The.Economist-2006-01-14.pdf

Politics this week

Jan 12th 2006

From The Economist print edition

After two years of negotiations with three European countries (Britain, France and

Germany), Iran resumed nuclear “research” activity at its Natanz uranium-

enrichment plant, prompting fresh calls from the United States, Britain, France and

Germany to refer the case to the UN Security Council with a view to imposing

sanctions on Iran. See article

Doctors sought to bring Ariel Sharon, Israel's prime minister who suffered a massive

stroke last week, out of a coma; he was just able to move his left arm and his

condition remained critical. Opinion polls suggested that his new party, Kadima

(“Forward”), may still do well in the election due on March 28th. It looked possible

that Kadima's stand-in leader, Ehud Olmert, might keep up its momentum. See article

Syria's beleaguered president, Bashar Assad, visited Saudi Arabia and Egypt in an effort to shore up support for

his regime. He has refused a request to be interviewed by the United Nations commission investigating the murder

last year in Lebanon of a former Lebanese prime minister, Rafik Hariri, after he had quarrelled with the Syrian

leader.

International aid agencies launched an appeal for food for northern Kenya, where about 2.5m people risk

starvation because of a drought that is also ravaging parts of Ethiopia, Somalia and Tanzania.

Hundreds of Muslim pilgrims were crushed to death on the last day of the haj at Mecca . Authorities had instituted

extra precautions this year to try and avoid such accidents at the event, which attracts some 2m people. Last

week, 76 pilgrims were killed when a hotel collapsed.

Is Sam the man?

The United States' Senate held confirmation hearings for Samuel Alito , George Bush's nominee to the Supreme

Court. Judge Alito was asked about his thoughts on a range of subjects, including abortion, electoral law and the

limits of presidential power. See article

Republicans in the House of Representatives began the process of choosing a new majority leader after Tom

DeLay said he would not seek to regain the position. Mr DeLay “temporarily” stepped down from the post last

September after corruption charges were brought against him in Texas. See article

New Jersey's legislature voted to suspend executions until a task-force reports later this year on the fairness of

the state's death row. It is the first time a state legislature has voted to suspend the death penalty, although the

last execution to take place in New Jersey occurred in 1963.

Dick Cheney was briefly hospitalised after complaining of a shortness of breath. The 64-year-old vice-president

has a history of heart problems, but the White House said he was suffering from the side effects of medicine taken

to treat a foot ailment this time.

Death on the wing

Turkey was gripped by panic about bird flu, as human cases spread across the

country. But by mid-week, just two deaths attributable to the new strain had been

confirmed, and the government insisted that the disease was under control. Not all of

Turkey's neighbours were convinced: several were trying vainly to stop the disease

spreading further. See article

Austria marked the start of its European Union presidency by inviting the European

Commission to Vienna. The Austrian chancellor talked of reviving the EU constitution;

Germany's Angela Merkel expressed interest, and even France's Jacques Chirac said it

would be good to implement parts of the document. But the Dutch, who also voted no

last summer, insisted that the constitution was dead.

Ukraine's parliament passed a motion of no confidence in the government after last

week's gas-price deal with Russia. But since an election was due by the end of March

in any case, the decision will have little impact. See article

Spanish police arrested 20 people suspected of recruiting Islamist militants to join the insurgency in Iraq. This is

the third batch of arrests, which have pulled in a total of 46 suspects so far.

Eight people were stabbed by a man in Moscow's main synagogue. Russia has recently seen a rise in anti-Semitic

and anti-immigrant attacks.

Liberals besieged

After the final campaign debates, the opposition Conservatives appeared to be cruising towards a victory in

Canada's general election on January 23rd. But it was not clear whether they would win a majority of seats in the

House of Commons.

Mexico and nine other Latin American countries agreed to work together to defend their emigrants in the United

States, following the recent approval of a bill in the House of Representatives that would make illegal immigration

a felony and order the erection of 1,125 kilometres (700 miles) of fencing along the border. See article

Peru's electoral authority disqualified Alberto Fujimori, the country's president from 1990-2000, from standing in

an election in April. Mr Fujimori is in detention in Chile, pending a decision on his extradition to Peru to face

corruption and human-rights charges.

Haiti's electoral authorities rescheduled a much-postponed presidential election for February 7th. Meanwhile, the

Brazilian general in charge of the 9,000-strong UN peacekeeping force in Haiti was found dead in a hotel room.

Officials said he appeared to have committed suicide.

Not Kyoto

Representatives of America, China, India, Japan, South Korea and Australia met in Sydney to launch a new forum

aimed at promoting economic growth coupled with lower carbon emissions . See article

Australia announced the deployment of an additional 110 troops to Afghanistan . Meanwhile, NATO's secretary-

general, Jaap de Hoop Scheffer, urged the Dutch parliament to speed up plans to send 1,400 troops to southern

Afghanistan, where they are scheduled to join a peacekeeping expansion into former Taliban strongholds. The

deployment has stoked political controversy in the Netherlands.

Seven Pakistani troops and 14 suspected militants died in fighting on Pakistan's Afghan border. An attack by

insurgents in Baluchistan killed three soldiers and 12 militants.

Thousands of demonstrators protested in the Mongolian capital, Ulan Bator, after the Mongolian People's

Revolutionary Party, which ruled the country for much of the 20th century, withdrew its support from the

governing coalition.

More than 10m girls may have been lost to abortion and sex selection over the past

20 years in India , according to research published in The Lancet , a British medical

journal.

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