Operations could be cancelled as doctors vote in favour of industrial action

By Rebecca Smith, Medical Editor

11:28AM BST 30 May 2012

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/health/healthnews/9299788/Operations-could-be-cancelled-as-doctors-vote-in-favour-of-industrial-action.html

The British Medical Association Council will now decide whether industrial action will go ahead. If it does, it will be the first time in 37 years that doctors have taken industrial action.

Ballot papers were sent to 104,000 doctors across the UK and there was a 50 per cent turnout.

The results show that 63 per cent of GPs voted yes, 73 per cent of consultants, 81 per cent of juniors, 76 per cent of staff and associate specialist doctors, 34 per cent of occupational health doctors and 60 per cent of public health specialists.

If the action goes ahead it is likely to involve doctors attending their normal workplace and providing all urgent and emergency care, but postponing non-urgent work for one or more 24-hour periods.

For GPs this would mean they would not take advanced bookings for appointments on the day of action but would be in their surgeries to see urgent cases.

For surgeons and hospital doctors it would mean cancelling non-urgent operations and appointments but all cancer surgery, tests and other life threatening conditions would still be treated.

Doctors must give their employers one week's notice of action and legally it must be held within four weeks, which puts the 24-hours of industrial action between June 6th and 27th.

The row is over proposed changes will mean doctors currently under 50 having to work to 68, and paying more for their pensions.

The top earning doctors would have to contribute 14 per cent of their salary to their pensions.

However critics have said many doctors retire on 'gold-plated' packages that would be worth £1m if bought privately.

Six separate ballots were sent out, one to each of the specialties.

They asked two questions; whether they were prepared to take part in industrial action short of a strike; and whether they were prepared to take part in a strike.

For maximum legal protection, BMA members were asked to vote yes to both questions if they wanted to take the action proposed, however this would not be an all out strike.

Occupational health doctors were the only group where the majority voted against industrial action.

Last week, Dr Laurence Buckman, chair of the BMA's GP committee, said the Coalition had "recklessly squandered" their goodwill with the changes after to pensions were only renegotiated four years ago.

Last night a spokesman for Remedy UK, which represents around 9,000 junior and middle grade doctors said doctors should ask themselves if taking action was "morally justifiable" or was "just futile posturing", said the spokesman.

"Going on strike will do the medical profession incredible harm."

Dean Royles, director of the NHS Employers organisation, said today: "As the BMA Council now meet I really want them to put patients at the centre of their decision making.

"They know that any industrial action will impact on care and cause distress and disruption to patients and undermine trust and confidence in the medical profession.

"We know that doctors are anxious about changes to their pensions. But no one wants to see patients dragged into the argument.

"Industrial action could potentially mean delays to treatment. It would be particularly distressing for patients and extremely worrying for staff who are dedicated to putting patients first.

"Its a tough decision for the BMA Council but they should do the right thing for patients.

"If they do decide to call doctors out on strike then the more notice employers get of this the more robust our contingency plans will be."

4 European nations to expel Syrian diplomats

http://news.xinhuanet.com/english/world/2012-05/29/c_131618890.htm

Italy to expel Syrian ambassador to Rome

ROME, May 29 (Xinhua) -- Italy is expelling the Syrian ambassador in Rome to protest against the killings of 108 lives in Syria over the weekend, the foreign ministry said on Tuesday.

The Italian foreign ministry said Khaddour Hasan, the Syrian ambassador, has been declared "persona non grata" as Italy "reaffirmed its indignation at the savage violence against the civilian population ascribable to the responsibilities of the Syrian government." 

Britain expels Syrian diplomats

LONDON, May 29 (Xinhua) -- Britain has decided to expel the Syrian Charge d'Affaires and two other diplomats, Foreign Secretary William Hague said on Tuesday.

The Syrian Charge d'Affaires has been given seven days to leave Britain, Hague said, adding that some other countries including Germany, France, Italy, Spain, the United States, and Canada are taking similar measures. 

Germany to expel Syrian ambassador: media

BERLIN, May 29 (Xinhua) -- The German government said Tuesday it would expel the Syrian ambassador following the weekend mass killing of over 100 people, including children and women, in the west-central Syrian village of Houla, the German News Televison N-Tv reported. 

French leader says to expel Syrian ambassador

PARIS, May 29 (Xinhua) -- French President Francois Hollande announced Tuesday to expel Syrian ambassador to France after the Houla massive killing in Syria, local channel BFMTV reported.

As the Syiran crisis is escalating, Hollande told reporters in Paris that one of the decisions that have been taken is to expel the Syrian ambassador to France. "This is not a unilateral decision but in consultation with our partners."

Maoist camp busted

Last Updated: Tuesday, May 29, 2012
http://zeenews.india.com/news/jharkhand/maoist-camp-busted_778392.html

Ranchi: Security men exchanged gunfire with Maoist ultras when they busted the training camp of the People’s Liberation Front of India (PLFI) in Gumla district on Tuesday, the police said.

“An early morning joint operation by the CRPF and the district police personnel busted the PLFI’s training camp at Lodan-Kotha Toli village, about 150 km from here, which triggered a 15-minute gun battle with the ultras,” Gumla superintendent of police Jatin Narwal told a news agency over phone.

The ultras fired upon the police after finding themselves cornered, but were forced to retreat in the face of a strong retaliatory attack, Narwal said.

During search operation, three weapons, a substantial quantity of bullets, two mobiles and rucksacks were recovered from the spot, he said.

