The Star Online: World Updates
The Star Online: World Updates |
- Hague in Myanmar to look at reforms first-hand
- "Rage against Americans" cited in L.A. arson case
- Prison fight in northern Mexico kills 31 inmates
| Hague in Myanmar to look at reforms first-hand Posted: 04 Jan 2012 08:06 PM PST NAYPYITAW, Myanmar (Reuters) - Foreign Secretary William Hague began a landmark visit to Myanmar on Thursday to get a first-hand view of "encouraging" reforms being pursued by its civilian leadership, but officials said he would set out conditions for the lifting of sanctions.
The two-day visit by Hague is the first by a British foreign minister since the military seized power in 1962. As the former colonial power, a visit by a British cabinet minister is seen as one of the most significant diplomatic initiatives since an army-backed civilian government embarked on a series of reforms last year. Britain has maintained a tough stand on human rights issues in the former Burma, but expressed guarded optimism after the release on October 12 of 230 political prisoners, with freedom for remaining hundreds a key demand by the West for the lifting of sanctions. Hague arrived in Naypyitaw, the capital built in secret six years ago, where he will meet president and former junta general Thein Sein on Thursday. He will travel to the main city, Yangon, and is due to hold talks on Friday with Oxford-educated pro-democracy leader and Nobel peace laureate Aung San Suu Kyi. "This visit ... has been made possible by the encouraging recent steps taken by the Burmese government," Hague said in a statement. "I am visiting the country to encourage the Burmese government to continue its path of reform and to gauge what more Britain can do to support this process." His trip follows one late last year by U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, who promised concrete support from Washington if Myanmar released more political prisoners and made more concessions, including dialogue with ethnic separatists. Britain will seek similar proof of good faith, a British official said in London before Hague left. It would push within the European Union for the easing of sanctions if there was substantial progress on three benchmarks: the release of all remaining political detainees, the holding of free and fair by-elections in April and bringing ethnic groups into the mainstream political process, he said. Just 12 political detainees were thought to have been freed this week among 900 prisoners freed as an Independence Day gesture. As many as 600 may remain behind bars. In a speech carried in Wednesday's state media to mark the former Burma's independence from Britain on January 4, 1948, Thein Sein warned of "powerful nations" seeking to impinge on the "independence and sovereignty" of weaker countries -- comments typical of the ultra-nationalist junta regime. BALANCING ACT The visit is a tricky balancing act for Hague, who will face criticism at home if he is seen as appeasing a government stacked with former members of the military regime slammed for its human rights record and brutal suppression of dissent. Rights violations by the army are still reported from areas where the army and ethnic groups are fighting. "Hague can't appear to go soft. The Burma issue has become a political football at home and if he's not forthright, he will be criticised," said Derek Tonkin, a prominent Myanmar analyst and former British diplomat. "But there's a feeling that we have been battering away at the Burmese for 22 years and not got anywhere. Britain is very much under the influence of the Americans," he said, noting Britain's discouragement of trade, tourism and investment was far heavier than that of the EU in general. Both the European Union and United States have voiced qualified support for the new government and Myanmar's neighbours in Asia, especially India, Thailand and China, are rushing to snap up deals to build infrastructure and invest in natural resources including oil, gas, gemstones and timber. British firms in the energy and financial services sectors in particular are believed to be interested in Myanmar, but Hague's visit is likely to be little more than a testing of the water before the EU holds its annual sanctions review in April. He could discuss possible inducements such as development aid or humanitarian assistance, which, if supported by Suu Kyi, could placate his staunchest critics at home. She has shown a willingness to compromise in recent months, notably by agreeing to run as a candidate in an April by-election after letting her party re-enter the political process. "Hague could offer some small concessions but at the moment, he's there to deliver the message that lifting economic sanctions requires more genuine reforms," said Mark Farmaner, director of the UK Burma Campaign. "Britain will be very careful. There's broad support for engagement, but I don't think they'll move too fast," he added, noting that reforms could take a long time. (Additional reporting by Adrian Croft; Editing by Alan Raybould and Ed Lane) Copyright © 2012 Reuters Full content generated by Get Full RSS. | ||
| "Rage against Americans" cited in L.A. arson case Posted: 04 Jan 2012 07:17 PM PST LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - A German citizen was charged on Wednesday with setting dozens of fires across Los Angeles over the New Year's weekend in a spree an arson investigator said was motivated by a "rage against Americans."
