VOA News: Americas: Drug Crime, Development Top Agenda for Summit of Americas

VOA News: Americas Americas Voice of America

Drug Crime, Development Top Agenda for Summit of Americas Apr 11th 2012, 16:11 <!--AV--> President Barack Obama departs Washington on Friday for Cartagena, Colombia, where he will participate in the sixth Summit of the Americas. Port of Spain, Trinidad, in 2009. The president attended his first Summit of the Americas, pledging to seek equal partnerships with other nations in the hemisphere. He also had his first encounter with Hugo Chavez, the fiery Venezuelan leader and critic of U.S. policies. Santos will host summit Three years later, Colombian President Juan Manuel Santos will host the sixth summit. The agenda includes development and economic issues, and regional security. Obama claims substantial progress in the region. In 2011, he traveled to Brazil, Chile and El Salvador to press the U.S. trade and investment agenda, praise democratic and social progress, and urge greater cooperation in the war on transnational criminal cartels.   Eric Farnsworth of the Council of the Americas offers this assessment. "The hemisphere is maturing in its own self-confidence. It is strengthening in terms of its economies. And politically there are some challenges to democracy in certain countries, but overall democracy is secure and the countries are trying to find ways to develop those issues even further," said Farnsworth. On the agenda in Cartagena: poverty reduction and inequality, economic integration, technology and cooperation to cope with natural disasters, and citizen security, a reference to drug and criminal violence. Some Latin American leaders want a reexamination of what they call the failed war on drugs. They urge decriminalization of cocaine, heroin and marijuana. The U.S. disagrees. Obama remains focused on military and security aid, and intelligence cooperation. "We're going to be coordinating our efforts more closely than ever, especially when it comes to supporting Central America's new strategy on citizen security, which will be discussed at the Summit of the Americas in Colombia next week," said the president. Absent from the summit will be Cuba. It is not a member of the Organization of American States [OAS], which represents democracies. Cuba, Chavez to figure prominently Washington opposes Cuba's participation on political and human rights grounds. Colombia's president said the issue will be discussed. "There will be debate around Cuba's non-inclusion in the forum. I think nearly every country in the region except for the U.S. wants Cuba to be able to participate in these forums," said Alexander Main of the Center for Economic and Policy Research in Washington. Farnsworth said nations are not allowing the issue to block expanded cooperation. "They are not hung up on the Cuba issue. They are diversifying their relationships. Their main issue is economic development and continuing the political legitimacy that is brought through democratic governance," said Farnsworth. It remains to be seen what drama Venezuela's Chavez, with his antagonistic attitude toward the U.S., may cause in Cartagena. "He is certainly a gifted thespian, and he will make the most of every opportunity to make his influence felt," said Stephen Johnson of the Center for Strategic and International Studies. Chavez has deepened Venezuela's relationship with Iran. Analysts say his policies, however, are increasingly viewed with skepticism in the hemisphere. Media files: reuters_colombia_cartagena_skyline_230_10april2012.jpg Obama_Summit_of_the_Americas_Preview_FOR_WEB_SD-fixed-x264-Platform_YTHQFull__972323.mp4 (video/mp4)

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VOA News: Europe: Britain's Cameron Discusses Arms Deals in Indonesia