One PLFI activist, identified as Gouri Shankar Pandey, was arrested.

No one was injured in the encounter, he said.

The PLFI is active in Ranchi, Khunti, Gumla and Simdega districts, and the police were successful in capturing six hardcore ultras of the outfit in Ranchi district’s Mandar area last week end.

Maoists set ablaze 'kendu' leaf storage houses

Last Updated: Tuesday, May 29, 2012,

http://zeenews.india.com/news/odisha/maoists-set-ablaze-kendu-leaf-storage-houses_778453.html

Nuapada (Odisha): Demanding payment of higher wages to 'kendu' leaf pluckers and other workers, Maoists on Tuesday set ablaze two collection centres (Paharighars) in Khariar kendu leaf division of Odisha.

"The Maoists have destroyed two 'Paharighars' at Badbanki and Chotbanki under Tureikela block of adjoining Balangir district by setting them on fire", DFO (Kendu leaf), Khariar, Prafulla Kumar Mishra said.

Slogan shouting ultras raided the 'Paharighars' one after another, asked people to leave the place and set them on fire, the sources said adding no one was, however, harmed.

While leaving the place, they claimed to be CPI (Maoists) of Bargarh-Balangir and Mahasamund division, and put up posters nearby which demanded upward revision of wages to kendu leaf pluckers.

Their other demands included payment of 40 paise for one 'phadi' (a packet containing 40 pieces of kendu leaves) be hiked to Re. One, wage of the watchers increased from present Rs 3,000 to Rs 5,000 and the daily wage of 'Gochakatas' (cleaners of forest areas before plucking the leaves) and other such labourers be paid at the rate of Rs. 150 instead of Rs. 100 now.

American spies - Caught and their disposal

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Aldrich_Ames

Aldrich Hazen Ames (born May 26, 1941) is a former Central Intelligence Agency counter-intelligence officer and analyst, who, in 1994, was convicted of spying for the Soviet Union and Russia. Until the arrest of Robert Hanssen seven years later, Ames compromised more CIA assets than any Soviet mole in American history.

While spending nine years working in CIA counter-intelligence, he declared an annual income of $60,000 but his plastic spending of up to $30,000 a month funded a lifestyle that included a new Jaguar and a $540,000 house (2011 value: $800,000) paid for in cash

Arrest

Finally in March 1993 the CIA and FBI began an intensive investigation of Ames that included electronic surveillance, combing through his trash, and a monitor installed in his car to track his movements.

 From November 1993 until his arrest, Ames was kept under virtually constant physical surveillance. When in early 1994 he was scheduled to attend a conference in Moscow, the FBI believed it could wait no longer, and he and his wife were arrested on February 21, 1994.

 At arrest, Ames told the officers, "You're making a big mistake! You must have the wrong man!"

On February 22, 1994, Ames and his wife were formally charged by the United States Department of Justice with spying for the Soviet Union and Russia. Ames could have faced the death penalty because his betrayal had resulted in the deaths of a number of CIA assets.

However, he pleaded guilty on April 28 and received a sentence of life imprisonment. His wife received a 5-year prison sentence for tax evasion and conspiracy to commit espionage as part of a plea-bargain by Ames.

In court, Ames admitted that he had compromised "virtually all Soviet agents of the CIA and other American and foreign services known to me" and had provided the USSR and Russia with a "huge quantity of information on United States foreign, defense and security policies."

 It is estimated that information Ames provided to the Soviets led to the compromise of at least a hundred U.S. intelligence operations and to the execution of at least ten U.S. sources

Post sentence

Ames is Federal Bureau of Prisons prisoner #40087-083, serving his sentence in the high-security Allenwood U.S. Penitentiary near Allenwood, Pennsylvania.

(its a selected portion , anybody intrested to read the complete article please visit the link) 

Two Cong CMs gave away 67 prime Mumbai plots to politicians, trusts

Shalini Nair : Mumbai, Sun May 27 2012, 01:44 hrs
http://www.indianexpress.com/news/two-cong-cms-gave-away-67-prime-mumbai-plots-to-politicians-trusts/954380/

An internal probe into how the Maharashtra Housing and Area Development Authority (MHADA) is left with barely two hectares of land in Mumbai to cater to the financial capital’s soaring housing needs has found that more than 20 hectares were sold at throwaway prices between 1999 and 2003, with the beneficiaries including politicians or their trusts.

The 20 hectares were spread over 67 plots and the allotments were made by a state government sub-committee comprising a handful of Congress and NCP ministers, some of these in violation of rules. Of these, 52 were sanctioned when Vilasrao Deshmukh was the chief minister and 15 when Sushilkumar Shinde was holding power. The preferential allotment of land meant for public housing and amenities was stopped by the Bombay High Court in April 2004 when Shinde was chief minister.

The MHADA inquiry, whose report has been accessed by The Sunday Express, was ordered in March this year after opposition parties raised the issue of land allotments during the tenures of Deshmukh and Shinde. Both former chief ministers are currently Cabinet ministers at the Centre.

The probe has found that land allotments were made under the Land Disposal Rules of the MHADA Act. The rules were amended to allow the state government to take over the power to disburse MHADA plots meant for public housing or amenities such as schools and hospitals to charitable trusts of its choice.

Many of the plots were allotted to educational institutions controlled by senior Congress or NCP ministers. These included Rahebar Foundation, whose trustees are NCP MLA Nawab Malik’s wife and sister; Congress MLA Madhukar Chavan’s Raigad Military School; and Cabinet minister Jayant Patil’s Kasegaon Education Society. Incidentally, Malik and Patil were part of the sub-committee that allotted the plots while Chavan was the then MHADA chairman.

