES, OPERATING RATES AT 15-YEAR HIGH   WASHINGTON<   Industrial production in the United States continued its@steady rise, advancing for the 13th straight month in February,Awhile capacity use at U.S. industrial plants reached its highestlevel since October 1979.B   The Federal Reserve reported March 15 that February industrial?production was up 0.5 percent over January.  Production rose a<revised 0.2 percent in January and 1.1 percent in December.=February output in manufacturing, which accounts for over 85Bpercent of total industrial production, rose 0.4 percent, up from>a 0.2-percent advance in January, but down from a 0.9-percent3monthly average during the fourth quarter of 1994.=   Capacity utilization, or the operating rate at industrialAfacilities, was 85.7 percent overall.  The rate in manufacturing=was 85.1 percent, but was 89.8 percent in primary-processing<industries.  "Since November this rate has remained near 90>percent, the highest sustained level since 1973," the Federal>Reserve said.  In advanced-processing industries the rate was83.3 percent.?   Continued growth in industrial production and high capacity9use rates is usually a recipe for increased inflationaryApressures.  But a countering trend may be the general slowing of2the economy, which tends to ease price pressures.>   "The pace of the economic expansion has moderated over theBpast two months," the Federal Reserve said in its so-called Beige@Book, a summary of national conditions around the country, also>released March 15. "There is little evidence that strength inAlabor markets or increases in commodity prices have spilled over2into wages or prices of finished goods," it said.>   The total industrial production index in February stood at=122.6 percent of the 1987 average, and 6.1 percent above itslevel in February 1994.A   Overall October capacity utilization of 85.7 percent compares@with a 1988-1989 high of 84.9, a 1982 recession low of 71.8 andthe 1967-94 average of 82.0.!Following are other key figures:INDUSTRIAL PRODUCTION>Percent change from preceding month, seasonally adjusted, and:percent change from 12 months before, based on seasonallyadjusted data<                 Nov.    Dec.    Jan.    Feb.       Feb'94-<                 1994    1994    1995    1995        Feb'95<Total             0.7     1.1     0.2     0.5           6.1<Manufacturing     0.9     1.2     0.2     0.4           6.9<  Durable         0.9     1.7     0.5     0.5           8.5<  Nondurable      1.0     0.7    -0.2     0.3           5.0<Mining           -0.9     1.9    -0.1     0.1           0.7<Utilities        -0.6    -0.6     1.3     2.6           0.6CAPACITY UTILIZATIONFPercent of capacity, seasonally adjusted; percent change for capacitygrowth<                                                   Capacity<                                                     growth<                 Nov.    Dec.    Jan.    Feb.       Feb'94-<                 1994    1994    1995    1995        Feb'959Total Industry   84.8    85.5    85.5    85.7        2.99Manufacturing    84.4    85.2    85.1    85.1        3.39Mining           88.2    89.8    89.7    89.9        0.09Utilities        85.8    85.2    86.2    88.3        1.3   ---------------   ---------------:   U.S. CRITICIZE JAPANESE PLAN TO DEREGULATE ITS ECONOMY   VICTOR BEATTIE   WASHINGTON>   The United States has criticized Japan's draft proposal to@deregulate government control of its economy as deficient. U.S.?trade representative Mickey Kantor says he remains hopeful the=final version, due March 31st, will allow greater access forforeign companies.>   Mr. Kantor says the United States shares the view of major@Japanese business organizations the proposal falls far short ofAcomprehensive deregulation measures outlined last year by Japan.?He calls the draft version vague and lacking in timetables forimplementation.9   A number of countries have criticized Japan's complex>regulations as unfair barriers that keep foreign firms out ofJapan's markets.>   The U.S. trade official says he is especially disappointedBJapan's proposal did not address its auto and auto parts markets,=key targets of bilateral trade negotiations.  Autos and autoAparts account for two-thirds of the 60-billion-dollar U.S. tradedeficit with Japan.@   Mr. Kantor says he remains hopeful  Tokyo will re-double its>efforts during the next two weeks to put together a detailed,=substantive and final package.  Last year, the United States?offered nearly 200 deregulation measures it believes should be8taken to open Japan's economy to increased competition.=   Tokyo is to unveil its five-year deregulation plan at thestart of its new fiscal year.   ---------------   ---------------=   COLOMBIAN COMMUNIST REBELS EXTEND ACTIVITY INTO VENEZUELA   ROGER WILKISON   RIO DE JANEIRO?   Colombia's communist guerrillas, which have been a thorn in@the side of successive governments for more than 30 years, have@extended their operations into neighboring Venezuela and caused?an increase in friction between the two countries. A guerrilla>attack on a Venezuelan border post last month, in which eight;marines died, has re-opened old wounds in the relationshipbetween Bogota and Caracas.?   Last February 26th, Colombian insurgents from the so-called?Army of National Liberation crossed the border into Venezuela,Braided a defense post, killed eight marines and stole weapons and?ammunition.  Outraged, the Venezuelan government beefed up itsAforces along the entire border, exhorted Colombia to prevent any?further guerrilla attacks and warned that, next time, it might0pursue the insurgents into Colombian territory.>   Tension between the two countries increased this week when>Venezuela deported undocumented Colombian immigrants who wereBliving in the country's northwestern corner amid protests by some0that they were mistreated by Venezuelan troops.B   Last year, the two countries agreed to augment the presence of>their armed forces along the border in view of the increasing=frequency of guerrilla attacks on Venezuelan territory.  ButBVenezuelan officials charged Colombia failed to carry out its end<of the agreement.  President Rafael Caldera said Colombia's8failure to bolster its border defenses have allowed the>insurgents to act with impunity against Venezuela.  Venezuela:protested that Colombia has not dealt with such bilateral<problems as contraband in stolen cars and gasoline, illegalBimmigration of Colombians into Venezuela and a request by Caracas>that Bogota extradite a notorious Venezuelan drug trafficker.A   The death of the marines has spurred a rise in anti-Colombian:feeling in Venezuela.  One particularly noxious series ofBgrafitti scrawled on the facade of buildings in Caracas reads "do>something for your country, kill a Colombian".  The animosityBcomes at a time when the two countries have made enormous strides@toward integrating their economies.  Colombian-Venezuelan trade.amounts to nearly two billion dollars a year.A   No one believes that the current tension will degenerate into?a conflict.  The head of Colombia's armed forces said Thursday@that the two nations share a common enemy, the guerrillas.  But<Colombian analysts say Venezuela is taking advantage of the?border friction to steer its citizens' attention away from the=country's severe financial problems.  They say the danger is@that, if Venezuela makes good on its threat to pursue ColombianBguerrillas into Colombian territory, Venezuelan forces may end upconfronting Colombian troops.>   Colombian authorities have said any such hot pursuit would>violate  Colombian sovereignty.  Despite the rhetoric on both<sides, cool heads have prevailed so far.  Officials of bothAcountries say the guerrillas are trying to drive a wedge betweenthe two governments.   ---------------   ---------------*   ZAPATISTAS REBELS AGREE TO PEACE TALKS   ELLEN CALMUS
   MEXICOB   Mexican rebels in the southern state of Chiapas have respondedBfavorably to a Mexican government proposal to resume peace talks.BThe Mexican department of the interior issued a statement calling/this a positive step toward renewing dialogue.;   The Mexican rebel group known as the Zapatista NationalBLiberation Army released a communique Friday in which they agreed<to renew talks with the Mexican government.  Communications=between the government and the Zapatistas had broken down on8February 9th following an army incursion into Zapatistaterritory.?   The rebel communique was in response to a law passed by theBMexican congress last week for the renewal of government dialogueAwith the Zapatistas.  The Zapatistas had previously demanded the8withdrawal of government troops from towns in Zapatista@strongholds and the establishment of a neutral territory before!they would agree to renew talks.A   A Senate commission formed to monitor conditions for dialogue=travelled to Chiapas and reported (Thursday) that government;troops had withdrawn from 30 towns in the Zapatista areas.:   The rebel communique expressed approval of the law for=dialogue and agreed to begin communications with the Mexican<government. Though stipulating that until government troops<return to the positions they held prior to the February 9th<incursions they will limit communications to an exchange of	letters.B   Interior Minister Esteban Moctezuma met Friday with the bishopAof Chiapas, Samuel Ruiz, who has Zapatista approval as mediator.@The meeting was seen as a first step toward renewing a dialogue4which might lead to negotiated end to the conflict.   ---------------   ---------------/   AGENDA SET FOR HEMISPHERIC TRADE CONFERENCE   BILL RODGERS   SAN JOSE>   U.S. and Central American officials have ended two days of9talks in Costa Rica on setting an agenda for next June's?hemispheric trade conference in Denver, Colorado. The San Jose<meeting is one of several being held in preparation for theDenver conference.A   Costa Rica hosted the two-day meeting, which brought togetherBtrade officials from the United States and almost all the Central?American nations.  Costa Rica's chief trade negotiator, Anabel>Gonzalez, told reporters Friday the representatives exchanged?ideas on how their governments believe a hemispheric-wide free!trade zone can best be achieved.>   Ms. Gonzalez said some of these ideas may form part of theBagenda that will be discussed next June at the western hemisphere&trade conference in Denver, Colorado:A   "The Costa Rican official added the representatives discussed6a wide range of topics, including harmonizing customs<regulations, intellectual property rights, and investment."@   The Denver conference, which will bring together hemispheric<trade ministers, is designed to follow up on the free trade>proposal made at last year's summit of the Americas.  