VOA News: Europe Europe Voice of America

Britain's Cameron Discusses Arms Deals in Indonesia Apr 11th 2012, 15:46 British Prime Minister David Cameron is visiting Jakarta Wednesday where the sale of arms is high on the agenda. As China deepens its defense spending and India emerges as the world's largest importer of arms, Southeast Asia's largest economy is heading in the same direction. The British prime minister, who is seeing sluggish growth at home, is traveling with an entourage of 30 business delegates during his five-day trip to Asia. Hoping to capitalize on strong economic growth and ballooning defense budgets in the region, Prime Minister David Cameron told local media that Britain produces some of the "best defense equipment in the world." Reports last year suggested that Britain and Indonesia were negotiating the sale of 24 Eurofighter Typhoons in a $2 billion deal. <!--IMAGE-LEFT--> Indonesia, the world's fourth most populous country, has launched an ambitious plan to modernize its under-equipped military and defense industry. But Yohannes Sulaiman, a defense specialist from the University of Indonesia, said the country's military equipment is so dilapidated that even a large deal with Britain would be a akin to a 'drop of water in an empty bucket.' "Many of these ships are very old, like the Hercules, most of them dated from the 1970s," said Sulaiman. "So they really want to modernize the army and the entire military, everything, but the problem is that because they have to upgrade everything, they don't have money. And to make the situation worse, there is still a lot of problems in the arms procurement, lots of corruption bribes, graft." Following allegations of human rights abuses in East Timor, Papua and Aceh, both the U.S. and Britain banned the sales of defense equipment to Indonesia in the 1990s. A decade of embargoes coupled with rampant corruption in the military have significantly weakened the country's defense capabilities. Despite territorial disputes in the nearby South China Sea, Yohannes Sulaiman said the Indonesian military is not in a position to exert influence in the strategic zone. "For Indonesia, we don't even have enough of anything to even control our own seas. Our military is totally on the defensive," Sulaiman said. "We just need to maintain our national security. They don't look at projecting the powe They don't think about regional strategy, they are just a protector of Indonesian territory." Non-governmental organizations have criticized Indonesia's human rights record and lack of accountability for soldiers accused of abusing their power in the restive region of West Papua. But Prime Minister Cameron is enthusiastic about expanding economic ties with Indonesia, and says the Asian nation has moved on from its tarnished human rights record.   After sealing a defense agreement with Japan Tuesday, the British prime minister is expected to announce a $2.5 billion deal Wednesday between British plane maker Airbus and Indonesian carrier Garuda Indonesia. Media files: RTR30KYZ_Indonesia_Cameron_11APR12.jpg (image/jpeg, 0.1 MB) RTR30KYZ_TEASE_Indonesia_Cameron_11APR12.jpg RTR2NYFR_TEASE_France_Typhoons_11APR12.jpg

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VOA News: Europe: Putin Calls for Unity in Last Speech to Parliament as PM

VOA News: Europe Europe Voice of America

Putin Calls for Unity in Last Speech to Parliament as PM Apr 11th 2012, 15:57 Prime Minister Vladimir Putin is calling on Russians to move beyond the political rancor that sent thousands into the streets to protest after elections that divided the nation. He made the remark during his annual speech to the Duma, or lower house of parliament, Wednesday -- his last as prime minister. Putin is set to be sworn in for a third term as president on May 7. In essence, he defended his recent election, saying the time has come to move beyond the heightened emotions and political battles that erupted after the vote.  Putin said it was now the responsibility of all political parties to join forces to improve the lives of the Russian people. "The country has gone through a tense period of parliamentary and presidential elections. And today the echoes of the heightened emotions and political battles can still be heard," Putin said. "But the logic of mature democracy is that elections end and a new, much more important period of joint work always begins. We should all together look into the future, realizing that we have a joint responsibility for our country." <!--AV--> Deputies from the Just Russia faction walked out during the speech in protest of his remarks on a disputed mayoral election in the country's south. "We left the plenary hall because we asked a specific question, but in response we heard an evasive answer," said Just Russia Deputy, Ilya Ponomarev. "We heard another lie. We think this is dishonorable behavior from a man who calls himself the national leader, from the President-elect, from the current Prime Minister." Before the speech, police in Moscow arrested several protesters as they approached the Duma, including Russian opposition activist Sergei Udaltsov. Udaltsov was one of the leaders of the massive protests that followed the country's presidential elections in March. Media files: reuters_russia_putin_eng_480_11apr12.jpg (image/jpeg, 0 MB) reuters_russia_putin_eng_230_11apr12.jpg RUSSIAPOLITICSVOYTHQFull.mp4 (video/mp4)

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VOA News: Asia: Report: Rising Income Gap Threatening Stability in Asia