In one case, a 10,000 sq m plot in Oshiwara meant for a hospital was given to the Nargis Dutt Trust, of which Congress MP Priya Dutt is a trustee. The deal was criticised by a 2009 CAG report as being tailored to confer undue benefits to the trust. The CAG report pointed out that while the trust was sanctioned land in 2000, it insisted on being charged a rent of only Rs 1 per year for 99 years. Finally, the allotment was made in December 2007 at a concessional rate of Rs 21 crore. This was further reduced to Rs 11 crore following a request from the trust.

In another instance, the Madhya Pradesh Mitra Charitable (MPMC) Trust was allotted a 6,032 sq m plot in Goregaon for a paltry Rs 40 lakh to build a school and playground. However, the trust divided the plot into two and sub-leased it to two private firms that went on to build even on the portion that was to be kept open for a playground. According to a petition filed in the Bombay High Court last year, the trust earns Rs 2.5 crore as annual rent from one of the plots that was sub-leased to Vibgyor High International School.

Plots meant for public housing in the prime suburb of Bandra were allotted to Congress MLC Subhash Chavan and former general secretary of the Mumbai Congress Ajit Sawant, and in Juhu to Samajwadi Party leader Abu Azmi. In some cases, allotments were made to housing societies formed by senior bureaucrats, such as the Meera Housing Society in Oshiwara in which former municipal commissioner Jairaj Phatak was one of the members. Phatak is in jail at present for his alleged role in the Adarsh Housing Society scam.

While land disposal rules do not allow allotments to be made to real estate developers, plots with an area of over 1,000 sq m each were allotted to Blue Star realtors in Andheri and Dinshaw Trapinex Builders Pvt Ltd in Versova. The biggest plot allotted was a four-hectare mangrove stretch in Versova to 3M Gymkhana Private Limited.

MHADA officials said that the impact of such discretionary disposal of land is being felt now. The Mumbai housing board of MHADA releases about 3,000-4,000 affordable houses in its annual lottery for which over three lakh people apply. This year, the dearth of land has meant that the housing stock has been reduced to 867 and 1.5 lakh people have applied for these. Another 3,000 houses are under construction on MHADA’s few remaining plots.

“These may very well be the last affordable public houses MHADA is able to create. It is ironic that today MHADA is so desperate to get hold of some land for building public housing that it is looking at purchasing land from private landowners at market rates,” said an MHADA official.

The findings

Plots allotted to educational institutions run by Congress or NCP ministers. Two of them were part of the panel that decided the allotments, one was then MHADA chief

10,000 sq m plot meant for a hospital given to Nargis Dutt Trust. It sought and got it at a “concessional rate” of Rs 11 cr

Trust got 6,032 sq m plot for Rs 40 lakh to build a school and playground, but split and sub-leased it. It is now accused of earning Rs 2.5 cr annual rent from one plot alone

Allotments made to housing societies formed by senior bureaucrats as well as to real estate developers, which is not allowed under land disposal rules

WHAT THEY HAVE TO SAY

VILASRAO DESHMUKH: “I do not remember as it happened many years ago. I have asked the MHADA chief to send me a copy of the report.”

NAWAB MALIK: “We have been running a school with 2,000 students on the plot. We have paid MHADA the nominal price demanded by them and there was no fraud involved in the allotment.”

JAYANT PATIL: “The allotment was made in 2002 as per procedure. I do not know whether any other trust had applied for the plot. Last year the Kasegaon Trust decided to not take over the plot as the location was not suitable for a school.” (MHADA’s report, however, shows the Kasegaon Trust as the allottee).

SUBHASH CHAVAN: “The allotment for both plots was cancelled last year and handed over to someone else.” (MHADA’s report, however, shows Chavan as the allottee).

8 civilians killed in NATO air strike in E. Afghanistan

English.news.cn 2012-05-27 15:40:55

http://news.xinhuanet.com/english/world/2012-05/27/c_131613691.htm

KABUL, May 27 (Xinhua) -- Eight civilians were killed Saturday night in an air strike conducted by the NATO-led coalition forces in the eastern Afghan province of Paktia, an Afghan provincial official said Sunday.

The overnight attack happened in Gerdasera district and caused the tragic killing of eight Afghan civilians, spokesman of Paktia provincial government Rohullah Samon told Xinhua.

A spokesman from the NATO-led International Security Assistance Force (ISAF) told Xinhua that "we are aware of the claims (of the civilian casualties) in eastern Afghanistan but ISAF officials are working with Afghan authorities to investigate the incident."

The ISAF spokesman said more details will be released in an appropriate time.

Also in Paktia, a total of 20 Taliban militants were killed Saturday night in an operation by coalition forces and Afghan security forces, according to another Afghan official.

The joint operation was carried out in Sayed Karam district, said Abdul Rahman, the deputy provincial governor of Paktia.

4 NATO soldiers killed in blasts in Afghanistan

English.news.cn 2012-05-27 10:18:42

http://news.xinhuanet.com/english/world/2012-05/27/c_131613258.htm

KABUL, May 27 (Xinhua) -- Four NATO soldiers were killed in separate explosions in restive southern Afghanistan on Saturday, the military alliance confirmed in a press release on Sunday morning.

"Four International Security Assistance Force (ISAF) service members died following separate improvised explosive device (IED) attacks in southern Afghanistan yesterday," the NATO-led ISAF said in press release.