At that9meeting, the leaders of the western hemisphere agreed to?establish a hemispheric-wide free trade zone by the year 2005.A   The U.S. representative at the San Jose meeting described the=two days of talks as productive, and says delegates will now.return home to confer with their governments.=   Peter Allgeier of the U.S. special trade representative's6office said a similar meeting may be held again soon:B   "We will all be having consultations with others in the regionAin a short time, probably in May, and we'll all get together and@try to put together an agenda for Denver that makes sense, that7actually moves the process forward and can actually be;accomplished in Denver.  It was a very productive meeting,Bbecause people were trying to be constructive, not trying to pass>judgment at this point on other people's suggestions but justAtrying to understand them clearly so that we can all go back and&explain them to our own governments."A   Similar discussions will be held between U.S. trade officials?and representatives of other Latin American countries prior toAthe Denver conference.  Mr. Allgeier said there is great hope inBthe region that the meeting Denver will produce concrete results:A   "We think, and this is not the U.S. view but that of everyoneBhere, that a plan of action should come out of Denver where tradeBministers say all right these are the first steps we need to takeAand you need to do this by such and such a date and perhaps also<develop a structure by which we can do that so that all the@countries are participating and feel that they have their views)reflected in the measures that we take.">   The four-day conference in Denver opens on June thirtieth.   ---------------   ---------------(   BLEAK FUTURE PREDICTED FOR VENEZUELA   BARBARA SCHOETZAU   NEW YORK=   Two well known experts on Venezuela painted a pessimisticApicture of that nation's future Friday. They made their comments&to an audience of New York investors.B   Venezuela was once considered by many observers to be the mostBdynamic economy in South America, but its economic performance isAregarded as the worst in the region in 1994. The oil-rich nation@has been rocked by social unrest, political scandals, attempted?military coups, rising crime rates, soaring inflation, and the collapse of its banking system.>   The increasing move away from a free market economy by the9government of President Rafael Caldera and worries about@potential social upheaval have discouraged foreign investors in@Venezuela. Mr. Caldera was elected in 1994 after revelations of<massive corruption at high levels of power forced PresidentCarlos Andres Perez to resign.9   John Sweeney published the newsletter "Veneconomy" in>Venezuela where he lived for 17 years before returning to the<United States in September. Mr. Sweeney told an audience of>business executives that President Caldera is the most honestAleader the Venezuelans have had in two decades. But he expressedAgreat concern about the increasingly authoritarian nature of the<government and the growing role of the military in civilian	society:?   "Constitutional guarantees have been suspended in VenezuelaAsince mid-1994 and the country is gradually being militarized by:a government that shows  no willingness to make difficult?economic decisions, but which is determined to preserve socialBorder at any cost, even if more repression becomes necessary. TheAsuspended constitutional guarantees include property rights, theAinviolability of one's home, the  right of personal liberty, the9right of due process and the right to circulate freely."?   Mr. Sweeney, now an analyst with the Heritage Foundation in>Washington, said there is little internal debate in Venezuela@over issues today and those who disagree with the government doso at an increasing risk.=   Some observers have commented that Venezuelan society has@become obsessed with the search for those guilty of corruption.>   Diego Arria served as Venezuela's Ambassador to the United?Nations during the Perez government and as minister of tourism>when Mr. Caldera first served as president in the late 1970s.>Ambassador Arria, who is currently a fellow at the Council on9Foreign Relations in New York City, said Venezuelans areundergoing a moral crisis:@   "What I see first is the most divided society in the region.>The levels of hate, of animosity, of confrontations are to me<something totally new. A country with tremendous increasingAsocial tensions, with services and infrastructure, both physical$and social, deteriorating  rapidly.;   "The collapse of the health system; the collapse of the?judicial system; the collapse of fundamental institutions: TheBpolitical parties, the labor unions, business groups. Add to that@an inflation of 60 to 70 percent, price controls, unemployment,almost no foreign investment.@   "A society that combines political, economic crises together@with a major moral crisis has brought the country to a state ofcollective despair."=   Ambassador Arria said Venezuela will take a step toward aAbrighter future when a younger generation that is not associated.with the problems of the past comes to power.A   The discussion took place at the Americas Society, a group of6New York business people interested in Latin America.   ---------------   ---------------&   ARGENTINE PRESIDENT BURIES HIS SON   ROGER WILKISON   RIO DE JANEIROB   A president, two former presidents and high officials from all<over Latin America were in attendance Thursday as ArgentineBleader Carlos Menem buried his only son. Carlos Menem Junior, who@was killed a day earlier in a helicopter crash, was buried in a@Muslim cemetery on the outskirts of Buenos Aires after a simplereligious ceremony.>his son's coffin to the family tomb, where the remains of the;26-year-old youth were laid to rest alongside those of his>maternal grandmother.  The coffin was covered by a black flag?featuring a half-moon crescent and a star upon which red roses@and a Koran had been placed.  Although President Menem, the son@of Syrian immigrants, converted to Roman Catholicism during his@youth, his son embraced the Islamic faith of his mother and hisparents' ancestors.?   Argentine television cameras, though forbidden to enter the?cemetery, were placed on the high walls surrounding the burial2ground and carried live coverage of the ceremony.B   Carlos Menem Junior died after sustaining severe head and body?injuries Wednesday when the helicopter he was piloting slammedBinto an electric power line and plummeted into a corn field about*200 kilometers northwest of Buenos Aires.@   Uruguayan President Julio Maria Sanguinetti, who was present?at the burial along with his predecessor luis Alberto Lacalle,@said that human beings are always prepared to see their parentsAdie but are never ready to bury their children.  Former Bolivian<President Jaime Paz Zamora was also at the ceremony as wereABrazilian vice president Marco Maciel and the sons of ParaguayanPresident Juan Carlos Wasmosy.B   The governor of Buenos Aires province, Eduardo Duhalde, who isBvery close to Mr. Menem, said the president would be back at work<on Monday morning.  Through a high official of his Peronist9Party, Mr. Menem said the best way Argentines could show@solidarity with him during his grief was to continue working toBmove their country forward.  Argentina is currently going througha severe financial crisis.   ---------------   ---------------.   COSTA RICA/NICARAGUA IMMIGRATION AGREEMENT   BILL RODGERS   SAN JOSE:   Tensions between Costa Rica and Nicaragua over illegalBimmigration have eased following an agreement reached between the@two nations late last week.  But the agreement is not likely to>stem the tide of illegal immigrants from Nicaragua into CostaRica.?   In a dusty squatter's settlement outside San Jose, childrenBplay around large metal drums that are filled with water each day<by a government tanker truck. These deliveries are the only?source of water for the settlement, which is called El Carpio,2because there is no running water or electricity.?   Nicaraguans make the up the vast majority of the 25-hundred@families that live in El Carpio's shacks of wood and corrugatedBtin.  Most entered Costa Rica illegally, searching for work.  One@young man in El Carpio, who did not want to give his name, saysAhe left Nicaragua five years ago and has been in Costa Rica ever:since.  He said he left his country for economic reasons.A   I have a job, he said, and what I earn here is much more than@I can make there.  The man, who works as a security guard, said@crossing the border was difficult but once in Costa Rica he wasAable to find work.  He said he now has documents allowing him toBwork legally.  But he said before he got them he lived in fear of.being caught by the authorities and deported.=   His story is like that of many other Nicaraguans in Costa?Rica. The country's relative prosperity has long been a magnet=for Nicaraguans fleeing poverty and political unrest.  After@crossing the border, they usually find jobs as farm laborers inAthe coffee, banana, and sugar plantations or in the constructionAindustry.  Some unscrupulous employers hire undocumented workers@because they can pay them less than the minimum wage, and avoidBthe mandatory contributions to the country's national health caresystem.;   But despite the possibility of being exploited, growingBnumbers of Nicaraguans are coming across the border.  Costa RicanBauthorities estimate there are now some 300-thousand undocumented?Nicaraguans living in Costa Rica, or about nine percent of the?country's population.  Another 175-thousand Nicaraguans are inthe country legally.=   Earlier this year, Costa Rica began a campaign of massive>deportations of illegal immigrants.  Officials say in January;alone more than two-thousand undocumented Nicaraguans wereAdeported.   However, the deportations strained relations between=the two nations, especially because some Nicaraguan migrants;complained of being mistreated by Costa Rican authorities.?Nicaragua also expressed concern over reports that its workers)have been exploited while in Costa Rica.B   These growing tensions were eased late last week after the two>countries reached an immigration agreement that will legalize?thousands of undocumented Nicaraguan workers.  Under the plan,=Costa Rica will issue temporary work permits to undocumented?Nicaraguans already living in the country.  The agreement will>help prevent the exploitation of illegal immigrants by giving-them the same rights as Costa Rican workers.A   While officials in both countries have expressed satisfactionAwith the accord, the agreement is not likely to stem the tide ofBillegal immigrants.  Economic growth in Nicaragua is stagnant and?unemployment is over 50 percent.  By contrast, unemployment inBCosta Rica is less than five percent.  So for many Nicaraguans, a=chance for a better life lies in Costa Rica, across a poorly5guarded border.  It is a chance many are now taking.   ---------------   ---------------8   ARGENTINE PRESIDENT'S SON KILLED IN HELICOPTER CRASH   ROGER WILKISON   RIO DE JANEIRO?   The 26-year-old son of Argentine President Carlos Menem has?died from injuries he sustained when his helicopter crashed to?the ground after hitting an electric power line. His estranged@wife and their daughter rushed to the hospital and were on hand7as doctors tried in vain to save the young man's life.B   Doctors said Carlos Menem junior suffered multiple injuries to?his skull and several body fractures as a result of the crash.>An Argentine reporter who rushed to the scene, 200 kilometersAnorthwest of Buenos Aires, said the youth was totally disfigured>when he was taken to the hospital.  Another witness described?young Menem as a bag of bones.  Doctors at the hospital in theBtown of San Nicolas said the young man's heart failed three times?and that he went into a coma as he lay on the operating table.?   Television images showed a shaken President Menem clutching@his wife close to him as their car left the hospital and slowly@made way past a bevy of reporters, photographers and cameramen.>Television newscasters said Argentines who watched the scene,:whatever their ideology, seemed to share the presidentialfamily's grief.8   Carlos Menem Junior, or Carlitos, as he was known toAArgentines, was a highly visible figure.  He appeared frequently<on the pages of photo magazines and was often the target of?cartoonists. Handsome and muscular, he was a professional autoAracer and the escort of some of Argentina's most beautiful young?women.  Last year, he was thrown briefly into a uruguayan jailAafter slugging an Argentine photographer.  But most recently, he)had been working in his father's office.=   His father often despaired of his son's love of speed butAcould not openly oppose Carlos junior's risky occupation because@he himself has always lived in the fast lane, driving race cars;and piloting light planes and helicopters.  Carlitos Menem?occasionally piloted his father around in his helicopter afterAthe president's official chopper, with Mr. Menem aboard, crashed4into a house in a remote northern province in 1993.   ---------------   ---------------1   CENTRAL AMERICAN FREE TRADE ZONE TALKS HALTED   BILL RODGERS   SAN JOSE=   Three central American nations have suspended their joint?talks with Mexico on establishing a free trade zone. the talks5were suspended because of Mexico's financial crisis.A   Honduran economy minister Delmer Urbino panting says the freeBtrade negotiations with Mexico have been suspended until there is>a more favorable financial climate in that country. Honduras,:Guatemala, and El Salvador, which form a group called the<triangle of the north, opened the talks last year.  But Mr.:Urbino said Wednesday Mexico's financial crisis has had a?negative impact throughout Central and South America.  He said;the three nations might now begin negotiating a free tradeagreement with Colombia.<   Costa Rica is the only central American nation to have aAfree-trade pact with Mexico.  The accord, signed in 1994, lifted=tariffs on some 12-thousand goods at the start of this year.=However, Costa Rican exports to Mexico fell by 53 percent in?January and February because of the Mexican economic slowdown.@   Nicaragua also is negotiating a free-trade pact with Mexico,?and the talks are reported to be well-advanced.  On Tuesday, a7top Mexican trade official said his country's economicBdifficulties will not affect its policy of negotiating free tradeagreements with other nations.   ---------------   ---------------0   GUATEMALAN HUMAN RIGHTS UNDER SCRUTINY AGAIN   BILL RODGERS   SAN JOSE<   The issue of human rights in Guatemala is under scrutiny?again, following a critical report by the United Nations and a>U.S. decision to suspend military aid to the Central AmericanBnation. The human rights issue is part of the peace process aimed9at ending Guatemala's decades-long guerrilla insurgency.A   The human rights situation in guatemala remains grim. This isBthe assessment of the United Nations mission in Guatemala that isAmonitoring human rights conditions in the country.  The mission,@known by its acronym MINUGUA, issued a report earlier this week?covering a three-month period beginning November 21st when the!U.N. observers began their work.=   The report said MINUGUA observers documented instances of<political killings, death squad activities and other abuses@during the three months.  The report blamed the majority of the=violations on guatemala's security forces, and called on thegovernment to rein them in.?   The head of MINUGUA, Leonardo Franco, told reporters Monday+the main problem in Guatemala is impunity.>   Mr. Franco said few people are ever brought to justice for=committing rights violations, and described the human rightssituation as worrisome.5   The U.N. report came a few days after the Clinton;Administration suspended U.S. military aid to guatemala to<protest continuing rights abuses there and the government's@failure to resolve a number of high profile cases.  Among thoseAcases is the disappearance of a leftist guerrilla leader married:to American lawyer, Jennifer Harbury.  Ms. Harbury gained=international attention last year when she launched a hunger7strike in guatemala to force the government to release'information about her missing husband.@   Both the suspension of U.S. military aid and the U.N. report@have drawn new attention to guatemala's continuing human rights<problem and the government's apparent inability to stop the=abuses.  The U.N. mission was sent to guatemala to monitor a@human rights accord signed by the government and leftist rebelsin March 1994.A   The protection of human rights is viewed as key to ending the>decades-long conflict, in which more than 100-thousand people<have been killed.  However, MINGUA's conclusion that rights<violations continue unabated is not an encouraging sign for=achieving peace in the Central American nation. NegotiationsBbetween the government and the rebels have been at an impasse for@months now, reportedly over guarantees to protect the rights ofguatemala's indigenous people.B   Guatemalan president Ramiro De Leon Carpio did not dispute theBU.N. report's conclusions.  Mr. De Leon acknowledged Tuesday that7impunity remains a serious problem, and said there are,deficiencies in guatemala's justice system.?   Before becoming president in June 1993, Mr. De Leon was theBgovernment's human rights prosecutor.  But despite his record and=his administration's efforts to end violations, human rights;abuses have continued, further reducing the prospects that$Guatemala's conflict will end soon.   ---------------   ---------------4   U.S. EDITORIAL OPINION ROUNDUP: MEXICO'S ANGUISH   ANDREW N. GUTHRIE   WASHINGTON@   The political and economic turmoil gripping Mexico continues@to fascinate U.S. editorial writers, some of whom are comparingBthe situation to a television soap opera.  Still others challengeBfiction writers to come up with as interesting a scenario of whatBhas gone on recently in the United States' neighbor to the south.;   The drama so far:  The immediate past president, Carlos<Salinas De Gortari, is, effectively, in exile in the United?States; his brother Raul is in jail for allegedly plotting the;murder of a key party official.  Mexico's former assistantAattorney general, brother of the murdered man, is in jail in the=U.S. after being arrested while trying to flee to Spain withAthousands of dollars in cash, and Mexican officials suspected of@accepting drug payoffs from cocaine dealers.  The peso has lost<almost half its value since early December, and the economy=continues to look weaker now than anybody had predicted even=three months ago, despite a year's worth of free trade underNAFTA.<   In Texas, which has a huge and growing stake in Mexico'sBeconomic wellbeing, "The Dallas Morning News" casts a sympathetic,editorial eye toward the present president:A   "Of all the crises by which Ernesto Zedillo has been buffeted=in his first 100 days as Mexico's president, the exposure of6corruption at the highest levels of his InstitutionalBRevolutionary Party has been greatest.  It is safe to assume that@Mexico's flattened economy will rebound eventually.  Similarly,?the Zapatista rebels in Chiapas state, of whom little has been9heard of late, will probably never amount to more than a9distraction, though one made more prominent by Mexicans'@fascination with guerrilla romanticism.  But the revelations ofAvenality and decay in Mr. Zedillo's own political party pose for%him a herculean test of leadership."?   Meanwhile, in middle America, "The Chicago Tribune" worries8that what is right for the economy of Mexico may not be>practically possible because of the hardship for individuals:;   "There are no guarantees that the bitter austerity plan>announced by the Mexican government will be swallowed by most@Mexicans and will cure the country's deepening economic crisis.?The pain, by the government's own admission, will be quick andAwidespread.  Inflation will surge and growth will halt, ensuringBa recession this year.  If too many businesses close and too many9Mexicans lose jobs, however, there's a real concern that=[president] Zedillo's prescription for economic health could=provoke more social unrest.  [However] in a short time, [Mr.BZedillo] has demonstrated his commitment to opening the political>and judicial systems and ending corruption.  Surely, Mexicans0don't want to throw away their past gains now."=   Still in the Midwest, "The Cleveland [Ohio] Plain Dealer"<decries what it sees as a farce taking the stage in Mexico:?   "If Mexico's recent economic difficulties had the potential@for high drama, its concurrent political developments have come;nearer to farce.  And the player most responsible for this?unexpected turn of events was, of all people, former President=Carlos Salinas De Gortari.  More likely he'll never be taken=seriously again by a broad segment of Mexicans.  As the Wall:Street Journal reported, there was a feeling he has moved>Mexico's economic crisis off the business pages and on to thecomic pages.">   Despite the pain and turmoil, "The Baltimore Sun's" former@Mexico city bureau chief, James Bock, is hopeful that something<really good and important will emerge from the ashes of thepresent crisis.>   "Prosperity is not in the offing.  But democracy could be.?The Mexican people have had a few tastes of democracy over the>past decade, and they hunger for more.  If he can control the=PRI's hard liners, Mr. Zedillo can offer more democracy. Mr.BZedillo 'is a puritan about the law and is profoundly ignorant of?the Mexican political system, Raymundo Riva Palacio, a Mexican?journalist, wrote last week. 'that is to say he is the perfect!combination to promote change.'">   "The New York Times" says the United States government has;finally taken off its blinders toward the unseemly side of;previous Mexican administrations that were unrealisticallyportrayed in Washington:?   "The last two presidents of the United States have embraced=Mr. Salinas as the personification of desirable economic and?political change in Mexico.  Yet American authorities were far>more aware than they let on of the close ties between SalinasBassociates and the Mexican drug cartels now funneling most of theBcocaine that reaches the United States.  Washington's downplaying9of corruption issues was a costly mistake. United States5relations with Mexico are best served by the kind of%housecleaning that is now going on.":   "The Washington Post" continues the thought with these