VOA News: Asia Asia Voice of America

Report: Rising Income Gap Threatening Stability in Asia Apr 11th 2012, 15:49 A report by the Asian Development Bank says the region's rapid economic growth has created a widening income gap that threatens to undermine its growth and stability. In its annual economic development outlook, the Manila-based lender says Asia's richest one percent of households account for six to eight percent of total income, while up to 20 percent of total income went to the wealthiest five percent in most countries.   The ADB report says inequality grew the most in Asia's three largest economies, China, India and Indonesia, from the early 1990s to around 2010. ADB chief economist Changyong Rhee tells VOA that technological progress, globalization and market-oriented reforms, which have triggered the region's economic transformation, are also the main factors in the growing divide between rich and poor.   "In the last two decades, technical progress has favored capital over labor, and skilled workers over unskilled workers," says Rhee. "You can easily see that in the 60s and 70s, car factories and steel mills employed lots of people, but if you go these days to the car factories, you see more robots rather than people.  And then globalization and IT technologies and...software technology favors...highly educated people over less educated people.  And the globalization and trade benefits the urban and coastal areas, much more than the inland and the rural areas." The ABD report says unequal access to education, health and other public services also hinders opportunities for the poor to overcome their economic plight.   School dropout rates are up to five times higher for children in the poorest families, while the infant mortality rate is 10 times higher for poor infants than for babies born into an affluent family.   Rhee says after witnessing last year's revolts across the Arab world, Asian policymakers understand the urgent need to alleviate the growing income gap.  He says the ADB is encouraging Asian nations to spend more on education and infrastructure, and promote small and medium enterprises.   Meanwhile, the ADB is forecasting moderate economic growth for developing Asia for 2012, due to the ongoing crisis in the eurozone and weak global demand.  Rhee says this will also affect Asian nations' efforts to reduce the income gap between the rich and poor. "If the growth is reduced, then government will be very hard to mobilize more revenues, such as tax revenues, which means they cannot rely on more spending, social spending especially, so its very important to keep the growth momentum," says Rhee. The report says the gross domestic product will expand at a modest 6.9 percent this year, then improve to 7.3 percent in 2013.   Media files: afp_china_us_econ_06aug11_eng_large-resizedpx480q100shp8.jpg (image/jpeg, 0.1 MB) ADB_outlook_2012_230.jpg

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VOA News: Asia: Britain's Cameron Discusses Arms Deals in Indonesia

VOA News: Asia Asia Voice of America

Britain's Cameron Discusses Arms Deals in Indonesia Apr 11th 2012, 15:46 British Prime Minister David Cameron is visiting Jakarta Wednesday where the sale of arms is high on the agenda. As China deepens its defense spending and India emerges as the world's largest importer of arms, Southeast Asia's largest economy is heading in the same direction. The British prime minister, who is seeing sluggish growth at home, is traveling with an entourage of 30 business delegates during his five-day trip to Asia. Hoping to capitalize on strong economic growth and ballooning defense budgets in the region, Prime Minister David Cameron told local media that Britain produces some of the "best defense equipment in the world." Reports last year suggested that Britain and Indonesia were negotiating the sale of 24 Eurofighter Typhoons in a $2 billion deal. <!--IMAGE-LEFT--> Indonesia, the world's fourth most populous country, has launched an ambitious plan to modernize its under-equipped military and defense industry. But Yohannes Sulaiman, a defense specialist from the University of Indonesia, said the country's military equipment is so dilapidated that even a large deal with Britain would be a akin to a 'drop of water in an empty bucket.' "Many of these ships are very old, like the Hercules, most of them dated from the 1970s," said Sulaiman. "So they really want to modernize the army and the entire military, everything, but the problem is that because they have to upgrade everything, they don't have money. And to make the situation worse, there is still a lot of problems in the arms procurement, lots of corruption bribes, graft." Following allegations of human rights abuses in East Timor, Papua and Aceh, both the U.S. and Britain banned the sales of defense equipment to Indonesia in the 1990s. A decade of embargoes coupled with rampant corruption in the military have significantly weakened the country's defense capabilities. Despite territorial disputes in the nearby South China Sea, Yohannes Sulaiman said the Indonesian military is not in a position to exert influence in the strategic zone. "For Indonesia, we don't even have enough of anything to even control our own seas. Our military is totally on the defensive," Sulaiman said. "We just need to maintain our national security. They don't look at projecting the powe They don't think about regional strategy, they are just a protector of Indonesian territory." Non-governmental organizations have criticized Indonesia's human rights record and lack of accountability for soldiers accused of abusing their power in the restive region of West Papua. But Prime Minister Cameron is enthusiastic about expanding economic ties with Indonesia, and says the Asian nation has moved on from its tarnished human rights record.   After sealing a defense agreement with Japan Tuesday, the British prime minister is expected to announce a $2.5 billion deal Wednesday between British plane maker Airbus and Indonesian carrier Garuda Indonesia. Media files: RTR30KYZ_Indonesia_Cameron_11APR12.jpg (image/jpeg, 0.1 MB) RTR30KYZ_TEASE_Indonesia_Cameron_11APR12.jpg RTR2NYFR_TEASE_France_Typhoons_11APR12.jpg