The brief release did not disclose the nationalities of the victims under the ISAF policy.

Troops mainly from the United States, Britain and Australia have been stationed in the southern region within the framework of ISAF to curb Taliban-linked insurgency there.

The Taliban stepped up their attacks on Afghan and NATO troops since a rebel offensive was launched earlier this month in the war- ravaged country.

Currently over 130,000 NATO-led ISAF troops with majority of them Americans have been serving in Afghanistan. A total of 160 foreign soldiers have been killed in the central Asian state so far this year

Dangerous alliance: Northeast insurgents aiding Maoists?

Reported by Kishalay Bhattacharjee, Written by Amit Chaturvedi | Updated: May 27, 2012 12:58 IST

http://www.ndtv.com/article/india/dangerous-alliance-northeast-insurgents-aiding-maoists-216439?pfrom=home-india

Guwahati: Maoist insurgency has emerged as one of the biggest challenges for the security agencies in the country in recent years. But the worry is: Could Maoist influence be spreading to new regions?

NDTV brings you this special report on Kolkata fast becoming a hub for the supply of arms and ammunition following a dangerous collaboration between insurgents from the Northeast and the Maoists.

The arrest of Maoist cadre Ajay Chanda from Kolkata earlier this month fuelled this speculation. He was produced in the special court of the National Investigating Agency (NIA) in Guwahati on Tuesday.

Another key piece of the jigsaw puzzle was the arrest of Manipur-based People's Liberation Army (PLA) member K Arnold Singh from Siliguri in April this year. The NIA filed a chargesheet against Arnold accusing him of supplying arms and ammunitions to the Maoist cadres.

Investigations have revealed that Arnold had set up a PLA office in Kolkata's Tolluguange area in 2006. During several meetings between 2006 and 2008, the PLA had agreed to provide the Maoists arms and ammunition in lieu of explosives, mainly ammonium nitrate.

In 2009, the PLA reportedly helped the Maoists set up camps in Odisha and Jharkhand. In 2010, they carried out training for the Maoists in Jharkhand's Saranda forest.

Arnold had rented one more house in the Kolkata's Jadavpur area, say investigators. This Kolkata office received money from the Maoists for arms and communication devices.

While it was understood that the two groups had signed an agreement, it was not until 2011 when NIA started investigating the nexus following a chain of arrests that the alliance was established.

And with reports of Maoist activity in Upper Assam it is evident that the Maoists have spread eastwards. With supply of arms made available by North-eastern groups, the Maoist movement will now only gain momentum.

Maoist threaten killing official if demand not met

Last Updated: Saturday, May 26, 2012,
http://zeenews.india.com/news/bihar/maoist-threaten-killing-official-if-demand-not-met_777813.html

Chapra : Proscribed CPI(Maoist) activists on Saturday demanded Rs fifty lakh from the manager of the rail factory project Sanjay Kumar Singh under Dariyapur police station of Bihar's Saran district, according to DIG (Saran range) Alok Kumar.

Kumar said the project manager had lodged a complaint with Dariyapur police station in this regard.

   

Singh claimed to have received two letters from the outfit on May 7 and a telephone call on May 23 threatening to kill him if he did not pay the money.

Forces death toll reaches 3000 in Afghanistan war

By Rosa Prince, New York

10:20AM BST 26 May 2012

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/asia/afghanistan/9291782/Forces-death-toll-reaches-3000-in-Afghanistan-war.html

The United States Defence Department announced that a serviceman had died from "complications associated with a medical condition," becoming the 3,000th casualty according to a tally compiled by the broadcaster CNN.

The death comes as Nato armies hastened preparations for a pullout after more than a decade of fighting.

Most of those who have lost their lives during the more than 10 years of Operation Enduring Freedom have been American – 1,974 to date. British troops have suffered the second highest level of deaths among coalition of 28 nations, with 414 deaths.

Fatality number 3,000 was named as petty Officer 1st Class Ryan J Wilson, 26, of Shasta, California, who died in Manama, Bahrain, on May 20.

The Defence Department said that he had been assigned to the US Naval Forces Central Command in Bahrain, from where he had been supporting the mission in Afghanistan

According to the US Navy website, Officer Wilson was an intelligence specialist who was named Sailor of the Quarter after successfully leading a maritime operations centre last year.

A letter of commendation which accompanied the award said: "Your enthusiastic leadership emphasised the responsibility of sailors to mentor junior personnel, eliminate communication problems, enhance career development, and inspire senior petty officers to assume leadership roles."

He had been in the Navy since 2004.

Officer Wilson's death comes more than 10 years after the war's first casualty. US Air Force sergeant Evander Earl Andrews from Maine was killed in a heavy equipment accident in November 2001.

Operation Enduring Freedom was launched shortly after the 9/11 terrorist attacks on the US, and at the time politicians on both sides of the Atlantic expressed the hope that no Coalition lives would be lost.

British and American forces are due to withdraw from Afghanistan by 2014.

London 2012 Olympics: third of latest Games tickets remain unsold

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/sport/olympics/9290802/London-2012-Olympics-third-of-latest-Games-tickets-remain-unsold.html

By Jacquelin Magnay, Olympics Editor

5:43PM BST 25 May 2012

Of the 928,000 'contingency' tickets released in two tranches to previously disappointed fans, 300,000 are still available three days after being released on general sale.

A further 1.3 million football tickets are also yet to be sold.

The slow sales have been attributed to the frustration of fans dealing with the Ticketmaster website.