comments:>   "This affair hangs like a great cloud over the country and=will affect everything else that happens there. Whatever theAoutcome of these scandals, Mexico's development remains a matterBof primary interest to the United States, and the relationship is;one to which this country is going to have to devote great$concern and substantial resources."   ---------------   ----------------   ARGENTINE STOCKS RISE AFTER IMF AGREEMENT   ROGER WILKISON   RIO DE JANEIRO@   Leading stocks on the Buenos Aires stock exchange shot up anBaverage of eight per cent Monday after Argentine President Carlos?Menem announced that his country is near an agreement with the;International Monetary Fund that would inject at least twoAbillion dollars into its crisis-ridden economy.  Reports the IMF:apparently wants Argentina to raise taxes and adopt other>belt-tightening measures to make sure it can service its debt
obligations.B   Argentina's economy entered a crisis period right after Mexico>devalued its currency and scared international investors awayAfrom the rest of Latin America.  But President Menem has orderedAhis economy minister, Domingo Cavallo, to do everything possible@to signal local and foreign investors that Argentina intends to8pay its debts and remain an attractive emerging market.?   For the past three days, Mr. Cavallo and his top aides have7been locked behind closed doors with an IMF delegation?negotiating a deal whereby Argentina would receive between two<and two-point-seven billion dollars to help it ride out the@current crisis.  Mr. Cavallo's top aide, Juan llach, said earlyAMonday morning that Argentina, in his words, is only centimeters>away from striking a deal with the IMF.  Mr. Menem told radio?reporters later that things will improve once the accord is inplace.:   As investors fled Argentina after the Mexican debacle,AArgentines were reported to have withdrawn at least four billion@dollars from local bank deposits.  Argentina's foreign exchangeBreserves have dropped by at least two billion dollars, and, until?last Friday, the stock market registered a downward trend thatBsaw leading stocks lose half of their value.  Mr. Menem called on>his fellow citizens to put their money back into the banks to'take advantage of high interest rates.=   The usually authoritative Buenos Aires newspaper "Clarin"9reported Monday that the IMF is insisting that the Menem>administration raise various taxes, such as those on alcohol,@tobacco and luxury goods.  The report also said that the IMF isseeking other tax increases.=   Mr. Cavallo has acknowledged that the new belt-tightening=measures could, in the worst case, provoke a recession.  TheAbanking system is already short of liquidity, and interest ratesBare so high that businessmen and consumers are finding it hard to<get credit.  And even though new taxes will reduce economic@growth, Mr. Llach said Argentines must face up to the fact that;their country is in trouble and should be prepared to makesacrifices.   ---------------   ---------------<   PERUVIAN PRESIDENT REMAINS FRONT RUNNER IN ELECTION RACE   ROGER WILKISON   RIO DE JANEIRO;   With less than a month to go before elections are held,:incumbent Peruvian President Alberto Fujimori remains theAfront-runner by a wide margin over his main rival, former United@Nations Secretary General Javier Perez De Cuellar. Although Mr.@Fujimori has lost points in relation to polls last month, he is%still a favorite to win re-election.A   Peru's most prestigious polling firm, Apoyo, predicted Monday?that if the elections, which are scheduled for April 9th, wereAheld now, Mr. Fujimori would win in the first round of ballotingBwith about 50 per cent of the votes cast.  According to the apoyo?poll, Mr. Perez De Cuellar would be the runner-up, with 17 per>cent.  The survey also predicted that, if a second round wereBnecessary, Mr.  Fujimori would defeat the former U.N. chief by 59per cent to 25 per cent.>   Another poll, this one by the CPI firm, shows Mr. Fujimori>ahead of Mr. Perez De Cuellar by an even wider margin, 55 perAcent to 18 per cent.  But a third survey, conducted by the Datum=organization, found that the president's support had droppedBsince last month, from 57 to  45 per cent but that he still stood@way ahead of Mr. Perez De Cuellar at 19 per cent.  There are 12other candidates in the race.B   Datum attributed the drop to Mr. Fujimori's claim that, during;Peru's recent border conflict with Ecuador,Peruvian forcesBcaptured the Ecuadorian border post of Tiwintza, a claim that was0later denied by his own commander at the front.   ---------------   ---------------:   U.S. SUSPENDS TRAINING PROGRAM FOR GUATEMALAN MILITARY   WASHINGTON@   Concerned over the lack of progress in resolving a number of>human rights cases, the State Department issued March 10 whatAacting State Department spokewoman Christine Shelly described asA"a very strong statement" suspending participation by Guatemalan@military personnel in the U.S. International Military Educationand Training (IMET) program.>   "We will certainly continue to press the case," the actingAspokesman said.  Responding to related questions, she said there;currently is no Guatemalan instructor at the School of the@Americas and there have been no Guatemalan students there since1992.:   Asked about reports that U.S. National Guard units areBtraining in Guatemala, Shelly said the exercise "Strong Roads" is!"a humanitarian civic exercise."<   The program allows U.S. military personnel to train in a>realistic environment while providing assistance to people inAneed, most of them in rural areas.  U.S. reservists and NationalBGuard members who are expected to participate in the program thisAyear will build schools, some bridges, and establish a couple of<medical clinics, she said. "They also drill water wells and$conduct medical readiness training.A   "Part of what they do there is designed to try to improve theBlives of very poor people," the acting spokesman explained.  "ButBin addition to humanitarian benefits for the Guatemalans in these=rural areas, it also provides a valuable opportunity for ourBmilitary personnel to operate in a challenging environment and to?enhance their own readiness."  This type of training in remoteBareas and rugged terrain, generally, is not available to American3military personnel in the United States, she said.   ---------------   ---------------8   WORLD HEATLH ORGANIZATION POLIO VACCINATION CAMPAIGN   DAVID MCALARY   WASHINGTONB   The World Health Organization and United Nations InternationalBChildren's Emergency Fund have announced in Geneva they will soon@launch a massive polio vaccination campaign in the Middle East,&Central Asia and the Caucasus region.;   The WHO and UNICEF say children under age five in those<regions are to receive the first of two doses of oral polio>vaccine later this month or early april.  The second is to be$administered about one month later.?   It will be the biggest multi-national immunization campaignAand one of the largest public health events in the world, second@only to the immunization of 83 million Chinese children againstpolio in two days in 1993.?   The World Health Organization's assistant director general,ADr. Ralph Henderson of the United States, says the former SovietBstates involved include Armenia, Azerbaijan, Georgia, Kazakhstan,6Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan, and Uzbekistan:B   "It's a whole group of states, newly-independent states, which?have been having a lot of trouble getting their vaccine supply?systems [and] maintaining their health services in the move toindependence.";   The other region in the mass polio vaccination campaignAincludes Afghanistan, Egypt, Gaza Strip and Jericho, Iran, Iraq,BJordan, Lebanon, Pakistan, Syria, and Turkey.  The WHO and UNICEFBsay the operation may be delayed in Afghanistan, however, because>a shell has hit a warehouse during civil warfare, damaging 90*refrigerators due to receive the vaccine.7   The campaign is aimed at helping meet a global goal@established by the world health assembly in 1988 of eliminatingBpolio by the year two-thousand.  Similar mass efforts have led toBthe eradication of the crippling disease in the Americas. But theBw-h-o estimates that 100-thousand children still contracted it in/other parts of the developing world last year.>   Dr. Henderson says mass inoculations can do for the Middle?East, Caucasus, and Central Asia what they did for the westernhemisphere:@   "If we can get all of that region immunizing simultaneously,>we sort of let the whole population swim in polio vaccine and?it's a way of finding out that virus in the smallest nooks and?crannies.  The whole issue of doing mass campaigns has been soBeffective with this, we're very optimistic that this regional andBcross regional cooperation will not only get rid of polio in thisBsubarea but such a terrific example for international cooperationaround a health threat."B   The polio immunization operation is largely financed by Rotary?International, which is providing nearly five million dollars.AUNICEF says the process is to be repeated next year and the yearafter.   ---------------   ---------------1   DOCTORS ISSUE REPORT ON NATURAL BIRTH CONTROL   NANCY STEINBACH   WASHINGTON>   Scientists say natural substances can prevent a woman from=becoming pregnant.  One is from a tree.  The other is from afruit.A   A recent report says the papaya fruit can prevent a pregnancy>and even end it.  Tharmalingam (thar-muh-ling-um) Senthimohan?(sen-thil-mo-hahn) and Malcolm Topping did the research.  They<studied the effects of papaya on women at the University ofSussex in Britain.@   Doctor Topping says women in Sri Lanka, India and Brazil eat?papaya fruit, leaves or seeds to prevent pregnancy.  Women who?want a healthy baby do not eat papaya while they are pregnant.:   Papaya contains the chemical papain.  Papain attacks a<hormone, progesterin, that is necessary to become pregnant.BPapain also mixes with a protein in the blood.  That makes papain;twenty-five times more powerful than it is naturally.  The?scientists say this powerful action is what stops a pregnancy.