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VOA News: Africa: DRC President Puts Pressure on Military Defectors

VOA News: Africa Africa Voice of America

DRC President Puts Pressure on Military Defectors Apr 11th 2012, 14:47 Democratic Republic of Congo President Joseph Kabila is seeking an end to a standoff with soldiers loyal to former rebel leader Bosco Ntaganda, who is wanted by the International Criminal Court (ICC).  The president is trying to persuade the soldiers, who defected from the army in eastern Congo last week, to rejoin. President Kabila arrived in the eastern city of Goma Monday to put pressure on military leaders of the former rebel group, the CNDP (National Congress for the Defense of the People), to return to the military, in line with the 2009 peace agreement that integrated the rebels into the national armed forces. Their general, former rebel leader Bosco Ntaganda, ordered soldiers under his command to defect last week, to bolster his own personal security.  Ntaganda is wanted by the ICC to face charges of war crimes committed during the country's civil war, and Kabila has been under increasing pressure to arrest him. The International Crisis Group Director for Central Africa, Thierry Vircoulon, says little is known about what discussions Kabila is having, saying he has heard no talk of negotiations with the rebels. "At this stage, we only hear about military operations," said Vircoulon.  "It seems the line is actually to say to the people with Bosco Ntaganda to surrender, and then we don't know what will happen to them, if they will be sanctioned or not.  But so far it seems that the option of force is prevailing." He says Ntaganda's mutiny was fairly unsuccessful, with only one-third of the soldiers under his command obeying his orders.  Other former CNDP soldiers have taken part in the military operations against those who did defect, exposing a widening rift within the group. Ntaganda's whereabouts are unclear, and analysts are speculating on his next move: whether he will try to flee across the border, perhaps into Rwanda, or entrench himself in a rural area of North Kivu province. Vircoulon says he does not expect any violence, because Kinshasa has such a strong military advantage over the former rebels. "It's clear that now we don't have the sense that the mutiny has any chances of success, and the whole issue is the future of Bosco Ntaganda himself," he said. Ntaganda, who goes by the nickname "Terminator," is accused of recruiting child soldiers as a deputy commander in the Union of Congolese Patriots (UPC), an armed political group that fought in northern Congo during the civil war. Pressure to arrest him has intensified since the senior leader of the UPC, Thomas Lubanga, was convicted by the ICC for the same crimes last month. The DRC government had refused to apprehend Ntaganda, saying that he was critical to the peace process in volatile eastern Congo.  But the recent mutiny, and subsequent military pressure from Kinshasa, indicates his time may be up. Media files: reuters_drc_joseph_kabila_300_11Jun10.jpg (image/jpeg, 0.1 MB)

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VOA News: Economy: Stubborn Holdouts Trip Up Land Developers