On Tuesday, May 29 Locog will release tickets for events they had previously claimed would be free: the Box Hill venue at the road race; Hampton Court for the time-trial; and Henman Hill for the tennis, having previously indicated they would go on sale on Saturday, May 26.

Locog officials confirmed they have just under 300,000 tickets remaining, with other large chunks of tickets - more than 1.3 million for each of the football and the Paralympics still unsold.

The ticket revelations come as Locog has had to update the International Olympic Committee in Quebec on its sales inventory, and is an embarrassing volte face on the previous 'sold out' claims made by organisers.

To date Locog has sold around 4.6 million Olympic tickets out of the total allocation of 6.6 million. The unsold tickets comprise the 300,000, the football tickets and a further two per cent being held back by organisers as they finalise seating plans.

A London 2012 spokesperson put on a positive spin and said: “We are delighted with the sales in the last three weeks. We have delivered on our promise to give those people who missed out last year another opportunity to buy tickets and thousands did.

"With nine weeks to before the Games start, we are in a fantastic position – ahead of where we expected to be when tickets first went on sale in 2011. There are still tickets available, but many sports have limited availability.”

Sports with 'good availability' of tickets: volleyball, football, taekwondo, handball, basketball, boxing, beach volleyball, canoe sprint, table tennis and hockey.

There are, however, very few £20 tickets remaining

Fearful Germans add to Greece's woes by staying away in droves

Helena Smith, Athens, and Kate Connolly, Berlin

guardian.co.uk, Saturday 26 May 2012 14.07 BST

http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2012/may/26/greece-crisis-tourism-germany

Every May, coaches carrying German tourists would cruise up the long winding road that leads from Pyrgos to ancient Olympia. There they would decant in en masse, a permanent fixture in the tavernas, bars and shops that line the Peloponnesian town's cobbled thoroughfare. But things have changed.

"They're just not coming," says Dimitris Tyligadas, a local hotelier. "And if they do, they kind of look at us through half-closed eyes, as if they don't really trust us."

Olympia is not alone. The German reaction to the economic crisis engulfing Greece has been to stay away. In the 10 days after the inconclusive election on 6 May an extraordinary 50,000 bookings – half of those usually made every day at this time of year – were cancelled, the Observer has learned. Most were Germans fearing the consequences of being seen as the source of the austerity regime enforced in return for EU-International Monetary Fund rescue loans to prop up Greece's moribund economy.

"The drop was considerable," said Andreas Andreadis, president of the Association of Greek Tourism Enterprises.

"We estimate that German arrivals will be down by about 25% by the end of the year."

Germans exceed even Britons in their lust for the sun, sea and freedom of spirit associated with Greek resorts. Close to four million visit each year – more than any other EU member state. For a country that depends on tourism, with one in five working in it, their absence could have a devastating effect; never more so than now when the future of Greece, either in or out of the eurozone, is likely to have ramifications not only for Europe but the world economy.

Earlier this year Athenian newspapers were full of reports of Germans "fearing for their lives" if they visited Greece. Violent street protests, peaking with the burning of the German flag outside the Greek parliament in February, at the height of the booking season, spurred the first wave of cancellations.

It was a far cry from the image Germans such as Andrea Schale had in mind when they booked their Greek holiday months earlier. For Schale, a 27-year-old sales assistant from Potsdam, the resort of Malia in Crete conjured "fishing boats, a white, sun-baked terrace, a bottle of ouzo to wash down after a plate of souvlaki". On Friday as she prepared to board a flight from Berlin to the island's capital, Heraklion, she found herself wondering whether she had made the right choice.

"We've seen lots of images on TV of Greeks burning the German flag, setting fire to rubbish bins and of stones flying. I just hope the anti-German sentiment isn't going to ruin our holiday. I think I'll pretend to be Austrian just in case, or better still, speak English."

According to a poll by the Foundation for Future Studies, which interviewed 4,000 Germans, only 1.1% are planning a holiday in Greece this summer, a drop of almost a half since last year, and of two-thirds since the start of the economic crisis in 2009.

"The dominant image of Greece right now is not of sunny islands, beautiful beaches or cosy little tavernas, rather of strikes, anti-German sentiment and corruption," said Ulrich Reinhardt, the foundation's scientific head. "These negative associations have led to a huge amount of unease."

The German foreign office has advised tourists to check on the current situation before any holiday and to avoid "demonstrations and large gatherings".

Ironically, Greece could not be quieter, less strike-plagued or better value for money. Walkouts that saw thousands of tourists being stranded at harbours and airports last year have dropped as unions lay down their arms ahead of general elections on 17 June.

"We don't have plans to stage any strikes until September although much will depend on whether the new government chooses to continue with these barbaric austerity measures that Merkel is demanding," said Ilias Iliopoulos at the civil servants' union, Adedy.

Even Athens, the focus of fiery demonstrations since Europe's debt crisis erupted beneath the Acropolis, has calmed down dramatically despite the political uncertainty that has followed this month's poll. "Last year in April and May there were 54 strikes, according to the public order ministry. This year there have only been four," said Andreadis.

"And precisely because of the crisis Greece is the best value it's ever been for the past decade. To fight the bad press and re-energise demand we have reduced rates dramatically and have far better offers compared with Italy, Spain, Turkey and Portugal," he said. "This is actually an incredible opportunity. The Greece we dream about and want our children to live in could be born out of this crisis."

But it is a perilous balancing act. Although Greece attracted an unprecedented 16.5 million tourists last year – with record numbers from Russia and other new markets across the Balkans and Turkey – falling prices could lead to the sort of revenue losses that will exacerbate what is already the worst recession in living memory for Greeks.