<   They do not say, however, that women should start eating7papaya for these purposes.  More studies are needed toAinvestigate any possible damaging effects of papaya on the body.>   Papaya is one of many plants women have used for centuries@because the plants are believed to prevent or stop a pregnancy.@It is the only one yet that experts say has been scientifically	studied.?   In another report, scientists in India say a substance from?neem trees can prevent pregnancies.  The neem tree is a commonAtree found in South Asia.  Products made from the neem tree haveAbeen used for many years for everything from fighting insects tocleaning teeth.:   GP Talwar is with the International Center for Genetic:Engineering and Biotechnology in India.  He says the neem;substance, called praneem, has been successfully tested onBanimals.  It prevented the release of sperm cells during sex, but;did not interfere with the animal's normal desire for sex.9   Mister Talwar says researchers are designing a device=containing praneem that a woman would use before having sex.BThis contraceptive, he says, would prevent an unwanted pregnancy.>Mister Talwar also suggests that the neem contraceptive could%prevent the spread of some diseases.   ---------------   ---------------   ULCER VACCINE   DAVID MCALARY   WASHINGTON;   Italian researchers have developed an experimental oralAvaccine effective against ulcers and stomach cancer in mice, and@expect to begin testing it in people next year. If it works, it:will combat a microbe found in half the world population.<   The bacterium which causes nearly all stomach ulcers was<discovered in 1983 by a U.S. doctor.  Until then, stress or>excess stomach acid was considered the cause of the disorder.?The organism is also associated with a substantial fraction of?stomach cancers, the second most frequent cancer in the world.>   The infection spreads through contact with saliva or fecal9matter, so crowded, unsanitary conditions make it common@throughout much of the world.  Eighty per cent of the people in<developing countries are infected by age 20.  In industrial@nations, where hygiene and socioeconomic conditions are better,150 per cent of people are infected by age sixty.<   In the richer countries, vast sums of money are spent on@antibiotics and other treatments to fight this bacterium, which>burrows into the stomach lining and causes inflammation.  But9like many organisms, this one can become drug resistant.>   Microbiologist Rino Rappuoli ['ree-no ruh-'pwo-lee] at the<Immunobiological Research Institute in Siena, Italy, says a"cheaper alternative is necessary:=   "In developed countries, we have therapies which are very>expensive but we have them.  So if we can afford them, we can@treat the disease.  To give you an idea every year, we spend in@Europe and the U.S. together five billion U.S. dollars to treat@these diseases.  Obviously, third world countries will never be?able to afford that, so there is  no  treatment.  The only way;these diseases can be approached there is by vaccination."@   Now, Mr. Rappuoli and his colleagues have made prevention by?vaccination a realistic hope.  They report in the U.S. journal9"Science" [March 17th issue] that they have successfully9immunized laboratory mice against ulcer infection.  They@developed a vaccine using purified components of the bacterium.<The vaccine does not cause infection, but includes only theAmolecules necessary to stimulate the immune system into reacting=so it can learn to recognize a real infection when it comes.>   In 13 experiments involving 300 mice, about 80 per cent of<those which had been inoculated avoided stomach ulcers when@infected with the microbe.  But all untreated animals got them.According to Rappuoli:@   "We showed that the vaccine is feasible.  So from the result>that we get in the animal model, we can conclude that if this@observation made in the animal model would hold true in humans,@maybe in the long term we will be able to prevent diseases like7gastric ulcer and gastric cancer just by vaccination."=   The work is called a breakthrough by a U.S. scientist who>studies this bacterium.  In addition to leading to a possible@vaccine, microbiologist Lucy Tompkins of Stanford University in?California says it will help researchers better understand howAthe organism interacts with the stomach by providing them with a2suitable animal, the mouse, in which to study it.>   Until now, she says, the lack of a useful animal model hasAhindered research.  The problem has been that the version of theBbacterium many animals get does not have the same effect in their?gastric tract as the human version has in people. Furthermore,8Ms. Tompkins says strains of the human version grown in(laboratories have not taken in animals:B   "That suggests there are very important genes and factors that@are produced by the organism that are lost when the organism is@grown in the laboratory, factors that the organism needs in its6very first step in causing the persistent infection."?   But Ms. Tompkins notes that the Italian group overcame this@problem by transferring bacteria from fresh human biopsies intolaboratory mice.=   Mr. Rappuoli says he expects to test the ulcer vaccine in<humans within one year.  These will be small scale tests to<determine the vaccine's safety.  Later, larger tests of theBvaccine's effectiveness in preventing infection would probably beBconducted somewhere in the developing world, where the infectionsare most common.   ---------------   ---------------@   ISRAELI NEWSPAPERS SKEPTICAL ABOUT RESUMING TALKS WITH SYRIA
   AL PESSIN
   JERUSALEM9   Israeli newspapers were skeptical Wednesday about the>agreement announced Tuesday night to resume negotiations with?Syria.  But Israeli officials continued to try to put the best@face on the plan for Ambassadorial talks, which they admit were@the minimum they had hoped for from this week's shuttle mission*by Secretary of State Warren Christopher.;   Israeli officials say they did not make any significant;concessions to get the talks started again.  But newspapereditorial writers are worried.B   The newspaper "Davar" says there is no evidence that Syria has@changed its demand to get back all of the Golan Heights,  which8Israel captured in 1967.  So, the newspaper says, it isBreasonable to assume that Israel has become more flexible on that;key point.  The newspaper "Hatzofeh" is concerned that the?renewed talks will result in an accelerated Israeli withdrawal@from the Golan Heights.  And both of those newspapers, plus the?widely-read "Ma'Ariv," say such a withdrawal does not have the-support of a majority of the Israeli people.A   Israeli leaders make  no  secret of their willingness to give;up the Golan Heights, and they believe they can win public>support if the conditions surrounding a withdrawal are right.BSuch conditions could include a demilitarized zone, international6peacekeepers and an agreement for peace with Lebanon.>   Israel's Deputy Foreign Minister Yossi Beilin says such anBaccord cannot be reached through Ambassadorial talks, but perhaps"the Ambassadors can make a start:B   "I believe that at a certain moment the negotiations should be@handled by the political level, the higher the better.  But theAAmbassadors  know each other very well and they succeeded so farAto achieve some important areas of agreement.  And they will, ofBcourse, continue until the moment is right for the politicians toenter the scene."@   Israeli leaders hope that the moment for upgrading the talks8comes soon.  Foreign Minister Shimon Peres has said the@government has decided to devote the remaining 20 months of its>term to making peace, regardless of the political costs.  But8Deputy Foreign Minister Beilin has said any substantive@negotiations must take place in the next few months because the7government will not be able to make politically costly5concessions once the election campaign gets started.=   Tuesday night, just after the resumption of AmbassadorialBtalks was announced, a senior foreign ministry official was askedBwhether the move means Syria's President Hafez al-Assad is really@ready to negotiate peace, or whether he is only agreeing to the7minimum necessary so as not to send Secretary of State=Christopher home empty-handed. The Israeli official said the>question is an important one, but it is too early to know theanswer.   ---------------   ---------------(   ISRAEL'S PALESTINIAN SEPARATION PLAN
   AL PESSIN
   JERUSALEM>   Israel's police minister has presented a plan to the primeAminister for security arrangements designed to separate IsraelisAand Palestinians and prevent terrorism. This controversial plan,?which is related to the next phase of Palestinian autonomy nowunder discussion.A   When Israel first captured the West Bank and Gaza in the 1967Awar, many Israelis looked forward to absorbing the new territory@and its Palestinian inhabitants.  Some Israelis still hold suchAdreams, but the current government believes that view has become@a minority opinion and it is committed to giving up most of the=occupied territory to the Palestinian autonomy authority, in return for an end to terrorism.A   Violent extremists on both sides oppose the decision, and the;result has been a wave of terrorism, mostly carried out byPalestinians.>   So to stop the terror, and to prepare for the expansion ofBPalestinian autonomy, Israeli officials developed a policy called<"separation."  The prime minister asked the minister of the>police, the chief of the secret police and other officials to?draw up a plan to create a secure dividing line between Israel9and the Palestinian areas.  There is already a series of=checkpoints, but officials admit that in addition to tens of?thousands of permit-holders legally crossing into Israel every?day, thousands of Palestinians sneak through illegally on backroads and footpaths.A   The plan presented to the prime minister on Thursday is aimed:at stopping that.  He approved it, and a final version is?expected to be ready for debate by the full cabinet within twoweeks.<   This approach to controlling terrorism and preparing for@Palestinian autonomy has drawn criticism from both Israelis andAPalestinians.  Some Israelis believe that the price of a networkAof fences, electronic monitoring devices and more checkpoints isBtoo high, at about 400-million dollars.  Other Israelis are angry@because they believe such a secure line would prevent them from=fulfilling their dream for Jewish control of all of biblicalPalestine.@   For exactly that reason, some Palestinians welcome the plan.ABut others are concerned that by building the secure line Israel;would be unilaterally determining the future border of thePalestinian area.<   The final border and the final status of the Palestinian=entity are to be determined in talks scheduled to start next9year.  An interim stage of Palestinian autonomy is to be?determined in talks now under way, with a July first deadline.@In addition, Palestinians are concerned that such a secure lineAwould make it even easier for Israel to seal off the Palestinian=areas for security or other reasons, which has a devastatingeffect on their economy.8   Israeli Foreign Minister Shimon Peres has called the@Israeli-Palestinian peace accord something like a marriage.  He>says  they have had the ceremony, and now they have the dailyAlife, which is not so easy.  Asked how this separation plan fits;in with his marriage analogy, Mr. Peres says maybe it is a:"modern marriage," with political separation and economic?cooperation.  Not  all Palestinians, or Israelis, would likelyAagree with that benign description of the separation policy, but>after Thursday's meeting it appears separation is on the way,(perhaps within the next several months.   ---------------   ---------------   JERUSALEM BOOK FAIR