VOA News: Economy Economy Voice of America

Stubborn Holdouts Trip Up Land Developers Apr 11th 2012, 14:32 Before a big office complex or housing subdivision can be built, the developer must acquire all the land on which the buildings will rise.  Sometimes this means buying up a lot of small parcels of land at the site. Such purchases are usually handled quietly, because if word gets out, the landowners could raise the price they're asking for their property. Occasionally people won't sell at all - at any price.  Many of these "spikes," as stubborn holdouts are called in the real-estate trade, are the classic "little old ladies" - or men - who just can't bear to part with their homes or small businesses. They hold onto their places, which are called "nail houses" - as in, "stubborn as a nail." Here's a classic example. In the 1960s, the Disney Company secretly bought up 11,000 hectares in central Florida for a mega-theme park. But two families simply would not sell their chunks of swampland.  So Disney had to re-route a huge drainage canal around them, and both individually owned properties intrude into the Walt Disney World theme park to this day.<!--IMAGE--> And a few years ago, a Washington, D.C., man refused multimillion-dollar offers for the two-story townhouse that he used as his architect's office. So the developer's earth-movers gouged a deep crater around three sides of him. The holdout owner said that once the new office towers rose around him, he'd open a pizzeria. Skeptics pointed out he'd have to sell a lot of pizzas to equal the millions of dollars he'd been offered.   The pizza place never opened, and last year the owner put the property up for sale at less than half of what developers had offered him. We're not sure whether he found a buyer.    What can a developer do to pry loose these stubborn spikes? Some get help from the local or state government, which classifies the project as "urban redevelopment."  That way, officials have the authority, under the laws of what's called "eminent domain," to force a holdout to sell and move. But if developers cannot get the government involved, filing suit against holdouts can sometimes convince them to give up.  The builders have more money to pay lawyers than most individual property owners. Then again, many a company has learned the hard way that it can be a very bad idea to take a little old lady to court. She and her tiny nail house in the midst of skyscrapers can make a powerful impression on a judge or jury. Media files: macefield house Ben Tesch wik.jpg (image/jpeg, 0.1 MB) Chongqing wik.jpg 300px-Chongqing wik.jpg landphair_landdev.mp3 (audio/mpeg)

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VOA News: Asia: Aid Access Granted for Burma's North Kachin State

VOA News: Asia Asia Voice of America

Aid Access Granted for Burma's North Kachin State Apr 11th 2012, 14:53 The U.N. office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs in Burma says the government since late March has granted it unrestricted aid deliveries to most of north Kachin State, where tens of thousands have been displaced by a military offensive. As many as 75,000 civilians have been displaced in Kachin since fighting broke out in June between Burma's army and Kachin rebels. Many live in makeshift camps and are in need of food, water, shelter and medicine. Authorities had limited access by the U.N. and other aid agencies to mainly government-controlled areas, even though most of the displaced were in rebel territory.   But after months of negotiations, Ashok Nigam, the U.N. Resident and Humanitarian Coordinator in Burma, said the agencies have been given permission that should allow sustained access to most of Kachin. "We have succeeded now in terms of being able to provide humanitarian assistance with the United Nations and its humanitarian partners, including international NGOs, who can now go to all areas in Kachin," said Nigam. Nigam said the one exception is the area around the headquarters of the rebel Kachin Independence Army in Laiza on the border with China. He said the agencies are negotiating for access to Laiza and are hopeful they will soon be able to reach all of Kachin state. Matthew Gray is with the French aid group Solidarites International. He said his group was granted the same access in January, but has been limited by funding. "Now we have the access due to our negotiations at the NGOs, UN level, nationally here and internationally. But now it seems the only block is that we just need the money now to accompany this," said Gray. Gray said his organization provides sanitation supplies and water purification tablets to about 4,000 people. But, he said, food is running out fast and rainy season is coming so shelter may be a problem. The U.N. was allowed two deliveries, one in December and one in March, to rebel-controlled areas.  But the supplies included only enough food to sustain a few thousand people for one month. Nigam said his office is applying to a U.N. Central Emergency Relief Fund for $5 million to buy humanitarian supplies for Kachin. He estimates a total need of about $22 million and is calling on international donors to help make up the shortfall. Media files: reuters_burma_kachin_state_480_26feb2012.jpg (image/jpeg, 0.1 MB) reuters_burma_kachin_state_230_26feb2012.jpg