A 10% drop in GDP would equate to 100,000 job losses say industry experts, many of whom are bracing for the worst.

Adding to the pressure, German tour operators such as TUI have demanded that Greek resorts not only cut the price of holidays by up to 35% but have insisted they also add "drachma clauses" to cover themselves should the euro be scrapped and replaced by a seriously devalued drachma.

Under such circumstances, Greece is in danger of becoming a bargain basement destination if it cut its prices too sharply, said Claudia Brözel, a German professor of tourism marketing, noting that the country usually appeals to Germans from the higher income bracket.

"This could really damage its image in the long-term, and attract the type of tourist Greece doesn't want," she said

Hollande defends French exit in Afghanistan

http://www.thenews.com.pk/article-50869-Hollande-defends-French-exit-in-Afghan

NIJRAB BASE: President Francois Hollande told troops in Afghanistan on Friday that France will coordinate closely with NATO allies and Afghan authorities about its imminent exit from the war.

Speaking to French troops at Nijrab Base in the northeastern province of Kapisa, where the majority of France's 3,550 troops in the country are based, he defended his decision to withdraw them from combat operations two years before the rest of the 130,000 US-led NATO contingent.

It is Hollande's first visit to Afghanistan since taking office earlier this month and he was also due to hold talks with Afghan President Hamid Karzai.

The calendar for the French withdrawal is expected to be drawn up within days. "It's a sovereign decision. Only France can decide what France does. It will be conducted in good understanding with our allies, especially President Obama, who understands the reasons, and in close consultation with Afghan authorities," Hollande said.

"Without having totally disappeared, the terrorist threat from Afghanistan to our and our allies' territory has been partially curbed," he added. He said France would continue development projects in Afghanistan but said the time had come for Afghans to "take the path they choose freely" in deciding the future of their country.

The French head of state's previously unannounced visit was expected to last a few hours. He was accompanied by French defence and foreign ministers, Jean-Yves Le Drian and Laurent Fabius, and chief of army staff Admiral Edouard Guillaud.

Hollande told US President Barack Obama at the G8 summit in Camp David and made it clear at the NATO summit in Chicago that he would not renege on a campaign pledge to repatriate French combat troops a year earlier than Paris planned.

Eighty-three French soldiers have died since late 2001, when US-led troops invaded to bring down the Taliban regime after the 9/11 Al-Qaeda attacks on the United States. France provides the fifth largest contingent to the 130,000-strong US-led NATO force battling Taliban insurgents, but Kabul has downplayed the effect of their early departure, saying Afghan troops are ready to take over.

Other NATO allies agreed in Chicago to an unconditional withdrawal by the end of 2014, leaving Afghans responsible for national security. Paris has so far reserved judgment on contributing to the cost of the Afghan security force budget, estimated at $4.1 billion a year from 2015.

There has been little public NATO criticism of the French position and with war fatigue building in Western capitals, few want to keep combat troops in Afghanistan any longer than deemed necessary.

28,000 Saudis to work as taxi drivers

http://en-maktoob.news.yahoo.com/28-000-saudis-taxi-drivers-230220540.html

By Jeddah: Arab News | Arab News (SRPC) – 21 hours ago

Some good news finally for jobless Saudis. The Labor Ministry is currently working on a plan to hire as many as 28,000 Saudi job seekers to replace foreigners who dominate the Kingdom’s limousine sector.

According to the plan, the Saudi drivers will get a monthly salary of at least SR 5,000. The plan will be implemented with the financial support of the Human Resources Development Fund, a well-informed source said. The plan is expected to be ready within three months, Al-Madinah Arabic daily reported yesterday.

According to the source, the plan aims to encourage Saudi youths to take up cab driver’s jobs, replacing foreigners. There are three ongoing projects to help young Saudi drivers own a limousine of their own. These include the project of Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Abdullah, a scheme by the Saudi Credit and Savings Bank and the Abdullatif Jameel Community Initiative.

At present, there are more than 43,000 limousines owned by 1,375 companies in the Kingdom. Among the drivers, Saudis account for 15,000 while the remaining 28,000 are foreigners. Nearly 40 percent of limousines operate in Riyadh, 33 percent in Jeddah and 17 percent in the Eastern Province. Other cities in the Kingdom have a nominal presence of limousines (5 percent). Under the new Nitaqat Saudization program, the required Saudization in the limousine sector is 12 percent. In 2002, the Council of Ministers took a decision to completely Saudize limousine companies with the objective of opening job opportunities for tens of thousands of Saudi job seekers.

Net migration to UK remains at more than 250,000 a year

Alan Travis, home affairs editor

guardian.co.uk, Thursday 24 May 2012 10.29 BST

http://www.guardian.co.uk/uk/2012/may/24/net-migration-uk-250000-a-year

Annual net migration to Britain remains at a record high of more than 250,000 a year despite the declared ambition of the home secretary, Theresa May, to reduce it below 100,000 by the time of the next election, according to figures published on Thursday.

The Office for National Statistics (ONS) said the politically sensitive figure for net migration – the number of people coming to stay in the UK for longer than 12 months minus the number going to live abroad for more than 12 months – in the year to September 2011 was 252,000.

This is only 3,000 below the 255,000 recorded in the previous year to September 2010 and is a rise of 2,000 from the previous quarter's figure of 250,000 in the year to June 2011.