   AL PESSIN
   JERUSALEMB   Most of the attention paid to the Middle East peace process is>focused on such things as negotiations, borders and security.?But in a visit to the 17th biannual Jerusalem book fair, shows@the peace process is extending beyond the realm of politics anddiplomacy.9   Stroll around the nearly one-thousand exhibits at the@Jerusalem Book Fair and you mostly hear conversations in HebrewAand English.  But along one corridor the predominant language is7Arabic, with publishers from Egypt and Morocco, and an6Israeli-Arab company which imports books from Jordan.?   Egyptian publisher Abed El-Rahman Hassanin, is on his first=visit to the Jerusalem fair, even though his country has had@peace with Israel for 17 years.  Other Egyptian publishers have?come to the fair in the past, but not recently.  Now, progress?toward peace with the Palestinians has apparently reopened thepolitical door.>   And Mr. Hassanin says he has received a good response from
Israelis:>   "Many came to talk with us and want to print some books inAArabic in Egypt, and like that.  Many, many, many people came toBtalk with me about printing the books, sending out their boxes tosell in Cairo, etc."A   Near the Arab publishers is a large exhibit from the Vatican,=which established diplomatic relations with Israel after theBIsraeli-Palestinian peace accord was signed.  The Vatican sent toBthe fair a collection of antique Hebrew manuscripts, some of themA700 years old.  Not far away are publishers from other countries>with new, or newly improved, relations with Israel, includingTurkey, China and Vietnam.A   The book fair's chairman, Zev Birger, says the new exhibitors4are generating interest among the fair's customers:<   "According to the number of people that are there at theAstalls of those countries, I think the interest is very high.  I@understand from some of the exhibitors from the Arab countries,<the publishers from the Arab countries, that they made very;interesting business arrangements here as well as deals in@Jerusalem, with Israeli publishers and with foreign publishers,and that's what's important."A   Mr. Birger says that while the peace process has created this>new situation at the book fair, the fair itself represents anBoften under-appreciated aspect of peacemaking, where the focus is<generally on political-military concerns first and economicconcerns second:=   "Well, I think that sometimes cultural relations are more:important than maybe economic relations, because culturalBrelations are based on real things, they are based on your heart.=And when you read books of other people, when you understand=their literature, their culture, and you exchange ideas, you?become nearer.  And this is very important.  And I think books<serve a very important factor in bringing people together."A   No one at the book fair is more interested in that than Ansaf?Sahadi, an Israeli-arab publisher, who also imports books from!Jordan and other Arab countries.@   Sitting among the Arab visitors and speaking in hebrew, Mrs.@Sahadi says "everything is good and beautiful, there is nothing?better than this.  "Peace," she says, "is the best thing thereis."   ---------------   ---------------9   ALBRIGHT SAYS U.S. HAS PHOTOS OF HIDDEN IRAQI WEAPONS   VICTOR BEATTIE   WASHINGTONA   U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations Madeleine Albright saysBphotographic evidence proves Iraq is not abiding by U.N. Security:Council resolutions. Ambassador Albright appeared on U.S.Btelevision after the Security Council voted to maintain sanctionsBimposed after its August, 1990 invasion and occupation of Kuwait:>   Ambassador Albright says Iraq continues to hide weapons of>mass destruction.  She says Baghdad has not returned property>taken when it retreated from Kuwait, nor has it accounted for?missing Kuwaitis from the Gulf War.  She says President Saddam<Hussein has not ended attacks on minorities within Iraq and continues to sponsor terrorism.>   Ambassador Albright says she provided the Security Council<photographic evidence to prove Iraq is not addressing theseissues:A   "That those weapons that they say they don't have are arrayed?and were arrayed in October in a belligerent way and that theyare very much in use."?   She says for now outside monitors must be allowed continued7access to Iraq to inspect Baghdad's rebuilding effort.:   The Ambassador also discounted the Iraqi argument that+children are starving under the sanctions::   "I showed them (Security Council) pictures of the most?incredible palaces which are built on historical sites such asAthe babylonian gardens where they have artificial lakes, palacesbuilt of marble.">   The U.N. diplomat acknowledges the task of maintaining theAsanctions is becoming increasingly difficult.  France and Russia5are among the nations calling for an easing of them.A   She denies criticism the United States is trying to go beyond?the explicit language of the resolutions.  The Ambassador says?the United States is prepared to ease the sanctions to allow a9greater flow of funds from the sale of Iraqi oil to meethumanitarian needs:6   "We understand that people are concerned about the=humanitarian plight of the Iraqi people.  It's true they are>suffering, but they are not suffering because of us. They are:suffering because (president) Saddam Hussein is using the%mechanism that is available to him.">   She says the United States would be willing to implement aBmonitoring regime to make sure that humanitarian goods get to the?needy Iraqi people not, in her words, to Saddam Hussein's rich
henchmen.   ---------------   ----------------   CHRISTOPHER MEETING WITH SYRIAN PRESIDENT   RON PEMSTEIN	   AMMANB   U.S. Secretary of State Warren Christopher has held five hours/of talks with Syrian President Hafez Al-Assad.A   In a five-hour discussion, Secretary of State Christopher and<president Al-Assad concentrated their attention on security8arrangements for the Golan Heights following an Israeliwithdrawal.=   Mr. Christopher told reporters in Damascus he will returnBTuesday for more discussions with the Syrian leader after passing;on results of the talks to prime Minister Yitzhak Rabin inJerusalem:@   "Once again, they are engaged in serious discussions and are$looking for ways to make progress."9   A senior U.S. official says it was the most intensiveAhigh-level discussion to date of security arrangements including>demilitarized zones, early warning systems, and deployment of>forces.  Mr. Christopher carried ideas to Damascus from Prime?Minister Rabin and is now bringing back proposals by President;Al-Assad after a brief meeting in Amman with Jordan's King	Hussein.   ---------------   ---------------   UN IRAQI SANCTIONS REMAIN   ELAINE JOHANSON   UNITED NATIONSA   The United Nations Security Council Monday decided during oneBof its periodic reviews to keep sanctions on Iraq, on the groundsAthat Baghdad has not fulfilled all the U.N. ceasefire conditions@related to its invasion of Kuwait in 1990.  However, France hasAsignalled that it would be ready to press for a suspension of anoil embargo next month.?   The United States and France appear ready to clash in April>when a critical report on Iraq's weapons status is submitted.@The French insist the Security Council must consider suspendingAthe ban on Iraqi oil sales if the chief U.N. inspector certifies>that Iraq has complied with all demands related to weapons ofmass destruction.A   The oil embargo is linked under the 1991 ceasefire resolution;to the elimination of Iraq's potential to re-build its war?machine. The rest of the sanctions are tied to compliance withother demands.9   The U.N. special commission overseeing Iraq's weapons=industries says the outstanding issue at this time is Iraq'sBfailure to make a full accounting in the biological weapons area.>Once that information is in, the commission could give Iraq aclean bill of health.?   But the United States, in addition, wants concrete proof ofBIraq's intentions.   U.S. Ambassador Madeleine Albright maintains>Iraq has not yet shown itself trustworthy in general, besides8withholding vital information on past weapons programs:=   "The story is a very simple one.  They know what they are:supposed to do and when they do it, when they fulfill the@Security Council resolutions, everybody will be willing to liftsanctions.";   Meanwhile, the United States wants Iraq to forget aboutBexporting its oil at full capacity and accept an earlier Security:Council offer for  limited sales to purchase humanitarian<supplies.  Iraq has repeatedly rejected the deal because it involves close U.N. monitoring.@   Washington says it is willing to compromise on the extent of<oversight.  However, some diplomats believe Iraq will still<refuse because it feels itself moving closer to getting the@embargo lifted completely.  Russia and China support the French
position.   ---------------   ---------------D   ISRAEL SUGGESTS EUROPEAN COUNTRIES TAKE PART IN INDUSTRIAL PARKS
   AL PESSIN