Harry Burkhart, 24, who is also wanted in Germany on suspicion of burning down his home, was charged with 37 counts of arson stemming from the three-day wave of fires that caused an estimated $3 million in damage and left residents of Los Angeles and surrounding communities shaken. Burkhart, who was guarded closely by three sheriffs deputies and at times appeared disoriented during a brief hearing in Los Angeles Superior Court, was ordered held on $2.85 million bail. Prosecutors asked the judge to order Burkhart, who was born in Chechnya, held without bail, citing his German citizenship and saying he posed a danger to the community. Police arson investigator Edward Nordskog said most of the more than 50 fires were set late at night, while the occupants of apartment buildings were sleeping. "It is my opinion that the defendant's criminal spree was motivated by his rage against Americans and that by setting these fires (the) defendant intended to harm and terrorize as many residents of the city and county of Los Angeles as possible," Nordskog wrote in court papers. Nordskog did not say what he believed touched off the anti-American rage in Burkhart, whose mother is facing possible extradition to Germany on fraud charges. A law enforcement official said Burkhart has been held on suicide watch at the Los Angeles County jail since his arrest on Monday. State prosecutors in Germany said Burkhart was suspected of starting a fire that burned down his family's home in Neukirchen. "He is accused of serious arson and suspected fraud. In the early hours of October 14, a timbered house went on fire in the Schwalm-Eder district and this person came under suspicion," said German state prosecutor Annemarie Wied. OUTBURST IN COURT LEADS TO ARREST Burkhart's 53-year-old mother, Dorothee Burkhart, was arrested last week in Los Angeles on a provisional warrant issued by German authorities and was facing extradition. The elder Burkhart, who has been living in a Los Angeles apartment with her son, faces multiple charges of fraud and embezzlement in Germany, according to court documents. She is accused of failing to pay a bill for breast augmentation, failing to return security deposits on rental properties she leased, and accepting money for apartment units she did not own, the court documents showed. Dorothee Burkhart, also a German citizen, seemed unaware during a court appearance on Tuesday that her son had been arrested and asked a judge if the "German Nazis" were responsible for him disappearing. There was conflicting information on how long Dorothee and Harry Burkhart have lived in the Los Angeles area. A website for an erotic massage service based in Los Angeles is registered to a Dorothee Burkhart who shares the same address as Harry Burkhart. The site advertises topless but non-sexual sessions by appointment only. Harry Burkhart was arrested after a tip from a member of the U.S. State Department's Diplomatic Security field office who recognized him on surveillance videotape from an outburst during his mother's initial court hearing, a state department spokeswoman said. According to the declaration filed by Nordskog, Harry Burkhart was ejected from the courtroom during December 29 extradition proceedings for his mother after angrily shouting a profanity against Americans. A man resembling Burkhart was captured on security cameras leaving the scene of several of the fires, which caused no fatalities. One firefighter was injured and another person suffered from smoke inhalation. One of the fires damaged a house in the Hollywood Hills where late rocker Jim Morrison was inspired to write the 1968 song "Love Street" about his girlfriend. (Additional reporting by Hillel Aron in Los Angeles and Sarah Marsh in Berlin; Editing by Cynthia Johnston) Copyright © 2012 Reuters Full content generated by Get Full RSS. | ||
| Prison fight in northern Mexico kills 31 inmates Posted: 04 Jan 2012 07:15 PM PST RIO BRAVO, Mexico (Reuters) - A fight between rival gangs inside a prison in northern Mexico left 31 inmates dead in the latest violence to erupt inside the country's overcrowded jails, local officials said on Wednesday. Clashes between prisoners wielding knives and homemade weapons started around mid-day and were controlled several hours later in Altamira, Tamaulipas, on Mexico's Gulf coast, said state government spokesman Guillermo Martinez. Thirteen other inmates were wounded, the state government said. Powerful drug cartels are fighting for control of smuggling routes along the U.S.-Mexico border and rivalries often spread into the prison system, where prisoners held on federal drug charges are mixed with common criminals. Last October, twenty died in a prison fight at another jail in Tamaulipas and in July, 17 inmates were killed in Ciudad Juarez, Mexico's most violent city, across from El Paso, Texas. More than 46,000 people have died in Mexico in the past five years since President Felipe Calderon launched a frontal attack on drug gangs. Packed and inefficient prisons often suffer from corruption and mass escapes. Violence exploded in Tamaulipas state after the Zetas gang broke away from the Gulf cartel and began battling their former employers for turf. (Reporting by Mexico City Newsroom, writing by Mica Rosenberg; editing by Todd Eastham) Copyright © 2012 Reuters Full content generated by Get Full RSS. |
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