The latest figures are a blow to Home Office ministers, who have put in place new curbs on non-European workers, including an annual cap on skilled migrants and a clampdown on overseas students but have yet to see the net migration figures moving in the direction of their target.

Downing Street said the government remained committed to getting net migration down to "tens of thousands".

"There is evidence that the changes we are making to the rules are starting to have an impact. It is still our intention to bring the levels of net migration back down to the tens of thousands. Clearly it is going to take some time," said the prime minister's official spokesman.

New moves to curb the numbers coming to join close family members and spouses by as much as two-thirds are also expected to be detailed shortly.

The ONS said that long-term immigration to the UK remained steady at 589,000 – a level it has remained at since 2004. An estimated 252,000 people left Britain to the join the 5 million British citizens already living abroad. About 190,000 people left the UK to work abroad.

Studying remains the most common reason for coming to live in Britain with 250,000 overseas students arriving in the year to September 2011 – a similar level to the previous year.

The Home Office however pointed to the "leading indicator" of more recent data on the number of student visas issued rather than the ONS estimates of student migration which show a 21% fall in overseas students coming to Britain in the year to March 2012. Ministers claim that an apparent 62% fall in the number of student visas between January and March this year shows that a recent drive to curb their numbers is working.

The figures also show that the number of people applying for asylum fell slightly to 4,844 in the first three months of 2012, with 706 applicants from Pakistan and 575 from Iran.

The number of people detained for immigration reasons in Britain, which is already the highest in Europe, reached new record levels with 7,516 incarcerated in the first three months of this year – an increase of 7%. They included 53 children, of whom 35 were detained in the new "family-friendly" Cedars pre-departure unit near Gatwick airport. The coalition pledged to put an end to child detention.

Ministers will be concerned to see that removals and deportations fell again during the first three months of this year to 13,386. This 6% below the level 12 months before and more than 25% down from a peak in 2008 when a major effort was made to deport foreign national prisoners.

The number of people granted settlement in Britain in the year to March 2012 fell by 35% from 226,478 to 148,144 but this was mainly because of a backlog of long-term asylum "legacy" cases moving out of the system. The number of new British citizens also fell by 10% to 175,298.

The immigration minister, Damian Green, insisted the figures show signs of progress: "Our tough new rules are now making a real difference with a record 62% drop in student visas in the first quarter of 2012, and overall falls in work visas, family numbers and people settling.

"As these policies start to bite we are seeing an end to the years when net migration was consistently on the rise. But the hangover from the old system of weak controls means it is still too high and we will continue our programme of reforms to bring net migration down from the hundreds of thousands to the tens of thousands," he said.

However, the Migration Watch UK chairman, Sir Andrew Green, who campaigns for zero net migration, said "tough measures" were now needed: "You cannot expect to repair 15 years of mismanagement in 15 months, but it is still worrying news that net migration is running at a quarter of a million a year. There is no sign of any reduction from the huge numbers that developed under Labour."

Yvette Cooper MP, the shadow home secretary, said the government was failing badly on its own immigration target to get net migration down: "David Cameron said 12 months ago: 'No ifs. No buts. That's a promise we made to the British people.' Yet these figures show that promise is being broken and the net migration figure of 252,000 is barely changed in the last two years, even with the net rise in British citizens leaving the UK.

"Migration experts have said the government does not have the policies to deliver on the target, so the prime minister is not being straight with the public on immigration. He should not make promises he can't keep on such an important policy area," said Cooper.

New Zealand troops to leave Afghanistan early

http://news.xinhuanet.com/english/world/2012-05/22/c_131603470.htm

WELLINGTON, May 22 (Xinhua) -- New Zealand troops will be withdrawn from Afghanistan next year -- a year earlier than previous scheduled, the New Zealand government announced Tuesday.

Foreign Affairs Minister Murray McCully announced the government expected the transition to Afghan forces in Bamyan province to be formally concluded later this year and the New Zealand Provincial Reconstruction Team (PRT) in Bamyan would be withdrawn later in 2013.

McCully said in a statement from his office that the earlier conclusion of transition and withdrawal "reflects the outstanding work that New Zealand PRT personnel have done to prepare the province for transition to local control."

McCully said he had discussed the new timetable with International Security Assistance Force (ISAF) leadership, senior Afghan ministers and other partners and they had all have agreed to the PRT winding up its role in late 2013.

"The New Zealand-led PRT has done an excellent job in Bamyan, reflected in the province being selected amongst the first tranche for transition. It is now likely that the Afghan government and ISAF will formally declare that transition to be completed later in 2012," he said.

"Over the coming weeks, a specialist team will visit Bamyan to draw up a detailed plan for the wind down in the province. We are intent on ensuring that the province is well prepared for the next steps and that major development projects are completed," said McCully.

"New Zealand-funded agricultural projects and the new solar energy plant will be substantively completed, as will the Japanese- funded sealing of the airport runway. Training of the new Provincial Quick Reaction Force will also have concluded."

The New Zealand government would continue contributing to the international effort in Afghanistan, offering "a small number" of training officers to the Afghan National Army Officer Academy from 2013 and a three-year commitment of 2 million U.S. dollars a year to Afghan National Security Force rule of law projects in Bamyan.

McCully made the announcement in Chicago where he is attending a NATO summit hosted by U.S. President Barack Obama.

The meeting, also attended by New Zealand Defense Minister Jonathan Coleman, involved heads of government, and foreign and defense ministers from the 50 ISAF countries.