   JERUSALEM>   Israeli Foreign Minister Shimon Peres has suggested to the>visiting British prime minister, John Major, that Britain andAother European countries each take responsibility for one of the1industrial parks he wants built along the futureIsraeli-Palestinian border.?   It is an idea Foreign Minister Peres has been promoting for>some time:  Using existing Israeli facilities, such as roads,;electricity, and communications, and Palestinian labor, to?improve the Palestinian economy without having to have so many@Palestinian workers in Israel. Last Thursday, Mr. Peres and the=Palestinian leader, Yasser Arafat, agreed to build nine suchAindustrial parks along Israel's borders with autonomous Gaza and9the future Palestinian-controlled zone on the West Bank.=   The problem is how to pay for building and developing theBfacilities.   Now, according to the Israeli foreign ministry, Mr.8Peres says he wants  leading European countries to take;responsibility for one industrial park each, financing itsBconstruction and encouraging businesses from each country to open"factories in that country's park.A   And Mr. Peres confirmed after his meeting with Prime Minister@Major on Monday that he suggested Britain be the first to agreeto such a plan:?   "The Palestinian proposals will not become a reality unless?the Palestinians will be helped economically, and also for the>sake of the  Jordanians, the Jordanian kingdom must show that@peace improves the  conditions of life.  And since the European?Union has decided to contribute five-and-a-half billion 'ecus'?(European common currency) to support the Middle East, I think7part of the money should be directed to Jordan and thePalestinians."B   An Israeli official says Prime Minister Major was enthusiastic=about the idea, and asked for another meeting with Mr. Peres>before the end of his current visit to discuss it further, asAwell as other ways the international community can aid the peace	process.<   Later, Mr. Major told a gathering of Israeli and British6business executives he wants to work toward long-term
cooperation:A   "We see this particular occasion, this particular roundtable,;not as  the end of a process to produce a single series of<one-off (one time) deals, but perhaps as the beginning of a>process that will enable a much closer  business relationship:between the business community in Israel and the business<community in the United Kingdom, with the aim of increasingAbusiness  not just in the short term, but in the medium and longterm."=   Mr. Major will spend most of Tuesday in Gaza meeting withPalestinian officials.   ---------------   ---------------9   ATTACKS ON THE PRESS IN THE MEDITERRANEAN AND MIDEAST
   DON HENRY   WASHINGTONB   The U.S.-based Committee to Protect Journalists says the worstBcases of killing and imprisonment of journalists in 1994 occurred'at opposite ends of the Mediterranean.<   The survey of repression against journalists ranges from?harassment and imprisonment to murder.  The committee says theBmost dangerous place to be as a journalist last year was Algeria,Bwhere 19 journalists were killed.  Another five already have beenAslain this year, and the committee says that brings the total to533 since may of 1993, when serious repression began.A   Committee officials say radical Islamic fundamentalist groupsBare clearly linked to or suspected in most of the killings, which>they describe as assassinations, not cases of reporters beingcaught in crossfire.?   The committee says one journalist was killed in Turkey, but=that country also imprisoned 74 editors and reporters, whichBcommittee Chair Kati Marton says relates basically to one Turkishgovernment concern:B   "There are more reporters in jail in Turkey than anywhere else?that we've been able to monitor, because Turkish reporters areBbasically barred from covering the major national security issue,7which is the Kurdish rebellion in Turkey's southeast.">   In all, more than 170 journalists were in prison last year>because of what they wrote or broadcast.  Committee executive?director William Orme says many of the cases involve long-termsentences:@   "The government of Kuwait continues to hold many journalistsAin jail, most of them of Palestinian origin, who were jailed for?alleged collaboration with Iraqis during the period of KuwaitiAoccupation, and were tried in circumstances that we feel did not6even meet the most minimal standards of international>jurisprudence. There are many long-term prisoners in Syria as0well, who also should be released from prison."A   The committee also says that for the first time in two years,<an Egyptian journalist was killed.  A radical Islamic group;claimed responsibility.  The report also says the EgyptianAgovernment jailed several editors and reporters during the year.8   Committee officials urged all governments to release?journalists from prison and allow them to do their job withoutinterference.   ---------------   ---------------+   AZERI TROOPS CRUSHED BY MUTINOUS POLICE   PETER COLLINS
   MOSCOW>   Troops in Azerbaijan have crushed a rebellion by a special<police unit.  The government says the rebels were trying to#overthrow President Heydar Aliyev.@   One of the two leaders of the revolt was killed during seven;hours of fighting at a rebel base on the edge of baku, the	capital.@   He was Rovshan Dzhavadov, one of two brothers who controlledAthe OPON, or police unit for special tasks.  He and his brother,BMakhir, were long-time political rivals of Azeri president Heydar<Aliyev.  The two were involved in what President Aliyev has$called a coup attempt last October.>   In a televised report to the nation, President Aliyev said;this latest revolt was another attempt at a coup.  DefenseAMinister Safar Abiyev said government troops attacked the policeAheadquarters when the rebels inside tried to break out.  He saidAthey aimed to seize the presidential palace and kill Mr. Aliyev.@   Azeri officials say at least eight people were killed and 40@wounded in fighting around the base.  The rest of baku remainedBcalm, although security forces were guarding public buildings andmanning roadblocks.@   In his speech, president aliyev said former azeri governmentBministers now in Moscow were behind the uprising.  Azerbaijan has=known little calm since it emerged as an independent country0after the collapse of the Soviet Union in 1993.B   Last September, Azerbaijan signed a deal with an internationalAgroup of companies to exploit offshore oil fields in the Caspian=Sea.  Moscow has opposed the seven-point-four billion dollar:deal, and has insisted that the oil be exported through apipeline on its territory.@   Just this week President Aliyev said a planned pipeline will%be built through neighboring Turkey.   ---------------   ---------------)   YELTSIN INTERVENES IN BOLSHOI DISCORD   ELIZABETH ARROTT
   MOSCOWB   Russian President Boris Yeltsin has intervened in a management<fight at Russia's Bolshoi theater. Mr. Yeltsin has issued a?decree firing the Bolshoi's general director in a bid to bring%calm to the world-acclaimed theater.B   Mr. Yeltsin diverted his attention from the country's economic<and political problems to play a leading a role in Russia'sartistic world.>   The president has signed a decree ousting Vladimir Kokonin@from his post as general director of the Bolshoi, the country's"premier ballet and opera theater.?   Mr. Kokonin was engaged in a bitter feud with the Bolshoi'sAartistic director, Yuri Grigorovitch.  Mr. Grigorovitch resigned>last week to protest the general director's management style.;   In solidarity, dancers from the ballet company staged aBone-night strike, saying they were too depressed to perform.  The7strike, the first in the Bolshoi's history, forced the3cancellation of a performance of romeo and juliet.@   The walk-out angered theater-goers.  More seriously, general?director Kokonin filed suit against the dancers who refused to	perform.=   But the idea of the dancers appearing in court apparently?proved too much for the government.  Russia's culture minister?was quoted by the Isvestia newspaper as saying Mr. Kokonin haddestroyed the theater.:   However, both Mr. Kokonin and former artistic director?Grigorovitch have their detractors.  Both have been accused of>high-handed, autocratic ways that critics say are hurting theproud image of the Bolshoi.B   The theater began in the mid 1700's, staying intact throughout=the communist revolution and both world wars.  The Bolshoi's@distinctive Russian style has influenced western theater groups>for more than a century.  Its touring companies remain highly	popular.?   But the present turmoil among top management is only one ofBmany problems to beset the distinguished theater in recent years.<Funding has been curtailed, and many of the companies' mostAtalented performers have opted for more lucrative careers in thewest.=   The Isvestia newspaper is calling for a resolution to the=problems, saying the Bolshoi is a national treasure.  If the@theater is allowed to collapse or split, the newspaper says, itwould be a crime.   ---------------   ---------------   RUSSIAN TV IN TURMOIL   PETER COLLINS
   MOSCOWA   Russia's main television network remains in turmoil two weeksBafter the death of its director in what police say was a contractAkilling.  The chairman of the Ostankino channel has now resigned!in a dispute with its employees.>   "Ostankino" is channel one in Russia, the main state-ownedAtelevision company.  It has a huge transmission tower in Moscow,Bsoon to be the tallest structure in the world.  Ostankino reaches@an audience of about 200 million in Russia and countries of theBformer Soviet Union.  It has a work force of about five thousand.B   It is also a company in the midst of a storm.  On March first,>an assassin's bullets killed Vladislav Listyev, the executive?director of Ostankino.  The 38-year-old broadcaster was one of@Russia's most popular TV personalities and journalists.  He had>been named in January to oversee the station's transformationinto a public company.B   No  killers have been found.  Speculation in Moscow newspapersAhas linked Mr. Listyev's death to the sale of advertising on the?new station.  TV commercials have become a lucrative market inRussia.A   This week the chairman of Ostankino abruptly resigned.  He is?Alexander Yakovlev, a prominent reformer.  He is credited with9fathering former President Mikhail Gorbachev's policy ofglasnost, or openness.5   Now, says Mr. Yakovlev, the employees of the once<tightly-controlled state company do not want competition on@Channel One.  He says they just want to share state funds given2to the station and make a fortune on advertising.@   Ostankino is lagging behind two new private channels in both@entertainment and news programs, although it still has a bigger1audience because of its larger national network.   ---------------   ---------------=   BAIKONUR SPACE CENTER CONTINUES ON DESPITE MONEY TROUBLES   ELIZABETH ARROTT   BAIKONUR, KAZAKHSTAN@   The Baikonur Cosmodrome and the town that supports it suffer=from a shortage of funds and a crumbling infrastructure. The;people there still manage to pull together one of the most*spectacular shows of technology on earth.;   The water from the faucets here dribbles out, brown and?cloudy.  The heating, when there is any, is far from enough to6keep the blistering cold of the desert steppe at bay.>   In terms of infrastructure, Baikonur and Leninsk, the town?that supports the Cosmodrome, are fairly typical of conditionsAacross the former Soviet Union.  But there is a difference aboutthis bleak and shabby place.;   Several times a year, the brilliance of the people here8converges to send human beings soaring into the cosmos.@   For the first time, U.S. spaceworkers entrusted one of theirAown to this seemingly chaotic program.  