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VOA News: USA: Stubborn Holdouts Trip Up Land Developers

VOA News: USA USA Voice of America

Stubborn Holdouts Trip Up Land Developers Apr 11th 2012, 14:32 Before a big office complex or housing subdivision can be built, the developer must acquire all the land on which the buildings will rise.  Sometimes this means buying up a lot of small parcels of land at the site. Such purchases are usually handled quietly, because if word gets out, the landowners could raise the price they're asking for their property. Occasionally people won't sell at all - at any price.  Many of these "spikes," as stubborn holdouts are called in the real-estate trade, are the classic "little old ladies" - or men - who just can't bear to part with their homes or small businesses. They hold onto their places, which are called "nail houses" - as in, "stubborn as a nail." Here's a classic example. In the 1960s, the Disney Company secretly bought up 11,000 hectares in central Florida for a mega-theme park. But two families simply would not sell their chunks of swampland.  So Disney had to re-route a huge drainage canal around them, and both individually owned properties intrude into the Walt Disney World theme park to this day.<!--IMAGE--> And a few years ago, a Washington, D.C., man refused multimillion-dollar offers for the two-story townhouse that he used as his architect's office. So the developer's earth-movers gouged a deep crater around three sides of him. The holdout owner said that once the new office towers rose around him, he'd open a pizzeria. Skeptics pointed out he'd have to sell a lot of pizzas to equal the millions of dollars he'd been offered.   The pizza place never opened, and last year the owner put the property up for sale at less than half of what developers had offered him. We're not sure whether he found a buyer.    What can a developer do to pry loose these stubborn spikes? Some get help from the local or state government, which classifies the project as "urban redevelopment."  That way, officials have the authority, under the laws of what's called "eminent domain," to force a holdout to sell and move. But if developers cannot get the government involved, filing suit against holdouts can sometimes convince them to give up.  The builders have more money to pay lawyers than most individual property owners. Then again, many a company has learned the hard way that it can be a very bad idea to take a little old lady to court. She and her tiny nail house in the midst of skyscrapers can make a powerful impression on a judge or jury. Media files: macefield house Ben Tesch wik.jpg (image/jpeg, 0.1 MB) Chongqing wik.jpg 300px-Chongqing wik.jpg landphair_landdev.mp3 (audio/mpeg)

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VOA News: Middle East: Iran to Present 'New Initiatives' for Talks with Powers

VOA News: Middle East Middle East Voice of America

Iran to Present 'New Initiatives' for Talks with Powers Apr 11th 2012, 13:42 Iran says it will present new initiatives at upcoming nuclear talks with world powers in Turkey, but warned that efforts by Western nations to exert pressure on Tehran would "backfire." Iranian state media say chief nuclear negotiator Saeed Jalili announced the initiatives on Wednesday but did not specify his proposals. Jalili also said efforts to use what he called the "language of force" against Iran would be "useless." Representatives from the five permanent members of the U.N. Security Council and Germany, known as the P5+1, will meet with Iranian officials in Istanbul on Saturday, the first talks on curbing Iran's controversial nuclear program since January 2011. Jalili said Iran believes the talks should be based on "mutual cooperation." Iran confirmed Monday it would meet with the P5+1 but urged them to drop any pre-conditions for the talks. Western powers suspect Iran is attempting to develop nuclear weapons, a charge Iran denies. The scope of Iran's uranium enrichment program is a particular worry.  Iran says it nuclear activities are peaceful and solely for power generation and medical research. Media files: AP_Saeed_Jalili_11apr12-resizedpx480q100dpi96shp8.jpg (image/jpeg, 0.1 MB) AP_Saeed_Jalili_11apr12-300.jpg

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