New Zealand forces had "a big advantage" in working with a provincial administration that was largely honest and competent, foreign affairs spokesman for the main opposition Labor Party, Phil Goff, said in a statement.

"That is in huge contrast to the national administration which has been corrupt, implicated in drug trafficking and unable to win the confidence of the wider Afghan population," said Goff.

"Fundamental change within the current administration and dialogue with its opponents offers the best chance of securing longer term peace."

New Zealand has 140 troops currently serving in the Bamyan PRT, focusing on security and training of the Afghan National Police.

The PRT was deployed to Bamyan province in 2003 and the government had previously said it was committed to maintaining the force until 2014.

The province was the first to return to the control of Afghan forces last year.

New Zealand's special forces unit, the Special Air Service Group, ended their deployment in Afghanistan in March.

Two New Zealand special forces soldiers were killed in attacks in Kabul last year, and three member of the PRT have died in Afghanistan.

Harper reaffirms end of Canadian military mission in Afghanistan in 2014

http://news.xinhuanet.com/english/world/2012-05/22/c_131603497.htm

OTTAWA, May 21 (Xinhua) -- Canada will end its military mission in Afghanistan on March 31, 2014, Canadian Prime Minister Stephen Harper said at the conclusion of the two-day North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) summit in Chicago Monday.

"The end date is firm and final," he said, adding that he wished it were earlier.

However, Harper announced that Canada committed 110 million Canadian dollars (108 million U.S. dollars) annually over three years, from 2015 to 2017, to support the Afghanistan National Security Forces.

"This is a transition to Afghan responsibility, but none of us will rest," he said in Chicago. "We will make the contributions necessary to ensure the Taliban does not reassert control over this country."

Harper added that "the longer a foreign intervention stays, eventually the less likely its success becomes."

Australia, Britain and Germany were among other countries that committed at least 100 million U.S. dollars annually to the Afghan military.

It's estimated that Afghanistan will require 4.1 billion U.S. dollars a year to run its security forces once the NATO-led coalition concludes in two years.

Harper told reporters that Canada would also provide development assistance to Afghanistan, but requires strict accountability by Afghan President Hamid Karzai's government on how the funds will be used.

"I was very frank with President Karzai today as I have been in the past that Afghan governance must improve and we have very real expectations in that regard."

Canada, which announced the end of its involvement in combat missions last year, currently has about 950 soldiers in Afghanistan training the country's military.

The decade-long war in Afghanistan has claimed the lives of more than 3,000 foreign troops, including 158 Canadians.

Social media to be used to disseminate quake information

English.news.cn 2012-05-24 16:38:25
http://news.xinhuanet.com/english/china/2012-05/24/c_131609037.htm

BEIJING, May 24 (Xinhua) -- Chinese authorities on Thursday suggested using websites and other forms of social media to enhance the public's awareness of earthquake prevention and disaster reduction.

The popularity of social networking sites, especially microblogging sites, should be utilized to educate the public about disaster mitigation, according to Chen Jianmin, director of the China Earthquake Administration.

China has nearly 500 million Internet users. Sina Weibo, the country's most popular microblogging site, had 324 million registered users as of May 16.

The administration should accommodate new trends in social and economic development and publicize natural disaster-related information in ways that the public can easily understand and accept, Chen said.

Using social media to share information regarding natural disasters will expedite the publicization process, Chen said.

Drills should be conducted nationwide to improve the public's ability to handle earthquakes and other natural disasters, the administration said.

Editor: Deng Shasha

Facebook causing a third of all divorces: UK survey

Press Trust of India | Updated: May 24, 2012 15:07 IST   
http://www.ndtv.com/article/world/facebook-causing-a-third-of-all-divorces-uk-survey-215379?pfrom=home-otherstories

London: Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg changed his status to 'married' recently, but his social-networking website is causing a third of all divorces, a new UK survey has claimed.

According to the survey, feuding couples are increasingly complaining about their spouse's behaviour on Facebook in divorce filings, with inappropriate messages to the opposite sex being the biggest cause for complaint.

More than 33 per cent of divorces last year listed Facebook as a contributing factor, a study of 5000 divorce petitions by UK law firm Divorce-Online found.

The figure has shot up from just 20 per cent in 2009.
"If someone wants to have an affair or flirt with the opposite sex then Facebook is the easiest place to do it," Divorce-Online spokesman Mark Keenan was quoted by the 'Daily Mail' as saying.

Incriminating status updates, suspicious check-ins at restaurants and inappropriate photographs being posted online were all increasingly being used as evidence in divorces.

"People need to be careful what they write on their walls as the courts are seeing these posts being used in financial disputes and children cases as evidence," Keenan said.

According to the American Academy of Matrimonial Lawyers, 80 per cent of US divorce attorneys said the number of cases using the social network had increased.
K Jason Krafsky, co-author of 'Facebook and Your Marriage', said office romances and out-of-town affairs that took months or even years to develop in the real world happened "with a lightning speed" on Facebook.

"On Facebook they happen in just a few clicks," he said. Krafsky said the social networking website differed from traditional dating websites in that it both re-connected old flames and allowed people to 'friend' someone they may have only met once or twice.

"It puts temptation in the path of people who would never in a million years risk having an affair," he said.

Even when affairs develop offline, Facebook provides a forum for couples to inadvertently arouse the suspicions of their partners.

The UK study also found couples who had already split up were using Facebook to vent about each other, posting nasty comments for all their friends to see.

Twitter only appeared in 20 of the petitions as part of behaviour allegations. Couples complained their spouses were using twitter to make insensitive comments about them.