Astronaut Norman ThagardAmade history Tuesday, becoming the first American to be launchedAaboard a Russian rocket.  He will spend three months on Russia's>orbiting Mir space station, part of an ambitious U.S./Russian@plan to eventually build a new, international complex in space.A   Tommy Holloway is director of the shuttle-Mir docking program=for NASA, the U.S. space agency, and one of a number of U.S.;space agency officials on hand for the launch at Baikonur.A   Mr. Holloway is diplomatic about the condition of such things+as the buildings here at the space center:A   "Certainly, as the Russians go forward they are going to need?to concentrate on their infrastructure.  But it varies a great=deal.  Some cities are better than others.  I'm sure, in due<time, they'll take care of those situations that are reallycritical."A   Without question, Moscow's space program, the pride and glory@of the Soviet era, has fallen on hard times.  With the collapse>of communism, funding became as scarce as vegetation on thesedusty, Central Asia plains.B   That is another point.  Baikonur is no longer even in Moscow'sBdomain.  Precious money for the space program must be diverted to*pay rent to the government of Kazakhstan.B   Yet there is a triumph of will over circumstances here that isreflected in the work.@   At a pre-launch news conference, astronaut Thagard was askedBif he was worried about blasting off in a rocket of basically the?same design as that used to launch the first man into space 30years ago.?   "Actually, the fact that the Soyuz rocket has been used for;many years gives me assurance," said Thagard, "rather than=worries me in as much as it has a long history of successful?flight and that's a good characteristic for a launch vehicle.">   Like other Soviet, then Russian, products, the Soyuz seemsAdesigned with hard times in mind.  The kalashnikov machinegun or;the Zhiguli automobile, for example, can be kicked around,6covered in mud, and still do what they were meant to.?   Shortly before launch Tuesday, Yuri Koptev, the director of>the Russian space agency teased NASA's Mr. Holloway about theAbetter-funded but far more delicate ways of American technology.B   Mr. Koptev, speaking through a translator, recalled watching a/launch at the Kennedy Space Center in Florida:=   "One of the engineers approached us and told us that it's=getting very cold, it's going to be a sharp cold front. So I>asked him, what does this mean for you, "a sharp cold front."BAnd he said, if the temperature is less than plus four (celsius),&plus four celsius, we cannot launch."B   Mr. Koptev says his team can launch rockets in temperatures as(low as minus 50 and as high as 50 plus.@   Among people waiting to see the launch, this amazing feat of>technology is muted somewhat by the lack of more basic needs.BHere at Baikonur, it is minus 17 and the winds are so strong they?will manage to move the ascending rocket further sideways thanBupwards in the initial blast.  Yet there is nothing built to keep
people warm.A   The roar of the rocket begins, shaking the ground and setting?the hearts of those nearby racing.  Slowly, then with steadilyAmounting speed, the sleek, gleaming rocket rises from the desert"steppe,  headed toward the stars.   ---------------   ---------------#   ATTACKS ON THE PRESS IN EURASIA
   DON HENRY   WASHINGTON8   The U.S.-based Committee to Protect Journalists says?journalism has become more hazardous in Central Europe and the?former Soviet Union.  In its annual report, released Wednesday>the committee Praises courageous editors and reporters in theBregion, but says murder and suppression of journalists continues.B   Committee director William Orme says at least four journalistsAwere killed in Tajikistan duirng 1994.  He says an investigationAby committee staffers indicates the total since 1992 is at least27 journalists murdered:<   "And aside from the murders of journalists, what is most?disturbing in Tajikistan is that this is simply a symptom of a@complete crackdown on all independent press in Tajikstan, whichBbegan to flourish for the first time in that country's history in1991 and 1992."A   Mr. Orme says virtually every independent Tajik journalist is>now either dead, hiding inside the country or in exile.  In aBspecial report in the annual survey, Tajik authorities are quoted:as saying they have no time to investigate the murders of
journalists.?   The committee says two journalists were killed last year in;Chechnya.  However, Mr. Orme says despite being repeatedly>harassed by Russian military authorities, Russian journalists>have done an outstanding job of covering the Chechnya crisis:?   "I think all journalists in the United States and elsewhere?who have followed Russian coverage of the war in Chechnya were8encouraged and very, very admiring of the objective and>professional and hard-hitting coverage that the Russian pressBbrought to that story, in a country which has not only no historyBof that kind of independent reporting for a conflict happening on>national territory, but where as we all know, journalists areunder very grave pressure."B   He said that pressure against free press activities led to the?slaying of Russian investigative reporter Dmitry Kholodov lateyear.>   The annual survey points to censorship and intimidation of<journalists in Armenia, Azerbaijan and Belarus, among other;locations, and says the situation in the former Yugoslaviaremains grim.@   It says at least five more journalists were killed last yearAcovering the war in Bosnia-Herzegovina, bringing the total to 457and making it the most dangerous war since Vietnam forcorrespondents.   ---------------   ----------------   GORBACHEV CONSIDERS RUNNING FOR PRESIDENT   PETER COLLINS
   MOSCOW;   In Russia, former Soviet President Mikhail Gorbachev isAspeaking out more often these days.  He says he is considering aArun for the presidency in 1996. The one-time communist leader isanything but popular.A   Democratic Russia is to hold its second presidential electionAin June of next year, and Mikhail Gorbachev wants the job again.?   Ten years ago this week, Mr. Gorbachev became leader of the?Soviet Union.  He succeeded Konstantin Chernenko, who had been?the third elderly Soviet leader to die within three years.  AtBthe age of 54, Mr. Gorbachev saw himself as the representative ofa new generation.7   He soon launched sweeping reforms under the slogan,="perestroika," meaning restructuring.  In a society in whichApeople had been afraid to speak openly, Mr. Gorbachev introduced"glasnost," or openness.B   Mr. Gorbachev, however, was swept aside by the very reforms he@promoted.  He lost his place to the nimbler, more radical boris?Yeltsin, who was willing to go farther, faster, and is now the2first democratically-elected president of Russia.A   For his achievements, Mr. Gorbachev is revered in the west as+one of the great statesmen of the century.>   Here in Russia, many people who miss the shabby but secure@life in the Soviet Union hold him responsible for its collapse.>Others blame him for not pushing reforms far enough.  So, Mr.=Gorbachev is not so much admired as ignored, or considered acuriosity.>   Last month, he traveled to Novosibirsk on what looked veryAmuch like the start of a presidential election campaign.  At theBcity university, he spoke to students, many of whom were eight or>nine years old when Mr. Gorbachev came to power.  One of themAsaid of him, "he is like the elephant in the fable, everyone hasto come have a look."?   Now 64, Mr. Gorbachev appears more relaxed than the man whoBlost power in the whirlwind events of 1991, when the Soviet UnionAcollapsed.  He has even learned how to tell jokes about himself:AIn one of the Perestroika years, he told the students, there wasAa long line for vodka.  Everyone was cursing Gorbachev.  One manAsaid, "I could go kill him."  Another said, "go ahead."  So, the@man set off for the Kremlin.  Forty minutes later, he was back.@"So, did you kill him?"  He was asked.  "No," the response was,"the line there was longer."A   Mr. Gorbachev bristles at the notion that President Yeltsin's?reforms extend his own perestroika.  They are the rejection of@it, he says.  His political message is that the authorities arecut off from the people.?   His biggest handicap is the weight of the past.  As of now,?opinion polls do not even include Mr. Gorbachev on the list of@potential candidates in next year's election.  That causes some=to wonder whether he really wants to recapture power or justsecure his place in history.   ---------------   ---------------9   UNREST IN CRIMEA AFTER THE UKRAINE CUTS BACK AUTONOMY   PETER COLLINS
   MOSCOWB   Some tension is reported in Crimea after Ukraine's decision to cut back the region's autonomy.<   Ukrainian special police are reported to have surrounded@parliament in Crimea's capital, Simferopol.  Russia's Itar-Tass>news agency says Ukrainian forces also have occupied Crimea's?radio and TV center to block broadcasting of the debate in theparliament.@   A small band of protestors outside waved crimean and Russianflags.@   Inside the building, deputies are debating how to respond to@Ukraine's decision Friday to bring Crimea's laws into line with8those in Ukraine.  The vote by the Ukrainian parliament>effectively abolishes the Crimean constitution.  Ukraine also?ordered charges brought against Crimean president Yuri Meshkov.for abuse of power and it abolished his post.>   The decision to strip Crimea of some of its autonomy comes;after three years of warnings from the Ukraine government.AUkraine wants Crimea to comply with the constitutional order put9in place after the collapse of the Soviet Union in 1991.@   Two-thirds of the people in the Crimean peninsula are ethnic=Russians who want closer ties with Russia.  The region has aAstrong separatist movement led by President Meshkov.  Parliament0is split between radical and moderate factions.B   In a speech to parliament, Mr. Meshkov urged Crimeans to avoid@the use of force.  He said Ukraine's decision was based on whathe called "hysteria."B   Moderate deputies said no response should be made immediately.BThey warned that radical measures could cause Ukraine to dissolveBtheir parliament altogether and strip the region of its autonomy.@   The city of Simferopol remains calm, despite the presence of'the special police flown in from Kiev.   ---------------%   INEWS NOW AVAILBLE THROUGH E-MAIL   FREE TRIAL SUBSCRIPTION;   International News E-Wire Service (INEWS) is an English<language daily, covering news of the world.  INEWS provides;up-to-date and accurate world news.  It also includes many?features covering such topics as economics, science, medicine,$technology, agriculture, and music.<   Every day, INEWS gathers reports filed by correspondentsBstationed at 26 news bureaus throughout the world.  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