Inside World Politics

Haitian President Rene Preval, announced an emergency plan to reduce the price of rice in the wake of a riot that left at least five people dead. Price of rice will approximately down by about 15 per cent. But this is not enough to put the government out of trouble as the rice shortage crisis continues.

Consumption lifestyles in the major economies are based on burning huge amounts of fossil fuels and, particularly, oil and gas Since oil and gas are not mainly sourced in the countries using them the geo-politics of the USA, the UK, and other industrial economies uses military-diplomatic mechanisms, to achieve control and compliance over local elites in producing countries.

The BBC reports that Vatican’s representatives in the Middle East met with Saudi Arabian officials to discuss building the church in the country. According to Archbishop Paul-Mounged el-Hachem, negotiations began a few weeks ago after the November 2007 meeting between Pope Benedict XVI and Saudi’s King Abdallah.

Two weeks ago the Pope set up a Catholic-Muslim forum to smooth the relations between Catholics and Muslims. In 2006 he angered many Muslims during a speech that insinuated a link between Islam and violence.

There are about 1 million Catholics in Saudi Arabia, most of which are overseas workers who can practice their religion at home though not in public. In 1985, Saudi Arabia expelled the last Christian priest, saying that Mohammed’s teachings only allow the practice of Islam in the Arabian Peninsula.

Sri Lankan police arrested five Tamil journalists in Colombo after they were accused of receiving bribes from Tamil Tiger rebels. The act is being condemned by a media freedom group called Reporters Without Borders as some of the journalists received brutal beatings during their first days in detention as a means to extract confessions from them. According to the group, the money received by two of the arrested journalists were to help Tamil students and to fund the Outreach website. The group is demanding an explanation from the Sri Lankan government, who has not yet made any comment on the matter.

According to the BBC, Sri Lanka has become unsafe for journalists since the escalation of violence in the country. The Tiger Rebels have been fighting for an independent homeland for the Tamil-speaking minority group since 1983.

Lebanese official might not be attending the Arab League Summit on March 29-30 in Damascus due to Lebanon’s political vacuum and a long-standing row with Syria. The Kuwaiti News Agency reports that according to Lebanese Communication Minister Marwan Hamada, the decision to attend the summit was not made because they have not received any invitation. Lebanon is the only Arab country that was not given a formal invitation from Syria.

Because of this, Lebanese Member of Parliament Walid Jumblatt called for an Arab boycott of the summit. According to Jumblaett, “Participating in the summit is a reward for the crime of the Assad regime.” However, Hamada notes that there is no formal way to accept the invitation while the Lebanese Cabinet assumes presidential duties. Lebanon has had no president since Emile Lahoud’s term ended in November 2007.

On this stage of life, there are many roles that only one is allowed to play, but on the world stage—which is, the UN—the only one leading role, and it is the performance of the Secretary-General that really matters most. It is how he interprets his role as a matter of discretion, and the subject of this afternoon’s discussion.

Reported by the Al Jazeera television channel (an Arabic News and Current Affairs Satellite TV channel) thru an interview that lasted 25 minutes, Taliban Commander Baitullah Mehsud is determined to destroy the white House, New York and London. He said their primary aim is to finish Britain, the US and to crush the pride of non-Muslims.

Suspected for the assassination of former Prime Minister Benazir Bhutto, Baitullah denied the attack but was known that he disliked her for pro-American views.

Known to command more than 20,000 Taliban militants, Baitullah Mehsud had recently chosen the leader of militant union called the Taliban Movement of Pakistan, which includes 40 groups to fight with the Pakistani army.

Maoist guerrillas were poised to lead Nepal’s new government. Voters had chosen to remove most of their veteran politicians and sought a radical break with the past. An addition to a 240 total of directly elected seats in the new, 601-member Constituent Assembly, and 335 indirectly elected seats to give ethnic groups, woman and marginalized castes a greater voice in the government.

The President of the US and the administration as a whole has maintained a soft stance towards the criticism and pun that is sent it’s way but there is change in the air and the President is making it known. Known for his eloquent speeches that wins hearts and minds, he appears to have had enough with all the bad press that is taking its toll on the family and government as a whole. He has made it clear again and again that he and his administration is doing everything possible to help as much people as they could and to do as much as they could. In spite of all this, he still gets a lot of bad press and his harder stance may be a sign of the end for some of the blind hits he is willing to receive much to the delight of some press people who have been labeling him as a softie.

Anything could happen in that primary. Both Smith and Graham have personal financial resources along with one having the name “Smith” and the other probably benefiting from a name association with North Carolina’s own world- renowned evangelist Billy Graham. On top of that Graham is the only one of the three Republican gubernatorial candidates who run for Statewide office multiple times and won multiple times.